last day until january 2011

this could be my final update (who knows at this point):

• current weight: 206.4
• gained so far: 35.6 pounds
• how many weeks: 38

today is my last day in the office... besides random people stopping-by to say goodbye and wish me well, it's been pretty normal... i was able to get my last big project off to the printer AND my boss was able to tell me that i got a 9.9% raise! holy cow! during my review last week, she mentioned that HR was going to do this salary-comparison thing and apparently, it worked to my advantage... i will say some extra thank-you's in my prayers tonight because i feel really truly blessed to have a good job (in this economy), a great boss, and awesome coworkers... :)

in pregnancy news, i felt pretty bad yesterday - lower back pain, tired, and sluggish... i really thought "this could be it" but of course, it wasn't... when i got home - all i wanted to do was take a bath so while eric made quiche for dinner, that's exactly what i did... then we watched some tv, and then i layed down on the bed and watched 'alien' for the 100th time... it had to have been almost 1:00 by the time i fell asleep, but not waking-up during the night helped and i've felt okay today... so far, so good... :)

weekend plans: breakfast at a friend's house tomorrow morning and then i told eric that we should take some things to goodwill... the weather in DC sounds amazing - sunny and in the lower 70s - so i hope to enjoy the sun for a bit, or at least be outside for a while... maybe i'll go for a walk too since they said that can help "move things along"... i haven't exercised in a while and really should because i certainly won't be able too after this guy is born (for a few weeks anyway)...

well, that's all i have for right now... hope you're having a good friday and have a fabulous weekend! :)

hurry up

I AM SO READY TO HAVE THIS BABY!!!

okay, maybe not READY ready, but i'm tired of feeling uncomfortable, and not being able to move around, and getting up to pee during the night, and feeling like a stuffed-pig... enough already... i have my weekly appointment tomorrow so let's hope i've progressed since last week (1.5 cm) - stay tuned... :)

this weekend was really busy for both eric and i... we started off with breakfast at the diner on saturday morning and then i headed to the salon for my day of pampering... i got a bikini wax, haircut, and pedicure, and boy was it nice to just sit and relax for a change... i heard all sorts of baby/kid stories during those few hours so that was pretty fun... i also made my next two appointments including foil-highlights in december so i'm all funked-up before coming back to work... :)

on my way home, i stopped at the mall to have some security tags taken-off my nursing tops i bought last week then went to target to pick-up a few things... i needed to pee and upon doing so, (TMI) found some brown spotting/mucus and high-tailed it home... i knew since it wasn't bright red that i was okay and i hadn't been feeling crampy or back-achy so upon reading, it was probably the passing of my mucus plug... i WAS a bit freaked-out when i got home and told eric, "i'm not ready" and he goes, "yes, we are - stop worrying"... and that i did and proceeded to clean the bathroom, do laundry, organize more stuff in the nursery, and swap our summer/winter bedding... on sunday - i was still pretty motivated and went to the grocery store, made banana bread, did more laundry, and then my mom came down to help iron/hang curtains and do some final organizing in the baby's room... we watched both the steelers and redskins game, and then eric made ham, potatoes, and green beans (from our garden) in the crockpot for dinner... my back was really hurting by the end of the day so i took a hot bath and then sat in the chair with the heating pad for a while... needless to say, i slept like a baby (pardon the pun)... :)

as for work - my last day is friday so only 3 more days to go... i finished a big report this morning and technically - there's nothing else pending or on my plate right now... my boss told me on friday (during my review) that's she's not sure what they'll do without me, and says to call if i get bored... ha, right... i have too many projects on my to-do list and worrying about work doesn't even make it to the top-20... ;)

so that's it for now... hope you're having a good week!

hump day

i was all ready to start the non-stress test today at my OB appointment, but she said let's wait another week... not sure why, but i'm okay with that since i forgot a book and will need to lay still for 20-minutes... the baby got an 8/8 today and as for me - weight is good (though i'm up 2.6 since last week!), measurement is perfect, and blood pressure is normal... besides my allergies - i don't really have any complaints except for i now have ONE pair of capris that fit... since i am finally going to see my old roommate that had twins in may - i am hoping she will have some that i can have (why buy when you can borrow?)... i think i've gotten all the wear out of my 'normal/bigger' clothes and think it's time to just suck it up and accept that a stretch-panel can be my friend... here are my updated stats - i'm still holding at a good weight, but am expecting to gain more each week until i deliver this little guy (7 weeks to go!)... :)

• current weight: 195
• gained so far: 24.2 pounds
• how many weeks: 32

the nursery was finally cleared-out this past weekend, after the basement was reassembled and things were move downstairs... we also have an extra dresser in our bedroom which is making things tight for the time being, but it's nothing i can't handle... eric managed to get the ceiling painted on sunday and that's as far as we've gotten... monday we visited a daycare center and shopped at home depot, and last night - we ran to another home depot and then IKEA to find an area rug... no such luck, but it was swedish meatball night and we had dinner instead... i WILL be starting the walls tonight, come hell or high water! :)

work has been less-busy then i would like, but that just means september will be hectic and maybe that's a good thing so it will distract me from being pregnant (or make things worse, who knows)... my boss said that the designer who used to work here, is going to freelance for us while i'm on leave, so that makes me feel better... she just finished grad school and is looking for a job, so in the meantime - she can help us out... yay! :)

guess that's all the updating i have for today - hope you're having a good week!

happy wednesday...

week is flying by

eric and i are still recuperating from the trip so we've been going to bed pretty early every night... i make a list of 'things to do', but by the time we get home, have dinner, and make lunche for the next day - i'm pooped... i had plenty'o energy on vacation so i can't blame the baby, so hopefully the jet-lag will end soon... needless to say - there has been no progress made on the photos... sorry! =(

exercise news: i HAVE been to the gym this week and am proud to say that i went both yesterday (30-min treadmill) and today (30-min elliptical)... since i'm basically carting around 20 extra pounds (gain + baby), i can really feel it so i'm taking it easy until i get more energy... i will need to get back into weights soon as well since i'm feeling like a big blob and don't like how my arms/legs have been looking... and since my eating has been less than desirable, i've reinstalled 'lose it' on my iphone and will start tracking again (i have it set to 'maintain weight')... god knows how much i gained on vacation and i'm scared to step on the scale... =(

house news: the house was painted while we were gone and it looks great - i will post before/after shots soon... the guy needs to come back and finish the front door and we're also going to talk to him about redoing the upstairs bathroom... i have some money coming from my dad (not much) so i plan on using that for some house-related things and baby furniture... i've been looking at glass tile online and have come to realize that it would be way too expensive to do the whole tub/shower, but maybe as just one row would be nice... i'm digging this color combo right now but will have to see it in person (i ordered a sample today)... i've also been looking at faucets, sinks, lights, and cabinets, and getting a rough estimate on each... just call me mrs. bob villa...  =)

work news: things have been quiet this week, both of my coworkers are on vacation so it's just me and the boss... there was an announcement while i was gone, from the president, that we are going 'business casual' mon - fri for the rest of the summer... while we still can't wear jeans, it's better than nothing and i couldn't be happier... =)

hope you're having a good week...

happy thursday...

oh la la

since eric has been busy with the contractors - he put me in charge of finding a hotel in paris... i have been researching and reading reviews on tripadvisor.com for days (many that i had found two weeks ago, were booked) and finally decided on this one... hotel val girard is located in the 15th arrondissement and as you can see, not far from the eiffel tower... and to make it even better - i found a great deal on expedia.com as well, so at least we have the beginning and end of trip taken care of... as for everything in between - that is TBA... =)

last night was our big, annual meeting dinner - i was able to take a few shots of the signs that i created, and then hit the exhibitor reception beforehand (for some yummy guacamole/chips and tonic water)...  eric came around 6:30 so we scooted around the hall, grabbed a nice j.p.morgan totebag, and then headed upstairs to the ballroom... the menu was short ribs and scallops, but my boss had said that for the veggie option, they were doing ravioli... unfortunately that's not what appeared on my plate, but rather some over-salted risotto... the salad was good and the chocolate ginache dessert was okay, but i didn't finish anything... felt very "full" yesterday for some reason... maybe it's just my belly growing, who knows... by the time the entertainment started, it was close to 9:00 so we headed home...

weekend plans: lots of yard-saling with mom tomorrow, so i'm pretty excited... i also have some shoes to return and then have a few items i need to get for the trip, like a spring jacket of some sort and maybe a few pairs of walking shoes... as for sunday, we have much to do for our trip - eric wants to put together a slideshow for the family we are staying with, so that will take some time... the guys will be working on the roof as well, maybe they'll get everything done by monday... the dumpster was delivered this morning and will live in our driveway until the job is complete... i won't post pics until everything is done, then there will be a good before/after comparison... =)

and i WILL get outside for a walk today - no ifs, ands, or butts!

happy friday...

pollen blows

our annual meeting is going on right now, so the office has been dead (though i've been extremely busy, go figure)... i was supposed to be in charge of updating 1 website, but now it's grown to 2 and i've been busy all day... i may head to the hotel later just to see everything (like the million signs i did) but also because the dinner is tonight and it's always nice to go and have fun (entertainment is mary chapin carpenter)... i'll try and take some pics...

eric finally took some belly shots of me last night and i have to admit, i just look fat... i guess that's normal... i probably won't start posting any until you can really tell...

though i've been incredibly lucky so far - i'm still in the high-risk category because of my clotting disorder and have to give myself a shot of lovenox every day... it's not that bad and most days are good, though the times that i hesitate is when i bruise... besides that - my family doctor upped my synthroid to 75 mg and so far, so good... my allergies have been pretty bad this week too so i called the OB yesterday and got the okay to take claritin - seems to have helped... =)

in other news - we have hired a contractor to do our roof and have the house painted... i picked out some nice colors for the paint (khaki and navy blue) and shingles (mixed greys and browns) - can't wait to see the end result... after that, i told eric that i'd like to have a new kitchen floor and countertop... i can't stand the one we have now - it's old and always looks dirty, and i'm not having that with a baby around... we can handle doing the cabinets and painting, so it shouldn't be that much work (hahaha!)... eric really wants to head back to pittsburgh in the next few years, so the more we do now - the less we'll have to handle when it comes time to put the house on the market...

in honey/babymoon news - we have yet to reserve a room, anywhere... pretty funny considering we leave in 8 days...

so that's it for me - hope you're having a good day!

happy thursday...

oh yea, i forgot to tell you

i'm pregnant... =)

i apologize for not telling you guys sooner, but we were waiting for the right time and then my dad passed away and well, you know the rest... we just told eric's family 2 weeks ago, the rest of our close friends last week, and my coworkers last thursday (still haven't said anything on facebook)... i admit - it was fun keeping a secret, but i'm glad to finally have it out there... =)

so our little "spicy meatball", as eric likes to call him, is due the week of october 18 and puts me at 16 weeks... i found out that i was pregnant after having my pre-op bloodwork done before foot surgery - the doctor called me at work and said, "so we have your results here and i'm not sure if you know this or not, but you're about 5 weeks pregnant"... i had been about 2-weeks late, but thought nothing of it since my schedule was sporadic anyway... i had to keep quiet the whole day and didn't tell eric til we got home from work that nice - talk about stressful... he wasn't really surprised either - shocked maybe, but not really surprised...

to be honest - i NEVER thought, in a million years, that i would get pregnant this quickly... i had even asked my OB back in january about how long should we try before getting concerned - he had told me that if i wasn't pregnant by june, to come back... you should've seen his face when i went back for my 8-week appointment - he said, "wow, that didn't very long, did it"... i feel truly blessed and very lucky because i know there are a lot of women out there who have issues with getting pregnant - i really, really thought that was going to be me... guess i was wrong...

so after finding out - it threw a wrench into my foot surgery plans since i could no longer be put under anesthesia... so i had to get a note from my OB saying it was okay to have a local instead, and the rest is history... i was awake for the whole thing (which sucked) and couldn't take any pain medication afterward (which sucked even more)... will i be going thru that again any time soon? probably not and so far, my foot hasn't been hurting as much... yay!

overall - i've been feeling good... no morning sickness (at all) but i'm still pretty tired at the end of the day... the first few weeks were brutal - like as soon as i got home, i put on my PJs and was on the couch ready for bed... the doc says this should pass soon, but that i may start to get headaches (yup)... i've had a barrage of prenatal testing (because of my age) which has consisted of ultrasounds, sonograms, a triple screen test, and most recently - an amniocentesis... everything has looked perfect so far and we were able to get a firm confirmation on the sex --> a boy... again, i'm not surprised - i have always said that i would have a boy and would've been shocked if they said "it's a girl"... needless to say, my family (especially my mom ) is thrilled since we've only had girls... =)

so as you can imagine - my eating has been all over the place and same with my weight... i did not start this pregnancy at a weight that i am happy with, but there's nothing i can do about it now... they say 25-30 pounds is a good amount to gain, so that will be my goal though it's been hard during the last few weeks... i've hardly exercised because of all that's been going on - work, being extremely tired, and my dad, but know i have to make it a priority... just going for a walk is good they say, so that is going to be my focus...

i've had to buy new clothes already, though i don't think i look pregnant, and nothing from last summer fits (pants anyway)... size 16s are a tad too big right now so i'm trying to make do with buying stuff i can either grow into or wear for more than a month... i can't stand anything tight either so most of my shirts will have to be replaced soon as well... good thing i like to shop! =)

well, there's my news and hopefully this site won't turn into a total baby-blog, but i'm looking forward to sharing things with you since many of you are moms and have been thru it... and feel free to pass along any tidbits of advice - websites, stores, books, etc... =)

happy hump day...

half over

work has been extremely busy for me this week which is good, but there's no end in sight until this damn annual meeting is over next month (may 7)... the final program will go to the printer on monday, and i haven't even started on the hotel/exhibit signage... and then there will be a dozen or so last-minute projects - all of which will need to be done ASAP... gotta love it... the only light at the end of the tunnel right now, is looking forward to our honeymoon... =)

eric FINALLY bought our tickets for paris on sunday - that's as far as we've gotten but at least i know that i'll be driving around france may 14–29... we'll spend a day or so in the city and then it will be off to the countryside where i hope we just take our time, soak-up the scenery, and get some much needed R&R... we'll spend some time w/his host family (from college) but that's all i know right now... if anyone has some suggestions on places to stay in southern france - please let me know... i'm not looking for 4-star hotels - B&Bs would be nice... =)

work, honeymoon... that's about all that's been going on for me... besides going thru photos of my dad and starting to assemble things for the memorial service (may 2)... my sister was telling me about how much some newspapers charge to list an obituary - one is costing more than my dad's cremation - how insane is that!?!?! i'm in the wrong business, that's for sure... i spent some time w/my mom and brother on sunday - he found more pictures so we reminisced for a while and made fun of my mom's hair at the time... not that mine was any better, but you know what i mean... fun times... =)

eric's been away at a conference, but will be home tonight... i haven't watched any of our shows this week (breaking bad, LOST, and justified) so we'll have much to keep us busy... =)

 well, that's it for me... hope you're having a good week...

happy hump day...

mondays suck

this week will be my last before surgery on friday, and it will be a busy one! there's so much going on with our annual meeting because it's now 4 conferences-in-one, which means 4x the work... all i have to look forward too is going on our much-needed honeymoon once it's all over - sometime in mid-may... =)

we had a productive weekend and am happy to report that we found a mattress at macy's on saturday... not only was it highly rated by consumers that bought it, it was half-price! yes, it's the floor-model but seriously - why pay $1200 when you can pay $600! they only keep them on the floor for 6-months and it's in near-perfect condition... it has a firm side (for eric) and a plus side (for me) but actually - there's not that much difference between the two, so we can still rotate it every 6-months... i am so happy and can't wait to have this weekend! =)

on saturday night, we had some friends over for dinner - eric made 2 kinds of quiche and i made spinach manicotti with homemade sauce, thank you very much... it was very tasty and i'm looking forward to having leftovers for dinner tonight... on sunday, i was extremely lazy and pretty much vedged-out on the couch all day while eric tinkered in his office, working on a new web-server... i did some laundry but had cleaned a lot on saturday, so i felt i had a good excuse to do nothing... we watched the USA/Canada hockey game last night, which was great, and then eric got into watching curling so i went to bed...

i got my south beach book today and i have much to read before friday... i don't plan on starting until next week so i can give myself the weekend to feel semi-normal after surgery, but will need to go to the store and stock-up on healthy stuff...

well, that's it for me - hope you're having a great monday! =)

haven't used an alarm in 6 days

it was back to work for me today - i know i shouldn't complain, but one can get used to being home and not have to deal with things like "work"... thankfully it's been relatively quiet - my boss is out sick and she even said it would be okay to wear jeans (a total no-no, even on fridays)... that alone made coming-in a tad easier... the roads were fine but DC is still dealing with a large amount of snow so 3-lanes often turn into 1-lane in a matter of seconds... and earlier this morning, there was a train derailment - just what we need on a friday! no one was hurt, thank-god, and things seem to be back to normal... for now anyway...

i brought my gym clothes today, and didn't go... i have no ambition/motivation, after being snowbound for over a week, and i hate feeling like this... i have started gathering info for doing low-carb again, and just need to get my shit together and do it... i have all the south beach food lists and phases, but if any of you have a favorite website or book - let me know... :-)

since most of my projects are done for the day, i've been poking around online and found some interesting things... enjoy! :-)

• Measure Up Bowl takes the guesswork out of calorie counting...
• Feeling crafty? Check out these fun ideas...
• Fat Wallet and Slickdeals are the best, bargain sites out there...
• Lean Cuisine keeps coming-up with new flavors... 
• How not to gain weight on Valentine's Day... 

well, time to finish things up for the day... i hope you all have a great, 3-day weekend and a wonderful valentine's day... :-)

remember to spread the love...

love me some new flavors

i found this at the grocery store yesterday and it is SO delicious! it might just be my favorite flavor now, behind boston creme pie and raspberry cheesecake... yum-o! :-)

the rest of my weekend was okay - spent most of my sunday at mom's, helping her put away xmas stuff and organize some shelves and closets... i like helping because i know it's hard to do alone, but i left around 12:30 and didn't get home til after 8:00... luckily, all the cleaning and laundry were done on saturday so all i had to do was watch the grammy awards (how cool was pink's performance? holy cow!)... :-)

work has been productive so far today, but i'm leaving at 2:30 to head to the foot doctor... i've had some sort of an appointment, every week, since the beginning of the year so i'm thrilled to only have 1... eric asked me if i wanted to go to atlanta in april (where's he going on business) but don't think i'll be able too between my foot and work... if it was san diego - that's another story, but atlanta in april just doesn't sound very relaxing (no offense)...

well, i'm off to finish a few things before heading out... happy monday... :-)

how far would you go?

i'm not one to admit that i like to read a few non-weightloss related blogs, but i do, and they're good for boring afternoons, rainy sundays, or when you are curious to see what's happening in hollywood... i came across this yesterday and then found the accompanying photo today... if you are familiar with heidi montag (who isn't?!?!), she unveiled her new & improved body to people magazine and admitted to having not 1, not 2, but 10 plastic surgeries last year (at the same time)... the photo speaks a thousand words, but the article is just as interesting... i'm rather speechless and dumbfounded, and wonder how much i would have to get paid before doing something so stupid... :-p

i am THRILLED that this will be a long-weekend for me - it has been busier than hell here and i'm exhausted after all these early morning doctor appointments... HR called me yesterday and said that i still have 6 unused vacation days from last year (we have a use/lose policy) and i had until march 31 to use them... i joking said that i wouldn't be able to take my honeymoon until after our annual meeting, and they said they'd reconsider and get back to me... my boss basically told me to use them, so i need to think about what i could do, or where i can go... it will suck if i have to have foot surgery (twice) because i would use sick-time and not vacation-time... ugh...

eric and i are going to the washington area RV show tomorrow - he thought it would be fun to go check-out what's new and exciting in the camping world (not that we have any plans to buy something)... and that's about all the plans we have, so far, and that's fine by me! :-)

food/tracking has been good... exercise - not great, but i'll get to the gym today... :-)

hope you all have a great weekend - happy friday...

lose it

So much for posting more in 2010 - I can't seem to find the time for anything these days... Between work (my usual excuse), therapy, doctor's appointments, and going to Pittsburgh for the hubby's family's Christmas - I can't seem to get caught-up! Even though I have a ton of work to do, I am taking the time to post since who knows when I'll be back...

Things have been less than ideal lately - I've been pretty down about my whole foot situation... I have hopes that therapy will work and he started me on a new procedure Friday where I receive medication (cortisone-like) via an electrode... It doesn't hurt and I will only get about 8 treatments total - then we'll see where I'm at...

I met w/my endocrinologist this morning, to go over my bloodwork, and thankfully - only 1 clotting factor was present (Factor V Leiden Gene Mutuation)... If I had more than 1 factor, chances of me getting another DVT or something else would be much higher - so good news! I just need to give him a call when I get pregnant, and then the fun begins (daily-shots)... :)

Eric hooked-up our Wii on Monday - we only have the basic and fit games, but so far they're pretty cool... According to the computer - we're overweight and have an activity age of 47! Awesome! Last night, we tried boxing and played 9-holes of golf... :)

And speaking of weight - I finally stepped on the scale Monday and it was NOT a pretty sight! I'm embarrassed to admit that I'm up to 172.6... According to eTools - I was 169 last January, 162 in April, and then back-up to 165 in October... I can't tell you when I stopped keeping track, but it's obvious I shouldn't have... :(

So after reading everyone's NY's resolutions, I stumbled across Kathleen's post about "Lose It" which is this great app for the iPhone... It's similar to WW where you keep track of what you're eating, but by calories and not points... I've really enjoyed using it and haven't had any issues so far - if a food doesn't show-up in the database, I just add it manually... In case you're curious, I took some screen shots of what the pages look like - pretty cool... :)

happy thursday... 

why can't it be thursday?

happy hump day!

i'm so glad i only have 1 more day and then it's vacation time til after christmas... i still won't have used-up all my time, but the majority of it will be taken at least (i think)... so far the only plans i have made are: 2 doctors appointments, getting a new driver's license, opening a joint-checking account, and lunch with some old coworkers... i also plan on getting my christmas cards done, baking some cookies, finishing my shopping, and getting some R&R sans being sick... am feeling much better, thankfully, and hope to stay cold-free for the rest of the winter! :-)

i found two more really cute blogs today:

• twig and thistle 
• bakerella
• free shipping day
  

yesterday was our company holiday party - it was in-house this year when in the past, we generally go to a local hotel... to save money, they had decorated outside one our large conference rooms and had tables upon tables of sweet things like cookies, brownies, cheesecake, pudding, etc... there was only ONE bowl of fruit and a few pieces of cheese with some crackers... seriously?! that's all your giving us?! makes me so mad that they chose unhealthy over healthy when it comes to things like this... after the party, we went to grab a drink around the corner then went to another bar to celebrate someone's bday... it was fun but then it got late and i had to get home (which is a nightmare w/metro after 9:00)... my design-coworker found out that someone stole a bunch of cash from her wallet at the bar - we had thrown all our crap down on some couches and never went back until it was time to leave... so stupid! i had a bunch of cash and a blank check in mine, but luckily - nothing was taken... lesson learned! :-p

i went to the gym on monday, but not yesterday and plan on going today as well... it's been incredibly hard to get back into the swing of things esp. after the wedding, thanksgiving, and being sick... i have lost all my mojo - must be that time of year! ;-)

on a good note: the photographer has been sending me batches of wedding photos and i have to say, i think i look pretty good... yea, i hate the way my arms look but considering i didn't lose any weight beforehand, they came out really well... as soon as i go thru them all, i'll share some on here... :-)

happy wednesday...

already?

s it was back to work today, even though i didn't feel like going... i've been sick since last tuesday - started with a sore throat and gradually moved into a bad head-cold with lots of coughing... thank GOD we didn't go on a honeymoon right away because i would've been miserable the whole time (bad enough i wasn't 100% over thanksgiving!)... as for when that will be - probably after my company's annual meeting, which is may 5-7, 2010... and where will we go? france and germany for sure, but we need to sit down and figure out how much time we have and where we'd like to go... :)

hard to believe that the wedding was only a week ago - seems much longer for some reason... people are still baffled at how we managed to pull something off, in about 3 months - i can't take ALL the credit though i should probably take 99.9%... if it wasn't for my mom, matron-of-honor, and coordinator at the Inn - it wouldn't have been possible (but being super organized AND a designer helped tremendously)... in all honesty - i can't tell you one thing that went wrong the whole day... my last-minute manicure was perfect, the weather was gorgeous, the flowers were beautiful, no one got into an argument, the photographer arrived early, i cried during the ceremony but not enough to mess-up my makeup, no one knew that i was in severe foot pain (cortizone shot didn't help), reception was awesome, food was very tasty, music was fun, booze was over-flowing, and all our friends & family had a great time... we couldn't have asked for anything better and am SO happy to be married to eric... :)

still can't believe i'm married though, seems so weird... i've officially changed my name to jodi megan weakland, and will soon be getting all my new credit cards and SS card in the mail... i've ordered new checks and labels, just need to get cracking on the passport... and magazine subscriptions... ;)

i won't have the real photos for another few days, but have collected a few from friends and family and thought i'd share... enjoy! :)

happy monday...

you don't scare me

happy halloween eve! anyone have big plans? eric and i will be staying in and handing out candy to trick-o-treaters tomorrow night... this will be my first year at the house so i'm pretty excited... no one seems to be having a party, which i'm totally fine with because it's one less thing i have to worry about... and with the wedding less than 21 days away - i didn't need to be worrying about finding a costume to wear... there's always next year! :)

i have to say, i'm not digging this new blogger layout/template - one used to be able to upload more than one pic at a time and now, it's back to the old-fashioned way? WTF! or maybe it's just me (but i doubt it)...

eric and i watched 'slumdog millionaire' last night - what an awesome movie! i highly recommend it and the music was excellent... we may try and go see 'paranormal activity' tonight but will see how crowded the theaters will be after work (i'm in the mood for something terrifying)... :)

let's see, what else... my boss has been out sick all week, leaving me in charge and helping the other two designers... i just hope and pray that the "sick" bug stays away from me and if not, that i get it before the wedding...

the wedding plans are coming along as best as they can... we are meeting w/the coordinator tomorrow to figure out which option is going to work with our final count (136) - we can either go w/the tent and expect to pay $5-6k extra OR see if we can squeeze everyone into the Inn and on the 3-sided porch... each has it's plusses/minuses (esp. money) so that's what we need to figure out... more wedding updates can be found here... :)

food/exercise - not great but not terrible... totally slacked on the workouts this week but HAVE to make it priority starting today... i'm not worried about fitting into my dress or anything, but i'm just feeling lazy and know that's not good for me... eric is interested in trying out bally's for a week, so if he likes it - then we can do the morning thing together... sweet! :)

guess that's all for now - will try and catch-up with everyone this weekend...

happy friday!

need a nap

i'm ready to go home - been up since 5:30, here since 7:15, and have a long night ahead of me since my mom and i are heading to my sister's for the weekend... it was annual report photography day and even though i'm not working on it this year, i was offer my help and assistance to the other designer (since this is her first)... things went well but there's always a lot of waiting around and/or trying to find someone when they're late... maybe our boss will be nice and say, "go home early" but i doubt it... :-(

it will be nice to get away and possibly do some wedding stuff w/the family - my nieces are uber-excited about everything... i will also be meeting the newest member of the family - calvin, the long-haired tabby... we may do some shopping or craft shows but mainly, i'm just looking for some R&R... this week has worn me out for sure!

my knee is healing okay - i've been loading it up with neosporin and keeping it covered as best i can... can't wait to see how this baby scabs-up... my hands/chin are fine and you can barely tell anything happened so at least that's good... as for my other issue - my right shoulder has been bugging the crap out of me - i didn't pull anything and can move it around w/no problem, but when i told my mom she said, "it's probably tendinitis since you carry your bag on that arm, i have the same thing"... great, just what i need! :(

speaking of bags, i treated myself to a new vera bag this week (last big purchase as a single woman!)... i can't wait to get it because i'm not happy with the one i have now plus cream isn't really a fall/winter color... isn't she pretty? ;)



well, that's all i have for today... need to go update the wedding blog now (hard work having two)... have a great weekend! :)

happy friday...

i'm alive

ugh, so sorry that i haven't posted since last week! between work and a very busy weekend - i just haven't had the time to sit down and write (or catch-up with everyone either)... i was finally able to take a breather today, but have to leave early for my 3-month dermatology appt. so the work day will be short... and what could be better than meeting mom later at kohl's to do some shopping... :)

so work has been extremely busy - since i'm out-of-the-office starting next tuesday - i have two big projects that have to get into review mode while i'm gone... one being an annual pub that is 300+ pages (and boring as hell)... i've gotten that pretty much in the bag and then will start working on the other project tomorrow - fun fun...

this past weekend was quite a blur - saturday we ran a bunch of errands and then one of eric's friends had a party saturday night... eric ordered a cap for the back of his truck so now we'll be able to sleep in style while at the beach (we stick a futon in the back so it's nice and comfy)... then we checked out this architectural restoration/recycle place that had all sorts of stuff dirt cheap... like sinks, doors, windows, tiles - you name it, they had it! we'll probably go back once we have a handle on what our 1st big project will be (bathroom or kitchen)... IKEA was next on the list and even though the items i wanted had been sold-out since 10:30 - we still managed to find a nice, walnut-colored tv stand and matching shelf for above it... i'm very excited since right now we sort of have a mish-mosh of stands and this way - everything can be in one unit and organized! yay! as for the party - not much to say besides it was a lot of fun and i played my first game of beer pong (not too shabby either)... i was the DD so it was fun people-watching... ;)

on sunday - my mom invited me to go w/her to the charlestown races... one of her friends was in the hospital and wasn't able to go, so i said, "what the hell" since i had never been... we had a nice lunch (buffet) where i tried to take small portions but ended-up overeating anyway... it was a beautiful day regardless though the most i won, at one time, was $2.80! i also didn't win anything on the slots but those things are fixed anyway... ;)

so that's what i've been up too... i'm still doing the green monter thing in the morning and have to say my newest combo is the best so far:

- handful of spinach
- 1/2 c. soy milk
- 1/2 c. coconut water
- 1/2 c. blueberries
- 1/2 c. pineapple
- 1/2 banana
- 1 tbsp. salba

happy hump day...

turnpike, here we come

it's been quiet here all day and i'm glad because my boss is on vacation next week and i have yet another big project coming my way... this one isn't as exciting, unfortunately, but it's an annual publication and it must be done (300+ pages)... :(

since my boss left early and my in-box is empty - i'm hoping to scoot out a bit early... eric & i are heading back to pittsburgh tonight and we'd like to get ahead of the traffic (which is really impossible on a friday afternoon, in DC)... his sister is throwing his parents a surprise party for their 50th wedding anniversary tomorrow, so we're staying at one of his brother's house tonight, then will come home tomorrow after the luncheon... i know eric will want to come straight back, but a tiny part of me wishes we could stop by the fair again so i give all those horses one more hug & kiss... :)

as for the rest of the weekend - sunday will be packed with the usual stuff: yard work, grocery store, laundry, and cleaning... i'll need to map-out my green monster recipes and think eric will be joining me as well... i picked more blueberries the other night so they're in the freezer and ready to go - how exciting! :)

did i mention we finally watched 'the wrestler' last week while on vacation? i was pleasantly surprised and think mickey rourke did an amazing job - you sort of couldn't help feeling sorry for the guy... and let me just say - for a 45-year old, marisa tomei is SMOKING HOT... if you haven't seen it - i highly recommend it... :)

have a great weekend, everyone... :)

jelly belly

thanks for the comments and yes, that is an IKEA bedspread (6+ years old)... i really need to get a new one for summer, as well as some curtains - the new blinds aren't as dark as i thought they'd be so having curtains would help tremendously... we haven't done any more work in the house this week - minus eric putting up the shelves in the pantry... perhaps on sunday i can start painting and get that room done (since it's supposed to rain)... we're going to try and get the garden done tonight since it's going to be nice and warm today - tomorrow is out because of my niece's wedding in PA... i also got my flower shipment so those will have to be planted soon as well - so much to do! :)

my big project got sent to the printer on wednesday but there were already some issues yesterday, then they ended up not being anything at all... i'll have to go on another press-check next wednesday so that should be fun (but not so much if i have to come back to work)... after the print version is done, it's time to start working on the web version - bahhhhhh! :(

i still haven't been to the gym BUT will be going for a walk today if it kills me... my foot/toe is much better but i still feel a twinge of pain at certain times - maybe i really did break something? though i only gained another .2 pounds this week (a miracle after spending 2 days at my sister's), i'm feeling rather mushy these days and really need to get back on track... eating has been good for the most part - we are eating more salads with dinner and making more of an effort to eat healthy... my mom's homemade easter candy doesn't count though, it's only once a year so it's been nice to have a bit here and there... :)

have a nice weekend...

update: i DID go for a walk near the mall, and was able to jog for a bit - felt great! :)