Trying to keep this us

Yesterday after my post, I accomplished quite a bit. I did four loads of laundry and folded everything, changed the sheets on the bed, picked up the kitchen some, grocery shopped for the week at 3 stores, organized my scrapbooking closet, started moving everything back into the dining room, and I think that's about it. I feel pretty good about yesterday. Today, not so much!

I woke up to an even sicker husband. So, I got him a few things, let myself go back to sleep (that's what happens when you stay up till 4), then finally got up to get ready for my doctor's appointment. Usually, I dread going to the doctor. I hate going to the doctor. Ironic, huh? Well, today I had a dermatologist appointment. Shame on me, I haven't went in atleast 4 years.  I don't know why I haven't gone, the one doctor I love to go to is my dermatologist. I've been going to the same one since junior high, and she's amazing. I made my appointment in October and the first opening they had was today. I just went for a general skin check and I had a few questions for her. She decided I needed to have a mole removed that she always told me to "just keep an eye on." She said she's 90% sure that its nothing, but better safe than sorry! The numbing medicine barely hurt, I didn't feel anything from the procedure. I was fine until the lidocaine wore off. And now, OWW!  After my appointment, I decided that since I only had a few hours until I had to meet up with some friends for a birthday get together, I would just hang out and kill time. I went to the Ashland Mall and tried on a few things, window shopped, and walked out buying zilch. Then I went to look at furniture at Big Sandy and didn't find what I wanted. Finally, I decided to call a friend in town and just hang out for 1/2 hour or so. Gotta love girl time! I haven't been too productive today, so hopefully tomorrow is better and I can tackle my huge to-do list!

Not to be out done!

Ok, I've had this blog for quite some time, I think almost a year. (Sadly, I remember starting this during the derm block and that's how I date my last two years, and I think that was February-March ish.) I've only had 13 posts? I need to get on the ball! My friend Sarah has started a blog and I can't be outdone with her posting more than me!

I'm trying, along with everyone else it seems, to get myself organized. Ask any of my friends, I'm not the neatest person. I'm not dirty, I'm messy. I also start school next week and I hope to have my house is order before I start. The 1st thing on my list was to get my dining room to the point it can be used. I need multiple places to study. When you are studying 24/7, you need a change of scenery.  So, thankfully, my floors are done, so I Kyle moved my table from the sunroom to the dining room so I could use it. Its definitely not my style and does not "go" with the room, but it works for now! All that I needs to be done in that room is trim and I don't care how long that takes! Now to the rest of my list!

1. Dining room in working order
2. Move everything back in dining room - started but needs more work
3. Clean/Organize office
4. Clean carpets in Kyle's room
5. Do some once a month cooking

Not too bad right?

I've started on my office, but since I got my new Cricut, its hard. I keep wanting to play with it! I even sewed a cover for it the other day.

See how bad my office needs organized? There is paper in the background, a box of board review books, a new food processor, and who knows what else.  I've cleaned a little since then, but you get the picture!  I'd take pictures of what the rest of this place, but I think I'd be too embarrassed! Hopefully, tomorrow I'll have some progress to add!

Good News!

After a sleepless night and a restless day, I got good news. My dad is aneurysm free! His doctor stressed that just because my dad doesn't have one now, he could develop one, but this would be rare to be genetic as my uncle was told his were probably present at birth (like most aneurysms).  He also stressed that just because my dad is in the clear it doesn't mean that the rest of the siblings are. He would like at least 2-3 of the kids to be tested.  Who knows if that will happen knowing how they are about doctors, but its a start!

Also, my dining room is ALMOST finished. The tile has been laid and the grout is complete. Now we just have to do trim, light fixtures, and install the air vents. WOO-HOO! Can't wait to post pictures!

Thoughts appreciated...

A few months ago, Dad's oldest brother was working in his garage and dropped a beam on his head. No one knew that day how much of a blessing his accident was. Thankfully, a neighbor was with him when his accident happened and called 911 to get the squad to take my uncle to the hospital.  He was conscious, but the hospital wanted to do a CT.  When they got the results, we were told that he had two brain aneurysms.  He then met with a neurologist in Columbus. They found 3 aneurysms with that scan. One of the aneurysms was so large and clogged that it could not be stinted. They had to actually go into his brain to correct it. Surgery was planned but of course getting two neurosurgeons to be free at the same time and getting insurance to approve the surgery took longer than expected. He went into surgery in November and was told to expect to the in the hospital for 4 days or so.  After his surgery, we were told that he would be "touch and go" for a few days. Things were much worse than expected but the doctor was certain that if he did not have this fixed, it would have burst.  I guess he was lucky to hit his head. He was on a ventilator for over a week and in a medically induced coma for that time.  He also had a stroke a day or so after surgery.  Two weeks after the surgery, he was released to the local hospital for rehab.  Being moved to the local hospital was great for him. Some of my family lives in Columbus, but most of them live in Minford.  He had so many visitors, both family and friends.  After a few weeks of rehab, the therapists wanted to take him to a nursing home but he and my aunt insisted he go home.  Uncle Bob has made a miraculous recovery so far. He still has a long way to go.  He can walk and take care of himself for the most part but still can only say a few words (yes, no, etc).  He cannot stay home alone. And, he still has 2 aneurysms to be fixed. Thankfully, the doctors think they can stint those, so this procedure will be like having a heart cath and a lot less risky. I have a large family (that's an understatement), and since my grandma died 10 years ago, we haven't really had a family member sick.  Bob getting sick has made me realize that my uncles and aunts are getting older and it scares me. I am so close to most of my family and I can't imagine life without them. If it tells you anything, out of 8 uncles, 8 aunts, 17 first cousins and over 20 second cousins, I am the ONLY one who doesn't live in Ohio and only 1 cousin doesn't live in between Minford and Columbus. 

The whole reason I am going into all this is because the doctors are concerned that his type of aneurysm is genetic. With there being 9 kids in the family, statistically, another family member has them also.  My Dad is probably the only "kid" (that's what I grew up call my dad's siblings) that goes to the doctor regularly. I guess he knows between my mom and I that we will make him go.  Dad had a CT scan December 15th. He finally has his appointment tomorrow to get the results.  My mom can't get off work to go, so I am going with him. I'm scared. I'm scared that my dad is going to have to go through what my uncle Bob has. I'm scared to go through that with my Dad.  I can't cry in front of my dad. I don't know why, I guess its looking weak in front of him (I couldn't even let myself cry in front of him at my grandma's funeral).  I'm scared to have to be the one to break the news to my mom and sister while being strong for my dad.  I keep telling myself that the doctor was optimistic that the scan would come back ok because Dad has perfect blood pressure and perfect cholesterol (shockingly!).  My only request is that if you re reading this, you say or a prayer or think good thoughts for my family tomorrow.

Wow, I didn't think this would get so personal, but it makes me feel better to get it out!

Last Deals of the Year

I know, I've been bad, I haven't updated in awhile. I wanted to earlier this week, but I wanted to add pictures and my husband left our camera in our hometown.

Earlier this week, I went to CVS to pick up a few of their deals.  I bought Pantene shampoo and condition for 2/$6.97 then I got 2 ECB for them and I had a coupon for $2.00 off 2. So that made those less than a dollar a bottle. Then I bought Dawn dish soap with hand renewal (if you haven't tried it, you need to, its amazing in dry weather).  They were regularly $1.50 each and on sale for $.94. I had 2 $.50 coupon so I only paid $.44 each.  They also had Olay body wash on sale for $6.97 with 3 ECB and I had a $3.00 coupon, so that was $.97.  Then they had Gillette razors on sale for $6.99 with 4 ECB and I had a $4.00 coupon so that one was FREE! All in all for shampoo, conditioner, 2 bottles of dish soap, Olay body wash, and a razor after ECB I paid $5.99! Woo-hoo!!!

Last night, my friend Jenna called to tell me a show was on that I had mentioned to her. Its called extreme couponing.  These people are obsessed. Yea, I love a good deal, but the ones who get 200 boxes of pasta just for themselves are crazy. I won't dumpster dive either! The guy that gave like 1000 boxes of cereal to charity, I'm ok with. So tonight, I felt like one of those people. I jammed up the cash register at Walmart. Here's why. While watching Extreme Couponing, I was going through my coupons and seeing what expires at the end of the month. I found quite a few good ones. It started when  I signed up this summer to host a party about Bomboli Pizza. Well, I didn't get to give out all my coupons, so I used them and plan to give most of the product to friends and family.  I had 14 coupons for $2 off any product. Their pizza sauce is $1.97. Guess who bought 14 boxes of sauce? ME! When the manager came over to unlock the register, he asked if I had lots of coupons, my answer was 25-30. He asked, "What? Did you have one for everything in your cart?" Yep, sure did, except for the beer and q-tips! My bill started at $92.07 before tax and was taken down to $34.62 after tax. I'm pretty proud of myself for getting 31 things for that price including shampoo, conditioner, cetaphil lotion, etc. I wish I could take a picture of all my loot!

Dining Room Remodel

Our drywaller finished yesterday, YAY! Thankfully, he sealed off the room pretty good so I had minimal cleaning. When they put up the drywall, they didn't seal it too well so I cleaned up a little then just put everything under plastic. Today, I took the plastic off then mopped the floors, dusted everything, then swept. I tried to clean the dining room, but I need an actual mop (I ususally just mop on my hands and knees) so that will have to wait until I go buy one. I can't wait to paint this week!

So far, we have torn down the drywall, re-wired the outlets, added a new place for a light ficture, added another light switch, moved the original light switch into the room, removed carpet AND tile, added some insulation, and tore down the ceiling. I feel so much better that this has taken almost 2 months now. I was starting to feel like we haven't done anything.  Originally, this room was a garage. Now, this is the room that connects the garage to the rest of the house.  The only light was on a far side of the room so it was always dark in there. The light switch was in the living room so when coming into the house from the garage you had to blindly walk across the room, up a few stairs, THEN turn on the light. Now, thanks to Kyle's papaw, we have lights switches on both sides of the room. I never thought I would be so excited! Now, for pictures!

Previous owners dining room - Yes there is regular and printed paneling, don't be jealous!

Most the paneling down and the carpet coming up

The damaged drywall under the paneling

Bye-bye drop ceiling

My "snow storm" of blown in inuslation that was inbetween the drop and normal ceilings

12 bags of ceiling tiles

Lovely tile under the carpet

Headless husband removing the supports for the drop ceiling - don't worry, I did a lot of work, he just didn't take any pictures of me doing it

YAY- Finished Drywall!

No more ugly door with a hole in it!

Deals of the week

This weekend, I've been pretty lazy. I went to a great game yesterday with my friends Sarah L and Johnny. I got to meet Sarah's boyfriend and her roomate came too. We had a pretty good time (aka chatting and eating plus a little football watching). Marshall won so that made it even better!


Anyway, today I sat down with my Sunday paper and my coupons and decided to get better at my sale shopping. I only get the Sunday paper for the coupons and the ads. Rarely, I will read the paper. I just started getting it delivered and am so happy to not have to go out early on Sunday mornings to get my paper then go shopping for the week.

Today, I went to CVS, Rite Aid, and Walmart. I am going to go to Kroger and Foodfair later in the week for a few things.

First off was Rite Aid. I picked up 4 bottles of VO5 shampoo (Kyle will use anything) for $0.67 each. They also had Herbal Essences shampoo on sale for $2.99 but then you got $2 in rebates for your next visit, AND I had a $1.00/2 coupon. My total was $8.18. I saved $4.28 and I got $4 in rebates.

Then I drove down the road to CVS. There I found cereal for 2/$4 then I had a coupon ($1.50/3) and $1.00 extra bucks off 2 boxes (limit 1). Dish soap for $0.99 then I had a $0.25 coupon. Hair spray for $2.99, coupon for $0.50 off 1, plus $2.00 extra bucks. They also had toothpaste on sale B1G1 and I had a $1 coupon. I spent $14.50, saved $21.28, and got $3 in extra bucks.

Then it was Walmart time. I bought our food for this week. Don't worry, we eat more fruits and veggies than I bought, I have some left from last week and I have lots in the freezer. AND we DO eat meat, but I don't buy it from Walmart and I only buy it on sale, so, once again, I have lots in the freezer. I spent $37 dollars BUT I found a $20 walmart gift card in an old purse that was still good, so I only spent $17! Woo-hoo! I saved $8.85. Not great, but not horrible.
 

Cooking and catching up

Lastnight I decided to get my rear in gear and start stocking my freezer again. I ended up making some homemade apple sauce (so easy and good) in the crock pot and chicken with homemade stock for chicken and noodles. I was so mad after I made the first batch of stock because after the work of cooking the chicken and taking the skin off and removing the bones (and I always burn myself when I do that), I knocked the container over all into my stove top and lost everything. I decide to not let the chicken go to waste, so I put it in a freezer bag and labeled it "Dog Chicken." I figure they won't notice if it has all over the counter/stove or not. So, I started again and made 2 more batches. Thankfully, they made it to the freezer without a catastrophe. Now, whenever I want chicken and noodles I can just make the noodles, thaw out my stock, and have a delicious dinner.

Tonight, I went to "Eat and Drink for Pink." Ever year, AMWA hosts this event to raise money for breast cancer research. This year and last year were at Fat Patty's. I mean, if you have to twist my arm, I guess I'll go to Fat Patty's. Its a good cause and all. ;) Thankfully, I got to catch up wwith a few of my friends while enjoying my beer and wrap. Unfortunately, now I'm stuffed but, again, it was for a good cause!

Finally back!

Sorry its been so long! I've had some big stuff going on in life (if you don't know and want to know, I will tell but its kinda personal) so I left bloggin world but now I'm back (holy run-on sentence)!

A few days ago, I started remodeling our dining room. We've only used it to sit infront of the firepalce a handful of times and its the passthru from the garage to the rest of the house. Basically, its been a catch all. Well, now that I have some time off, I've decided to tackle the room. It was all paneling to start off with. Not just paneling, 2 different types of paneling. Who knows why. So far, I have taken off all the moulding and all but 2 pieces of paneling. Behind most of the paneling surprisingly was drywall. Good, except for what I guess is remnants of carpenter ants. There are places of missing drywall paper and "trails" of dirt. I thought it may have been termites, but there is no wood damage to the studs or the actual paneling. There aren't any bugs, so thats good. Then I ripped off the paneling by the door to the garage. Someone has re-framed the door. My guess is the previous owners, they always do crappy work. Some of the wood that was new is pressure treated, why use pressure treated wood in the house? The top of the frame doesn't even span the whole door. No wonder that door sticks. Dumb-asses! Anyway, the remodeling is going well so far. Not too many surprises that I can't handle. Next is the carpet then the ceilings! Wish me luck!

Last night I actually made dinner. I found a recipe online for chicken parmesean. It was really good and quite easy. Kyle liked it and even offered to eat the left overs (he doesn't usually like leftovers). Here is the recipe. I found that it needed to be cooked a few more minutes than the reciped called for but I had really thick chicken breasts. I served it over pasta and with salad. Hope you enjoy it!

I've been crafting a lot here lately and can't wait to show it off but I have to wait till after my friend's shower cause she might be lurking on here!

I started my C25k late last week. OMG I am OUT OF SHAPE! I mean I knew it was bad, but I didn't know I was that bad. On to day 2 tomorrow! Hopefully, I don't fall over dead half way through!

Friday morning, I saw that someone (I figure a kid) left a bike half in my drive way half in the neighbors yard, its happened before but was only there for a few hours. There is a teenage neighbor that lives in that house, but he seems nice and I don't think would leave his bike a foot off the road. I assumed it was the kids who like to walk through my front yard (no big deal, but really, my yard is the size of some people's bedrooms, but whatever) to go around my garage to get over the rail road tracks. I mean, why take the road, it would only take like 25 extra steps,but again, whatever. The other day they gave me nasty looks when I guess I surprised them by being in my garage/driveway. Way to start a relationship punks. Back to the bike. It was there when I got up early to run Friday, and still when I got back quite a few hours later. I scooted it off our driveway so Kyle wouldn't run over it and tear up his car. It was about 4:30 when I got home, so I figured I would call the non-emergency police line b/c the whose ever it was wasn't around and didn't look like they were coming back. Of course in Barboursville, there isn't anyone to answer that line at 4:30, they go home at 4 (must be nice). So I was going to just let it sit till someone stole it or came and got it. Saturday afternoon, I am helping Kyle clean the carpet for his Mustang and see the neighbor. He mentions the bike and asks if we know anything about it. He doesn't know anything either and even another neighbor noticed it and mentioned it to him. This evening those punk kids who gave me a nasty look rang our door bell. They ask Kyle if we know where there bike is. They said someone told them to ask us. Of course we don't, it just wasn't there when we got up this morning. I of course had to mention that its not too smart to leave your bike in someones yard, but of course the punks ignored me. Oh well, learn your lesson, don't leave your bike in a stranger's yard all weekend! I know I sound like the crabby old bag in the neighbor hood, but first, don't leave your crap on my property. Second, don't give me nasty looks when I am on my property and you walk through my yard everyday. Sorry, it just aggrevated me!

Saturday, Kyle and I ran errands including closing out old bank accounts, getting his employee discount on his phone (woo-hoo for a job finally!), and having lunch with my friends at Buddy's. My favorite part was when Kailyn was stirring Jill's lemon water "making lemon" as she said, but Jeff and I both her "naked women" out of it somehow. Never a dull moment with that little girl!

Today, my mom came down to shop. We always complain that when I my dad comes he rushes us. Somehow, we were done in 2 1/2 hours. I only found a few tops and a birthday present for my brother in law. Kyle went home to see his Granny because she isn't doing too well. After he got back, we went grocery shopping. I can't wait until our Walmart is put back together! Who would have thought that the paint brushes would need to be 4 rows away from the actual paint? I picked up some ingredients for a cookie recipe I saw online. I made the cookies when we got back. OMG they are SOOO good! You can find them here. Now I have 50 cookies to get rid of, anyone want any?

Couch to 5 K

I was looking at some friends' facebook pictures and noticed that someone I haven't seen in awhile had gotten in shape and looked really good. I was so proud of her. She said that she tried the "Couch to 5K" program it was pretty simple. I am not even close to a runner but looking at the schedule, it looked doable. Its a 3X a week 20-30 minute training schedule for 9 weeks. I am going to try to start training next Monday. Kyle and I have been trying to go walking in the evenings 4-5X a week but this looks like it might get me in shape. Kyle has been running since the begining of June so hopefully, I get caught up to him and we can start running together. We'll see how it goes!

An update to my cooking, I made my freezer pickles Tuesday night. I haven't been able to try them yet, you have to let them sit for 24 hours in the freezer so they are thawing now. YUM! Its my grandma's recipe and I LOVE them. I also made blackberry syrup. Now i need ice cream or pancakes to try it out on but it tasted good on a spoon. The recipe was basically blackberries plus sugar and water. How can you go wrong with blackberries and sugar? On my parents way back from NC they dropped off two huge containers of blueberries. Now I need to try to find a way to use those. Yesterday, I also cooked and froze 8 of the ears of corn they brought down. I'm sure it'll be great come this winter.

I just realized how "domestic" I am sounding. Wow. If anyone is reading this that doesn't know me, I'm not that domestic, trust me. I got called domestic a few weeks ago and it just didn't sit right with me. I don't know why. I was at JC Penny's and found some curtains on clearance so I bought them to try out in my living room. I see one of my male classmates and when he looked at what I was buying he said "Being domestic huh?" My response was "you expect Kyle to buy curtains?" Oh well, maybe it was just the fact that I don't really care for that person as to why it put me off.

My uncle came down a few weeks ago to measure for new windows for the house and Dad finally ordered them. I am so excited! Even though we have storm windows throughout, I really think the windows are original to the house, so 60ish years old. They need replacing! The windows came in today, yay! Unfortunately, they are back home so who knows when my uncle, dad, and cousin will be able to come up and install them. I just requested that they be in before winter. Can't ask too much of free help right?

Trying to get started at this again

So, I love reading my friends' blogs (and even some people I don't even know, so I am going to try to keep up with this again.

I am taking my boards in September and am trying to get back to the grind of studying 24/7. So far, its not going so well. I made a schedule so lets see if I can stick with it. I plan on putting together the "best books" by organ system. For every system I am reading 4 books, a pathology book, a physology book, a pharm book, and First Aid (supposively the "bible" of Step 1). We'll see how it goes! I started off with this plan yesterday with my best system, Musculoskeletal/Skin. Today I started renal, but its not what I'm best at, so it is taking a little longer than yesterday.

My parents stopped by today on their way down to North Carolina. They dropped off a TON of food. I have green beans that my mom cleaned can cooked, watermelon, potatoes, cucumbers, 12 ears of corn, and a 13X9 pan FULL of blackberries. I am so excited. I made freezer pickles tonight from my grandmas recipe. Tomorrow I am attempting to can blackberry jelly and syrup. We'll see how those turn out!