An improvement

TJ installed our new garage door opener on Sunday. I have really been looking forward to it. He finally has a clicker and we can have the cleaning ladies come while we are at work! I'm so excited!

The Little Things

I have been reflecting lately on all of the little conveniences that I forgot how much I really appreciate.

• Ice maker-As long as I can remember I have always had a freezer with and ice maker. In the condo I didn't have one and had to use ice cube trays. A few months after living there I bought a new refrigerator and my dad ran a water line to the freezer so it would make ice cubes. Now being in the new house our refrigerator is old and it's back to the ice cube trays. I cannot wait until I can have an ice maker again, or better yet....a water dispenser on the front of the fridge with crushed ice and everything!!!!!
• Garage door opener-We have a VERY old garage door opener. It only has one clicker for it (we've tried to get another one, but our unit is so old~32 years, that there is not one that will work with it). So, TJ is very nice and lets me have the clicker. I feel bad for him because he does not have one, and if he gets home first he has to go through the front door and open the garage before he can pull it. Not a terrible thing, but annoying. We would also like to have the keypad outside of the garage. Then we could give the cleaning ladies the code and they could come and clean while we are at work. Currently they come around 7am on a Saturday morning once a month. It would be nice to be able to sleep in and not have to move around rooms so they can clean. I'm sure they would appreciate an empty house too.
• Car clicker-I'm lucky enough to have a clicker for my car (unlock/lock the doors). This is the first car I've had it on and have loved it. It's so nice to not have to fumble with my keys, and I've never locked myself out. Again, I feel bad for TJ because he does not have one (his car has seen better days). So, he has to always find his keys, unlock his doors, and make sure he locks the doors before he closes them. Not a terrible thing, but a little inconvenient.
• Heat-I feel bad for picking on TJ's car, but he doesn't have much heat in it in the winter. He's had it looked at, but I guess it's really expensive to fix. So, he just deals with having a freezing ride in the car to work. That stinks :(

So, sometimes it's nice to appreciate those little things that can make our day easier.

Resolutions

Well, it appears to be that time of year again....resolutions. I do have a few things this year that I would really like to improve upon.
1. I would really like to exercise more. I'm shooting for 3-4 times a week of the gym and/or home workouts. Not only do I want to shed about 15 pounds for the wedding, but I want to make some time for myself to feel energized. I would like the workouts to be an hour, but I won't be disappointed if it's only 20-30 minutes.
2. I want to do a better job of meal planning. I hate coming home from work with the "What's for dinner?" question in the air. I have started using my google calendar to help me plan it out.
3. I want to start more home improvement projects. I LOVE home improvement projects. We have a lot of things to do on our house and I would like to start moving on them instead of just sitting on my couch.
4. I want to start spending more quality time with TJ. Sometimes we just get so caught up with "things that need to get done"....probably more me than him. So, I would like that to change.

Wish me luck!

The Gift of Giving

With Christmas coming up next week, we have finished our shopping for our families, but have not gotten anything for each other. We were thinking about taking a vacation in January or February (which we both would love), getting each other clothes (which we need), and doing a "surprise" present. With the wedding coming up, we limited ourselves to $100.

With that said, we had a discussion recently about the best kinds of presents. We TOTALLY disagree. TJ feels like the best kind of present is an indulgence, something that he would not spend his own money on, but would really like to have (like a play station 3). He thinks that a great present is something that you "want" not something that you "need".

I, on the other hand, completely disagree. I have a hard time thinking about things I just "want". I like to think of really functional gifts (car washes, ladders, a squeegee for the garage, socks, umbrellas, etc). Those are perfect gifts, things that you need and would use ALL the time! The little things that make life easier.

My two recent favorite functional gifts are my deep freezer (which my parents got us for Christmas) and my bread maker (that TJ's mom got me for my birthday). I LOVE them. I use my freezer to store all the stuff I buy at costco, leftovers, make ahead meals, and frozen treats. It's great! And I make 1-3 loaves of bread a week with the bread maker. I have not bought myself a loaf of bread for sandwiches since I got it. It's awesome!!!

So, I guess we can "agree to disagree" about the best kind of gifts, but for me....I like the functional ones :)

Holiday Decorating Rules

I'm posting this again for those rule breakers out there!!!

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE decorating for holidays. I have bins upon bins of decorations in my garage. Decorating is one of my favorite things to do.

What I despise is when people break the rules of holiday decorating. There are certain rules that need to be followed regarding time lines. So, I hope I'm not offending anyone, but you need to follow the rules. My calendar year revolves around what holiday comes next. Each holiday gets about a month to celebrate.

Valentines Day: You can put up Valentines day decorations in mid January, and taken down February 15th

St. Patrick's Day: put up the day after Valentines day, take down the day after

Easter: put up after St. Patrick's day, but may overlap if they are in the same month (or just chose 1 to decorate for)

Memorial Day: make sure you put your American flag out!

4th of July: put up in the beginning of June, take down July 5th

September 11th: make sure you put your American flag out!

Halloween: put up October 1st, take down November 1st

Thanksgiving: put up November 1st, take down day after Thanksgiving

AND THE MOST IMPORTANT!!!!!!!!!CHRISTMAS: you can put up your outside lights/decorations if you find a warm day in November, however, this is very important......YOU CAN'T TURN YOUR CHRISTMAS LIGHTS ON UNTIL THANKSGIVING NIGHT!!!!!!!

I have seen numerous houses with fully decorated lawns and Christmas trees inside with all of the lights on already........I'm sorry, but you are breaking the rules. You can have your lights on during Thanksgiving night, but not before. The day after Thanksgiving you can put out the rest of your Christmas decorations. They can remain up until January 1st. I hope these rules have helped clarify any decorating confusion.

So, this weekend I will be putting up my outside lights. However, I will not be turning them on until tomorrow night. Happy decorating!!!!

The Fat Cat

TJ and I took Mittens and Boots to the vet on Monday. Here is their weight break down:

3 months after birth:
Mittens: 2 lbs, 7 oz
Boots: 2 lbs, 6 oz

Year '06
Mittens: 5 lbs
Boots: 5 lbs, 10 oz

Year '07:
Mittens: 8 lbs, 3 oz
Boots: 9 lbs, 6 oz

Year '08:
Mittens: 8 lbs, 6 oz
Boots: 8 lbs, 6 oz

Year '09:
Mittens: 10 lbs, 15 oz
Boots: 8 lbs, 7 oz

Well, it looks like someone has been eating more than her fair share of food. She's gained 30% of her weight in a year!!! I guess she would be considered obese. The vet said that Boots' weight was good, she could even gain a little. She said that Mittens should lose 1-2 lbs.

Well, that's kind of tricky. Anyone with 2 cats knows that 1 of them is usually the "boss". That would be Mittens. They both eat from the same bowl. How do I keep Mittens from eating more than her fair share?

I put the bowl up on the counter so there is no food out, and when Boots comes in the kitchen I put it back on the floor. Mittens keeps walking in the kitchen with a look that says "Where's my food?" I've had TJ get out the laser light (her favorite) to play with her to distract her from eating and give her some exercise. I've been very good at measuring our exactly how much food they should have. So, we'll see if this helps.

Oh, I've also given Bootsie treats when Mittens is upstairs to make sure she's getting enough :)

Save the Date!!!

Well, it official....save the date: October 16th, 2010 (which happens to be sweetest day). We have always wanted a fall wedding, the cool weather, fall colors. We're hoping it will be a beautiful day. We have our church: Faith Lutheran Church . We have our reception/hotel: Esplanade Lakes, and we have our photographer: Sarah Alair. So, I feel like we have a pretty good start. Plus, I love planning. Although my wedding planner, Ali Phillips, has been doing most of the work :). I think the DJ and videographer will be next. If anyone has any suggestions, I would love to hear them!

Thanks for blogging with us!