Debate of the day: Smoky Olive or Mark Twain Olive

Since having the paint samples spread over the fireplace and taped along the walls for a few weeks, I made a decision on a whim to finally get this process going. 

paint chips everywhere

It takes me weeks to choose a paint color. I start with one sample I like and then the pile grows into a massive collection that I need to stare at for weeks. And in every case, I have always come back to the original sample)

Ryan wanted something "green" and not "gap khaki" while I wanted something that works with all the other elements and was neutral enough to work with future furniture purchases (think bar/pub table and new couches). I think the walls are too similar to the color of the couches but since we wont have these couches forever, I'm overlooking that. 

We I (who am I kidding, I had the final decision on this one) ended up choosing  a sage/olive green called "Smoky Olive" (not Mark Twain Olive as I previously thought) with the eggshell finish by Valspar signature collection. 

Thanks to the help of two friends, we were able to get the general living room area completely painted in one weekend.


Before:

During: 

Mulder decided that laying down on the sheets would be the best way to help.                        

                            

                             

                             

                     

                     

                                     

                                       

                            

After: 

I still have to put the vents back into the walls and hang up some of the pictures but to get a general idea...

I think this picture reflects the color of the walls the best.

Beautiful natural lighting makes for difficult pictures with a cellphone camera

I've been working on a complete before/after post of the living room so check back soon for that. 

Crossing things off my list

I have been using my 101 in 1001 list as way to get myself out of my funk. I like being able to cross things off of a list and having a list gives me direction. Otherwise, I could sit down and do nothing, day after day and let my funk take over. When I have a goal to work on-and really, something to cross of a list-I can feel like I accomplished something. 

I've already been able to cross two items off (getting a library card and writing a 100 things about me post) and there are a bunch of items that are in the works.

1. I am going get started in painting the living room/dining/kitchen area. The living room, dining area, and kitchen share the same walls-all separated by a giant brick fireplace in the center of the room (look here) so finding a color that was going to work well with the dark hardwood floors, the wood trim around the windows, the stainless steel kitchen appliances, the dining room table and area, the living room area, the faded red brick and the stone...well, it was a lot to consider. After having the gazillion of paint swatches laid out all over the stone on the fireplace for weeks, and then finally taping the swatches onto the walls yesterday, we finally settled on a sage/olive-ish green color called "Mark Twain olive green." On impulse, I left the house at 8:30 last night to pick up a gallon of paint and some other painting supplies so I could get started today.

2. Without really planning for it, I hadn't bought a coffee for a few days. It has been just over a week now and I figure I might as well keep it going. August 3 will make it a complete four weeks!

3.  I bought a subscription to speechpathology.com as a way to earn my continuing education units. For my national license, I need to complete 30 hours every three years and my cycle ends in December 2013 and so far, I am LOVING earning my CEU's through the website. I can print the courses right off the website and read at my leisure (somewhat, there is a deadline from when you can register for a specific course and how long you actually have to take and submit the quizzes). In any case, I am confident that I can complete the remaining hours of my 30 by the end of the month. I also think that I will be able to complete the next 30 for the next cycle within the amount of time I have for my annual subscription. If there are any speech pathologists out there looking for a convenient and inexpensive way to earn CEU's, I highly recommend this option.

3. I am currently reading The Lost Years by Mary Higgins Clark and have a few other books being delivered to me or on hold at the library.

4. I have started going food shopping every 2-3 weeks instead of weekly. I feel like its my weaning process to go an entire month without grocery shopping.

5. I started writing a draft post about the dogs.

6. I've been playing Candy crush and am currently on level 91. Does that count for something?

7. Still working on that puzzle. Ryan was thoughtful enough to get a big enough piece of cardboard from a job site so I could transfer it onto the cardboard instead of taking up the coffee table.



I also worked out for a little bit yesterday. Nothing major-just a 20 minute circuit workout but it really helped to make me feel like I am getting out of my funk.



OK-off to start the painting progress-check back later for pictures and updates!

What's been going on lately...

Hope you all had a wonderful holiday!

It has taken a few days but I am working my way out of my funk. So, what's been going on lately....

1. Mulder has been super cute as always. Lately, he has been hanging backwards with his body draped over the couch so he can stare into the yard and watch the squirrels.

2. Yesterday, the teenager came back from a week long overnight camp. I am so happy that he gets to experience overnight camp. I spent my summers at an overnight camp and met some of my closest friends that way.

3.  I must admit that it was nice to have a week "off" from parenting. During this time, Ryan and I got to spend time as boyfriend/girlfriend instead of as parents and although that aspect was so wonderful, it really had us in a deep conversation about who we are, what we want in our lives, and all the other "big stuff". Eek.

4. For the first time this summer, I spent the day at the beach. Aaaah, my happy place.

5. I've been making some progress on the 2000 piece puzzle but it is taking up my entire coffee table. I used to use a flat piece of cardboard, covered in wax paper but this one is too big. Does anyone have suggestions as to where/how to store a puzzle? 

6. Ryan stopped by the farmers market earlier in the week and picked up some some of the biggest asparagus I have ever seen and another bag of fiddleheads. 

7. After months of searching for the perfect lunch bag/cooler, I finally found one at Stop and Shop the other day. I had been looking for a bag that I can carry on my shoulder and is big enough to fit a few containers and/or some bottles for when we go to parties. Success!!!! 

8. I have a pretty laid back work schedule for the summer. I'm working a few hours in the afternoons on Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday, and one hour in the morning on Wednesday's. 

9. I completed an item from my 101 in 1001 list! I registered for a library card and got my first book, The Lost Years by Mary Higgins Clark. I started reading it while at the beach but it's taking me a little while to get into it. In any case, another $5.00 to go into my savings account! 

10. I started collecting paint samples for the two bathrooms as well as the kitchen/living room/dining room and hallway. It's slightly overwhelming as it took me nearly two months to pick the paint for the bedrooms/foyer when we first moved in. I have no idea what sort of color scheme I want in the rooms so I grabbed a variety of samples and laid them all out on the stone work in front of the fireplace. For the living/dining/kitchen area, I want something that will work with the brick fireplace and highlight the dark wood and furniture.

That is a lot of paint swatches

Possibilities...

11. Bauer turned 8 on July 2nd. Happy Birthday Bauer! My mother, who is not a dog person, thinks of Bauer has her fourth child. She absolutely adores him and treats him like a king! She sent this picture to me on his birthday. 

Side note: I got Bauer after I graduated from college in the summer of 2005. When I moved to Florida for grad school in 2007, Bauer stayed with my parents. He goes to work almost every day with my father. He is such a sweet boy! 

12. Step-parenting is tough. Someone once told me that being a step-parent is the hardest job in the world because you have all the responsibility of a parent but none of the unconditional rewards from the child. I posted about the no-yelling challenge but I think I need to update and re-evaluate this. As a step-parent, I am automatically resented by the teenager when I tell him to do something -even something as simple as brush your teeth before bed. I am not yelling or raising my voice when I ask/then tell him to brush his teeth (or any thing that a parent would tell or ask a child to do) but like I already said, I am immediately resented. I am desperately working on handling these situations in a different way. Suggestions are welcome!!!! 

Questions for you:

Are you a step-parent? Any words of advice?

What have you been up to?

In A Funk

I am in a funk right now and have been for a few weeks. 

I have been eating like crap and finding every excuse to stay planted on the couch for endless hours. 

I haven't even remotely considered working out. 

I am dreading having a certain conversation. 

I don't know what I am doing or where I am going in my career. 

Sometimes, I wish it were appropriate to resort to middle school freak-outs and scream, "life suuuuucks"

What happens when you press delete by accident

I just spend two hours writing up a post, complete with pictures, recipes, and everything. I pressed publish. It went up. Great.

I went into the draft section, in an attempt to clean up some draft posts and work on those and in the midst of doing that, managed to delete the post that I had already published for the day. The one that I spent two hours on. Shiiiit.

Ooops.


Here is the much abridged version:

I don't like grocery shopping.

Mulder is cute.

I started a 2000 piece puzzle as part of my 101 in 1001.

Perimeter completed

Still can't quite figure out bloglovin.

I made triple bean veggie burgers. The mixture looks like dog vomit (as Ryan claimed) but tastes pretty good. Recipe and pictures to come another day.

School is out for the summer. I'm only working a few hours in the afternoons this summer and pretty happy about the time off.

Just started watching How I Met Your Mother. Love it.

It's raining and I am going to use that as the perfect reason to have a marathon session with How I Met Your Mother


Girls Night tonight. Yay. Makes me happy.

Amy Yakima  on So You Think You Can Dance was unbelievable this week. I have a feeling she will win this season.

Question for you?
Have you ever spent a significant amount of your time on something and then it all goes to waste?

100 Things About Me

       It has been a whirlwind of a week with the school year coming to an end and some things in my life that are left to the unknown. I haven't even had the chance to go food shopping this week, let alone cook a real dinner. I'm looking forward to this weekend -so far, no major plans: dinner with my parents on Saturday night and  I hope to start getting some after pictures of the house so I can start posting about them. I may go to Lowe's and start looking at paint colors for the other rooms in the house.

Anyways....
      I started working on my 101 in 1001 list and I can officially cross this off my list! 1 down, 100 more to go!
      I had been working on this list for a while, just gathering random thoughts. I seriously didn't anticipate being this difficult to come up with a 100 things about myself.



1. Pink is my favorite color-pink water bottle, pink cell phone case, ipad cover, key chains. I tried -unsuccessfully- to convince Ryan to let me paint the inside of the walk-in closet  hot pink.
2. Birds and fish freak me out.
3. I looooooooove dogs, especially really big dogs. (See #22)
4. I am a speech-language pathologist
5. I cannot resist chocolate
6. I spent my summers growing up at a Jewish overnight camp-I still consider it my favorite place to be. I went there as a camper for 7 years and 6 as a counselor.
7. My brother married a camp girl.
8. I pee a lot (sorry, TMI?)
9. Because I pee a lot, I wake up at least 2-3 times a night. I can't remember the last time I slept through the whole night.
10. I am the world's worst singer.
11. I can recite nearly every line in the show, Friends, and am pretty sure I could answer almost any trivia question about the show.
12. I know every word in Ice Ice Baby.
13. I prefer drinking out of a straw.
14. This all started in high school when I had those clear braces that turned yellow if you weren't extremely careful.
15. I moved to Florida from the Boston area for two years to attend grad school and didn't know a single person.
16. I name my dogs after TV show characters-First was Bauer (24), now I have Mulder (X-files). I really want my next dog to be named Mr. Feeny. ( I also want my next dog to be a French Mastiff but I have to convince Ryan-he is anti-slober; I'm not.)



Bauer

One of my favorite pictures of Bauer

Bauer

Sleeping Mulder

17. I am obsessed with So You Think You Can Dance.

18. I was also quite obsessed with 24, specifically Jack Bauer (hence #16.)
19. I always shave my left leg first and put my contacts in starting with the left eye.
20. But I always remove my right contact first.
21. I am a grammar nerd (except when I am blogging-I excuse myself from this because I just want to type fast.)
22. I grew up with a 300 pound English Mastiff. His name was Windsor and he was such a good dog.

Size difference or what.

23. My mother used to trick me into eating salmon when I was a kid by referring to it as "pink chicken."
24. I still have (and cuddle with) my stuffed animal. His name is Tim. I got him when I was a baby and recently got my newborn nephew his very own Tim.

Original Tim on the left, sans eyes, nose and mouth. Clean  Tim on the right

25. I keep a running list of the books that I have read since I was in college. I'm up to 130 right now.
26. I grew up dancing-it is still one of my favorite things to do. I cannot sit still when I hear music.

June 1987-My 1st dance recital

2001 Senior Dance Company
Tap

27. Unfortunately, my body was absolutely not meant for dancing. I have had my right hip completely reconstructed because of that.
38. I also broke my left ankle multiple times from dancing. The first time I broke my ankle, I walked on it for 10 days before going to the hospital.
39. My left index finger was cut off right before my 9th birthday.
40. That's why I celebrate 9 1/2 finger day each year.
41. I have the most handsome nephew in the whole world.

42. I have been skydiving-twice.

43. I have a bit of a daredevil side to me.
44. But I will never consider going bungee jumping -something about the possibility of whiplash terrifies me.
45. I am 4'11'' and a half. That half is extremely important to me.
46. I also have a bit a 90-year old woman side to me- I thoroughly enjoy puzzles, knitting, reading, etc.
47. I love folding laundry. I find it relaxing
48. The same way my mother finds vacuuming relaxing and my grandmother thinks ironing is relaxing.
49. I am still friends with my "girls" from high school. Our group has grown over the years, and I am beyond grateful for my friendship with them.
50. When Ryan and I went on our first date, I asked my friend to call me in the middle of the date to proclaim "something bad happened" as a get-away plan in case I needed it.
51. I ended up texting her in the middle of the date to abort the fake emergency call because I was going to marry Ryan.
52. I can't fall asleep without socks on my feet but I kick them off every single night. There are piles of socks gathered at the end of the bed when I change my sheets.
53.  I would prefer to be too cold over being too hot.
54. I love the beach-it is my favorite place to read a book but I don't really care for going in the ocean or getting all sandy.
55. I really dislike taking out the trash.
56. I recently starting drinking and really appreciating craft beer.
57.My favorite movie is "Adventures in Babysitting"-I used to quote the line "don't fuck with the babysitter" when I was a kid. (I still do).
58. And my all time favorite song is Mr. Big's, "To Be With You".
59. I can burp like a truck driver-on command.
60. When I was in college, I didn't know how to cook so I would have peanut butter and jelly sandwiches delivered to me.
61. I want to become fluent in sign-language.
62. My favorite place I have traveled to is Florence, Italy when I went to visit my sister who was studying abroad there.
63. I get weird satisfaction out of making and crossing things off of a to-do list.
64. I crack my knuckles and my hips frequently. When I crack my hips, I lift my leg up, like a dog peeing on a fire hydrant and then lean forward. People always think I am farting when I do this (I don't do this at work or in public.....often.)
65. Despite my insane love for all things chocolate, if I had to pick just one food to eat for the rest of my life it would be Quakers maple and brown sugar oatmeal.
66. At one point, I had 10 piercings (three on each ear, plus two in my left cartilage, my belly button, and my tongue.)
67. The tongue ring came out very shortly after my parents found out. (That didn't go over so well.)
68. I love Sudoku.
69. My favorite book is Jodi Picoult's My Sister's Keeper.
70. I have horrible luck with computers-they tend to break when I am around.
71.  My first crushes were Johnny Castle (not Patrick Swayze) from Dirty Dancing and Jesse Katsopolis from Full House. ( I had/still have a thing for a good head of hair.)

72. I don't like biting into apples because my chin feels sticky the rest of the day.
73. I once met Bobby Brown and Whitney Houston when they came to my dance recital. Bobby Brown even signed my ballet shoe.
74. I can't whistle.
75. My favorite flowers are calla-lillies.
76. I still hold my nose when I swim.
77. I am an overly-cautious driver.
78. I sleep on the left side of the bed.
79. I could be very content sitting on the couch all day with a puzzle (nerd alert.)
80. My first concert was New Kids on the Block.
81. Growing up, my comfort food was chicken, mashed potatoes, and corn mixed up in a bowl.
82. My grandmother makes the greatest chocolate chip cookies-it took my nearly 26 years to get the recipe from her.
83. She also made me promise that I would never give the recipe away.
84. I tend to fall asleep when watching a movie.
85. Foods I dislike: popcorn, olives, pickles, cottage cheese, blueberries.
86.  I am anti-twitter.
87. If I have a bad day, or something horrible happened, all I want to do is take a nap. My mother started referring to these as my "denial naps."
88. I went to college in upstate New York and grad school in Florida. Complete opposites climates and atmospheres.
89. I've only been snowboarding a handful of times but I got the hang of it pretty quickly and I love it.
90. Except that I suck at getting off the ski lift and have to have someone push me off.
91. I hated skiing the one and only time I went.
92.  My earliest memories are of my mother putting my hair in pigtails and curling my hair with a curling iron. The other memory is going to visit my grandfather in the hospital and eating a package of M & M's (refer to #5)
93. I would love to learn how to ride a motorcycle.
94. I won't wear white pants/shorts/capri's.
95. I am good at memorizing vocabulary terms.
96. I enjoy cooking and baking, even though I am not that great at it.
97. If I could meet one person, it would be a tie between Travis Wall and Mia Michaels (See #17.)
98. My father and I both have a thing for old fashioned clocks. I love that we have very similar taste and styles when it comes to decorating, style, and design...old world, wood, brown leather, etc.
99. My mother and I have completely opposite taste. She is very modern, art-deco, contemporary.
100. Writing this list was a lot more difficult than I anticipated.



DONE! Now, I get to cross something off a list, put $5.00 in my savings account as part of my 101 in 1001 list, and feel accomplished for the day! Wahooo

Grandma's Retirement and a special fathers day

Yesterday, my grandmother retired after 27 years of working and being a driving force at the temple. She was the woman who did it all as the rabbi said in his speech. The synagogue gave her a wonderful send off and the rabbi spoke such kind and inspirational words in her honor.

 She began working shortly after my grandfather passed away in 1986 and found comfort in working as a secretary/do-it-all woman at the temple in which she belonged to for over 50 years.

Grandpa and me, circa 1984

After the services, we had a kiddish lunch to celebrate her. My family put together the reception area and did an amazing job:

sneak peek at what the reception area looked like mid-set up.

Happy Fathers Day to this guy:




myself, my dad, my brother
circa 1986

My father is the most selfless individual who wants only the best for his children and would do ANYTHING for them. I wouldn't be anywhere without him. He really is the best father a girl could ask for.

 

 

And a very special fathers day to my brother. It is his first fathers day and I hope he has a wonderful one at that.

 

 

 

 

And as always, happy fathers day to my amazing boyfriend, Ryan. He is a wonderful dad and I look forward to more wonderful parenting adventures with him.