Weekend Recap.... and....."Bizarre love triangle" kick

Ayla came to town Fri- Sun!




It was sooooo good to see her! Its sad for me sometimes that my two best friends live in Orlando and Jacksonville.
Anyways, Ayla was VERY pregnant. (Well, to me she was - she will be more so very soon!) Friday her, me, and Jer just hung out and watched TV because it was late anyways. We went to bed around midnight and the next morning we got up and hung out for a few hours and started getting ready for her baby shower at her dad's house. It was a lot of fun and very relaxing. Her dad grilled burgers and we ate A LOT of food. Chips, Dips, Fruit, Candy, Veggies, and these DELICIOUS cheesecake bites ordered from her dad's previous wife. (Mini cheesecakes by Connie) - let me know if you are interested. They were just soooo cute and pleasantly surprising to taste!

Ayla got LOTS of baby clothes at her shower. I personally got her some cute washcloths with whales on them, receiving blankets, baby socks, baby mittens, bottles, breastmilk storage, and breastmilk bags. Some things her dad was very squeamish about. LOL. Of course, what dad wants to know what's comin' outta their daughter's boobies? It was funny!




We then went to visit her grandparents because her grandma had hurt her back and couldn't make it to the baby shower. There, she opened lots more baby clothes! Very cute ones at that. Her grandpa is very loud and funny. He did put the pressure on though when he asked me to become a mathematician and answer the question, "If I have some candy in my bowl, and you have some candy in your bowl....and then you give me one of your candies which makes my bowl have twice as many as your bowl, and then I give you two of mine which makes our bowls have equal candies...how candies did we each start with?" HAHAHA, You tell me if you know the answer!!!! I will post it at a later date...and there is only one possible answer in the universe.

That night, we made a LATE meal at my apartment - like 11pm dinner. hahaha! So healthy! Ayla showed me how to make homemade alfredo sauce....



YUM!!! We also watched "HOT TUB TIME MACHINE," which isn't exactly a recommendation, but it was lightly entertaining if you like to hear the F-word in every sentence. One plus about the movie was that the men went back specifically to 1986. Because of this, there was LOTS of great 80s songs....and do I LOOOOVE 80s music!!! One of my FAVORITE SONGS EVER was in it....."Bizarre love triangle" by New Order. You should definitely YOU TUBE this song if you don't know it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RzVhFhibevg

It makes me dance dance dance....Though I was only one year old in 1986...I saw that someone wrote on the internet about the song,

"PEOPLE WOULD LITERALLY TRAMPLE EACH OTHER TO GET TO THE DANCE FLOOR WHEN THIS SONG CAME ON"

Boy, would I have loved to have been there.


Lyrics for fun....

"Bizarre Love Triangle"

Every time I think of you
I feel shot right through with a bolt of blue
It's no problem of mine
But it's a problem I find
Living a life that I can't leave behind
But there's no sense in telling me
The wisdom of the fool won't set you free
But that's the way that it goes
And it's what nobody knows
well every day my confusion grows

Every time I see you falling
I get down on my knees and pray
I'm waiting for that final moment
You say the words that I can't say

I feel fine and I feel good
I'm feeling like I never should
Whenever I get this way
I just don't know what to say
Why can't we be ourselves like we were yesterday
I'm not sure what this could mean
I don't think you're what you seem
I do admit to myself
That if I hurt someone else
Then I'll never see just what we're meant to be

Every time I see you falling
I get down on my knees and pray
I'm waiting for that final moment
You say the words that I can't say



Basically, that was my weekend and my current song craze in a nutshell :)

Taco Bell....or Taco Hell????

OK, WOW....I just wanted to share a quick story...


This past tuesday night, Jer and I had our usual pre-marital counseling session. Since Jer got out of work at 6 and we had to be at the Pastor's home at 7...we rushed through a taco bell drive through on the way there and crammed down a few tacos. YUM! And very bad for you....yet satisfying for the moment.

Pastor Colin had asked us what we ate for dinner and Jeremy goes..."You don't want to know. Your favorite place..."

Colin suggested Macdonald's ...but then realized Jeremy was talking about Taco Bell.

"It's been 11 years.....since I ate there." he said.

Colin asked Jer if I should hear "the story" or not and I of course was very anxious to hear it. I have to know everything.

He began his story 11 years ago...when he was pulling up to a Taco Bell on a youth group trip and there it was on a stack of empty boxes behind the restaurant.

a sentence that read, "GRADE D MEAT...BUT EDIBLE"

WHAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! THAT'S DISGUSTING!!! See if I EVER eat there again. SICK!!!!!! All I could think of during our session was, "my poor poor body."

Space, rest, and peace :)

So this past friday night was a little great, and a little rough at the same time. Weird, huh? It happens.


My best friend, is a great girl, LOTS of fun and you can trust her with your life. But we are so different now.... sometimes I wonder how we have stayed friends for so long. In the mall, you can find her looking for clothes and make-up....me? I would be looking for home decor and practical things like pretty shower curtains. That's just how we are and it is 100% ok. Everyone is different and everybody likes different things. (You can ask Jer, I tell him that constantly when he questions someone's ways or interests.)

A couple of nights ago, my best friend told me she would be in town this weekend and asked if she could come over Friday night. Well, she said she'd probably be over between 9pm and 10pm on Friday. I assumed immediately this meant 10 or later and automatically forgot about the between 9 part. (which was wrong of me to do of course...never assume anything, even based on patterns or past incidences.) But that's just how it's always been...she's always been over at least an hour later than she told me she'd be. There is never an exact time with her. I was actually thinking more like 10:30 or 11 to be quite honest. I usually don't know where she's coming from either, so I had no idea if she was going to stop by her dad's for dinner first when she got to town (which is something i'm pretty sure she had mentioned on the phone to me)- this is something that could run later than expected very easily. In the mean time, Jer's brother and sister-in-law asked if we all wanted to go out for food and beer so we said yes...whynot? I mean, in my mind, my friend wouldn't be to my apartment til after 10 and they didn't want to go out until 7:30. I had plenty of time! As we were leaving to go see them, she texted me and said she was leaving to come over. That gave me about an hour and a half to enjoy myself out with friends and fiance if she came STRAIGHT to my place without stopping at her dad's...but I knew it would be like two hours at the restaurant because it was Friday night and it takes longer to get food in restaurants then. I went ahead and texted her to meet at the restaurant and finish up hanging out with everyone for the night and then we would just go back to my place and chill for the night before she went back to her dad's for bed. Well, for whatever reason she got very offended that I invited her out with two couples. (me and jer + his brother and wife) This is understandable since I don't like going out with her and a bunch of single people who are all just flirting with each other...because it's two totally different worlds...but this other couple is about to be my family. And for the record, none of us go out and make out or display inappropriate affections in front of others. That's just plain rude. We just don't do that because we are grown-ups and mature. We are friends who chat and laugh and drink beer. What's so bad about that? I really did NOT want to waste my Friday sitting around the apartment waiting for someone who is basically always late, which anyone should understand. I went shopping with my sister all day, then greeted my fiance at home and then we got ready to go out and then we were just gonna come home so I could hang with my friend. I just don't see what the big deal was. I am guessing maybe she had a long day at school/work/driving and she didn't really want to go out, which is fine....but why couldn't she just tell me that? Anytime she has invited me somewhere and I can't do it, I just flat out say, "I'm too tired...or I'm sorry, but I have to get up early tomorrow...." and let it be that. I'm getting older and trying my best to take care of myself by not stressing (a MAJOR american killer), and really trying to get my full 8 hours every night....it's almost a reward to myself, for having a productive day. My life has completely changed since I've made my sleep schedule very strict 12-8. Sometimes 12:30-8:30. It's the most amazing thing I have ever done for myself and I'm not changing it. Sleep deep and long so that the next day can be just as wonderful. I never over schedule things and I never try to cram too much in one day.(Though I so over add to my "to-do" lists.) I like space, rest, and peace. Getting a Friday night off is not too often in my job...so sue me if I want to go out and not sit at home, like I usually do 5 nights a week after a long work day. I guess she was just in a really really bad mood. It REALLY hurt my feelings though. But that's just life. You try to enjoy it, and people get mad at you because different things make different people mad. Hopefully, she'll call soon. Maybe I shouldn't have gone out with the fam, but I really didn't want to be stuck in the waiting mode like I have been so many times with her and gotten disappointed in the end. A lot of times, when she hangs out with me she cuts it short to go meet with someone else anyways, which deep down always makes me feel like i'm not fun enough or something silly like that. What's so great about meeting up with as many people as you can in a day? Have a few deep meaningful relationships, not many quick ones. But who am I to say what's better. I just know what's better for ME - a few best friends, a close family, and a happy happy home....with a meaningful, fulfilling career to pull in the dough. You know, the american dream :)

Though I was bummed about what happened with my friend, Jer and I still had a great time with the family. We drank beers. (shock top and sam adams Oktoberfest)...I chatted it up with Amy about wedding plans and how much I LOVE THE 80s...and how she wants me to be three months pregnant while she's 8 months pregnant...which i WILL NOT allow to happen. LOL. How about i just stay un-pregnant for as long as possible??!!! Though it would be wonderful for little cousins to grow up together, Jer and I just aren't ready for anything like that. I never had cousins really close to me...they all lived STATES away and who knows what they are doing these days, but I do have four siblings which is great enough for me!!! The boys played iphone scrabble from across the table...silly willies! Jer and I stayed out a little later since my friend didn't want to come over anymore, and we came home and slept until almost ten on Saturday morning!

WEDDING UPDATE: Jer is SERIOUSLY trying to talk me into the guys wearing khaki colored suits!! What is this, a beach wedding????? HELL NO...THAT'S WHY I'M GETTIN' OUTTA FL. I love the mountains! Jeremy photoshopped the way he wants our wedding to look...he got pictures off of the internet and combined them. And much to my surprise...I do like it....it matches my ivory colored dress......



I think it's hilarious how the bridal party members are duplicates, but it's a great indication of what things will look like. the bridesmaid dress is the exact one the girls will be wearing. He even put in flowers and the colors and kind of flowers he wants. If my groom wants this so bad (which grooms really don't care usually) I should feel special and let him have "his" wedding, LOL!! And I will...I LOVE it and I love that he is picking things out instead of just me :)

We went to William's subs for lunch (MMMMM - family owned and operated for over 50 years...) and it was DEE-LISH. They have the BEST hot pepper relish!! It's the first place Jeremy and I ate from together when we first started dating :) The lady who runs the joint has known the gables for YEARS. She always recognizes Jer and remembers his "ham and cheese." YUM!

We also went to a pumpkin patch to get a pumpkin....but it wasn't there, even though the sign said it would be. We are just thinking the pumpkin truck hadn't arrived yet. Maybe our next day off together :) I would like the air to be cool when we go, but it has warmed up again. Blaaahhh.

Did I ever tell you I love cool air?

Okay, so I realize it has been 5 months since i've been around on here, so I am going to do a reasonably quick, yet informative catch-up. SO MUCH HAS HAPPENED!!! Life has happened....





Work: First of all, I got promoted to Customer Service Team Leader on June 26th, 2010. (The above pic is me venturing to my new store...) Each Publix has one Team Leader to run front end operations at their store - you know, taking care of all cashiers and service clerks, and staff....and most importantly being there for customers to see and talk to. I seriously, almost cried because I have been trying to obtain this position for about two and a half years. It's so strange because it just happened out of the blue....the day before I really knew, there were a few inklings because of strange happenings at work, but I wasn't sure if I was just antsy or if it was real. It really is a competition sometimes....One guy (who was also trying to get the spot) was so upset that I got the open position...he SERIOUSLY went home sick. SERIOUSLY? How immature. He was the only one who didn't say congrats to me on my last day at that store. Some team leader he'll [never] make....
My store pitched in and bought me some gift cards as "good-bye" gifts....kohl's, bahama breeze, and banana republic....AND a scratch off that won 5$ so I bought ANOTHER scratch off that won $50! Gosh I love gambling! (ask ayla and jeremy to try and pull me from a slot machine, LOL)
My new store is much smaller than the ones I am used to. It's great though...I love my newfound responsibility...I feel important and more needed than ever before. I love talking to and coaching the workers slightly under me and I love my new relationship with management (my next goal). Customers see me as more helpful and friendly than ever before. (Or, I just get to hear worse bitching since I am the girl in the ironed blouse and slacks :) )


It's tradition...you get a giant Publix cake when you are promoted :)

Friends: Holy shit....Becky went to law school (I am disgustingly proud of her), Ayla is having a baby, AND I added Amy to my crew of beautiful bridesmaids! SHEESH!!! SO MUCH! Ayla's baby shower is coming up in two weeks and Stephen Fox is due in December!!! (maybe late november...my birthday would be fantastic! - come on Ayla, push!) When I asked Amy to be a bridesmaid, I actually cried a bit...wow, I am CHEESY!! I just felt God wanted me to do it and I felt right doing it. So what if I have more bridesmaids than Jeremy has groomsmen...this wedding is not too typical. Life is not too typical....lol....

Wedding: Lori had to cancel on the photography because she found out she's preggie and her baby is due two weeks before the wedding!. :( :) Happy and Sad. Anyways, she's helping us find a new photographer so hopefully that will be in place soon. Jer is JUST about done with the wedding invites...they will be going out VERY soon!!! The bridesmaid dresses will be CHOCOLATE brown....amazingness!! The girls will be holding white bouquets....and did I tell you?? I bought my wedding dress!!!!!!! OMG, I never knew I would love a dress so much. I went to David's Bridal with my two sisters....I fell in love with three different dresses, slept on it, and the next day I JUST KNEW which one best suited me and my wedding style. I called immediatley and spontaneously left a deposit. (While shedding a few jouyous tears as the associate put me on hold for a moment). I would post a picture for you, but I'd rather not risk my fiance reading this....as if he ever would....lol! It's ivory and misty....perfect for a mountain wedding!




This is Ayla trying on the bridesmaid dress one more time before she moved. It will be brown, though. You would never know she's pregnant in this picture!


Cats: Well, Moose and Bunny are doing the same as usual. Sleeping eating, and enjoying time on the balcony. Early in the mornings they get a little rambunctious, but then it's back to laying around and sleeping...or licking themselves?





Family: Katrina is turning into a beautiful woman and Matt is trying to beat the bottle. Everyone else is doing well also. Grandma and Grandpa are in Kentucky visiting family members that are very well. My grandpa's sister, Susan...and my grandma's sister-in-law, Betty. I hope they all turn out well! (I think I will call my grandma after this blog post!)

Fishling: If my fish makes it until my birthday, that means I have kept him alive for an entire year! I spent a good twenty dollars on him yesterday getting new filters and a gravel cleaning pump...oh and a new thermometer. I hope he is happy with me once I refresh his aquarium.

Not too much else is going on...Becky is coming into town this weekend so hopefully I will see her Fri or Sat. Her little sister is turning 12....I can't believe it because I literally remember when her step-mom was pregnant with her back in middle earth days!!! (Of course i mean school...this isn't lord of the rings.) Aren't I a dork? lol!

Oh! There are 17 day's until our "girl's weekend!" that Amy, Jenny, Dela, and I are doing. It's going to be very exciting...well, for our men :) Can't get into it at this time...

I really hope to get back into blogging again and stay! It's very relieving and nice to sort of keep a record of life's random pieces.

Right now I am drinking coffee and I have the living room sliding glass door open so I can see the trees in the breeze. Just this week, cool air has begun to drift into the area and i absolutely LOVE COOL AIR!!!

The Treadmill

Okay, so I have really really decided to "lose the weight." I still can't believe I thought I was fat at 120 lbs three years ago........now I AM fat at 157.5. AAAHHHHH, and I'm 5'4''. I don't want to get too into it as to lose to magic of the hardworking process, I just want to say I went to the gym twice now and walked on the treadmill for thirty minutes each day. I was going to go today for round 3....for real, but I can hardly move my legs right now!!! My glutes are EXTREMELY sore, even just walking around my apartment is a task for them. I will surely rest today.....and I mean rest by doing housework and then going to work 2:30-11:30. When this "good sore" fades, i will surely be back! I will be eating a good healthy lunch in a bit :)

Wedding Update: Lori Schaneville is coming to TN to be our photographer!!!!!! Yay!!!!!

Back to work and refreshed....

I've been back to work about a week and a half now. It was a bummer at first, but i'm back in the swing. Jer and I had a really fun week off together. We went up to Jenny's for Friday-Sunday. (in Lake City) It was cool because I finally got to see the treehouse that Chris has been working on and it was AMAZING. I don't even know if Carson (7 years old) realizes yet how great his parents are!! What a special special treehouse. Every kid wants a treehouse....and it's like Chris and Jenny are actually making one!!! We slept in their living room with the windows open at night and it was a lovely cool air coming in....with hardly any noise at all! I could hear "air"..but then Jenny and Chris said it was the interstate....LOL....but I mean, it is traffic pushing air, right? Oh well, I liked the sounds whatever they were. Here at the apartment you can hear people walking and talking in the halls and doors and trash cans opening and closing and so forth. After our trip to Jenny's, Jer and I spent day 4 relaxing around the apartment....we did other things around town like went to a lot of restaurants like Applebees, Olive Garden, went to the pool a couple of times....went to the park and walked, went to the bookstore, i bought "Financial Planning for Dummies' so I am in the midst of reading that. We also went to the Casino with Ayla and I came out sixty dollars ahead. lol....Jer and Ayla had to pull me away. Black and White 7s....here I come next time. We went to ellenton outlet mall on one day...and it was fun driving over the skyway. We really felt like we were out and about!! The mall wasn't TOO exciting but at least we have finally discovered what it was all about. We did find an amazing wedding ring for Jeremy at Zales outlet. We didn't buy it, but the next day we went to Jared to have my engagement ring for it's six month inspection and found a similar one that we can customize.

This is the ring...but we'd make some changes. It's cool because it spins. It's sort of like a stress ring. I'm almost positive it's the one. Jer seems to really love it.


I really needed my vacation, so I am glad I took it even though we didn't venture to any far off lands. On the way up to Jenny's, Jer actually got a call that his old job at Catalina wanted him to fill in for someone for two weeks while they were on vacation. It seemed annoying, but now he's been there for a week and a half again and love its.....once the week is over we are praying that they ask him to stay. According to Jeremy, no one was on vacation and they made that up....and I guess in one of their meetings that Jer wasn't in, the boss asked the team how Jer was doing and they all said very well! AND, they reinstated his work badge and even hooked up his phone line....but for two weeks only??? We'll see!!!!


Wedding update; We booked a GORGEOUS 10 bedroom cabin in TN!!!! The wedding trip will be March 27-31st. The Wedding Day will be the 30th. It's perfect!!! I can't wait to plan. Colin and his wife Sheba said they could be there and everything!!! It's also Spring Break for Micah, Carson, and Abby...so it works PERFECT!! I think this is how God wanted it.



Well, this is it for now. Great things are ahead!!! I can't wait to see if Jer gets this job....and I am so excited for us to get married!!!!

Vacating Publix......

So....I am officially off for 11 days in a row!! I couldn't be happier at this moment!!! Today has been a very pleasing day for sure.

Jer and I met Colin at 10am for marriage counseling....well, premarital counseling I suppose we should call it. It was absolutley a delight....a little emotional at some points, but Jer and I always walk out of there feeling more prepared for life in general just because Colin's ideas/teachings are very harmonious to the good of this world. Jer may be considering going to Church again and I just feel like it's about time. I just haven't felt right if I were to go alone. I feel that my future husband should be by my side for me to attend. Anyways, we talked about the postponement of the wedding....which I think is a great thing now. I really do - I am starting to be less sad about our larger cancelled wedding and more and more excited for the way it really will end up turning out someday - which will be lovely and perfect.

After our meeting, Jer and I went to Paulos. It's an italian mom n pop shop. MMMM. Very bad for you, but yummy!!! I actually really like supporting small businesses like them. I hate supporting walmart but I think I've journalized that concept before. But, sometimes, you have to go there anyways. Well....I'll let you know how my vacation went!!!!!

Simple Updates!

SOOOO Jeremy got that job that I had spoken about in my last post. There are a few downfalls though. It turns out they only hired him on part time because he's sharing the position with someone else....a friend of the boss lady, who is apparently very bitchy - eehhg. <~~~~what kind of sound is that? I just pray to God that Jer starts to love it there and he meshes in and gets hired on full time.

Easter just passed us by on the 4th. It was fun at first....then we went to Jer's parents at night and his mom decided to awkwardly pull him away for over an hour to chat about some intense stuff that had been going on. Jeff, Amy, and I were just sitting in the living room looking at each other just overcome with awkwardness. Mr. G just went in his play room to watch TV. We really felt uncomfortable and were disappointed she didn't invite other family members that we usually see every Easter. I had taken a lot of time to make our deviled eggs we brought very presentable and yummy. I knew she'd have a private moment with Jer about a few things....but I had no idea she would center the entire Easter occasion around it. It sucked. Why couldn't she just take Jer out to lunch or something? Oh well. But on a lighter note...here's some pics of our gorgeous deviled eggs....




Here is a very pretty salad Amy made for Easter....



Today I am working for the 5th day of an 8 day-in-a-rower.......yikes! I've been drinking our veggie/fruit juice and taking vitamin C. Along with coffee of course. I just don't want to get sick for my vacation like I did last year from working 9 days in a row and being very exhausted. Once my 8 days is up, I am off for 11 days. We are going to Jer's sister's house in Lake City and then up to TN to have a vacation for once....and decide if that is the place for our wedding!! Can't wait!! I am also getting my hair done by Faith Barnes. I'll let you know how it goes!

Good Days Ahead? Juice on the squeeze, Publix in my heart.

Good Morning!

Well, I just showered and made coffee...mmm the whole apartment smells like blueberries from the blueberry coffee!! How wonderful! Jeremy is in bed still, but I heard him stirring around in the bed...possibly smelling things and hearing things happening on my current side of the apartment...maybe enticing him to get up and enjoy the day! It looks pleasurably sunny outside! In high school, I often sat next to this Indian guy on the bus who went by "Sunny"...but his name was Duyshant or something like that, I always called him "Sunny Bunny!"..cute, eh? Anyways, Jeremy may have a job opportunity coming up and goodness, I hope it works out because it sounds almost fantasy like the way the opp came about. One morning, we were lying in bed and he got a 9am text and it said "Hi Jeremy, this is Brian McNay...i may have a graphic design position at the company I work for that you would be interested in. Please give me a call."Jer gave him a call and found out the details. It's in Tampa and he'd be doing a catalogue for a big company that installs beautiful front doors in homes. It looks great! The building that the office is located in looks fancy even! Well, that call was just over a week ago. Apparently the position is still taken by a woman that will soon be fired or resign and then Jeremy will be able to have an interview. This Brian guy said he was 90% sure about everything. All we can do now is wait to hear from him again. Jeremy said he has no problem being confident about his skills in the interview....which Brian did coach that he MUST be confident in his graphic design skills to win over the woman Cynthia who would be conducting the interview. How could Jeremy not win? He's a good loyal man with an honest voice and a very humble attitude. There's no way he can't not get this job if he gets to go in for that interview. Brian said he wanted to get younger folk in the office anyways and Jer is 25 now....young, but ready to be even more mature than he already is.

Wedding Update: Well, Jer and I have officially cancelled/postponed all vendors that were going to be a part of our November 12th wedding. We are sad, but looking ahead of it now. We are getting some of the money back at least. We have better plans now. We even wrote a "Change the Date" card to send out to all the people that we had sent out "Save the Date" cards to. On it, is a little poem we wrote....

Change the Date!

To all our friends and family, just a little note…

To forget the “save the date” we previously wrote.

Due to the situations and circumstances of life,

It will be a little longer before Jeremy has a wife.

We are sorry to have to cancel the plans of before,

Just know for sure that much more fun is in store.

We want you to know our love is still deep,

Unfortunately, weddings just aren’t cheap.

We’ll let you know

As things re-flow

But for now, just remember,

Our wedding won’t be this November.

Aren't I a cute poem writer?? LOL. Anyways, it's not too corny, but more fun than anything I think. Jer seemed to get a kick out of it himself. It will be nice to get those out to everyone soon. Next month, depending on Jeremy's job situation, we plan on going up to TN to stay at a mountain cabin resort to have a look and see if that's where we'd like to have our wedding ceremony. From the website and talking to the people on the phone, it seems dreamlike! It would be fairly cheaper than our original wedding because we'd have only around 25-30 guests...include Jer, Me, and the Bridal party of course. We would be paying for them to stay for a few days in a luxurious cabin! How fun!!! We could all spend time together and be on a lighter schedule on the wedding day...no rushing around for appointments. Us girls could do our hair right in the cabin together and it would just be so much more exciting and relaxed I feel. I just hope my mom would be able to make it. I'll let you know how what's going on!

Yesterday, Jer and I went to Wal-mart...ugh, I hate supporting them, but we basically have to sometimes. We bought a new juicer! Jer and I were talking about our health for a while yesterday, and of course I got weepy talking about my blood pressure and how I want to be in ideal health so bad, but it just seems too much of a challenge. Jer assured me we can get through it together, and then he thought of juice! We bought the juicer and came right home and juiced carrots, apples, and oranges. It was great! We are going to work our way up to other veggies too, it will be so wonderful to get all that health into our systems! I feel confident and motivated today, but I know those feelings only last so long...Jeremy will help me keep them alive. I want to lose 35 lbs in the next 4-5 ,months and Jer wants to lose at least 15 lbs. He already lost 20 last year and hasn't gained a whole lot of it back, but he just wants to finish what he had started I think. Good luck Megan and Jeremy! We did that fruit and veggie fast in Jan...and I lost 6-7 lbs....if I can do it then, I can do it now....and I am going to call it a fruit and veggie FOCUS instead of a fast. Fasts get broken, but focus can always be a goal. Hellooo carrots!!

The day before yesterday, I got to help setup and tear down the Publix Luncheon for the 2010 Service Awards...honoring people who have worked for the company 5, 10, and 15 years. The 20+ year people get a dinner banquet. I had so much fun and felt very useful...it was great and a fantastic "networking opp" since I'd like soooo badly to be promoted soon! I've been ROIing for over two years now! If i were still at my old store 640 I would have gotten promoted already, but I still believe I made the right decision to come back to 353 because I really felt it in my heart. I am NOT saying that to convince myself of it either. At the luncheon, we had lots of guests..like Mike Abrams...our top HR man, and Jim Herring....the regional director!! AAAHH!! I took this lovely picture of them sitting together....they let me....i felt very special....

This second lovely photo was Mike Abrams's idea....a photo of myself....and the centerpiece of the table....you know there is a rumor that if Mike comes into your Publix store wearing a blue shirt...he's there to fire someone? LOL, no clue if he actually does this...but, he might? I would!!! Just to mess with everyone, hahaha! I would love a neat tale like that following my position.




Well, I guess it's time for me to finish my coffee and make my juice. Love until next time! I hope i come back here bearing good news. :)

The Dark Ages.

Gosh it's been well over a month. Sooo much has happened. I don't even know where to start. I am so down right now because of money, my wedding, my work, my health - it all just sucks ass right now. Jeremy and I are in some dark days with this economic struggle. He still hasn't found a job and we have decided to drop our wedding date that we have worked so hard for over the last year. I cried for days and days when we made this decision. A lot of it was paid for, but a lot of it wasn't. There just wasn't anything we could do to pay it off in time. It's been a year this month that we have been engaged. I'm in a pair of footies, Christmas PJ pants, and a sweatshirt. I haven't even brushed my hair today and it's almost 5pm. Jer was on the porch throwing darts, now he's just sitting on the couch, staring at his phone. Perhaps hoping someone calls him with good news? We got invited to a wedding in England...wow, but there's noway we'd be able to go to that at all. Bummer! My car got towed this weekend at a hotel after lisa's wedding, and my dad had to pick us up. It costed 150 bucks to get the thing back. DAMN! Then I had to pay a 281$ speeding ticket because I was unable to complete my community service hours...shit. Oh! And I side swiped Becky's friend, Kaitie's car....what was I thinking! So I feel like crap for inconviencing her because now she has to get it fixed and all that, even though my insurance is paying. Our savings is just being eaten away by dumb shit and it just has us so down. It really feels like the world is against us. Please help God!

Our education levels....do not define the goodness in our hearts.

Well, after yesterday....I think it's nice to have a day off of work. We had an evil person get upset at something one of our cashier's said....well, he was upset at a look she gave or the way she said whatever she said...I couldn't tell you because I wasn't there. WELL, he decided at that moment he was better than any human being that ever existed and just as I walked by, he was saying loudly into her face, "YOU'LL NEVER EVER HAVE AS MUCH EDUCATION AS I HAVE" Umm...okay, I stopped this real quick and told him to come talk to me about what's bothering him. The story goes on, but isn't that just a ridiculous thing to say? His education level does not make him better than anyone else in the world. I wish I could have said something to him about it, but i had to smile, nod, and apologize instead....because, well we are taking his money every week for his groceries. I just have to accept he's just an ignorant bastard.

ANYWAYS, today I'm just drinking my coffee and waiting to see what the day holds. I am probably going over to the church to complete some community service hours to pay off that damn speeding ticket. Blah. I don't hate being there or anything, it's just kind of a nuisance when there is so much more I could be doing. Tonight, I am going to Applebee's with Ayla and her sister for her sister's birthday. I can't wait! It will be so fun. I will eat fairly well of course because of my weight loss goals.

YESTERDAY, Jer and I started out the first our our "Twenty walks in February." It was a beginner walk outside in the neighborhood behind our apartment complex. We walked very briskly for about 45 mins. When we got home, we were about ready for a nap each. It's wonderful! I'd like to go out and take walk number two with him when I get home from Applebee's.

Wedding update: March 7th....Jenny is coming down with Abby and I am making a final decision on which bridesmaid dress will be in my wedding :) Then, I'm probably trying on wedding dresses!!! We'll see if I can lose 10lbs before then. That's 35 days.

Coffee, hopes, blood and vegetables?

Twelve days of my life have gone by again. Yes, I am making coffee and it smells delightful. I've had my shower....and I've closed the bedroom doors so Jeremy can have peace from my typing as he continues to sleep. What an angel! He hasn't found a job yet, but our hopes are...well, hopeful. I'm truly thinking God will give him a new job...or his old job back...sometime in March. I would love earlier of course! A ladybug got trapped in my car on the way home from work yesterday, so I thought that was a fairly good sign.

My grandpa is doing MUCH better, he's out of the hospital and his bacterial infection of the blood is subsiding. His hugely swollen arm has gone down, and I really need to give him a call to say hello.

January 10th, I began a fruit and vegetable fast sort of lead by my friend Ayla. She's a wonderfully God led woman and I would like to follow her examples of having no health-impeding worries and letting go of all for God to deal with. I've prayed a few times and it's felt good, but I'm still trying to find a true connection with God again...similar to the one I had growing up in Christian school, but better. One thing I am finding is a good connection with fruits, vegetables, and the good earth. I've made things I never thought about making...like spaghetti squash, eggplant, and home-made tomato sauce - with Jeremy's help of course. I've cheated a couple of times - having hard boiled eggs and a little bit of milk...but I didn't feel too bad because it really wasn't that drastic. I have lost 6 lbs today though! And I have ten days left. I am so happy! If I continue to eat this well, and then start my walking....I could actually be my ideal weight before my wedding, how exciting!!!

Baked tomatoes with basil leaves.

Homemade tomato sauce, with spaghetti squash in the background.

Baked asparagus with whole mushrooms.

Wedding updates:

Jeremy and i got a new printer so we printed out some of the pieces to our wedding invitations. I made the reply cards, the reply card envelopes, and the reception card! I did the math and it's almost 400$ cheaper to make your own than order some simple ones made for you that are about just as nice! I am such a good money saver...for the most part!

Jeremy designed some WONDERFUL place cards for the head table at the reception :) They are really going to make the bridal party feel special!

We also went to the Church a couple of days ago and took a LOT of pictures to get ideas for how to decorate it. This wedding is really coming along and it's wonderful!

On the 16th, I took Becky and Ayla to Gainesville to meet with Jenny and try on bridesmaid dresses. We also ate lunch at Olive Garden. Wow, was it hard. If I didn't have Ayla with me...I would have had some crazy fatty pasta. We all had salads and vegetables....except Becky. She had the steak gorgonzola...what a biatch. lol!! So now i am torn between two AMAZING bridesmaid dresses. The first one is the original one that I had wanted. It's this one...

.....but in the melrose print shown in this picture....

And now, we happened to find another dress that all the girls I could tell LOVED and loved wearing...they all looked incredibly elegant and goddess like....

Sorry, I didn't have your face on that one jenny...haha. I was trying to get a close up of the goods! So this dress is AMAZING. One thing about my bridesmaids is they are all super gorgeous and nice and slim and just beautiful princesses! Sounds shallow and mean, but I'm glad I don't have fatties in my wedding. I'm the chunkiest one right now unfortunately, but that will change. I will be equal to them with the help of those damn veggies. haha. I really don't think the first one got a fair chance....i will be looking for a shop that has both those EXACT right dresses so they can try them on side by side. Stay tuned to what dress I choose :)

Good Morning World!

It's been five days! I've been very busy, very tired, and have had an awful cold.

Monday I toughed work out hardcore. I was getting sicker by the moment, but I pushed on. I don't like failing where I work at all. Just after 10pm, I had our last few customers checking out and was waiting by the door to let them out.(The doors were turned off and locked at this point.) One woman leaving asked if I was sick because she could hear my sniffles. I said yes and boy was she an angry bitch. She literally turned evil - horns and fire - and demanded SICK PEOPLE SHOULD NOT COME TO WORK! YOU TOUCHED MY GROCERIES! I just said very clear, I did NOT touch your groceries. She had maybe two bags and I did actually remember walking by and putting her two, already filled bags, into her cart to be nice just a little while before. Then she nastily stated, YOU TOUCHED MY BAGS!!!! DO YOU HAVE HAND SANITIZER SOMEWHERE?? As a matter of fact, I did right behind me have a container of alcohol wipes on the wall. I grabbed the container and held it out before her. She stared at me shocked that I had touched the container. I'LL GET MY OWN! PUT IT BACK ON THE WALL. I just though geese, this old bitch must have aids or something to be that concerned...if she used the wipes, she didn't even have to touch the container whether I was holding it or not. STUPID DUMB IDIOT - that's what she was. She went back inside and got new fresh grocery bags as I had obviously heavily contaminated them. Meanwhile, a man drove by and asked if we were open from inside his truck NO! I said across the way...CAN I JUST COME IN A BUY A PACK OF CIGARETTES!? I just can't let anyone in after hours I told him. BUT I SEE SOME PEOPLE IN THERE? I CAN JUST GIVE YOU THE MONEY AND YOU CAN GO BUY THEM FOR ME AND BRING THEM BACK HERE. Once again, i simply said I can't do that. He flicked me off and drove away. Are you that desperate that you have to pester a grocery store girl and be mean to her? I guess he was, he needed them so bad, I hope he drove next door and got them at the gas station. It would take him all of 10 seconds to get there. What a dumbass. I get really sick of nasty folk being mean to me at work somedays I can't stand it. It honestly will make me cry. I don't always take it personally, but when there's just an abundance of it going on in one day, it makes me sick to my stomach. Assholes. This world is a buncha assholes. I just wanted to go home and get better.

Tuesday, I was extremely sick and flat out called out of work. It was a horrible feeling making that phone call, but I had to do it to recover or I was just going to get worse. I don't like shorting my grocery store with workers, but it happens often so I felt assured they'd get by whether I was there or not. The show goes on - even if you fall asleep watching it. I spent most of the day laying on the couch, bundled up, coughing my brains out. No fun at all.

Wednesday, I was a bit better and wasn't scheduled to work anyways. Jer and I had decided to go to the School and help his mom with a few things to get some community service hours to pay off my speeding ticket. Unfortunately, something came up and both of our horrible colds impeded us from going. I went by myself to get a new fish for my tank - a little algae eater. He is so cute! We got some coffee and lunch and just chatted for a while. We felt pretty good as long as we weren't doing "work" for some reason, so we went over to Ayla's apartment - shes's one of my best friends and is in our November wedding as a bridesmaid :) Over there, we watched "Food Inc." and "Supersize Me" to remind us of the damages our foods and food choices are causing us. We decided we'd go on a 21 day fruit and vegetable fast that she is participating in with her Church up in Jacksonville. Actually, I think many Churches do this every January to cleanse and begin fresh and of course concentrate on our prayers to God to get us through the fasting and life in general. Ayla has begun already, but Jer and I aren't starting until the 10th. I'm very excited and pumped about it. We had a lot of fun at Ayla's talking about it and she has really inspired me. I told her i might be calling her every 5 seconds when I am craving bread, meat, and cheese. haha! When we got home around 10:30 or so, Jer and i wiped out our pantry and fridge of the 5 things that Dr. Oz said you should never eat. Well, we threw out the cold ones and just hid the dry items. These items include:

Saturated Fats
Sugar
Enriched/White grains
Trans fats/hydrogenated oils
High-fructose corn syrup

It was very invigorating to get rid of these things!

Thursday, when i woke up - I found my new fish dead. It was very sad - so I made Jeremy flush him. Poor little guy, I think he froze to death but i'm not sure. My other little fishling is doing quite well. I want him to have a friend, but i need to take my water to the pet store to get tested. I really don't want another one to die on me. I went to work and it kind of sucked in general. We didn't get the store completely leveled so I felt like i was a failure and it was my fault. I think my error was that I didn't monitor the levelers enough to make sure they were doing their best. I don't think a lot of them cared enough to do their best on this particular night. Oh well, other days will come that are far more sucessful.

Friday was alright. I worked 10-7 and it was JAM PACKED with people almost all day. I was the coordinator and i was on register pretty much 7.5 of the 8 hours. It went by fairly quickly though. I think people were freaking out because this weekend is supposed to be extremely cold. Well, cold for a middle west coast Florida region. Some news stations even stated SNOW, but that is impossible. I've lived here for 24 years - my whole life and have never seen snow. It's not going to happen. It's 36 degress outside right now and I know that's cold, but it just won't snow. After work, I took another step toward my fruit and veggie fast. I bought a WHOLE lot of them and a couple of spices. I'm so challenged! After that, I rushed home and jer and I went to Applebees with Jeff and Amy. It was fun to chat for a bit and eat that nasty unhealthy food one last time. Well, for a three weeks anwyways.

Today, I just got up right before writing this so who knows what the day holds! For sure - a lot of cold...and coffee for now since I am making some. Jer just scooped the litter box in the freezing cold and he came in laughing because he loves it so much. Hopefully, someday we move up north and have a big home with some land, and some fireplaces of course. :)

Cold weather, Cold bitch, Warm couch :)

Today I worked 6am-3pm. The dark drive there was very cold so I was nice and bundled in my car with the heat on. While driving with my left hand, I held a "mike" mug with my right hand. You know the little green one-eyed monster from pixar's Monsters Inc.? I got Jer the mug for his birthday a couple years ago. I was drinking peppermint tea from it while my Jer Bear was still fast asleep under the covers at home. Mmmm. Lucky boy. :) I love him.



Work was normal...nothing too exciting happened. Although, there is a crazy bitch that comes in fairly regularly and calls the customer service desk on her cell phone to bitch about something not being on the shelf for her WHILE she's one aisle behind the desk. Talk about lazy. She's extremely demanding. I swear she thinks she steps into the store and is instantly illuminated with some crown of queenly glory. She doesn't say things like, "can you please find out if you have any ivory dish soap in the back since you don't seem to have any more on the shelf?" She says things like, "I'm on aisle ten. Someone needs to bring me my ivory dish soap now!" Don't you just want to slap bitches like that? I'd take her if I were allowed. What a fat lazy bitch. The thing that really gets me is she will fucking call the desk over and over if you don't drop all your other customers and run to her beckon. Makes me sick to my stomach. She doesn't deserve any better life than anyone else. Oh well, forget her. All I can do is act respectfully to others to help balance out people like her who have an evil mean spirit inside of them.

One rough thing about today has been the horrible cold I have. I coughed so much this evening that I threw up my whole dinner. What a waste. My insides are in so much pain from all the coughing! My head is full of snot and my neti pot won't get it all out. I took my prescribed cough syrup and about fell asleep on the couch watching some nat geo show about inmates escaping from prison. Then I snapped out of the falling asleep to come share today with my blog!

What was great about today? I must say from the bottom of my heart, THANK YOU GEORGE AND RUTH KAPSALIS!!!! They both have passed, but today their daughter (my aunt) gave me a very helpful wonderful gift they left for me. It is a big help in my life right now and I will never forget them. I will be sad they won't be at my wedding in november. :( Also, a great thing about today is the wonderful couch I get to relax on and recover from my cold on.

Oh Christmas tree....until we meet again.

Today was what I call an "apartment day." I didn't leave all day and it was damn wonderful. I got things around the place done and didn't have to look nice or scramble around town trying to be at three different places in the same day.

Today was also goodbye to Christmas time. I have an artificial tree which is very great for a young couple that lives on a 3rd floor apartment. We just box her back up and stick her in the storage room on our balcony until next year. Also, I don't have to go through the sadness of throwing away a dead tree that could have still been alive if it wasn't chopped down in the first place. I'm not against chopping down trees for Christmas or anything like that, but I sure feel depressed when they are turned brown and lying by the road for the garbage man, all fallen apart and sad looking.

Wedding update: Our Wedding is on November 12, 2010. We ordered our "Save-the-Date" cards today. Can't wait to receive them and then send them out to our loved ones and friends! This is the picture we used on this cards....



Now that Jeremy is unemployed... [[ due to his stupid company letting go of many awesome graphic designers to give their positions to people in India so they can pay them cheaply...(thanks for helping the US get out of the current recession going on!!!) ]] ...Jeremy will be a great help around the apartment and I am glad to know he gets to sleep in all cozy and work on his new ideas and be the creative wizard he is with this new found time. He is very optimistic about the future, particularly this year, and believes he will find something far better than before. I love him for his solid hopes.

What was great about today? That things got done around the apartment and I am ready for tomorrow :)

NEW YEAR - new beginnings - Happy 2010!!

What better day to start my very own blog than January 1st? There is something so refreshing about the first day of the year. My name is Meg, I work at a grocery store as a customer service staff member (been there 8 and a half wonderful years), and I live with my fiancee and two Persians in our lovely little apartment. Jeremy is over at his brother's condo playing xbox and I just got home from work about an hour ago. Of course Jeremy said he'd be home in 10 mins...but that was an hour ago. Haha!! Men love their video games. I just wanted to introduce myself in my first post. I could type about life and my thoughts all night long, but I will leave those bits for later in the year and give them in appropriately sized doses.

What I did today:

I got up and worked 11-8pm and on my lunch break visited my grandma and grandpa where i of course ate black eyed peas for good luck! I also bought a new coach purse from one of my sisters. She had bought two during last year's black Friday shopping and realized she couldn't afford them both so I happily took one off her hands. I needed a bigger one anyways.

New Year's Resolutions:

1.Get healthy - I am already suffering from HBP...and it needs to be/stay controlled.
2.Learn to focus on ONE thing at a time - and not a hundred things! I need to learn that accomplishing one thing a day is much more productive than starting ten things a day.
3. Stop worrying about family members! They choose their own path in life as I am choosing my own. I can't change any of them, even if I want to.

What was great about today? That I am alive and refreshed! I hope I keep up with this blog from now on!