Reality Hits

I've now found out that "dieting" (gasp- she said the "D" word out loud! yes, i said it. i'm not proud of it, but i'll own this one) can very well be equated to pregnancy. awkward, uncomfortable and all-consuming.
Hear me out.

I've been at this thing for 2 weeks. 2 measly weeks I tell you and I'm driving myself mad. How many points is that? How many do I have left? Can I eat that? What IS that? It rules your thoughts and it's all you can think about... just like being pregnant.

How are you doing with your program? Did you lose this week? How are you losing- What are you doing? People want to ask how you're sticking to your plan, but they don't want to insinuate that you're overweight or that you should be on the program at all, yet they want to comment positively if you ARE doing well and motivate you. It's all you can talk about with other people because, like I said before, it rules your thoughts and actions... just like being pregnant.

"Oh, no thank you. I don't want any double chocolate chip rum cake with extra rich super fudge topping." WHAA?? "Oh no thank you. I don't care for a delicious glass of Coca-Cola/Merlot/Cristal. I would kill for a nice glass of ice water, however." WHAA?? "Oh I would love to have a nice Garden Salad with no fat dressing instead of that Cheeseburger with extra cheese, mayo and ketchup, please. Oh yes, that would be just perfect." WHAA? Exactly. You have to give up everything that is good TO you for things that are good FOR you. No caffeine, no chocolate, no greasy goodness and no alcohol... just like being pregnant.

And then the ever so popular... I WEIGH WHAT?!... just like being pregnant.

The one thing that makes dieting and pregnancy worth all the complaining is the end result. One perfect little munchkin and one perfect little tush. Now, I've got the perfect little munchkin part down. I just need to find the perfect little tush underneath all the padding I've been hoarding back there.

Those of you looking to suppress a sweet tooth without ruining your whole day- go here and follow all the steps- even the food coloring because food coloring just makes us happy. I'd even say take a gander at her whole site... that girl is good.


So, that little download I've been talking about. I can't figure out how to make the blasted thing a download, so I'm uploading a jpg into flickr and you can download it from there. I suggest "Original Size". If you have problems, send me an email and I can email a PDF to you. Friggin' technology.



I give you my grocery list/coupon teller/meal planner. I print out a bunch front and back, fold in half and then staple together on the spine (saddle stitch for you fancy pants people) like a book. It allows me to look back on other weeks to see what I've bought and if I really do need another tub o' mayonnaise or if the one I bought 2 weeks ago should tide us over for a little longer.

It just might change your life... BUT please don't go mass producing and selling this as your own. I'll find you... I promise you this.

But, back to the download... not only is your grocery list NEXT to your meal plan for the week, but you have somewhere to write down what COUPONS you have. Because we all know you're that lady that brings EVERY coupon you own in a #10 business sized envelope and every time you come across an item you THINK you saw a coupon for or you can't remember how many you have to buy to use the coupon, you stop and rifle thru your stash... blocking aisles, canned goods and non-perishables.

I know, I know, you're all going- WHAAAA? Not ME! Oh, no no no. Yes. You. You do it. I've been in the aisle when you do it and it drives me insane. So, please download this and use it. Feedback would be great too. I've been using it now for 2 years trying to work out the kinks and I think I've got it where it helps me out. So, help me help you.

Bad blog lady

I've been a very bad blog lady... but I'm getting there!
This next month is going to be a tornado of cupcakes, tutu's and sugar highs!

My Little Miss is turning 1 in 21 days.
In 21 days, I will have a 1 year old little spring chicken.

So, before my entire house is covered in frosting and streamers, I'll get a good and decent post up here... and that free download I've been yammering about.

Until then...

no, this is not appropriate to the post, but what am i if not random?

Catching Up... Kinda

I have no idea where I left off so I don't know where to begin. So, I guess I just need to start rambling as usual.

My ginormous paper cutter came...

...someone was a little too curious for her own good. Why it was necessary to put it together on the floor in the living room- no clue. But it was promptly taken downstairs to mingle with my letterpress. I'll be heading down a little later to cut down all those projects I've been talking about in a bit. Photos of those projects somewhat soon.

Speaking of photos, I bought myself a mini tripod today. I'm actually really excited because this will make taking photos so much easier- I won't have to set up the big floor-standing tripod to take product photos, especially macros. I can take a decent photo, but sometimes the slightest hand shake can screw up a potentially great photo. I'll let you know how it turns out.

Other than working on some of the freelance I have waiting for me, I haven't done much today. Hubs cleaned the downstairs pretty well yesterday (Thank you!), but when I went to sweep Little Miss' room, the Dyson won't turn on. Great. One. More. Thing. Here's a snippet of one of the projects I'm working on.



Hopefully it's just something simple. I went and picked up some ribbon today for a Graduation Save the Date and Invitation I'm doing for a good friend and picked up our new TV.

Yes. We have joined the 21 century and bought a new plasma. Note to buyers :: If you're buying a big ticket item like this, ask if there is an "off the wall" or "out of box" pricing for the item on display. We took advantage of this and saved BIG TIME. Luckily for me, Hubs looked at my yesterday and said "We're even. The letterpress. The paper cutter. We're even. I'm so excited." Sweet small victory.

Other than that, taxes are done as of last nite, refund is being anxiously awaited and that's about it. Next up :: Little Miss' 1st Birthday. Who in the world knew it could be so hard to plan this?! In my defense (or at least I'm claiming it as a defense) everyone we would normally invite won't fit in our shoebox house. If we had the option of going outside- no problem. But seeing as March in Ohio is unpredictable, we can't chance it. And seeing as how we're having it on March Madness weekend, we have to consider not only Little Miss, but those invited. So, I think I finally have it under control.

Though I do like this house, I can't wait to have space and be able to invite more than 5 people over at one time. Yes, we're beginning to look, but that's a whole new post!

Next up, a free download. (and if I forget, someone remind me!)

Again... busy

The more blogs I try to read thru out the day, the more common the theme seems to be- busy. This makes me feel so much better knowing I'm not the only one neglecting this space. Long weekend for me- a post with photos will be coming soon.

pinky swear.

In the meantime, here's Little Miss' birthday shirt.



made by: OliveandOllie. We stumbled upon each other and it turns out her husband teaches in my old program at UD!

It's Go Time

The Deadline:



The Objective:
this dress



Current State:
this dress



The Difference:




In an effort to not totally kill what's left of my self esteem, I decided posting clothes felt a bit less... exposed... than pictures of yours truly.

i.
can.
do.
this.

I did it...

I freakin' did it.
This January, I silently vowed that I was going to buy a heavy duty paper cutter when I made enough money from sales to do so. It's all apart of my Better Business Practices that I adopted last year- if you don't have it, don't spend it. I thought I would have to wait until the summer or even longer. Typically, the first few months of the year are not great sales months, so I didn't expect to see anything for awhile.
So, I researched and found one I liked, kept it in mind and went about my way. I have to mention that I made no sales # goals to achieve this. (I don't really believe in monthly sales goals right now- only yearly, but that's another post). I just let my product do the talking.

Low and behold.
This Friday, I will (hopefully) be the owner of this new little beauty.



It's on Ebay, but it comes with a "if you don't like it, send it back" deal, so I'm not as scared to hit the "Buy Now" button. I'm going half-sies with the hubs so it can be a Valentine's Day present. Who gets freakin' excited for an industrial strength paper cutter? Me.

I can't even tell you how much this is going to make my life easier. I was trimming out a few things last nite and hubs looked at me and said, "Imagine how much easier that would be if you had your paper cutter." i looked at him and said, "I tell myself that everyday." He's been on trimming duty, so he knows how painstaking it is to trim EVERYTHING by hand- including 150 multilayered invitations.

I have a handful of big projects coming up (a wedding and a set of Graduation invites), so I can't wait to use this bad boy.

This year is shaping up to be a mighty fine one, indeed.