More Z's Please!

Please feed me

2012-02-04T09:56:00.002-05:00

A few months ago I went to the dentist ~~after 4 years~~ for the first time in a while and was told I needed 4 crowns and 4 root canals. I told him we'd start with one. Afterwards something felt off and I went back to get it adjusted several times. But nothing fixed it.

A week ago I was in pain. The dentist took one look, scratched his head and said "This isn't right." I was then referred to another dentist, whom I met with on Monday. Long story short I was basically told I needed the crown removed and the root canal redone. WHAT.

2 days later I endured another miserable appointment to be told the tooth had split and I needed to have it extracted immediately. But could she do it? Of course not. I had to go back to my original dentist.

What happened next was a complete blur. Hopped up on novocaine I drove back to the dentist who had me in a chair and signing consent forms within seconds. I was still unclear about what was going on until I saw the pliers come out and the stitches going in. I had my wisdom teeth pulled years ago but it was nothing compared to this! Terrifying. NEVER AGAIN.

Back to the pity party. I was a MESS Wednesday night. I consider myself a pretty tough chick but I could not get it together!

The past few days have been terrible. I love to eat and it's nearly impossible. I hate soft foods and that's all I can manage right now. You would think eating ice cream all day would be a dream but it makes me feel like garbage!

I tried to make myself dinner on Thursday and wound up crying into my stir fry.

Things I want to eat:
--Nachos
--Crusty bread
--Sushi

These AMAZING cookie bars my aunt sent me the recipe for

Things I am currently able to eat:
--Cold oatmeal
--The potato soup Mike made FROM SCRATCH last night
--This unappetizing combo

At least I have my little buddy to keep me company during sad visits to the fridge

PS--never got an explanation as to what went wrong but you can bet I blame it entirely on that dentist and will never return to their office!

Seymour

2012-02-02T17:40:00.000-05:00

Meet Seymour.

We love Seymour. He is the only reason we have any furniture left in our house.

Brooksy received this toy as a Christmas present and it's actually lasted until now! Granted it used to have arms, legs and horns but still. That's impressive.

He loves this thing. Like so much that I can't take a picture of it uninterrupted.

Like staring me down while I try to take a picture of his baby.

We called the shop where the original Seymour was purchased and the lady told us the brand. Immediately Mike found it online and 2 days later Seymour 2.0 arrived!

Brooksy loves him just as much as the original.

Wonder how long this one will last?

To The Races

2012-01-29T18:30:00.000-05:00

Mike is a gambler. We all have our addictions and his is placing bets. I never understood it but could care less as long as he wasn't cashing in our mortgage.

We recently discovered that Finn McCool's offers horse betting and my hubs decided we needed a day of betting on the ponies.

During lunch with friends we announced our plans and everyone wanted to join!

And OH. MY. GOSH. IT was a blast! Our strategy was for me to pick my favorite horse name (without looking at the odds) and Mike placed the bets. And we just kept winning!

People were annoyed with how much we were winning. Some guy asked what our strategy was and then huffed when he heard it. But it paid big!

This may turn out to be our new favorite Sunday activity!

Fire Dog

2012-01-26T18:46:00.000-05:00

Earlier this week I forgot my lunch at home and Mike offered to bring it to me at work. When he pulled up I saw two big goofy grins staring back at me -- he brought Brooksy along for the ride! It made my day to see my two favorite people.

Last night I decided to return the favor and took the B man to visit his papa at work. Both boys loved it! Mike showed the pup off to his co-workers and Brooksy went nuts smelling a whole new world.

I tried to convince the other guys to take B for the night but no dice. Soon he'll be riding on the back of their trucks!

Caribbean Cuisine Part Deux

2012-01-21T20:25:00.000-05:00

It's been gross here lately. Sleety, snowy, cold and disgusting. So of course I started daydreaming about our honeymoon in St. Lucia and torturing myself thinking about that week in paradise.

And then I started salivating thinking about the food we gorged on.

I needed a taste of the islands. I suggested we have a St. Lucia night and Chef Mikey was all over it.

I provided the soundtrack

And the pinas!

The chef got to work

My goodness it was delicious.

Caribbean chicken, fried plantains, coconut rice---it took me right back!

Now if only the weather would cooperate with my daydreaming...

Paw-Active

2012-01-17T19:33:00.000-05:00

So a couple weeks ago this thing popped up on our little furball's face:

What the heck? His majestic black coat was ruined. I was surprisingly calm. Mike was convinced he had puppy cancer.

We gave it a few weeks, coated it in Neosporin and crossed our fingers. Everyone told us it was nothing to worry about but we're first time pet owners: we worry. How could I not worry about this face?

I suddenly understood what everyone was talking about. This was our little furbaby. Nothing could be wrong with him. I wanted him healthy immediately.

So after our neighbor, who is a vet, told us it was time to make an appointment we immediately booked it.

The verdict?

Our dog has acne.

Can we have our $200 back?

Decisive and Intuitive

2012-01-04T17:39:00.001-05:00

I love resolutions. I'm down with the idea of starting fresh in the new year, but I never stick to my resolutions. One year I said I would give up swearing. Another year I said I would be nicer to people. Both lasted about 12 hours. I also have a pretty high self-esteem so I rarely see anything about myself that I'd like to change. Wish I was kidding, but I'm not!

But this year I've got two doozies that are achievable and will definitely help me improve myself:

1) Be more decisive.

I cannot make a decision for the life of me. I want to please everyone but more so don't want to be blamed if the decision I make is bad. The responsibility of planning things is unbearable, which is ironic because that happens to be my profession. I'll talk endlessly about how badly I want a plate of nachos and once we get to the restaurant I opt for a sandwich instead. It drive Mike nuts. I need to change that.

So I resolve to make my decisions and stick to them, no matter the consequences. 9 times out of 10 my decision is the right one but I hem and haw so much that I make myself sick. No more.

2) Be more intuitive of my eating habits.

This resolution is my Everest. You know how you always hear "Eat until you're halfway full, and then stop?" Yeah that's not me. I scarf down my food. I eat snacks throughout the day just because they're in my face. I eat portion sizes equal to Mike's and I certainly don't require as much fuel as he does.

My feathers get ruffled when people say to me "You're so skinny, how lucky you are!" Uhhhh people. Get with it. I am not genetically blessed. My metabolism gave out on me when I was like 9. I weighed 40 pounds more in high school than I do now. I exercise every day to break even and I can't just have a slice of cake when the mood strikes me. But I've accepted this, which is why I get so frustrated with myself when I'm at my parent's house shoveling Aunt Pat's cookies into my face right before dinner starts.

So I resolve to listen and focus more when eating. I'll eat what I crave, not just because it's convenient.

I hope that by putting this all out there I will stick to it! Wish me luck!

Sleeping like an angel

2011-12-30T15:04:00.000-05:00

Our little furball is teething badly these days. He's been great about sticking to his chew toys but you can tell the poor guy is in pain.

We've tried everything, from rawhides to ice cubes to cuddling him

But nothing has stopped the sad whimpers. Breaks my heart.

So Momma took action and cashed in the Petsmart gift cards we received for Christmas to buy the one item we were saving up for: his very own bed.

And I think he just might like it -

It has an orthopedic mattress (I know, right?) and we decided on the X-large bed. I think that was a good idea.

Thanks for the gift cards Patti and Donna!! You've made Brooksy very happy :)

20/20

2011-12-30T07:49:00.000-05:00

For Christmas Mike's parents gave us a new camera and it is so awesome. We're still trying to figure out all the settings but it takes great pictures!

I was really excited to test it out when Mike and I saw Stephen Kellogg earlier this week -

Puts our old point and shoot to shame!

Crazy Christmas

2011-12-29T12:55:00.000-05:00

Christmas was insane this year. Too many presents, a lot of family time and excessive amounts of food (and drinks!) I could go into detail but frankly it was too exhausting the first time around and pictures are more exciting!

We challenged ourselves to 'The 12 Drinks of Christmas' and each picture we took to document the number was funnier than the last:

Lots of ugly sweaters were sported

And some of us learned the secret family sauce recipe.

Of course there were lots of presents

And a non-stop food feast!

What a blast :)

Brooksy did a bad bad thing.

2011-12-14T17:20:00.001-05:00

This is our Christmas tree.

Does it look a little sad? A little worse for the wear?

Maybe that’s because this guy can’t stay away from it.

Oh, don’t believe that sweet little face. He is no angel. Not even 6 months old and he’s entering the terrible toddler phase.

Everything goes in his mouth. Everything gets barked at. The tree was no exception. I knew having a tree would be a challenge with a puppy but wasn’t expecting to yell every 5 seconds to stop eating the ornaments or chewing the branches.

He sniffed curiously at it the first night, got brave and licked it the second night and by the third night it was his new hiding spot. He curls up and stares at you until you physically remove him from behind it. FYI--he’s pushing 50 pounds now so this is no easy task. One night I went to dislodge him, he flipped out and went running and the tree came with him. Ornaments and expletives went flying. I rushed to pick up the hooks before he could eat them. Brooksy just looked at me, barked and walked away.

Well, Santa brought Brooksy an early Christmas present!

The choke collar was a heated debate topic between Mike and I. He saw it as a necessary tool of discipline; I thought it was cruel and potentially damaging to our pup’s little throat.

After the tree incident there was no question I needed some help. Brooksy has already grown out of the harness we use on walks and I can barely control him when he lunges at cars and runners. We can’t have a 120 pound dog doing that so it was time to take action.

We only use the collar on walks and it isn’t the style that has the hooks in it so I am not concerned with its effects. I can admit that Brooksy listens to Mike more than me so the collar has been a good teaching tool for me and has taught that little devil some obedience. It’s been a godsend!

Now if only I could get him to stop chewing all the presents…..

DINKS

2011-12-14T17:20:00.000-05:00

A while back I was talking to Mike’s mom and she referred to us as ‘DINKS’---meaning ‘double income, no kids.’ That term is just genuis. We’re blessed to both have jobs and without any kids, we have some disposable income to play around with.

Our biggest splurge is, without a doubt, on food. We hit up happy hour every week but we rarely go out to dinner! Why would I pay someone else to cook me a sub-par meal when I have a husband who wants to make gourmet meals every night? Exactly.

We both love trying new foods and weird ingredients and live way too close to Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s to resist popping in weekly. Right now Mike is obsessed with leeks - he has no idea what to cook with them or even how to cook them. They’re his Mt. Everest so any suggestions would help!

Source

When we were in Nova for Thanksgiving Lauren had a beer called Belhaven Irish Stout and we all loved it. I called stores in Richmond and Manassas and no one carried it. I kept dreaming about that beer until Mike went on a crazy beer hunt yesterday and six stores later finally found it!

I built that beer up so much that when I took the first sip I was sadly disappointed. While still delicious, it tasted way more like apple juice than I remembered, not that chocolate/coffee flavor I had been craving.

Another coveted item was Trader Joe’s seasonal Speculoos cookie butter.

It’s basically gingerbread peanut butter. Yeah. I know. I read so many good things about that stuff and it was sold out for weeks. When I finally got my hands on it? Not so great. Sure, it tastes good, but the anticipation killed it for me!

Lesson learned – don’t believe the hype!

Cookie overload

2011-12-04T17:53:00.001-05:00

This weekend I went back to NOVA for a Christmas brunch with my high school gal pals. We decided to do a cookie swap and man, were there alot of cookies.

I rationed my cookies out before I brought them to the brunch. My smart friends didn't and there were DOZENS of cookies flying around. I shoved a few in my mouth before I passed them around the table but still wound up with way too many!

I left a bag with my parents, packed a tin for Mike's firehouse and we still have at least two dozen left. Hello holidays!

Before everyone left I insisted we take a picture. Only problem was that there wasn't anyone to hold the camera for us and none of us trusted Beckie's little boy to take a good shot :)

Balancing a camera on a shelf and cramming together before the self-timer went off wasn't easy and this was the best shot we got!

Love these ladies!!

Turkey travels

2011-11-27T14:18:00.001-05:00

Mike and I just got back from our Thanksgiving with his family and boy are we tired! We had a whirlwind few days.

On Thursday morning we ran the Arlington Turkey Trot with Lauren and Chris.

It was early, cold and crowded but we had a blast! And it gave us a free pass to gorge ourselves the rest of the day on all the delicious food!

On Friday we went out on the town. First we stopped at a British pub -

Mike was in heaven as he sampled their bone marrow appetizer (yuck!!)

Then onto Sticky Rice DC!

It was just as weird and delicious but I'm a little partial to the Richmond location :)

On Saturday the hubs and I visited Kettler Ice Complex, site of the Capitals practice rink.

We picked up some new gear and watched the little Capitals play. One of the player's sons was on the team!

We may also have stopped at Rio for some treats

And later we took Miss A to the playground!

Brooksy had a blast making new friends

But it was all too exhausting for our little pup.

What a great trip!

Seriously, the paws.

2011-11-22T18:24:00.001-05:00

Final vet check-up was tonight. We joked about how much weight Brooksy has gained but when the scale hit 35 pounds I couldn't help but gasp. 8 pounds gained in 3 weeks. Yikes.

When the vet told us to increase his feedings to 5 CUPS A DAY Mike and I just exchanged glances and laughed. What can we do? Lil' man needs it! Can we even call him little man anymore?

For the most part he is well-behaved. He's smart and learns quickly but man is he STRONG! We need to make sure he is disciplined so he's not dragging me around when he hits triple digits.

But for now I am content enjoying these moments :)

Frog Dog

2011-11-17T17:14:00.001-05:00

Yeah, he's still growing.

Meet the Nelsons

2011-11-14T17:35:00.001-05:00

On Saturday we attended Matt and Dawn’s wedding in Virginia Beach.

Since we were staying overnight, it meant packing little Brooksy up for his first sleepover away from Mom and Dad.

We left him with Mike’s co-worker who has 2 little girls and 2 other labs --a chocolate and a golden, so Brooksy completed the trio! After playing with them all day he was exhausted when we picked him up on Sunday. He even tried to “make little Brooksy’s” during his visit. Not embarrassing at all, right?

We arrived in VA Beach with time to spare and snagged our seats at the Lesner Inn for the ceremony at noon.

Getting married at the beach is where it’s at! We had a beautiful view of the water and sunlight streamed through the windows. Out on the patio you were surrounded by clear blue water.

When Dawn walked out I completely lost it. Having been to ohsomany weddings I can say she was the most beautiful bride I’ve ever seen. The dress, the make-up, the veil=perfection!

The ceremony was short and sweet. Promises to love one another, be good to each other and to stay faithful.

Bam. Married.

We had such a blast at the reception! We noshed on yummy appetizers (I think Mike ate about 17 bacon-wrapped scallops) and a hearty lunch buffet. I ate way too many cupcakes.

Libbie and Weston were both in the wedding--Libbie was Matron of Honor!

There was a photo booth set-up and served as the guest book. LOVE that idea. Totally jealous!

We had just enough time to cut a rug to ‘Shout!’ before it was time to send the newlyweds off.

Their car wouldn’t start, which I think just added even more charm to the day.

But eventually they got it running and off went Mr. and Mrs. Nelson!

El pato

2011-11-05T10:00:00.000-04:00

My name is Brooksy and I found my first love.

I picked this toy out by myself and haven't let it leave my side since.

The creepy eyes and squeaky noise don't bug me at all, unlike my mom who is getting driven crazy by the darn thing.

But I'm teething pretty bad right now and my new friend helps. If ya'll love me you will buy me 8 more of these because it's the only thing I should be chewing on right now.

Quack quack.

Double dare

2011-11-04T13:00:00.000-04:00

Yesterday ~~I know~~ I think I went a little crazy.

For real, I don’t know how Mike puts up with me. I make big decisions without much thought and rarely think an idea through. I can’t imagine how many tattoos I would have if I got one every time I had the itch or how many dogs we would own if Mike let me near the adoption stands at Petsmart. It’s gotten to the point that when we talk about dinner plans or what movie to watch, Mike just waits for me to spit out 5 or 6 ideas before he gives his opinion.

My husband is the complete opposite. Like total other side of the planet. Things get planned, reviewed and planned again before he agrees. The number in our bank account actually matters to him (I don’t think about silly things like retirement before proclaiming that we should plan a trip to Hawaii or heck, why not just move there?) His only real vice is buying an occasional lotto ticket once the Powerball hits triple digits.

So back to me being crazy. Yesterday I decided I wanted to run a marathon.

Yup.

I really enjoy running. Sometimes when I exercise I don’t want to spend 30-45 minutes watching a repetitive DVD (sorry Jillian!) Getting stuck in a fitness rut is usually when I end up quitting altogether and dive into a gallon of ice cream.

But running is great; I can go at my own pace and for any length of time. Not having structure works for me! And when I'm done I feel like I’ve really accomplished something.

But now it’s time to start pushing myself. Mike’s sister Lauren suggested that I run the Turkey Trot with her on Thanksgiving this year and I actually signed up. Sure, 3 miles isn’t much but I’m excited about the race! My sister-in-law Erinn is running a half- marathon in Disneyworld next year and Lauren ran the Marine Corps Marathon a few years back! I am in awe; I want to reach a milestone like that. I want to have the bragging rights.

I have my eyes set on a half-marathon in June of next year. Erinn is sending me a training schedule. Now all I have to do is sign up for it.

And maybe eventually get this tattoo?

Source

Who's a pretty boy?

2011-11-03T17:54:00.000-04:00

Someone got his nails did!!

Those massive paws housed some massive talons. When Brooksy went sliding across the kitchen floor and slammed into the dishwasher the other night I asked Mike “Maybe we should get his nails trimmed?”

There is a dog grooming place next door to our vet, which is 30 seconds from our house. I love our neighborhood!

Mike took the pup while I was at work today and the only update I got was a text:

“The dog ladies are freaking out on how big he is.”

Sigh. Our little freak show.

At least he has fancy nails now.

Sumo Dog

2011-11-02T17:41:00.002-04:00

Yesterday was another vet appointment for the B man. He loves going! He sat patiently and listened to all the noises but still went berserk when the nurse came in. We tried helplessly to get him to 'sit' or 'stay' (both commands he practices daily) but since we weren't the ones with the treats our pleas went ignored.

Since his last visit, Brooksy has gained 7 POUNDS. That's like 2.5 pounds a week! We have a 27 pound 3 month old puppy. The vet said he's growing well and expected to see the increase since we were feeding him more. So imagine my surprise when he told us to change his feedings to 2 cups, twice a day! Who are we raising: Clifford?!

But we love and trust our vet and he's a great sounding board for all our questions. So if our ~~big fat~~ lil' man needs more food, more food he shall get.

Plus now B has all the shots he needs to join puppy kindergarten and go to dog parks. Time to get social!

Update: I fed Brooksy his first meal of 2 cups this morning and it lasted 45 seconds as opposed to his normal 30 second wolf-down. Progress!!!

Howl-O-Ween

2011-11-01T18:06:00.000-04:00

I love owning a house during the holidays, especially on Halloween!!

Last year we had a handful of trick-or-treaters and way too much leftover candy. Buying candy and figuring out how much to give each kid is very stressful! What if no kids come? What if you run out?

This year I bought two bags: one of Mike's favorite candy and one of mine. My logic is we would enjoy any leftovers and I didn't spend a fortune.

Well we got a ton of kiddos this year!!! Probably 25-30? And all within an hour! My favorite was little Buzz Lightyear in full gear; he was sooooo cute!

I do not appreciate the high schoolers who ring the doorbell and 1) Aren't wearing costumes and 2) Don't say a word! You need to earn that candy! Next year I'll turn the porch light off after 7:30 to avoid these hooligans. I was telling Mike my plan when he informed me he trick-or-treated until he was 18!!! Shameful; at least I stopped in 9th grade and even that was pushing it.

Brooksy truly is my dog because he loved Halloween!

I tried to tie a bandana on him to make him 'Punk Rock Puppy' but he was not having it. Instead he sat by the door and watched all the sweet ghosts and goblins running up and down the street and greeted them with lots of licks when they rang the doorbell.

Best holiday ever!

Making it happen

2011-10-30T09:37:00.000-04:00

Gosh I love Halloween.

Somehow we managed to pull costumes together before going out last night.

Mike went as Alex Ovechkin, which worked because he owns the hockey gear and was wearing MY jersey. We found some black wax for his missing tooth and the costume was born. Total cost= $3 for the wax.

I decided to return to my roots and dress as the high-school version of myself, which was goth/punk. I have long ago tossed all the clothes I wore back then but found some pants for $3 at the thrift store and added some $2 chains to them. Already owned everything else so total cost = $5. Also it was way way too much fun dressing like this again.....

We met up with Matt and Dawn

And Alex and Becca. I've known Alex for many years and every Halloween he wears the exact same costume

And it terrifies me every year!

Becca dressed as Betty Boop and definitely wins the best costume award --

She threw that together yesterday morning and that's a Michael Jackson wig she manipulated. Unbelievable!!

I love that I have friends that go all out for my favorite holiday.

Great night with great people!!

Predictable

2011-10-29T07:34:00.000-04:00

I don't know what it is about this year but I'm not amped for Halloween. Decorating was delayed and I just now bought candy, both tasks that normally would have been done weeks ago. I felt like I was forcing the excitement. I even contemplated not going out this year.

But then I realized that this is probably the last year I will dress up and celebrate at a bar so I gave in and threw together a costume. I always have terrible costumes (except for last year's!)

Mike never plans a costume until 24 hours before the party so it's always frantic around October 27.

No joke --every year I talk Mike's head off about my favorite holiday and beg him to plan a costume, but the day before the party I always get the text "Did you pick out my costume yet?"

I picked this gem out and it was a hit. BUT it required pre-planning!

True to form my beloved hubby texted me yesterday to ask what his costume should be. He hated every idea I suggested because I told him at this point he had to work with what we had in the house. Then he informs me we are going to the costume store today: the Saturday before Halloween. Uh, no thanks. That place will be insane!

At least I have MY costume planned.

Hopefully the boy will find an idea he can tolerate before we head out tonight!

Deck the Spooky Halls

2011-10-27T18:07:00.000-04:00

I’m really disappointed in myself. For several reasons.

Número uno: I have fallen off the blogging wagon. I lost my mojo. I was in NOVA last weekend and spent a wonderful day with the in-laws and sweet Baby A. Did I take any pictures? Nope. And FYI - Baby A ain’t a baby anymore! She’s talking and walking and is oh so very precious that I needed to steal a picture from Lauren so I can prove my point.

Número deux: The funk has taken over again. I try to be positive 90% of the time (we all have bad days!) but lately I feel like I can’t catch a break. First I needed new tires, then I got hit with a speeding ticket, followed by my phone dying and a few days ago my windshield up and cracked on me.

I can handle a bump or two in the road but it seems like lately it’s coming at me full force! Which leads to copious amounts of ice cream being consumed which only provides temporary (albeit delicious) relief.

Número tre: This is the worst. I’m hanging my head as I type this.

I didn’t decorate for Halloween.

I got a head start when I added some fall décor to the house in August (too soon?) but after that I couldn’t be bothered to get my three boxes of Halloween decor from the attic. I was just lazy, which is a shame because I have some pretty awesome Halloween decorations.

But yesterday I told myself to end the pity party because frankly, I’m a lot less fun when I’m mopey and Mike and Brooksy deserve Fun Devon.

So I grabbed that ladder, got the Halloween decorations and unleashed my spooky treasures. I didn’t go overboard (since they need to come down in 5 days…) but I felt the funk disappearing as I filled the house with pumpkins and witches.

Brooksy sniffed out the boxes and seemed content to chew on his rawhide until this guy made an appearance.

Endless giggles followed. Funk officially kicked.