iSo happy because I got one! Yep, the iPhone. I LOVE it. So happy with it, it's crazy. Been saving my pennies and got close enough that dh was fine with going and getting it. Super easy to set-up and operate. It has a lot of features that will save me time and effort in trying to receive or send information. Plus, it saves room in my purse because I use it as my photo album, ipod, phone and appointment book. I love that I can listen to music with or without the headphones and it saves me money. Not sure how this happened but I am now paying $30 a month LESS for this dataplan then I was for my blackberry and I now have text messaging. I really liked my blackberry but I already LOVE my iPhone. I need to come up with a name for it. Any suggestions?

iAlso so happy because my youngest son had a successful sleepover with 3 of his friends last night. iGot some sleep, and so did they. They were all very respectful and full of fun. Goodtimes. Darn it, why didn't I take any pictures?

My other iSon and iDH are at the Blues game for the day, enjoying quality time with each other and the Blues. They love that.

iHave the fireplace on, getting some scooby snacks out and getting ready to attempt to transfer some old video tapes of the boys to DVDs. No pressure on myself to get it all done - or even done perfect, just going to give it a whirl.

ToniGht, going to see about having some neighbors over for a game of cards or something else. No pressure, just come casual and a bag of chips - or not.

iSo happy today. Hope you are too.

Have been a long time user of the Living Cookbook which houses my most used, yummy recipes. However, I have never really taken the time to enter all those recipes I tear out of magazines or neighbors give me. Since I'm back to a laptop, that task seems more manageable, something I could do while sitting on the couch and watching TV. As I began transferring data to the new computer I began to wish I had a software program that not only contained my recipes but also allowed me the ability to track what I eat and something to help me get a grip on what I feed my family, something the Living Cookbook didn't provide. So, I began to research.

Found out there are a lot of online websites that you can enter that data but decided I don't want online exclusively because I'm not always online. I began looking closer at the Living Cookbook website and found they have a sister site called DietPro. Here was the software I was looking for. It has all the features and much more that the Living Cookbook had. I immediately downloaded the software and having been playing with it ever since. This software has so much capability and the only disadvantage I can see right now is it doesn't have a fast food or restaurant database, although it does have an extension food database. So, if you cook a lot at home this point will not be an issue. If you are like us and go out a lot, there is a workaround, by using CalorieKing.com online food database. Just search what you are looking for and print out the Nutrition Facts to manually enter them into Diet Pro. Doesn't take too long to do at all and I understand this feature is planned in an upgrade of Diet Pro currently in the works.

To start out I did need to do some initial set-up such as entering my current weight and my goal weight, including my timeline for wanting to lose the weight. To be realistic (which normally I don't do) I went directly to WeightWatchers.com and was able to get my ideal weight range by inputting my current height and age. So easy! This is the information I entered in my Diet Pro profile. I then played around with the preferences on Diet Pro to find out what charts I liked and ones I didn't need to see on a daily basis. This program is highly customizable, which is nice! After doing this, Diet Pro tells me the amount of calories I need to eat per day to reach this goal weight - something good to know.

Next questions is how exactly do I want to use it. The great thing is I can use it as little or as much as I want. I don't have to commit to anything. I can use it exclusively as a software recipe database if I want like I was using Living Cooking. But, I do have capabilities now of getting so much more out of it, depending on my commitment level. I can also create meal plans, track what I eat, set goals (for not only overall weight loss but additional goals such as losing belly weight), create grocery shopping lists and get this - I can even inventory my grocery stock! Yes!!! LOL! Now, I'm not planning on doing this because I would be way to anal at that point but it is very intriguing. You can purchase (separately from here) your very own barcode scanner and scan your groceries when you put them away. I will never be this organized! So exactly how am I going to use this? For now, I'm not going to jump right into a diet but rather just begin by tracking what I'm eating and find out what it says. Here's my screen shot for what I've eaten today (for lunch only):

Not sure how clear you will be able to see this but in looking at my Arby's lunch I see I have already exceeded my calorie intake for the day as well as pushed the limits on my daily recommended allowances in several of the categories. Note, I did not have any breakfast and of course I still need to have dinner. Now, instead of being upset by this I'm viewing this as a good learning experience. I'm beginning to go down the path of understanding what better choices I need to make to get the outcome I want. It would be interesting to compare this to a McDonalds lunch and see what that difference is because I mistakenly thought the Arby's sandwich would be a better choice. Maybe it was a better choice but not the best choice. I'm going to do this for a week to see what I end up with. Should be interesting!

Some additional features this program offers is the ability to track your calorie intake and banks calories that aren't used. If you input you have exercised it adjusts your calorie bank accordingly. It also has a points tracking system that you can customize. I mimicked mine based on the Weight Watchers point system because eventually I will go back to Weight Watchers for additional guidance.

So, whether you just want to get organized and quite having recipes scattered all over your kitchen, or you might want to dig deeper into what you are eating, I highly recommend either the Living Cookbook or Diet Pro. Check them out!

I just had to share this one with you. I don't think Oscar would fit in one of these too well:

If you just have to have one of these beauties, you can get them at www.feeltheflo.com but I want to see real life pictures of it in use!

[ Sorry ahead of time for spelling - or lack thereof. I'm tired, been working non-stop for many days. Wanted to post here for fun but not taking the time to make sure spelling is correct. Please forgive. ]


These are things that are making me happy lately, things that as I go through my crazy life when I come upon I stop, smile, breathe and think how crazy that this particular item makes me happy. I guess I'm materialistic to some point - is that all that bad?


Scoopfree Automatic Cat Litter Box:

Got one of these a month ago and just changed it for the first time today. Yes, today! All I can say about this little beauty is AWESOME! If you have a cat, stop everything you are doing and get one of these. I got it at my local Petsmart after my previous LitterMaid Automatic Cat Litter Box died. Now, don't get me wrong. I went to Petsmart to buy a 2nd LitterMaid Automatic Cat Litter Box but was intrigied by the Scoopfree version because it suggested that I might not need to change it for one month - one month! How could I not give it a try. Guess what, it worked! Happily for me, Zoe doesn't do her biz too much and I was absoluately able to wait one entire month before changing the litter box. I keep it in the basement and my husband has a nose like no one I know. I highly recommend it. (NOTE: Previous litter box died only because I was lazy in cleaning it. I took it in the yard, dropped liquid soap in it and spraid it a lot with our lawn hose. An electrical unit of any type wouldn't be able to handle what I did with it - and I proved that.



Linksys Wireless G Router:
I am a self-proclaimed tech geek. I have no formal training but am at the level where I possibly know enough to be dangerous. I am known as the tech help rep of my friends (although the only qualifications I have is that I am the only one that knows the most). Even though I am a techno-geek I am slow to get on the wireless bandwagon. We just recently joined this group and I LOVE it! I haven't been able to fully enjoy the benefits of it but I can already tell a whole new world is opening up to me. I highly recommend this! (Note: Only reason I didn't join up earlier was because it was prohibited from our work - I work from home. They have since given their approval and this was the baby we got. AWESOME!).


Dell D630 Laptop:
Just got this little beauty, it's what I'm using to create this blog entry. It is the only reason I'm doing it now - convenience. I have only had one laptop in my life and I have missed it. Desktops have some good advantages but laptops offer so much more freedom. I am so ready to get some work done - but in different locations other than my home office. I am currently in bed adding this entry (was that TMI?). How awesome is that?!




Bedford Smart Recharge Station:
Ok, I've had my eye on this beauty for a bit from Pottery Barn and decided to go ahead and get it a few weeks ago. This is another thing I'm really into. It's a central place to store all our chargeables and miscellaneous items. I picked it up in black (black is my favorite color. It allows all the same stuff to occupy the same spot but in a much more organized and less clutter looking fashion. It's a keeper!




Pottery Barn Circular Pen/Stuff Holder:
Ok, I couldn't find the real name of it so I made up my own. My birthday was in July and ever since then I've been hanging onto some birthday stash that I finally decided to part with. I ended up getting two of these items; one for "my room" (a/k/a scrapbook room) and one for our home office @ my personal desk. Although I haven't fully used the one in "my room" because of lack of time and other obligations, I have used the one on my desk - a lot. It frees up space on my desk, allows me to organize and have at my fingertips my most used pens, pencils, highlighters, paperclips, binderclips and one free space for our TV remote. (Have to have a TV in our office so I can catch up on stuff happening throughout the day!).

All-Weather Wicker Chairs:
No picture - sorry! But picked up six of these at Target the other day with dh, on Clearance for next to nothing. AWESOME! Got to love that. Now, I'm just trying to find the designer table I have in my head. Of course this is impossible and I'm trying hard to fiqure out how to build it myself. Like I have time to do that - but of course will try. Will share photos eventually.

Love it all. It all makes my life easier in one way or another and at this point, that means a lot. : )

Just got a tip on these bowls thanks to the Hostess Blog and decided to place an order.



These will be great for my son who is diabetic. It's important for him to accurately calculate the number of carbs he eats but who wants to bring out the measuring cups each and every time! I suspect one of our biggest problems is cereal in the morning. It's far to easy for the serving size to increase. Not a problem as long as he gives himself more insulin to cover it, however, that doesn't always happen. Son response: "But mom, I only had one bowl of cereal. That's always X carbs." Mom response: "But not all bowls are created equal. That one is a lot bigger!" That was a mock conversation to get the point across - LOL!

Anyway, these bowls have a visual of the serving size. The full size circle means ONE CUP. The two circles, TWO CUPS. I got the set with 6 sizes but you can order singles of the most popular sizes. Any help we can get I say!

look what i got! it's awesome. it's a color puzzle i spotted online about a month ago. although my dh doesn't quite "get-it", i love it! as i put it together today it helped remind me about color that i learned so long ago. what i love about it is it was fun to put together, it's a learning tool, it serves as inspiration and it reminds me of my mom. all really good things. i'm going to hang it in my create room to look at all the time. i can't wait!

what a good weekend and a good day today. we are in hanging out mode this entire week. i've remained in my pj's and sat near the couch the entire day. it's going on 5:00 pm and i have to get changed because we are continuing our fun times by going out to dinner this evening with good friends and neighbors.

this has been a tough year for a lot of people we know and we've done our best to try to make this christmas 2006 a special one for each of those close to us. i hope they all know how much they mean to us and i wish nothing but the best for everyone (including us) for the upcoming 2007 year.

happy holiday and new year everyone!

Today was a good day - mail wise. I love it when I get things I've ordered in the mail and it's even more special when multiple items arrive on the same day! Here's what I got:

I've been considering getting some Birkenstocks and happened by the TV last weekend when QVC was on and it was a Birkey day. It was time for me to get my "winter shoes" so I pulled the trigger and ordered these. I got the Mocha color - yummy! Only problem I might have ordered a size too large. I'm truely in between a 36 (5 1/2 - 6) and 37 (6 1/2 - 7). I'm a 6 - 6 1/2. I went into a local store to see what size I am and I couldn't decide. The 36 was a bit snug, the 37 a bit roomy. I ended up ordering the 37 but I may have made a mistake. Ugggh. I have 30 days to decide. I'm going to get some funky socks and see if that makes a difference. I'm hoping since I will be wearing these with socks that I made the right choice with the 37. Only time will tell, and so will I.

The other thing I got was this months Jenni Bowlin scrapbook kit. Love it! It's so fun opening the package to see what she is including this month. It never stops to amaze me that the kit always looks better in person then the picture on her website. Not that the picture is bad mind you but for some reason I'm never quite sure. But, when it comes it's always perfect! I think only one time have I followed her instructions and used the products like she has chosen to do. It's just my way of getting product I wouldn't necessarily be able to find in any of the stores or at least in just one store. Only problem with this shipment was the box was damaged and all the yummy papers were bent. Really bent. Bent enough to really bother me. This is heavy duty paper and you can really tell. I just hate that. I emailed her to let her know. That was disappointing.

Overall, even though both items have some issue with it, I'm still glad I ordered them. Once I resolve the shoe size issue and hopefully get some unbent papers I will be one happy camper. To top this day off the mail didn't have any bills in it! Now that's what I call a good mail day!

On a sidebar, having referenced QVC above. This was my first experience with QVC. I've watched the infommercials before but never ordered anything. So funny 'cause when I was done placing my order and giving my credit card information she confirmed my order and then welcomed me to the QVC family. LOL! This could be dangerous.

Reading blogs is a lot of fun but can be extremely time consuming. I have been limiting myself to a select few but on those rare moments when I don't have a lot to do I treat myself to some blog surfing. It's amazing how fast time goes by! On one of the blogs I was checking out (I will get better with giving proper credit eventually) I discovered Bloglines - a site they recommended. Bloglines offers a service (among many others I have yet to fully check out) to help speed up the time it takes to check out the blogs you visit regularly. Although it did take me a little while to initially set it up.

To get things going you just enter the sites that you want to visit regularly. Bloglines then keeps track of those sites that have been updated so no more checking on a blog to find out it hasn't been updated - which is absolutely no fun! I have my Bloglines link on my toolbar. When I want to see who has updated their blog I click on this link. I see immediately who's site has new information. I just click on the link provided and viola I'm there. Huge time saver! I can quickly scan the information and soak up others bloggers words of wisdoms or tips and go on with my day.

So if you visit many blogs throughout the day, or would like the ability to do so without consuming a lot of your time, check out Bloglines. I highly recommend it.

I do have more to talk about then pillows and planners but since I've already started these thoughts I'll finish them now so I can move on to something else. I picked up the Franklin Planner pages a few days ago and put them in my new "defective" binder this evening. They refunded my money and I'm on email notification once the new binders come in. I was going to use my old binder (which is still in pretty good condition) but I just had to try out the picture slot on the new binder. It's really awesome and the less then stable feel of the binder is actually growing on me. I'm LOVING having my planner back. I'm quickly filling it up and so far it's working out well coordinating between my online and paper planners.

Pillows... I found out what pillows the hotel had. I began with the hotel and only had to speak with three people before finding the person that knew what I wanted. The pillows are made by Northern Feather who has a website (DreamMakers) but the wonderful pillows aren't on the site apparently. The pillows I'm longing for are called Luxuriously Feather & Down - firm. The king sizes are $100 each, 20% down/80% feathers. Yummy! I'm siked. I'm not in a position to buy them now but they will be on my WISH LIST. I want four just like the hotel had. They are AWESOME! What was really cool was once I got past the initial person on the phone, the remaining two women didn't think it was an odd request to get pillow information. Apparently I'm not the only one that has wanted this information. I really appreciate that and the fact they were able to give me the information I was seeking. AWESOME!

It's late now and I can't sleep. Tomorrow is the first day in quite awhile that I will have the house to myself most of the day. All my boys are going racing and I'm staying home to take care of the neighbors dog children. LOL! My house is already clean and most of the laundry is already done. I think tomorrow will be a great day to work in my scrapbook room. It's something new I've put together. About a month ago it was decided (dh and myself) that there was really no need for a quest room since we only have 1 guest a year. We converted it into my scrapbook room. Since we've done it I haven't had any time to really finish pulling it all together yet alone do any scrapping. Tomorrow may just be the perfect day! I'll keep you updated.