Waiting to Exhale

OK, I'm up relatively early on a Saturday, because my husband actually wants to go try out a new Bikram yoga studio. They told us to hydrate before class, so I'm enjoying a cold Dasani, instead of a cup of coffee. I've done yoga before, and enjoyed it, but I am a little intimidated by all of this. It's an 1.5 hour long class AND the room is heated to 105 degrees! I may just fall over from heat exhaustion while trying to hold the warrior pose! Wish me luck!

Faux sugar provides morning inspiration

Has anyone else noticed that Splenda is providing "sweet", inspiring messages on their packets? Since I bought the new box, I have noticed little messages on the packets as I artificially sweeten my morning coffee. A nice touch!

I also heard this story on Good Morning America today..http://http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/
about mothers not only having issues with post-partum depression, but bi polar disorder and other mental disorders. As A), someone who is seriously considering pregnancy and B) someone who inherited the worry gene from both Grandmother and Mother, this bothers me! I know that if and when I decide to have children, I will be bombarded with advice from friends, family, co-workers and strangers on the street, but I guess it just really hit home about serious of a problem this is and how it often goes undiscussed or undiagnosed.

Christmas card drama

The Christmas cards are on their way, so now it's time to take the cute, we're newlyweds, here's our cute picture, picture!

I had asked my hubby if we could take our photo for the card this weekend. He agreed, even willingly and dressed nice on Sunday and even asked a friend to stop by and assist. So, our "photographer" Ben arrived and took some shots of us with the dogs. After I uploaded them, I realized that they weren't really that good - zombie eyes on the dogs from the flash, we were laughing too much, etc. So, I set up the camera and the timer and thought we might be able to get a better shot. By then, we were all a little tired - the dogs were running out of the picture, dog decided to roll on back, lick a paw, etc. Total disaster! I sent a few shots to Ritz last night to see if they will possibly look better once printed, so I am keeping my fingers crossed. I think everyone will run and hide if I pull out the camera again tonight! I may post a few of our rejects later.

Hubby thinks we should just send a picture of ourselves with a note that says the dogs were out chasing squirrels. May not be a bad idea!

Little Pissers

I recently ordered a "waterer" like this one from Drs. Foster & Smith. It always seemed like the water bowl was empty or just a huge mess. Our neat 2.5 gallon waterer arrived yesterday. This little contraption works much like the water coolers in your office. I filled it to the top & set it up. Our dogs drank and drank, dripped all over the floor and then drank some more. I think they are intrigued with how it automatically refills. Needless to say, we woke up to two wet blankets in their two kennels this morning. My sweet hubby forgot to let them out last night for their late night potty, so I have put the blame on him!

Dueling Banjos

Hubby and I have decided to run the Country Music Marathon on April 28 http://cmmarathon.com. Even though I grew up near Nashville, I am not a country music fan, with the exception of some Hank Williams or Johnny Cash on occasion. Apparently, they have music stations every mile... think it's rude to use my iPod? Anyway, this race is near my hometown, family and friends, so we can also use this for a little vacation time also have a great event to use as a motivator!

Argh...

Hubby and I had plans to go to the cycle class last night at 6:30, but I am now convinced that my boss has a honing device to know when I actually have to leave the building at 5:30. Needless to say, my boss stopped by my office around 5:20 to explain a new project, so I was late getting home, then on the way to the gym, we hit every light and thus, missed cycle. So, we did our own thing.. no big deal.

So, we had then decided to get up this morning for the 6am cycle class... we show up & all of the cycles are full. OK, I'm a big girl - I can run on a treadmill, but without my iPod? I do believe that I was on the clunkiest/loudest treadmill, but I survived my 3 mile run. Then, sweet hubby who made coffee forgot to actually turn it on, my mother called at 7:30 to ask the names of a relatives child (which scared me, because I am afraid of early morning phone calls from family)then I accidentally grabbed the hot flat iron when putting it away. Oh, and I gained a pound this week! I just can't seem to "get right"... I had a client call first thing this morning to question a bill... and I still didn't have enough coffee in my system to properly function. Just trying to decide why I'm being punished and this crazy cycle class is just out of my reach??

OK... feeling better - atleast I did get one thing off my list... ordered our Christmas cards last night! Thanks to http://monogrammomma.blogspot.com for her great post and many suggestions on the Christmas Cards! I chose these from http://invitingsmiles.com pictured above. Of course, ours will have us and not this cute, bald baby! Now to take the perfect photo this weekend!

Thankful

Happy Thanksgiving... I am thankful to have a caring husband, a loving family and group of friends, two crazy dogs who make me laugh each and every day and work that I enjoy. We ran in the Greensboro Gobbler this morning - a very fun 1.5 mile run with our two dogs. The dogs would have finished way faster were they not leashed to thier slow owners!

We leave later today for the in-laws and the eating will commence... always a ton of people and even more food. I did bake a pumpkin pie and a chocolate-toffee cracker candy, not very traditional, but good nontheless.

What's Next?

Other than the Turkey Day Gobbler Dog Jog that we will do on Thanksgiving morning, hubby and I have no races planned. We are considering the Music City Half Marathon in April, held in Nashville, which is close to my hometown. I've also looked into the Mardi Gras Half Marathon in Feb. and a few others. Any good half marathons recommendations in the southeast?

Catcher in the Rye

I'm re-reading Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger. I think it's been since high school and I had forgotten how Salinger writes in these long, rambling run on sentences that make you struggle to keep up. Love this book and it's great to revisit. I am remembering why it doesn't take long to read - I don't think I even take a breath when reading it!

Tired Puppies

After spending the weekend at their favorite getaway, Zeus and Zoe have been sleeping like champs. We board them at a great place with 3 acres of fenced land, a pond and all the tennis balls they can fetch. They've been pooped since I picked them up yesterday. Blowing Rock was great, as was our 1st Anniversary... had lots of fun surprises - beautiful flowers delivered to my office on Friday, chocolates from our favorite place http://chocolatefetish.com and a wine delivery from friends in the area. We even had an array of weather - from 70's and sunny to cold, snow flurries & 30's. It was nice to get away and relax. Oh, we also enjoyed bites of a surprisingly good one-year old wedding cake topper! It was red velvet, the same as one of our wedding cake layers and was actually yummy. Ahhh, wedded bliss. The first year was an adjustment for both of us - I guess that's what happens when two, independent 30 somethings get married & realize they have to share! We probably sound like pre-schoolers!

I do still get a chill when I think about our wedding day and walking into our church and finally seeing his face... the day was truly special for both of us and the details of the day were just as I had imagined. I can still feel the weight of the dress and the smell of my bouquet, not to mention a few nervous butterflies in my stomach!

Cold Noses

Why is it that when I am wearing shorts, that my dogs both like to insert quite cold noses near my tush? Home from the gym & they are both very interested in how I smell. We are dealing with our recent labby adventure... their first ear infection. A trip to the vet, a good ear cleaning & ear drops for 10 days are the solution. Not too bad, but they have to be stored in the fridge, so the pups really don't like how cold they are. Guess I'm getting back for the cold noses!

Trip On..

Yay, our anniversary trip, recently postponed is back on schedule. Just a short trip to Blowing Rock, but it's always one of our favorite places to visit. We will be staying at a cute B&B called the Victorian Inn. Just can't wait to get away. I have two presentation for work between now and then and several other projects to begin. Looking forward to our trip and all of the fun shops and antiques in BR. Off to play with the pups and work on my presentation for tomorrow!

Anniversary gifts? Tick-tock

With our first year anniversary in just 11 days, I feel like I have some preparation to do. I actually just received one of our wedding gifts... our wedding was Nov. 2005, the gift was delivered in March, but went to my former residence. Luckily, nice landlord was holding my Lenox china dinner plate hostage for the past 6 months! I was just horrified in knowing that I hadn't written a thank you note!

With work taking over recently, our anniversary trip to the mountains has been put on hold. I know we have wedding cake to eat, photos to review, cards to re-read and we also have the "wedding wishes" that our guests wrote to us that have been in a little sealed envelope.

Now, I'm stuck on gifts.. paper is traditional and clocks are modern. Hubby does want this gadget that would fall under clocks, but it just doesn't seem very sentimental? http://www.garmin.com/products/forerunner305/

Cavities in the Making..

Ok, so is anyone else halfway through their Halloween candy and it's only the 30th? I like to buy it early, so I have a good selection, but I seem to have gone a bit overboard. Hubby demolished the peanut butter cups and I have put a good dent in the hot tamales. Worked out tonight and a salad for dinner. No candy today. Whoo-hoo, a small victory.

Smoochable Pooches

Since my mom entered her beloved Bulldog, Thunder in this contest, I had to enter "the twins" as well. Zeus and Zoe are our two spoiled rotten, but ever lovable black labrador retrievers. So, please give them 5 stars so we can win a year supply of Kibbles & Bits! Not that this is their food de jour, but I guess that's beside the point! Vote often! http://www.smoochablepooch.com Zeus & Zoe are listed under North Carolina.

I was runnin'

I have neglected my new blog already. Hubby and I ran our Half Marathon this past Saturday. He finished in just over 2 hours and I came in about 26 minutes after him! All was good until I hit Mile 11 and I got some serious pain in my left knee. Not sure what happened... I stopped and stretched, said a few choice words and made it through the next couple of miles. I achieved my goals: finishing, coming in under 2:30 and beating a guy who I knew was running and I hoped I could atleast beat him! I did learn a new acronym on race day - DFL. Dead freakin' last. Glad it wasn't me! We had great shirts made through Running Banana Everyone loved them!

Blisters

Hubby and I have been doing well on our training runs. I have a new heart rate monitor that wouldn't quit beeping last night. I was either too high or too low. Found out today from the trainer at the gym, that I had my settings too low. And I have developed a lovely blister on the side of my foot. Had to wear 2 bandaids this morning with my brown wedges!

We run 5 miles tomorrow and then 10 miles next Saturday, with 2 shorter runs in between. I am looking forward to a shorter jaunt tomorrow, since we have also started Boot Camp 3 x a week. You would think that we would both be super skinny! Not so much... I think we run to eat!

The dogs are enjoying day camp and baths today. Weather is nice, so they were able to swim in the morning & get bathed before I pick them up this evening.

Tomorrow we have a 1st birthday party to attend for our friends son. Should be a fun time. I love kids @ their parties, especially when they end up with cake from head to toe. Our dilemna is the gift. I think we'll hit Barnes & Noble tonight for some nearly-toddler appropriate ideas.

Jeans

Trying on Jeans. Just the thought alone can cause normally dignified ladies to scream, moan and curse like sailors. These are typical working women, eating lunch with friends, picking up a non fat latte from Starbucks, but at the sight of a small, dimly (or harshly) lit dressing room and a stack of jeans in 3 different sizes will turn that "normal" lady from nice to bitch in 2.3 seconds.

Thanks to http://preppycafe.com, I found a great site http://zafu.com I hurriedly typed in my stats, and lo and behold, 30 different choices appeared. Now, I will admit, a few pairs looked like they were on plus size models, but I just chose to ignore those.

I picked a pair of Joe's Jeans, the Socialite, which due to my intensive research should fit me well. When it came to picking out a size, I froze. It's by waist. New to this brand and since it was different than the usual size 8 or 6 when I'm lucky, I chose a 29. After all, the site recommended 28 or 29. I placed my order and checked the shipping status daily.

The arrived on Friday, I was feeling skinny, so I tried them on. My husband was somewhat interested... he thought they looked cute. As he watched me "suck it in", my face turned sour. They zipped and buttoned, but also pulled across my tushie and were too long. He said they looked "fine". So, they are in the process of being exchanged for a 30. I'll let you know.

100 Things About Me

It seems as if every blog I read has a "100 things". Sheesh, it's taken me forever, so here it is... I'm sure I've forgotten something very important!

1. I am married to a charming, funny and genuine man.
2. I was born and raised in middle Tennessee.
3. I do not like gravy. On anything.
4. My husband & I have two black Labrador retrievers.
5. I was recently diagnosed with exercise induced asthma.
6. I recently completed my 1st Half Marathon.
7. Pink is my favorite color.
8. I play tennis.
9. I received a BS in Communications, with an emphasis in Public Relations.
10. My first "real" job was in the marketing department of a shopping center.
11. I currently work in "partner services" for a small marketing and mulitmedia agency.
12. I worked in Yellowstone National Park for 2 summers.
13. Yellowstone National Park is one of my all time favorite places.
14. Paris, France is also in my top 10 list.
15. My parents have been married for over 46 years.
16. I have two older brothers who live in Tennessee.
17. My two best friends from nursery and elementary school were my Matrons of Honor in my wedding.
18. My favorite candy is Hot Tamales.
19. I drive an Audi A4.
20. I prefer to drive a stick shift over an automatic.
21. My first car was a silver Volkswagen Rabbit, named "Bucky".
22. I love ice cream. Chocolate mint is my favorite.
23. My Grandmother "Meme" used to take me to Baskin Robbin's every Sunday afternoon.
24. Meme smoked all of her life and lived until her 90's.
25. I have only tried smoking once, due to one of my childhood friends- see #17.
26. I do drink socially and typically it's one of my 3 favorites: Gin & Tonic, (Bombay Sapphire or Tanqueray), Red Wine or Hoegaarden beer with an orange.
27. I attended both private and public schools and a Montessori kindergarten.
28. One of my favorite toys as a child was a huge orange, fuzzy worm named "Snuggly".
29. I also had a pillow that I carried around named "Dir-Dir".
30. I have been known to be sarcastic.
31. I received a 1st place award during the Annual Art Show when I was in 7th grade.
32. I also received a 1st place award in a 4-H competition.
33. We had a 4-H Cornbread Competition, but I didn't place in that one.
34. I have traveled to France once.
35. I have been to St. Maarten twice and Antigua once.
36. My only other times out of the country were Canada and Mexico.
37. I have a horrible sense of direction.
38. I learned calligraphy when I was in elementary school.
39. I addressed all 300+ of our wedding invitations and place cards using my calligraphy skills!
40. I had braces as an adult and actually had them on for my wedding portrait.
41. I love to make lists and even more, cross items off the list!
42. I am somewhat addicted to the Food Network, kitchen gadgets and kitchen stores.
43. I enjoy cooking, but according to my husband, I rarely cook!
44. My husband and I rate potential houses on the fact if they have a good "Christmas Tree" location.
45. I love white tee shirts, both short and long sleeved.
46. I was the president of my college sorority, ahem women's fraternity - Go Chi O!
47. I have been a member of the Junior League since 2000.
48. I have always had dogs in my family - I grew up with cocker spaniels and at one point, we had 4.
49. Our labs make me smile each and every day. No one else is as excited to see me, even if it only has been 2 hours since the last time we were together.
50. As much as I love it on other dogs, I don't dress ours in any costume-y outfits or sweaters. Our female does wear a pink & green argyle collar, but that's as preppy as it gets.
51. I love cable-knit sweaters that are pretty much perfect three seasons here in the Southeast.
52. My favorite flowers are hydrangeas, daffodils, gardenias and star gazer lilies.
53. I read an insatiable amount of books as a child. Other than drawing, it was always my favorite past time.
54. My parents were 30 and 40 when I was born.
55. My husband is so afraid that we won't have children by the time he's 40.
56. Twins run in my family.
57. In college, I started out as a Psychology major, then thought about Art, went undecided for a while and ended up in Communications.
58. My favorite saying in college was "All men are dogs, they're just different pedigrees".
59. I hate creepy crawly insects, but am most afraid of the brown jumping crickets.
60. I have recently lost two toenails due to running.
61. I am a planner and it stresses me out when I have to just "do something & fly by the seat of my pants".
62. I learned how to ski in college at Paoli Peaks, IN.
63. I also received a black eye and bruised arse from my first time skiing, due to an ugly crash.
64. My favorite place I have ever skied is Vail, CO.
65. My husband proposed to me on New Year's Day, 2005 in Snowshoe Mtn., WV.
66. My wedding ring is engraved with "Love, Me" and 11-12-05.
67. I will buy lip gloss or shoes if I can't find proper fitting pants to buy.
68. I love stationery and paper products.
69. I also have a thing about pens - I have 3 Mont Blancs and love the way a UniBall pen writes.
70. I took piano lessons as a child, but hated to practice. I once recorded myself playing and then would try to play the tape when I was supposed to be practicing.
71. Disorder gets to me - I like things to have their own little place or cubbie. Just like in pre school.
72. I have a hard time accepting compliments.
73. I always write thank you notes for gifts or other acts of kindness. My mother instilled this in me when I was little, because I wasn't allowed to play with my gifts until the thank you notes were finished.
74. The first boy I ever kissed was Matt Hooper, my fellow kindergartner.
75. The first boy I really kissed was Scott, one my best friend's cousins.
76. In college, my roommate and I decided that we must be intimidating to guys and that was the reason that we weren't getting asked out. I now realize it was because oversized button downs, jeans and duck boots were all we wore and probably with a sweatshirt tied around our waist.
77. To buy beer when I was 20, I used to use one of my sorority sister's drivers license. I don't think we looked anything alike, but somehow it worked.
78. I have never talked myself out of a speeding ticket.
79. I never had a class ring in high school.
80. My Meme would always buy me a new Easter and Christmas dress, each year and often from Laura Ashley.
81. I think my mom made me wear the same dress each and every Sunday to go to Sunday school.
82. I attended Sunday school nearly each Sunday with my Meme. She would always take me to lunch afterward. We typically went to Pic A Rib, Shoney's or a place called The Plaza.
83. I'm pretty sure that I ordered a grilled cheese sandwich where ever we went.
84. Now, as an adult, I still love a grilled cheese sandwich with a cup of tomato soup.
85. I do not like english peas, horseradish or raw onions.
86. I do not understand how my husband doesn't like salad or almost any vegetable.
87. I loved planning our wedding and would probably do this for a living if I could get the guts and money to start my own business.
88. I kept all of my Martha Stewart wedding magazines, but got rid of the rest.
89. When I tried on the wedding dress that I ended up buying, I broke out in hives.
90. I am an avide tooth-brusher and face washer. I wash my face every night, no matter how late or how many glasses of wine. I keep a toothbrush and 'paste at my office & also depending on purse size, with me at all times.
91. I love buying and using make up and products, but really keep my makeup to a minimum.
92. I am always in awe of my friends who have kids, a family, work, volunteer and make it all look so easy.
93. I love listening to 80's music or music from my college days. My iPod looks like a crazy explosion has taken place.
94. Even though I was born and raised in TN., near "Music City", I am not a country music fan.
95. I was laid off twice in one year.
96. My Aunt Lucy and Uncle Horace were two of my favorite relatives.
97. I never knew my Grandfather and don't remember my mom's twin sister who died when I was 3.
98. As kids, my neighbor Angie and I would tell people that we were sisters. Angie was tall, long-legged and blonde. I was short, small and brunette.
99. I have always loved Halloween.
100. I was published in the Red Mud Review for poetry.

Dog Hair

I have decided that in order to live happily with two 80 pound labrador retrievers who shed massive amounts of short, black hair all over the house, that A) I need to shave them bald , B) Not allow them inside or C) I will probably put my Dyson Animal in the shop for less than a year for the amount of overuse.

I highly recommend the Dyson.. we received it as a wedding gift from a collective group of friends and I have to say, I have used it a lot more than our fine China. Sorry, Mom.

We do want to put the house on the market soon. We have decided that a 2 bedroom, 1.5 bath house is too small for 2 people and 2 dogs. Don't even talk about babies to me right now. I think we'd have to put the baby carrier on top of a dog kennel.