A New Year an New Attempt at Blogging

So here we go again... another attempt at this blogging thing.  I need something to keep me slightly busy, slightly sane.  It is January in Minnesota and by my reasoning that means it is almost February which means it is practically March which is when Spring starts teasing us, and then dumps two feet of snow on us... but I will take those teasing days right about now.  This is my first year of living in MN where I am actually counting down the days to spring.  normally I love the snow, love looking at the covered trees and just enjoying the seasons.

I think this is due to have a toddler on my hands.  Emily turned two in December and has so much energy to burn...not surprising I know with a toddler but I so need my yard back so I can just let her run and run...

Speaking of the yard one of our house improvement projects for the spring is to build a fence around our yard...right after we finish a few on the inside:

1. Finish the main bathroom that has been under a remodel...for almost two years...
2. Refinish our hardwood floors that look like we have sandpaper for feet...
3. Remodel my cave of a kitchen - meaning new flooring, new cabinets, and new appliances

All of this plus a baby on the way.... really I am insane.

Oh and I want to repaint the living room.....

So Hopefully I will be posting and keeping everyone updated on our house projects, venting a bit about my husband and his habit of "soaking" the dishes and not actually washing the dishes, and maybe a few of my fabulous insights on life...

Mr. V

I love Mr. V.  He makes me laugh, even when I hate him he makes me laugh.  Like most I have gotten caught up in the Twilight frenzy.  I enjoyed the books (even if they are not scholarly) they are a fun way to escape, and even thought the movies are not Emmy winners they definitely fill my need for teen angst.  The reason why I love my husband is because he knows this, he laughs at this and yet still participates in it while mocking me.

He plays Vampire and Werewolves with Emily.  When he nuzzles Emily's neck and gives her kisses to make her laugh, he is a vampire.  When he tickles her with this hand on her tummy he is a Werewolf.  Not a hard game to catch onto but we love it.  He bought Emily a tin with sweet tarts in it that says team Jacob.  I am team Edward.  Bryan says they are on team Jacob because they have brown skin and are always hot - so they must be werewolves and I must be a vampire cause I am pale.  Thanks B.

When Twilight the DVD was release, he waited out in the cold at Target in line with Emily (she was 3 months old at the time - and obviously bundled up) while I was on a girls trip.  He wanted to make sure I had my movie.  He still gets good husband points for that one.

He does these things every now and then that make me love him all over again ....  

The Scale

I love it when you start to workout - you go straight to the scale for proof - like two classes will suddenly shave off 10lbs (don't I wish).  It didn't but I actually feel better about myself and I am wondering where all the "what have you been doing you look amazing" comments are... must be patient.

My last class was a 90 min Hot Yoga class.  Like the class and the challenge... however I am not sure about the teacher (I think he thought I was stupid) he was a bit rough (not friendly at the front desk) and of course I made it all about me and how I didn't fit in... silly I know.  He however was a good teacher and explain things really well...maybe just has to work on his customer service.

Anywho - I am now a member and who knows maybe I will start eating healthy and give up my my Mt. Dew for breakfast - highly doubtful.

Sooo I realized that I had very little to say

and so I stopped blogging - like I really started let's be honest. Oh well, here I am again. I have started something new. Yoga. Seriously. I was on this kick of not working out and trying to lose the baby weight...since it seemed to be working. The less I did the less I weighed. Amazing I know...till I looked at my ass and realized it was sagging... you may think this is a moment where I am exaggerating but it was. Then my cousin comes in with her cute pre-baby body all adorable and I was my bitter self and asked what she was doing. Corepower Yoga. She loved it and wanted to take advantage of me by taking me to a class, which by the way she gets a $5 credit by doing so...

Of course I wore like 3 layers of clothing to hide my kangaroo pouch (that is what I am calling my extra skin that did not magically snap back into place like all the Hollywood moms that have a plastic surgeon waiting in the birthing room). I went to the sculpt class, a heated room, hybrid arobic/yoga class...not the Hhhhmmmmm kind of yoga class (or is that meditation?). Anywhoo, got my ass handed to me, and I kind of liked it.

However, the class was full of the skinny older women with huge (overly perky) boobies. Or else, young girls with pre-baby (perky) boobies. There was money in that room lets just be honest.

I then decided maybe to try other classes... and I found the Hot Fusion Yoga (Hot Yoga with a fancy name). I love it...I think I may even shed one of my layers here soon. But lets not kid ourselves quite yet, my kangaroo pouch is far from gone. But I can feel myself becoming more flexible - I don't want to kill my husband when I get home (he thinks this is a plus) and in all honesty, it is "me" time. We all need "me" time.

I am not going to pretend to be the convert who is going to start eating oats and grass for breakfast, I didn't start these classes to find my inner- self, I know who I am and how strong I am and yada yada yada - I am a sarcastic shit- who sees things how they are. I am a mom with a kangaroo pouch who is desperate to feel pretty again.

I am sure there are moms out there who would say "you created a miracle...be proud of the scars etc." but it is more than that. It is more than that - it is my own identity which I plan to keep intact and not morph into someone who lives through my child but lives with my child.

Wow... when did I get on to the soap box?!?! Getting down now.... anywho I thought I would start posting about my experiences and observations and see how that goes...

To all lovers of Crepe Paper

It has always been a tradition in my family to decorate the birthday girls door, or at least to decorate the bathroom mirror with crepe paper and or anything fun you could find. My mom was always the best. For my 16th birthday (my golden birthday) she bought yellow crepe paper and wizard of oz paper plates and such - to play on the gold theme - plus it is my favorite movie by far. She was also a great Santa, Tooth Fairy and Easter Rabbit - but that is another post. I have carried on this tradition for my college roommates - friends at work - and my husband. Exhibit A: B's first father's day.

We named the bull George. It is a little bit more humorous when you realize my husband is Hispanic - which i love to give him grief about since I am pale as a ghost. Obviously Emily has his tan ;o) But ya he got a pinata and chocolate milk for father's day...and a wake up call at 6 am. He thought the house was burning down when I yelled for him...I just wanted him to see my decorations.

So as promised here is proof my daughter is going to be trouble in the near future - try the next five minutes. She is a ham to the full extent, flirts with old men at the grocery stores, restaurants, home improvement stores etc. I swear she even throws out a wink or two. She already walks all over dad. She has grandpa on floor playing silly games and then beats grandpa up off the floor, not an even match.

As for me I don't fall for her tricks, I know them all too well...

Really I do...where do you think she learned them from...

Motherly love

Now I do not give my self a gold star on being a mother, quite the opposite...I am the one who is okay if their kid eats dirt, tries to climb the stairs by themselves, love on all animals. My husband - he is on the other spectrum...uber protective.

My favorite quote from my mother (while I was pregnant) "I was worried you weren't going to have kids, I was always afraid you would eat them or something...) Thanks mom, but it was true.

But I love Emily - that is her name (again probably breaking some mom rule by posting her name - but it is such a good name - Emily Aurelia V.). She has my sass, her dads humor and her own will and determination. Also she has great fashion sense already - she plays with my shoes and drapes my winter scarves over her shoulders and brings me her sunglasses to be "groove baby".

But there is one mother that truly inspires me right now - not to become a mom that I am not, not to be more religious than I am...but to have a spirit that can endure, a spirit that can find beauty and truth in sorrow, a spirit that can remain so giving and uplifting when something so treasured is gone.

Her name is Natalie Norton, and if you have time stop by her blog. Send her your love, and be inspired by hers. She is truly LOVE.

And I believe I have O.D. on my niceness for the day...more sass on the way