April 29, 2007

Where does the time go?

WEEKEND RECAP:
FRIDAY
My best friend from high school came to visit on Friday. We spent the day together!! I picked her up at noon and we had lunch at Albert's at the zoo. It was so wonderful. I brought Lil'D with me to so she could get to know him. Lil'D was such a delight all day. He made mama proud! After lunch we walked around Balboa Park. We paid to get into the Japanese Friendship Gardens. It was very small. Very small. Good thing we only paid $3 each. I went to the Japanese Tea Gardens in San Francisco and they were incredible. Anyway, after walking for miles at Balboa Park, I took he to my house. She wanted to see where I lived. I took her back to her hotel and Lil'D and I went up to her room. I got to see her husband and he got to meet Lil'D. They had a dinner date so I dropped them off at Flemming's Steak House. It was 7:45. Lil'D and I got home at 8:30pm.
We talked and talked and talked and talked! All day! It was as if no one else was around and it was just us!!!! She loved Lil'D (of course). She lives in Kentucky now. That is just too far away! She is the same person as she was in high school!! She is awesome and I miss having her around all the time. Funny how you take for granted your time with someone. It's just never a reality that you won't see them everyday. Like my parents, I lived with them for 22 years. I never thought in a million years I would live 1500 miles away from them. Nette and I live 2300 miles apart. When we were in school we probably lived 15 miles apart. Live is crazy I tell ya!
Lil'D had a long day and of course went to sleep on the way home. I feed him and put him to bed at 8:45. Late night for the little monkey.

SATURDAY:
Lil'D is awesome!!! He let us sleep till 9am. I actually got up at 8:30 and took a half hour shower. It was divine! The little things in life! J and I did housework for a majority of the morning. Auntie E called me over to see Andy's prom dress. It was very pretty. She is 15 and this is her first prom! Oh, those were the days...wouldn't want 'em back though! J and I went to Wal-mart and Costco. The day was over before we knew it.

SUNDAY:
We actually got up on time and got to church. This was Lil'Ds third time in the nursery. He does so well. Not a peep out of him! I drank a french vanilla cappuccino today, it was yummy. I'm tired of the cappuccinos from 7-eleven. I like them from AM/PM now! I mix a little english toffee with the french vanilla. J and I relaxed pretty much all day. We had to go to the grocery store. We got Pick Up Stix to go. Lil'D walk from the checkout counter to the exit doors in the grocery store (holding both of my hands). I really wanted to wear him out and make him tired since his naps were a little out of wack today. He went right to bed at 7:45. What a sweet pumpkin!! Life is just so good with him!! He has also learned how to kind of give me a kiss on the cheek! What precious times these are!!!

Ready for another week, I guess.
-Until tomorrow

April 26, 2007

18.Get Shadow spayed

Yeah!!! It finally happened! She was not happy about it. But she seems to be getting back to her old self. She is such a sweet girl and she loves J alot!! She is definitely a lot louder now than she was before. It's like she has found her "meow!"

Holding everything together by the seams

I just can't seem to fit blogging into my packed schedule of to dos.
Here is the current lowdown:

I got lots of time with "Senior" designer yesterday. Of course, that is
because he can't go anywhere without his crutches or wheelchair. Time with him just means MORE work for me. Which is fine, I just wish it could be spread out a little more. It's either too much emergency deadlines one day or just odds and ends the other. It could drive a person crazy. Yesterday at about 3:30, "Senior" designer started making a list of all the things we were going to take to our 10am appointment this morning at Barn's current residence. I had to leave no later that 4:45 to pick up Lil'D. I printed about 10 sheets of plans out and pulled samples and wrapped them in protective wrapping so they wouldn't scratch each other. There were about 10 veneer door samples. I packed all the samples in "Senior" designer's Navigator before he left. I was at the mercy of the plotter, which is old and slow. I barely made it. I think it was 4:49 when I walked out the door. I made it. After all this, we get to the appointment and only Mrs. Barn is there. We didn't need any of that stuff I packed up. This is par for the course with "Senior" designer. He always takes way more that what he needs. And with his leg in a cast he can't even help me carry anything. I guess what doesn't kill ya, makes you stronger. I should be the strongest woman in the world after the past year.

SHADOW DRAMA:

So our cat, Shadow, is 2 years old this month. We have been meaning to get her spayed for over a year and a half. We have been paying every month for a pet plan from PetSmart. It's not expensive or anything and we thought that it was really a smart thing to do. On the 14th of this month, Shadow went in for a check up and booster shots. She is perfectly healthy. The bill totaled up to like $400.00. We paid zero dollars because of they payments we make monthly on the plan. I made her and appointment to get her spayed on Tuesday this week. I got her there at 7:15am, weighed her and they said "Let me give you an estimate." I told them I was on the plan. She told me that the plan only paid if we had gotten her spayed the first year. The total bill could be $393.00. WWWHHHAT?
I told he I didn't have that kind of money to spend on a cat and left. I had to take her all the way back home and then drive to work. What a waste of time. I looked up some pet vets online when I got to work. I called one that was 5 minutes from our house... $68.00. Big difference, huh? Then to top it all off PetSmart called me yesterday and asked me how Shadow was recovering? I asked them from what. She said from her appointment on Tuesday. I told her I cancelled that appointment. You could tell she didn't know what to say...oh, ok, bye. I'm glad they didn't do it. Majorly unorganized!!! What a joke.
I took Shadow in this morning at 8am. They were very nice. It was just a small clinic. It was old, but very clean. They just called and said that she came out of the surgery just fine. Poor baby. I'm ready to be done with this!! It just breaks my heart to see her in pain. She's a tough cat. She'll be normal in about a week or two!!

Off to work now. I took a 15 minute lunch break to catch up!!!
-Until tomorrow

April 22, 2007

Recap of this week:

My Mom & Dad came to visit this week, that is why I haven't blogged. Grab a cup of coffee and sit down, this is going to take a while. Here is a recap of this week:

MONDAY:
I took Lil'D to daycare at the usual 7am time. I had a dentist appointment at 9:30 so I didn't go into work. My Mom & Dad had just gotten into town and were about 45 minutes away. I went and checked out an exit to make sure my Dad could pull over in his truck. He was hauling a trailer to Fresno. He wanted to be there by tonight and deliver it tomorrow. We pulled off the exit and got my Mom into my car. I got to hug my Dad and then say goodbye. He was off to drive the whole day. I took my Mom home and I went to the dentist. Great news!! No cavities. My Mom was ready to go when I got back. I took her to a mall close to work. I worked the rest of the day and picked her up at 5:30. J picked up Lil'D. She was really excited to see him! We played for a while after he ate dinner. He got a bath, had a bottle and was off to dreamland!! My Mom and I went to Marshall's. My Mom bought me some really cute shoes. They are kind of tennis shoes with cherries on them. They are really cute! Mom and I got back at about 9:45. My bedtime. I knew that I had a big day tomorrow.

TUESDAY:
Mom decided to stay at home and relax today. I'm really glad, because it was a stressful, busy day. I had to print out about 22 18x24 pages and 8 32x42 pages. These are all AutoCad plans for the meeting today at 2:30. We are meeting with Barn. He and his wife have been in Hawaii for the past 4 months and haven't been available. Speaking of Hawaii, "Senior" designer went to Hawaii this weekend. He and his wife left on Wednesday and got back on Monday night. On Thursday, they were playing tennis and "Senior" designer went and tore his Achilles tendon. He sounded really awful when I spoke to him on the phone. The healing time for this is supposedly really long. "Senior" designer is a busy body. He never sits still. He is so hard to pin down and get complete answers from. We call him Captain Chaos, Tornado, Tasmanian Devil...stuff like that. He is always into something and never where he is supposed to be. He's the boss so he can get away with it. So his wife was driving him in to work today, of course they never made it because he had 10 million other things he had to get done before he got to the office. We met on the side of the road on the way to the appointment. I had to forewarn him that I wasn't driving my truck. I'm in J's PT Cruiser. He was like "where am I going to put my wheelchair and crutches?" Sorry, I'm not your personal driver!! It was kind of funny. So we were finally off to the long awaited appointment. We got there at 2:30. The interior designer that we are working with on this project is Dam Tug. Her and "Senior" designer have been working together for years. I really like working with her. She helps the client choose plumbing fixtures, lights, paint colors, furniture and other things. "Senior" designer and I would be doing all this if she wasn't. I love having her work on projects with us. Less for me to do!! I am overwhelmed with what I have, anymore and I would be stressed out, completely. My plate is just right like it is. Anyway, Dam hurt her ACL in both legs skiing about a month ago. She has braces on both legs and is walking with a cane. The meeting had to be moved from his office upstairs to a conference room downstairs. Mr & Mrs Barn are such lovely people. I love seeing the personal side to a stern and serious business man. He jokes and laughs just like the rest of us!! So we got through our meeting and "Senior" designer was ready to get home, his foot was throbbing. I had to take him home, put all his stuff on the coffee table in the living room, clear all the pillows and throw from the couch and make sure he got on the couch ok. He asked me to get him some Tylenol, but I had to go pick up Lil'D. His wife would be home soon. I finally got home with Lil'D at about 6pm. After Lil'D went to bed Mom and I went to Target. It was nice, no one was in there.

WEDNESDAY:
Mom came to work with me today. "Senior" designer was having surgery today at 9:30am. I made tons of phone calls letting everyone know his status and that it wouldn't be till Monday till he started returning phone calls and catching up on projects. Mom and I went to lunch at a deli and had sandwiches. They were really yummy!! I had a BLT on ciabatta bread! Last night "Senior" designer called me and asked me to take care of a watch. A jeweler was coming in to give me the watch. A client would come in and look at the watch for her husband. If she liked it, she could keep it or leave it with me to have the movement set perfect. This all seems pretty regular right? The watch is worth $20,000. Isn't that insane? I asked Payson, who is our office manager, to help me out with this project since I had my Mom with me. I covered his lunch and he was going to show the watch after I left. Needless to say the client never showed up. Mom & I went shopping. We went to Burlington Coat Factory, Big Lots and TJ Max. I got home at about 5:30 and started tidying up the house for small group. Mom and Lil'D played together while J and I got everything ready. We had a potluck tonight. It was really yummy. We had Chicken strips from Wings N things, salads from Pat & Oscar's, cornbread, cookies, strawberry shortcake and brownie bites. We all played guitar hero...OF COURSE!!

THURSDAY:
Mom stayed at home again today. I worked till 2pm. She walked over to Ross and I picked her up and we went to Wal-Mart. I had some items I needed to take back and we had to scope it out for Dad. My Dad got here at about 10pm. Wal-Mart let him park his truck for the night! Yeah!!

FRIDAY:
I took Dad to his truck and went to drop off Lil'D. Security at Wal-Mart told my Dad that he could park his truck there as long as he was a paying customer. He went in and bought some stuff. I took them back home. I went to work till 11am. I picked Lil'D up and went back home. It started raining so we played with Lil'D all day!! It was really fun.

SATURDAY:
We got to the swap meet at about 9:30am. Mom & Dad love the swap meet. It is the closest thing you can get here to Canton, Texas. Except Canton is about 100 times bigger than this. We found some really great deals...I got a little end table for $5.00, a basket for $3 and some fake sharpie markers in and array of colors for $2. My Dad got a small guitar for $35, he wanted a travel guitar. We went to lunch at Phil's BBQ. J met us. It was really good BBQ. Still not better than texas bbq!! We went to Coronado to the Hotel Del. It is so beautiful over there. It's Mom's favorite place!! She bought a lighthouse picture frame in a little store called the Attic. She always buys a little something from this store when she visits. We collected some sand for my Mom's co-workers and put them in little viles from the Container Store. Lil'D was sooooo tired. He had such a long day! We all slept good tonight.

SUNDAY:
We took Mom & Dad to the truck. They left. Boo. It is always hard to see them go. The hard part is I don't know when I will see them next. J, Lil'D and I relaxed today. We went to the grocery store and that is it.

I have photos to download. I will do that tomorrow!
Time for bed!
-Until tomorrow

April 13, 2007

Custom Door Jamb Detail...

This detail is what my whole world has been about for the past week. This is the final detail after numerous phone calls with the job superintendent. There are 2 other details that show different thickness as well. Details, details, details, that is what my job is all about. These door jambs are made of the exotic veneer Pomele Sapele. This is a photo of Pomele Sapele:
It's beautiful, huh? It's from Africa. Due to the unique growing pattern of this tree its wood provides a veneer pattern which is almost figured.
That's todays lesson in exotic veneers.
Class dismissed.
:)

April 12, 2007

No title...

The past 3 days have just flown by.

TUESDAY...
was all about a window jamb detail

WEDNESDAY...
was all about finding out if there area any shear walls

THURSDAY...
was all about jamb width verification

Tomorrow...will be all about finally completing all three!!
"Senior" designer is in Hawaii and of course that has to be when everyone calls me and wants all kinds of items that I don't have full information on.
I am working the whole day tomorrow...boo!

No guitar hero tonight. It was too windy to take Lil'D for a walk, so I have to make that up this weekend. Just hangin' out and watchin' tv: Lost, Survivor and CSI.
-Until tomorrow

43.Have lunch with 3 friends

1. WHO: Chica, my best friend
WHERE: El Pescador
WHAT: Calamari Sandwich..YUM-MY
WHEN: Friday, March 9th (my b-day)

2. WHO: Sarah Jean
WHERE: Sammy's Woodfired Pizza Kitchen
WHAT: Grilled Shrimp Salad...Also YUM-MY
WHEN: Tuesday, March 27th

3. WHO: Kaydee
WHERE: Chipotle
WHAT: Burrito Bowl with Barbacoa...YUM-MY again
WHEN: Thursday, April 12th

April 9, 2007

The reason I haven't blogged lately...

I am embarrassed to tell...
I LOVE GUITAR HERO II. If you don't know what that is it is a game on Xbox 360. You have a guitar with 5 colored buttons or "frets" on the neck of the guitar. You have a strum bar and a whammy bar. There is a "conveyor belt" coming at you with the different colors coming at you and you have to play them at the right time. It is like playing a real guitar. Here is the website if you want to see what it is all about:
Click here to see an 8 year old boy playing guitar hero.
That is just insane that an 8 year old boy can do this on expert. I have played easy and medium. I haven't even touched hard yet. I'm afraid!
Anyway, J and I have been playing this game alot in the past 4 days. We just got done playing some more tonight. It is really a lot of fun. I'm sure glad that my house is clean or I'd be in a lot of trouble!

WEEKEND RECAP

On Friday night we went to the beach to see Auntie E and family. They had been camping all week with their kids for Spring Break. Lil'D got to see the ocean for the first time. He wasn't all that impressed. He also got to see a fire for the first time. He was very fascinated by this. We got home at about 9pm and Lil'D was out!!

On Saturday J and I did some chores, Lil'D and I went for a walk. J and I played Guitar Hero during Lil'D's naps. Grandma and Grandpa Ham came over and had dinner with us. They got a lot of Lil'D time in! Lil'D had so much fun!! Grandma & Grandpa did to!

On Sunday we went to the 8:15am service. Lil'D went to the nursery for the 2nd time. He was so tired half way through he couldn't keep him eyes open so he fell asleep. Poor little sleepyhead. The sermon was awesome, I learned many new things that I didn't know before.
After church J, Lil'D and I went to the Padres game. It was misting when we got there. Lil'D had his ball cap on and the hood to his sweatshirt. He was such a good boy! He played, he yelled, he ate, he slept and he cheered!! This was the most perfect game we could have taken him to. It was cloudy and the game only lasted 2 hours and 20 minutes. The Padres won!!
After the game we went over the Grandma & Grandpa Ham's for Easter BBQ. Lil'D was a little difficult to feed, but he enjoyed everyone! When J and I got back home we were pretty tired and I had a headache. Something about going to a day game just makes you so exhausted! J and I didn't play Guitar Hero the whole day! We relaxed and watched the Amazing Race after Lil'D went to bed.

Today, was a long day. Mondays always are. "Senior" designer is sick AGAIN. I can't believe it. I had to be in a meeting with him for about 15 minutes. Hopefully I don't get sick!!! 5pm finally came and J and I went to Berean to look for our next small group study. We found 2 books that we liked and we are going to let the small group pick which one. After dinner and putting Lil'D to sleep, I bet you can't guess what J and I did? PLAYED GUITAR HERO!!

I have to go to bed now. I was going to go to bed earlier than this.
-Until tomorrow

April 5, 2007

7. My Mother & Father-In Law


They are very sweet and good people. They are always there for J and I when we need them! We have been on several vacations together and they are very cool to travel with! I am so blessed to have a mother and father in law that care so much!!

44.Trim my personal tv consumption to 2 hours a day or less

This is just something that is just happening over time. When J and I get home one of us makes dinner and the other feeds Lil'D. Then we play with Lil'D, give him a bath and give him his bottle. At this time we have channel 126 on BabyFirstTV. It has all kinds of great learning shows. This time at night it plays classical music and images of a cartoon mobile or a photo that a child has colored, focusing on different elements up close. Once Lil'D is in bed for good, which is about 8pm, that is when we turn on the tv. We are have been turning everything off at around 9:30 every night. The weekends are a little different, but we are definitely not watching tv all day like we used to. We don't have time. So, yeah, the TV monster is under control!!

April 4, 2007

Document Sink & stuff...

My officemate & I come up with the darndest things. We have a server at work and everyone's My Documents folder is linked to the server, so that when you log off or shut down it backs up that folder. PJ asked me about it and I explained this to her. She wanted to make a folder with all her personal kind of stuff. I told her to re-name My Documents to My Document Sync. She re-named it My Document Sink. I cracked up. She funny!!

I have a lot of people in my life that can't really spell. "Senior" designer can't spell at all. Sometimes I giggle under my breath at some of his trys. Cieling really gets on my nerves!! CEILING, people!!!!! The other designer here that I used to assist can't spell either. PJ does ok. The one thing I was really good at in school was spelling. I can usually spell anything (within reason of course). I also consider myself pretty good at grammar, that is when I am writing out proposals or emails for clients. I'm pretty loose on my blog. This is MY journal and you people just have to deal with it. All 3 of you!!!!! ;)

We had small group tonight at our house. It is temporary until PK have adjusted to new baby Lil'R. He is only 4 days old. This is their 2nd so they will probably bounce back like pros!!

So after small group we did a little show and tell. The Intimidator/Sarge brought over Guitar Hero. THAT GAME IS SO AWESOME!! I don't know why I love it so much. I couldn't get enough of it. I really hate that, because it means we have to buy it. Guess the easter bunny will be coming to see me!! I didn't let Sarge leave until 9:30pm. It was so much fun though!!!

Lil'D is getting into a naughty phase. He has been so easy up until now. We haven't really had any challenges with him. He has always been so agreeable with anything we do. Slept through the night at 4 months, eats when he is supposed to , goes to bed when we put him in his crib, those kind of things. Last night was the first time, but tonight when he has his last bottle of the night he drinks about 2-3 ounces and then pushes the bottle away and wants to get down or stand up. He does it in a fussy way, almost restless. Like he wants to settle down but just can't because he has to stand up one more time. Then, when I get maybe another ounce or 2 down him, I put him in his crib and give him his pacifier. He either rolls over immediately or waits till I'm out of the room and pulls up on the crib rails, starts to cry and his pacifier falls on the floor. We have been letting him cry for about 5 minutes. Then we go in and lay him back down and put his pacifier in his mouth. He whines just a little, but falls sleep soon after. It isn't out of control yet, but it is frustrating knowing what to do and how. So, hopefully it doesn't get worse. But if it does, we will just deal.
-Until tomorrow

April 3, 2007

AAAAAAAAAAhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh....

I just spent almost 45 minutes writing a post and I lost the whole thing...must have said something I shouldn't have.
I'm frustrated now. The post will never be seen again! It was long too. I was venting about something. Me being a worrier, a friend that I have that is such a hard friend to have, what I did on Monday and today and all about my new master schedule. I have to go to bed now. I couldn't get all that out the way I did originally anyway. So, goodnight.
-Until tomorrow

April 1, 2007

Weekend Re-cap

Saturday, J & I did all of about nothing. We have been working on getting the house organized every weekend that we felt we needed a break. Lil'D was climbing up on everything. First, the couch, then the coffee table, then he figured out he could pull up in his crib. What a beautiful sight to see my baby boy standing up waiting so anxiously for me to pick him up after his nap. He discovered all the fun things in his room that he could pull himself up with in his room to. Then he got brave enough to fall back on the floor just to do it all over again. He would look at the floor and either belly flop to get down or just push back and sit on his bottom. He couldn't stay on his bottom and he would just roll over backward and "bonk" on the floor with his head. He would just look over at me and giggle. It is so hard to just let your baby fall. But, he has got to learn, right? I, of course, softened his fall if he was going to hit something and oh alright, I caught him a few times because I just couldn't stand that slight little "bonk" that the floor makes. It's not hard, but he's hitting his sweet little head. He's tough though and I have to let him be tough sometimes. He is so proud of himself though. Once he stands up he just stands there and entertains himself, hitting the surface of whatever he is holding on to, bouncing up and down (he looks like he's dancin') and saying "BUH....BUH!!!"
On Sunday, we put Lil'D in daycare for the first time at church. We went to the 8:15 service. I know there are only 3 kids at the most at that time. I knew that I had to do it sometime. So, now was the time. Plus, one of my really good friends serves in the nursery at this time and that always makes me feel better. But the main reason for not putting in the nursery was because of illness. Lil'D has had 5 colds since he was born. The last one was a big ol' meanie. We had to give him antibiotics and his cough was so bad. At his daycare during the week, those little ones just pass sickness back and forth to each other. There are only 6 kids including Lil'D. Once one of them get it, then all the parents and siblings get it. It never ends. So, when my Lil'D is well it is so hard to put him in the nursery at church. I really needed to put him in so that he wouldn't get separation anxiety when he got older and he needs to get to know all the kids at church. It's so hard to get connected. Especially with me being shy. The MOPS (mothers of preschoolers) meets on Tuesday mornings at like 10am. I can't go to this at all, no choices involved. I just don't understand how they could exclude mothers who have to work. I don't mean to sound like I'm whining, but ok I am. The one thing about having Lil'D was that I didn't really know any women with children and everyone told me "when you have the baby, you will get to know tons of moms." Well, I hardly ever see the Moms at Lil'D's daycare. We drop off and pick up at such different times. Even when they are there, they are ready to leave as soon as they get their little ones. My small group leader has a 2 1/2 year old son and a precious 1 day old baby. She has been a super blessing to me in times of need and when I have questions. I see her at least once a week! Also, my friend Sarah Jean. She used to be the receptionist where I work, we hardly ever get to see each other because we have such busy work schedules. We had lunch last week and she brought her precious Lil'B with her. Lil'B is 1 1/2 and she is a handful!! Those are the only Mom's in my life right now. I'm not the kind of person that can just go out and meet moms because I'm just so painfully shy. It's like a disease when in the moment.
Anyway (sorry about the derailment on Moms), Sunday afternoon, J went to the movies. I didn't go because everyone wanted to see Blades of Glory. If it has Will Ferrell in it, it is just too painful for me to watch. Stupid comedy is just not for me. I went shopping with Lil'D and we had a great time! After the movie and shopping we went to the hospital where PK were. (PK are my small group leaders, we go to their house every Wednesday night and have bible study) They just had their baby, he was only 10 hours old. So sweet!! The true test was given...seeing a newborn didn't make me want one...yet anyway.
I also found out that my dear friend Amy Jo is pregnant!!!! Answered prayers!! Praise the Lord!! She is 9 weeks along!! She is going to have a halloween baby.
So, after eating dinner, feeding Lil'D, giving Lil'D a bath and putting him to bed, J and I relaxed for the rest of the evening. Where did the weekend go? Same place they always go...fast! Boo
-Until tomorrow