maybe i'll call-in sick

ugh, i have to go back to work tomorrow and i'm not looking forward to it... wish i had taken this week off as well, but since my boss is out and other coworkers - there wasn't much choice... let's just hope it's quiet and not too busy... at least it won't be a long day - i have a foot doctor appt. in the morning so i'll be going in late... yay! :-)

we had a nice, quiet christmas here at home - unfortunately, both of my big presents are still "in-route" so i only had a few things to open... one of which was this redskins ski-cap (too bad they lost horrendously last night to the cowboys)... i also got a book and some chocolate, no complaints! on saturday, we had 11 family members here for dinner - it was crowded but food and drink were flowing and everyone had a good time... the fridge is FULL of leftovers so we'll be eating well for days! just wish there wasn't so many sweets still around - i seem to go to those first! :-(

i had my endocrinologist appt. today - he did a quick exam and then decided to do a full blood workup so he can see exactly what type of blood-clotting dissorder i have (there are many strains, including a few new ones)... i go back in two weeks and he'll go through everything in detail... my ob/gyn recommended i go see this doctor since there could be many health risks once i become pregnant... i will have to give myself daily shots of a "thinner" so clots don't form and the embryo stays attached to the uterus - scary stuff...

speaking of scary - the nurse made me step on the scale and it was a number i haven't seen in years! seriously! this "who cares" attitude has to stop so i'll be back at the gym tomorrow and restarting WW once i get reorganized and resettled after the holidays...

hope you all had a wonderful holiday! :)

happy monday....

T'was the night before Christmas

Merry Christmas, everyone... :-)

Eric and I will be heading out to church with mom later this evening, and then we'll be home all day tomorrow with the kitties... We are hosting dinner on Saturday and I have much to do (though we are getting help from honeybaked ham and turkey)... Presents are wrapped but there's cookies to bake and cleaning to do - maybe I'll start on those tomorrow...

I've had a few good days off, though the news from my sonogram was not good... The tumor has come back in my right foot, but times two - so it's back to the foot doctor on Tuesday to see what the next step will be... The radiologist said one of the "spots" could be a mass of scar tissue so we'll see what happens...

As for eating and exercise, both have been crap and I can really feel it... I know that one of my presents from Eric is a Ninendo Wii, so I'm really looking forward to using it... For those that have one - what games/activities do you like?

I hope you all have a wonderful holiday, be safe, and remember to be thankful... I know I am! :)

i can't find my car

it has been snowing here since last night - almost 24 hours straight... as of about an hour ago, the ruler in our backyard said 18" which is crazy - DC hasn't had snow like this in years! it's broken records, left and right, and will continue to do so until tomorrow when it finally stops... we have decided to not start shoveling until then so for now, we'll be staying indoors and letting nature take its course... :)

yesterday was my last day at work until the 29th... i hit the MVA, bright and early, and got my new driver's license which took less than 40 minutes! wow! after that - i hit target, kohl's, the grocery store, baja fresh, the mall, and target one more time (but a different one)... i was able to finish most of my shopping, but still have a few small things to pick-up this week - so glad i was home before rush hour and before the snow started... last night - i disassembled my centerpieces and washed the mason jars,  next will be going thru the lanterns and linens to see what i can resell... :)

eric and i watched the movie "9" today - very interesting... might watch 'the davinci code" and "angels and demons" later - tomorrow, it's football... yay! can't wait to make chicken noodle soup... :)

hope everyone is having a great weekend... :)

happy saturday...

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...

drugs are good

the antibiotics are working, i think anyway - am feeling MUCH better and more like myself (doctor gave me levaquin)... so much so, that i had the energy to write our wedding thank-you's last night (while listening to christmas music, via pandora, on my iphone)... and speaking of christmas - those cards will get done this weekend, as well as some shopping and football-watching since last sunday i was busy with mom... it's always good to have at least ONE day to do nothing... :)

so how incredible was the 'biggest loser' on tuesday? i knew danny was going to win and thought he looked amazing (and about 20-years younger)... and am i the only one that thought rebecca looked a tad creepy with the shorter, blonde hair? that's what eric said anyway, but she looked incredible and totally deserved the $100k... wonder how next season will be, it's back to the couple-thing again...

eric and i have been catching-up with some movies lately - we watched 'district 9' and 'terminator salvation'... i have to say 'district 9' was pretty cool, though nothing like i was expecting, and i really liked the news-focused storyline...

food/exercise have been okay (food) and nonexistent (exercise) since i've been sick... watching the total-gym demo, on qvc, made me wish i had a house that was big enough to have my own gym... then i would never have an excuse to skip a workout... :)

happy thursday...

Just me and the kitties

So I called the doctor and was told he was booked for the day, then was asked a bunch of questions, and told they would call-in an RX for me... Let's just hope the antibiotics help because I'm really tired of feeling like crap...

Question: How annoying is Kathy Lee Gifford? Time for the food network...

Happy Tuesday

And she's out

This cold has been kicking my ass for almost two weeks and after emailing a friend about some of my symptoms, she goes "maybe you have a sinus infection"... That might explain the pain I've been having and lack of energy... I keep pretending that I'm okay but the cough is still here too, so its Time to call the doctor... :-(

On a good note, we got our tree on Saturday (as it was snowing) and got that up yesterday along with lights on the house... Inside was done as well so at least I feel like I acomplished something this weekend... And so far, only one cat has attempted to drink out of the tree stand and climb the tree (before being decorated)... Ugh...

Been ordering some things for Eric and after buying some new kitchen curtains on Sat, I didn't like them when I put them up... I hate when that happens... So I found some nicer ones at jcpenny.com and will return the ones from target... *sigh*

Have I mentioned that our basement is full of wedding stuff? I need to take apart all the centerpieces and go thru the linens and lanterns to resell... What a job that will be... :-(

Well, I should go and get some rest... Will see what the doc says tomorrow...

Happy Monday

Sent from my iPhone (please forgive typos!)

Happy Holidays!

TGIF

i'm SO glad it's friday... besides being my first week back, this cold is taking F O R E V E R to go away and it's not made me a happy camper... hopefully by the time monday rolls around though, i'll be feeling more like myself so i'm going to try and be optimistic... :)

speaking of optimistic - i REALLY wish my right foot would stop hurting! the cortisone shot that i got right before the wedding didn't help, so i've made another appt. and will ask to have an MRI so we can figure out what's wrong... it's been very painful and the shoes that used to be okay to wear, aren't so much these days and that's not good... hard to believe that it's been almost 10 years since i've had a normal, pain-free foot... :(

i am determined to start decorating for christmas this weekend - eric isn't so into the whole thing and could care less about getting a tree... last night he said, "don't you have a skinny, fake one we can use?" and i replied, "yea, but i want a real one, don't you?" his family, from what i've seen, isn't very big on holidays or decorating, but my mom was and still is... i just think it's nice to make the house look pretty and smell good too, plus - it's only for a month so why not?! so, either tomorrow or sunday i'll be dragging him out of the house so we can buy a tree... just not sure where it's going to go just yet... ;)

i started to do some shopping online, but for the life of me - can't figure out what i want this year... i told eric that i already got what i wanted this year (a ring AND a wedding) so i'm not sure what to ask for... for those of you that have been dating a while and/or are married - any suggestions? i have an ipod and an iphone... hmm...

well, that's all i have for today... hope everyone has a great weekend - stay warm! might snow here tomorrow... :(

happy friday...

giveaways

i'd like to start sharing blogs/products again, so here are some that i found last night (thank you, real simple)... please check'em out and who knows, maybe you'll win something... :)

• www.bloggiveaways.blogspot.com
• www.fantabulouslyfrugal.com
• www.giveawaytoday.blogspot.com
  

enjoy!

facelift

thought it was time to make this blog a bit more festive... not like i don't have better things to do, but hey - it's that time of year! yee haa! i'm SO excited to have an actual house to decorate this year (instead of my old apartment), so the possibilities are endless! i wanted to get a tree this past weekend, but since i was sick and we had other things going on - looks like it will be this weekend instead... of course i have no idea where we're going to put it, but don't worry - i can find a place for anything... :)

i went to the gym today - first time in like 2 weeks! crazy! since i can't breathe that well, i was still able to get 40 minutes-in on the treadmill (incline) and then did some sit-ups... eric keeps talking about joining the gym so once he's back on his feet (i gave him the cold that i'm still trying to get over), we'll go and see how it works... i haven't stepped on the scale in over a month so who knows what i'm going to see... :(

while on 'vacation', i took the time to upgrade my iphone and get some new apps... i can see how people spend hours and hours (and money) on apps because they are endless! i've only bought one so far (scrabble) and seem to have good luck with the free ones... these are some of the new ones i downloaded, but feel free to suggest ones that you might have too... :)

• doodle buddy -> can draw and add frames around pictures
  
• ps mobile -> similiar to photoshop with different filters and color options
• scramble -> a word game (like boggle)
  
• short covers -> book program (free and purchased)
  
• crop for free -> allows you to crop images on your phone
  
• ringtones lite -> lots of free ones and easy to download

well, i need to run and pick-up some nyquil on the way home... yea, yea - i'm such the good wife... ;)

happy tuesday...

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...

not used to being called "mrs."

after 4 years, 10 months, and 7 days - eric and i finally tied the knot this weekend... it was THE most wonderful day of my life and would do it all over again if i could (and maybe beat my 4-month planning record!)... we are incredibly happy, but exhausted and i promise to post more pics as i get them (will have official ones next week)... thank you for all the well-wishes and i promise to get back to blogging again soon... :)

good excuse

yea, so i'm getting married next week and i haven't had time to do anything BUT that... geesh! between ordering supplies for the reception, calling/emailing/texting the coordinator at the Inn, dealing with what/how much alcohol we need, finalizing the estimate, designing programs, menus, and favor jar-labels, putting together centerpieces, getting the rings, figuring out music, and ordering more beef (organice, grass-fed)... i'm sure i'm missing more, but that's the bulk of what i've been dealing with this week... more details can be found here... :-)

i've been going to the gym everyday, so that's been good - just trying to maintain at this point... i haven't lost my appetite either so maybe that will happen next week (one can hope, right)... i'll be at work until wednesday and then i'll be off until after thanksgiving... we're looking forward to going to state college this year too because a lot of eric's family, that can't make it to the wedding, will be there... i wouldn't be surprised if they top 100 people this year - crazy! :-)

let's see, what else... i'm getting my hair cut, colored, and highlighted tomorrow - will try and remember to take before/after shots... i'm also having a make-up test, to see how it will look for next week - i haven't had my make-up done since HS so this should be fun... again, i'll try and take before/after shots... also have a ton of wedding stuff to do... :-)

in between all the wedding stuff - eric and i managed to go to pittsburgh for a nice, long weekend... the weather was great (sunny and in the 70s) and i can only hope it will be like that next week (though i checked the weather and it says showers! no!)... we had to pick-up the beef for the reception, but also got to hang-out w/his parents and nephews... even went to see 'where the wild things are' and it was excellent (never read the book!)... everyone is excited about the wedding too, so it was nice to hang with the future in-laws...

well, that's all i got... i have some more lists i need to make and sort, but will do my best to update at least one more time before the wedding...

have a great weekend! :-)

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!

31 more days... is that right?

busy, busy, busy - that's all i have to say... i have a feeling it will be like this until november 22, so please bear with me... i DID get in a great 45-minute walk in today - perfect weather here in DC so i took advantage and hit the streets! yay me! :)

anyway, there's much to do but feel free to check-out pics from my bachelorette party and bridal shower... had an awesome weekend! :)

happy monday...

how many apples does it take to make a pie? one!

boy, the weather sure has turned here in maryland - it was so chilly last night when i got home, i had to turn-on the heat! course it's in the 70s right now, but i know yesterday's trend is just the beginning... need to make a point and get outside for my workout today... :)

had a busy weekend - went to an arts/craft show with my mom on saturday... baskets and beaded jewelry seems to the most popular thing this year, and at one stand - i found THE most perfect bracelet for the wedding... i spoke with the woman who made it and was like, "can you customize a bracelet for me?" and she said, "of course! what would you like?"... after i told her the colors i wanted (choc brown, light blue, ivory, and champagne) - she took my info, measured my wrist, and said she'd send me a photo of when she starts beading to make sure i approve... i was so happy and can't wait to see the real thing in person! :)



after the show, we headed to jo-ann fabrics to search for something to cover my favor-jars... someone at the craft show used a fabric that was almost identical to my invitations, but we searched high and low and couldn't find it in the store... i opted for a blue pattern and a brown pattern and will use both... i also got a nice fall wreath for the house, some flowers for the dining room, and a cute, felt "happy harvest" hanging for our front door... the house has officially been decorated (wish i could do more but the cats would destroy everything)...



on sunday, eric and i did a bunch of stuff around the house - put-up new blinds in the LR and finally put-together the shelves for above our tv stand... it's slowly looking like a real room now - especially since i framed a bunch of photos yesterday and put them up... there are still a few things that i'd like to tackle before this weekend, but won't kill myself they don't happen... two of my girlfriends from college are coming in for my bachelorette party and bridal shower, so i'm just feeling the need to stuff that we've been putting off... always the case, right?

i had off yesterday (columbus day) and did a few errands, as well as paid a visit to the chiropractor... i made an appointment for right before the wedding too, including a massage, and i can't wait... i also had lunch w/a girlfriend at panera bread and ran back up to my mom's to help her with a few things around the house... i was back home by 5:30, did a few things around the house, and then called it a day! wish all weekends could be 3-days long!

here's a pic of the giant apple i saw on sunday at a local market - i'm not kidding when i said it was bigger than a cantaloupe... i would love to see how they grow on a tree! wow! :)



happy monday... :)

TGIF

happy friday, everyone! :-)

would you want to be 12 again?

how many of you remember making these barrettes in elementary school? i must've had 20 pairs, plus made them for my friends - never used flowers though, always had beads at the end... funny how both good AND bad things get recycled thru the years... ;)

i started using my WW app yesterday, it's pretty easy-to-use though i had to go online to log-in my weight (not pretty!)... i also skipped the gym yesterday because my allergies were horrible and i felt like crap, but today is a new day! eric was asking me about bally's and how long their guest-pass is good for - i would SO love for him to join so we could go together... and being it's less than 5 mins away from our house, going in the morning would be great... :)

my shoulder is still hurting... bah!

just another wedding has been updated - we went for tuxes last night, how exciting! :)

we watched a tad of 'glee' last night - thought it was really funny... eric then goes, "what channel is this on? fox? i can't watch anything on fox"... not sure what that meant...

i'm wearing a new pair of black boots today - always hate the beginning since they're not broken-in yet... ouch!

that's all for now - time to get caught-up with what you guys have been up too... :)

happy thursday...

get out of my bag!

i have the worst luck with bags! i was so excited to get my new vera bag but when i opened the box sunday night, it was the wrong size! i'm such an idiot... but thankfully, i was able to exchange it last night, at a store near my house, and changed my mind on the pattern... i now have the one i initially liked, so all is well in bag-land again... it's nice to have something that's roomier and can fit all my daily to/from work stuff (i.e. shoes, lunch, purse, personal ogranizer, etc.)... norman seemed to enjoy the bag too... :-)

my shoulder is still bugging me so i may call the doctor and see if i can get an appointment for next week - i have off on monday (columbus day) and already have a chiropractor appt.... might as well make it a 'health' day... i should probably run some other errands and take advantage of the free day - this wedding stuff is really time-consuming! ;-)

my weekend out with my sister was good, minus the argument that my mom and i got into at the florist... not even worth discussing and it was silly - perhaps i'm just as stubborn as she is, but unwilling to admit it... ha... the weather was great and leaves have already started to turn (because of the high elevation) so it was very pretty... ate like crap too, nothing new there... :-(

i downloaded the WW app on my iphone - haven't really used it yet, but maybe soon...

haven't been keeping up with the new shows but am DVRing 'how i met your mother' and 'the bing bang theory' because they are very funny shows... always good for a good laugh...

eric's been gone at a conference so we haven't seen each other since friday - it's always weird to be in the house without him so i'm happy he'll be back later today... :-)

happy tuesday...

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...