So\, first off, I'd like to say that I've been TRYING to post about some crafting I did last week since last Wednesday, but for some reason, Blogger is refusing to load any of my photos. So as soon as I get that sorted out, I'll get that post up too. This four posts a month thing isn't going very well so far! Oh well. That said, on to my story...
So, it's a good thing "Survival of the Fittest" isn't as hard and fast a rule as it once was. For the past two and a half weeks, I've had agonizing back pain...like, "call off from work, go home and lay in bed with a heating pad and an ice pack and a bottle of Advil and cry" kinda pain. On top of that, I was just generally achy all over and had some other random symptoms that I decline to share in such a public forum...lol.
Now, back pain is nothing new for me. At first, I thought I just overdid it at work. And then the other symptoms started...and then my back pain was so bad that it was causing abdominal pain just compensating for it. And it just wasn't NORMAL. It was worse in the afternoon than it was in the morning, which is unusual. Just everything was wrong. I was just about to make a doctor's appointment, and I made one last brain-racking attempt at figuring out what had changed in the last two weeks. Literally, the only thing that was different was that I had started taking vitamins.
So, I threw out my own advice of not searching for medical info on the internet, and started looking up side effects for multivitamins. And whaddaya know...a list of 8 symptoms popped up on a reputable website and I had half of them. I tested out my theory by stopping the vitamins, and two days later, I'm pain free. Seriously.
The worst part of this whole story is that they were Adult GUMMY Vitamins. What kind of person has an adverse reaction to GUMMY vitamins?!? So that's my story for the week, and proof that healthy choices are trying to kill me! :) Just kidding. Well...half kidding anyway. Have a good night all, and don't forget to skip your vitamins tonight! :)
Monday, February 17, 2014
Treating Myself...
**Okay, so two weeks after I wrote this post, I finally downloaded Mozilla Firefox (thanks for the suggestion Teresa!), and was able to upload the photos so I could FINALLY post it. Hooray!
Today was the first of two days in a row off this week, neither of which I have to leave town for! Hooray! It's been a rather exciting day :) I managed to drag my butt out of bed at a reasonably early hour and went and picked up breakfast (and some extras for lunch) at La Mie...my very favorite little French bakery. After that, I came home and wrapped up labeling and organizing my stamps in my new cabinet from Hobby Lobby (thank you, 40% off coupon, for making this purchase possible).
Then, I took a three hour nap. Yep. Three hours. It was a-mazing. If I could make a trip back to my kindergarten self, I would definitely try to explain the true beauty of naps. Then, on to craftiness! I did some coloring...
I got a couple of cards done for some friends, and as long as I was going out to mail them anyway, I decided to make a couple of stops. I tracked down my Kohl's coupon and the Kohl's Cash mom gave me last time I was home, and managed to get myself a lovely new Vera Wang purse for FREE! :) And when I was heading home, I swung by the grocery store and got myself some flowers for Valentine's Day before they're all picked over and sad-looking.
And when I got home from that, I worked on St. Patrick's Day cards. All-in-all, it was a fabulously relaxing day. I'm glad I've got another one just like it planned for tomorrow :)
Today was the first of two days in a row off this week, neither of which I have to leave town for! Hooray! It's been a rather exciting day :) I managed to drag my butt out of bed at a reasonably early hour and went and picked up breakfast (and some extras for lunch) at La Mie...my very favorite little French bakery. After that, I came home and wrapped up labeling and organizing my stamps in my new cabinet from Hobby Lobby (thank you, 40% off coupon, for making this purchase possible).
Then, I took a three hour nap. Yep. Three hours. It was a-mazing. If I could make a trip back to my kindergarten self, I would definitely try to explain the true beauty of naps. Then, on to craftiness! I did some coloring...
I got a couple of cards done for some friends, and as long as I was going out to mail them anyway, I decided to make a couple of stops. I tracked down my Kohl's coupon and the Kohl's Cash mom gave me last time I was home, and managed to get myself a lovely new Vera Wang purse for FREE! :) And when I was heading home, I swung by the grocery store and got myself some flowers for Valentine's Day before they're all picked over and sad-looking.
And when I got home from that, I worked on St. Patrick's Day cards. All-in-all, it was a fabulously relaxing day. I'm glad I've got another one just like it planned for tomorrow :)
Sunday, January 26, 2014
The Incredible 4000 Mile Month...
Well, it's January 26th, and considering this is my first post of the month, I can admit I'm not doing to hot on that "4 posts a month" New Year's Intention. It's possible I could still make it, but I'm not going to force it either.
Here's the thing...this month has been CRAZY! For starters, I haven't had a day off at my apartment since...the 2nd, I think. Mom's had two eye surgeries, and I had to travel to St. Louis for work (which means I had to drop my dogs off at Mom's house first...which, from Des Moines, is no small feat in itself). Feeling a little defeated, sitting at yet another gas station waiting for my car to fill up, I added it all up, and realized I'd be logging in over 4000 miles this month. Yeow!
Call it my competitive nature, but I sort of feel like that's a win. lol :) So I may have accomplished nothing at my apartment, and I may feel like I need about 4 days of sleep to catch up, but at least I win on most miles logged, right?
Despite all the craziness, it actually has been a pretty great month. Mom's surgeries went really well, and there's been a lot of improvement in her vision overall, so that's a big win. My trip to St. Louis was really productive...I got to be a part of a supervisor assessment panel, which was not only a great experience, but also helped me take some more steps in my career growth. I got to have lunch with a great friend who I haven't seen in several months, which gave me almost 4 hours of time to indulge in my inherent snarkiness that I spend a lot time keeping in check in many social situations :) lol. Even though I'm way behind on my craftiness due to all the travel, I've been able to do a ton of reading. And even with all the all the time spent out of the store, everything there held together pretty well. All-in-all, things are heading in the right direction, and I couldn't be happier (although, I'm certainly not complaining about a little more downtime this month).
So...I got one post in this month at least :) We'll see if I have time for a couple more. Either way...things are getting better, and I can feel my motivation for creating building up again. And now, off to spend the rest of my lovely day off at my apartment with the dogs...working on Valentine Cards, hopefully :) More later!
Here's the thing...this month has been CRAZY! For starters, I haven't had a day off at my apartment since...the 2nd, I think. Mom's had two eye surgeries, and I had to travel to St. Louis for work (which means I had to drop my dogs off at Mom's house first...which, from Des Moines, is no small feat in itself). Feeling a little defeated, sitting at yet another gas station waiting for my car to fill up, I added it all up, and realized I'd be logging in over 4000 miles this month. Yeow!
Call it my competitive nature, but I sort of feel like that's a win. lol :) So I may have accomplished nothing at my apartment, and I may feel like I need about 4 days of sleep to catch up, but at least I win on most miles logged, right?
Despite all the craziness, it actually has been a pretty great month. Mom's surgeries went really well, and there's been a lot of improvement in her vision overall, so that's a big win. My trip to St. Louis was really productive...I got to be a part of a supervisor assessment panel, which was not only a great experience, but also helped me take some more steps in my career growth. I got to have lunch with a great friend who I haven't seen in several months, which gave me almost 4 hours of time to indulge in my inherent snarkiness that I spend a lot time keeping in check in many social situations :) lol. Even though I'm way behind on my craftiness due to all the travel, I've been able to do a ton of reading. And even with all the all the time spent out of the store, everything there held together pretty well. All-in-all, things are heading in the right direction, and I couldn't be happier (although, I'm certainly not complaining about a little more downtime this month).
So...I got one post in this month at least :) We'll see if I have time for a couple more. Either way...things are getting better, and I can feel my motivation for creating building up again. And now, off to spend the rest of my lovely day off at my apartment with the dogs...working on Valentine Cards, hopefully :) More later!
Monday, December 30, 2013
New Year's Intentions 2014...
'Tis the season to recap where I ended with last year's intentions and what my new ones are for this year. It wasn't a fully successful year with my 2013 intentions, but I made a decent go of it...not too shabby in a year full of major life changes, including an out-of-state move and a change in jobs!
2013 Recap
1) Learn stuff - take 3-4 classes for fun. Did it! I took a cooking class, a doodling class, and several online classes including (but not limited to) a photoshop class, a journaling class, and hand-lettering class.
2) Take the vacation I earn. Meh. That's sort of a big ouch on that one, although it's mostly not my fault. I had a week and change of vacation ready to go for a summer trip when I was at Archivers' and unfortunately when I left, not only did I not get to take that vacation, they also never paid out the time due to their Chapter 11 filing (argh). Then when I got to World Market, I've been earning time, but for most of the time I've been there I either was in my probationary period and ineligible to take it, or in black out period for holiday time. I did manage to sneak a couple of days in between those two. So, mostly, I'm considering this a success (even if it is sort of a sad and depressing one).
3) At least 2 days a week, use my break at work to actually take a break and not do work! Just so-so. I was pretty good about this at Archiver's, and the last couple of months at World Market I've been better. The first few months here, I absolutely was not though. At least I'm getting back on track!
4) Make cards for every major holiday. Did it! Made it through even though I was pretty sure I wasn't going to make it for more than a few holidays! May have cheated a tiny bit with the copy machine at Archiver's, but alas...they got done!
5) Make sure moving to Iowa doesn't prevent me from seeing friends & family. Solid performance! Since I moved here, I made a trip to Michigan, Cassy, Josh, Heather and Ashley have all been out to visit me, I've been back home a lot and even got Mom out here once. I think this one is a pretty decent success.
6) Read 52 books. Close enough, considering. I made it to 30 books, which considering the insanity I dealt with after the job change, I'm considering to be a fair accomplishment anyway.
2014 Intentions
1) Keep up with my blog. At least 4 posts a month.
2) Keep up with my crafty plans...Project Life and cards for every major holiday.
3) Read 52 books. I know it's probably a stretch, but I'm feeling unreasonable today.
4) Take at least 5 classes of some kind for fun (i.e. NOT work-related).
5) Take every opportunity to stay on track with my career goals...including getting transferred back to Chicago and talking to the right people about a position in HR.
6) Maintain a better work-life balance. Take my days off, take my breaks, take my vacation, and don't bring too much crap home to do!
That's all for now! :)
2013 Recap
1) Learn stuff - take 3-4 classes for fun. Did it! I took a cooking class, a doodling class, and several online classes including (but not limited to) a photoshop class, a journaling class, and hand-lettering class.
2) Take the vacation I earn. Meh. That's sort of a big ouch on that one, although it's mostly not my fault. I had a week and change of vacation ready to go for a summer trip when I was at Archivers' and unfortunately when I left, not only did I not get to take that vacation, they also never paid out the time due to their Chapter 11 filing (argh). Then when I got to World Market, I've been earning time, but for most of the time I've been there I either was in my probationary period and ineligible to take it, or in black out period for holiday time. I did manage to sneak a couple of days in between those two. So, mostly, I'm considering this a success (even if it is sort of a sad and depressing one).
3) At least 2 days a week, use my break at work to actually take a break and not do work! Just so-so. I was pretty good about this at Archiver's, and the last couple of months at World Market I've been better. The first few months here, I absolutely was not though. At least I'm getting back on track!
4) Make cards for every major holiday. Did it! Made it through even though I was pretty sure I wasn't going to make it for more than a few holidays! May have cheated a tiny bit with the copy machine at Archiver's, but alas...they got done!
5) Make sure moving to Iowa doesn't prevent me from seeing friends & family. Solid performance! Since I moved here, I made a trip to Michigan, Cassy, Josh, Heather and Ashley have all been out to visit me, I've been back home a lot and even got Mom out here once. I think this one is a pretty decent success.
6) Read 52 books. Close enough, considering. I made it to 30 books, which considering the insanity I dealt with after the job change, I'm considering to be a fair accomplishment anyway.
2014 Intentions
1) Keep up with my blog. At least 4 posts a month.
2) Keep up with my crafty plans...Project Life and cards for every major holiday.
3) Read 52 books. I know it's probably a stretch, but I'm feeling unreasonable today.
4) Take at least 5 classes of some kind for fun (i.e. NOT work-related).
5) Take every opportunity to stay on track with my career goals...including getting transferred back to Chicago and talking to the right people about a position in HR.
6) Maintain a better work-life balance. Take my days off, take my breaks, take my vacation, and don't bring too much crap home to do!
That's all for now! :)
Saturday, December 21, 2013
A Year of Cards...
Well, I've been utterly atrocious about updating my blog for a quite a while now. I have every hope that I can get back on track in the new year, but that remains to be seen. It's been so crazy at work, I just haven't had the time or energy to keep it current. On the other hand, I recognize more daily that I need to figure out a way to MAKE time for it...for my sanity's sake. So that'll probably be in my New Years' Intentions list for 2014 when I make one. Anyway, I DID do some crafty stuff this year...I got my project life done up through the middle of October...and I completed all my cards for all the major holidays! I didn't want to post the cards before people received them, so I decided to wait till the end of the year and post them all...here we go!
New Year's Card
Valentine's Day
St. Patrick's Day
Easter
4th of July
Halloween
Thanksgiving
Christmas
Excuse the photography...it's all on my phone, and I just didn't have the heart to run them all through photoshop! lol :) Anyway...Merry Christmas all...more blogging again soon...hopefully :)
New Year's Card
Valentine's Day
St. Patrick's Day
Easter
4th of July
Halloween
Thanksgiving
Christmas
Excuse the photography...it's all on my phone, and I just didn't have the heart to run them all through photoshop! lol :) Anyway...Merry Christmas all...more blogging again soon...hopefully :)
Wednesday, September 25, 2013
Picture Everyday: Surface...
Today's challenge was surface. It was also my day off. Considering the hellish allergy attacks I've been dealing with lately, I opted not to leave my house. It was pretty much the perfect day...slept in...took a shower...changed into a clean pair of pajamas and sat around for the rest of the day...woot! Here's what I came up with :)
We had a squeaky toy massacre...whoops...
The surface where I spend most of my time at home...
I like it when my surfaces say: comfy, crafty, with a sense of humor
Kinda fun challenge for today :)
We had a squeaky toy massacre...whoops...
The surface where I spend most of my time at home...
I like it when my surfaces say: comfy, crafty, with a sense of humor
Kinda fun challenge for today :)
Picture Everyday: Seating...
Yesterday's prompt for my class was Seating. If I wouldn't have been stuck at work for 11 1/2 hours, I might've driven around looking for some park seating, but I decided I rather complete the project than put it off. Life's been a little crazy lately, so putting it off winds up being an indefinite ordeal...so here's what I came up with around the house :)
Millie's claimed the chair in the livingroom for herself...this is one of the rare moments she relinquished it in favor of the couch...
I've officially taken over the diningroom table as my scrapping area...I haven't even bothered to clean it up since Ashley was here in August (yes, that's right...perhaps my OCD is letting up a little...or perhaps scrap-cleanliness has been downgraded in favor of work-insanity...either way...lol)...
I always feel the need to put a seating area in my bedroom...I don't really know why since I hardly ever use it, but Lucy likes to hide out there when she's crabby, so it's okay :)
Today's prompt shortly!
Millie's claimed the chair in the livingroom for herself...this is one of the rare moments she relinquished it in favor of the couch...
I've officially taken over the diningroom table as my scrapping area...I haven't even bothered to clean it up since Ashley was here in August (yes, that's right...perhaps my OCD is letting up a little...or perhaps scrap-cleanliness has been downgraded in favor of work-insanity...either way...lol)...
I always feel the need to put a seating area in my bedroom...I don't really know why since I hardly ever use it, but Lucy likes to hide out there when she's crabby, so it's okay :)
Today's prompt shortly!
Picture Everyday: Threshold...
Monday's prompt was Threshold...
The view my dogs get, because there's always a gate up to the extra rooms...otherwise, they're in there causing trouble!
My Silhouette Cameo vinyl design I put at my front door :)
First apartment I've ever had an extra bathroom in! Yay!
More pics that it wouldn't have occurred to me to take on a normal day...fun :)
The view my dogs get, because there's always a gate up to the extra rooms...otherwise, they're in there causing trouble!
My Silhouette Cameo vinyl design I put at my front door :)
First apartment I've ever had an extra bathroom in! Yay!
More pics that it wouldn't have occurred to me to take on a normal day...fun :)
Picture Everyday: Saturday Bonus Prompt...
Well, today we went to Boggio's in Granville, because it's FALL! My favorite time of year! While I love fall, I also have a strong aversion to lines and large groups of people, so we decided on this weekend before all the corn maze nonsense begins! Got some good pics out of it :)
That's right...even Mom got in on the action! :)
And a pretty pic from the drive home...
Plus one of the windmill at the pond :)
More soon everyone!
That's right...even Mom got in on the action! :)
And a pretty pic from the drive home...
Plus one of the windmill at the pond :)
More soon everyone!
Tuesday, September 24, 2013
Picture Everyday: Rest
Friday's prompt for my Picture Everyday workshop on Big Picture Classes...rest! Something I've been dramatically short on lately! Well the pups and I finally got some snoozy time on the couch and the decided to be semi-cooperative about holding still for pictures...here they are!
Daisy...taking a momentary break from killing a squeaky toy...
One more of Daisy...because I couldn't decide which one I liked best :)
Lucy...snoozy time on the couch is pretty much her favorite thing aside from snoozy time in bed!
Millie...looking considerably perkier than her 4am wake-up call earlier in the week ;)
More tomorrow probably :)
Daisy...taking a momentary break from killing a squeaky toy...
One more of Daisy...because I couldn't decide which one I liked best :)
Lucy...snoozy time on the couch is pretty much her favorite thing aside from snoozy time in bed!
Millie...looking considerably perkier than her 4am wake-up call earlier in the week ;)
More tomorrow probably :)
Thursday, September 19, 2013
Picture Everyday: Serve...
Today's challenge was "Serve." I close at work tonight, which means I pretty much do nothing in the morning besides sit around my apartment. Sooooo...the closest thing I really had to "serve" was serving breakfast to the pups this morning....here it is:
Filling up the water dishes.
Food dishes all lined up...complete with Lucy's "slow bowl" because otherwise she gets too excited and eats so fast she chokes!
This picture isn't that great, but it just makes me laugh. Lucy gets so excited she does a little happy dance!
And that's it for today...tomorrow's prompt is "Rest"!
Filling up the water dishes.
Food dishes all lined up...complete with Lucy's "slow bowl" because otherwise she gets too excited and eats so fast she chokes!
This picture isn't that great, but it just makes me laugh. Lucy gets so excited she does a little happy dance!
And that's it for today...tomorrow's prompt is "Rest"!
Picture Everyday: Dine...
Yesterday's challenge was "Dine"...here's what I came up with!
It was a helluva long day...so it was important to start the evening off on the right foot.
A little comfort food never hurt anyone either...tuna noodle casserole...yum! Also, I love my blue bowl...so pretty :)
I spent my whole childhood toting around juice boxes because I was allergic to milk. I was always sooo jealous of all the other kids who got to drink milk. After I (mostly) grew out of my allergy when I got to adulthood, it's one of my favorite things!
Next up...Serve!
It was a helluva long day...so it was important to start the evening off on the right foot.
A little comfort food never hurt anyone either...tuna noodle casserole...yum! Also, I love my blue bowl...so pretty :)
I spent my whole childhood toting around juice boxes because I was allergic to milk. I was always sooo jealous of all the other kids who got to drink milk. After I (mostly) grew out of my allergy when I got to adulthood, it's one of my favorite things!
Next up...Serve!
Picture Everyday: Wash...
Next challenge...Wash!
It may be a little silly, but I think the Tide Pods are kinda pretty.
I'm soooo not gonna miss pumping quarters into a machine every time I need to do a load of laundry. Next time I move, an in-unit washer/dryer is on the list of non-negotiables!
Ahhh...the never-ending pile of laundry. Even as you're doing your last load, you're wearing something that's going to need washing...the cycle continues!
Next up...Dine!
It may be a little silly, but I think the Tide Pods are kinda pretty.
I'm soooo not gonna miss pumping quarters into a machine every time I need to do a load of laundry. Next time I move, an in-unit washer/dryer is on the list of non-negotiables!
Ahhh...the never-ending pile of laundry. Even as you're doing your last load, you're wearing something that's going to need washing...the cycle continues!
Next up...Dine!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)