Thanksgiving!

Well, Thanksgiving has come and gone. Although I had previously mentioned that I wasn't feeling good, I was still hoping I would be able to enjoy my day without any problems. For the most part, my stomach cooperated....until the end of the day, at least. I'm definitely thankful for that!

We made it to our annual breakfast. We never go anywhere fancy. Our town doesn't offer much in breakfast choices so we opted to go to Carrow's this year. The food was good too! Poor Paul had his eggs a little too over easy though. Yuk!

Then Sabrina was so excited cause since we were in my parent's area, she wanted us to drop her off early of there. I called my mom and she was just delighted to have her. So we made our way there to drop Sabrina off and then headed home so that I could hard-boil some eggs to make deviled eggs to bring to my parent's house later. We also were hoping to stop off at Kmart to get the game Catch Phrase to play over there but Kmart was having a "buy one, get one free" deal on that game and other games so unfortunately, they were sold out.

Paul and I made our way over my parent's house a few hours later. I must say, it's nice to have a few hours to ourselves, just my hubby and I. That's something we know NOTHING about. For that I am thankful!

At my parent's house, it was the usual people we have each year since our family is small and most of them live far away anyways. I am grateful that I was finally able to see my Grandma, who I've been wanting to see but because I'm not real good at dealing with old people and the fact that she forgets who I am makes it hard for me. She is 94 years old and has dementia and each time I see her, it seems to be getting worse. Some of the things she does is cute and funny, but on the other hand it's a problem that we need to worry about as we don't know how much longer she will be with us as this disease takes a hold of her. At one point, she thought I was my dad's wife..HUH?! Uhhhh....NO! Then she was hoping her dad would give her money to get her hair done. Poor grandma. :o(

We had the traditional Thanksgiving dinner with some alterations for my mom and I since we are on Weight Watchers. Dinner was fabulous and I feel I did pretty good for the day. I treated myself a little but didn't over-indulge as I would normally. I left the table with a smidge over my comfort zone which I feel is something to once again, be thankful for! My weight-in is Thursday and since I missed it this past week due to Thanksgiving, let see how good I really did do ;o)

So, here we are. It's Sunday and since every year I like to make a Thanksgiving meal myself for the three of us, that's what I am doing as we speak. The turkey is in the oven stuffed with stuffing and I have the hard-boiled eggs sitting on the counter waiting to be cracked and prepared into deviled eggs. Oh the yumminess! I trust myself and the fact that I will be a good girl and not over-indulge.......once again!

Sorry I don't have any pictures to share. With being a total photography happy person, I was in such a hurry that day that I forgot my camera. Lets say it together now........DUH! ;0)

Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving! It is a time to be thankful and I hope we can all carry this great holiday into our daily lives and remember all that we are thankful for. I have to say, I thank God for all he has given to me and all the family and friends I have that love me! I am also thankful for all of you and the warmth in all your comments! Big HUGS to you all!!

Also, please stop by each Friday and join me in my weekly blog, Fabulous Foto Friday! Check out the rules here. Have a fabulous week everyone!

Preview: Fabulous Foto Friday!

Last week I participated in Friday Foto Fun over at Denise's at Laughing With Spoons but I had previously thought about starting my own. At first I thought that I could start a different weekly blog but with much thought, I decided on the photo one as I am such a sucker for photographs.

Also, please just stop by and check out Denise's blog anyways cause not only is she a friend of mine but her blog is a fabulous read! Plus, if you like doing weekly blog assignments, she has one on Tuesdays called Thankful Tuesdays.

Anyways, this is just a preview of what is to come next Friday, so please check back next week. I hope you will all join me in this weekly blog as it will be fun, especially for those of you that love taking pictures! :o)

So, here are the rules:

1. Post a special picture that you took during the week. If you have more than one that you want to post, that would be great also. It can be any kind of picture (i.e. funny, silly, weird, artsy, fun, whatever).

2. Write about what the picture is about and what it means to you.

3. Come back tomorrow and sign your name on Mr. Linky so we can take a look at your page.

4. Be sure to comment on the person above you. If you want to comment on more than one person, I'd love that and I'm sure they would too! :o)

Have a wonderful week taking pictures! I can't wait to see what you come up with! :o)

Dear Me...

So, the other day I had my hubby go down to Hollywood Video (since he was getting gas in the car anyway) so that he could pick me up a couple movies. One movie on my list was "Dear Me: A Blogger's Tale". I mean, come on.......Perfect, right?!

Since I opted NOT to wait in line for 24 hours in the cold just to sleep on the ground, or better yet, in an uncomfortable camping chair, I chose to get up at 4:50am this morning while my husband got up just so that he can go to work only to see all those crazy people out there for the oh-so-anticipated Black Friday! Booooo!!!

Note to self: No sale is worth the cold, lack of sleep just to fight through the crowds of crazy people when some people get trampled on OR in some cases, get killed in the process. Staying home in the nice warm house snuggled up with my blankie drinking a warm cup of tea, watching a movie while my child sleeps quietly is so worth not getting those $30-$150 in savings.....and saving my life! :o)

OK, back to where I left off......I decided that once my hubby left for work this morning, I would pop in that movie, Dear Me. I figure this would be a real "kick in the butt" to watch. You know, seeings I've learned to love my blog and bloggy friends :o)

After watching this movie, I guess now I am glad I have deleted some previous blog posts (courtesy of my husband) cause you really never know WHO is reading!

Onto another subject, Wednesday night Sabrina and I went to Kohl's cause I have this dress/long top (whatever the heck it is) and I wanted to pick me up some boots to go with it. Now mind you, I have NEVER owned a pair of boots in my life, so this whole boot thing is new to me. With Paul, he personally doesn't like the dress-top so I wanted to try and utilize it cause I LOVE it! It's has different shades of purples - my favorite color! Once I got home and put the dress-top on along with the boots, I went to show Paul and well, let's just say I didn't get the response I was hoping for:

Paul: "Oh, how cute." (with an unsure tone and look on his face)

Me: "You like it?"

Paul: (hesitation) "It's OK"

Me: "What?"

Paul: "I don't know. It's not you."

Me: "It's not me? But I want to try something different."

Paul: "I don't know, it's not you. Ask your mom."

So, yesterday when we went to my parent's house I put the outfit on and showed my mom. She thought it was super cute. Then I asked her "It's not me though, huh?" She says "No, it's not you but it is really cute!" So after that, I opted to keep the dress-top on and threw on my jeans. My mom liked that combination also and said "Now THAT'S you!"

Then this morning my girlfriend, Angie came over and I told her about the whole issue with the boots and all and she had me put the outfit on and she said that I just HAD to keep the boots cause I had told her I was gonna take them back. I don't know though. What do you guys think? Take the boots back or keep them???? BE HONEST!!!

BTW...Excuse the fact that I didn't do my hair yet. :o)

Cramping my style

I have plans this week as everyone pretty much does!! It's Thanksgiving week for goodness sake. Paul, Sabrina and I are going to breakfast tomorrow morning. It's an annual thing Paul and I started when we first got together. Then we're going to my parent's house for dinner. I am going to fix a Thanksgiving dinner for my little abode on Friday or Saturday. I'm excited!

Now, I'm usually never the one to get sick during the holidays. In fact, I rarely ever get the flu. I'm just notorious for getting colds. A cold to me is a cold. I go to work with a cold. It doesn't stop me but then again, maybe Paul has something to do with that. Paul is more or less the energizer bunny. In order for him to have gotten looked at for his most recent sickness (Vertigo, dehydration and whatever else was wrong with him. We still don't know to this day but it landed him in the hospital for 5 days), he had to be taken away in an ambulance while at work. The guy goes to work no matter what. It makes me mad cause his job isn't worth his life. He needs to take care of himself in order to be well enough to go to work. Plus, he has his family and without him, I would be lost. Sabrina needs her daddy also!!

Ok, not to get off track or anything but I needed to share that in order for you to understand WHY I go to work sick. I feel sometimes I need to measure up to him. Like this morning, again, not feeling well and he says "just stay home then" in the tone like I'm being a big baby. I wasn't complaining, just making noises like my stomach hurt. I responded like "No dear, especially with that tone. I know how you are. I'm going to work." So, guess where I'm at???? You guessed it....WORK! I'm feeling ok right now. Ok enough to be here at least for the moment.

With tomorrow being Thanksgiving though and all the plans we have, I don't want to be the one to put a damper on the whole day if this turns into something worse. Why I say that is this all started Sunday night before I went to bed. Each day that has gone by it seems to of gotten worse. Now my stomach hurts and has since yesterday, but again, today feels worse than yesterday. How much more of this until it goes away? I don't want my plans to be diminished but I have been hearing people have been getting the stomach flu. I haven't gotten sick like that yet...thank goodness. I don't remember the last time I had the stomach flu but I know my mother-in-law is just getting over it as I'm sure a bunch of other people are also. I'm just praying this doesn't become a domino effect. Next will be Paul or Sabrina and so on. Eck!

I just want the holidays to be the normal holidays where I can be happy, energized, eat my food and be satisfied and not sick! :op

Thankful Tuesday!

It's that time of the week again. Denise at Laughing with Spoons has posted this weeks topic. If you want to participate in the weekly fun, go check her blog out here.

Your topic is:

Family. I couldn't think of a better thing to be thankful for this Thanksgiving week!


Boy, Denise is right. What better thing to be thankful for this Thanksgiving holiday week!!! My family and this is why I am thankful for them:

1. I am thankful for my mom WANTING to watch Sabrina on a weekly basis while Paul and I work. My mom only watches her once a week. If she has extra time off, she is more than happy to watch her an additional day or two. I hear of so many grandparents wanting to watch their grandchildren and in our case, it's just my mom. I am so thankful for that. Just for the simple fact that my mom enjoys her time with my daughter :o)

2. I'm thankful that my family is still here, with me. I am such a worry-wart and my greatest fear is losing a loved one. I don't know what I would do if I lost one of my family members. It worries me all the time and I'm just grateful for every day they are here with me.

3. I am thankful that I DO have a family! So many people out there don't have this wonderful fortune and it saddens me that there are people out there that are less fortunate. I just feel lucky and fortunate to have people around me in my life that love me.

4. I am thankful for my beautiful daughter! I can't imagine my life without her. She has brought so much joy in my life and made me look at things differently. In a more compassionate way. She absolutely means the world to me and without her, I would be lost!!

5. I am thankful for my husband. He is such a wonderful man! He makes me laugh and loves my goofy ways. He's such a hard worker and a wonderful father to our daughter. He is a great guy and I'm glad he is in my life...for better or worse!

6. I am thankful for my friends whom I consider family. It's so important to have friends in your life and I definitely don't take mine for granted! The few that I truly consider family have always been there for me, especially during the hard times in my relationship which is when I needed them most, but they stuck with me and I am truly grateful for them!

7. I'm thankful that my brother and I have a great sibling relationship. I see too many siblings that don't get along or have anything in common. Sure, growing up was one story but we all grow up and I'm glad that we have this great relationship now. He's an awesome guy and am happy to call him my brother.

8. I am thankful that my grandma is still with us. She's 94 years old, has dementia and forgets who I am but I am glad that I get to spend another holiday season with her. I am so bad at visiting my grandma cause I have a hard time with older people and this disease that causes her to forget who I am. I also said that I wanted to visit her on her birthday and have yet to go visit her. I'm just glad that I will be able to see her this Thanksgiving.

9. I am thankful that my parents got back together 28 years ago cause had they not, I would not have had the opportunity to know my mom as I know her today. Not only as my mom but as my friend. For that, I am truly thankful.

10. I am thankful that I have had the opportunity to meet my extended family on my mom's side. My mom was adopted from her second cousin who she thought was her mom, and so her cousins that she thought were her cousins were really her half brothers and sisters. They are wonderful and down-to-earth people! I am so grateful to have the opportunity to have gotten to know them!

I've been awarded!!

A few days ago I was honored with two, yes 2 awards! How excited I was too!! I just love getting awards...don't you?! And the cool thing about it was, it was from the same person, Denise over at Laughing with Spoons. Go check her blog out and give her some comment love cause she's a great blogger and friend!! Thanks so much Denise!!!! *HUGS*

So, here is the first award that she gave me.




Here are the rules for this one:


1. Mention the blog that gave it to you and comment on their blog to let them know you’ve posted your award.
2. Publish these rules.
3. Share 6 values that are important to you and 6 things you do not support.
4. Grant the prize to 6 people.



Six Important Values/Beliefs:

1. God is the only way
2. Be who you are and not what others want you to be
3. Be honest
4. Never be afraid to ask for help
5. Love yourself and having seld respect, then you will be able to love others fully.
6. Live life to the fullest

Six Values/Beliefs I do NOT support:

1. Telling lies
2. Abuse of any kind
3. Disrespect
4. Infidelity
5. Rudeness
6. Laziness

I'm passing the Kreative Blogger Award on to:

Since I don't read that many blogs, I'm only awarding a few people.

1. Trish at Welcome To My Life
2. France at The Adventures of France & Deirdre
3. Stacy at SLJ-Photography



Here is the second award that was given to me!


Here is what the blog award means:


“This blog invests and believes, in ‘proximity’ [meaning, that blogging makes us 'close' - being close through proxy] "They are all charming blogs, and the majority of them aim to show the marvels of friendship; there are persons who are not interested when we give them a prize, and then they help to cut these bows; do we want that they are cut, or that they propagate?"Then let’s try to give more attention to them! So with this prize we must deliver it to eight bloggers that in turn must make the same thing and put this text.”


Once again, I don't read that many blogs so I will present this award to a few people which are:

1. Trish at Welcome To My Life
2. France at The Adventures of France & Deirdre
3. Jessica at The Bessington Crew

Belated Friday Foto Fun!

Alrighty, so I'm a day late. Whatever. I still want to participate in the Friday fun even if it is Saturday. Next week I'll be on time :o) I was just busy last night purchasing a brand new Christmas present for ourselves.....(giddy laugh!). Our brand new television!!!!!

So, anyways......over at Denise's she is participating in on Fun Foto Friday. Here are the rules:

All you do is post as many pictures as you want. If you'd rather post videos - go for it! If you want to post both videos AND pictures...that would rock!!!

After you are all done posting - come back here and sign Mr. Linky so we know to take a look at your page! :) Be sure to comment on the person above you. If you want to comment on more than one person - I'd love that...and I am sure they would too! :)

So here is mine. I am going to post a video because it's really funny! It's so funny that Paul and I kept rewinding it to listen to it to make sure it was really what he was saying. THEN....I got the bright idea of video taping it just in cause I wanted to share....like now!!! Basically it's a video clip from the Travel Channel. Paul and I were watching it about a week ago and it was about deep fried foods. Now, the guy that is talking is talking about a particular hamburger at some place but listen to the words that he says. Think dirty!!! LOL!!!

He did not just say "it's always good to go pleasure yourself, once a week." HAHAHAHAHA!!!! Then "it cums comes in your mouth" and "is like one big explosion." You know he had to of gotten crap from his friends on this one!!!! Nice job buddy!!!

I've been tagged!

Denise tagged me to do this a yesterday but because I was dealing with a horrible headache, I'm just now getting to it. Thanks Denise for tagging me cause these are fun to do.

Five Things On My To Do List
1. Fold laundry :oP
2. Finish Christmas shopping
3. Get a plant for the office
4. Go to WW for my weigh-in today
5. Have family pictures taken

Five Things I Like To Snack On
1. Chips and dip
2. Popcorn
3. WW BBQ pretzel thins
4. Pepperjack cheese and wheat things
5. Dots

Five Things I Would Do If I Was a Millionaire:
1. Pay off all our bills and house
2. Save for Sabrina's college education
3. Buy house in Carmel
4. Pay off bills/house for family
5. Travel

Five Places I Have Lived: I've only lived in Northern California :o)
1. Hayward, CA
2. Union City, CA
3. Antioch, CA
4. Currently somewhere in the Bay Area, CA ;o)
5. There is no #5!

Five Jobs I Have Had:
1. Blockbuster Video
2. Children's World Learning Center
3. Bond Manufacturing
4. CPA firm (currently)
5. Wife & Mommy! :o)

And finally…The Five People I’m Tagging:
1. Trish - she's my BFF and she hasn't blogged in awhile and she needs some love!
2. Missy - she also hasn't blogged in awhile and she likes to do these sorts of things.
3. France - It would be fun to see what she puts.
4. Michelle - I doubt she'll do this but I'm running out of people to list :o)
5. And yeah, like Denise said - Anyone and everyone else that is bored and wants something fun to do! :)

Writing Assignment

Is it me or do the weeks seem to be passing us much quicker? Especially now that we have these weekly assignments, I can't seem to stop time long enough to take a breath. Anyways, it's that time again at Mama Kat's and her weekly assignment. This weeks prompts are the following:

1.) The last time I laughed really hard...
2.) Forgive and forget...I think.
3.) I remember when...
4.) Write about something that bothered you this week.
5.) Write a poem about a favorite color.

These are great prompts and although I'm suffering from yet another headache, I think I will try and keep my composure with this one so I choose #1!

The last time I laughed really hard was, well, basically anytime I look at this photo.....

I know I have mentioned before how I just love to be a goofball. Well, I think this picture pretty much sums it up!! LOL!! Yes, that is me and my face on the side of my brother's head. My daughter took that picture and when I saw it for the first time, I couldn't stop laughing. I know it doesn't show the prettiest of my moments! I don't care though. It's fricken hilarious!!! I think my brother kind of had a feeling I was up to something during the snap of that picture. Boy was he right! I know I have said I have my serious moments and I'm sure looking at this photo you would never know that. Nor would you think I was shy at all. Yes, believe it or not I am shy. I guess being around family brings out the goofiest in me. I just hope that when I die that my family and friends will remember these moments and not my serious ones! ;o)

Thankful Tuesday - My hubby!

It's that time of the week over at my friend, Denise's at Laughing with Spoons. This weeks Thankful Tuesday prompt is:

Your husband/significant other. (If you don't have a husband or significant other, please write about another male figure in your life.

These are the reasons I am truly grateful for my love bucket!!
1. I am thankful that he is mine all mine! Even though the 15 years we've been together haven't been the easiest, I wouldn't trade him in for the world. Also for the fact that through my weight gain, he has stuck by me and still loved me whereas some people are so petty and can't love with their heart rather than their eyes. For that, I truly am thankful and love him so very much and would be lost without him.

2. I am thankful that he is a wonderful daddy to our daughter. He will even play Barbie's and restaurant with her. To think that there are dad's out there that don't have a relationship with their child, I'm thankful my child does!!

3. I am thankful that my hubby is a hard worker. He isn't afraid to get his hands dirty. He isn't afraid to work long hours. There are so many people these days that are so lazy and it is just irritating. My husband is a wonderful provider and I am thankful for him and keeping a roof over our heads and food in our tummys........and taking us on fun vacations!!!!! ;o)

4. I am thankful to have someone in my life that shares the same interests as mine. It's like we are the same person except for a couple minor details. (wink wink!) I also love it when we can finish each others sentences!

5. I am so very thankful that he gave me the best gift in the whole world, my daughter! I can't imagine my life without her.

6. I am thankful that my husband likes a nice house and yard. Even though he spends many hours at work, he still comes home and mows both front and back lawns even before I get home from work. Also, when I'm not home with him he will clean the house for me (cause he's bored, really!). He also does one of the jobs I don't like doing...dusting.

7. I am thankful for my hubby cause when I have returned home from, well, anywhere. It can be work, running errands or even from a friends house in Stockton and if I come home on "E", he will put gas in my car cause he knows how much I hate doing it. He may complain a little but I still thank him :o)

8. I thank him so much for making grocery shopping a family outing. Yes, we go grocery shopping together and you know what? I LOVE doing it as a family!! Also cause I just may spend much more money if he weren't with me. :o) He should probably be thankful for himself on that one too! ;o)

9. I am so very thankful that he has been encouraging me on my WW journey! He tells me how proud he is of me in my accomplishments and that I have finally stuck to something that is important to me. I don't think that I would be able to be doing as good if it weren't for his praise!

10. I am also thankful that he encourages my photography passion and hasn't complained but instead has been helping me in finding a professional camera so he can buy it for me for Christmas.

A weekend filled with Sharks!!

I know I have mentioned a couple times that Paul, Sabrina and I went to San Jose and Monterey for the weekend about a week ago. I thought I would finally post about it and share some pics from our trip.

Now, some of you probably already know that we are a family who loves hockey. Our team is the San Jose Sharks. We bought a mini season package so we tend to make our way out to San Jose quite frequently. A week ago though, we decided to stay the night out there so we can make it a weekend thing so we could go to Monterey. One of my favorite places that I don't get to go very often, and since my parent's have a membership at the Monterey Bay Aquarium, they have 2 guest passes that allow us to get in the Aquarium for free and allows us to bypass the long lines to get in. We just needed to pay for Sabrina.

Saturday morning Paul had to go to work so Sabrina and I worked on our sign for the Sharks game. Apparently one of the stations, CSN (No clue who they are. I don't follow sports that much) will put you on TV if you have a sign with their stations letters, or whatever you want to call it. So we thought we would make one. Here is a picture of Sabrina coloring it.

Once Paul got home we headed out. We made a stop at Dave & Busters to eat and play games. It's our usual stop before the game. Then we checked into the hotel and got ready for the game.

Paul and Sabrina chilling out before the game.

The next morning we headed to Monterey. We normally take highway 17 to Monterey but this time we thought we would take 101. With it being wet out and all, we didn't want to risk an accident cause the last time we went out there and drove highway 17, we saw something like 4-6 accidents, one needing the jaws of life. Taking 101 was so nice and relaxing. Such a change in scenery too. Not as beautiful as highway 17 but much smoother.


Once we got to Monterey it was raining pretty good. We noticed that there were people in shorts wearing some silvery metalish cover on them and then realized they were apart of a 5 mile race sponsored through Bubba Gumps. I was just glad I wasn't out there freezing my tushy off.

We made our way to the aquarium and was there a couple hours. The last time we were there, Sabrina was maybe 3 yrs old so she didn't remember anything about it so it was like a whole new experience to her. We had so much fun! We pet the sting rays and saw sharks, jelly fish, tuna. You name it, we saw it. After the aquarium, we ate at Bubba Gumps and then walked around at some of the shops. Meanwhile, we even made our way to the candy shop right after lunch. Just the thing I need. :o)

Here are some pics from our day in Monterey:


This is a picture of Mickey Mouse that Sabrina drew on the hotel window. So cute!


What a cute little otter!!! I want one!!!


Sabrina & I during breakfast at the cafe. See the beautiful ocean out the window?!


Paul and Sabrina under the big window that had the ocean water flowing over it.


Sabrina the seahorse :o)


Sabrina and I


Sabrina looking at all the jellys.


Yes, believe it or not, it had been raining a couple hours earlier. Isn't it just gorgeous out??!!

Feeling A Sense Of Accomplishment

Do you ever get that feeling that you have something that needs to be done and you just don't know where to begin? I have that feeling and that feeling all goes to the spare bedroom in our house.

The spare bedroom happens to be the computer room/play room. This is how the room narrows down:

• We have our huge desk, which was something Paul and I wanted cause it had all the compartments that I had ideas for all before the time we bought it. Then we got it and it has become a mess. Bills, paid and new, just get piled in one area. I haven't filed in quite some time so Paul just ends up emptying the stuff into a box to make room. Then we have nik naks, mail, books, cords for the camera and just misc stuff that gets shoved in various spots. It's a mess and I want a smaller desk now!!
• We have a air hockey table that I bought Paul last year for Christmas. This has turned into a table and has accumulated all the junk above and underneath. Poor Paul keeps saying, "Boy, I would sure like to play with my air hockey table you bought me last year". LOL! He helped with that mess, by the way!
• Then we have two nice book shelves that has tons of Sabrina's books. I've been working hard on getting Sabrina to "put stuff back"!!! ARG!! It's organized though and nice looking as we speak, for now that is.
• We have a bunch of Sabrina's toys cause her room is small and has her bed and dresser w/a mirror (big mistake!) that takes up so much room. Had I known better, I would have gotten the tall dresser instead of thinking a dresser with a mirror would have been cuter. So now we have to utilize the space wisely.

So yesterday, I went to Target and bought one of those storage shelves that has the colorful baskets. That is in the spare room which has helped out with some space in Sabrina's closet and room but still makes the spare room look nicer and organized. I have also tackled the air hockey table which you can now see the top of it and underneath :o) I can walk in the room and turn the lamp on without having to step over any of Sabrina's crap because I threw some it away or boxed it.

It's not complete just yet but it's almost there. I do see the light at the end of the tunnel. Although, I still need to tackle that desk. Hopefully the new desk will be in our near future :o) We already have one picked out and it's not that much money at all so I'm keeping my fingers crossed!!

Also this weekend, Paul and I were able to get some Christmas shopping done for Sabrina. We still have some more stuff to get her but at least we have about half of it done. This is a miracle for us as we tend to wait a week or two before Christmas. Talk about stressful! Oh, and Paul on Friday went to Sears and found one of those gazebos and patio set that go for $300 each and got them for only $30 each. Talk about bargain shopper!!!!! I can't wait for summer again! So, keep your eyes open for those fabulous deals this year!!! You never know what you might find.

Thankful Thursday!

OK, so one of my friends and fellow blogger, Denise over at Laughing with Spoons has started doing a weekly blog post called Thankful Thursday. I thought it would be fun to join in! I know it's Friday but I started it yesterday and just had to finish it. Plus, it has been changed to Thankful Tuesday anyways. Check for the rules here.

So here is my list of 10 things I am thankful for this week (in no particular order):

1. My precious baby girl! She is my everything!! This week I was able to enjoy my whole Tuesday off with my daughter as she had the day off from school due to Veteran's day. I really enjoy having all the free time with her whenever possible!!! Since we had to take my husband's car to get an oil change, we decided to walk the mile to the mall and spent part of the time looking at Christmas stuff which was really fun :o)

2. My husband. For being him as I love him dearly. I may nag but it doesn't mean I don't love him. I would be lost without him. Also, for the fact that he still has a job during this horrible economic crisis. It is a daily thing we worry about. I used to be upset that he works 6 days a week. Now, I'm just glad he IS working those 6 days a week.

3. For not paying too horribly at WW from that 37 point lunch that I mentioned here. It was a gain but just under 1/2 lb. I consider this a victory!

4. My friends!! I love them dearly and am glad I have them. I also am thankful for my weekly chats with one of my BFF's, Linda and my weekly visit with my friend, Angie.

5. My family for still being with me in my life. Now that my parent's are getting old (they're still young though, mid 50's.), it scares me that they won't be around forever. So, I treasure every moment I get with them. Same with my brother. He smokes, has a motorcycle and doesn't eat as healthy as I would hope for, so I thank the good Lord for still keeping him in my life.

6. For myself, my health. In the last 8 months I have learned to eat better and be more conscience of what I put in my body and the portions. I'm thankful for the strength I have had during this as it's helping me to teach my daughter the importance of our body, health and the ability to love ourselves.

7. My weekend with my husband and daughter this past week in San Jose and Monterey. We had such a fabulous time together and we so needed it!!

8. For my shows. I enjoy each week being able to sit down, relax and watch my shows after a long day.

9. For my job. Sure, my husband's job is the most important. However, mine does help pay for the things we still need. I feel pretty secure here.

10. I can't forget our little addition to our family. My Ozzy-boy!!! He provides us with so much laughter for the simple fact that he is a Miniature Pinscher who loves to jump around as if he is a little deer. It is the most adorable, hilarious thing!! One of these days I'm gonna get him on video and post it for all of you to see. Until then, I will leave you with this here picture of him in all his cuteness! ;O)

Your Friday Smile! :o)

OMG....I want one!!!! I just love animals and this just put a smile on my face and I sure needed it right now so I had to share in case anyone was feeling like I was.

So.......here's your Friday smile!!!! :o)

The 20 Second Rule

So I'm here at work and I decide to use the restroom. Mind you, I'm in a 10 story office building so the restroom I'm using is the one designated for the floor I'm on.

As I enter the stall, there happens to be another woman in the stall next to mine. As she finishes her business, she exits the stall to head toward the sink. This part is what is alarming. She sticks her hands under the faucet all of a second and goes straight to the paper towel. That's right, her hand went in and right back out. Just enough time for her hand to censor the water on. WTF??!! She did not just stick her hand under the water without using soap and for only a second. That is so gross! I know people do this all the time but do they realize where their hand was just a couple seconds prior to that supposed mini wash? Ewww!

This is the reason I have taught my child by the time she was 3 years old to use a paper towel upon exiting the restroom. Also the reason when we return home from an outing to the store or where ever, that the first thing we do is wash our hands.

I just can't get passed the fact that that woman thought she cleaned her hands. What the heck was she thinking? Maybe cause she used a huge wade of toilet paper and the layers kept her from touching anything. Whatever the reason, it just clearly shows why there are so many diseases out there.

Ok, I think I made my point. I just hope that lady reads blogs. Yes, I'm talking to you lady! On the 6th floor in W.C. in the building across from the Bart Station. Wash your hands better!!! *shutter*

I'm a Sparky Blogger!!!

I have been nominated for the Sparky Blogger Award! I am soooo excited!!! For a couple reasons. One, cause I just love getting awards, but who doesn't. And two, because it's from someone I don't know, Katie over at Because Katie Says So.... How awesome is that?!

Thanks so much Katie for this nomination and for enjoying my blog!!

The rules are easy:

Post this badge on your site and link back to Maternal Spark.

Then, just tag 5 of your bloggy friends who have sparked creativity, conversation, controversy and friendships!

Here are my 5 nominees!

Denise at Laughing with Spoons

Trish at Welcome to My Life

Mama Kat at Mama's Losing it

Saundra at An Italian Mama Gone Crazy

Michelle at One Crafty Mama

I hope you all enjoy your award! Have a fabulous day and keep up the awesome blogs!!

My Weekly Assignment

This weeks assignment over at Mama Kat's just may have me doing a couple again. Just as last week!

This weeks prompts are:

1.) Write a haiku about what you see out the window. (if you don't know what a haiku is click here.)

2.) Begin with "I thought I saw..."

3.) If I could live in any era of history, what would it be -- list 10 reasons why.

4.) Write a light hearted piece on how to get along with an enemy.

5.) The first time you...

And this week I will be doing.............#3!!


This one I think about all the time. I have a huge fascination for the 1930's, 1940's & 1950's! However, if I were to choose one of these to live in, I would have to say the 1950's and here's why:

1. Women didn't have to work like they do now and they were able to focus on their children which in return, they grew up to be a lot more well-rounded. Parent's knew where their children were cause mom was home whereas today, both parents have to work and in some cases, the kids are out creating trouble.

2. Television and movies were a lot more wholesome. Again, back to the children, parents didn't have to really worry about what half naked person was about to be shown on a commercial, for crying out loud!! Yes, I love my classic movies. I don't care if they are in black and white. They are All American, clean and wonderful movies! Today's shows, commercials and movies have just gone overboard. Sure, don't get me wrong, I love my Desperate Housewives and Sex in the City however, DH is on at a time that my child is in bed and Sex in the City are on my DVDs so that I can watch at my leisure. When you have certain things on at times they know kids are home, it should be left to different hours of the day. That's just my opinion. My child doesn't watch a lot of TV but when she does watch it, I don't need her seeing certain things on regular cable.

3. Prices of goods were so awesome! OK, I know the wages and such were much cheaper but come on! You could have bought 3 houses for the price of what my car cost. How awesome is that! lol! Gas was only $0.18. Gas only went up on an average of less than one cent each year. Movie tickets went for $0.70. Oh, and if you had to pay rent, it would only set you back $85/mo. But if you wanted to live in the more elite crowd and have a clock radio, be ready to fork out $59.95. :o)

4. The quality of life seemed so much better. According to my parents, things were better back then, then they are today. Clearly! You didn't have to worry about locking your doors, worrying that someone was going to break into your house. People were also a lot more respectable to one another. A friendly wave here and there didn't get the evil eye.

5. I would of had a better opportunity of having my chance at meeting Marilyn Monroe. ;o)

6. They didn't have that rap crap back then as they do today. That music is HORRIBLE!!!!! I would have to say, out of all the different genres of music, Rap and Opera are the two most annoying types of music that I could do without. I know the 50's had Opera but not Rap. Lucky them!

7. Disneyland opened!!! LOL! For a season pass holder, need I say more?! It IS the "Happiest Place on Earth"!! Although, as I'm sitting here thinking, I'm sure today's Disneyland is so much more than it was back in the 50's. However, I would of had my chance to meet Walt Disney and that would have been fabulous! I can say, my mom was there on opening day. She was only 2, but she was there, in all it's soft asphalt glory.

8. One reason I also choose the 1950's over the other two era's I listed is because I have a tendency of speaking my mind and if that means to my man, then so be it. I know I would have been raised differently and maybe I wouldn't be "me" back then as I would be today but send back in time with this mind of mine and I would fit nicely in with the Women's Rights Activist!

9. Oh jeez, two more to go. So this one was harder than I thought. OK, so crime wasn't as bad in the 50's. I know I mentioned this sort of thing on number 4 but to get more in dept with it. Crime today is really bad. It's even worse today than it was just 16 years ago. You could flash your headlights to nicely let someone know their lights aren't on without having to worry about that person being in some gang and now you've just become their next victim. Or better yet, road rage wasn't such a thing. Today you have to worry about someone pulling a gun on you for whatever reason. It's just scary and it worries me for my child. If it's gotten this bad over the last 16 years, I'm not looking forward to my child's future. One reason why we're wishy washy about having another child.

10. Yeah! And lastly, the younger generation, as I imagine, were less lazy than they are today. The quantity of people these days that want something for free I'm sure has skyrocketed. My husband sees this sort of thing everyday and it's disgusting. Oh, and I have to throw this one out. They didn't have to look at someones underwear while shopping, eating or even walking down the street for that matter. People back then actually wore their clothes properly. Can't wait for that trend to end!!!

I must say, after doing this list and thinking deeply about the pros and cons of my life's history and that of the 1950's, there are things I wouldn't change that I have today. The wonderful thing like women's rights and the opportunity to voice your opinion more freely, to the conveniences of computers, cell phones, electric fireplaces or even the great technology conveniences such as dishwashers or washing machines and dryers. Great places that we have like today's Vegas and the fabulous shows they offer that they didn't really have back then. These are great things to have. Again though, the 1950's had some fabulous pros themselves which I have listed.

I will just live in my time (cause I have no choice :o) and enjoy what I have as I feel grateful and blessed to have the family and friends and all the good things in my life. This has been a wonderful prompt. Thank you Mama Kat!

I hope I don't pay for this next week!!

I'm just in disbelief right now. You see, I went to lunch with a girlfriend of mine yesterday. She needed to get out to calm or vent and being the friend I am, I agreed to go to lunch with her.

She asked if Mimi's Cafe sounded good. I'm always open to new lunch places however, since I'm on Weight Watchers, I tend to get a little nervous with some places. This time though, I went ahead and bit the bullet and said "sure".

OK, I've been to Mimi's before and I figured I could choose from the "smaller" meal section. So browsing the menu, my friend mentions the Blackened Chicken Caesar Wrap. Sounds good. Maybe the Caesar might bite me in the butt later, but I didn't think it would be too big of a bite to my tush..lol! So we both ordered it. It was delicious too! Came with a salad with a balsamic vinaigrette. Very tasty. Maybe I should have realized that it was TOO tasty for my own good.

So today, tracking all my food from yesterday and today, I looked on the Mimi's Cafe website to get the nutritional facts on that "oh so yummy" meal from yesterday, and what do I see??!! OMG!! It just cost me 37 pts. Now, if you're not on Weight Watchers, to give you an idea, I'm allowed 20 points....THE WHOLE DAY! Now mind you, that was just lunch! Good thing I didn't eat breakfast but I still had to eat dinner after that so now I have really dipped into my extra points for the week. Damn it!! My week just started yesterday too and I only have 9.5 extra points left. WTF??!! *sign*

Oh, and get this, I was browsing the nutritional facts to see if I could have picked something else that was less points and I found that my Blackened Chicken Caesar Wrap had the highest points out of the entire "smaller meal section". That's even next to the breaded chicken wrap. Go Figure!!

I shall protest Mimi's Cafe now! Never again cause that hurt! :o( Back to Applebees!

Bad Mommy!

Ok, so every week I work Mon, Wed & Fri. On those days we have either my mom or my mother-in-law pick Sabrina up from school. Each week is different because of my mom's work schedule. When my mom picks her up, I'm the one that will pick her up to go home and the same with my husband and his mom.

So today was my mom's day to pick up Sabrina. I get off work and listening to the music and thinking about stuff from the week, my mind kind of wonders. Wonders to the point that I just so happened to of forgot that it was my mom's day to pick up Sabrina.

I'm driving and I get about 1/4 mile from my house. That's right, only 1/4 mile when I suddenly realize and blurt out "Oh Shoot!" What the heck! I forgot Sabrina at my parent's house! I immediately pulled over at the first parking lot available and I call my parents house. Who answers? Paul, my hubby! "Oh good" I'm thinking. At least Sabrina had Daddy and I didn't have to turn around and drive another 6 miles cause I screwed up.

I can't believe I forgot. Well, I guess I can. I've done it one other time. It's not like my memory is the greatest anymore. Oh Poo Pee!

Pet Peeves!

Alrighty, now I thought that I would do another one of Mama Kat's writing assignments cause they just seemed so fun this week. Or maybe I just had a sudden burst of creative juices flowing this week :o) Well, whatever it was, I'm gonna do.......

4.) 10 of my absolute worst pet peeves...

Here they are in no particular order:

1. Liars (OK, so this one is really #1!!!)

2. Men, who while driving, speed up to avoid letting a woman pass. What the hell is that about?! Sorry buddy, I'm younger and FASTER!!!! ;o)

3. Middle class people that vote Republican. It doesn't make sense AT ALL!!!! Republicans are for the rich, that's a FACT! I can go on and on about this one. You want to share your reasoning, go right ahead. I'm open to hearing peoples opinions. (Sorry if I had to get all political on ya but it is one of my pet peeves).

4. People who are lazy, won't work and beg for money. It's one thing if you're homeless, it's another to just be down right lazy.

5. Snobs!! Especially the ones that live in Antioch. I was at Target one day and this older woman had that attitude that I was beneath her. Hmm? OK. Well, first of all lady, you're in Target. I love Target but it's not some posh place. Take that attitude to Saks 5th or Nordstoms. Secondly, you're in ANTIOCH! How pathetic can that be. Sorry, but it's not Alamo, Blackhawk, San Ramon or even Walnut Creek for that matter. Be a snob some place else cause you're in the wrong town.

6. People who are fake.

7. Slow drivers in the fast lane. Slow lane means slow drivers people!

8. When you go to a store and the cashier person doesn't tell you your total expecting you to look at the screen to get it yourself. I actually told one cashier woman "We have mouths, you know!" Whatever happened to customer service????

9. The lack of consideration people have for one another. It's just sad.

10. When my child or dog whines. UGH!! The worst! (Ozzy (the dog) was just whining which instantly reminded me...hee hee!!)

My Weekly Assignment

It's that time again at Mama Kat's. This week's prompts are the following:

1.) You awaken with amnesia in what looks to be an igloo. You have $4 and a rock in one pocket, and a toothbrush in the other. Someone is staring at you. Write this scene.

2.) Write a 16-line poem (rhyming or non-rhyming) about a moment from your childhood that changed your life for the better.

3.) You're sitting at work one day and receive a text message from an unrecognized number. The text says, "I have the money and hid the body." You think this is a practical joke from a friend, so you play along at first. But the more texts you receive, the more you realize that it isn't a joke. Write the text conversation you have with this unknown texter.

4.) 10 of my absolute worst pet peeves...

5.) Fictionalize an event that happened to one of your parents, friends, or siblings.

I have found a couple that have really appealed to me so I think I will be doing 2 this week, so check back for the additional one I do. For now though, I have choosen to do.................#2!

I'm not really one for doing poems. I have done them in the past during homework assignments in school and found that they get my mind really ticking so I thought this would be a fun why to get it ticking again. :o) So here goes. Hope you like it!

My Mom

I didn’t really know her
I was only six years old
What an inviting smile she had
As her arms unfold.

For this lady is my mom
To my brother and I
Hoping for a new start
As she begins to cry.

This new life together again
Our little family of four
Even though it wasn’t ever easy
It had to be better than before.

My life has changed for the good
Cause now my mom is here
As she is also my friend
Whom I love so very dear.

Halloween fun

So, this year as I had previously mentioned in an earlier blog we had our 2nd annual Haunted House. Although we were a bit worried that we were putting so much effort into it and the possibility of rain, we still went for it. As hoped, this year was better than last year. We had kids from last year come through again this year. The turn out seemed to be much more, despite the sporadic sprinkles.


Paul was dressed up as Jason (Friday the 13th). My sister-in-law was a scary clown and I was a headless guy. The scene was where I was getting my head cut off. Oh boy, did that scare a bunch of people too!!! Awwww....pure satisfaction!! LOL!

Then there was Sabrina who was playing a girl who was locked up in a jail. I'll tell you, she sure was a good little actress too! Maybe once she gets older she can take Drama cause she was very convincing. So much so, when a boy came through he asked Sabrina if she really wanted out and Sabrina changed her tone from a frantic child to a calm "No". Here are a picture of Sabrina at school in a witch costume (also a picture of our pumpkins). She has so many to choose from. I really wanted her to be Cleopatra cause Paul and I bought her the outfit while in Vegas this year but she opted not. Hopefully next year cause it should actually fit her better then.







The night was successful and fun! As we were "closing up shop", we even had a lady drive up cause she wanted to go through and was bummed that she had missed our haunted house. "Next Year!" I'm just glad it's over, our cars are back in the garage and I can do the laundry without tarp hanging all over the place.

After the Haunted House, we headed over to my brothers house as he was having all our friends over for a get together. We had so much fun playing Catch Phrase! I've never played it before but had a blast!! Then Charlie (don't mind him. He was a bit toasty. lol!!) decided to bring up the Cinnamon Challenge, hoping someone would fall into his trap and sure enough.....my brother did. Fortunately, it's was a success!! Way to go Bobby!!! Here's a video of it: