A Quarter of a Century and then some!

Twenty six years ago today at the ripe old age of 18, I gave birth to my only son, Zachary John Brechlin. I had been in labor for 26 hours and watched the Super Bowl (The New England Patriots and the Chicago Bears) during the worst pain I had ever felt in my life. Since that day I have had an abscessed tooth which certainly rivals labor on my pain scale.

After about 25 hours of labor and a string of complications, I was rushed into the operating room for the first of the three c-sections that I would have before 25 years of age.

I don't begrudge him the 26 hours of labor, the sleepless nights that followed, or the sleepless nights he caused as he entered teenaged-dom. He actually turned out pretty good for being the product of young parents who had no idea what they were doing.

Zach, I am super proud of the man you have become and I am excited to be part of your life as you start your own family.

Thirty Point Lunch

So today was my first Domestic Violence Fatality Review meeting of the new year. Since we usually have about 15 DV cases each year we only review for the first half of the year and take the rest of the year off. The meeting is at the Medical Examiner's office so we often go to the Corner Bakery for lunch. Which is a good choice for my new lifestyle. They do have some truly sinful things (Think Cinnamon Creme cake at 770 calories per slice!) From their website:

"Our signature rich, golden cake swirled with ribbons of cinnamon, topped with crumbly cinnamon streusel and powdered sugar. Available in Large, Medium, or by the slice."

but they also have some tasty salad and sandwich choices. However, after some pressure, we ended up at Ye Olde Spaghetti Factory instead.

I have no idea what I was thinking. I guess I was thinking, how many calories can a little mizithra cheese have? Even if it is tossed with spaghetti and browned butter? Well let me tell you - A LOT!!!!! Between that and the "salad" I used up my entire allotment of nutritional intake for the day and will now be eating celery dipped in water and a diet pepsi for dinner.

What kind of wine goes with dog hair

I have a special place in my heart for dogs. They are such sweet companions. I have 3 dogs of which only one is really mine. And Max is only mine because his mother was hit by a car several years ago and he was just too skiddish and awkward to start over in a new home so he became my dog. Yuki our old basset/husky mix is actually Hannah's dog that she left here for me to take care of. Amaya, our Husky/Malamute, has been here for almost a year - and was Kylie's contribution to our house o' mutts.

I do love dogs. I don't love the fog of flying dog hair that is floating around at any given moment. After a week of the dogs sleeping on my bedroom floor I can fill my vacuum canister twice with their dog hair. It's unreal.

Tonight I had plans to do laundry, make dinner, work on some honey jars - but instead I vacuumed my bedroom, bisselled the hard wood, erased the couches with the pet eraser, changed the sheets on my bed and dusted my bedroom. Maybe I can actually get dressed in my room tomorrow morning... ick!

Declutter and Dehoard!

This is a link to the de-clutter calendar that I will be using this year to get rid of the massive amounts of junk that has accumulated in my house. I put off getting organized and cleaning because it just seems to be such a daunting task but I think I can stick to it if I just take it a day at a time. Who knows? Time will tell!

http://www.mysimplerlife.com/2012.htm


My before and after pics - not enough light in my bedroom but you get the idea!

A Life Mulligan

So, since I have this almost new life with some new additions to my family, I thought it only fitting that I round out (pun intended) my life mulligan with an improved body and psyche. I avoided a Calendar-New Year resolution mostly because of all the negativity surrounding it and the fact that I have yet to stick with a New Years resolution. So starting today (the Lunar New Year), I am going to start chronicling my journey into a more healthy place - spiritually and physically. My first step today was re-joining weight watchers - a small step but one that I know will work for me. Today, I really am the best person I have ever been - but there is soooo much room for improvement and growth (spiritual growth not physical! ha ha) and I think I am finally in a place that I can take it on! So wish me luck! :)

A Memorable Year

It was a memorable year. We had some disappointments, some losses and some gains but mostly we made lifetime memories. Here are some highlights:

I bought a new car - well new to me anyway. Since then I have spent THOUSANDS fixing it and it still isn't running!
We became acquainted with the Weber County Justice system - could have done without that one.
We lost Rodney's Aunt Dawn who he was very close to. She was way too healthy and way too young.
We gained two beautiful new babies in Rodneys family.
We got married!
I met my father-in-law for the first time.
We went to Alaska.
We saw Whales and porpoises (in the wild - that was for you Jenny)
We started remodeling our house - it's still not done ;)
Rodney's youngest daughter, Tiffany came to live with us. We gained one but we lost a couple.
I started a home business selling customized honey jars.
We traveled to New England and ate Maine Lobster, Maryland crab, ceviche, and french toast with real Vermont maple syrup.
We went to Bangor and took pictures of Stephen Kings house.
We spent the night in a beach cabin in Maine.
We went to Cape Cod and took pictures of a lighthouse.
We got stuck in through traffic in the Bronx for over 4 hours.

We have wonderful family and friends. We wouldn't trade a one of ya!

TheKnot

TheKnot