Almost a year!

I don't know if anyone still follows this blog. Ha! Regardless, I'm updating anyway. Even if it has been almost a year.

Oh how things have changed.

Life is hard. But isn't it for everyone? Not sure why I feel like I should get to complain about it, but I will anyway. I'm good at complaining.

The girls are great. They turn 4 in a little more than a month. It completely blows my mind that by this time next year, they'll be in school. Real school. What happened to my babies?!

Marriage. Yeah. It's been better. I guess that's really all I have on that.

Work. Busy? Understatement of the century! :)

School! School is great! I have one more year left! I can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel. I can't wait to get there.

We now live in Quincy...official Illinois residents. I love it here. I'm so grateful for all the opportunties I was given to get here. Everything usually does work out. I'm starting to really let go a little, let whatever happens...happen. Because me trying to control things isn't working.

Until next time...

I almost forgot my password...

That's how long its been!

Since the last update, of course lots of things have happened and changed, most of which I would have a terrible time attempting to recall!

Work is busy but I feel like I'm making some progress...as far as advancement and the related fun things that come with it. Hard work, lots of stuff to do, drama and gossip...all in a day's work right?!

The girls are great. I feel like we're finally making some progress in the world of potty training. They moved up to a new "home room" at school and since then, we've seen a lot of progress for Lily. Ava is stubborn and I'm not sure how easily it will come for her, but maybe with the push of Lily's praise-getting...we'll see some change for her too. My babies are growing up!

I've started school! I've got one week under my belt, 15 to go! The first class...the teacher didn't show up. And the second class...the online course listing gave the wrong details for the book we were to purchase. Ugh! Here's hoping that the remainder of the term goes well. :)

I suck...

I don't even know where to start with my update! Yikes! How about with the fact that I did not win in my NCAA bracket pool at work. In fact, I think I got like 5th place. I was in first place until the very last game. Talk about a crock of shit. :)

I can't believe it's May already. We have a big upgrade that starts at midnight Sunday, so my upcoming week will be pure hell. My schedule is all whacked, with me starting after 10 most days, which will keep me at the hospital until at least 7 each night. I'm not very excited, but it's only a week and it will be nice to have this project off our list.

I survived my first week of on-call for work. I had a ton of calls from Doctors, who I've found love to call the help desk, leave a message with their issue and then not return my calls when I try and contact them with either follow-up questions or a resolution. It's very rude!

Everyone needs to visit this site, and read the book "I Hope They Serve Beer In Hell". Well, everyone that enjoys crude and slightly disgusting (okay, totally disgusting) man humor.

A few weeks ago, I had my first experience at a strip club. That was interesting. I've always been prudish and critical of strip clubs. I thought I was going to barf as Kristi, Candice, and I sat in the parking lot of the club. I did NOT want to go in. But I learned a lot that night. And it's true what they say, strippers have feelings too. :)

The girls turn three next month. I'm very much on the fence with how I feel about this. They are growing and changing and are smarter each day. But, at the same time...they are growing and changing! I'm not ready for this. I have started to feel little pulls of, "I want another baby"...but usually it's quickly overtaken with the "Why in the HELL would I want to start all over!" feelings.

Hopefully I can get some pictures posted sometime today. And hopefully I can be better about updating my blog. Well, it won't happen this week...maybe next?! :)

March Madness!

And I'm not just talking basketball here, people. As I peek out my window, from the sky falls a mixture of ice and snow. And Monday...it should be a spring-like 60 degrees. WTF, indeed.

But, we can talk about basketball too. Because currently, I am in first place in my work pool. FIRST PLACE. Proof:

That's right folks, just a few more days and I may be the proud winner of around $60 cash money. :)

Other than that, I'm ready for the weather to be nice so the girls can enjoy the park a few days a week and so I can open my windows and not run the heat! Work is going okay. It's busy...that's for sure, but the politics are getting a little tiring. But, I'm of the camp that currently feels like "I'm happy to have a job, even if it sucks sometimes!"

My birthday was great!

And the girls just woke up from a nap so that's all for now! Happy weekending!

I know, I know...

It's been a long time. Oh well.

I feel like crap. I've got something funky growing on the back of my throat and I'm waiting for the employee health nurse to get in so she can tell me to try something over-the-counter like she always does. And then I'll have to make a real doctors appointment and spend another day sick. Awesome.

My birthday is next week...no big deal as usual, though I am going out to dinner with my co-worker/fast friend Alicia and her family. Keith's Cafe. MMMMMmmmmmmMMMMMM!

Also, I'm considering taking St. Patty's Day off to participate in a low-key, 3 person pub crawl.

So that's my life in a nutshell as of late. It's been sucky in the life of Jeana as of recent. Here's to hoping it gets better.

An update from the weekend...

Saturday, we dropped the girls off at Brandon's Mom's house for a day of being spoiled rotten. I believe that was successfully achieved. While they were loved on, Brandon and I picked up his cousin Chris, and went ice fishing.

I, being the type of person that doesn't quite understand how well ice fishing in 68 degree February weather will work, was very skeptical of the whole deal. And nervous. I mean, I love swimming...don't get me wrong. But I don't like falling through ice into a grody pond and swimming for salvation. I started out in the truck, working on my homework. Finally, I got a picture message from Brandon showing me alllllll the fish they'd caught so far. I suddenly became very interested.

You see, I'm very much a fair-weather fisherwoman. If the fish aren't biting...I'll read, or sit on bank, or nap. Being outdoors is generally enough entertainment for me. But as soon as someone starts catching lots of fish, I'll take over their spot...essentially pushing them out of their honey-hole and catching all the fish they had just found!

So, in honor of the overtaking of the hole through the ice that was catching the most fish...I have picture for you:

This was the first of many fish I caught on Saturday. Such a pretty crappie. Tasted good too! :)

And today...I made these:

(credit to Pioneer Woman for the photo...)

Mmmm...Spreads. Basically, a deconstructed chocolate chip cookie. You take the chocolate chip cookie dough (minus the chocolate chips), flop it down on a cookie sheet and spread it out...bake it...then pour the chocolate chips on top and allow them to melt. Then you spread the chocolate over the cookies.

And they are really, really good.

Like, really.

I didn't make the baked fudge because no where in our miserable town seems to sell ramekins. What the fudge?! (Literally!)

Back to the "real world" tomorrow. Ugh.

The weekend ahead...

I'm making these:

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/wp-content/uploads/2009/02/delicious-baked-fudge.pdf

And will try and only eat one. Because I'm on a diet and all. And it really is going well. I'm down nearly 2 lbs this week. I'd set a goal of 20 lbs in a month (since Jillian says it can be done, and her word is frickin' gospel), but I think that goal was probably a little lofty. I'm okay with that...because even if I don't lose 20, I could lose 15 in the pursuit of it.

And really, at this point...a loss is a loss to me!

I've done 4 days (tonight will be 5) of the 30 Day Shred. I really enjoy it. I've turned a couple of co-workers on to it. I can't wait to hear their reviews when they get in today.

I hope everyone has an awesome weekend!

Up-diz-ate...

1. We went to Omaha this past weekend, to take the girls to the Children's Museum and the zoo. Good times were had by all. I think we need to install a slide like the one at the museum. Ava and Lily could have easily spent the entire day going down the slide, back up the stairs, down the slide, etc etc. It was so great seeing everyone. It made Brandon and I miss Omaha even more, I think. The kids all had so much fun playing together. We ate tons of good food and by the time we got home on Sunday were were past pooped and just plain worn out.

2. I started 30 Day Shred last night. OMG.

3. I finally got to meet Sarah the slutface. She's adorable and dresses way too cute. So I kind of hate her. Additionally, you should have had a look at the waffle she at at FarmHouse. Yeesh. Don't let that chick fool ya, she can put some food away.

4. Kristi and I are gearing up for the DREAM Bowling event on March 7th. I have such fabulous ideas for my costume. It will be full-on hilarious.

More to come...

I'm glad I got tagged...

I needed a blog topic. ;) Thanks, Niki!

First:
1. Five names I go by:
Jeana, Jeana Rae, Sis, Mom, "Hey you", and "computer girl"...

2. Three things I am wearing right now:
French Blue Eddie Bauer wrinkle resistant shirt (don't you love the detail), black pants, and killer heels. Not killer because they are awesome or anything...but just because they are heels and I am wearing them at all.

3. Two things I want very badly at the moment:
A phone call, and a million dollars!

4. Three people who will probably fill this out:
Kristi, Sarah, and Beth. Because I SAY SO!

5. Two things I did last night:
Watched American Idol and encouraged my nephew to spew profanity.

6. Two things I ate today:
So far, Diet Cherry Pepsi and spit. :)

7. Two people I talked last to on the phone:
Two people at work.

8. Two things I am going to do tomorrow:
Work, and work...

9. Two longest car rides:
To Colorado and to Canada. Ew. Long car rides blow.

10. Two favorite beverages:
Sweet tea and lemonade

Second:
4 favorite memories from 2008:
Parts of my trip to Canada, Girls weekend in Omaha in October, Christmas with my family, Ava and Lily's second birthday

4 favorite movies in 2008:
Stepbrothers, Forgetting Sarah Marshall, 21, and Stepbrothers again because it is THAT good.

4 favorite foods in 2008:
Pioneer Woman's apple dumplings, mashed potatoes with homemade noodles, string cheese, Holiday Grapes

4 places I loved in 2008:
I didn't go anywhere really so Dryden, Ontario...Omaha, Nebraska...and that's about it!

4 things I liked in 2008:
Dotti-Cab, seeing my BFF for a weekend, Top Chef, losing weight

4 things I am looking forward to in 2009:
Losing more weight, seeing my friends more, another girls weekend, more growing and changing from my girls.

4 people I tag:
Sarah, Kristi, Beth, Amber

Monday...

Guess what, oh faithful followers of all things Jeana...

AMERICAN IDOL STARTS TOMORROW!

Yeah, I'm excited. I have accepted the fact that it makes me a complete loser. And I'm okay with that. Mainly because I know Kristi is a loser too. The plan is to have my brother and his family over for dinner in true "American Idol loser family" tradition. We like to heckle and mock. It suits us.

I spent the first part of my morning making my to-do list for work today. I'm over halfway down the first page of a legal pad. That's never a good sign. We had a decent weekend...didn't do much of anything really. I did help my Dad set up an automatic deer feeder. It kicks out food at set times. Nothing like baiting the furry little critters.

Oh, and we have definitely NOT made the switch from Nemo to Horton. Nope. Nemo is going to have to get lost, I think.

Here's to hoping this week is fast and fairly painless.

Knock knock...who's there?

So, that skank over at Simply Living Sarah had a post that really made me think...while I don't have as many daily hits as she does, I still average more than I would even think this blog would get. Let's face it...I'm not so interesting.

I had an idea, and hopefully you will all play along! If you're visiting my blog and reading all the randomness, please leave me a comment on this post. I know a few of you do read my boring crap, but just humor me, will ya?

Thanks! :)

Monday's suck...

1. The girls were super pissed to go to school. Explaining to them that Mommy isn't really keen on going to work doesn't make much of a difference.

2. I just realized how (albeit some of it self-imposed) busy the first five months of 2009 will be for me. Between work conference in Kansas City (which is rumored to be jam-packed with sessions this year, as opposed to boooooorrring like last year) and *hopefully* training in Atlanta, plus a girls trip to Chicago with my BFF and a much needed long Omaha weekend with the kids...my head is kind of spinning. All of it is either going to be educational, fun, well-worth it, or a nice combination of all three. But that's a lot of travel to get in before May.

3. We finally took the Christmas tree down yesterday. Ava and Lily were so sad. But I was most certainly ready to reclaim that portion of my living room. Ava kept asking, "But we keep our presents right?!"

I think that's all for now. It wasn't a very exciting weekend, given the illness of Brandon and my feeling poopy since the better part of last week. I think I'm finally starting to feel better. But this is a great way to kickstart a diet! With an over 8 lb loss in one week! For the first time since I got it, my WiiFit didn't yell at me or call me lazy. :)

Randoms...since it's been awhile.

1. I'm currently addicted to Rihanna's "Rehab". Could be that I like the song. Could be that I like the video. You decide.

2. I'm watching an infomercial for "Flirty Girl Fit". (http://www.flirtygirlfit.com/ for you hookers interested in learning some pole dancing skillz). I am just laughing. And laughing. And laughing. Slightly jealous that I can't do that with my ass. But I'll take what I can get.

3. I used to hate Jason Mraz, but his latest album has had a couple songs I like. My current fave is his duet with Colbie Calliat.

4. I miss my Omaha friends. :(

5. I'm hoping that I've finally made the switch from "Finding Nemo" to any other movie under the sun. We started this transition with Ava and Lily last night...the switch-a-roo with "Horton Hears a Who". Wish me luck. I can't stand one more session of "Keep on swimming..."

6. Brandon has been sick since last night. It's been terrible. Send your "I sure hope Jeana doesn't end up sick too" wishes!

Happy weekend!

Happy New Year and shit...

Because Kristi finally decided to update her blog and actually had a very loving and wonderful message about how spectacular I am, I kind of thought I'd better update too. It's better than working on the Friday after New Year's Day when everyone else and their dog took the day off.

Bastards.

Lets see...Christmas run-down. It was a good holiday, but it was a terribly long day. Brandon and I were up at 5 am to get ready before we woke the girls up, seeing that we had to be on the road by 7:30 am to make it to our first Christmas party. We busted into the girls' room...video camera in hand...totally ambushing them. They were very much thinking "what the hell is wrong with you" the entire time.

But let's rewind a bit.

I'm wrapping presents on Christmas Eve. I finally nag Brandon enough that he gives in and helps me. Lily asked for a choo-choo, so I'd ordered what I thought to be a case with trains INSIDE. Wrong-o. No trains. Just a case. Brandon discovers this around the 9 o'clock hour. I burst in to tears. A choo-choo is the only thing Lily asked for, and now...because I'm a spaz who apparently can't read...she's going to think Santa hates her (Oh, and if you still believed in Santa...sorry I ruined it for you). I knew even the armpit of the universe (aka Wal-Mart) closed at 6 pm. What the heck were we going to do?! Brandon told me to try and call K-Mart in the neighboring town and see if they were open. Sure enough, they were...but closing at 10 pm! So Brandon raced to K-Mart, found the trains and saved Christmas.

So back to Christmas morning. Lily loved the trains. Ava loved all her Spiderman stuff. My kids are weird.

The rest of the day was pretty much a blur. Lots of presents...so many that the girls just got tired of opening them. Our living room looks like Toys-R-Us threw up all over the place. We're so grateful that we have such generous families.

New Years Eve was nice. We went to my brother's house for dinner. Being a weeknight, and Brandon having to work the next day we weren't planning on having TOO much fun and we were successful with that. :) I'd kind of planned to leave by 8, but we ended up staying until 10. I guess 9:59 is Ava's threshold because she had the most major meltdown I've ever seen. Ever try and put a coat on a 33-ish pound fish that is extremely irate and wants to tear your face off? That's kind of what Ava was. Flopping. Floundering. Kicking. Screaming. Scratching. I think she might have tried to get a bite or two in as well. And then you've got Lily...chill as chill can be, just looking on. At least when these things happen it usually is only one of them having the fit. So I fought with her for a good 5 minutes to put her coat on, and let her win the "I don't want to wear my boots" battle. I wouldn't want to wear cowboy boots either, kid...but that's what YOU picked out. So independent.

She screamed allllll the way home. Granted, it's like 5 miles. But it was a long five miles. This was after she would not let me buckle her car seat. Only Daddy was good enough. Whatevs, have at it. Putting her pajamas on was just as much of a battle. To say when the screaming subsided and peace and quiet prevailed, that I was ecstatic, is an understatement.

Brandon played his Call of Duty game, finally beating it (after what, like 3 days...money well spent there). I did a whole lot of nothing, talking to some friends online most of the night. They kept me company, bless their hearts...complete losers like me. :) Oh, and Kristi doesn't count in this because technically she was out at a party. And we were talking on Blackberry Messenger so that, I guess...is less loserish than Facebook Chat or MSN.

(Disclaimer: I don't think my friends are really losers. I'm glad they were there to keep me company.)

Other than that, not much is new. 2009 is here, and it will take me a solid 2 months to write it correctly on checks. I start back to college (ohmygawd what was I thinking) on the 12th of this month. An online course on Weather and Climate. I need a 4 hour science course to round out all my pre-reqs for the accelerated program I'm doing for my Bachelors so I thought I'd get that out of the way first. My Mom said I'll be the official family Meteorologist after this class, surpassing my brother and his expertise obtained through watching hours, and hours, and HOURS of The Weather Channel. It's an online course, so I'm glad for that...but word on the street is that the professor requires a lot of extra work because of that fact. Awesome.

Until next time...

Kristi and Beth

I'm calling you whores out. Update your damn blogs. If I can do it, YOU can do it.

NFT.
TIA.

Preparing for Christmas!

The tree has been purchased (a 7.5 foot pre-lit jobber from Lowes), put up and decorated. The girls absolutely love it. This morning when they got up, the first thing Lily asked was, "Why isn't the Christmas Tree on?!" So we had to turn it on or risk a meltdown before 6 am. We were going to go the real tree route, but Saturday was just so cold and windy so Brandon finally, after at least seven years of resistance...gave in to the fake tree. It makes me sad, because I know he loves real trees. But I'm also beside myself happy with the fake tree. It's beautiful.

So, after we got the tree up...Sunday evening was spent trying to take a decent picture for our Christmas cards. Ay yi yi. 58 photos. That's how many we took just to get a decent one (or two...as you see above). We seriously need a remote for our camera. It's got a timer, which was handy and all...but all the running back and forth. Poor Brandon. I did it for a few sets and my legs are sore today. How sad is that?

So, just a few more weeks until Christmas. I can't wait to see the girls open presents. It's going to be a really great holiday. They're really at a fun age.

Turkey Day, Retail Madness, and more...

1. Turkey Day. Gotta love a holiday devoted strictly to eating. Well, I do at least. Thanksgiving is a long day, only overshadowed by Christmas in the length of torture we're subjected to. It was made easier this year because my Mom hosted lunch, which meant we didn't have to drive an additional hour round-trip to have lunch with my family, to only turn around and come back to dinner with my husband's family. In summary, no one fought, no cussing, no hitting/throwing rolls/shoving faces in cranberry salad. Oh who am I kidding. We never have knock-down drag outs on Thanksgiving. And we always cuss. I ate at least 3 pieces of pumpkin pie, 2 pieces of apple pie, and 1 piece of peach pie in a 24 hour period. I ate very little turkey and probably a plate-sized serving of mashed potatoes. God Bless you Pilgrims.

2. Retail Madness. Brandon so lovingly volunteered to keep the girls on Friday so Mom and I could venture into the unknown (aka "Black Friday" shopping). We didn't leave the house until around 6:45 Friday morning so we missed most of the initial mad dash. And neither of us were really going for any deals in particular. That must have helped. Mom got a coat she'd been eyeing and I found a few clothes as well. Also got a few more presents for the girls, and some things Brandon needed. When we were all done, we made it home in time for dinner and didn't kill anyone! We're hoping to go again next year. I think it should be an annual thing. But we both agreed we would probably never do the super early door-buster things. Those people are just nuts.

And more!

What a long holiday weekend. It's sad that it is almost nice to return to work. Well, I'm sure tomorrow will be another story.

A new blog to follow (and I'll add it to my blog roll on the right)! Niki is a marathon runner and just so happens to be one of my new-found heroes! Anyone who can run that far without collapsing into a quivering heap of muscle cramps shoots straight to the top of my list. She gives me inspiration! Or at least small fits of jealous rage when I realize how out of shape I am!

http://crosscountrysquared.blogspot.com/

A successful weekend!

My Kids and Wal-Mart

1) They were complete terrors the entire time we were in there.

2) Did I mention the complete terror part?

3) Ava refused to put on her coat. So, I calmly escorted her to the bathroom while Brandon checked out and kept Lily. You know, that whole "do we need to go to the bathroom" trick. Anyway, we're getting ready to exit the stall post-coat reinstallation and I see two little hands coming towards us under the stall door. Then I notice that those two little hands are sticking out of a purple coat. And then I see a funky stocking cap that sort of resembles the one that my other demon child, Lily, wears. And then I see her chubby cheeks.

"LILY! GET OFF THE FLOOR!"

"Hiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiz Mommaaaaay! Whaz you doin'?!"

I guess she darted off into the women's bathroom and of course my husband could not run in after to wrangle.

It's been too long!

Omaha: My visit was fantastic. I was so excited to get there (the flight sucked, as it was raining and very turbulent), but Kristi was a total lesbo and cried as soon as I came through the security area. I love that crazy bitch. She drove me erratically to Chipotle, to fulfil my first wish of a chicken burrito. Mmmmm it was good. I think we must have talked about a mile a minute until we finally went to sleep. We did some shopping, lots of eating, lots of laughing, and just some good catching up. Girls night was Friday, with drinks at Kona, Cheeseburger in Paradise, and then J. Medicine Hat at the Funny Bone. It had been a long time since I'd had that much fun. Michelle was so hilarious...busting her ass in the middle of the mall parking lot. We had so much fun. Leaving on Sunday was terribly hard. Kristi and I both cried (of course). The TSA screeners must have thought we were together. It made me chuckle once I got to my gate. I almost took a delay on my flight so I could get a $200 travel voucher and reimbursement for the one way flight. That would have been at least one more trip to Omaha, plus another half of a trip. Darn. But I was ready to get home and see my family.

Kids: They are really good, except for the creepy crud they've got going on. I think it's going to be a painfully long cold and flu season.

Work: Work is...work. It sucks some days. It's decent others. Hopefully it gets better, or at least slows down some. With the holidays coming up, I'd at least like to be able to enjoy them this year.

I might as well make my New Year's resolution now. And see how many days it takes for me to break it. :) I resolve to update my blog once a week!

Here's to keeping a promise!