Is the Inlaw rumor true?

When I first met Mr.Awesome I was very hesitant to speak up about things…anything really. I would let people walk all over me and just make excuses for why they did. Sometimes it had a negative effect on me, and other times, if I was lucky it didn’t really affect me…thank you God. Then Mr. Awesome spoke up and said I needed to start standing up for myself and speaking up when things need to be addressed. Of course I couldn’t just change my ways immediately, but I was up for trying it….it definitely didn’t come easy. Then little by little it got easier. I started to see how much better I felt standing up for myself and what I believe in that it started coming a little easier.

Fast forward to today. I’ve been married for 3 years and I have a 19 month old. I’ve been pretty open to constructive criticism on how to raise my son and I have also shared a lot, if not all his important childhood milestones to date with family and friends. I can handle a lot, but a few things I cannot handle, and frankly I shouldn’t have to because I’m his mom and Mr. Awesome is his dad and we shouldn’t have to answer to anyone on the decisions we make for our son or our family. Call us bad parents, but we don’t panic when BA1 has a cough, or when he’s on his 5th antibiotic in 19 months, or when his cheeks get red when he is super active, or gets warm. We know kids get sick when they are in daycare all the time, we know doctor’s would tell us if they were concerned about the number of antibiotics he’s been on and we already know he has excema and while we apply lotion it’s not a life or death matter and it doesn’t bother him. We take him out way past his bedtime, we let him eat sweets, we let him play outside even if it’s a little to warm out and we even let him jump off the couch if he wants (gasp), but he’s a boy…a healthy, happy and very smart little boy who loves to cuddle, talks your ear off and is going non-stop 24 hours a day. We are good parents. We aren’t perfect parents, but neither were our parents or their parent’s parents. We love our son and would never willingly put him in harms way. Why do people have such a hard time understanding this???

Back to the real reason for this post. My MIL over-reacts..a lot…and she gets upset with us when we say something about it. So I finally said something and now she is ignoring me…it’s like walking on eggshells around her. At first it didn’t bother me, whatever, I have too much stress in my life courtesy of my job to have to deal with this too. Now, it just angers me because she wants to see BA1 but she won’t call me and ask. She only calls Mr. Awesome. I am his mom and I’m not going to make an effort to get BA1 over to see you if you are going to treat me like that. I also don’t think this is something I need to address, I think it’s Mr.Awesome's responsibility. If my mom was making him uncomfortable I would most definitely talk to her. I’ve done it before with my grandma who likes to push off her religious beliefs on Mr. Awesome and I’d do it again if I had to. I have no desire to do anything that involves me being around her and that’s unfortunate because if I’m not there BA1 won’t always be there. So what do you think? Mr. Awesome needs to speak up, or do I just carry on the way I’m doing now and not let it stress me out?

Valuable Information

This will be a short but sweet post.....As those of you who read this blog know for my birthday I got my very first JU JU BE diaper bag..I LOVE IT...and have since been looking for the next size bigger one for traveling purposes...but they are super expensive!! Anyways a friend recommended this online store Little Dudes and Divas and I LOVE IT.....they are the most reasonable around that I have found and they also have a HUGE selection of lots of cool stuff..including JU JU BE.....Infact, there monthly special is the JU JU BE Packabe Dizzy Daisies Design...love it!

Go here and check it out....http://www.littledudesanddivas.com

AND you can follow them on facebook!

Happy Shopping!

The worst thing in the world....

Have you ever been so stressed out that you can’t even write things down? Ugh..I hate that feeling, and I’m just like my dad when it comes to that stuff…meaning…I worry worry worry..then 2 weeks later..I’m done worrying..only to start over with the worrying about a month later.

So Mr. Awesome is working again! WOO HOO! It feels like when he started working we should have had sooo much more money than we did when he was unemployed…wrong-o. It’s no secret we have loads and loads of credit card debt..which is OUR FAULT… (more-so mine since I carry mine from college) but it’s like how do we possibly pay stuff off if we have hardly anything extra at the end of the month to put forth to it? It’s a vicious cycle. You don’t want to NOT pay certain bills because it ruins your credit and eventually we will need a new car, new house, etc and we won’t be able to get one with a tarnished credit history, and honestly, who wants to NOT pay their bills and get rid of them? I just wish someone would randomly leave an envelope of money or a check on our doorstep to put toward some bills!!!!

I’ve thought about this long and hard and while it sucks right now I’m not going to let it ruin my life. I’m not going to put my life on hold while we pay off debt. My life would be on hold for years and that’s not a fun way to live.

I just wish things were different in that aspect. I wish we had a hefty savings. I wish we had no credit card debt! I wish I never accumulated as much student loan debt either!!!! Ugh…

Sorry for the rant. I just needed to get it off my chest!

HELP!

Mr. Awesome and me have embarked on a weight loss competition, and while I am super proud of him because he is doing so well, I’m very upset with myself. I cannot for the life of me lose weight. I tried sticking to a very strict diet a month ago and I lost 2lbs in one week…continued on it for another week and lost nothing, same story the following week. It got to be real old real quick. I tried and tried, but seriously it depresses you when you don’t see any pounds falling off. Which leads me to my next problem. When I don’t see any weight coming off, I stray from my diet because my state of mind is why eat healthy and miss out on the “good stuff” if it’s not helping, which is totally the wrong state of mind. Ugh…I think I need to see drastic results or I’m going to be in this funk forever.

It’s really taking its toll on me this time, mainly because I feel lousy. I am dealing with a not very fun, or flattering haircut which happened about a month ago and now needs to grow back out before anything decent can be done with it, a lousy diet that’s not working and just an overall feeling of being unappealing and it’s sucking my energy and my good moods right out of me. I just feel gross. I don’t Mr. Awesome to be repulsed by me nor do I want others to be either, and that’s what I’m thinking is happening right now…I need some serious motivation…..Anybody have any tips?

And then there was 1...

It's no secret we have a very un-trainable dog..who jumps are fence and runs away several times a month, sometimes less. We also have another dog, SAME KIND, SAME BREED, SAME LITTER who never even attempts to run away even if you leave the gate open for a brief second...well today the dog with 9 lives (actually more like 24) ran away AGAIN....and this time she wasn't so lucky..no one has picked her up and taken her to the Humane Society and no one has picked her up and taken her to the police station...like some of the times before....I'm not happy about it..but I'm jsut so frustrated because it happens sooo often and nothing has been done to fix it...I wanted to go along with my parents recommendation and getting a fenced in area for her to go in when she goes outside that she can't get out of and Mr. Awesome didn't want that because it wouldn't look good in the yard.
Yes, it's going to be hard for our other dog to adjust without the other, but we did what we could do by looking for her, calling and putting in missing dog reports, and nothing has come of it. It's cold, we live by some busy streets, there is nothing we can really do anymore.

What I hate is that Mr. Awesome is moping around and barely saying 2 words to me, keeps looking out the window to see if he can see her. I don't know if he's upset with me for not acting like I care or what, but it's not fair. I have cared too much and I gave up on that 5 times ago when she ran away. I trusted that Mr. Awesomes idea to keep her in the yard was going to work, I gave up on the fenced in kennel outside after he repeatedly told me no...I just don't have the time or energy to worry everytime I let her outside...It gets very frustrating....frustrated with the dog and Mr. Awesome.

Yes, I hope she miraculously comes home, but I'm not going to mope about it because that dog has cost us way more than she should have, caused me stress that I don't need and basically just has been a pain with this running away garbage. But you can bet your butt that if and when she comes home we WILL be getting a fenced in cage in our yard for her...Mr.Awesome can be mad at me forever but at least he will have his dog.

What a selfish little.....

We ended 2009 on a bad note…but I decided to change my attitude and let 2010 (while still filled with one major struggle) start off on a good note…I can’t lie since 2010started many things that could have gone wrong have NOT…so there is a plus already….Up until the other day I felt really good about my new attitude. Before Mr. Awesome was laid off back in June 09 we had a tentative plan of wanting to keep our kids 2 years apart. Nothing was in stone and we were both definitely able to change our minds, but 2 years seemed good. I didn’t want to get out of the “baby ways” only to start all over again. I wanted to keep things as close together as we could manage. After Mr. A got laid off I still wasn’t panicked about it interrupting our family plans because after all we weren’t ready to have another yet anyways and he would surely have a job by the time that came around. Now it’s February and Mr. A is still unemployed and it’s starting to get to me..not that he is unemployed so much (although I would love for him to have a job) but the fact that people around me who were pregnant when I was pregnant with BA1 are now pregnant with their second, our friends are starting to get pregnant and it would be super nice to have kids close in age so when we get together they can play.

I’m super happy for all the people around me who are pregnant for the first time as well as the 2nd and even the 4TH, but a part of me feels like I could be more excited, no I should be more excited for them. I’m not selfish by any means, but I feel it right now. It’s such a yuck feeling. I’m having so much fun with BA1 and am focusing on that, but I miss his baby phase..(If you would have asked me if I could see myself missing this 3 weeks after BA1 was born I would have laughed at you).

I know we will have another baby, but my positive outlook transformation has taken a nose dive while I am bummed about not being able to try now. Does this make me a bad person?

I wish I was 10 again...

Remember when you were young and it was OK to make and hand out "birthday lists?" I wish I could still do that without the feeling that I am being greedy and selfish and expecting things..ha...with that being said I never really ask for anything, at Christmas, for birthdays, etc..but this year...I'm not going to lie there are a few things that have caught my eye that have made me wish I was 10 again so I could create my ideal birthday list and hand it out to all. Well, I'm not 10 and it certainly isn't appropriate to make a list and hand it out, but I can share it with all of you since all the things I want are super cool (I think) and maybe it will persuade you to purchase one for yourself..or me of course..ha :)

First off..we all know women who are moms ALWAYS ask for things for their kids..I think since BA1 was born I have bought maybe 10 things for myself and 1 billion things for him....it's just one of the things that happens when you become a mom...well this is my ONE item for BA1...


Ju Ju Be--be all Diaper Bag--BA1's diaper bag is ruined...those things truly do get beat to hell..I have managed to break 2 zippers, rip about 8 pockets and can't tell you how many times I ripped the bag because it's cheap plastic and gets caught on EVERYTHING...this bag, while expensive will last a lifetime (or is MR.Awesome gives in--through 4-5 kids) ha


My second thing is just a practical gift..I like to send little notecards to people and this online company is AMAZING...She gets 100% of my business for any stationary needs.



And how super cute are these.....???

It's no secret I CARRY ALOT of bags to and from work...and I need a new one, as my current one says the name of BA1's daycare center on it...so uncool, huh? How about this one...LL Bean online carries these and I love them and would like one in the MEDIUM size..



I can't have a wish list without including something that Mr. Awesome would benefit from as well...but I must admit..I share in his frustration with our spice cabinet...we DEFINATELY need a spice rack...



And Kohls always comes through for me on the home stuff....16 jars...and a decent price..PERFECT.

I also need some new perfume...I got one from Christmas but would really like at least one more...any suggestions on a new fragrance I may like..I like a little citrus in my fragrances, and a little clean scent as well. One of my favorites I want to buy now is LOLA....



And last but not least..I need..scratch that...WANT these super cute slippers...jsut because I want...and for no other reason..haha..God I love LL Bean.


This is my list...I could mimic my yonger sister and make sure I put prices as well as locations these can be purchased, but I don't think I can get away with that..since I am 26..not 10 anymore..hehe

Somber start to the week....

My family is infamous for calling after 9pm ANY NIGHT of the week..so we’ve slowly eased our way out of the initial “emergency call” thought and take late night calls in stride—most of the time…It has even become some sort of a joke so to speak…the phone rings..I say the repetitive..who could be calling us so late…and hubby says..who ALWAYS calls us late? Then we both know instantly it’s my family…until last night.

We were watching We are Marshall relaxing on the couch when the phone rings…my sister (who is spending the night) brings the phone to me and tells me its coming up on the caller ID as Mr.Awesome’s aunt….well..okay she is supposed to watch BA1 on Wednesday so maybe she is calling to tell me she can’t. That’s my initial thought, but then it’s quickly disposed of since it’s almost 10pm on SUNDAY why would she be calling to tell me this now.

Within seconds the idea of late night phone calls being typical and normal becomes non-existant. Mr. Awesome’s stepdad’s father had a massive heart attack and passed away a little while ago. Complete and utter shock I think took over right away since we seriously JUST SAW THEM….It is so sad to think of someone leaving their loved ones so quickly. No chance to say their goodbyes..nothing. Please keep their family in your prayers.

I think it’s safe to say late night phone calls will have a new meaning to us now for awhile at least!

Hope everyone else’s week started off great!

I loathe FANTASY SPORTS....

My husband is mad at me..he says he's not, but he is...he's mad because he had to give up his spot in his annual fantasy football league because he's not working and I can't justify spending $50.00 on "fun stuff" right now when there are things we are sacrificing. Yes, we do get a pizza occassionally and yes I buy BA1 a toy here and there, but if we didn't incorporate stuff like that into our daily schedules we would go nuts...

My husband tells me (and would tell you) that fantasy football doesn't take up as much time as I make it out to, but it really does. He's constantly checking stats, changing players, trash talking on the boards.

The deal was he could do fantasy football if he had a job by the draft date..well the draft date is quickly approaching and nothing has come up. He took on a bouncing job at a bar a few nights a week so he can bring in extra cash and thought that he could use that money for his league. Normally that would make sense, but we have car insurance bill coming up in September, I haven't gotten a hair cut in seriously 5 months..and look like complete ass...BA1 needs some new clothes because he is growing out of all of his and doesn't have any fall clothes...and we have been scrimping on groceries and paying only the minimum on our credit card bills...doesn't it make more sense to contribute that money to our monthly budget, or am I being unreasonable by asking him to give up fantasy football?

Stressed backwards is desserts. Where are my desserts?

Things have been super hectic to say the least…Mr. Awesome is still un-employed..can’t seem to find anything..it really is sucky…but everyone keeps telling me that everything happens for a reason..I sure hope that’s right. Then onto my wonderful job which has decided to move me to a new location, which makes my commute about an hour each way as opposed to my 20 minute/30 minute drive now…ugh, as if we can afford the extra gas right now. But, be thankful I still have a job.

Oh yea, about my job. Let me just explain that our company started this new plan in March called “Project Fuel” their goal is make the company run more efficiently so they can compete with more companies in their line of work. Sounds good right? WRONG-O…at our company Project Fuel has such a horrible meaning to so many people. They are laying off people left and right and without any warning, other than the fact that they were going to be laying off 1400 people within the next 2 years….WTF….

Anyways, we were told about a month ago that consultants were in looking at our department for possibly outsourcing..wonderful. They won’t give us anymore information. So we are left hanging. Will we have a job in a month, will we be laid off? Who knows…all I know is the severance package I would get would only cover my for about 6 weeks..not much at all….and BA1 needs some health insurance.

Our van (which we bought as a used car about 3 months ago as a back up car) is doing weird things. It’s like it’s possessed or something. The electric sliding door just randomly opens and closes..yea that’s awesome huh? Need to get that fixed. Will be starting a FUND for that soon, you can donate to theawesomeclan@gmail.com ..Kidding kidding!

Baby Awesome has been teething, which is a totally different experience than when he got his first 2 teeth..this has proven to be fun. Let me tell you..Hylands teething tablets are a GODSEND..and if you have babies at home or will be..GET THEM..and always have them on hand!!!!!!! Side note: You can also get the liquid form at Target (in a Winnie the Pooh bottle) and you just put one dropper full under their tongue, then you don’t have to rub their gums.

I’ve been exhausted, Mr. Awesome has been playing softball every Tuesday and Friday and is also involved in other activities that take up a little more time as well..overall we have basically been super busy…and super stressed.

Hopefully better things are on the horizon!

It's the Little Things in Life...

Mr. Awesome had to help me create a garden. Last night I went out to check on it and I noticed I have a mini jalapeno poking through, a few tomatoes (yellow mini ones and big red ones), eggplant, yellow squash, green peppers, cucumbers, yellow bell peppers and a cantalope, yes a cantalope. I was super excited!

And..the previous owners of the house left us some wonderful raspberry plants. ahhh I love raspberries.

Also, after two attempts I have wonderful flowers growing in the front yard...I came in the house last night so excited...I guess it's the little things in life these days that make me happy!

Mr. Awesome's Grumpy Old Gripe

Saddle on up buck-a-roos, it is time for me to lay down some knowledge on you. My gripe today is about speaking with accents. What drives me nuts is when someone who does not have an accent, a Spanish accent for example, says a word in a specific language with the accent of that language. I had a professor in college, former nun, old white lady, kind of crotchety, but 100% not Spanish sounding. Well she would talk about her trips she would take to El Salvador, and I swear that whenever she would say El Salvador, it would need English subtitles. What the heck? How dumb does it sound when you are saying a sentence with your old lady Midwest accent and then you go to say El Salvador and you turn into a Flamenco dancer. My dad does this, it drives me nuts. But he does it with Italian words. My dad does not speak a lick of Italian, but apparently is fluent in Italian Foods. Ricotta, when said by my dad, somehow becomes some Mafioso sounding word. It is like he turns in to the Godfather for that one glorious word. Alright, Mrs. Awesome is yelling at me that I am taking too long, she needs me to run to el supermarche to pick up some Ricotta.

And another thing, I am sick of hearing about Michael Jackson, so here is a video for you that sums up my feelings toward him. As a warning, it is definitely, NSFW! Jon Lajoie on Michael Jackson.

Bacne (and not the back kind)

Baby Awesome (BA1) has come down with a case of baby acne. It's not bad really, but it's the start and I don't want it to get out of control. I don't know if it's the heat thats causing his skin to not be as smooth as it was when he was born, or what, but I know I don't like it! I have tried the Aquaphor lotion on it before bed, but that didn't help any.

Any suggestions on how to tame this?

Culinary GOD

Tonight pork tenderloin was on the menu for dinner..I wasn’t sure how I was going to cook it, but I knew I was going to put it in the crockpot. That was until Mr. Awesome decided HE was going to make dinner tonight. He wanted me to leave the tenderloin seasoning up to him. Let me explain to you how Mr. Awesome works. He loves to season things up..oftentimes way to much, but he’s got good intentions. His favorite seasoning; CUMIN, don’t ask. I stopped. He puts it on everything. Needless to say I arrived home tonight and found the most delicious dinner(no lie) I have ever tasted. I would love to give you the recipe, but Mr. Awesome kinda “winged it” so to speak, maybe I can get him to share on the blog. I’ll beg, I mean ask tonight!

I can tell you though what it entailed. It was a whole beef tenderloin he cut into medallions and seared mixed it with Sherry, water and flour to thicken. He put fresh garlic, some other seasonings and a can of black beans in with it. He let it cook until it was so tender I could use a fork to cut through it. AMAZING.

I was impressed, and once Mr. Awesome is working again we may have to invest in several pork tenderloins and he can cook dinner more often!

Promises Promises

Sorry everyone I have been HORRIBLE with updating…unfortunately things are super stress(as you can imagine) and it’s hard to find time right now to update, but I will PROMISE for real to try my hardest.

On a completely different note, has anyone seen the new Purex washer/dryer sheets? They are supposed to be very convenient, as you just throw one in the washer and make sure you transport it with the clothes when you put them in the dryer. It has the laundry detergent, fabric softener and the dryer sheet all in one. Well…I had some coupons (you will learn soon enough) I LOVE COUPONS….so I tried them…AND HATED THEM…

Let me just say, they are convenient, and I am sure Mr. Awesome would appreciate them if he did the laundry more, but they leave little pieces of blue paper ALL over your clothes…it’s awful. At first I thought maybe someone left a piece of paper in their pocket, but soon realized when I did another load it was indeed the sheets. I don’t think I will be using them anymore, luckily they are offering a money back guarantee…I will surely be sending mine in!

Start of my weight loss journey.....

Today starts my 1st REAL attempt at losing weight since I have put on quite a bit more since having a baby. I don't understand it, but I go nuts trying to so I am going to try my hardest and since I'm a girl and overly self conscious I won't post my starting weight on here I will just post how much I would like to lose and where I am in the process. Ideally I would like to lose 100lbs to be my IDEAL WEIGHT...but ehh I don't know if that will happen. We will see.

If you have any low-fat recipes you can share or any losing weight tips please share them..I need all the help I can get. I'm also going to start working out and my wonderful mom has given us her treadmill she bought a few months back and doesn't really use.. woo hoo

There are three things that are KEY to me losing this weight...
1) NO SWEETS/SUGAR
2) NO fast food
3) No eating after 7pm everynight
4) (okay maybe 4 things)----WORKING OUT

Let's hope this is one successful weight loss journey.

On an exciting note..one of the bloggers I follow on a regular basis, Misadventures of a Newlywed is holding a giveway beginning today for some very cool BAREFOOT wine items. Stop on over and check it out..you have until July 19th to get in on the fun!

Back at it...

Sorry bloggers...I have been MIA for quite some time, but I am back now and hopefully out of the funk I have been in.

A few weeks back Mr. Awesome lost his job. We knew it was coming, we just didn't know when. The business he was in was slowing because of the economy and they have been cutting people in the months prior, but it was his turn. We lucked out for awhile, but couldn't get out of it this time. Now normally I would go into immediate panic mode, but I have tried from the moment he walked in the door and told me to try and NOT do that. Of course, I panic from time to time but nothing like how I normally would. I know he is going to be upset and depressed by what happened, and I don't want to add to his worries and so forth. That and we just can't afford to do that now with BA1 in the house..he's always so happy and why would I want to bring him down?

Now the job search is on and hopefully something comes quick.

We did get a sweet vacation out of all of this...and while we were gone I found these....has anyone tried them...all I can say is AMAZINGGGGGGGGGG---YUM. They are cherry flavored kinda like licorice, with a soft sour filling. The only place I can seem to find them is the gas station..hmm..must stock up on them! :)

That's all for now, I'm going to enjoy this weather!

P.S Mr. Awesomes gripe will be back this week as well!

Need to win the lottery

This is my new obsession..I have to have it...Visit Preppy Princess to purchase your own.

Home today...cleaning the house while BA1 sleeps for awhile! :)

Mr. Awesome's Grumpy Old Gripe

Apparently my wife blogs about my my family. I figured if she was going to talk about us, that I should get in on that too. So I proposed to her a once a week feature, called Mr. Awesome's Grumpy Old Gripe. I will gripe like an old man about something that is on my mind, in under 5 grammatical errors or less (not guarenteed.)

My first gripe is one I am sure many of you share with me. It all started during our snowy Wisconsin winter, the Aweome Wife and I took a snow day after we woke up to double digit inches of snow. We had prepared in advance by renting a couple movies, just in case. We each got to choose a movie, she chose Mama Mia. What a miserable excuse for a movie that was. That brings us to our first gripe: why the hell was Pierce Brosnan giving a singing role. I mean come on, I know Pierce has the sex appeal of 10 Mr. Awesome's, but I would rather listen to Mrs. Awesome cackle out Row Row Row Your Boat. At some point, the casting director should have realized something was up when his or her ears started bleeding. No amount of sex appeal made up for the rusty pipes that belonged to a former 007. For those of you that have not seen the movie, first let me suggest you wear that fact as a badge of honor, and second, let me try and create an analogy for you. His singing was like listening to Roseanne Barr recited Shakespeare. It was like listening to a voice message from Helen Keller. The sound that came out of his mouth had less appeal than the mole on the lunch ladies arm that always seemed to have 3 long hairs coming out of it. What was this casting director thinking, there had to be someone with a moderate amount of singing ability that has sex appeal, even to Mr. Awesome. If they have a sequel, and this is just an Awesome Brand Suggestion, but maybe Uncle Jesse, and his Rippers are available.

HAVE MERCY! (on my ears)

And now presenting...Mr. A

Mr. A feels left out..he wants to blog..so every Wednesday he's going to guest blog on my blog with his RANT OF THE WEEK....tune in..I can promise he's entertaining!!!


:)