thursday's ten or so: on the tv edition

so, between the debates and all that, i've found time to add a few new shows to the plethora i already watched ;-) in no particular order, here are a few shows that are new this fall that i've made it a point to watch at least one episode of. 

1. go on
2. the new normal
3. elementary
4. nashville
5. last resort
6. guys with kids
7. made in jersey (which was canceled already...)

i also have plans to check out
8. chicago fire
9. partners
10. revolution
11. the mob doctor

i kind of make it a point to watch a few episodes before deciding whether i will continue watching a show or not. so i'll reserve commentary on any of the above for awhile, but i'll say that so far i'm enjoying most of them! it does help that half of them are only 30 minute shows that i can easily watch while prepping or cleaning up from dinner :-)

are you watching any of this season's new shows? what do you think so far?

hey, it's ok (tuesday) 9.4.12

hey, it's ok

...to be a bit disturbed by the fact that a commercial for a drain cleaner feels the need to be sexy. um. what?
...to wish all my iphone apps had a "quiet time" feature like one i found the other day -- it won't notify you between specific hours if you prefer to set it up that way.
...to be kind of obsessed with shows on abc family. i'll leave it at that ;-) (i feel twelve...)
...to spend an entire saturday in loungey clothes and not leave the house
...to not feel bad about doing the right thing, even if it's unpopular.
...to blog, pinterest and tweet while hanging out in a classroom of sleeping children just to stay awake. {yawn}
...to crank up pandora while by yourself at work. mainly because otherwise you find yourself humming the naptime music while driving or in the shower and that is most definitely NOT ok.
...to be itching to decorate the guest rooms. it's about time they started looking a bit more "us".
...to think that it might be a good idea to get a wedding photo or two up in the house. digital is ok, but canvas would be great :-)

please visit amber's blog to link up and read other things you can be ok with!

monday's memory: the one with february's 366 photos

another month has gone by already -- CRAZY.  here are the photos that (somewhat) tell the story of my february. 

hey, it's ok (2.28)

hey, it's ok


...to be totally excited that it's in the 70s this week
...to race your husband home from work.  (hey, i left at 6.30 am and he started his day a few minutes before 9. i just wanted to walk in the door first!)
...to have eaten a proper full dinner and STILL indulged in the free pancakes at ihop. my cell group meets there every 2 weeks on tuesdays, and our meeting coincided with free pancake day. i couldn't turn down the free stack (and i only ate 2...gave the other away)
...to really need to catch up with blogging. one of these days.
...to be thrilled beyond belief that my hardworking husband got offered (and accepted) a full-time position where he's been working temporarily for 6 months (at UBS). he does some sort of tax financial client portfolio stuff. he likes it because he gets to solve problems and figure out more efficient ways to do things all day. i like it because he's happy at work and we have insurance now (hey, just being real).
...to have cried a bit at the series finale of parenthood. if you watch, you know why (and you cried too, admit it)
...to roll your eyes every time you see the commercial with people whining talking about their cell phone battery dying. ever heard of charging your phone?!


visit amber no matter what, but especially if you have a list to share!

thursday's ten: currently

i ran across this post on one of my favorite blogs last week, and just had to use it sometime.  what better time than for thursday's ten?






currently listening on repeat to
mostly pandora stations, but the new Jesus Culture album gets my attention each time.  may have to be my next purchase with those gift cards i got for christmas!

currently planning to cook
in the next two weeks, new (to me) recipes will include slow cooker Thai beef, a stuffed baguette, gyros, bacon and caramelized onion tart, and some sort of garlic cheesy bread

currently reading
the lost symbol (dan brown)
and a book that i'll be reviewing here soon: close enough to hear God breathe (greg paul)

currently discovering
how incredibly handy my food processor is.  i use that thing at LEAST every other day.  love.it.

currently catching up on the trend of
big bang theory.  we started watching season one on new year's eve and are now partly through season 3. if we didn't have to do silly things like sleep we'd probably be caught up to the current season!

currently organizing
guest rooms and closets.  of course, the pantry/kitchen is ever-ongoing

currently dreading
cleaning out the garage and storage room or as they are known around here the "just put it in the..." areas

currently drinking
the usual suspects of water with fresh mint, daily coffee and the occasional stevia sweet tea, soda stream or diet coke.  we've also discovered the carbonated zevia drinks at whole foods are are liking them too

currently desiring
a juicer...a good blender...more toms...uggs...a north face jacket...and lululemon yoga/dance pants

currently creating
mischief?  i've been more creative in the kitchen than with jewelry or other crafting lately, but i think it's time to make a few fun pieces, even if they're just for me :-)


what's currently going on with you?

hey, it's ok (tuesday) 1.10

hey, it's ok


...to plot your next cooking adventures with a friend all morning
...to leave the baby in her pajamas until noon on a chilly dreary day.  i mean, it's not like we're doing anything.  i'd be in my pajamas if that were possible!
...to be hopeful that swagbucks earnings can pretty much fund at least half of christmas this coming year.  i have a plan, y'all. (and seriously, if you haven't signed up for swagbucks it's the easiest thing ever.  if you click the link above and sign up i get a referral! and i'll be glad to share my tips and tricks :-)
...to plan your meals out monthly.  it actually helps me budget wisely for groceries and eating out.  and so far we've come in under budget for groceries since we've been married so *something* is working.
...to be glad that my regularly watched shows are now spread out over several nights.  no boring evenings in the kitchen -- i can just turn on the dvr!
...to eat ramen and kimchee at any opportunity, which for me means when i'm at home for a meal and my husband is nowhere around.  he can't stand cabbage, much less the fermented spicy stuff!
...to not be able to resist creamy goodness.  my boss had ranch sour cream dip AND french onion dip in her fridge last week.  she had a bit less after i spotted them!
...to be planning to somehow re-create one of my favorite dips from trader joe's. i'm tired of spending the money on it AND running out quickly.  ha.  i'll share it if it's successful.
...to apparently be hungry as i write this since over half of my points have to do with food.  so i suppose i'll sign off and go make lunch!


(visit amber and share your own list)

hey, it's ok (tuesday) 12.27

hey, it's ok


...to get choked up while watching ellen.  or the soldier appreciation episode of rachael ray.
...to see someone giving design/creative ideas on a talk show and thinK "she totally got that off pinterest"
...to toooootally have baby fever after cuddling our friends 11 week old for an evening
...to have paused everything to watch drew brees break the record last night, and to be genuinely happy for him.
...to talk about football (or hockey) in everyday conversation ;-) and your blog
...to have LOVED your Christmas celebrations, been totally overwhelmed by all the generosity given to you, and to just feel completely blessed by the whole season
...to be glad for a quiet day after Christmas to unwind a bit from ALL that family time, as good as it was
...to have been really spoiled over the long weekend by going to bed (too) late and still getting a solid 7-8 hours of sleep
...to still not understand why people want sweet stuff on their meat.  pass the spice and savory; keep your apples away from my roast


visit amber's blog and link up with your own list of what's ok in your world!

hey, it's ok (tuesday) 12.20

hey, it's ok


...to have both discovered and watched the entire season (so far) of "once upon a time" in 2 days time
...to be very excited about the maggiano's gift card the family i nanny for gave us for christmas.  yaaaay date night and warm italian food in the middle of winter :-)
...to bring my hair straightener to work with me when i nanny so i can at least leave looking more normal/less scary
...to realize when reading everyone's christmas cookie blogs that i still haven't made any peppermint bark this year.  gotta get on that!
...to watch baby g VERY closely when she gets near the christmas tree
...to still have a few gifts left to buy, but only because we stretched them among several paychecks so we could still, you know, eat.  ;-)  all will be done by friday except for the ones we're mailing to some of my family members which will just be late. (and that's ok too).
...to be just as excited about wrapping all the gifts as buying them.  it's one of my absolute favorite parts of this season!
...to have pretty much single-handedly polished off the pasta salad my parents had this weekend.  it's nothing special--it's from a box.  but i.love.it.
...to sometimes put aside your crunchy, organic preferring nature to enjoy some good food from a box.  sometimes.  :-)


visit amber's blog--she's awesome!

hey, it's ok (tuesday) 11.22

hey, it's ok


...to lick the spatula when making brownies
...to be ready to black friday shop.  i don't do it like anyone else i know...much more relaxed approach, and i still get good deals.  without killing anyone or getting up ridiculously early. (amazon's online deals help a lot, but i actually DO get out and go!)
...to skip meal planning this week, as far as the blog goes.  we have a "plan" but i'm not going to get stressed if we don't stick to it.  hello holiday week!
...to, however, be planning out our open house menu.  i'm including some gluten free, dairy free, and vegan options this year as well as the normal fare, so i want it to be balanced. (if you have favorite holiday finger foods i'd love to hear about it!)
...to love rachael ray, but to be really tired of the "smellavision" comment she makes all.the.time.
...to spend the entirety of baby g's naptime catching up on shows on demand so that i can delete them off the dvr when i get home :-)
...to have way too many photos stored on my computer.  currently in the process of backing them ALL up to disk.
...to be ridiculously geeking out and excited that there's now a container store in my city.  i'm planning on hitting it up on friday, actually!
...to be quite excited to put up our Christmas decor here in a few days.  this will be our first year decorating together, and we have 3 trees planned as well as other fun stuff :-)  we do need stockings though.  nice ones.  any suggestions?
...to be nearly ready to post the giveaway that' i've had for a little over a month and am just now prepared for.  in fairness, it came RIGHT before the wedding.  i've been a little busy.
...to have placed a clue about the giveaway in this list of things that are ok.  extra entry if you correctly guess the right one BEFORE i post about the giveaway :-) (seriously)


visit amber's blog. mostly because she's awesome, but also because she hosts this weekly fun!  join us!

hey, it's ok (tuesday) .12

 hey, it's ok

...to eat doritos with your low-fat cottage cheese.  it's balanced, right?

...to sometimes watch silly tv shows

...to love wrapping paper and wrapping gifts in a nearly unhealthy way :-)

...to consider trading free babysitting for my clients with elipticals.  i used one of them the other day and it was a fantastic workout!

...to really, really, really be tired of the rain.

...to be thrilled that not only do you have a summer job lined up but that when the mother called to tell you she used the words "we are so happy and excited that we've found the perfect person for our family!"

...to be over-run with laundry.  all of it clean, none of it in it's proper home.  yikes!

...to be a hockey fan even if your knowledge of the game is a bit sketchy.  but hey, the fights are kinda fun.  (go preds!)

...to get excited about goodwill shopping.  no reason to spend big money on a wardrobe as i'm moving between sizes and losing the weight.  and finding actual quality pieces there makes me even more excited.

thursday's ten: things that make me go "huh?"

today's ten list


is one of those not-so-rare glimpses into my mind
where i'm a little baffled by the environment around me. for example

1. the royal wedding is not only trending on twitter, it's a promoted trend. do they NEED any more promotion? and who exactly is getting the proceeds there?!
2. on my least favorite kids show that finn likes: teacher suzie never comes up with her own lesson plans. she always waits for a 3 year old to do it. AND she's clearly a failed singer. she must live in nashville. the "big thing" she does for her kids every day is perform a song for them. i'm sorry, but most 3 year olds wouldn't sit still for half those songs.
3. storms have devastated the southeast, yet we're more concerned with a royal wedding. it's not that i don't wish them well, and it's not that i may not tune in to see the dress at least, but let's give a little bit of recognition to those suffering in georgia and alabama (among others). the death toll is over 200 as of right now.
(and it totally reminds me of last year when nashville flooded and the only news was that of a bomb threat in nyc that turned out not to be for real after all. is it any wonder i get irritated with media priority?!)
4. why are people so fascinated by trash tv? i'll just leave it at that...because i don't want to give any more recognition than these shows already have.
5. is it just me or are allergies WAY worse this year than most here in mid-TN? i want to chop my sinuses out on a daily basis.
6. why on earth do people participate in those copy and paste statuses on facebook?  you know the ones.  "it's CAT week!  if you have a cat who makes your life better, please post this in your status."
and people DO.
7.  on the facebook/twitter subject...do people not read what they write?  like, ever?  i so often want to bring my red correction pen to facebook with me...
(and yes i know i type without capital letters, but at least i KNOW i'm doing it.  i know how to type correctly.  and i apologize if it drives any of you crazy :-)
8.  i know, i know, i KNOW that whole wheat pasta is better for you.  but i don't get it.  how can you all stand eating cardboard?!  gimme my white pasta and i'll just eat less of it.
9.  the "end of the world" billboards.  if you haven't seen them, you don't live in the south. ;)
10. fast food restaurants that serve way too many options.  like fish at a burger place.  i don't trust mcdonalds to do a good fish sandwich, sorry.  and i heart mcdonalds, for real.

hey, it's ok (tuesday) .9

hey, it's ok

...to not get a fabulous time on a 5k when you (a) didn't run because your knee was bothering you and (b) hadn't actually DONE a 5k in months and months and months

...to already be looking for the next 5k.  because i totally have the bug again.

...to love ical because you get to color code *everything*

...to eat a cheeseburger (or quarter pounder) now and then

...to be completely overwhelmed by financial "stuff" all the while knowing and trusting that God will provide

...to need a (free or extremely cheap) getaway.  stat.

...to have way.too.many recipes in your "to try" folder

...to love twitter

...to feel accomplished because the dvr percentage is down to 50ish.  and all that was watched while getting other things done, so it's not like i've been a *complete* couch potato!

(amber is the one who started this and you should totally visit her)

hey, it's ok (tuesday) .8

hey, it's ok!

...to love law & order: uk because of the accents and wigs

...to plan out menus every week

...to often scrap said menus on day 2ish because you totally underestimated your level of busyness

...to heart fruit roll-ups at the age of 30

...to still get a little giddy when looking at my ring finger

...to hide from status updates on certain nights, until you've watched the show that everyone else is talking about (helloooo grey's last week that i still haven't watched!)

...to be a few days into tornado season and beyond ready for it to be over. the sirens make it hard to take a decent nap!

(visit amber for the original)

hey, it's ok (tuesday) .8

(go to amber's blog for the original)

hey, it's ok

... to want to reach through the tv screen and shake Haddie (parenthood) for being such a selfish brat

... to get completely excited about the smallest things

... to get a slight thrill about putting away dishes.  there's something about restoring everything to their order...yes, i'm sick.

... to heart oreos.  specifically double stuf.  more specifically, with mint cream.

... to use the word heart.

... to sometimes watch silly old movies and get completely immersed in the stories (three men and a baby anyone?)

... to smile every time you see emi using her christmas present (anthony and i got her a small "cat mat" and she LOVES it)
... to stay up way past your bedtime talking to your love on the phone :)

thursday's ten: kids shows

i've been totally slacking on the blog the last few days -- a fact not lost on my love who has repeatedly asked when i was going to post again.  this probably isn't necessarily the post he's looking for, but...




today's ten are the shows that i can actually enjoy with the children while babysitting/nannying.  believe me, it's not hard at all for me to come up with a list of WAY more than 10 that grate on my every nerve.  but here are 10 that i enjoy.

1.  phineas and ferb
(um, i may have this set to dvr.  at my house.  where there are no children.)
2.  berenstain bears
(it's kinda a throwback to my childhood...i LOVED those books.  now if only they would do a show of amelia bedelia.  i'd love that.)
3.  curious george
(while i think the man in the yellow hat is pleasantly clueless and possibly dumb, it's a pretty cute little show.)
4.  little einsteins
(maybe i'm just a fan of the music ;)
5.  olivia
(it's just the right amount of cheeky for me.  ha)
6.  good luck charlie
(another that i'll watch on my own.  and the older set that i babysit like it)
7.  veggie tales
(of COURSE.  i love it)
8.  max and ruby
(ruby and max!  sure, their parents seem to be absentee but the kids are all right ;)
9.  sesame street
(i don't love the flying fairy school portion, but the rest is liveable)
10. wordgirl
(yay for positive role models for girls, yes?)

hey, it's ok (tuesday) .7

(visit amber for the original)
hey, it's ok

... to have a big.huge.box of those fla・vor・ice popsicles in your freezer just for yourself

... to never have ANY desire ever to watch shows like jersey shore or the bachelor or any "real housewives of blahblah". HOW is that remotely appealing?!

... to get excited about date nights :-)

... to think that sweet tea is quite possibly the best.beverage.ever.  (except water, of course)

... to dislike the musical guests of 90% of the shows you watch.  

... to stay in your pj's on a day off (at least until you go out!)

... to dread taking down the Christmas tree (yes, it's still up.  and that's ok too.  ;)

it's a great day for more conferencing!

quick explanation of the wordle i do (most) every saturday, because some of you are new around here:

a couple of years ago (i think) i stumbled across a blog thing called "weekend wordle". i discovered it about the same time as i found "six word saturday"...actually i think it was because my blog buddy megan was participating in both!

anyway, i stopped doing both for awhile because my weekends are so crazy, and when i started back up i discovered that blog hosting the "weekend wordle" was not really staying active with it any longer. however, i thought it was fun enough to keep going!

if you want to play along, you can find the place to make the wordle here. just type in your blog address and wait for it to create! you can play around with fonts and colors, although i usually just leave it at random.

like this week's.  totally random.

 

and now for a blog thing that is VERY active :)

those e.d. commercials make me squirm!

seriously, have you noticed that?  all about turning normal moments into romantic ones, 4 hours, blah blah.  i'm thrilled that couples can enjoy each other's company in that way with medical aid...but i'd rather not watch 6 commercials regarding the ways in which that happens while i'm simply trying to take in this week's episode of csi:ny!

today's events include another prophetic conference...so that means that literally anything could happen!   it's sure to be an exciting day, that much is for sure :-)

have a good one!

Thursday's Ten: my dvr cue

oh, how embarrassing this could be :)

is anyone else WAY excited about fall tv?

here's my current DVR lineup...at least the 10 that i'm most excited about!

1.  law and order: SVU

(and holy mess, what a premiere!)

2.  the mentalist

(swooooonnnnn)

3.  criminal minds

(speaking of season premieres.  w.o.w.)

4.  grey's anatomy

5.  glee

(as a former music/choir teacher, i know that this is SO far from reality...but it's fun :)

6.  30 rock

(i haven't finished season 4 yet, so this one will just sit in my cue waiting until i finish it...but it's my new love)

7.  modern family

8.  csi

9. desperate housewives

10.  private practice

 ok, and one more.  the middle.  they have NAILED both small-town, and indiana life.  i.love.it.

i'm pretty sure you're not as addicted to tv as i am...but feel free to make me feel like less of a couch potato and participate with your own top 10!









(all photo credits go to google images...i just searched the show names)

Thursday's Ten: things in the not-so happy category

i try to keep it positive around here, really i do.

but sometimes you just NEED to vent

so join me, won't you?

here's 10 things i'm less than thrilled about today:

1. that my car was the victim of a hit-and-run about 30 minutes after the graveside service on friday. no one in it, thankfully, but it's pretty banged up. i won't even get into the story.

2. that for 2 months in a row i've had to call my cable provider *after midnight* to get my service turned back on. i'm current with my payments...but i found out a few minutes ago that my email address was never transferred and so it looks like i haven't paid a thing. instead they set up a stupid bogus email account when my service was transferred and never bothered to tell me either the address or the password. um...

oh, and while they figure this out i have no access to my main email address. NOT.HAPPY

3. (relating to #1) that even though i didn't do anything wrong, i have to deal with the insurance and repair of my car...and pay a deductible. doesn't quite seem fair, does it?

4. that my health insurance basically sucks. i'm actually canceling it today and looking for an alternative healthcare plan a couple of months from now. that way, i'll be able to do my research and save the money that i have been spending on health insurance (which is a LOT) until i can find a plan that's either decent or more affordable--hopefully both!

5. that although i've meant to, i haven't yet made it to bed at a decent hour this week.

6. that i haven't yet unpacked like i meant to. things keep coming up and i feel like i need a good solid few days to concentrate on it. otherwise i get overwhelmed when i only have a few hours

7. that i don't yet have jobs lined up like i would prefer for the next 2.5 weeks where i'm between nanny positions. while i can definitely use a couple of days off, i need to keep income coming in!

(i say that knowing that i will be provided for...jobs have already come in out of the blue. it's just that even though i'm living in this amazing time of provision, i also feel like it's my responsibility to stay busy and productive, ya know?)

8. that i haven't yet found all my clothes. that could be solved had i done #6

;-)

9. that i haven't been to a movie in awhile

10. that i have to remember my pesky inhaler when i think about exercising that doesn't involve wiifit

what about you? what are you shaking your head...or your fist...about this week?

thursday's ten: i confess

true confession time! join me for your thursday's ten confessions if you like :)

i confess

- that i'm often spurred to write a blog post because of my boyfriend's disappointment that i haven't updated in awhile

- that i can be rather lazy when there is a computer, couch, or tv involved

- that i hate yogurt. ok, hate is a strong word. i despise yogurt.

- that i often find myself watching children's programming after the children have left the room

(or that i dvr it for myself)

- that i'm completely addicted to texting

- that i kinda think photoshop is cheating. although if i had it i'd totally cheat.

- that i'm really into america's got talent lately

- that i may never stick to a decent bedtime

- that as much as i love organics, sometimes mcdonalds calls my name

- that i can't remember the last time i had a pedicure...and one is badly needed!

please join in!