Question

Have any of you ever had your tile & grout professionally cleaned? Apparently, almost all professional carpet cleaners offer this service. I’m dying to try it, but it gives me Nervous Tummy (to quote Tessie).  So help a sister out; Had it done? Expensive? Worth it? Waste of money?

Soy un perdedor

WW is a great program. I’ve said that before, right? In the past, I’ve lost weight by following it. However, this time around, it wasn’t happening. I followed the plan religiously and the weight barely came off. It was discouraging to say the least. Then one day, Gerald sent me a link to this site. It changed everything. I entered my stats and saw how many calories I burned each day and how many I was eating to maintain the weight that I am. I was stunned. Seeing the numbers in black and white really made something click for me. So, I made a change.

For the last two weeks, I’ve been eating as though I was a 135 lb woman. That is to say, I’ve been taking in 1800 calories a day. I keep track of them on a dry erase board on the fridge or in a little notepad that I carry in my purse. On Thanksgiving, I gave myself the green light to have anything I wanted. I had several pieces of pie, even. And you know what? I lost four pounds that week. I was thrilled! I can’t wait to see how much I’ve lost this week.

I’m still going to WW and weighing-in and attending meetings. I need that support and accountability. But, I’m not following their plan anymore. I’ve finally found something that works for me. Who knew it was as simple as “eat less than you need.”

My vacuum sucks

Heh Heh… I’m so witty.

I got a Dyson. The Absolute Animal, to be specific. I love it with the fire of a thousand suns. I vacuumed my living room the day before I picked up my Dyson, so I immediately came home to vacuum again just to see what vile and horrible things the Dyson would suck out of my carpet. I had to empty the canister three times just for the living room alone. The first batch was nothing but dog hair. Then, it was all dirt. THAT CAME OUT OF MY CARPET. I felt so dirty. I vacuum at least once a week, and my carpet was disgusting. I told Gerald that I thought the Dyson might be sucking the dirt out of the ground underneath the house.

I’ve had it for three weeks now and I’m still impressed with it’s suction. I have to empty the canister once for the living room, once for the hallway, Maddie’s room and the office, and then once more for our bedroom. My old Hoover only needed to be emptied after I was done with the whole house. Also, I notice the carpet pile isn’t as smooshed as it used to be. The Dyson sort of fluffs it better, you know?

So, if you’re in the market for a new vacuum, and don’t have a problem spending an obscene amount on said vacuum, get yourself a Dyson. I also recommend purchasing your Dyson at Linens ‘n Things. I bought mine online and used one of their 20% off coupons. They give the option of picking up your purchase at your local store for free. I ended up spending $475 with tax. Not bad, when the vacuum started at $550.

Because ear hats are good for the soul

Fear

Did you see the latest update on Baby Grace? Her mother admits that she and her boyfriend beat, tortured, and killed her. She was two years old.

I knew that I shouldn’t click the link and read the story. I tried to talk myself out of it, but I did it anyway. I was only a paragraph in when the tears came.

How? How could a mother do those things to her baby? How? That poor, beautiful little girl. I’m sitting here, trying my best not to imagine her terror as the person who was supposed to love her more than anyone else hurt her beyond measure.

I want to get into my car and drive to Galveston and fucking beat that woman to death. Slowly and painfully. I want her to beg for death just to get away from me.

What kind of world have I brought my child into? I live in constant fear that someone will hurt my daughter. Every single day of my life, I am aware that someone could take her and hurt her. I am ever vigilant and never turn my back on her in public places. How am I supposed to teach her independence when I can’t let her out of my sight for fear of human garbage touching her?

It almost makes me wish that I’d never had a child. Then, I wouldn’t have something so precious to lose.

Favorite things about this time of year

1. Christmas Lights: They make me feel so good. I have no explanation for it. One of my favorite memories of childhood was our yearly trip to see the lights at Nela Park. When I see a tastefully decorated home, or town square, I get all happy inside. I am a light snob, though. I don’t like flashing lights at all. I’m not too keen on multi-colored, either. And God forbid if someone has a hodgepodge. You know, half flashing, half not and not at all matching. *shudder*

2. Christmas Music: Specifically Barenaked Ladies “Barenaked for the Holidays” and Harry Connick, Jr. “When My Heart Finds Christmas.” I wait all year for the day I pull the CDs from their sleeves and transfer them to the car. (This year, they got uploaded to the iPod.) Favorites within favorites: BNL – God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen (duet with Sarah McLachlan). Harry: It Must Have Been ol’ Santa Claus. Good stuff, people. Good stuff.

3. Hot Beverages: Hot chocolate with marshmallows, caramel apple cider, chai tea, peppermint mocha, and gingerbread latte.

4. Eggnog: ’nuff said.

5. Snow: Sadly, I haven’t had a white Christmas in quite a few years. As a child though, it was almost always a sure thing. God bless lake-effect snow.

6. Hanukkah: In high school, my best friend was Jewish. I learned all about the Jewish holidays and was present every year for the celebrations. Passover Seders were fun, but Hanukkah was the best. Noodle kugel and latkes, Dreidels and chocolate coins. And it all lasts eight days. Eight. Days. Why can’t we get Christmas on that bandwagon?

What about you? What are some of your favorite things about this time of year?

Blather

The best thing about coming home after a trip is that first night back in your own bed. It almost makes up for having to unpack and do laundry, doesn’t it?

Mom is doing well. She’s going to be scheduling an appointment with a specialist this week, so hopefully we’ll have more information soon.

Our Thanksgiving was very nice. The food was wonderful and the company was even better. Maddie was the star of the show and ate up the attention like it was crack cocaine. She’s a little put-out with me for taking her away from her adoring fans. She’s in her room practicing signing autographs right now.

Did you shop on Friday? I didn’t. You couldn’t pay me enough to shop on Black Friday. In a store, I mean. I spent $250 on Amazon that day. Half our Christmas shopping done in a couple of clicks. God bless the internets and Al Gore.

Thankful

Mom’s ok! Well, not 100%, but COMING HOME OK!

She has a heart valve that needs to be replaced, but it’s not life-threatening. She’s been released and should be home in few hours. We are so incredibly thankful that she’s ok and will be sitting with us at the Thanksgiving table. Thank you all for your prayers and kind words.

I hope you are surrounded by people you love, or can at least stand after a couple of drinks, and that your table is full of your favorite dishes.

Eat, drink and be merry, my blogging family.

Gone Again

OMG, did you see that Beth commented on my “pressure” post? I almost peed myself when I saw the email in my inbox. Ok, not really. But I was way stoked about it. And of course, Swistle commented. But we’re tight like that. Me and Swistle. Tuh-ite.

Ok, enough of that. The whole point of this post is to let you know that I’ll probably be scarce this week. What started as a three day Thanksgiving trip to The South, has now taken a dramatic turn. Gerald’s mom is in the hospital with what may be heart related issues. They’re doing that “camera in the femoral artery” test thingy tomorrow afternoon, so we’ll know more then. Suffice to say, we are leaving tomorrow morning instead of Tuesday or Wednesday.

I’ll have my trusty MacBook Pro with me and I’ll probably post, but I just wanted to give you a head’s up on the issues at hand. Those of you that pray, please keep Gerald’s mom in your prayers. She’s a wonderful, fantastic, loving person and we need her to get better. I’m not about to lose another mom. You got that, God?

Google Me This

My newest favorite search term: “find me a man who wants to dress up as a lady”

Now, don’t that just sum up my blog nicely?