Biggest Loser

It's no secret that I love watching The Biggest Loser. I stuck with it this season, even though the contestants were whiny and multiple people cried during every episode. We're (Mr H and I) are a day behind on our tv due to work schedules, so we just watched last night's show. It was while I was eating my Chic-fil-A dinner (while watching the show - horrible!) that I realized that the show is supposed to motivate you to lead a healthy life, not encourage you to consume more fast food. Am I the only person that does this?
Mr H and I cannot wait until the finale. Neither of us were able to vote (Go Amanda!) because it was closed by the time we watched the show. After next week, we plan on resuming our quest to be healthier.

Recent Happenings...

So I know that I said nothing has happened since I last wrote, but that is oh so wrong. Many things have happened, some of which will have to wait until later, but part of the reason I need to write again is because my mom has recently been diagnosed with cancer. I just need to get so much out that I've been holding in for awhile now.

About a month ago, my mom went to the doctor for a routine screening not expecting anything. The doctor came back with purple bracelets for the American Cancer Society. There is no family history for this, so everyone was completely shocked. Words cannot even describe the wave of emotions that I felt. Why my mom? Why now? She is a healthy person, works out, eats right. Why? How could this have happened? I was hysterical to say the least. I even cried in front of one of my clients because I just could not keep it together.

She is doing much better now. They think that they caught everything early, and she only needs screenings for the next few years. But, this raises a whole new set of questions: Why did God let my mom be 'lucky' while others are not? I am extremely thankful, but it makes me feel bad for other daughters going through much worse than me. I only hope that I can be there for others the way that some of my friends were there for me.

Cancer is a horrible disease that catches you off guard. But, the optimist in me refuses to look at the negative. Instead, I have to be thankful this holiday season, realize how blessed I am, and continually thank God for all that He has given me.

My Blogging Hiatus

It's been quite awhile (about 2 months, I think) since I last blogged. To be honest, I needed a break from something in my life. As much as I blog to relieve stress, it was the first thing to be cut. I was not handling the pressures of living my life in limbo (since we still are not sure when/where we're moving), starting a new job, keeping up with the house, and many other things going on. But, I not only am ready to blog again, I need it. There are somethings going on that I just need to get out, and there is no better way than write/blog.
So, what's new? Nothing much. Really. I know, in 2 months things are bound to be different, but they're not. We're still living in Smalltown, USA, working, and trying to figure out this thing called life.

September 11, 2001

Eight years ago today the worst attack on US soil occurred. Who can forget that day? Seeing all of the images of buildings burning and that feeling of pure shock. I remember sitting in my Senior English Class watching as everything happened (not to date myself) and thinking, "This is not really happening." We will never forget all of the loved ones that were lost, or the tragedy that was September 11, 2001.

Thankful Thursday

This is my absolute favorite time of year - I love football, but especially the Steelers. It gives me a connection to home that I do not have during the rest of the year. This was especially important on a day like today when I am missing home soooo bad. Seriously.
So, this Thankful Thursday goes out to all of you that love football, the Steelers, or your family.

1. Today is the NFL season opener.
2. We are going to the Tennessee v. UCLA game this weekend
3. My car broke down. Again. BUT, I was only 10 miles down the road, so I was able to make it back take Mr. H's car to work today.
4. I had a HUGE breakthrough with one of my clients today. I can't give out too many details, but it was HUGE.
5. Our house is clean! Woohoo, it does not happen too often
like this!

Empty.

As I posted yesterday, our house has been devoid of food for a few days. Seriously. Here are a few pictures of how little we had.
Fridge? Unless we ate a liquid/mandarin orange/condiment dinner on Saturday, we had to order pizza. Said pizza is the only thing of sustenance we in this picture. Sad, I know.
I promise that we eat. A lot. We just both eat two meals per day at work, and had not made anything with left overs in awhile. Plus, Mr. H is on this kick where we eat everything in the house before buying more.


I agree with that philosophy; however, I enjoy having more than this in my house. This picture of the freezer does not even do justice to how little we have. Most of the 'bags' are frozen vegetables and cheese (I know, most people do not freeze it, but it keeps well enough for casseroles and cooking. And, it keeps for longer). Yes, I do have freeze pops. They're great, and can double as ice for a cooler.





Here's our 'pantry'. Keep in mind that there are only two of us so we don't need as much as families. But there is not a whole lot that we can use to make a meal in here.












So now that I've shown how barren our house has been (a little embarrassing I must admit), here is how the same cabinet looks now.

Much better. Unorganized (it's usually better than this, but we just kinda threw things in for now), but better. The fridge and freezer look much the same. It's nice to be able to plan actual meals and not have to scrounge when getting home from work.

I heart days off

I have one word for this weekend: productive. We had so much fun relaxing and watching college football, but we accomplished so much around the here. Don't you just love those weekends?! Mr. H's car needed a whole bunch of routine maintenance which we have not had the time nor the money to do until now (we're talking brakes, rotors, transmission fluid, oil change, rotate tired, alignment, etc) so we spent most of Saturday morning doing all of that. Then we cleaned out the house. Ah-mazing! Clean kitchen floors? Yes, please. Move the furniture to vacuum in all rooms? Check. I think you get the point. We even made time to get rid of our massive amount of cords near the TV (it was heinous).
Most importantly, I finished the quilt that I have been making for Mr. H (it was supposed to be for his 21st birthday - 4.5 years ago). He loves it and promised to stop teasing me about it. It's even long enough to cover his entire body (he's 6'2'').