#31

My last pre-mommie birthday has come and gone. It was good!
I was instructed to arrive to work a little late Thursday morning. This wasn't a problem because I had to clean the back porch at 6:30 in the morning. Cleo took one step out and pee'd. She smelled a skunk nearby, and having been sprayed a few years ago she wanted nothing to do with it. So she wasn't planning on going any further into the yard. Ugh. It was dark out and I didn't want to venture in a skunky yard either to find the hose so I took jugs of water out and washed the porch off.
When I arrived at work, I saw my tropically decorated cubicle. I was just starting to let St. John filter out of my cells and suddenly it was back. I'm not complaining! The cubicle was covered in aqua tissue paper and pictures of fish - plus there were signs to the beaches, coconuts & a Ting! The floor was even covered in tissue paper "water."
Next was lunch out at CPK - yum. That was fun plus D surprised me by showing up with flowers! I'm omitting the chocolate he brought because I still can't eat it - maybe next month. I knew ice cream was waiting back in the office, and 1/2 that Ting Soda. [Ting is a grapefruit soda made in Jamaica and sold throughout the West Indies. It's super yummy and can be ordered online - I need to do that.] I waited as long as I could (3:35 exactly) for Ting and ice cream but I just couldn't wait any longer. I had Lime Cardamom and Strawberry Buttermilk ice cream - so good. It was from Jeni's.
After work D & I went to Sr. Antonio's for my favorite salsa and cheese enchiladas. I didn't get sick - it was great. At home I got a snuggly nap set as a bday gift. Best of all, not only did we pay of my student loans for my birthday, BUT D checked his balance and it was pretty low so he paid it off too! No more student loans! WOO-HOO!. I even stayed up late last night (9:30pm - crazy, I know).
Today I took a vacation day and slept in. I'm feeling a lot better today and haven't even had to eat every 2hrs. I hope this is a change for the better and setting a trend of feeling better through fall, winter & spring. Tonight friends are joining me for dinner at the Melting Pot - and maybe if I'm still feeling good and not exhausted, a movie.

31 days of - the update

This week will mark the end of August and hence the end of ther 31 days of Shannon turning 31. How's it been? Eh.

I had high hopes that lists would be made (by me) of different, amusing (to me) things to do each day. But that was July 31st & August 1st.

By August 2nd I arrived in Texas to find AJ had bought a cake for me and had it decorated to read "to 31s." It was so nice! Unfortunately, only a few hours earlier I had run to the airport bathroom to dig a sugary snack out of my mouth before it made me puke. Since then I've been off sweets. Sure, I eat the occasional ice cream or chocolate toast but nothing else. No cakes, no solid chocolate, absolutely no chocolate covered graham crackers from Starbucks (see airport incident). I felt so bad I couldn't partake in the cake treat.

August 2nd marked a new age, one that would rock my 31 days of Shannon turning 31 to its core. It was morning sickness - well, all day sickness really. It took me a ridiculous number of days to learn the simple tricks to make life liveable. While in TX, I actually thought I was gonna get fired because there would not be enough sick days for me to take off 2+ months and I couldn't function as is. But once I learned that I just needed a snack or small meal (with some protein) every 2 hours, plus Pepcid at night to sleep (oh and Unisom) then I became human again. So I've been actually living the 31 days of Shannon eating, eating, sleeping, eating, eating, ugh I hate food & I'm tired.

I'm just now entering month three and hope the icky feeling will begin to taper off. I can't really be upset about my 31 days being hijacked. And the silver lining is that I've stopped obsessing. I live day by day, and sometimes 2hrs by 2hrs. It feels somewhat freeing, though I would still take obsessing over nauseau - duh. I'm just hoping as nausea fades (oh please let it fade) I will not replace my free time with obsessing. I hope this is a turning point, and a birthday present to myself.

sharing [Gaffigan style]

I'm an oversharer, but on this topic [What topic? Oversharing? Did I miss something? I'm confused already. Hmmm, maybe I'm not going to like this blog.] I've done pretty well I think. I don't know, maybe the whole customary/traditional wait-time for sharing on this topic [WTF? What topic does she keep referencing. I think she may have lost her mind.] is falling to the wayside these days, like white shoes after Labor Day. So after many weeks of not discussing this here, I'm ready to share. [Well, it's about time, missy.]

I'm pregnant. Due in April. :)

Kitty Cat Claws

We got a stair runner installed this week. Yeah! No more carrying the dog (Zulu) up the stairs. Though he’s still hesitant, we know he won’t slide so he has to make it up himself. Sometimes he runs right up but for unknown reasons other times he still scoots up backwards on his butt. Odd.
The kitties love the new runner. They’ve missed carpet in the house. D immediately purchased a catnip ridden scratching post for them which now sits on the stair landing. It beckons to them – ‘why scratch this carpet when you could get high scratching this.’ I hope it works. I have seen lots of fur on the steps, and often I have to step over a nappy Tate. The stair runner is supposed to make the stairs safer – no one apparently told Tate though.
Next on the home improvement docket? Well, D is painting the front porch so technically that will be finished next. However, the next big project to be started will be the addition of a ½ bath to our laundry room. I think D is scheduling with the plumber for their soonest open slot. Once this room is done we can move upstairs to remodel that bathroom. Yeah! We should have done this sooner.

jumped on the bandwagon . . .

ISTJs are responsible, loyal and hard working. They have an acute sense of right and wrong and work hard at preserving established norms and traditions. Because of their deep sense of duty they are dedicated to everything they do and are very dependable. ISTJs care deeply for those closest to them.


Lots of presidents are ISTJ . . . okay, only 6 out of 43.
Real ISTJ People
Andrew Johnson - American President
Benjamin Harrison - American President
Elizabeth II - Queen of England
George H. W. Bush - American President
George Washington - American President
Harry Truman - American President
Herbert Hoover - American President
Jackie Joyner-Kersee - athlete (heptathlon)
Warren Buffet - investor, businessman

Spare time

I haven’t felt like I’ve had a lot of spare time lately, so hence not much blog time. Of course the lapse in time lends itself perfectly to a list-style blog entry.

I went to CPK for ACG’s birthday today. I had leftovers that I had to graffiti with my name and the date. T recently had her CPK leftover pizza stolen from the refrigerator. Who does that? What has our work environment turned into? So as the afternoon slump hit, my mind turned to a slice of pizza as a snack and pick-me-up. I envisioned walking into the pantry, opening the door and my pizza being gone. Then I’d have to walk the halls – each and ever row – looking for the box in someone’s trash. I’d find it of course and leave huge red-Sharpie notes all over the cubicle stating “Caught!” and “THIEF.” I even went so far as to contemplate taking my cell phone so I could get a picture of the perp and post it on the fridge for all to see. Lucky for the potential perp, the pizza was safe and sound – and yummy.

I went to Texas this past weekend. It was the big move weekend. My sister-in-law moved out there at the start of the new year and by April it was decided my mother-in-law would also move out there. So D, and his sister and I spent time in April choosing a new home for her (by home I mean nursing home). We narrowed it down, but one stuck out as the best. They have a new social director who seemed open to residents’ ideas for activities. D’s mom loves all the social activities and would have tons of ideas. Plus this place has a live-in dog and birds – and they seemed more kid-friendly than the other stuffier locations. And after all she was moving down there to be closer to her grandkids. Though D did note the first place had a “hot” admissions woman. Surely this would rank as high on the list of demands for his mom.

The weekend was okay. It was sweltering and I was sick most of the time. But I got a lot of quality time with AJ and baby K, pool time, and a birthday party for D’s sister’s kids. A dual party . . . . 1-yr for her son & 2-yr for her daughter. I’m really glad to be home though. I’m not feeling completely back to myself, but I am feeling better. I really think once the Ohio heat wave dissipates I’ll feel even better.

I went to . . . nowhere. I just wanted to start yet another sentence like that to be lame. Ha! We had our air ducts cleaned yesterday. I was super excited about this and could have overlooked the turning off of our A/C for a few hours during the hottest part of the day on possibly the hottest day of the year. However, I could not overlook the smell. Apparently they backed their diesel spewing truck up to the house to hook the hoses up to, and then the house proceeded to fill with diesel fumes. Nice. WTF? Can the company not swing getting their trucks exhausts taken care of? Really? Will it be cheaper to clean my house when I call and rant at them? It’s disgusting. The downstairs still smelled this morning and some of my things smell too. And these are things I brought home after work, when the truck was long gone. Rowr!

You may be wondering (or maybe not) how our other home improvements are going. The front porch is nearly done, just needs painted. The bathrooms have quotes in the mail. I think landscaping is off the list now. It’s rather late in the season, and it’s been too hot and dry for our poor plants anyway. Next year we’ll do more on that front and maybe add a hammock. The outside room has had all the stuff photographed so now we just need to put it all on Craigslist. A couple things may end up on Ebay, but really at this point it’s all about to end up in the front yard on trash day with a “FREE” sign on it. I want to be able to use my room! We’re planning to make it into an office/outdoor den. It’ll have an enormous TV that anyone is welcome to steal. It weighs like 200lbs and once it’s gone we’ll get a newer, nicer, lighter, locked down one. Somehow I think it’ll be safe and sound out there. Hmmm, what else? Oh yes. The stair runner is on order and installation will be scheduled soon. I’m super excited because our little dog, Zulu won’t go up the stairs on his own. He slips too much on the new wood and he’s afraid. So we have to carry him. It’s ridiculous and must stop.

Okay, that's it for now.

31 Flavors

No, it’s not another blog about cupcakes. There are plenty of full-time cupcake blogs out there. I cannot, nor do I want to, compete with those. Guess again?
No, it’s not about Baskin Robbins ice cream, or ice cream in general. In fact, it’s not about food at all. At least I don’t think so. Sometimes my blog entries surprise me by where they end up.
Okay, so what’s my other favorite thing to blog about, other than random lists? I do love lists. Birthdays! Specifically, and selfishly, my birthday.

Today is August 1st. And that begins the 31 days of Shannon turning 31. I’m taking the idea from AJ, though I’m rather certain she’s never named any of her April month-long birthday celebrations. She does celebrates the entire month though, and so shall I. I’m just not sure how I’ll be celebrating each day, but I will find a way. Everything will culminate on or near the 30th of course, but I will also have to plan something for the 31st so the final day is not anti-climactic.
If you have celebration ideas, send them my way. So far everything sounds like too much work – like cooking and baking ideas. Trouble is, I spoil myself all the time. At least, I think I do. Rarely is there something I don’t do, buy or eat if I really want to. So finding 31 special things may be difficult. I'm not even sure what today will hold. We’ll see.