Disco Mania!

That special night we all look forward to every holiday season was this past weekend. That's right, it was the World's Largest Disco! So much fun. Some craziness happened at the end of the night, and perhaps someday I'll tell the story, but for now my lawyers would prefer me not to talk about it. So, here's some pics instead!

Me & my girl Ab ...just getting started

The girls...and Brad

Gotta love that cow bell!

My Christmas List (Draft 1)

As I sit here at work on a Friday night I've started to contemplate what I would like for Christmas this year. Here's what I've come up with so far (in no particular order):


*The Blackberry Pearl. I really want this phone.

*DVD of a concert. I'm not allowed to mention his name, so you have to click on the link for more info.

*Diamond Earrings & other Diamond Jewelry

*Remote Car Starter

*A Trip to Greece

*These cashmere gloves and matching and scarf both in the black stripe

*The Sephora Train Case for my most prized possessions... my makeup

*A Big TV

*A New Computer

*A New Wardrobe

*A New Camera

I'm sure there's more. I'll update soon....

But seriously, I LOVE Christmas shopping! If ever there was someone who really believed "it's better to give than to receive," it's me! I love finding new and exciting things to give as presents! How great is it when someone opens up a gift and is just as excited about it as you are?! My goal every year is to find "The Perfect Gift" for each and every person on my list!

My bother is usually the easiest to please. I know that I've succeeded when he wears what I just bought him to Christmas dinner at Nana's (it's happened on several occasions!). My goddaughter is also pretty easy to win over. What little girl doesn't like makeup, girly clothes, and anything with glitter?! Peter, on the other hand, is a difficult one to make happy. I haven't given up though! I've already found a few things for him for this year. I'm determined to find something that will please him. The only time I think I may have accomplished that so far is when I bought him A Treasure's Trove. He had mentioned this book a handful of times and thought I'd get it for him. I'd like to think he was impressed, but he may have been more annoyed, because the puzzles began to frustrate him a bit! Not that he doesn't like what I give him, he's just never as excited or thrilled as I want him to be!

I'm so excited to buy gifts!

Giving Thanks

It's Thanksgiving! Unfortunately I'm stuck working the holiday from 1:30 'til 9:30 pm. Horrible! I guess that's life... or at least part of my life. Anyhow, I thought I'd share what I'm thankful for...

I am thankful for my friends, family, and loved ones in general. I'm thankful for the health and happiness of myself and everyone I know. I'm thankful for my strength, my drive, my confidence, my abilities, and my determination. I'm thankful for my place in this world, my job, my apartment, my kitties, and all my stuff. I'm thankful for all the opportunities I've been given to further myself, to enjoy myself, and to improve myself. I'm even thankful for all of the hardships and difficult times I've encountered in my life. They've made me stronger and a better person. I'm thankful for lots more stuff, I'm sure, but I'll stop listing them now.

Today, I think I'm most thankful for my family. The sad thing about working on Thanksgiving is that I don't get to see my family. It's always been one of my favorite holidays. Since my very first Thanksgiving, it has been a whirlwind day of family, food and fun. It's a long day of enjoyment, excitement, and the occasional stress, of course.

I remember always starting the day watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in the living room. Erik & I would watch it from a pile of blankets and pillows on the floor (mom was asleep on the couch). I don't think I really cared much about the parade though. The only thing I wanted to see were the big balloons. For some reason they were my favorite part. Then, my mom would finish cooking whatever she was making to bring to my grandparents' houses (usually pies, some other random desserts, and my favorite lazy pierogie). Then we would head off to Grandma & Grandpa's for round 1. Followed by Nana's for round 2. (Lots of playing, screaming, yelling, story telling, eating & laughing make up rounds 1 & 2) We'd stay there 'til some crazy hour playing Trivial Pursuit or something like that. Then, we'd drive home and listen to Christmas music. Thanksgiving night was always the first time we'd dare put the Christmas tape into the car's cassette player. Obviously this is an abridged version. I have lots of memories, and family is at the core of them all.

Most of you who know me, know that I have a big family. My mom and dad are both one of 8 children. I have 33 first cousins and 6 second cousins (Which is a big number itself, considering only 4 of my cousins have their own kids....so many little ones have yet to come!). Holidays are completely family oriented for me. My family isn't a superfluous part of me. I know lots of people who don't even know their cousins. I definitely have cousins I don't know well, but that's only a couple. Growing up in a family like mine is cool. I describe it as having lots of brothers and sisters that you don't have to live with. You get lots of kids to play with, and hang out with, but at the end of the day you get your room all to yourself! So, tonight, I miss them all. I hope they all realize that I am thankful for each and every one of them.

So, now I'll just have to look forward to Christmas Eve & Christmas. It's just like Thanksgiving, only spread out over 2 long days, and it involves lots and lots of presents (many kids = many presents under the tree!)

Question

Do people really like water chestnuts?

I hate them. I think they are the most useless, annoying thing that can be put in my food.

I'm getting quite frustrated that they have been in several of my "Smart Ones" and "Lean Cuisine" meals lately. Is it really necessary to put them in every dish that is even close to being Chinese?!

They taste like Styrofoam. Gross!

Pump Some Iron

Realization #2: I sleep too much.

Yes, I sleep too much. When I lived in Buffalo, 5 minutes from work, I would get 8 hours of sleep every night, for the most part. Now, if I were to get 8 hours of sleep every day I would have no life whatsoever. I am a tired person. I get worn out. I can't even blame this current exhaustion on working out like crazy (like I normally would), 'cause I don't even have the time, nor the energy to work out! This is insane!

I never used to be so tired. I used to be a non-stop party animal! Now, I'm a loser. It all started around two years ago when I made my new years resolution to run a half-marathon. About a month and a half into my training I was just about dead to the world. Apparently my 25 mile weeks where killing me. A few weeks later I went to the doctor, got blood tests, and found out that I was "severely" anemic. I was kinda happy with the diagnosis, 'cause at least there was a reason for my lethargy! So, I took lots of iron supplements, ate lots of red meat, and felt a lot better. But, now I'm pretty bad again, so I'm thinking about taking more than just my daily prenatal vitamin (no, I'm NOT pregnant, those vitamins just have the most iron).

If I don't do something I'm just gonna continue to sleep my life away! So, that's all. I'm anemic. Boo-hoo. This is a boring post, but I'm bored at work and have nothing else on my mind but my iron levels.

P.S. In case you're wondering, I never did run that half-marathon!

Giant Turtles & Jellyfish

Two days ago I bought my plane ticket for my Key West getaway! Even though it's over 4 months away, I'm so excited about it. It's nice to have something to look forward to. My pharmacy girls, their significant others, and I are heading down at the end of March for a week! Yeah!

You may ask why Peter is not coming. Well, he will be going on a sailing trip in early March, so that's his spring break vacation. It wasn't our intention to take separate trips, but the more I thought about sailing somewhere out near Grenada the more apprehensive I became about it. I made the tough decision not to go on the trip, but encouraged him to go, 'cause I know he really wanted to.

Why wouldn't I want to go sailing, you ask? Well, along with several other reasons, I hate aquatic life! No, scratch that. I absolutely love going to the aquarium, but that's about as close as I like to be to marine life. I need that piece of glass to protect me. I hate close encounters with aquatic life. Here's a little background on my experiences with fish & such:

#1. My first experience snorkeling was in the Dominican Republic about 3 and half years ago. I hated it. The idea that a fish could swim right up to me and brush against my leg disturbed me to no end. Fortunately, it was cloudy that day and the area we went snorkeling in did not have much life lurking around, so I barely saw anything.

#2. My second experience snorkeling was about a year and a half ago when Peter & I went on our cruise. We went snorkeling in the Bahamas. I was apprehensive about it, but decided to at least give it a shot. The water was so cold that I didn't really focus on being surrounded by sea creatures. Then, there was this area out in the water where a "lifeguard" threw food into the water and fish would swarm. Peter tried quite hard to get me to go to this area, but just watching other people experience this was enough for me. I actually got so freaked out that when we turned around to swim back to shore I started screaming. Peter was like, "I didn't even see a fish around you." and I responded (out of breath from screaming), "I know, it was the strap to my life preserver, but I thought it was a fish!"

#3. Then we have Puerto Rico. After much coaxing Peter finally got me to go in the water when we went on our Bioluminescent Bay Tour. I was not a happy camper, but the water was so warm and the dinoflagellates were so cool, that I calmed down. We were probably in the water for about 20 minutes when we began to think about how we were gonna climb back into our kayak. Then it happened: extreme pain! I was stung by a jellyfish! Why was I surprised? I won't go into details, but it was not a fun thing to experience. I refused to go in the water for the rest of the trip.

So, I wouldn't say that it was only the experiences above that led me to my fear of aquatic life. No, I've always had these feelings. I was reading this article about a girl who went snorkeling in Florida, and came upon a turtle the size of several people put together. I got goose bumps right away. Peter thinks it would be cool to see a turtle like that. I think it would cause me to have a massive heart attack. I'm not afraid it would eat me or anything. I just don't want it to be near me. Oh, and in case you're wondering, I also have zero desire to ever swim with the dolphins.

In conclusion, I think I made the right choice for me. Instead of being scared of shark attacks, giant turtles, sting rays, or even some minnows, I will be drinking to my heart's content while lying by our pool at our house in Key West!

A Few of My Favorite Things

I'm in a shallow mood, so I thought I'd write about some of my current obsessions...

#1. Red Bull. Sugarfree Red Bull to be exact. I'm hooked on it. It's a great way to start my early morning drive. Now that I've found it in 12 packs at Target I'm even happier! Now I might just have to follow in Nicole's footsteps and mix it with some Absolut. Mmmmmm.

#2. Weight Watchers. I'm back on it. Honestly, it just teaches you to make wiser food decisions, and to eat smaller portions. The portions is the key for me. It's hard, but I'm definitely trying to stick with it. I've lost 4.5 lbs so far. Love it!

#3. Sephora French Tips & Toes Manicure Pen. It's super cool! It makes it so easy to give yourself a french manicure. Well, at least it's easy for me to give my left hand a nice french manicure. When I had to move on to my right hand I suddenly remembered that I'm not ambidextrous. Alas (sigh), my right hand looks a bit ghetto, but I'm sure I'll improve with more practice.

#4. Eat, Love, Pray. It's an awesome book! I'm only halfway through it right now, 'cause I've been so busy, but so far I love it and highly recommend it. Maybe I'll write a book report on it when I finally finish!

That's all for now, but I think I might make this a regular post to keep you updated on what I'm into, 'cause I'm know you are just soooooo interested!

All By Myself

Realization #1: I LOVE living by myself!

I suppose I've known this for many years. I used to love coming home from school and having nobody at home. I went to college and became an RA just to have my own room. I have no problem paying extra money just to have a place all to myself. My mom says that this is due to the fact that I am an only daughter, and thus never had to share a room. Of course this makes sense, but I think I just often need time to myself to relax and unwind. Having my own place is the best way to accomplish this. Also, I have OCD and hate when people mess with my shit, so living alone helps with that as well.

I think everyone should have to live by themselves at least once in their life. It definitely makes you more independent and self sufficient. It gives you a chance to really see what you like and dislike, what you need and don't need, etc. It gives you a chance to figure out if you really like yourself. It hold you accountable for everything. There's a million reasons why living on your own is great!

On the other hand, I suppose there are downfalls. You can get lonely living alone. Honestly though, I don't get lonely. Perhaps Muffin & Hallie provide me all the company I need, but if I do need human company I just pick up the phone and call someone. Also, living alone puts you in position where it may be difficult for you to compromise. You're so used to doing things your own way and getting what you want all of the time, that once you have to share your life it becomes difficult to do so. Giving up things, habits, attitudes can be difficult.

So, where does this leave my relationship? I do want to live with Peter someday, but for now I think frequent visits from him are nice. That way I can decorate my bathroom pink, program the thermostat at the temperature I want, fill up my DVR with all the reality television I desire, place each piece of furniture exactly where I want it to be, take up every square inch of my closet, and on some nights sleep diagonally all alone in my bed.

No, I don't hate dogs, but I do hate you

Well, I've been in Rochester for a week now and have learned so much about myself that I decided to start up my old blog again. My myspace blog annoys me, is kinda crappy, and I can't figure out how to put pictures on it, so I decided to abandon ship and come back to blogger.com.

Anyway, Muffin, Hallie & I are settling nicely into our new home. It's more room than I originally thought it would be which was a pleasant surprise. The girls absolutely love running like crazy on the carpeted floor, and have lots of fun playing on the stairs.

Enough about my cats though, 'cause I'm well aware that everyone doesn't love them as much as I do. Which reminds me of something (one more cat story). The Time Warner guy (Who was incredibly hot! I expected some old, fat man.) had to come over yesterday to fix my ghetto cable. So, he comes in and Muffin gives him the death stare and then Hallie runs away. He then says to me, "What? You don't like dogs?" Huh? What would possess someone to say that upon meeting me? Why do you have to make it seem like dogs are better than cats? As if a person would have to absolutely hate dogs to even consider not having one, and that said person would be making a horrible decision by doing that!

I proceeded to explain to him that up until 2 years ago I did not like any animal at all, but he didn't really seem interested. He had already classified me as a loser cat lady who hates dogs. Whatever! I proceeded to classify him as a loser cable guy who thinks he's hotter than he is AND has no manners whatsoever. Actually, I take that back, he covered up his shoes before walking on my carpet which was nice of him. Maybe he has SOME manners, although I'm sure it's in his policy and procedures manual to do that.

Ya know what? This is a pretty lengthy blog without my going into my realizations about myself, so I'll save those for next time. I'll close this blog with a photo of my adorable little girls in one of their favorite places in our new home.