This & That...My Silly Life

When you really think about it, there is not much time in a day.  Especially a week day.  By the time you work, and get home how much time do you really have left?  For me it I guess it's about 6 hours (5-11).  I think it's crazy that we spend the majority of our days working and sleeping...it's sad  :( 

So how can you manage to get things done in this measly 6 hours?  Well if your me this is what it turns into...cooking dinner, cleaning, trying to get in exercise and some relaxation.  6 hours may seem like a good amount of time, but really it is never enough.  Everyday I feel like I don't get enough accomplished.  Like most people I am tired when I get off work and who feels like doing all this stuff once they have worked all day.  Still day after day I have to put in the effort.

This week I have been having a tough time.  Since tax season is here I spent one night doing our taxes, last night I started on my sisters taxes and tonight I finished them.  I have managed to cook dinner every night this week, but the exercise has fell to the wayside.  I managed to get 20 minutes in on my bike today (WOW)...it's something I guess.  I look at the clock and now it's 10:00!!!  I still need to go clean up from dinner and pick up the living room and of course I have to watch my favorite show Revenge.

It's crazy how much we are expected or need to get done in a days time....at least for us folks who have to work a job every day!

It's Monday and that's about all I can say about that!  My day was chaotic, meaning I went to work this morning and the bottom fell out and I was stuck in the middle of some upset folks.  Finally after lunch everything had settled down and was taken care of and I actually got started on my work.

On the upside our W-2's were available online today which is AWESOME!  Even though I didn't feel like it this evening I came home and got to work on our taxes.  We usually always get a refund, and with the replacement of those coils I had my fingers crossed we would get a refund.  I always do our taxes.  I took personal and business tax classes in school so it comes easy to me =)  Our taxes are a little time consuming since we itemize deductions, but I managed to get our State and Federal completed and filed in about 2.5 hours...I double check everything 100 times!!!

So while I done our taxes Mark cooked me a yummy dinner :)  I wanted breakfast for supper so Mark cooked eggs, sausage, toast and grits.  I LOVE when I don't have to cook dinner!!!  So even though my day started out sucky I am feeling great because our taxes are done, we are getting a little refund and now I am relaxing for the rest of the night and watching the Bachelor.

I need to get my exercise in but my brain is exhausted so I will resort to the couch for the evening.  Have a great night everyone...

So I always feel like I am running like crazy on this weekend, but this weekend I don't even think I have sat down.

So Friday afternoon started with a dentist appointment.  Just suppose to be a simple cleaning, but noooo not for me.  I have had to have a crown replaced and right now I have a temporary on.  I had been noticing a lot of bleeding around that area when I brushed, so I let the lady know.  Low and behold I had cement that was lodged in my gum line, which was causing the bleeding.  So after what seemed like everyone in the office coming to try to get it out and bleeding all over the place finally I was done.  It's always something right?  My mouth was so sore by the time they were done so I just came home a laid on the couch for the rest of the night.

Saturday I had to get up super early.  I had promised my friend Amanda I would ride with her to the Children's Exchange Saturday morning.  So I got up early did my grocery shopping, stopped by Target to pick up a baby shower gift and got us a biscuit at Bojangles.  The Kids Exchange is crazy!!!  There is stuff everywhere, it is almost overwhelming!  Amanda made out with a high chair and a few outfits for Miss Kayleigh.  We got back around lunch time and then I was back home cleaning and trying to get house stuff done. 

Saturday evening a few friends came over and we just hung around.  It was 1:00 by the time we got to bed...whew, I am getting too old for that!!!

Today, I got up and went to Target with my Mom.  Came home, and relaxed for a bit.  Then it was off to Hooters to meet some of our friends for dinner.  I LOVE the hot wings, they are so yummy =)  Good food and good times!  Now I am home resting, watching my tv shows and trying to get my mind ready for the work week ahead.

Have a good week everyone!!!

Today they came to replace the coils for our furnace.  Oh Joy!  On a good note, no more problems...I hope.  We will have heat and air.

Yes, I have been slack on my blogging....sorry!  We have been busy for the most part.  So lets do a little catching up.

Saturday I had to do some grocery shopping.  Met one of my friends for a yummy lunch and then headed home.  Mark and I had a baby shower to go to Saturday evening.  So I spent a little time cleaning and then we were off to the baby shower.  We got home around 8:30 and I think both of us were dead tired.  We went to bed early...on a Saturday night!  Yes we are getting older.

Sunday I really don't remember what I done...  I think laundry and caught up on all my tv shows.  Katie stopped by for a few minutes while Mark and Dusty went to check fox traps so we had some chat time and coffee.  Oh yeah...Sunday we had a little adventure at our house.  Mark had a fox in a dog kennel in our shop.  Sunday morning he comes in the house and says "The fox is gone!!!".  Of course I was like what do you mean it's gone?  To which he replied it was not in the kennel.  Basically this meant we had a wild fox loose in our shop.  Oh goodness =)  So he called over Dusty and Little David so the three of them could find it and hopefully wrangle it without getting attacked.  So I went in the shop and stood on top of the 4 wheeler (I wasn't getting attacked) while the 3 boys looked in every nook and cranny.  Finally they found him in a corner.  So after freaking out a little they cornered him and got him safely into another kennel.  I think stuff like this only happens at our house!!!  It was a very entertaining 15 minutes watching the guys...LOL

Monday I came home from a LONG day at work and went to Mom's to get my hair colored.  As soon as I was done I came back home to help Mark process our last deers.  Basically this means cutting the meat off the bone, grinding it into hamburger and cube steak then packaging it and putting it away in the freezer.  I went and picked us up some dinner because we didn't get done until a little after 8:00.  After eating we went to check fox traps...no foxes this time.  Then finally back home.  I think I really sat down for the 1st time last night about 9:20...yeah that's a long day! 

Then while I was sitting on the couch watching TV I noticed it was really cold in the house.  I looked at the thermostat and it said 64 degrees.  I thought that was weird since I have it set on 68.  About 10:30 I knew something was wrong.  It wasn't getting any warmer in the house and the heat had not stopped running.  I finally went to bed and left the heat running to see what the situation looked like this morning.  This morning the thermostat said 61 degrees.  We HAVE a problem...I knew it at that point!  So I got to work and called the service people to come out and take a look.

We already knew our coils in the house were leaking.  We have had the problem since this summer, but it was only a small leak so we have been letting it slide.  In December they had to come out and fill the unit with freon because it was almost out.  Low and behold a month and 2 days later we are out of freon again.  The leak has gotten really bad, and that is why the heat wasn't working.  They filled it up with freon and it now we have heat.  But since freon is $20 a pound and we had to have 6 pounds today, we can't ignore the leak any longer.  I had them order the new coils today =(  It really makes me want to cry because it is $990.00 for the new coils plus probably close to $200 on our service call today.  It never fails...when it is time to get some tax money back something snatches it right up.  Oh the joy's of home ownership!!!

I had to run some errands after work today.  When I got home about 6:30 you better believe I took me an hour nap.  I am stressed out and exhausted!!!  So that's what I have been up to...and now I am going to bed!

Night!

I am crazy for cheese, I absolutely love it!!!  Over Christmas I bought this cheese and fell in LOVE with it =)  Now I can't stay away from it.  I have been buying be a few blocks here and there ever since the holidays.

I like to think I have a pretty normal life.  Then again, most people are probably sitting on the couch watching TV at 8:00 while I was with my husband.  I know that sounds normal, but I didn't say what we were doing...

We were checking Fox traps...yes that's right!  My husband is a avid rabbit hunter.  We have hunting dogs the whole nine yards.  It's something that he really enjoys to do.  However the past few years it has been hard to find rabbits and that would be because of the Fox population.  Foxes are everywhere, they are seriously over populated and they like to eat little bunnies for dinner.  Therefore the rabbits have come pray to these little foxes and now there are not very many around.  This makes it hard for Mark to go rabbit hunting.  Several years ago Mark trapped, but after last year he decided it was time to start back.  To give the rabbits a chance to multiply and make a come back in our little country eco system =)

So for all of you rolling your eyes go ahead and leave my blog.  It's what you have to do to keep animal populations in check.  The foxes are not hurt, and we do not kill them...so don't say we are cruel because that is NOT the case at all!!!!

I don't go with Mark to check traps all the time, but some nights I do when he has to go alone (just in case he needs help).  Every time I go we never have any, but tonight was different.
Mark went to check a trap and called for me to come over. I couldn't believe it....low and behold a little fox (actually this was a big one). So I helped him get him out of the trap and he put him in the dog kennel.

So it's a rainy day here, I am tired and haven't been feeling well.  As a wife you still need to be able to whip up some dinner.  So tonight a quick chicken casserole.

Heat you up some green beans and another side and dinner is served.  I also added onion to my casserole, and if you would like you can also add chopped celery.

This recipe may not be the "best" chicken casserole, but it is fast, easy and has only a few ingredients.  Perfectly fine for a night where you don't feel well or just don't feel like spending an hour in the kitchen!

That's it for tonight, I must lay down...this crud is getting the best of me :(

Saturday night we stayed around the house and had a few friends over.  Dusty was nice enough to pick up some chicken wings to cook on the grill and I made the french fries.  The guys hung out in the shop besides coming in to eat dinner.  Us ladies stayed in the house and chatted and got a good work out playing Just Dance 3.  So much fun :-)
 everyone chowing down on some chicken wings!
 Dusty & Mark pretending like they cooked the fries
Dusty, Mark, and Little David standing around or listening in on the girl conversation.  I am not really sure...

So that was our Saturday, we had a lovely time with the friendlies!

So every weekend I have a cleaning routine.  Sometimes I don't have to do as much because I will start on Friday night...it just depends.  I am funny about the cleanliness of my house.  My husband is also funny about it.  Sometimes during the week there will be a few crumbs on the kitchen floor and he will say "I need to sweep this floor".  That actually translates into me needed to sweep the floor (LOL).

My usual cleaning involves the following...

• cleaning the sinks, toilets, mirrors, light fixtures and towel racks ect... in the bathrooms
• dusting everything in the house and I mean EVERYTHING!!!
• Vacuuming the couches, and all the rooms with carpet
• cleaning the kitchen (wiping everything down including the outlets, counter tops, stove, dishwasher, small appliances)
• cleaning out bedroom furniture with a wet cloth (furniture polish builds up, in case you don't know)
• then I sweep and mop every room with tile floors (besides the laundry room which I do every other week)
• then there is laundry which I hate with a passion!!!

Some people reading this are probably think that this sounds pretty easy.  Well I wouldn't say it's hard, but it is time consuming, aggravating and who wants to spend their weekend cleaning?  On the flip side, 85% of the time my house is clean and in order.  Over the years I have been in several peoples homes and I can say that I feel like my house is super clean :)  To each his own...some people don't like to spend their time cleaning.  I don't like it, but having a clean home is important to me!

Now back to the reason for this post...  Saturday I came home and was fixing to start my weekly cleaning, but instead I decided to go work on my stock room.  I had cleaned my stock room not too long ago read here this will show you what it looked like before I started working on it.  However, like every time you start one thing it turns into several other things.  Since I had decided to take back my spare bedroom (for the most part) it meant I had to do a lot of moving.  The closest was slam packed full of stuff so that was not an option.  I decided to go clean out each cabinet under the sinks in our bathroom, in the kitchen and in the laundry room.  This would allow me to move stuff out of the closet and then I could put the stuff sitting around the room in the closest.  After all this I would have my room BACK :)  It was a lot of work!  All kinds of junk had accumulated in all of these cabinets.  Now everything is just peachy :)  It did take all day, I walked back and forth lugging washing powder, cleaning supplies and other stuff until I broke a sweat!!!  It was all worth it.  My friend Katie was over last night so I showed her my new and improved stock room.  The first question she asked me was "where did you put all the stuff?"  After that I knew I had done a great job!

This is what my room looks like now!
The laundry room cabinet
another cabinet
under the kitchen sink
full of shampoo and condition in a bathroom cabinet
under Mark's sink
under our guest bathroom sink

So a big project. I don't know why I decide to start these things...they always seem so simple until you start them and you have a mess all over the whole house. Not to worry, my house is in order :) With all this organizing and moving I have been doing over the last few months the house is really in tip top shape! Out with the junk and there is room and space everywhere!

Thank goodness for new episodes of my favorite shows.  I was getting so tired of watching reruns over the holiday break.

So tonight tow of my fav's


So excited to watch them tonight  :-)


Are you looking forward to your shows starting back up?

I am not much on new year resolutions.  I sometimes set goals I would like to reach for the year, but this year I really didn't have anything that I felt like writing down.

Of course like most I want to save money and be healthy.  I am not really concerned with losing weight, but I do want to do  better on my exercising.  I get really slack during the cold weather.  Mostly because the cold is really hard on my Asthma so I am limited to inside.

The main thing I want to work on this year are my eating habits.  Lately I have been extremely tired and for some reason I think my eating and drinking has something to do with that.  I have been so tired, and the reason is I am not able to get to sleep and when I do I wake up several times a night.  It makes the days so long, and recently I have been taking naps when I get home to compensate for the sleep I can't get at night.

So I am on a mission to have a better diet.  #1 on my list is cutting back on coffee (sigh).  I love coffee, I drink it all day and most of the time I drink a pot at night as well.  In between my coffee consumption is my next problem...soft drinks!  I usually have at least 2-3 soft drinks a day (diet).  In between the coffee and soft drinks my caffeine level is probably off the charts.  I think that has a lot to do with my sleeping issues.  #2 on my list is to start eating fruit and veggies.  I hate this stuff!!!  I am more of a junk food person so fruits and veggies make me cringe, but I am going to try to do better.  I am thinking I have some deficiencies because of my slack eating habits.

Today I made the effort to do better.  For lunch I had a bowl of chili beans.  For a afternoon snack I had a cup of apple sauce.  Came home from work and had an orange and a salad for dinner.  For something sweet I think I am going to have a hand full of jelly beans :)  So I think that was an improvement from my usual.  I also didn't make me a pot of coffee tonight.  That was tough since it is so cold out  :(  I am going to have some hot decaffeinated herbal tea.  Oh and I have drank a few glasses a water.  I HATE water...so a few glasses is good for me!

That's it...for 2012 I want to change the way I eat  :)  No more junk all the time, I am going to force myself to get use to eating the stuff that's good for me.  We will see how long it last LOL!