ABC's of Me...

It's April Fools Day and my mood all day has been grumpy and irritable, so when I found yet another of my friends doing the ABC's of Me meme I decided that I needed to do it today. Hopefully doing this will lighten my mood!

Age: 45

Bed size: King (and it is heavenly to have space in my bed for me!!)

Chore you dislike: Um, how 'bout all of them? But I think laundry and dusting are my least favorite!

Dogs: Nope (but I'm committed to getting one as soon as we move out of the apartment-- wonder how long we can delay moving into a house?)

Essential start to your day: internet, contact lenses and a hug from That Other Kid

Favorite color: Gray (I know weird) and Red

Gold or silver: white gold, thankyouverymuch

Height: 5'3" (technically 5'2 3/4" but that 1/4 inch makes me feel taller!)

Instruments you play(ed): does the radio, tv, or Ipod count?, although one of my childhood friends did teach me to play chopsticks on the piano when I was 10ish but that doesn't really count, I don't think!

Job title: mom, homeschool teacher, book keeper, and help mate to hubby

Kids: yep, 2 boys - That Kid, 20 (guess I should change that name, huh?) and That Other Kid, 7 (and yes, they are 13 1/2 years apart in age and yes, they both came from the same daddy!)

Live: the suburbs of Dallas, TX

Mom’s name: Virginia

Nicknames: none unless you count mom!

Overnight hospital stays: lots of them; including 2 times for childbirth, broken legs (in traction for my 3rd birthday), tonsilectomy, flu that was treated as if early labor while preggo with That Kid, and numerous trips with That Other Kid while he was an infant/toddler

Pet peeve: doctors that don't treat you with respect, and business people that don't pay their contract people promptly not that I'm bitter or anything

Quote from a movie: "Houston, we have a problem!" -- anyone know what movie?

Righty or Lefty: Righty, although when I was in the 6th grade I broke my right arm and had to do EVERYTHING with my left so if necessary I can do some basic things with my left hand.

Siblings: 3 younger brothers

Time you wake up: depends on when I get woke up! But generally around 9 am

Underwear: yes

Vegetables you don’t like: pretty much all of them...I like carrots, green beans, and salad but that's basically it! corn and tomatoes are not really veggies but if you count them we can add those to the short list!

What makes you run late: under-estimating how long it takes to get organized before leaving the house...finding shoes, keys, wallet, phone, etc.

X-Rays you’ve had: lots (see hospital stays)

Yummy food you make: I've been told I bake well, apple pie and banana bread are the favorites. Hubby says I make "the best french toast" (even better than restuarants) with "fat" bacon.

Zoo animal favorite: penguins, and white bengal tigers


Ok...so play along and let me know you did so I can come over and learn more about you!!

Me You Capture

I've been debating this all week in my head. Do I really want to take pictures of myself and post them willy nilly on my blog? I mean, I know my friends know what I look like and they see me at my worst and occasionally even at my best, but lately I just haven't wanted my picture taken. And by lately I mean over the past 10 years, since I started gaining weight. However, I have started earnestly losing the weight and it would probably be a good idea to occasionally have some pictures of me so that I can see the physical changes that are going on with me. So I took the plunge and did what Beth asked. I took a couple of pictures of myself. I thought about it all day and tried to figure out the best way to do this and of course the best time. I never found the "perfect" place or time so I decided to just do it....I chose right before I worked out



and right after I worked out...



Not exactly the most flattering pictures but they are pretty real. This is what I look like every night anywhere between 9:30 and 11:00 p.m.

And now I have pictures of myself, taken with my cell phone, of what I look(ed) like in early August of 2009 after already losing over 20 pounds, but still needing to lose 60 more pounds. Let's do this again around Christmas, k??

You Capture -- Summer

It's summer in Texas -- and there really is one activity to participate in that makes any sense and that is SWIMMING! Last week we went swimming 3 out of the 5 days, but this week we have been busy and haven't had a chance to get over to the pool so this afternoon That Kid announced he was going to the pool...guess what That Other Kid decided we "just have" to do...you got it go swimming. So I figured sure why not, maybe I could get some pictures to submit to Beth's You Capture photo meme. That Other Kid did not disappoint!! They are a little fuzzy since I took them with my Blackberry Phone (of course, I forgot to bring my camera!) but overall not bad pictures for a pool! He's always a ham when I get the camera out...no matter where we are!

8 Things About Me!

Heather (and fellow BLUE Team member) tagged me for a meme last Friday and my week has been so crazy that I am just getting around to doing anything except the bare minimums. This meme is called 8 Things About Me and then I'm supposed to tag 8 other people. Let's see if I can find 8 people to tag!!

8 Things I am looking forward to:

1. Sending my oldest son off to college in just 2 months 1 week! Fortunately, he'll only be 45 minutes away (cuz I am also dreading it)!
2. Teaching my youngest son to read, write, and do 'rithmetic! I'll be homeschooling him this fall for kindergarten!
3. LOSING 60 more pounds by Christmas time!
4. Finally being able to go into a "regular" store and buy clothes! It's been way too long since I have been able to shop in a "normal" store!
5. Spending some time playing with my new phone dh bought me Wednesday afternoon!
6. Exercising with my new DVD (10 Minute Solution - Sculpt, Tone & Shape with the Figure-8) that I bought this afternoon. (I'll let you know how it is after I am done tonight)!
7. Going to bed before 1 a.m. tonight! It has been after 1 a.m. all week when I finally have got to bed.
8. Getting organized in my home! This is something that needs to be done desperately!


8 Things I did yesterday:

1. Got up at 6:30 a.m. (for the 2nd day in a row)! I'm not a morning person! 8 a.m. is REALLY early to me!!
2. Spent a lot of time with That Kid without That Other Kid any where around! We had College Registration and Orientation and a 5 year old is not a welcome participant!
3. Bought Dallas Baptist University apparel!
4. Walked around A LOT in Texas heat and humidity!!
5. Sweated (see #4)
6. Met a lot of very helpful and wonderful Christian people who will be a GREAT influence on That Kid EVERY.SINGLE.DAY for the next 4 years (I hope)!!
7. Relaxed and watched The Stanley Cup Finals with That Other Kid!
8. Folded laundry that had been sitting for at least 1 week!!


8 Things I wish I could do:

1. Be "skinny" overnight!!
2. Travel!! EVERYWHERE!! Problem is I HATE to fly!! So this may be difficult to accomplish!
3. Keep my house clean!
4. Make my children do the things they know they are supposed to do without constant nagging or prompting from me!
5. Go shopping and not worry about the price of the things I see that I want!
6. Be organized!
7. Scrapbook and cross-stitch and quilt, and other crafty "mom" things. I have grand plans but don't seem to have to the time or motivation to actually 'get 'er done'!
8. Get all my curriculum planned and purchased for the new school year before August!


8 Shows I watch:

1. The 10 p.m. News (usually at 11 p.m. or later) Thanks to the DVR feature!!
2. Dora the Explorer
3. Turbo Dogs
4. Sid the Science Kid
5. Backyardigans
6. Dragon Tales
7. Little Bill
8. During the hockey season I try to watch EVERY Dallas Stars Hockey game that is broadcast on tv!

As you can see TV is not exactly one of my hangups....but it is obviously one of That Other Kid's hangups!! We'll have to change that over the summer so that he can get his school work done!


8 Peeps Tagged:
1. Bev
2. Her Sister Barb
3. Sarah (the first blog I read faithfully!)
4. DeeDee
5. Heather She's so stinkin' funny! and very real...that's why I love her so much!
6. Antique Mommy She is a wonderul lady with a son about That Other Kid's age! That makes her even more cool in my eyes!
7. Alyson Another favorite of mine who lives on a farm in Canada.
8. Anita (a Blue Team member!!) Go Blue!

Well there you go!! More than you ever wanted to know!! Hope you are having a great weekend!!

Christmas Meme

Jolynne from Musings of a Housewife posted this great meme about Christmas. It sounded fun and I haven't done a meme in forever!! So here goes:

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? Wrapping paper unless I'm in a hurry!

2. Real tree or Artificial? Real unless I'm just beyond rushed!! I LOVE the smell of a real tree!

3. When do you put up the tree? The first weekend of December!

4. When do you take the tree down? Right after the first of January, usually the first weekend.

5. Do you like eggnog? YUCK!!!

6. Favorite gift received as a child? The Christmas I was 11 my mom bought me a gift certificate to get my ears pierced!! I was sooo happy!

7. Hardest person to buy for? My parents and dh's mom and step-dad! They have everything they need! and never tell me what they want!

8. Easiest person to buy for? That Other Kid....he's going on 5 and wants EVERYTHING!!

9. Do you have a nativity scene? No, dh is an architect and is very picky about decorations and I've never found one he likes so we don't have one. I keep looking and hoping, though!

10. Mail or email Christmas cards? USPS when I get them done in time!! I bought them right before Thanksgiving and haven't started on them yet....what is my problem???

11. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? I can't really think of anything just awful...

12. Favorite Christmas Movie? It's A Wonderful Life

13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? I got started this year BEFORE Thanksgiving....can ya believe it??? Normally it's the second or third week in December!!

14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? No, unless you count the White Elephant gift exchange we did at dh's Christmas party a few years ago!!

15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? Mother-in-Law's Pumpkin Pie and my grandma's banana bread!

16. Lights on the tree? Yes, what is a tree without lights??? I like white ones that blink!

17. Favorite Christmas song? That too hard to narrow down to 1, how about 3 favorites??? Silent Night, Away in a Manger and Mary, Did You Know?

18.Travel at Christmas or stay home? Travel!! It isn't Christmas if we aren't with other family members and they all live everywhere but here!

19. Can you name all of Santa’s reindeer? Dasher and Dancer and Prancer and Vixon! Comet and Cupid and Donner and Blitzen! But do you recall… the most famous reindeer of aaaaaaaaaall… Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer! I copied from Jolynne, sorry!! I'm not sure I could do or not....

20. Angel on the tree top or a star? Star....we had an angel for a while but it kept falling over so we got a star instead!

21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning? One per person on Christmas Eve, the rest Christmas morning!!

22. Most annoying thing about this time of the year? Christmas decorations put out too early. And all the bickering about whether you can say Merry Christmas or not!!??? Come on it's Christmas!! The time of Christ's birth...it's not a holiday it's a HOLY DAY!!

23. Favorite ornament theme or color? I love my Victorian Ornaments...but they don't really go with the "family" traditional ornaments, so we usually alternate throughout the years. We have lots of variety....Seseme Street, hockey guys, and your traditional glass balls!

24. Favorite for Christmas dinner? Getting the family together!! Of course that may be a given!

25. What do you want for Christmas this year? I've told my dh that I want a Wii Fit Complete set...I have to lose this weight and anything that will help, I want it!!

My First Meme

Kirstie at My Journey Home tagged me for my first meme. I'm sooo lucky cuz my middle name is short..... so I'm supposed to do rules first then the meme, so here we go.....


WHAT’S IN A NAME?
1. You have to post these rules before you give the facts.
2. Players, you must list one fact that is somehow relevant to your life for each letter of their middle name. If you don’t have a middle name, use the middle name you would have liked to have had.
3. When you are tagged you need to write your own blog-post containing your own middle name game facts.
4. At the end of your blog-post, you need to choose one person for each letter of your middle name to tag. Don’t forget to leave them a comment telling them they’re tagged, and to read your blog.


Ann is really my middle name - I started going by it when we first moved to Texas. My first name didn't really seem to fit me or Texas, and besides I never really liked it. Now seemed like a good time, since no one knew me from Adam or Eve as the case is.

So....

Avid reader. I love to read, which is how I got started reading blogs. My favorite reads right now are short, historical novellas. I can read a few pages here and there (like in the bathroom), since I really don't have a lot of time to read, with all the blogging and preparations for our new home school year.


Nurturer..... I love to take care of my kids and nurture them in any way they let me. It is getting harder as That Kid is growing up into a young man, but That Other Kid still loves to snuggle, cuddle, and get hugs and kisses, so I'm going to treasure this opportunity and do the best I can with my young man.

Nasty patient --- I hate being sick or injured. So, needless to say I have been rather difficult to get along with for the past month or so since I have sick and/or injured. I'm praying that my family forgives my grumpiness.

Now I'm supposed to tag 3 people with names beginning with the letters of my name:

Addie at http://littlewomenmomma.blogspot.com/

and if your name begins with "N" please consider yourself tagged. I can't find anybody with a name that begins with "N".

Hope ya'll have a great night.