Anyone know of a good investment?

Mama needs some help!

Just a few weeks ago I noticed that 2 of my 10 stocks weren't doing so hot. In fact I almost died when I realized that I lost $2,000 in one day of a very bad stock market.

Now I'm looking to diversify my portfolio and invest in things that are more solid and have a positive history.

Gold bullion has always been a strong metal. In fact, I think it's time to buy gold bullion when I get my retirement match from work.

US Gold Bureau is one of the biggest and most trusted distributors of the precious metal. They have been around for years and have a great reputation in the field of precious metals.

This is just the thing I was looking for.

God knows, I can't take too many more of those days where I lose $2,000!

Here goes nothing...

and everything!

We're starting up on the bathroom project today. Dave and I are trying to tackle the floor and the plumbing. Any walls would be a plus.

Of course, this morning our plumbing started to gurgle and bubble in the toilets when hot water is running.

SHIT. This house is sucking the life out of me!

A little marketing...

down the toilet.

Years ago Shawna started her own consulting business. She stayed at home with Graem and this was inbetween her trying to get pregnant.

We had business cards printed up, paper, and we even came up with a pretty good brochure.

At one point she was using her marketing materials and putting them in jumbo envelopes and dropping them off at local hospitals, assisted livings, and nursing homes.

To say the least...she wasn't able to put the time into the business and before we moved we disposed of the $200 of marketing materials that we had invested.

The kitchen...

is totally not coming around.

We thought we were going to get cabinets online and then we added all of them into the cart to find out that shipping is a total bitch and almost as much as the cabinets cost.

Talk about rip off. Now we're thinking we might just go through Lowes or Home Depot. We were quoted $5,500 for some pretty crappy cabinets and I'm sure that Lowes and Home Depot should be able to do better than that!

Too many cookies.

Tonight I made cookies with the girls. They were delicious and of course I ate way too many! At some point I really need to think about joining a gym and eating better!

I've even considered looking at diet pill reviews! Years ago Shawna took diet pills and did incredible. She lost tons of weight and I'm sure I could do just as good.

Our new home office...

is about to be unveiled over the next few days. I promise to post pictures. We purchased a nice Mission style desk off of the internet and also a black file cabinet. We're going to move the futon downstairs and we might also get some better lighting for the basement.

Of course no office would be complete without some sleek new office supplies!

Half way.

I can't believe we pissed away today! Actually we got tons done. We went to the plant sale (that sucked, mowed the grass, planted some plants, painted the basement, and had Graem's first sleepover.

Tomorrow I plan on putting up walls in the bathroom and I think Shawna wants to finish doing the painting in the basement.

Will this house stuff ever end?!?!?

Blubber.

So I still have my post-pregnancy ring around my belly. I must admit though that after pregnancy I lost tons of weight and at one point I was even less than before pregnancy.

Then life happened.

We started eating out, I started loving my food again, and now I'm a chunker.

I've looked into top fat burners and I'm pretty convinced that in the near future I might need to think about trying something.

Sleep over - 9:28pm!

Well, tonight we made cookies, did nails, and the girls are in bed with a flashlight reading a handful of books.

It went excellent. Both girls were so excited and it was fun to do the activities together.

Now we'll have to see how it goes....

I'm guessing there might be a mid-morning trip to drop someone off in our near future...

Got insurance?

I've been looking around for a good life insurance online quote. I called my local person and it sounds like I'm probably not a candidate for getting good premiums because I have asthma.

Even though I've never had major issues I'm on medication to control the asthma. They consider it a liability and then they want tons of money because I'm such a "risk".

Laxin'

Right now we're hanging out like grown adults and watching Nurse Jackie. LOVE IT.

Of course, I liked last years season better. I'm still lost on the cliff hanger and trying to figure it all out.

My body aches because I wiped the hell out playing soccer! Thank God Shawna has some good meds left over from her back injury!

Left Comment

Actually, I was given a two rolex watches from my grandmother when I was little.

I hardly knew the expense of the watches and to this day wish I knew where they were!

Now I’m much older and responsible and thinking about purchasing one of the newer Rolex watches.

Left comment

Great blog and I was happy to get the information on how I can save money on those high priced printer cartridges!

Now I’m headed your way!

Thanks for the info!

Left comment

credit counselling is a hard thing to go through… In fact, after I graduated from college I was faced with numerous bills and no job!

I was glad that I was able to get the help I needed.

ccofAmerica.com offers a great website that is useful, supportive, and unique.

Left comment

So refreshing to find an online website where I can get all of my health and beauty needs in one stop. They have something for everyone and my favorite part is that free shipping with a $25 purchase is absolutely unheard of! I’m off to shop!

Left comment

I just went to the spa store today to pick up cleaner and sanitizer. I was shocked at the different varieties and even more shocked at the cost! They had everything from http://www.spa-daddy.com/" target="_blank">pool filters to shocker solution.

Spa-Daddy.com is a great place to pick up good deals and they are a wealth of knowledge on pool and hot tub maintenance!

ZZZZZzzzzzzz

As tired as I am now I have a note that the electrician is going to be here first thing tomorrow morning. Which means that I'll probably have to wake up to and help him fish wire, ect.

The good thing is that this is probably the last time he'll be here and hopefully by the end we'll have poop vans in the bathrooms and an overhead light in the kid's playroom.

A little cosmetic surgery...

This website is so informative. Not only does it talk about something very sensitive and real like plastic surgery but also the costs associated with receiving quality care.

My aunt went to Mexico and received $20,000 of dental work for around $1,500.

I know in a few years I'm totally going to want a cosmetic surgery facelift.

CosmeticSurgeryMexico.com sounds like it has amazing staff and surgeons who are ready to make you feel good!

Speech Therapy...

Emmy's doing speech therapy right now and it's so nice to hear her using her words with the therapist. It takes her a few sessions to get comfortable and I think we're finally at that point with the new therapist.

PLUS...all of this therapy gives me a nice little break and time to go to the bathroom and put away laundry.

Yippee.

So refreshing to find an online website where I can get all of my health and beauty needs in one stop. They have something for everyone and my favorite part is that free shipping with a $25 purchase is absolutely unheard of!

I’m off to shop!

TGIF.

Maybe I'll just leave it at that...but it's been one slow ass week. I've been working hard with blogging and Emmy has been really high needs.

We switched out her crib for the big girl bed and that's been somewhat of a disaster. We might be bringing the crib back this weekend.

Everynight Margot has to go and put Emmy to bed and it ends up taking a good two hours.

SEO Services

It's good to see all of this information on SEO services! I signed up for a service last year. I paid a fortune and ended up getting very little.

ThinkBigSites.com offers unique and comprehensive SEO services, not to mention they have a wonderful reputation with many happy customers!

Just what I'm looking for...

Comment...

Actually, I was given two rolex watches from my grandmother when I was little.

I hardly knew the expense of the watches and to this day wish I knew where they were!

Now I’m much older and responsible and thinking about purchasing one of the newer Rolex watches.

Zitty.

I think it could be the humidity in our house because I feel like my face is constantly oily! Even after I get out of the shower I have quite the shine!

Then there is the whole issue of my zits. I don't get good zits. Typically, they are anti-climatic. It looks like a big one, I pop it, and it's nothing. Bummer.

Maybe I will look at pronexin. I've heard it works pretty good and I can hop on the website and purchase it directly.

Volleyball.

I absolutely love watching sports and many times I'll go months without watching television. Now I'm watching the National Championship Women's - Texas vs Penn St. It's such a good game.

These girls totally kick some major ass and I just love it when they spike it.

Plus, they're all really hot.

Stressed...

I don't know if we're ever going to get to the point where we are done with this house. It seems like there is so much we need to do in order to get it the way that we want it.

With work and then home being so crazy I have started getting pimples! I literally have had about ten zits my whole life and now at the ripe age of thirty four...zits.

I've looked at products like Acneticin and I think I might order some!

So much for a weekend...

we totally busted our balls this weekend.

Shawna took the kids Saturday and I stayed home to fix the home theatre and then the plumbing. What started out as an easy task turned into hell. Before long I realized that the plumbing in the basement was leaking water everywhere. When I went to fix the upstairs spare bedroom faucet the tiles started popping off at me.

Damn, this house has issues!

Lookin' purty in the south.

I have recently reconnected with my grandma and it was so great to hear how everyone was doing. Plus, since we don't have much family out there any family we have...we really need to work harder on making connections.

The last time I was in Louisiana I was 19 and went for my grandfather's funeral. I know...bad.

Now that I have kids it is not the easiest trip to make.

I am sure that Cosmetology school in Louisiana is quite popular and if you know what I mean....we aren't the prettiest girls on the block!

That is why I am glad that there are places like RegencyBeauty.com! They offer classes around the United States and have some of the world famous clients that walk the runways!

Dryer fixed?

We've had some seriously shitty luck when it comes to our washer and dryer. In fact, the washing machine crapped out first.

Then after putting totally damp clothes in the dryer - it died too.

THe parts have been purchased - and sure enough...I just heard Margot start up our working dryer!

She just saved us a good $75.

Maybe I will keep her around after all.

I can't resist...

potato chips.

I don't know what it is about the crunchy and salty taste...but I'm hooked! The other day I sat on the couch and ate a full bag while Emmy was taking her nap.

Maybe I should look into getting on the best fat buners out there!

I mean, it could be worse, right? It's not like I washed down the chips with Pepsi...

Oh wait...

Shawna here...

I've got to nail out painting two doors in an hour before I have to leave to pick up the kids.

Emmy fell right asleep for naptime and she is sleeping soundly in Graem's bed. Maybe we should set up her big girl bed! I have a feeling it's going to go pretty smooth!

All tied up.

So I'm constantly looking for things to buy my brother for Christmas and his birthday. I figure he has enough mens ties and business attire. However, when I spoke with him Sunday he said that he just purchased a new tailored suit set for around $250 US dollars.

Knowing that he has to dress nice for work maybe the perfect solution is to buy him work clothing! That way he can focus his time and money on picking out something entertaining!

Doors.

I'm about half way through the doors. Last night I was able to make two cuts, screw in hinges, and the door was hung! Really, not so bad. Of course, tonight I'm aiming to put up two doors and I will probably need to start once the kids have gone to bed.

I wish I could just take a day off of work and nail out the plumbing in the spare bathroom and the doors!

This is such a wonderful blog...

This is such a wonderful blog and I absolutely love the beds that you refer to.

A few years ago I purchased a twin bunk bed for my two daughters. They *LOVE* them! Right now we are just transitioning the younger one into a big girl bed and my older daughter can’t wait for the day when she gets to be on the top bunk.

I like the MOMs bunks because they look safe! The ladder bunk that we have makes me nervous because I can just picture a time where my daughter’s foot will slip and she will fall down.

The stair-like engineering provides steady footing and truly a brilliant idea!

Half day Friday!

Today I took a half day. Shawna had an interview (that got cancelled) and I had really wanted to take the full day and enjoy a day with the girls since Graem was off on spring break.

Since things are so busy at work I was only able to take a half day.

The girls picked me up at work and we went for Indian buffet and then off to Home Depot. We picked up paint and supplies.

When we got home Susan and David came over to drop off a rack of ribs and David stayed with us for a few hours while Susan went to go pick up the baby in Cortland.

Then J, L, and W came over for spaghetti and meatball dinner. It's amazing how much these kids like spaghetti!

The evening was nice and we sat on the couch chitchatting about taxes and watched Shawna paint!

Anyone know of ...

good investments?

Just a few weeks ago I noticed that 2 of my 10 stocks weren't doing so hot. In fact I almost died when I realized that I lost $2,000 in one day of a very bad stock market.

Now I'm looking to diversify my portfolio and invest in things that are more solid and have a positive history.

Gold bullion has always been a strong metal. In fact, I think it's time to buy gold bullion when I get my retirement match from work.

US Gold Bureau is one of the biggest and most trusted distributors of the precious metal. They have been around for years and have a great reputation in the field of precious metals.

This is just the thing I was looking for.

God knows, I can't take too many more of those days where I lose $2,000!

The car from hell.

That's what Shawna's car is. Seriously.

I found a bottle full of curdled milk and I have no idea how long it's been there!

What I do know is that it's got chunks and STINKS.

I decided that her Easter gift would be a clean van! There was caked on chocolate milk on the leather seats and the kid's carseats were nasty! I'm not sure if they had old raisins or turds in them...

Either way the washing machine is running and will be for most of the day!

The Easter Bunny!

Well we got a visitor last night!

This morning came and the kids walked out to find their baskets overloaded with candy, balls, CDs and DVDs! They had a great time and the two girls have totally OD'd on candy.

Emmy is taking her morning nap now and Graem is watching her new DVD!

Insured?

The other day the bank sent me a letter. It said that we had to contact them within 48 hours because our house had to be insured and our insurance was cut off!

I instantly called the bank and come to find out they had made an error and they had received the cancellation for the old house.

You would think with car insurance, house insurance, and health insurance, that we would be TOTALLY insured, right?

Too much work!

Next Friday I'm taking off and I'm sure that Shawna has a list down to my feet of house stuff she wants/needs done!

Of course, I have a different agenda and figure that I need to work on getting the shower in our room up and running.

We're having issues with it because after we use it (6 hours later) it starts dripping. Typically, this happens at 4 in the morning when we're both sleeping!

Stroll away!

It's exciting that we live on a dead end road. I can just imagine in a few years letting the girls ride their bikes to the end and turning around.

Of course, we could make use of all of the baby strollers that we have purchased!

Shawna had to buy a new Maclaren stroller when Emmy was born and has used it only a few times! It's in absolutely perfect shape. Too bad our little princess prefers the older Maclaren that has the wheels about to fall off.

Barf.

Last night was truly from hell.

Graem got totally sick from both ends! The bathroom still smells like barf this morning and I'm exhausted and still had to go to work.

This is a job that would be perfect for a third wife.

I wonder if Shawna can find one on Craigslist.

Buying time.

Our computer is on the way out. I know it. It's actually been alive a lot longer than I would have given it. We got it when Graem was 1 1/2 years old. After she spilled a bottle of water on our last laptop!

Now we're in the market for a new laptop and thinking that the Acer Aspire is a pretty good deal.

We're not looking for something over the top and for the most part we don't do tons of graphics. Just basic email and website viewing.

Any suggestions?

Go Cornell!

Tomorrow we're going to have a basketball get together. Cornell has made it to March Madness and that's just about all I know.

I do know that they will be playing tomorrow. That we will be ordering meaty pizza and drinking lots of beer.

Then I am guessing that the day after the big party will be followed with a killer headache and me asking WTF I was thinking.

I can't see a thing!

The last time I went to the optical I asked our old guy to give me an adjustment. He went to the backroom and then I heard profanities.

He broke my lenses during the adjustment.

To say the least I was in deep trouble. I can't see two feet in front of me without my glasses and he didn't have any replacements in stock!

I know I should be smarter and have an extra set of eyeglasses on hand but who can afford that?

Zenni Optical offers amazing eyeglasses at great prices! In fact, The Examiner wrote a great review.

I think it's probably time that I move on from our old optical guy and find someplace that doesn't break my glasses and offers great eyeglasses at a reasonable price!

RIPOFF

Tonight I ripped out the cabinets above the existing fridge. It was somewhat liberating and we're getting geared up to get our new fridge, stove, washer, and dishwasher tomorrow.

YAHOO!

I can't wait!!!

It's time...

So I've made enough excuses about losing weight!

I've got to take it seriously. My parents have both passed away at an early age and weight loss would help anyone stay healthy and live longer.

I've talked about joining the gym and my excuse was that I wanted to get moved into our new house etc.

Now I don't have an excuse. So maybe today is the day!

The weekend...

was a blur.

Maybe it was all of the beer I drank! Or it could have been that so much happened Friday with the closing and the moving that I have blocked it all out!

Both Friday night and Saturday night L, David and Susan came over for dinner! Friday night we had pizza and Saturday L treated us to a delish Indian dinner.

Hopefully this week will go fast and we'll be able to have another great weekend!

Going natural.

We've been trying to eat better since we moved into the new house. It's still hard to get berries and fruit because they are so out of season and cost a fortune.

Of course, I've looked into natural fat burners too!

Not only are we eating more and more organic fruits and vegetables but if I can find something that's all natural and good for me AND helps me lose weight then I'm totally hooked!

Too little sleep.

I don't know why I have gotten into the habit of waking up at 4am. The past few weeks I wake up SO early and I'm not able to back to sleep. Even on the weekends when I don't have to go in to work.

I think it's partly stress...but then there's the house. I feel like there's so much to do and my mind just races. It's so easy to spend HOURS on the 3d program that I downloaded and I can't wait to get started with the kitchen!

Are you looking ...

for differin reviews?

I sure am! I've started getting acne at the prime age of 34. I never had acne growing up and now it is my time.

It has not gotten so bad that I have to consider medication. It's more embarrassing than anything!

Boogies everywhere.

We have been so sick lately. Graem was home from school three days last week because she was sick. Did I mention that this was in the middle of our move?

Yeah, it sucked. Horrible timing.

Now Shawna is down for the count. She has a horrible sinus infection and went to the doctor today to find out that she has pink eye too! She was given an antibiotic and Claritin-D.

Hopefully, it will start to kick in soon and she'll feel like her old self again!

5 more pounds.

I just stepped on the scale and I swear it's broken. At least I hope.

It said I weighed five more pounds than the last time I stepped on the scale.

Darn.

Maybe I should look into getting on some fat burners so that I can continue my fatty diet and lose weight!

Of course, I could eat better and move more...

House Virgins.

I must admit...I'm hooked to the Home and Garden channel. We watch "Holmes on Homes" and it's a pretty good show! But we LOVE "Property Virgins"!

Typically, we work on the house in the evening and then pop a few ibuprofen - then we lay down and watch more H&G tv!

Can't get enough.

Too bad Shawna won't let me apply for "Curb Appeal"

Owwwie.

I have absolutely horrible skin. I have had it ever since I was young and I'm pretty sure that someone in my family gave it to me!

The eczema is so painful at times and I have a horrible habit of scratching it until it bleeds.

Typically I get it around my elbows and around my lips. However, I also get it around my earlobes and the back of my knees.

Just writing about it makes me want to scratch.

"OWWWWIE" as Emmy would say!

We moved!

We're in our new house and loving it!

Although it's suppose to be smaller than our older house it seems so much bigger. The space makes more sense. Instead of the biggest room being a bedroom it's actually the living room!

Shawna's already started painting the living room and this weekend Dave came over and helped me put up the television.

Doors are ordered and appliances should be in Thursday.

Here we go!

Sales.

Shawna was born to have a sales jobs. In fact, every sales and marketing job she's had she's been awesome at. She's exceeded all goals and made very good money.

That's why we're talking about her going into real estate sales. She could still keep a somewhat flexible schedule, work weekends and evenings, and make some good money.

Still more conversation to be had, obviously, but I think we're going down the right road.

Yahoo!

I just did the calculations for closing costs, bank fees, etc. on the house and it looks like might have quite a bit more cash than I though.

DAMN....stuff like this never works out in our favor!

Could it be true? An extra $10,000 to put into our new house?

Stay posted.

GET ME OUT OF HERE.

I swear this is the year to leave upstate New York! If we were not in the middle of buying a house we would be heading out for another family vacation!

Right now as I look out my window I see about two feet of snow and little flakes coming down. I'm starting to question if spring will ever get here!

A few years ago we left all of this behind and went on a fabulous vacation to Cancun! We had so much fun at the resort and really loved taking advantage of the beautiful scenery and swim up bars!

KarismaHotels.com offers an easy-to-use website with some amazing vacation deals! In fact, I have my eye on the gourmet all-inclusive vacation. This might be just the thing to celebrate our fifteen year anniversary.

Minus the kids, of course!

Clean up and touch up.

At this point we're at a standstill with the packing. We've packed almost everything we can...but we still have the computer and desk that need to be packed up, dishes, bathroom stuff, and some linens. Then there's food....

We're trying to eat everything we can out of the cupboards and fridge but you can only do so much with mustard and garbanzo beans.

Seriously.

Freakin' out here.

We have no idea when in the hell we're going to close. Shawna's been calling our attorney and he's not getting back to her. We could be closing as soon as this Friday....

However, douchebag sellers house has yet to be cleared out AND he has about 4 feet of snow outside so he's going to have to shovel the driveway just to get a moving truck in!

Is this ever going to happen???

My aching back!

When I was pregnant I had horrible sciatica. In fact, many times I could barely get out of bed our out of a chair without having terrible back pain that ran all the way down my leg.

After I had Graem it seemed to get better.

However, there are still times when I feel my back spasm and I run immediately to the chiropractor!

I was very impressed with Hassel Family Chiropractic located in West Des Moines.





They are staffed with professional and seasoned chiropractors who know how to help in areas of headaches, PMS, and backpain.

If you're looking for a full-service chiropractor - look no further! They give care to infants, children, teens, adults, and seniors.

Good chiropractic care is just a phone call away!

LoudLaunch - Compensating bloggers for their unbiased opinions, reviews, and analysis.

Back to the grind.

You've got to love Monday mornings. It was so hard getting out of the house today. Emmy was so snugglie and kept saying "nuggie"

She's become so snugglie and I feel like I'm catching up for lost time when she wanted nothing to do with me as a baby!

When I walked out the door this morning I could hear her crying.

Why can't we be independently wealthy like most of the other Ithacans?

Slipped up.

Our couch is a mess. We bought it years ago and since it broke we had it replaced under warranty a little over a year ago.

For having two kids and a cat we treat our furniture pretty good. In the past we've had slipcovers to protect the fabric.

Now we're at the point where we give up.

We figure once the animals die and the children leave for college we'll be able to get new furniture and put plastic covers on them to preserve them like most old people do.

Home, home on the range.

That's where I'm working from today.

We're snowed in and despite the fact that the flakes aren't big, it's consistent and we're suppose to get another foot overnight.

I've been able to get a fair amount of work done. It will be so nice when we move into the new house and I can actually have my office in the basement away from kids and wife.

Hell, maybe that will be my woman cave.

Slammed.

The good thing is that I just heard back from banklady and she said that we're good to go for our new mortgage and she's forwarding the commitment letter to us from the bank. Now it's just up the attorneys to find out a good date for us to close.

Now we just wait for the sellers of our house to get ready too!!

Just a little tidbit of ...

So small it could almost be a miniature elephant

Always looking for ...

good investments. Just a few weeks ago I noticed that 2 of my 10 stocks weren't doing so hot. In fact I almost died when I realized that I lost $2,000 in one day of a very bad stock market.

Now I'm looking to diversify my portfolio and invest in things that are more solid and have a positive history.

Gold bullion has always been a strong metal. In fact, I might buy gold bullion when I get my retirement match from work.

US Gold Bureau is one of the biggest and most trusted distributors of the precious metal. They have been around for years and have a great reputation in the field of precious metals.

This is just the thing I was looking for.

God knows, I can't take too many more of those days where I lose $2,000!

Back to work tomorrow!

So I just took one of Shawna's percoset because I was feeling pretty shitty and really wanted to have a good night's sleep without coughing and tossing and turning.

I feel like I'm on a cloud and I don't want to come down.

I can really see how people get hooked on this shit.

Ice Skating.

We're watching ice skating now and there's this ugly guy who has the worst mullet in the world. I'm pretty sure he's European because he has bad teeth.

They just called him "special" and I'd have to agree.

Now there's this commentator and his name is Dick Button. That's tragic.

I never knew ice skating was this much fun.

The saggies.

I've started realizing that with age everything is sagging.

Most recently I've noticed that my eyes are starting to sag a little bit. I've looked into youthology eye serum and think it might be something of interest.

Many places have all natural products that help firm up skin around the eyes and can reverse the signs of aging all together.

Maybe when I'm going through a mid-life crisis I'll get my minicooper and facelift.

Cancun again?

So our friends who just moved to Alabama invited us to go on a vacation with them to Cancun?!?! They have a timeshare there!

They have two little girls too and we met them at Graem's daycare.

A vacation to somewhere sunny sounds divine and I think we'd have a great time with a family that has kids too.

So old.

Some days my body feels like I'm sixty years old. I know I have some rotten genes - but can't I get a break?!

Lately, I've been finding joint pain relief in taking warm baths and my heating pad!

I also have a coupon to visit my chiropractor and the massage therapist. Of course, I've had them for over six months and I just can't seem to find the time to make an appointment.

Is tonight the night?

At some point we're going to move Emmy into Graem's room and she's going to sleep in the bottom bunk. Yeah, right?

With the new house we have three bedrooms and we were really planning on moving in and having the girls share the room next to ours. Ideally, Emmy would love sleeping on the bottom bed and being a big girl!

Tonight we're going to give it a test run and let Graem sleep on the bottom bed with her. I have a feeling we're going to hear giggling and crying probably within a 4 minute time frame.

Roids.

When Shawna was pregnant she had horrible hemorrhoids.

Then the baby was born.

Her bottom was an absolute and complete war zone. (She's going to kill me for talking about this!) She kept using the hottub at the hospital but when we got home she had little relief and it was just a matter of time to heal.

We looked all over for cures for hemorrhoids and ended up with ice packs, sitting sideways, and this analgesic cream that we found at only one store in town.

So excited!

So this past weekend Shawna got our amazing appliances. SHE GOT A STEAL. I'm talking stainless steel dishwasher, microwave/vent hood, washing machine, fridge, and oven - $2,100. After the rebates and tons of negotiations with Home Depot.

Damn I love that wife!

So much for New Year's Resolution...

My weight has been flip-flopping for the past few months. I'm sure it's work stress, house stress, and these damn kids. Then there's the delicious brownies that Shawna just made. Darn.

I should probably just call it a day and hook up with some cheap adipex!

Years ago Shawna did some weight loss meds and lost quite a bit of weight. She was able to keep it off and get pregnant.

Packing!

Shawna's been amazing about getting us packed. I tried to pack a few boxes and became disinterested when I realized that everything I had packed needed a bigger box.

Today Shawna called the out-of-town mover (some asshole on craigslist) - they were totally trying to pull one on her because he said he charged $200/hour and then said they'd need 12 hours. SERIOUSLY?

What kind of crack are they smoking? We could move to Texas for that!

The good old days...

I remember after I had Graem we barely slept, I nursed constantly, was on a prenatal multivitamin, and lost tons of weight!

I had the best hair and nails in town and my figure wasn't too shabby either!

Now I'm on vitamins but they just don't do the same things as those horrible tasting prenatals!

I'm a sicky!

Today I worked half a day and by noon time I was beat.

My body is trying to kick this cold but instead I feel horrible! I've taken enough airborne and vitamins to raise someone from the dead.

Hopefully, it will leave our family soon! Shawna's going crazy with two sick kids and can't just pick up and leave because she's still feeling pain from her gall bladder surgery.

Excited?

I must say we're pretty excited about moving into our new place! We've been going to Lowes and Home Depot on a weekly basis and we want to do so much to our new house.

Of course, it all costs time and money. In fact, Shawna was saying that she might want to find a job so that we can remodel!

There's so much to do though and with two kids with various social schedules I'm not sure that would be the best idea.

PLUS, who's going to do laundry, cook, clean, and take the kids to gymnastics, soccer, music, and doctor's appointments?

The sickies.

are here.

And they won't leave.

Shawna is the only one not sick and she's on the couch do to the staph infection she contracted during her gall bladder surgery.

Tonight Graem coughed so much she threw up in bed and we had to change the sheets.

This parenting thing is a blast.

Too much estrogen!

Last weekend we had such a fun Super Bowl party! We had quite a few friends over and the only guy was our friend David who is married to Susan. We absolutely love them and David is one of the greatest guys we know.

God knows with this bunch we didn't need a testosterone booster!!

Of course, not one of us could explain what was going on in the game - but we ate enough wings and drank enough beer to compete with the big football guys that were on television!

FRIDAY.

Is here.

It's been one long week. Perhaps it's the workload and deadlines. The fact that Shawna's got an infection and the kids are hacking. Or maybe the fact that I'm getting sick myself.

Either way...Friday, I love you and it's been way too long since your last visit.

Maybe...

the one good genetic trait that I have is that I don't have wrinkles!

And I won't have to worry about spending money on wrinkle creams!

Of course, that doesn't count the thousands of dollars that I have spent trying to fix my excema and dry skin!

You can't win them all though, right?

BTW, glad to report that my fasting blood came in and I'm not diabetic. Thank goodness.

SNORING.

Shaw here. MARGOT'S SNORING SO LOUD RIGHT NOW. I can't even hear myself think.

HELP.

Man fat.

You always hear about women losing weight but I've never seen fat burner for men.

Maybe it's that men are a little less likely to diet because societal norms "allow" them to be overweight? Or maybe it's that most of the weight loss programs target women because they're proven factors and are constantly searching to change their bodies.

staffing up.

I think we need a third wife.

Shawna's sick with a staph infection from the gall bladder surgery and so she's somewhat out of commission. She's on pretty heavy duty antibiotics so we're hoping that they kick in soon and she recovers to 100%!

Valentines?

Yikes...Valentines is right around the block and I have no idea what to get Shawna. I feel like I owe her big since I neglected t o get her a birthday or Christmas gift!

Maybe I should look for a personalized gift. Maybe something that has to do with me and the kids.

Or I could just pick up the clogs that she's been asking for over the past two years.

Great day!

Today we had a great family day! I went in for a couple of hours of work and Shawna took the girls to music class.

Then we met up with L&J, and W and went to Five Guys Burgers. Pretty good but you sure feel like shit after eating the big ass burger and a bucket of fries!

Then we came home, rested, and had a few friends over for sloppy joes!

The best diet!

The best diet I've ever been on has been the stress diet! I've lost over ten pounds since we started this whole house buying/selling adventure! Of course, the stress alone has probably taken ten years off of my life!

I've looked at weight loss products in the past and I can't imagine any of them work as good as the stress or sick diet!

Work cancelled.

I was planning on taking Emmy with me today to a campus about 2 hours away to see the campus and take photos.

However, since Emmy was up for a good portion of the night with the coughing AND the campus tour would more than likely be a good 3 hours outside I think I might have to put it off til Friday.

Ugh...so much work. So little time.

Acne at it's best.

Shawna gets the worst acne. Typically it follows "that time of the month". When she was pregnant she didn't have even one pimple. It's really weird the role that our hormones can play in our facial acne!

I've seen the kiosks in the mall and I'm guessing I should find out more about the acne scar removal. I have a few pits that I'm a bit paranoid about and it would be great to find something to help fill in the small holes caused from past acne.

The house.

So we just got the quote to have roofing, windows, and siding replaced on the Kay St. house.

$37,900.

Holy shit, folks! That's a lot of money for only the outside of the house! Like what kind of love can you really do to your house with a brand new roof.

Ugh.

I think we're going to do the roof, replace the rotted boards, and then paint the front door.

We might go ahead and add a new front door, garage doors and replace fixtures like lights and mailbox.

Either way...all this little stuff really adds up.

Once in a while...

typically when I'm under a good deal of stress I get acne!

It's quite amusing really because my pimples are so anti-climatic. I think they're going to be huge monsters and I pop them and they barely surface.

I should really do it a better and safer way for my face and try a remedy for acne that won't leave scarring.

The hurt and the sick!

Last night we checked family temps. Graem was running a very low grade and Emmy's was 101. Emmy also had this horrible barking cough and finally Shawna ended up going downstairs and moving her up to our bed.

We both hovered over her and kept checking her fever and to make sure she was breathing alright.

At 4am we decided to do nebulizer of steroids and an anti-anflaminatory. That did the job.

POP

My skin is pretty decent aside from the dryness around my mouth and earlobes. Every once in a while I get the little bitty pimple that doesn't pop. Totally unsatisfying if you ask me!

Shawna has pretty bad skin and she has never found the trick of how to get rid of blackheads! It seems like she'll pop them and they'll just fill right back up within a few days.

Gross.

Snow be gone.

The weather lately has been bizarre. It seems like every other day we get snow. Then sun. On the sunny days the snow is almost all melted. Only to have a cold night and snow when we wake up.

I'm almost over this winter and ready for spring to arrive.

Of course, what would be better than having a nice tropical vacation planned...

*MUST SAVE MONEY FOR NEW HOUSE*

Bad skin.

I have always had bad skin. Ever since I can remember I've had excema and it tends to flare up in the winter when my skin is extra dry. It also gives me a hard time in the summer when I sweat.

Typically my face will break out around my lips if/when I eat something that I'm allergic to. I haven't found the best face cream and it seems like I've purchased everything that's on the market!

4 days off!

Shawna goes into surgery next Tuesday and aside from being scared about the whole thing and her health and safety....I'm pretty excited about taking a few days off to spend with the family.

It looks like we might have an inspection that Friday and I'm guessing that we'll also need to start packing.

Eek...this is going to go fast!