Dude. DUDE.

So I went to the gym on campus today, because I have the day off so I figured if I'm not making any money I at least ought to do something worthwhile. "Get healthier now to save on costly medical bills later in life." So I did some abs, then walked (and did five whole minutes of jogging before I nearly fell over unconscious) on the treadmill for almost an entire hour. Those of you who've known me for awhile--yeah, you get it. Oh, AND because I had brought my iPod but forgotten the headphones, genius that I am, I read April's Ensign [Church magazine] the entire time. Am I just amazing, or what?? :P :) Then I stretched some, did another round of abs on my favorite machine (though I haven't been in that gym for over a year--I nearly got lost), and weighed myself before I left.

Now, the scale there may be wrong. After all, it gets a ton of use. One scale for, what, 12,000 students, plus wives or husbands of students, like me? Poor, over-worked scale. Or maybe after you do that much exercising, you just weigh less for awhile afterward for some reason nobody understands. BUT.

According to this self-same scale, I have lost THREE POUNDS!!!

Yeah, I totally made the rest of the wording even smaller to accent that.

Even if it was wrong and I haven't, I know I've been doing better. I've done abs every day this week, along with some other kind of exercise. Usually I get tired of working out by Wednesday and I'm lucky if I start again til Monday. This week, it's 4 in a row! And Jason says he can definitely tell just by looking at me that I'm tightening up. Since he's my husband and checks me out a fair amount (which I love), I'd say that's a reliable source. I've been eating less, and making what I do eat more healthy. The idea of McDonald's is pretty repulsive now. (Not that I'm some saint. I still eat Taco Bell once in awhile. So sue me.)

So...yay! I'm getting healthier. Now, to avoid complacency. Fish and brown rice for dinner.

Crock Pot Enchiladas

Discovered a really, reeeeeally good new recipe. Jason was practically raving, he loved it so much, and he said he wouldn't mind making it a weekly thing. And it was easy. That's a yay. Thought I'd put it on here, because, well, that's what other wives do. :)

Crock Pot Enchiladas

1 1/2 lbs ground beef (I'm sure turkey would taste great, too)

1 can cheddar cheese soup

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 (large) can enchilada sauce

1 small can chopped green chilies

tortilla chips

Brown meat in skillet and drain off grease; season to taste. (I used taco seasoning.)

Put meat and all other ingredients except chips in crock pot. Stir it up.

Cook on low about 5-6 hours, stirring occasionally.

About 30 minutes before serving, add chips (enough to be covered in sauce).

When they are softened, they are ready to eat.

It was spicy, but not so I couldn't handle it, and I'm a wuss, so there you go. Hope you like it!

WOOHOO!!

I FIT INTO MY BROWN DRESS PANTS TODAY!!!

(A few months ago, if I remember right, they were very tight and uncomfortable.)

I'm getting there. I already worked my abs this morning. I don't do a ton, but I try to make what I do count.

I think my goal is to lose five pounds.

Or maybe just to have a washboard stomach.

...So that I can get pregnant, get a huge one, have a baby, and start all over again...

Well, what can ya do.

One year! Only 500 billion to go!

Actually, it's eternity, so there's no countdown. Just a...countup.


Do you love how all the pictures of myself I put on here are at least a year old? I think I still look pretty good. I just don't take a lot of pictures. Here's one I took a week and a half ago, so you all know I didn't get morbidly obese or anything. This was our one-year anniversary dinner at Johnny Carino's (or the remains, anyway!), with me wearing, yes, a corsage. I'd made a ton of boutineres and a couple corsages for the dumb high school Sweetheart dance at work that day, there was one left over, and I just thought, dangit, I'm going out with my eternal sweetheart. I want a corsage too! That deserves a corsage!

One more thing. I love google! I wanted to print out a poem for a friend who is going to have a baby soon, but trouble was, I'd only heard it read, and years ago. So I called the lady who read it, she found it, read it to me quickly to make sure it was the right one, while she was still reading I typed the first line into google, and bingo, there it was on some other girl's blog. So nice!

Day Old Child

My day old child lay in my arms,

With my lips against his ear.

I whispered strongly,

"How I wish-- I wish that you could hear,

"I've a hundred wonderful things to say,

(a tiny cough and a nod),

hurry, hurry, hurry and grow

So I can tell you about God."

My day-old baby's mouth was still

And my words only tickled his ear,

But a kind of light passed through his eyes,

And I saw this thought appear:

"How I wish I had a voice and words,

I've a hundred things to say.

Before I forget, I'd tell you of God --

I left Him yesterday."

--Carol Lynn Pearson

Isn't that beautiful? I still remembered those last two lines, all the way back from a Young Women's lesson. So, if you have a baby and I give you this poem, probably framed, know that it's not just some dumb present, but that I love you and want to give you something awesome but can't afford much. :)

Rrgh!

Why is it that every time I get geared up and excited about creating a playlist or a slideshow or some other fun-but-pointless thing on here, Jason has his computer hooked up (meaning none of my music or pictures are on it and I don't feel like shutting down and switching it all up)??

P.S. I just worked out for the fourth day this week! That's one day better than last week! Skinny jeans, here I come!!! (That is, if my hips haven't actually spread, as Christy has opined. Good word, huh.)

Lesson Learned.

So, I've talked to a few friends in the last couple weeks who've asked what's up, I tell them we're moving, and they say, "Yeah, I know, I read your blog." Oh. "You...saw that, huh? The tantrum and all? Heh heh heh..." I'm suprised, flattered, and a little mortified at how many people actually read it--the mortified part because they read my seriously ridiculous diatribe. I hope I've really learned my lesson, not to blog when I'm in a dangerous mood, because it's embarrassing later to know that people witnessed it. Oh, and a note: I like reading all your blogs, too, so keep doin' it!

I was thinking about blogging today. I think it's like the reality show craze. People blog about everyday junk that's really nothing extraordinary; that's how a lot of reality t.v. is, too. For example, one of my favorites: "Jon and Kate Plus Eight." It was extraordinary during the first few shows about them, because, dang, they had eight kids under the age of five. All those diapers, blah, blah, blah. Now, you still get some of that, like how they do Christmas, vacations, etc. But they also take the time to talk about the infection in Jon's eye. And they show them shopping. Without the kids. This is now two people whom we have never met, browsing aimlessly in Gap.

But we watch. Why?

Because it's on T.V.

I think it's the same thing with blogging. There's something more intriguing about going to a website to find out what's going on with your friends rather than just calling them. (And, of course, it's impossible to get ahold of a lot of people, anyway. I think I'm the only loser I know who actually answers the phone.) And when you type it (and publish it--what a great word!), somehow it turns it into a story, a saga, something whose magic would be diminished if you just spoke it.

Blogging turns our lives into ongoing autobiographies.

Miracles happen!

Okay, don't worry, I'm not going to throw another tantrum. I think I had good reason to be upset during my last entry (after all, being thrown out of your home with very little notice and having no idea where you're supposed to go is distressing), but I know I should have tried to control myself better. I apologize to anyone who was at all disgusted with me while reading the previous entry and assure them that I do indeed have some maturity.

I am SO happy to report that this week went from HORRIBLE to pretty darn good: Jason found a job up at the school yesterday, making more money than me, in the afternoons. Translation: transportation won't be a problem and he doesn't have to do a 4 a.m. job in which we would never get to see each other because he'd have to go to bed about 7 p.m.

Also, the really great thing: we found a place to live today!!! We're going to rent a really nice townhome, and it's looking like we're getting the best deal out of all of them. We looked at one of the others on Thursday (you know, pretty much same model, a few doors down) that some kids our age-ish own and were renting out because they planned on moving to a three-bedroom house. (They also had a nice new sofa set, nice framed pictures, huge flat-panel t.v., etc.--we wondered what the husband does for a living.) It was $750 a month with only city utilities included. It was looking like our only viable option, but we decided to think about it, because it seemed pretty steep. The guy next door was trying to rent his for $680, so we already knew they were probably just being a little greedy. (No cats allowed at the guy's place though.) Then today I was checking craigslist, and I found one of the same townhouses for $625 a month! Same amount of bedrooms and everything! The only differences I could see when we looked at it were that the oven and stove weren't as nice as the other and there was no built-in microwave. Big whoop, we already have one. Still has washer and dryer ("Haaaaaaaalelujah!!") and a ton of storage space so we won't have to stuff everything in the second bedroom. In fact, we'll probably be able to hear our voices echo for awhile, it's so big compared to what we have now.

So anyway, the owners seem cool, and the renters living there now told us that they're laid-back, fair, and don't bother them much. The carpet looks great, everything looks nice...and it's only $625! The current renters also said that they're pretty sure they have the best deal, because the other renters they know there pay more, even $800-something, for the same model. How on earth are we so blessed when I have been so undeserving? It must be Jason's faith.

I'm so, so, so, so grateful. I was getting seriously depressed and hopeless. Before this, we looked at living in someone's ancient, dark basement. Sure, it was a good deal cheaper, but it was only available until September, anyway. The only things that could make this perfect are if we had a porch where I could grow a garden, and a garage so the car wouldn't get icy. ...And if it were closer to the school. ...And if cable and internet were included. ...And if it were cheaper. ...And if there were a clubhouse with a workout room. ...All right, all right, so it's not even close to perfect, but it's still great! We can keep our beloved little kitties, and stay there as long as we want! We don't have to live out of town! We get a nice, new, pretty, big townhouse to ourselves! I'll be able to do yoga in the living room without having to move furniture! And we'll actually have enough room to have our friends over!

So, next on the needed miracles list: another part-time job, in which I am fabulously well-paid and can still work part-time at Rexburg Floral. Did I mention that I got to make a practice bridal bouquet yesterday? I did, and it was SO stinking fun!! So I really want to stay on and keep learning. Bruce (my boss) is a pain in everyone's neck really, but I love working with the flowers and learning, especially the wedding-related stuff, and I bet that will really pick up as we come into wedding season.

Again, it was just for practice, so it was old, blown roses that we couldn't sell, and I know it's not perfect. But Angelica (co-worker majoring in floral design) said I did really well for my first try!

This was a long one. But despite still being nervous about money (I can't remember not being nervous about it since I was single), I feel light as a feather compared to before. I really had about fifty pounds on my chest, and now it's down to, oh, five.

Maybe it's because we always pay our tithing. I bet that's a big part of it. Tithing rocks!