Better

i now feel better.

time for chris, pad thai, and The Muppet Christmas Carol or Love Actually (can't decide :))

thanks for putting up with my rants....

Up Yours!

that's right - Up Yours! - and it's directed at that bitch i just dealt with....

honestly. i know it's the holidays. everyone is stressed - especially those having to work and deal with crazy customers. having worked retail for a number of years i completely understand this. it is why i go out of my way to be polite and nice to workers when shopping and i expect to have that treatment returned - especially when i'm spending a good deal of money.

i don't want to be talked to like i'm 5. i don't want to be told how part of my gift sucks. perhaps if you didn't charge an ass, arm and a leg i wouldn't have had to do the work myself! (and for the record i was pretty impressed with my handy work considering i'd never done it before!)

i'm already stressed. the house is still in moving shambles. the baking is not done . the presents are not done. i'm fat. yet i am attempting to make the best of it anyways. this bitch just pushed to my wits end. had i not felt like crying i would have personnally told her to shove her attitude where the sun don't shine and to crawl back into her hermit shell where she belongs. also - that the 800 years of smoking she's been doing have done nothing for her looks or her annoying voice.

ugh. i'm trying to let it go but seriously - some people should really really really just fuck off.

** and for love of fucking pete - when i put spaces in between chunks of writing i expect them show up and not mush it all together.

Sharing? What's that??

i think i've made it fairly obvious that christmas is my favorite time of the year. one reason - baking. i love to bake.

tonight i made cinnamon roasted almonds. i had intended to share these by putting them in a few goodie bags. yeah....not gonna last that long (and keep in mind i made 2 pounds worth...) they're good! and super easy....

what you need:

1 pound of almonds

1 egg

1 cup of sugar

1 teaspoon of cold water

1 teaspoon of salt

1 teaspoon of cinnamon

what you need to do:

preheat oven to 250

whip up the egg white and water until fluffy. stir the almonds into this mixture (don't be grossed out - it just looks like your mixing them into a bowl of spit). once well coated combine sugar, salt, and cinnamon. coat well.

spread nuts on cookie sheet and bake for an hour. enjoy! (and trust me - you will :))

I'm a What?!?

the santa who called me a cake eater........

Final Reason

alright....i know you've all been anxiously awaiting the other reason for my extrememe excitement and....it is.......

no - it's not baking bread....

sigh....

no no no....i'm not pregnant...

geesh....

KELLY IS PREGNANT!

i had been wondering for awhile and had come across a few hints and called her on friday. she confirmed that she was indeed pregnant and that she had found out on my birthday!

i am so incredibly thrilled for her and richard! they are going to make fantastic parents! i cannot wait to meet baby nelson :)

so....

Congrats Kelly and Richard!!!

oh - you must stop over to kelly's bog and read her own account. the ways she came up with to tell her family are incredibly adorable (i might have to borrow them for myself when the time comes :))

also - while on the phone with kelly being excited about her baby i got the text from carrie telling me she had had a girl! needless to say i've had babies on the brain in a major way ever since. TICK TOCK TICK TOCK.....

Trees, Cats, Babies, Lights & Snow...

or...updates....


TREES:



we have decorated the tree. aunt fran was kind enough to give it to us and i love it :) it just gives the room a special warm glow. i just absolutely love christmas! there are no presents underneath it yet as i'm afraid the cats will tear the paper to bits. so far they've behaved themselves in regards to the tree - i think this is due in part to the fact that chris litterally shook the tree and made it growl (pre-ornaments of course) whenever they came near it :) it was funny.

in other christmas news - everyone's presents are going to be late. i work christmas eve and chris works christmas day so we're spending the holiday here. i haven't had time to finish all the crocheting and such either. ah well. i'm not going to stress.

CATS:

the cats have gotten used to their new home. i have more pictures to post but thought these were cute. minvera is a t.v. kinda gal. i have a feeling is she were a human she'd be a bonbon eating girl who watched her 'stories.' in this particular picture she is watching 'Survivor Man' - she jumped off the couch to go sit right in front of the tele. it appears that survivorman is watching her as well :)

both cats love sinks. and showers. they won't sit in a cat bed but they love the sink. go figure.

BABIES:

Congrats to Carrie and Steve on their baby girl - Dahlia Marie :)

as soon as I heard those words 'It's a Girl' i called chris and told him we were going to duluth! she is absolutely adorable! just look at the above picture - she looks like a doll! (ignore the fact that my lips look purple....)

seeing her made me want one SO much! i cannot imagine what an incredible experience it must be to go through all that and then hold them in your hands. WOW. chris is handling all of my baby babble very well though - thanks hun :) (doesn't he look cute with the wee one :))

LIGHTS:

there is a house in duluth that every year puts on free light show. i've never been until now - it was really cool! tons of beautiful lights. a fire pit to roast marshmellows. mistletoe. hot cider and cookies. and pictures with santa! of course we had to get one :) although santa called me a 'cake eater' - wtf? :) (cake eater - for you non-duluthians - is a term given to those of us who went to school on the east side of town. the schools surrounded my mansionis - although i never knew anyone who lived in them...)

SNOW:

before heading out of town we stopped down by the lake front. it was cold (if you couldn't tell...). we ended up having a snowball fight. chris turned his head right when i threw mine - it got wedged inbetween his face and his sunglasses. oops! it must have been a sight seeing me try and run and not fall with him chasing after me....

we though the below picture was amusing. camo doesn't work so hot in the snow fella's....

and that was our weekend. i should go. almost time for bed and chris wants to play cribbage :)

***ack! look at the font! every time i freaking press enter it changes on its own accord. it also has to put everything in italics. it is driving me batty. does anyone else having this problem. every single time i blog. enter - change font. it takes me about five times to get to the one i want. for istance - right now it says i'm typing in non--italics arial. bull. arrrggghhh.....

1 Reason....

For one reason I am just SO excited - go here :)

Congratulations Carrie and Steve!! Welcome Dahlia Marie :)

I'm so Excited!

and i just can't hide it!

i'm even more excited than when this picture was taken! i know what you're thinking - what could possibly be more exciting than your first NKOTB sweatshirt* - but just trust me on this one :)

details later.

(and don't get your thoughts going in the wrong direction. it does not involve me getting a ring - like i'd be able to not blab about that :))

*yes - that would be me....

I'm going to Vomit......

chris and i just worked out - and as the title may suggest...well...you get the picture....

my goal is to be able to use the elliptical machine and not die. tonight i did 11.5 minutes and wanted to pass out. i'm a wimp. i can walk forever and a year on a treadmill but stick me on that elliptical and it's lights out. i'm going to work on doing just 10 minutes for now until i don't feel like hurling afterwards and then i'll increase.

chris showed me some great exercises to help give my routine some spice which was nice (i can rhyme!)

i know i've posted more times than i care to think about that 'THIS IS THE DAY!' - 'I'M GOING TO EXERCISE!' and then it's gone downhill. i even tried starting a whole new blog dedicated to it but no one uses it anymore. hmph. i know there are a few of you out there who are trying to get in shape so if you want to get that blog up and working again let me know :)

and now it's time for sleep. glorious sleep. g'night.

OMG GOD!

i fully admit to hating reality t.v. i also fully admit to being a hypocrite and loving America's Next Top Model. that being said.......

i was sad to see jenah go home. especially after being told by Miss 'OMG GOD!' that she wasn't the kind of person she would want her little sister looking up to! ouch! i agreed with jenah - you don't have to go forth spewing rainbows to be a positive person. people who do spew forth rainbows are good for about 5 minutes and then you want to throttle them.

anyhow - after jenah got sent home i left the room and only returned to see who one. i didn't really care since i wouldn't have picked either one (although i did like saleisha - anyone but chantal) but having invested myself in a whole season i felt i should at least see who had become America's. Next. Top. Model. (thank you Tyra - i would have forgot the name of the show had you not reminded me 8 million times)

so there ya go. my 2 cents worth. what are yours?

oh - and in other news. i'm not better yet. this morning i had a rough go of it and as a result my eyeballs feel like they are encrusted with salt :( but i'm working on it. in fact - chris is going to go workout with me right now. i want him to kick my ass. it needs to be kicked. hard.

Warning: I'm cranky

that's right. you've been warned. read at will.

i'm cranky.

i feel incompetent at my job. i feel incompetent at life.

my job is insanely easy. it requires no great amount of brain activity and yet i feel like a moron.

(i swear to god, joseph, mary, and josephine that i'm going to shake that man. the man sitting across the way operating the t.v. - that really should not be on. it's not coming in clearly. it's fuzzy. it's making loud fuzzy noises. turn it off. if you are that desperate to watch "judge moron" than please go home and do it becuase if you don't i'm going to scream. in your ear.)

it took me a long time to understand the concept of 'leave your problems at the door.' i'm not saying it's an excuse but depression can make that lesson harder to learn. but i'm doing good. i'm cranky as all get out at the moment but if someone comes to the desk i'll smile and be polite. it's my job. sometimes i falter - we all do. sometimes you vent to the wrong person. a person who means well but that doesn't understand that i'm venting. if i felt it were a big enough deal to bring to someone else's attention i would do so. ya know?

whatever - i'm over it - it happens. no harm done.

i understand that other people may be in the same place as me - having no clue what the fuck is going on. if you're in the position - tell me. level with me. we can both be in the same boat. but if you do know what's going on then act like it. and for heaven's sake pick up a freaking mirror and brush. when you deal with the public you should not look like you've just let 10 mice run rabid in your hair.

i'm cranky as well about non-work related things. i'm cranky that i've gained back all the weight i'd lost. my pants don't fit. i know what i have to do to fix it but i also have 8 million other things to do. but none of them seem important. finishing gifts, baking, unpacking and mailing cards seem trivial. people have bigger problems than me. people have lost loved ones. people are about to bring another human life into the world. and i'm sitting here crabbing on about not having enough brain power to balance gifts, cards, exercise, and an easy peasy job.

but then i just get even more crabby/down on yourself about feeling bad about that. guilty for feeling cranky about being down on yourself and on and on and on.

depression comes and goes. it will pass soon. i know. but in the meantime all i want to do is just go home and crawl under the covers and sleep until it does. becuase if i get any criticism - no matter how constructive (i've never handled it well), any cross eyed looks, anymore beyond-dumb questions i just might cry. or run away.

times like this i wish i were 2 and it was more acceptable for me to stomp my feet on the ground, throw my fists in the air and scream. unfortunately i'm 27.....

The "Makes-Me-Want-To-Shower" Man

you know what i'm talking about.

every once in awhile you encounter that one person that just leaves you feeling slimy. like you have gross dirty tub scum film stuck all over you. like you need to shower...NOW!

if you're lucky it's only a one time thing. if you're not (me) this person continues to show up - week after week. they have to as part of their job. they do not - however - have to talk to you each time. they do not have to keep telling you they're there in case your relationship doesn't pan out. they do not have to sing "michelle ma belle" each and every time they pass.

ya know? ish. icky. nasty. gross.:[[shivers]]:




In other news:

I may have mentioned awhile ago that my parents took in a renter. It was wierd. She was wierd. She was rude. She had no manners. It was awkward. She refused to help around the house. She helped herself when she should not have. She finished other people's puzzles. She ignored repeated requests to help out with the shoveling. She backed into the deck rail and broke it and said nothing!

But...(drumroll please!)

SHE'S GONE!

Mom kicked her out (GO MOM!)!

I doubt she'll ever find this little blog of mine - but even if she did - who cares. She should know what an inconsiderate little terd she was. She took advantage of my parents hospitality and I'm glad she's gone :)

So...in the words of dear family friend - 'YOU ROCK MOM! YOU GO GIRL'!

Making a List...

i've been rather absent from the blogging world it seems.....

we've been getting situated in the new place and getting ready for Christmas. i have a ton of pictures to post but haven't gotten around to uploading them yet. who knows when it will happen...

i've already determined that gifts (at least some of them) are going to be late. i had high hopes of crocheting/knitting something for everyone but that quickly fell apart. i had counted on all that free time at work and then BAM - they gave me stuff to do! who knew?! then the moving took away more than a week of my cozy nights sitting on working so.....yeah.... but i'm not getting stressed. this is my absolute favorite time of the year and if they gifts are late - they're late. if people get mad

(which i'm sure they won't) then that's too bad.

i also need to make time for baking - i LOVE to bake this time of year :) i already have a list a mile long of all the ingredients i'll need :)

tonight chris and i went shopping. we finally sat down this past weekend and made a list of everyone we're buying for and what we're buying them. and for the most part we got it all done which makes me happy. that and going out and buying buying buying always makes me happy - which isn't great i guess - but oh well :) we found some really cute stuff so i'm excited :)

and now that it's almost bedtime i'm off to have some dinner :)

oh - christmas cards will be going out soon! if you think i don't have your address (and just to be safe - assume i don't) e-mail it to me! and if you want to send me one (:)) e-mail me as well :)

hmmmm..think that's it for now :)

hope ya'll are doing just peachy!

p.s. i hate the spacing on this. it just mushed everything i typed into one lump and won't fix it. argh.

Happy Birthday Chris!!!

Happy Birthday to you!

Happy Birthday to you!

Happy Birthday Dear Chris.....

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!!!!!

i love you

My Life by Google Image

i came across this "meme" at this site and then again at this site. so - seeing as how i actually have lots to blog about but don't feel like using too much energy...here it goes...


1. Age at next birthday: 28

hey - i live there!

2. Place I would like to travel: Anywhere (with Christopher)

cheesy i know...but true :)

3. My Favorite Place: Home

4. My Favorite Objects: Yarn and Kitties

i know kitties aren't really objects but since i just got them back today...they're on the brain

5. Favorite Food: Anything I don't have to cook

i have no idea what this has to do with what i typed...

6. My Favorite Color: Red, Black and White

and it's true..i'm not...

7. My Nickname: Michelle My Belle

i know this is always the first image that pops into my head when i hear that song....what?!

8. The Place I was born: Isn't it just obvious??

9. Ideal Date: Dinner, Drinks and Monopoly

is my dorkiness not obvious?

10. Where you hope to be in 5 years: Happy

so that's how it's done!

now you do the same. simply type in your answers to Google Image Search and pick a pic from the first page of results :)

Albus & Minerva

in honor or the kitties arrival tomorrow i thought i'd dedicate a blog to them :)
(that and i'm avoiding that thing called unpacking....)


in case you didn't know - albus is the black kitty and minerva is the grey and white (with a hint of peach) tabby. the pictures go in chronological order starting out here with albus whom i adopted when he was 6 months old. the lady at the shelter told me he was a handful but i was in love and he seemed calm to me....



...turns out i was wrong - he was a wild one :) albus has a fascination with all things pertaining to his mouth. as you can see he likes to stick out his tongue :) he's also a bit ocd and those first few months would lick everything including the floor, walls, furniture, the litter box, toilet, hair, you, clothes - you name it and he licked it. i thought something might be wrong with him so i took him a few different vets....


the vet told me to get another cat - a playmate to distract him from his odd obsession. another cat? me? of course! i knew i wanted a baby kitten and waited and waited until 'kitten season' as the shelter calls it. i went - saw minerva - and knew i wanted her but the lady in charge made me play with her for 15 minutes just to be sure. i brought her home and kept them apart - luckily i had glass doors so they could check each other out without actually having contact. albus was extremely curious.....

minerva was SO tiny! those first few night she would crawl up and sleep right by my head and nip at my nose and fingers - adorable!

i finally introduced the two and they got along great! albus - although he was much larger was intimidated by his new friend. minerva's first meal at the 'big kid bowl' was funny - albus just sat and watched her. i thought he might try and shove her out of the way but he didn't. instead (from this picture it seems) he just gave up on her ever finishing and decided to start knawing on the bag itself! :)

albus hates water. minerva likes it. these pictures were taken from the first (and last) time she decided to shower with me :) now she prefers to sit in the sink with a slight drizzle running down her back. i absolutely adore these pictures!



while albus may not like water he loves to lay on his back - belly up. i've never really known a cat to lie like this until him. he also loves to play fetch. he'll get the toy you throw and trot back to you with it in his mouth and drop it into your hand. perhaps he thinks he's a dog?

he also loves his carrier - or he did until minerva showed her extreme distaste for it. then he decided that perhaps cats weren't supposed to like it. he used to nap in it. jump right in it. minerva on the other hand has to be held at the and front and back paws and dropped in backwards....

i swore i'd never be that pet owner - the kind that dresses their animals up for their own amusement. but the costumes were only a buck on clearence at Old Navy - i had to! albus could care less - running around in his bat wings. minerva on the other hand just sat there frozen and eventually toppled over. she did manage to get up and limp over to the corner and tried to hide her head in shame. poor baby.....

and yes - i did buy christmas costumes. i'm bad i know.....

in short - i love my cats! despite the fact that i've been an absent mother lately i'm incredibly excited to have them back for good! i hope they like their new home!




oh - had to include this video of minerva watching tyra.