text:
Friday, February 29, 2008
And the freakin' chocolate Robin's Eggs? These things are killing me over here!! I can't stop eating them!! I have no idea why other than the fact that they are on my desk (I always have a candy dish on my desk, themed to whatever holiday is currently close). But I bought these specifically becuz they are NOT my favorite. I guess when you have a craving, anything will do.
Anyway, thank god it's Friday. It's been a long-ass week and I'm ready for some relaxation time. (although part of me feels SUPER guilty cuz Big D has to work almost all weekend. Poor thing. But our checkbook thanks him for the OT!). I plan on cleaning the house up, so that it gleams. It's looking as beat up as I feel! Plus tomorrow after the (dreaded) weigh-in, I gotta run to the mall to order D's wedding ring! And I might take a look around at strapless bras at VS while I'm there...I have a $30 gift card I can use towards that purchase. I don't plan on buying any type of fancy-schmancy bra to wear under my dress...just a simple strapless that I know I'll actually WEAR again. And maybe I'll treat myself to a nice scrub from Bath and Body while I'm there. I haven't gotten one of those in a long time, and I'm feeling the urge to pamper myself! Ooh, maybe I'll give myself a pedi, also!! It sounds like it might have to be SPA DAY tomorrow at my house. I haven't done that in so long. I even have a nice charcoal face mask I'll drag out of the bathroom closet. Anyone wanna come over and "spa it up" with me? I promise chick flicks and martinis to go along with...:-)
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Things I'm totally, fabulously, 100% thankful for:
Kissing Daryl's freshly shaven cheek.
Reese's Peanut Butter cup trees, pumpkins, easter eggs (more pb than regular cups!)
Seeing my Mom smile.
Digging my toes in warm sand.
Cool spring/summer night air tickling my face.
Old Navy tank tops.
Crickets chirping.
Granny Smith apples paired with extra sharp cheddar cheese.
My beautiful friends.
Typing/writing a story...being in the zone.
A baby's giggle.
Cheese. Especially warm, crusty cooked cheese.
The warm folds of a dog's ear.
The smell of rubber.
Teddy bears...both the plush kind AND the manly kind.
Halloween and Christmas.
Christmas Tree farms.
My flip-flops.
Starbucks nonfat gingerbread lattes.
Big, cuddly bear hugs.
That powdery/lotion-y smell of newborns.
Blue crayons and markers.
Drinking tea with Mom.
Jeans that make my hiney look smaller.
Sloppy dog kisses.
Chocolate chip cookie dough, eaten by the spoonful.
Photographs, photographs and MORE photographs.
Hearing Daryl tell me he loves me.
Floating in the ocean.
Sugar scrubs.
Snowflakes. Especially big, fat, airy ones like last night's.
Taco Bell's Mexi Melts.
The crisp smell of winter.
Big hoop earrings.
Smooth skin.
Rubbing Daryl's shaved head.
My birthday.
Kitties doing "mushies" on my belly.
Cell phones.
Rainy days spent under a blanket, indoors.
My strength, both physically and mentally.
The comforting warmth of clothes fresh out of the dryer.
My wedding dress.
The smooth taste of a white chocolate martini. Mmmm...
Having my grandfather and father's "Smith" nose.
My kooky sense of humor.
Mine and my brother's baby books, 30 and 31 years later.
Crunchy Autumn leaves.
Sour cream.
Painted toenails.
High watt light bulbs.
Reading Daryl's blog.
Having 25 great years worth of memories of Dad.
Wow, this was way easier than I thought it would be. Once I started, I found it hard to stop thinking of things I'm thankful for! :-) And to cap this all off, here is a poem I wrote a few years back that always relaxes me.
Nurturing my Soul
By: April L. Smith
Shiny granules of sand tickle my bare toes
as simultaneously I feel the insistent pricking and prodding
from the many sea shells sharp contours.
The ocean breeze is cool and salty,
kissing my face gently,
like a lover whose known the touch of my skin for years.
Unconscious thoughts—distractions— struggle to clutter my mind,
and I deliberately force them away,
visualizing them emptying like particles of sand
slowly pouring from an hourglass.
I stroll closer to the water's edge,
over the smooth stones worn down by the incessant lapping of water;
stones that comfortingly warm the soles of my weary feet.
The powerful cries of the gulls nourish me,
as I take in the lulling sound of the waves crashing against rock and sand,
and it soothes me…
…conveys me to a peaceful, nurturing place I'd almost forgotten.
And what else makes me happier than Daryl and my pups?? NOTHING.
No, let me re-phrase that. I already have cried today and I feel on the verge again. I've been trying to keep this all in and not upset both Big D and my mom, etc. AND by not posting about it continually. Cuz it is such a downer and I don't want to seem like a moody biatch all the time. But I'm so, so stressed out about some things going on in my life right now (and no, it's not anything to do with my fabulous Big D or the wedding)...it has to do with my mom and her situation and me constantly WORRYING about her. And where she lives. Let me just sum it all up by saying she is living in a f*^%ing crack house (becuz of her stupid drug addict brother, my uncle, who I now HATE).
And I'm feeling badly that she is not moving in with me and D (even though part of me is so, so relieved) now. But at the same time, I feel responsible and like a shit-head for not moving her in, and not helping get her into a safer, drug-free, environment. And I feel badly that now D thinks it's all his fault that she is not moving in, and that my mom will think less of him. Which is not true. It's just a really horrible situation. I wish I had the money to front her to get settled in her own apartment. But I don't.
I am going to end up worrying myself into an ulcer.
Oh, and needless to say, my eating habits this week have been atrocious. I had fast food 2 or 3 times (when I hardly EVER have it) and I've eaten enough Robins Eggs to fill like 30 Easter baskets.
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
"A daughter and her mother...are so entwined in heart and mind that, gladly or unwillingly, they share each love, each joy, each sorrow, and each bitter wrong lifelong." -Pam Brown
"I have learned that to have a good friend is the purest of all God's gifts, for it is a love that has no exchange of payment." -Frances Farmer
"Once in a blue moon there's someone who knows it all, someone who knows and accepts you unconditionally, someone who's there for life." -Jill McCorkle
"The longer I live the more beautiful life becomes." -Frank Lloyd Wright
"Snowflakes are one of nature's most fragile things, but just look what they can do when they stick together." -Vest M. Kelly
"When we were children, we used to think that when we were grown-up we would no longer be vulnerable. But to grow up is to accept vulnerability....To be alive is to be vulnerable."
-Madeline L'Engle
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
I just had a student (for those who don't know, I work at a massage school...so when I say student, we're talking grown-ups here) talking to my coworker about a vivid dream she had. She goes on to describe in detail how this dream...she thinks it is her remembering her BIRTH.
Did I forget to mention that they were standing so close to my f'ing desk that their hips were touching it? Did I fail to mention that I could not freakin' tune out the story of her head "gushing through an opening"?? All while I was typing and trying to work?
Oh, I think I just puked in my mouth. (side note: I'm not so juvenile that I can't handle a story about childbirth...I just think this woman is a whack job for one. Secondly, are PEOPLE SO RUDE TO STAND IN FRONT OF ME WHILE I'M WORKING AND SPEAK LOUDLY TO EACH OTHER? No lie, I could have spit on them, that's how close they were.)
And I'm gouging out my eyeballs and eardrums as you read this.
Lord, help me. (fifteen more minutes to go....fifteen more minutes to go....)
Monday, February 25, 2008
Silly Melissa over at Hope for the Hopeless tagged me to do a nice simple meme-aroo (my new name for a meme.)
Here are the rules:
You must post the rules before you give your answers. You must list one fact about yourself for each letter of your middle name. Each fact must begin with that letter. If you don't have a middle name, just use your maiden name. After you've been tagged, you need to up-date your blog with your middle name and answers. At the end of your post, you need to tag one person for each letter of your middle name. (Be sure to leave them a comment telling them they've been tagged and need to read your blog for details).
My middle name is Lynn (Melissa, we have the same middle name! how cool is that? WELL If you want to be technical, I guess Lynn is majorly common. LOL)
L- Loves pizza, in an insane way. As in, I'd eat it every single day and never grow tired of it.
Y- Yearns for the work day to end, on a daily basis (well, Monday through Friday, that is).
N- Never without a smile or laugh to share with my friends...I love to make people happy!
N- Not easily able to control my emotions...as in, I wear my heart visibly on my sleeve; I cry
often; I am crazily stubborn and when you get me in a giggle-fest look out cuz I can't always stop.
So, now it's my turn to share this fun. I'm tagging the following peeps:
Michele at On the Tips of my Fingers
Krissy at Firecracker Mom!
Robyn at Where's Jelly?
Steph at The Daily Grind
Zoe at I've Come Undone
and I can't forget...
Big D at Daryl's Not So Frequent Blog Spot
If I didn't tag you, please don't take offense, I'll get you next time! Feel free to join in the meme-alicious fun, anyway.
I'm having a really shitty day and this is the first MPM that I've been doing the past few weeks where I just. didn't. want. to. do. it.
Ugh. Yesterday was a very hard, emotional day and the thought of hopping on the computer was just too insane to comprehend. Spent the whole day worrying about everyone else's feelings/emotions (not that that is a BAD thing) and not enough time dealing with my own, and now it's all coming out today. Messy. Today is not much better but I NEED to set up some type of meal plan this week, no matter how "loose" it may be. My mental state of mind, not to mention my weigh-in on Saturday, depends on it! (by the way, little braggin' moment...I lost 2.8 lbs. last week! go, me!). So without further gloominess, here is my meal plan for this week!
To learn more about Menu Plan Monday, check out Laura's site.
Monday: Pizza Night. No energy to cook. Or think healthy.
Tuesday: Kielbasa and saurkraut, possibly over baked potatoes with steamed veggies on the side. (Thanks Keri! Your post made me salivate! Well all except for the "scraping the scum" part. Heh.)
Wednesday: Chicken breasts (maybe grilled) and green salads, with steamed green beans.
Thursday: Dinner over D's grandparents, not sure what we're having
Friday: Black Bean Enchiladas (this is a total carry over, never got to it last week!)
served with low fat sour cream and salsa, and tortilla chips. And maybe an additional veggie.
Saturday: Your guess is as good as mine...we were supposed to be spending the weekend in Burnt Hills, NY at D's mom and step-dad's but now D has to work. :-( Bummer.
Sunday: Crockpot meal...I'm thinking maybe D's favorite Chicken Cordon Blue
Sunday, February 24, 2008
Yesterday was an uber-productive (and long LOL) day. Thanks all in part to Michele and Keri, my favorite crafty girls. We started our day off at a nice little coffee shop near 'Chele's house where we pored over my wedding magazine clippings of flowers, colors and bouquets and chatted about what I was looking for in flowers for the wedding. Once we had somewhat of a game plan down, we headed to Michaels, one of my favorite craft stores. For about one and a half to two hours straight, the shopping cart brigade made their way through the aisles. Keri in the lead, with Ava busily scribbling in her notebook, me bringing up the middle with a steadily filling cart, and the caboose made up by Michele pushing a sleepy Gavin. I should have taken a picture of us there. LOL
Back to Keri's house we went, sleeping kids in tow, and cracked into the (three! ha!) bottles of wine that Michele stopped and picked up on the way. We dug into cheese, crackers and pepperoni, and hummus, and got to work.Keri was the crafting mastermind and Michele and I her crafty minions, taking direction on what needed to be cut (wires, stems) and floral taped and pretty blue jewels separated into piles for
each bouquet/bout, while Keri worked her Martha-Stewart-Mojo on creating my bridal bouquet. Our mini-crafting-helper, Ava, did her part as well! Since time was running out, we only managed to complete my bridal bouquet, one bridesmaid bouquet (which is now the prototype for the others) and one bout. And I was so happy with how they came out!!! Colorful, funky and different...totally me!
And what's flower making and wine drinking without some goofing off thrown in for good measure?? (I have a hilarious one of Keri but I think she will beat me if I post it! LOL Don't worry Keri, your secret is safe with us! lol)
Aaaahhhh so after a long, busy, fruiful, 12-hour day of crafting (yes Daryl, we really were busy the whole time!! LOL), I feel so productive and finally happy about something wedding-related, and not stresesd out!!
Friday, February 22, 2008
Anyway, good morning everyone! Daryl and I had a nice night last night on our date out...except for the bitch waitress flirting with my man all night! LOL It started off with the waitress coming over and introducing herself and I remember thinking, "Hmmm...odd. She isn't even looking at me."
Throughout her whole spiel she made eye-contact with me ONCE--and only once--and continued to stare and speak directly to D. She pointed out all the specials on HIS menu only. I struggled to read them upside down from his menu across the table. Finally I thought to myself, screw it, I don't care what the damn specials are! Then when she walked away the first thing out of my mouth, as I casually played with my napkin, was, "I don't like that bitch."
D chuckled and said, "What do you mean?" although I knew by the look on his face, that he knew exactly what I meant. He was smirking.
"She didn't even look at me once. And she was only talking to you, telling you the specials! I don't like that bitch." I grumbled, sticking my head into the menu.
"I did notice that. It's pretty funny." D admitted. I could practically see his head swelling in giant proportion to the table. He might as well had patted himself on the back.
"Whatever. That bitch better watch her step." I need to preface this by saying that I'm not usually the jealous type. You can even ask D...this is only like once of two times where he has seen the jealous crazy lady pop out. Throughout the rest of the meal, Bek (our annoying skinny and blond waitress) continued to make googly eyes at D, and bring extra bread and quick refills of his soda. She never once offered to refill my water. After the meal, when she was coming back to the table with our receipt, she said, "I don't know if you guys like live music but my band is playing tomorrow night. I put our website on your receipt. Have a great night!"
"Hmm, let me see that? That might be cool to go check out." Daryl said. With lightening speed I ripped that receipt right out of his grubby mitt and stuffed it into my purse.
"No thank you. When have you EVER taken me to see live music, other than my birthday? You always bitch and moan about how you hate bars! Screw Bek and her band!"
Laughing, D led me out of the restaurant.
"Don't worry honey. I love you and only you." He insisted. I felt myself relaxing away from the shiny, youthful glow of blondie Bek. We held hands on the ride home. As D pulled into the driveway he started grumbling about his stomach being upset so he needed to use the bathroom. I went into the kitchen while he did his business. While I put the leftovers away, a short bark of laughter escaped me.
"What?" he called from the bathroom.
"That bitch gave us an entire loaf of bread with our leftovers!"
"That was nice of her!"
"Nice? Hmph...this proves it! She was flirting with you all night!" No answer. From the sound of things, D's dinner was not agreeing with him.
I poked my head around the corner where he huddled on the toilet, and giggling I asked him, "So, do you think 'ol Bek would find you sexy now?" Of course D had no snappy comeback for me this time!
Yep, that's love. Even moaning and groaning on a toilet seat, I was happy to think he's all mine. Ha!
Thursday, February 21, 2008
My honey and I are going on a date tonight!!! I'm super excited.
I came home last night to the sweetest card ever that Big D made for me on the computer (we love our new Hallmark program. So worth the fifty bucks!) The card basically acknowledged that life isn't always peaches and cream...and even though people don't/can't take "romantic moonlit dinners" all the time and can't/don't have 24 hours of romance in our busy and chaotic lives, it doesn't make our love any less special or important. And he told me that he was taking me out to dinner tonight becuz we never, ever do fun things like that anymore (unless we have a gift card, heh heh...) and we need to always make time for the fun stuff!
And this dinner is not going to be a "let's sit around in our comfortable-years together-silence while I people watch and D peeks at the sport playing on the tv screen" while we then proceed to talk about bills and stress and annoying family members. NO, this date will be all about US and the enjoyment we get by being together...we had one of these a couple of weeks back (we had a gift card LOL) and it was the best time we'd had in a while. It was like we remembered how to laugh and giggle and flirt again without the stress-talk of wedding planning, mortgages due and which family member got drunk or beat some one up (and no believe it or not, we're not hillbilly white trash. We just have crazy families.)
I feel like a giddy girl in the midst of that squishy, lovely feeling (you all know the one) that people feel in the beginning of a new relationship. That excitement-- the anticipation to see him--and wishing you were together RIGHT. THIS. VERY. INSTANCE.
I know I have said it before but I'm going to say it again, I love my Big D more and more every day.
I love the way he always knows that I've had a bad day--just from the tone in my voice--and instinctively takes over making dinner or washing the dishes. I love the way we grocery shop together. I love the way he laughs at my craziness of always having to put items "away" even though half the time instead of putting it away, I lose his keys/sneakers/ book/whatever. I love the way HE LOVES ME without makeup on. I love the way he washes and waxes (my) truck till its a gleaming cherry red. I love the way he tolerates my obsession with taking pictures ("pictures are memories!" LOL) and poses yet again, and again, and again with only minor complaints. I love the way he hates to see me cry. I love the way he will give me the last dollar in his wallet so that I can buy a coffee (even though he really wanted one that day). I love the way he likes me to shave his head in the basement (I do a good job!). I love the way he cuddles and baby talks our dogs and cats (he'll be THE BEST Daddy). I love the way his smile lights up the whole room for me. And I love that even though he pretends to other people that he could care less about the wedding STUFF, he'll still probably tear up to see me walk down the aisle. Cuz he's my toasted marshmallow.
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
Something else that helps? Big D. He has been bearing with me this week, as I analyze every morsel of food going into HIS mouth as well, and yes, I've been counting points for HIM too even though he did not go to WW with me. I'm dying to have him hop on the scale Saturday to see if he lost anything, but that might be pushing his patience. I begged him to help me stay the course...I'm horrible when I see someone else eating something bad, I then end up wanting it too, so I explained that if he does this with me, no matter how "loosely" he does it ( although he's been great this week following his points exactly! Except for those 3 or 4 beers last night, heh heh...but we *did* have a shitty day) that he will be a great motivator for me. And he *has* been! I'm very excited at the thought of the two of us getting in shape together, eating healthier, having more energy...and I can hardly wait for better weather so we can start hiking and mountain biking...I have high hopes for this spring and summer. :-)
So, I know most of us did not make any "resolutions" on January 1st but I'm curious, what is one healthy change/addition that you have made and been sticking to? Something that has benefited you either/both physically OR mentally OR even emotionally?
(and now I'm off to go walking on my lunch break...YAY me!!!)
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
I wish I was one of those people who could not eat, when stressed.
Give me strength to stay away from the junk food today! I don't need it, don't want it, and it will only make me feel worse!!
(sorry for the horribly dark pictures...I took the photos fast before I could distract them. We were watching a show on wolves and caribou (sp?) and the dogs were completely infatuated! LOL It was hilarious!)
Monday, February 18, 2008
When will it all be OVER?!?! This process is just so not FUN to me anymore. And I hate that! Why can't I be rich to afford a wedding planner to do it all for me?? *SIGH*
It sounds so silly. I know this. Even to my own ears it sounds that way. It's a wedding for goodness sakes...not a campaign to end world hunger. I guess I just get frustrated becuz I don't have a lot of help from family (and I don't just mean financial, although lord knows that alone is enough to keep me up awake at night! Staring at the ceiling has become a frequent nighttime past time of mine the past few months!). And some of my friends have been awesome pitching in and offering to help and giving me great suggestions but yet I have some girls in the wedding party who have been absolutely NO HELP whatsoever. It makes me sad, because I picked them for a reason (and I obviously am not talking about you, Cars! I love you girl!)...and I have done nothing but doubt my decision from the very beginning.
This whole process has made me painfully aware of how selfish some people can be. They are my friends and I still love them but at the same time, some of the things they've said/done (or haven't said/done at all!!) during this whole time has really hurt my feelings. I don't want to go into too much more detail than that, for personal reasons, but it just makes me sad. Plain and simple.
I guess I need to look at the "glass is half full" part though and realize that some other friends have really stepped up to the plate and done (and offered to do) WAY MORE for me than I ever could have imagined (you know who you are! old and new friends alike. :-)) and I appreciate it more than I can say. I know who will be there for me, in life IN GENERAL, if I need a helping hand. My only hope is that I can continue to return the favors as well as they are given! I know the only way I can show my appreciation is by action. And I hope all these friends know that I would drop everything for them in an instant if they needed my help!
After all, that's what friends are for, right? :-)
Sunday, February 17, 2008
I strayed off course quite a bit this week due to unexpected plans after work. But this week I'm getting my butt back on track! In addition to following our plan, I joined weight watchers (for like the sixth time...hehe) on Saturday. I've also been counting the points for D's food even though technically he is not doing ww. But he promised to eat healthier with me...I need all the extra motivation I can get!
To learn more about MPM, check out this site.
Monday: cheese ravioli with sauce and steamed broccoli, reduced fat Pillsbury biscuits
Tuesday: marinated chicken breasts (cut in strips) over salad, steamed mixed veggies on the side, reduced fat Pillsbury biscuits
Wednesday: kielbasa links, baked potatoes, and corn
Thursday: barbecued chicken on wheat rolls, steamed veggies, and maybe some Baked Lays
Friday: Crock pot Shredded Pork (the recipe I linked is actually called Pork Tacos but I think we're going to serve ours on wheat sandwich rolls
Saturday: Possibly take out or pizza...lots of busy stuff going on today. WW weigh-in day also!
Sunday: my favorite, Black Bean Enchiladas served with reduced fat sour cream, tortilla chips and salsa
Friday, February 15, 2008
And bring on the weekend...an eye doctor appointment early tomorrow morning, followed by a phone call with our reception site about money still due (ugh...well that's not the only reason for the call...but still) followed by an even MORE fun phone call to my mortgage guy (who is the BOMB) to talk about refinancing and working on our credit. Good times! (can you detect the sarcasm?)
Oh, and I totally retract my seventh quirk about my eyeball-thingie. Apparantly some of you are under the assumption now that I am a freakazoid. Ha! Seriously, I'm as normal as they come! Err, at least I'm mildly normal. But really, who defines the term normal???
UPDATE: I just got an award from a total sweetheart, Stephanie! So go check out her blog when you can. Yippy! I feel special!!! I promise to spread the love, myself, but work is getting busy so I'll pop back in later to do it!
Thursday, February 14, 2008
Six Quirks about Myself....
1. I can't fall asleep unless I'm fondling, touching, pulling on the corner of the fitted sheets on my bed. I need to be able to tug that little corner and roll it between my fingertips. Daryl thinks I'm a freak about it becuz every night before bed I tell him I have to "tighten up the sheets" when in all actuality I'm just making sure I have that little pulled-corner ready and waiting. LOL
2. I can't stand directly on a bathtub floor. Skin to floor. It skeeves me out. No matter how clean the bathtub is. I just need to have the feeling of a mat or SOMETHING under my feet, not the smooth, shiny porcelain. If there is no bathmat, I will actually lay down a face cloth or small towel to step on!
3. I can't STAND the sound/feeling it gives me to hear two hands rubbing together. Palm to palm....rubbing....Like sandpaper. *SHUDDER* It has the same affect on me that other people might feel when a nail is scratched down a chalkboard. I get goosebumps and have to cover up my ears. My friends all know this and now when they rub their hands together, they will suddenly remember and stop. What good friends I have.
4. I am the Queen of Piles. I must make piles out of anything that is laying on my kitchen table, coffee table, desk. If there are loose papers, or magazines, or D drops his keys and winter hat on the table, I immediately put everything into a neat pile either in the center of the table, or if there is already a decoration there, I put my new pile in the corner of the table. It gives me a sense of organization, even if it is just a pile of crap.
5. I see spiders everywhere. This might not be a quirk, I don't know, but it's a weird habit of mine. I stare at the ceilings at work and home, or at the floor, and anything--any blur that vaguely resembles a spider--I can't take my eyes off of it till I know what it is. I can't continue with whatever I'm doing (work, watching tv, reading) till I know that is or is not indeed a spider!
6. When I drive with the window open and my arm hanging out, or I stand on a bridge close to the edge, I automatically visualize either my arm being cut off, my ring falling off, or my whole body falling over the edge. EVERY. SINGLE. TIME. Morbid, much?
And since I'm a freakin' weirdo and could probably go on for DAYS with my quirks, I'll add one more bonus:
7. I have this weird thing I do with my eye lids. Sometimes I feel the need to pull them down, like drapes I guess you could say (using my fingertips on the eyelashes) till they make a soft sucking sound. It's not the sound I need, but sometimes i have this strange feeling of "fullness" in my eyes (beneath the lids) and it's the only way I can stop thinking about it. I'm a nut job. Yes.
I had pretty picture to share of the heart-shaped cookies I made last night, but of course we have no internet at home so I could not get on here! And for some reason, the pic I took on my cell phone I have been unable to send. So sadly, I can not post that pic. Instead here is a picture from LAST Valentine's Day...the table was all set up for the lobster dinner I made Daryl!!
I hope you all share and receive lots of LOVE today.
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
I've been in such a funk lately...and today is no different. I'm moody, irritable (no, I'm not PMS'ing), cranky, sad...any slightly negative mood you can be in, that is me.
This morning driving in to work, I wanted to cry every time I drove through a puddle (and being that the weather man said we'd get more rain TODAY than we do normally in a month, it was a lot of puddles!)
I am so tired of feeling like this! I feel like every bad thing that can/will/is happening to other people is influencing my mood. And food? I've been eating everything in sight. I think I've probably gained like five pounds. AND THAT makes me want to cry too. I know the fact that I haven't been able to do any type of exercise since I hurt my back is another factor.
I've dealt with depression before so I know what it is but I don't think that is my problem. Maybe it's some kind of sun-deficit disorder? We've had like NO SUN (maybe just a total of a couple hours) in the past week and I know that is severely influencing my moods. I'm sorry I keep posting such negative crap but it seems to be all I've got!
And Valentine's Day is tomorrow...I know most people think Valentine's Day is very commercial but to me, it's a great day. I love it. I love ANY holiday which gives me an extra reason to show all my loved ones how much they mean to me. I usually do something special for Big D: a card, cute little gifts and/or chocolates, and homemade stuff. But this year it's different...I am not into it! I feel horrible cuz I still haven't even bought my D a card yet (becuz of the wedding, we opted to skip on any gifts this year). This is very unlike me. I did bake heart-shaped cookies the other day for D (still gotta frost them) but some of them came out too hard and again, I wanted to cry.
ARGH!! To make me think of something FUN and SUNNY and HAPPY I'm going to post pics from mine and D's Florida vaca last year.....
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
So instead I think I'm going to lay down on a nice warm heating pad and take an 800 mg Motrin/Ibuprofen and hope that does the trick. I'm sure work is pissed but man, oh, man, I could not fathom rolling out of bed this morning! Anyone else have any other suggestions? Massage has definitely given me relief but unfortunately I can't afford another another one right now.
*SIGH* Getting old sucks.
Sunday, February 10, 2008
Another week, another meal plan! I think this is my third MPM and I'm happy to report that it's working out well. It takes such a load off my shoulders (and D's!) knowing that when we each get home from work, we know exactly what we're having for dinner. No more of that "Hmmm...what do I feel like eating/cooking tonight?" for 25 minutes until we decide, "Eh, too tired now, just order pizza." And with the wedding getting so close,(ninety-something days away) and having to deal with all the wedding costs, I'm in hyper drive to cut corners where we can!
Also I am carrying over one recipe from last week that I didn't get to, the Sausage and Pepper Sandwiches.
To learn more about MPM, check it out here!
Monday: Whole grain ziti with sauce, steamed green beans and
Pillsbury reduced fat dinner biscuits
Tuesday: Daryl's yummy omelets with turkey bacon
Wednesday: Sweet Mustard Chicken Bake
with whole grain rice and steamed veggies and Pillsbury
reduced fat dinner biscuits (there is the slight possiblity
that this meal won't happen if I have my hair appointment...I had to
postpone it from last week due to family-drama!)
Thursday: Sour Cream Enchiladas
(going to halve this recipe since it's only the 2 of us eating)
with a side green salad
Friday: cheeseburgers with homemade sweet potato fries and corn
Saturday: Pizza Night
Sunday: Sausage and Peppers Sandwiches
(never got to this last weekend)
Saturday morning we got up pretty early and went out to breakfast, something we had not done in so long. Then afterwards it was on to the travel agent with whom we were booking our Florida honeymoon through. We decided to do 3 nights in Disney staying in a Disney hotel, followed up with the remaining 3 nights at my friend, John's, FLA house (to keep costs down. Don't worry, my friend John actually lives in CT so he won't be on our honeymoon with us! LOL) which is about a 45 minute ride from Clearwater Beach. So we booked a package deal through the TA which includes: non-stop flights landing in Orlando but flying out of Tampa (near John's house), 3 nights stay in Disney's Port Orleans French Quarter resort hotel, a 4-day Park Hopper pass, and a full week of car rental. We didn't really need the car rental till we leave Disney but it would have been more complicated trying to pick it up then when we can just drive from airport with it; plus I like knowing we have the car if we decided we wanted to go anywhere else. So anyway, we put down a deposit on the honeymoon. Then after that, we headed to the jewelers to pick up my ring! I could barely contain my excitement. It's so pretty and I love how it sparkles. Daryl had to roll his eyes a couple of times at how excited I was over the ring. LOL Then we decided to pop into Best Buy to look at printers, and that's basically when we decided for sure that we were going to make our own wedding invitations. We bought a new printer (something we'd been needing for MONTHS now anyway) then headed back home to get ready to go out to dinner with a couple we hadn't seen in ages.
Sunday we got up pretty early again and both of us were very eager to figure out what we'd be doing for invitations so after a quick coffee stop, we ran to Staples. We both decided on a simple white invitation with a thin chocolate brown border with matching response cards, and the envelopes are plain white with a brown flap. Then getting more excited the more we planned it out, we headed to Michael's and purchased two rubber stamps: a butterfly (which is sorta the theme of our wedding) and a phrase, "Love, Honor & Cherish" and two ink pads, one in a pretty blue (the wedding colors are chocolate brown and blue!) and the other a white. I'm going to run back tomorrow probably and get gold as well. Daryl spent a good portion of the afternoon creating the perfect invitations. I was so impressed; he did all the research on the 'net and figured out the wording and made sure I liked it, after he created and printed out a sample. Really, the only part I played in all of it, was just fixing some of the margins and fonts. (The font is a brown in kind of a cursive print.) We're going to stamp (in blue) two butterflies on the actual invitation, the phrase (in either blue or gold) on the return envelopes, and one blue butterfly on the outside of the invite envelopes. It looks freakin' awesome! And I kept teasing D, calling him 'Crafty Jack' all afternoon, but seriously I was so impressed with his (masculine, of course, heh heh!) craftiness! Maybe there is hope I can convert him into a scrapper yet! LOL Anyway, we finished off our errands with some much-needed grocery shopping.
So now here I am finishing out our busy weekend by doing the un-fun stuff: washing dishes, doing laundry, making our meal plan for the week. I just made some lemon-blueberry muffins (don't get TOO excited...it was a lemon mix with frozen blueberries LOL) and I'm ready to call it a night and read some of my book in bed. I keep peeking through the slats in the blinds outside praying for snow...it's icy cold out there, windy as hell (sounds like a wild beast out there moaning and groaning!), and we've had a few crazy snow squalls this evening. By the time my Mom had gone to leave about an hour and a half ago (after checking out are wedding purchases and having a couple cups of tea with me) her windshield was entirely crusted over with ice! Her fabulous son-in-law walked her down the icy walkway and scrapaed off her windshield for her. God, I love that boy. Anyone who is so good to my mom, wins a place in my heart forever. ;-)
I hope you all have a great rest of the night! I'll be catching up on all your blogs tomorrow! Night Night.
Friday, February 08, 2008
I had a massage late yesterday afternoon and was bummed last night cuz I was still hurting. But when I woke up this morning, it dawned on me, I hadn't woken up once during the night moaning in pain when I tried to turn over! And I can put my chin to my chest OR lean my head back and not scream obscenities! Yes, the pain is still there but it's so much fainter! I'm very relieved. Over a week of this crap, and I was ready to lose my mind.
Something else that was nice...waking up to see it snowing! Granted, it snowed for like two seconds, and there is probably only an inch tops, but looking on the bright side here...it was pretty to wake up to. :-)
And what else? It's FRIDAY! You can't beat that with a stick. And with keeping with the happy, I'm picking up my wedding ring tomorrow from the jewelers! In the evening we're meeting some friends for dinner that we haven't seen in a while, so I'm looking forward to it.
And guess what else? ONLY 99 MORE DAYS TILL THE WEDDING!!!!!!!!
Thursday, February 07, 2008
You all had great comments and suggestions and I'm definitely taking it to heart.
SO thank you again: Chele, Amy, Melissa, Big D, Robyn, Alf, Lilah (beautiful name!!), April and Keri!
I *squishy-heart* you all!!
Wednesday, February 06, 2008
My mom just called me, upset. She has a safety deposit box at the bank where she keeps hers and my dad's wedding rings, and her engagement ring. Well she has been late on payments and the bank was threatening to "drill" into the box, which I'm not sure exactly how this works, if they take the items out or what? Anyway, she went and had them open up her box and her diamond ENGAGEMENT ring is missing (even thought the wedding bands are there, thank goodness). So she put in some kind of complaint at the bank.
And I know it's irrational, it's "just jewelry", but I feel like crying. It's my mom's engagement ring, it's a piece of history...my father proposed to her with this ring in hand. It's important. And now it's gone. I told her to please bring the wedding rings over to my house, and I'll put them in my fire proof safe box, but she is afraid to part with them now, I think. She wants to keep them with her, in her safe-box, but unfortunately she lives in a house with some of our family members (her mother which is my grandmother, her 2 brothers who are my uncles, and her son who is my brother) and unfortunately my two uncles can not be trusted. They are both addicts and both will steal (and HAVE stolen before) from her.
Believe it or not--and I'm sickened just reliving this through memory--immediately after my father died, my uncle was over "visiting" my mom. A few days later, my mom realized that a little ceramic bunny-shaped bank that she had, that was probably full of anywhere between $100-200 worth of quarters, was missing. Then on instinct, she went into her and my father's bedroom, and found another jar missing that contained coins my father had collected over the years. And worst of all, THEIR WEDDINGS RINGS were missing from her jewelry box. My mom was absolutely livid, she called the police, and when they asked if she had any idea who had stolen the items (there was no sign of forced entry other than a cooler pushed underneath her bedroom window) she confidentaly said, "yes, I think it was my brother." Anyway, to make a long story short (too late, right?), my mom confronted my uncle and he denied it. She told him she had filed a police report. He finally admitted to stealing the bunny full of quarters but swore he never would have stolen from his dead brother-in-law and his sister (meaning the rings). My mom didn't believe him. Two days later, the rings were back in her jewelry box (hence the reason she started keeping them in a safety deposit box). At that point in time, I could hardly understand how someone--never mind a relative--could steal something so precious from his recently widowed sister. Since then, more things have happened and I finally came to the realization that a drug-addict ONLY cares about his/her addiction, nothing else. It took me driving my uncle to a drug deal one day (not admitting to myself at the time that that's what it was) and arguing with him in the car about why pot is bad, to realize it---
(Uncle A: "April, there is nothing wrong with smoking pot."
The funny part of this conversation being that pot was the LEAST of his worries...I knew that but he was in denial about it.
Me: "Uncle A-it's illegal!" I remember him looking me in the eye and holding up a baggie full of marijuiana.
Uncle A, scoffing: "April, I smoke pot, your other uncles smoke pot, lots of people do it. We always have it on us."
At that moment in time, and I don't think I've ever admitted this to anyone before, but at that moment in time I hated him. My favorite uncle. The young, cool, hip uncle who I'd always looked up to--the one who my childhood friends had always had crushes on--I wanted to throw him out of my moving vehicle. How dare he put me in this position? He was carrying an illegal substance in MY car, asking me to drive somewhere so he could buy cocaine (after he randomly showed up on my doorstep at 11pm while his son, my cousin who was was sleeping over, lay sleeping so innocently in my bed) looking me in the eye at my home and swearing that was not what he was doing? I told him to promise me, promise me, this had nothing to do with drugs. So leaving my cousin, HIS SON, at home with my boyfriend at the time, I stupidly took him out to meet his "friend". Yes, I was in my lower-twenties at the time, and mildly naive, and up until that point in my life I still viewed him as the adult and me as the child. Him. Well that had changed the moment he said what he did from beside me in the car. Tried to make excuses for what he did. The man I thought would never do anything to hurt me, had put me in danger by association with his lifestyle. And I vowed never to enable any addicts again (I think this is why it's so hard with me with D's dad who is an alcoholic. I don't want us to enable him, but at the same time, it's his father, ya know? *SIGH*)
SO, yes something as simple as jewelry has brought up all these hard feelings. I want my mom to leave her jewelry with me. I want my mom to move out of that crazy house and in with D and I. I want her life to have some sort of normalcy again. And on the flip side, I don't want my mother to move in with us, knowing that if she does that life for us would lose some it's normalcy. We'd have no privacy anymore in our tiny house and even just a simple argument between D and I would feel weird knowing we had an audience cuz no matter where my mom would be in our house, you can still hear. But regardless, my mom has no money, no job (she is on disability for her illnessess and unable to work) and not healthy and I have to step up to the plate now and do something. And stop feeling sorry for myself. And I feel like a horrible, shitty, selfish daughter for worrying about how my life won't be so "easy" if Mom moves in with us. I have so many pent-up feelings of regret and worry: regret for not doing enough for my father when he was here and worry that I won't be able to do enough for my mother before I some day lose her.
Amazing how something as simple as a missing ring can bring me right back to this place. :-(
UPDATE: Seriously, TEN MINUTES after I first typed this post, my Big D stopped in unexpectedly to see me here at work. He was looking kind of down, and he asked me, "Guess who called me today?" I had no guess so he told me. His Dad. Remember back in November when I told you what his Dad had done? Read the paragraph titled Freak Out #3. Go ahead. I'll wait. Are you done? So today his dad calls and asks Daryl to take TOMORROW off from work to drive him to UPPER state NY to go to court.
Um, okay, first of all, D's Dad only seems to call him when he wants/needs something. As irritating as that is, what makes it worse is that his Dad's alcoholism has really messed up his life. He quit his job, he doesn't work or have money, it ruined his marriage with his wife (D's Mom), he has been arrested twice for DUI and this last time he crashed up his car and had his license taken away. He doesn't pay his bills and when his boiler breaks OR he runs out of oil, who does he call? Daryl. And D, being the thoughtful boy he his, stopped by to see what I thought becuz if he DID take his dad tomorow, that is cutting into his paid time off which he is trying to accumulate for our honeymoon.
I am irritated also becuz this court appearance is something his father has KNOWN ABOUT FOR A MONTH. Why did he wait till the DAY before to ask D to bring him? Like D's life is not important enough to give him notice? Now let me clear something up...I love my FIL and I would love for him to get his life in order. But not at the expense of Daryl's. The son should not have to clean up the father's mess! I know this sounds cold and heartless and i don't mean for it to. I'm just tired of sugar-coating this time of behavoir. And now back to the whole ENABLING thing I mentioned earlier...when does it stop being helping your family member, and just enabling them? AGAIN to make a long story short, D and I both came to the conclusion together, that he will not be taking his dad tomorrow. This makes me feel...ahem...guilty. And if this makes me feel guilty, I can only imagine how it makes D's feel. But I know we made the right decision. When is his father ever going to be held accountable for his own life? When is he going to realize that D can NOT always save/bail him out?
And now I have just finished typing a long-winded, emotional, personal post and I don't think I want to post it becuz I feel like a total shit-head about what I said in it, even though I was being honest. *SIGH* Today is a sucky day.
Tuesday, February 05, 2008
I've lasted 31 years without having a need to go to the chiropractor (while a good portion of my friends need to go on pretty regular basis for various issues) and figured I never would have to go. And there is just something about the thought of a doctor "cracking" me (I get horrible visuals in my head of this...I'd rather crack my OWN parts, thank you very much!) that always scared me away from the thought of going to a chiropractor.
Well, times have changed. After having constant pain in my back and neck since last Wednesday, I'm feeling pretty desperate. I had a massage on Friday night and I also made myself an appointment for a massage at the student clinic on Thursday afternoon.
I'm no stranger to massage. I WORK at a massage school (in the office, I'm not an MT. I *shudder* at the thought of touching other people's feet!) And up until about six months ago, I received on a pretty regular basis. I believe massage is great self-care. But sometimes, it just might not be enough. My supervisor did a little work on me while I sat in my desk chair (and even while I laid on the carpeted floor in our back office) and she said my body is all out of alignment and that I have a good 1/2-1" longer on my right side than my left. And it certainly feels like I'm all out of whack...for lack of a better, technical term...it doesn't feel good. So I've decided to call a chiro and try to set up an appointment for either end of this week/early next week.
I'm scared!! There it is again! That crazy mental visual of a Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde mad scientist in a flowy white lab-coat and rubber gloves (don't ask me WHY he has on rubber gloves) cracking his knuckles and cackling maniacally before braking my body in half over a table. Hold me!!
I have a feeling I gained back the three pounds I had lost. At least between Friday and yesterday--I wouldn't be surprised with the way I've been eating. And I hate to lay blame, but I'm pointing fingers at my damn period. It graced me with it's monthly presence late last night, which would explain why I've wanted to shove every salty and/or chocolate item in my mouth that I can find. And with the damn bloating?? I'm literally POPPING out of my jeans the past couple days. I feel like the Pillsbury Doughboy...only not as cute and squishy. Blech.
And it's only Tuesday? Can someone PUH-LEEZ tell me why it's not Friday yet???? *SIGH*
Monday, February 04, 2008
Oh and for more great ideas, check out this site.
Monday: Kielbasa and baked beans
Tuesday: Meatloaf, mashed potatoes and corn
Wednesday: Chicken Merlot (recipe will follow below) this is a new recipe so I hope we like it!
w/rice and steamed green beans
Thursday: I think I'm getting my hair done after work tonight, so probably just pasta with sauce and steamed broccoli when I get home
Friday: Pizza Night
Saturday: Too much going on today so I have no idea what we'll be eating until then
Sunday: Sausage and Peppers Sandwiches
with garden salads
Chicken Merlot (my friend cut this out of her local newspaper and raved about it)
4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves, about 4 ounces each
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
3 cups quartered mushrooms, about 1/2 a pound
2 cups peeled, sliced carrots
4 pieces canadian bacon, cut into 1/4-inch wide slices
2/3 cup merlot (i used the brand 14 hands, 2003 merlot, its delicious!)
2/3 cup non fat reduced sodium chicken broth (although i think i just used regular chicken broth, not reduced sodium or non fat)
2 tsp tomato paste
1/4 cup chopped, fresh flat-leaf parsley (i didnt have any, so i didnt use)
Cut each chicken breast crosswise into 3 pieces.
Combine the flour thyme and salt in a resealable plastic bag and add the chicken pieces. Seal the bag and shake to coat the chicken. Remove the chicken and shake off excess flour (i put the chicken pieces onto a plate, and sprinkled more thyme and salt).. Lightly coat a large nonstick skillet with cookin spray (i didnt have any, so just drizzled olive oil.). Add 1 teaspoon oil (i already drizzled with oil) and heat over medium high heat. add the chicken and cook, stirring, about 5 minutes or until the chicken is lightly browned on both sides (it took a little longer than 5 minutes).. Remove the chicken and set aside. Add 1 teaspoon oil to the skillet (again i didnt measure, i just drizzled), and saute the mushrooms, carrots and bacon for 2 minutes. Stir in the wine, broth and tomato paste and cook stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes. Return the chicken to the skillet and cook 4 to 5 minutes, or until it is no longer pink in the center. Divide the chicken mixture among 4 plates, sprink with parsley (didnt have any) and serve! :)
How was your weekend(s)? Mine was decent. Friday night I went over a friend's house after work and got a massage. My back is still killing me. since the pain began last Wednesday...my muscles have been all out of whack and by Friday night I had felt like I had 2 or 3 golf-ball size knots in between my shoulder blades. The massage was awesome and felt so good, but we talked the entire time so it wasn't necessarily relaxing. Then I headed home where I was alone (Big D had to work till about midnight) so I made chicken parmesan with some yummy whole-wheat penne pasta and settled in for some tv time.
Saturday morning I woke up and decided to devote my entire day to cleaning the house...I did the kitchen last weekend so this weekend I still had to do the bathroom, living room and our bedroom. D had to run out and fix a furnace so on the way back he got us lattes which was my incentive to KEEP CLEANING. After that we went out and got a 1/4 keg of Sam Adam's spring (for Daryl's kegorator) in preparation of the Super Bowl party we were having. I also picked up two bottles of wine. After that we headed to the mall, and Littman's jewelers where we (YAY!!!!) bought my wedding ring! I'm so excited to get it next Saturday! Anyway, it's a thin white-gold band with teeny, tiny channel-set diamonds (like 4 or 5 of them I think? can't remember) in it. It looks so nice next to my engagement ring. Not big, or flashy...it's totally me! (Other than a gold necklace my mom bought me 2 years ago, these rings are the only REAL gold/diamonds I've ever worn/bought!) After ordering the ring, we went to dinner at 99 Restaurant. Then home to bed!
Sunday, we were so rudely woken at 4:00am by a phone call on my cell. We ignored it the first time; the second time the same number called Daryl picked up the phone and snapped "WHAT?". Some dude asked if we ordered a taxi. Uh, NO, you A$#HOLE! It's four in the morning and you have the WRONG NUMBER! And of course, neither of us could immediately fall back to sleep so we ended up watching tv for an hour or so. Then we straightened up the house, I ran to Target for a couple last minute items, then back home to start preparing our snacks for later on. I laid down on the bed with my kitty, Molly, and "accidentally" fell asleep (thankfully for only like 20 minutes or so). We had company over to watch the game and had a TON of food...it was crazy! Michele made the YUMMIEST spinach and artichoke dip, homemade pita chips and stuffed jalepenos. We also had people bring pigs in a blanket with dipping sauces, shrimp, taco dip and a football cake. I made roasted garlic and red pepper hummus with crackers and cookies and D made buffalo chicken wings and kielbasa. Like a said...a TON of food. Thankfully the food was good since the freakin' PATRIOTS LOST. GRRRRRRrrrrrrr......I still can't believe it....although if my Dad had still been alive, he would be as happy as a pig in shit right now. The Giants have ALWAYS been his team. As it was, the one (almost two) Giants fans were ushered out of the house by the nine angry Patriots fans. LOL
Friday, February 01, 2008
I just saw that I'm THISCLOSE to being in the double digits on my wedding countdown...breathe, breathe, April...time to pull out that TO-DO List (you procrastinator, you) and get crack-a-lackin'!
How in the hell do you get organized when you are one of the least organized people in Connecticut?? (If you came over to my house, you'd understand. I move things to a safe place so that I won't lose them....and then I end up LOSING THEM ANYWAY cuz I have no idea where I've moved them to. Just ask Daryl...it's one of his pet peeves. LOL I make piles of stuff when I have no idea where to put it.)
Okay, the bigger wedding-related talks I need to start so far are:
1. Figure out how I'm going to make my invitations. Buy a new printer (cuz mine is broken) and make them myself? Make them on my computer and then go to Kinko's to print out? Buy them off a site I found on the internet? Cry until someone does it for me?
2. I need to purchase and start putting together the bouquets and boutinniers (however the hell you spell that). 'Chele? Keri? When should we start?
3. Need to finish my invite list and get the last few addresses that I don't have.
4. Choose the guys tuxes. (and no D, no top-hats OR Loony Tunes, allowed!)
5. Buy a bra/bustier thingie for my big 'ol rack. (might wait till closer to my dress-fittings, in case I happen to lose a little bit of poundage from the girls before then). And along those lines, I also need to get something to wear in my hair, and jewelry.
6. Find a place for Rehearsal Dinner and let future MIL know the details (cuz she is paying. Love that woman!)
7. Need to get my Mom motivated and ready to dress-shop. She's as picky as me so I know she needs as much time as possible to find something!
8. Get the bridal party gifts...I don't want to wait till last minute becuz that would be bad...money-wise.
I'm sure there are a ton of items I forgot but for now, isn't this enough? *SIGH*
And since it's good manners to not only show my appreciation, but to pass along the love, I'm now going to award this EXCELLENT award to a couple of the blogs that I enjoy frequenting...please stop by and visit them. You won't be sorry!
Amy at Occhio Grosso-Amy's sarcastic wit always keeps me laughing through her posts. Not to mention the fact that I love any Kahlua stories. ;-) Especially the one where he bled all over her car (no, I'm not a sadist...I love puppy-dogs! It was just a funny post...)
Next up, check out Driving with the Brakes on-Talk about having the cutest little ones ever? I love each and every new picture, as well as fun-parenting stories, that's posted!
And I can't forget, Keeping up with the Poltzes-Poltzie has one of the most adorable pregnant-bellies I've ever seen! I love reading all about her English cuke/cauliflower every week. And she seems to makes a pretty darn good "Polish wife". :-)
Michele at On the Tips of my fingers- My good friend, Michele, manages to post some of THE most random, yet hilarious, posts ever. And where else can you find Couscous Gone Wild? Woo hoo!
Krissy over at Firecracker Mom!- She is exactly that...a firecracker! Her hubby dressed up like a woman, she sells sex toys, and she has big boobs...what's not to love?!?!? LOL
And last but not least!!! My Big D over at Daryl's not so frequent blog spot- Yes, he's my man and my favorite mouse-catcher, so I may be biased, but I'm very proud of him for starting up his own blog--yes even with the lack of punctuation which leads to the run-on-sentences-from-hell (heh heh!). That's my boy!


text:
Hello. I am looking for some advise and support as was diagnosed 1 yr ago with hypo and other then being out on Levo I have had no further support or guidance even though in the last 6 months my symptoms has worsened to the point where they are ruling my life.
I take 100mg of Levo daily and have symptoms of extreme fatigue, brain fog, confusion,depression just to name a few.
After asking on a FB page someone suggested further testing of bloods. I have recently had them but they have all come back "ok" although I am NOT okay.
Whe I posted on FB many commented saying that my results were defiantly not okay and I need help. However no one has given me any facts or figures to why they aren't Okay so I have evidence to question my "ok" blood results. I have no idea what the optimal levels should be.
I am getting so so upset and lost with all of this.. Because I feel so ill Im finding it hard to reaseach anything. I am 32yr I have 2 beautiful children 3 and 5 and a husband but right now all I do is sleep through my life.
Please please can anyone help!! I would be so grateful for any guidance !
Blood pressure 124/73mmhg
HBA1c levl-IFCC standardised -(CD) 34mmol/mol
SERUM VIT B12 - 161ng/l
PLASMA TSH - 4.22mu/l (0.34-5.60)
PLASMA triglyceride level 1.0mmol/L
PLASMA SODIUM LEVEL 139mmol/l ( 133-146mmol)
PLASMA POTASSIUM 4.5mmol ( 3.50-5.30mmol)
PLASMA CREATININE 65mmol ( 53.00-97.00umol)
eGFRcreat (CKD-EPI)/ 1.73m*2 >90ml/min/1.73m2
PLASMA TOTAL PROTEIN 66g/l (60.00-80)
PLASMA TOTAL BILIRUBIN 7umol ( 0-20)
PLASMA ALT 12u/l (7-35)
PLASMA TOTAL CHOLESTROL 5.3mmol
PLASMA HDL CHOLESTROL 2.04mmol ( 0.91-2.21)
NON-HDL - 3.26mmol
PLASMA LDL CHOLESTEROL 2.81mmol
PLASMA FOLATE - 9.1ug/l ( 3.80-25)
PLASMA FERRITIN - 21ug/l (11.00-307)
PLASMA FREE T4 - 12.4pmol/l (7.50-21.10)
PLASMA FREE T3 - 5.5pmol (3.50-6.30)
I have had the above tests done plus the ones in the photo!
Any help would be greatly received as I have doctors this week and I need to go in with a clear idea what I need.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
When we started Nutshell in 1997 it cost pennies to advertise our product and services using PPC (pay per click) advertising; today it can cost lots and lots of $$$,.
Back then, when the web was a bright shiny new thing, many merchants, like us, were experimenting with this newfangled Internet environment. Trying to work out what worked and what did not work; a long and lengthy and very time consuming and laborious experience.
Along the way we learnt which 'keywords' worked best for our audience and which were a waste of time. We also learnt which combination of copy, words and phrases, were best to trigger millions of pairs of eyeballs enough to make that decision to click-thru and find out what it was we had to offer. At our cost.
We watched avidly as search engines developed methodologies for sorting the wheat from the chaff; weeding out those sites that were primarily 'spam' driven and offered little or no value to the growing audience of web-surfers. And we, along with many others, suffered from nasty folk who played the 'click-fraud' game of repeatedly hitting us, and driving up our PPC costs in order to make it uneconomic to advertise on certain platforms.
As the environment matured and more and more merchants discovered that they too could advertise their products and services in similar fashion, the costs rose and rose. It became expensive to do what we once did for pennies; it is after all an environment were the biggest dog gets to munch on the largest bone. Obviously web engines and promotional companies were quick to realize that not only was there a healthy dollar to be made, but also that some people were prepared to pay obscene amounts of money to have their listings at the top of every search result.
However, longevity does mean something - other than the continual drip, drip, drip of the marketing dollar.
Because Nutshell has now been in existence as a web entity for going on 14 years, it is likely that you will easily find us by a generalized web search, even though we no longer use that scatter gun approach of throwing dollars at online advertising.
We believe that good products plus great customer satisfaction...couple with the fact that we are still the only web merchant operating in the mobile accessory niche who offers a hand made tailor-made service, will continue to see us make new friends and find new customers, no matter where you are.
Thanks to all who have joined us on this ride into the future.
Long may it continue.


text:
I have been woefully remiss in not posting more frequently, but have been so absorbed by other writers and sites and their US presidential coverage that I have missed many of the more important state and local challenges we face in the US, as well as some of the critical international issues our neighbors around the world are dealing with.
A pressing problem in Florida at the moment for the central and southern portions of the state is the current water crisis. Lake Okeechobee has built up unsafe loads of agricultural runoff, high in nitrogen and phosphates, among other things. The state government, presumably at the direction of the administration of Governor Rick Scott, has failed to use the proceeds generated by a voter-approved amendment to purchase land to the south of the lake, take it out of agricultural (mostly Big Sugar) production and restore it to wetlands. The wetlands would have performed a critical water purification function, as well as restoring the natural flow southward, where wetland plant growth could feed on the nutrients. Because of this failure, the US Corps of Engineers must periodically release the pollution-rich waters of the lake into the Caloosahatcheee and St. Lucie rivers, which flow into the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic, respectively. These waters have now created critically high levels of pollution in both sides of the state, destroying water quality, killing local fauna and flora and leaving thick algae blooms that make any other water-based activity impossible.
Now to add to that, the state's Environmental Regulatory Commission has authorized the release of high levels of industrial chemicals to add to the organic compound soup currently in the waters.
Here's a column from the Miami-Herald on the topic: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/news-columns-blogs/fred-grimm/article96465417.html
If you are justly offended, here's an online petition where you can begin to take action: https://www.change.org/p/keep-the-cancer-causing-chemicals-out-of-our-water


text:
Small agricultural city in the middle of the country, big river running through the middle, homegrown international business figure who emphasizes the long-term and a values-laden corporate culture, a global network of followers who hang on every word and pronouncement. Sound familiar? Warren Buffett, right?
Nope, I'm talking about Jack Ma, 10 years ago an English teacher at a local technical college and today the head of the Alibaba Group, which contains China's largest internet companies. Alibaba, which created the genre of business-to-business internet commerce, and Taobao, the consumer-to-consumer platform which chased Ebay out of China, are his creations.
But let's start at the beginning, I came to Hangzhou, where Alibaba is headquartered, to do an interview with Jack because he recently joined the board of trustees for the Conservancy's China program — and because he's become a fierce advocate for corporate social responsibility and individual Chinese action to improve the country's environment…a populist ethic he thinks could pay dividends for the entire planet.
Like all Chinese cities, Hangzhou is fast growing — partly because it has become a hub for internet businesses following Alibaba's success. It's in the lower Yangtze River valley, and it's known for its beautiful lake, hills, gardens, agriculture and tea.
Dragonwell tea, formerly the exclusive tea of the imperial court, is grown near here. And now the Internet. Jack Ma grew up here and created a business sensation over the last 10 years — outperforming the market during the tech bust and returning good profits over the last rough economic year.
But there are two things that are particularly interesting about Jack's story. First. he has, as he describes it, "awakened" to the environmental problems of this country — and the need to mobilize its businesses, entrepreneurs and citizens to solve those problems. When he went to his childhood home recently, the deep river he learned to swim in (and nearly drowned in) is now only ankle high—if you cared to submerge your bare skin in the pollution.
And a couple of years ago, he also made the connection between shark's fin soup (a term he thought was merely words, not a literal meaning) and the trade that has wastefully decimated the ocean's shark population. His response? To swear off shark fin products forever. These two experiences have galvanized in him a passion — which he calls love — to make a difference in environment over the next phase of his life.
So he's decided to do what he's always done when confronted with a challenge, something that harkens back to his roots as a teacher. At Alibaba, he's brought a bunch of young people together (Alibaba employees' average age is 26) to see what dreams they can come up with; then they all run forward in the same direction to make that dream happen.
He told me that over the next year he will focus his creative team's research in two areas. First, working with the Conservancy to effect change, to bring the right science, planning, and expertise to China's air, water, and natural-resource challenges. And second, using the Alibaba/Taobao platform, model and network to empower individuals, entrepreneurs and small businesses to make the next big step on China's environment.
One other great thought he expressed during our conversation: that companies need to remember their initial dreams — and remember why they started the business in the first place, not just pursue money for its own sake. We need to concentrate on making "healthy" money, he said, not a profit that pollutes.
Given his success so far in business, his magnetic optimism and the energy of the employees I saw on the campuses (a condition of employment for Taobao is that they be able to hold a headstand for 30 seconds!), I walked out after the interview into China's always-polluted air with, ironically, a new sense of hope, for our ability to help our globe withstand the human-caused stresses that threaten our future.
As we parted on the street, I asked Jack Ma what contribution Chinese entrepreneurs would make to global conservation.
"Our contribution to the world will be to improve China's environment," he said. "And soon."
(Image: Jack Ma. Credit: jdlasica/Flickr through a Creative Commons license.)


text:
Confetti Potato Salad
Remember this low-calorie salad when fresh green beans are at their peak. The reduced-calorie ranch salad dressing makes this a good choice for anyone watching their weight.
Rate This!
Confetti Potato Salad
- Cut potatoes into 1/2-inch cubes. Place potatoes in a large saucepan; add water to cover. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Cover and simmer for 5 to 7 minutes or just until tender. Drain well; cool.
- In a small saucepan, bring about 2 cups water to boiling. Add green beans; return to boiling. Cover and cook for 3 minutes. Drain; rinse with cold water.
- In a very large bowl, combine potatoes, green beans, broccoli and/or cauliflower, and carrot. Add salad dressing and pepper; toss to coat. Cover and chill for 4 to 24 hours. If necessary, stir in enough milk to reach desired consistency. Makes 8 servings.
Nutrition Facts (Confetti Potato Salad)
- Per serving:
- 108 kcal ,
- 3 g fat
- (0 g sat. fat ,
- 5 mg chol. ,
- 179 mg sodium ,
- 18 g carb. ,
- 3 g fiber ,
- 3 g pro.


text:
Gear : Hiking and Camping : Cookware : Cookware Accessories : Extendable Broiler Basket
Extendable Broiler Basket
Item Details | Reviews (0)
Premier Sponsor:
This item may be available at:
Cook a delicious meat, fish, and veggie dinner on your grill with the Coleman Extendable Broiler Basket. The Extendable Broiler Baskets handle pulls out so you can easily grab the basket with a potholder or towel, and the handle pushes back in for compact storage. Set up your grill at the campsite, bust out the Coleman Broiler Basket, and get dinner going.


text: Hi, under a consultant at the centre. Positive bloods and pre-diagnosed APS and ?SLE. Bloods say definately APS and possible SLE, symptoms suggest both. And yet dr said bloods were inconclusive, advised me to come off warfarin and would not take case history or listen to symptoms. Have I been victim to streamlining (Dr left the clinic today and several have gone from there recently, plus apparently it is moving to Guys in a couple of months), or is he right that these conditions are not what is making me ill? I am concerned that in discharging me back to my GP I will be ordered off the warfarin (which has given some improvement and I suffer more when my INR falls). I am ill and my bloods confirm this. And I know there are people with sero-negative Hughes, but I am +ANA, +LA, out of range DVVT, APTT, ACL IgM AND have had a stroke at 31, several TIAs, miscarriages and prem babies, history of severe migrainbe, visual disturbances, ?nephritis, hypothyroidism etc etc. I am really concerned now that I will have more events if he is discharging me particularly if I am made to come off warfarin, and upset that it may be due to numbers or funding rather than my clinical need


text:
Personal Photo
Personal Statement
Niko Fran doesn't have a personal statement currently.
Personal Info
Niko Fran
26 years old
Born May-19-1992
Guitar ;)
Joined: 30-January 08
Profile Views: 4.732*
Last Seen: 29th September 2009 - 06:56 PM
Local Time: Jan 17 2019, 09:14 AM
115 posts (0 per day)
Contact Information
* Profile views updated each hour
My Content
22 Apr 2009
Hi GMC, I'm writing a school assignment about Glam Rock at the moment, and I'm writing about the characteristics of the theory and the music. I do have some ideas of my own, but it would be really good if people could share some of their knowledge concerning this genre, as I dont know where to start I'm mostly looking for info about how the songs were build, and the scales they used. Thanks alot, I would really apreciate it if someone would help me out
25 Jan 2009
I was given the assignment in school to locate five errors in the following text, but I wasen't able to locate that many, can anybody figure some out? Thanks alot!
On Sundays we like to go for a walk in the nature. lt's nice to get away from our usual surroundings and forget about all the work we ought to do. The problem is, of course, that the pollution in this city creeps in everywhere, and is felt even in the parks. The civilization has made the life easier, but there are some drawbacks as well: the parents are concerned because more and more children become allergic, and the unemployment seems to be increasing year by year.
17 Oct 2008
Hello people of GMC!
I recently made myself a myspace music profile (with the help of Bogdan) to upload the better things I record. There isn't much to it, no drums no bass, no piano, just guitar Yesterday I uploaded a song called Green Fields, it was originally made for my band, but we're busy with other songs at the moment, so I thought I would upload it on myspace! The name Nico Loove is a joke I have with my band, they asked me which name I would have as a lead guitarist, something like "Slash" or alike, and I choosed - Nico Loove! They werent really happy with it, but it stays Anyway, here is the site, feel free to add me as the more that hear it, the better
You can also add my band - Liquid Rocks - which can be found under friends. We havent uploaded any songs yet, just some text which I encourage you to read !
16 Oct 2008
Hi, I cant really seem to figure out how to make a profile where I can upload music, I allready have a normal, but was wondering if you could "upgrade" that or do I have to make a brand new one? And how of course
21 Sep 2008
I've been playing guitar for around 1,5 year now, and is doing just great, got a good hang on the theory and even play lead in a band, but one thing is nagging me, I cant seem to really speed things up, and just simply cant move my fingers fast enough to sweep. Not that I need sweeping in the band at the moment, but sweeping is so cool (And can really spice things up at the peak of a solo!)
So I thought that some of the exercises could help me, but there are so many of em, and I dont know where to start! Can anyone post a few exercices that could help me develop some speed, and just get more comfortable around the guitar?
Thank you
Last Visitors
10 Mar 2012 - 16:02
19 May 2011 - 19:56
20 Mar 2010 - 15:10
1 Feb 2010 - 9:39
7 Dec 2009 - 22:30
Pablo Vazquez
Happy Birthday!!!
Nice photo!!
19 May 2008 - 18:16
Vinod Saranga
Hey Happy Birthday Niko Fran :)
Have a nice day !
19 May 2008 - 3:49
792 posts
21st June 2011 - 11:05 AM
1279 posts
3rd July 2011 - 02:08 PM
693 posts
22nd October 2009 - 09:04 PM
|Lo-Fi Version
|Time is now: 17th January 2019 - 08:14 AM


text:
Queen On HubPages
As a conventional martial artist for over 20 years having skilled in a number of types and dojos and even spent three years in Japan coaching with world recognized masters, you'd suppose I would facet with custom advocating its purity, its self-discipline, its efficient coaching regiment and its centuries of development. Because Combat Hapkido was developed in 1989, mixed martial arts had not really come into its personal yet. Since the times of UFC, the mysticism" behind most of the Eastern traditional martial arts have been shattered. Staying in Character: Monks are martial artists, so you should definitely have a fundamental knowledge of easy martial arts stances when posing for the cameras! A person with years of extensive martial arts experience and struggle wins could lose to someone who's inexperienced and so forth.
The standup game in MMA was born from a wide range of Martial Arts, nevertheless, kickboxers were the primary to forge a reputation for themselves. Power and pace in kicks, lots of sparring, low price, and most of all a pleasant setting make the Taekwondo Club my favourite club, and is the reason it's the preferred martial arts membership on campus.
Under this definition athletes and promoters will likely be compelled to both flip professional, give up or go underground as previously. In most instances, the initial martial arts courses or courses is the beginning of a bodily, psychological, and religious journey if you stick previous the first class. In 1925 the combating with combination of different martial arts returned to the world stage due to a household of Brazilians. Phil Ross' Street Combat Mixed Martial Arts: The Complete Collection 4 DVD Set: Combining a number of ranges of expertise into one collection, this martial arts DVD set will take you from the rookies S.A.V.E. course via excessive stage combos and protection tactics.
In actual avenue fighting state of affairs there is no room for francy martial arts movement, just preserve it easy give a punch to your enemy and hope it's a knock down punch, shortly run away from the scene. Just find a dojo or fitness center (and a selected martial artwork that you like) and observe first. You can get in nice shape and study numerous varieties or martial arts that will not be accessible as a category in your geographic space. From comedian books, to films, to TV, Lex Luthor has always been one of the vital notoriously brilliant archnemesis, prison masterminds in superhero history. When sparring and training we teach basic tech then in motion and take a look at use when sparring.
The Game of Death film was a showcase of the effectiveness of Jeet Kune Do. In this movie, Lee tries to show the weaknesses of other martial arts and on the same time demonstrates how his Jeet Kune Do capitalizes from them. Whereas he is still concerned within the area lately as a TV commentator, he has conjointly appeared in lots of movies and video video games. It is believed that efficiency enhancing drugs (PED's) have been part and parcel of Mixed Martial Arts since its inception. MMA, when it went into the mainstream, made the much less-informed about martial arts much more less-knowledgeable.…


text:
Are you an Apple device user since long? Facing any technical problem related to the same? If yes, there could be no better place for you than this. Every day many users and customers come across some or the other technical issues and they look forward for some great way to get rid of the same. Nobody would love to continue with their problems for a very longer period of time. If done so it becomes very problematic for the users. They find it very difficult to work on their apple gadgets for a longer period of time and it turns out to be very annoying. For such problem of yours, Apple support number is there to assist you in the best possible way they could.
How difficult or rigid their problem is Apple customer service providers have proved themselves every time the customers came up to us for availing services. Our support services have generally been liked and loved by most of our customers. They find us very reliable and we give them enough reasons to love us and avail services from us. Our support services are much on demand these days in the market. The tools that we use to serve our customers are really great and we need hardly few minutes to fix your problems. Our benchmark is already set when it comes to serving our customers. When we are given to solve their problems, we get super charged and get set to work for them.
Apple customer support providers could be reached at any time of the day. People are lucky enough who get a chance to avail services from us. We have always given them our best we could. We have always believed in giving enough happiness to our customers and they also know that how much effort we have been putting for them.


text:
Funny Status Message #168003
X I now hold it in my hands. Finally. The expressed written consent of the National Football League.
Save as Image
- Related Status Messages:
- # 137315 [tears open envelope] It's here! It's *really* here! The expressed written consent of the National Football League!
- # 144576 Explain this egomaniac yanks, world champs? When its a NATIONAL league? Football when you use your hands? instead of follow up highlights its who had the best commercial? Pathetic overconsumption unhappy society.
- # 89385 NFL: "Madonna's message of 'world peace' does not reflect the views of the National Football League"
Comments (0)
Comments with offensive language will be automatically deleted within 24 hours. By Commenting, you agree to these terms.
Funny Facebook Statuses


text:
FC: Kahouna | By:Duchovny, Ashley,Sofia
2: We are going to be talking about ourisland called Kahouna.We have a lot of stuff you can do on our island. We have everything you need. Our waterfall called The Big Kahouna. It leads to the river. It is the most famous waterfall in the world. We have the pretty rain forest. You will ever see. There is a very rare flower in the forest. Our city has very tall buildings. In the city we have a giant candy land. It has big pieces of candy.
3: We have a lot of of hotels. We have 6 hotels. One has a great view of the waterfall. We have Sanounou, Royals, Dreamy and Kingdom. That's our hotels you can rent. The two newest hotels are Mt.Olympus and Kalahari. The river we have is wavy. But calm and very clean. You see right through it. We have the biggest pool. In the world and the biggest water slide. Our Main Town has all the stores, fun parks and good restaurants NO [GLITTER]


text:
thought I'd share a project I did a while back with a new Spellbinders die set.
You can click to see it bigger if you want.
Wish I would have taken a better photo with daylight..but this will have to do for now.
I spent most of today, putting things away , and tidying up my room after leaving it in disarray before I left for CHA. lol I put out my NEW Glimmer Mist Colors! YAY!
Okay.. I'm thinking I better TRY to go to bed, because my sleep is going to be really thrown off now. yikes. Miss Aly belle has been faithfully by my side ... her and I are both getting too old for these crazy hours. lol


text: Category Events - United States, Roseville (CA) ALL AGES EVENT Searching for a creative activity to spend quality time with your family? Look no further - #PaintNitePosse has painting fun for everyone! This special Paint Nite experience led by a local artist is open to painters ages 6 and up. All painting supplies and instruction are included, and our neighbourhood host restaurant will have food and drinks available for purchase if you want to add some treats on to your experience. Please note that every attendee needs their own ticket. All guests under the legal drinking age must have a guardian in attendance. (No fewer than 1 adult for every 3 underage guests, please.) Save 35% at PaintNite.com with coupon code EVENT35 !


text:
Today, I want to share my project with you thus far. I have added a link to the kit I used so you can click on the name of the kit is under the layout. Thanks for taking the time to look!
Don't forget about the Blog Train Freebies!
|A Fresh Start
|Wishin' I Were Fishin'
|Precious Gifts


text:
At our wedding, somebody gave us a jar of Cinnamon Honey as a gift, and one night while fixing dinner, I decided to see what it would be like with chicken. I was pleasantly surprised.
You do not, as it turns out, need a premixed jar of Cinnamon Honey to make this work, especially as your desire for one ingredient or the other may differ from the actual mixture.
Prep time: 20 - 30 mins.
A breast of chicken per person that will be eating
salt and pepper
Chop up your chicken into half inch pieces, and pop them in the frying pan. I personally wait till they're fairly well cooked to start doing anything, so I can tell whether they're still pink or not. If you're fairly well assured of your cooking ability with chicken, feel free to start sooner.
Salt and pepper to taste while it cooks. Once the pink is mostly gone, add a good dollop of honey. You'll note that once it hits the heat, the honey goes fairly liquid and spreads throughout the pan fairly well. You'll want to generally coat the chicken, though not smother it.
Now add the cinnamon. This should create a general brownish look to the chicken somewhat duskier than the normal shade. The aroma of the honey and cinnamon mixing is quite pleasant when it fills the kitchen at such times.
I'll generally serve the chicken up on plates of lettuce and whatever salad ingredients are at hand (tomatos, bell peppers, etc.). Salad dressing adds to the flavor, and does not take away from the taste of the chicken itself, unless you use too much.
In response to question: Unless you use a ton of honey when you do this (notice the dollop) the chicken honestly isn't as sweet as it would sound like. You get that nice rough-sweet edge of the honey, but it's not overpowering. Quite often when I've made this, the cinnamon actually has the leading edge on taste, so it's this nice sweet vs. sharp battle going on in your mouth.
This is also why I serve it on top of salad, usually with a light Italian dressing. The result is a fair number of taste sensations, depending on what you happen to scoop up with your chicken or lettuce, or what have you.
If, when you've finished preparing this, it tastes very sweet, or very much of either ingredient, then you've overdone it somewhere. The idea is for a rounded yet interesting taste that blends well combined with other dishes. It can stand alone, but will likely not be quite as pleasing that way.
Log in or register to write something here or to contact authors.
Sign up
Need help? email@example.com


text:
11 reviews
72% would repurchase
Package Quality: 4.6
Price: $$$$
Package Quality: 4.6
Price: $$$$
Start your review
on 4/4/2015 5:12:00 PM
Age: 19-24
Skin: Combination, Fair-Medium, Not Sure
Hair: Brown, Other, Other
Eyes: Green
Will definitely buy and buy and buy this milk. Because it moisturises my skin, balances the oils and is just overall perfect. And smells nice!
on 3/23/2015 10:08:00 AM
Age: 19-24
Skin: Acne-prone, Medium, Not Sure
Hair: Brown, Other, Other
Eyes: Green
I adore this product !
I think it's one of the best products there is for cleansing.
Very very good. Especially for my skin
on 3/15/2015 12:51:00 PM
Age: 19-24
Skin: Combination, Tan, Not Sure
Hair: Brunette, Other, Other
Eyes: Hazel
Super milk!
Completely fab for moisture!
on 3/15/2015 11:41:00 AM
Age: 19-24
Skin: Acne-prone, Medium, Not Sure
Hair: Brown, Other, Other
Eyes: Green
I completely love this product.
Makes my skin super moisturised and because it's so sensitive and oily, helps me stabilise the flora of my skin :)
on 9/14/2010 5:38:00 PM
Age: 25-29
Skin: Combination, Fair, Not Sure
Hair: Blond, Other, Other
Eyes: Hazel
I was on the lookout for a hydrating cleanser, to use only in the mornings. I am not dry, I was just after something that did not strip too much. I like the concept of this but I found that this is just too greasy and left grease on my face afterwards. I had to cleanse again. Not only does this cost a bomb but everything I have tried from this brand smells like off food, even when its fresh. The smell is just a turn off, which is hardly an issue but was with this. This was like smearing off cream into my face. The packaging is great, esp the pump, but this cleanser didn not do it for me. Purity made simple is much better. I would say that other natural based brands are a lot more palatable than this line, nuxe, loccitane, etc.
on 7/18/2010 3:06:00 PM
Age: 44-55
Skin: Combination, Fair, Not Sure
Hair: Brown, Other, Other
Eyes: Hazel
I was on the look out for a cleansing milk that I could use with my Clarisonic, but also because my skin was going through an irritated spotty and flared up stage and I needed a change.
Cue the SpaceNK web sale and fab reductions on Nude cleansing cream, reduced from �22 to �11 to �8 for 200mls - who can resist a bargain, not me.
I have used the Nude cleansing oil in the past, but found it too ordinary to write a review about - it did the job, but I had reservations, had it really removed my makeup? Was my skin really clean? But this cleansing milk is aaaaammmmmmmmmaaaaaaazzzzzzzzzing, I absolutely love it.
The cleansing milk is the thickness of a thick pouring cream, ie it holds the shape pumped out if that makes sense, it doesn't run everywhere in other words, it has a noticeable jasmine smell. It spreads easily over the face and can be emulsified with water, it rinses off, or can be removed with a cloth, it works well with aforementioned Clarisonic, it leaves the skin amazingly soft, plump and hydrated............and it's been bloody discontinued - I know because I contacted Nude this Friday just gone and they confirmed it. I am devastated - I mean I can use Cetaphil, which works just as well with the Clarisonic, is cheaper, but it doesn't have the sexy sleekness of packaging, and the softening on my skin, oooohh the disappointment. I have gone and bought 2 more 200mls even though the BBE date is August 2010 - I am a mug I know!
on 4/12/2009 12:42:00 PM
Age: 25-29
Skin: Normal, Medium, Warm
Hair: Black, Straight, Medium
Eyes: Black
I've been a longtime devotee of Dr.Hauschka cleansing milk - lately my skin has been feeling drier than normal, so I decided to try this product in its place since it's alcohol free. I tend to stick to "natural"/organic brands because I experience less irritation. Nude Skincare's cleansing milk is much better than the cleansing oil which I sampled last year. Better makeup removal, no film left over, and my skin feels comfortable and refreshed after cleansing. Scent is tolerable - a mix of plastic and something woodsy. I have one complaint which lowers my rating --- apart from the high price tag, this cleanser is not good to use around the eyes - it stings if I happen to get it anywhere near my tear ducts or waterline.
on 2/20/2009 12:45:00 PM
Age: 25-29
Skin: Combination, Fair-Medium, Not Sure
Hair: Blond, Other, Other
Eyes: Green
I don't know how I happened upon this cleanser, but I went into a Sephora store and requested samples. I wasn't really expecting much from this cleanser. I have a VERY hard time with cleansers - the gel/foaming cleansers seem to strip my skin too much, while the creamy/lotion cleansers seem to leave my skin with a residue and feeling greasy (almost like you just can't get that last little bit off of your face).
Well, I tried this cleanser for the first time at night - MAKEUP REMOVAL!! I wear Estee Lauder Double Wear Makeup. I immediately noticed more makeup on my washcloth than with my previous cleanser, meaning, of course, that this cleanser was removing my makeup better than my previous cleanser.
Ok, with *that* said...AFTER washing my face, it felt so soft!! Not tight or dry at all!!
on 8/25/2008 9:50:00 AM
Age: 25-29
Skin: Combination, Tan, Warm
Hair: Black, Wavy, Fine
Eyes: Brown
I bought the full-size bottle of this from Harvey Nichols just after the brand launched. It lasted about 4 months as you don't need much product. As a cleanser it is okay, nothing special - it didn't do much for my skin, but it didn't irritate or break me out either. It is a good, creamy milk consistency, that rinses off well with water. At �22 for 200ml, it is a bit expensive, and I would not repurchase as it is average cleanser.
on 7/14/2008 9:35:00 PM
Age: 18 & Under
Skin: Other, Fair, Not Sure
Hair: Brunette, Other, Other
Eyes: Hazel
I was so excited when I first spotted this range of products on sephora.com, as they were previously not available to me locally. Among the products that I immediately purchased from this line was the Cleansing Milk.
I have been using this cleanser for a month now, because I don't think it's fair to review skincare products after using them just once or twice. So here is my experience so far:
I am used to using gel cleansers and foaming cleansers, and have only really used one or two other lotion-type cleansers before, so figuring out the correct amount of product to use is always a bit of a challenge for me. The first time I used this, I believe I used 4-5 pumps, which I have now discovered is way too much. I now usually stick to just 1-2 pumps. It is a cleansing milk, so it does not foam up at all. You are supposed to massage it into a dry face, which I do, and I will then rinse it off when I get in the shower. It's not greasy at all, and it's perfectly milky without being watery. I never remove it with a cotton pad, because I never feel clean enough that way (if you have dry skin, you may prefer to remove it this way). It rinses away nicely, and I am never left with any film or residue on my skin. I am also surprised at how clean my skin feels after using this, as my skin typically does not feel like it has been cleansed properly when I use this type of cleanser. My skin always feels really soft after using this. Also, for reference, my skin is typically normal-to-combination, it can be oily at times, and I am prone to breakouts at that time of the month (who isn't?). After using this 2 or 3 times, I got 1-2 white heads, but I also expected this because my skin isn't used to milky/lotion-type cleansers (my skin was back to being clear in a few days). This also removes makeup efficiently (haven't tested on eye makeup though, because I always remove that before hopping in the shower with makeup remover pads of some sort).
As for the scent, it is very natural, yet still pleasant. When I first used this I immediately thought: Rose. But not in that typical perfume-y rose type of way. It is a very natural, mild rose. The packaging is also good because the pump-bottle is very sanitary, and I think that you do get a decent amount of product (6.8 ounces I believe). Also, the packaging is made from 50% recycled materials.
I didn't expect to like this cleanser as much as I do, just because my skin typically does not like lotion/milk cleansers. But I was pleasantly surprised by this, and therefore I will probably be repurchasing when I run out.
Popular Cleansers
Popular Cleansers


text:
"I'll Never Let You Part, for You're Always in my Heart"
Dearest Michael,
I love you. I always have and I always will. 1434!!!! This is the 7th year I have purchased roses for you, my love. I miss you everyday!!!
You are now a very special angel, dear Angel Wings, guiding and watching over me, with me always and forever.
"Ever Remembered, Ever Loved"
Wendy L. Edmonton