Thursday, December 31, 2009

Goodbye 2009!

What a year...I was on top of the world and I was at rock bottom. There were a lot of ups and downs, but through all that I found the elusive strength everyone kept telling me I had. Was it worth it? Well...I could have done without the car accident and subsequent chiropractor visits (I have the sweetest chiropractor ever...that poor man has witnessed some major meltdowns)...but yes, it was. As cliche as it sounds, I found myself this year. I learned some things along the way that I wish I hadn't learned the hard way, but that seems to be the only way I learn. I'm nothing if not stubborn.

If someone had told me a year ago that I would be buying myself a house I would have laughed...a lot...and up until two months ago I was strongly resisting the idea (again, stubborn). But that was when a very wise person (I'm telling you, those psychologists are good!) asked me what I was putting my life on hold for. I couldn't come up with a good answer, so I started rethinking some things and here I am! 2009 was a crazy rollercoaster, so here's to 2010 being a little less extreme!!

I'm not much for New Year's resolutions, they're too much like rules for me to be able to keep them. But I will be continuing toward my goal of having a better, more positive outlook on life. I like the new and improved me, she seems more fun to talk to now that the complaining has been dialed back a notch...or five... ;-)

Thursday, December 24, 2009

"And there were, in the same country, shepherds abiding in the fields, keeping watch over their flocks by night. And lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them and they were sore afraid. But the angel said unto them 'Fear not, for behold I bring you tidings of great joy which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you, you shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger.' And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly hosts praising God and saying 'Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.' That's what Christmas is all about, Charlie Brown."

Tuesday, December 22, 2009

At 8:00am it doesn't take much to impress me



This stuff is worth every penny...when I'm running late in the morning (oh wait, that's always!) and/or:
a) I don't have time to wait for the defroster
b) The biggest thing I have to scrape with is a credit card
c) The wipers are frozen to the windshield
d) The Jiffy Lube guy put the washer fluid that freezes in my truck last time (Seriously! In November!?)


This stuff is a LIFESAVER. It's like magic, the frostiness just melts away!! This has been permanently added to my list of vehicle essentials, it's hanging out with the jump starter/air compressor and assorted bungee cords :-) And socks. I'm not sure why there are socks in my "truck stuff" bin, but should I ever need them, they're there...

Monday, December 21, 2009

Christmas Vacation



I don't hate cats or anything, but this is just too funny...

Sunday, December 20, 2009

Just Smile...

Well, today was a little rough...but some new eyeshadow, an afternoon of chick flicks, and yummy lunch and dinner (scrambled hamburgers and pork roast, respectively) went a long way. I need to find something productive to do in my free time since I'm going to be living alone again soon...sitting around is not a recipe for a good attitude. My current project is to finish the quilt I started a loooong time ago because it will look cute in the new house! It's a mix of little calicos, feed sack prints, and vintage children's prints from the 30's. And since it will probably be cold until I get some extra insulation I'll need plenty of blankets :-)

Saturday, December 19, 2009

Five Things Friday (A Little Late...)

1) Elf "The best way to spread Christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear"
2) Peppermint Mochas from Starbucks
3) Green Street Christmas with all of my dad's family
4) Playing boys versus girls Catch Phrase with my cousins...even though the boys won 2 out of 3
5) This scene from Charlie Brown Christmas:

Wednesday, December 16, 2009

Chapter 3: Healthy People Make Healthy Choices

I am not a "self help" book reader...maybe some organizing books have caught my eye, but dating? Not so much. However, this book came highly recommended (psychologists, they know their stuff), so I decided to go for it. I haven't started it yet, but based on the table of contents it should be good, possibly even entertaining. Hopefully it won't get thrown across the room...this girl doesn't like being told what to do by a book (hence the avoidance of self help books). I'll let you know how it goes :-)

Monday, December 14, 2009

Fun Weekend

Reading herself a book
What a wonderful break from my normal routine!! I convinced Adam and Mary Anne to go see Star Wars in Concert this weekend in Nashville on the condition that I come up to visit and babysit :-) Rachel and I had fun playing with all her toys, singing along with the Backyardigans, reading books, and eating fruit snacks! Mom and Dad enjoyed their two date nights too, I think...judging from the number of times they said thank you...

In other news, today I met a home inspector at the property I've been looking at!!!! He says the house looks good, seems to be livable immediately, and has no alarming problems...just what I was hoping. I took a bunch of pictures (134 to be exact) so I've got the before's for my "Before and After" all ready to go. Soooooo much paperwork, I had no idea, but soon I'll have an offer in and can reeeally move forward and pick out paint colors and kitchen flooring and appliances and lights and furniture in my head. Because I haven't been doing that already...at all...not even a little...speaking of paint colors, what do ya'll think about yellow for a kitchen? maybe green?

Friday, December 11, 2009

Five Things Friday

Five things that make me smile:

1) Glee Soundtrack Volume 1 - Taking Chances...this song has been on repeat on my iPod since Monday night
2) Singing Happy Birthday to coworkers...it's a happy sound, if not exactly a pretty sound :-)
3) Johnson & Johnson Vanilla Oatmeal baby lotion
4) Manny on Modern Family
5) My work "family," these guys are my comic relief on the hectic days... A bunch of hoodlums is what they really are

Thursday, December 10, 2009

Biiiig :-)


I'm in love...home inspection on Monday, then the decision on what to offer...

Wednesday, December 9, 2009

Smile, What's the Use of Crying?

Of course the day I start my big happy blog I have a crappy afternoon...bitched at a friend that didn't deserve it, broke my phone, pulled something in my shoulder...not the greatest start. It's easy to have a bad attitude, and there might have been a few tears. But it's really not that much harder to deal with things...to roll with the punches. To think about something else when I want to dwell on what's wrong. (Note: it is hard to think about something else when it hurts to turn your head...that got better today, thank goodness) It was a good reminder that this isn't going to be sunshine and rainbows. But being happy is, among other things, a decision. So I apologized, filed my insurance claim for a new phone, went to bed with some ibuprofen, an ice pack and the heating pad, and (after a little complaining, thank you Ben) sucked it up.

Day two was better though. I took some steps forward on the house hunt/loan paperwork, got things done at work, programmed the shiny new phone that came in 18 hours, and held meeting #2 of the My-Life-is-Crazy Club :-) So I'm going to keep looking forward to my weekend in Tennessee with the Plondkes and go to work for two more days...whatever works, right?

And here's your smile for the day:

Tuesday, December 8, 2009

Five Things That Make Me Smile

  1. Double Stuf Oreos
  2. Snacking on bacon at midnight :-)
  3. Pink Sugar Perfume
  4. Funny stories at the lunch table
  5. A hug from a coworker

My Happiness Project

John Hancock Building - Boston, MA - September 2008
I'm taking my inspiration from Gretchen Ruben's The Happiness Project and starting my own project. Over the last few years I have struggled with many things, not the least of which is my own happiness. It's easy to be negative about the life changes that I've had to make (and continue making...e.g. my mom), but in the end it only makes the situation worse. Life is pain, princess (name that movie!).

I've tried buying things that make me happy...which just results in clutter most of the time (Sometimes it works...these boots for example, HAPPY). I've tried taking care of myself - cooking, exercising, etc - which makes me feel good, gives me more energy, and helps me sleep at night. I've tried wrapping myself up in a relationship...which, when I lose myself in the process, doesn't help in the end. I've tried being creative through photography...which is something that I love and need to make more time for! I've tried a lot of things...some work, some don't. But this blog will be about the things that do work and my journey to happiness.

I plan to post every day...we all know this won't happen, but it's a good plan anyway :-)