Girl needs a haircut and other riff raff

It hasn't been too long since her last groom, but she looks like she needs one already! She always has a bad hair day because I'm not sure how I want her hair, still, after a year. I need to make up my mind already. We like her hair longer because if it's too short then she looks like a rat and like a boy. She's teeny, she's only 7 1/2 lbs, but probably 2 lbs of hair! I want her bangs short because they always seem to fall over her eyes, but not sure how short. Ugh, I just need to decide already! Anyone have a terrier (she is a silky) and if so, how do you groom their hair?

Haha, I love this! This sits on top of my mirror in my bathroom. It has a whole bunch of different funny sayings that I got from a local store here. I usually keep it on one for a few months then change it. I will take pictures of the different ones and post them on here from time to time. Love it!

And this was the sunset from our front yard last night. I glanced out the window last night and saw this and had to go take a picture. How cool are those colors?!
Now off to go rest before I have to work tonight, boo =(

Happy Friday my friends,

My go to

While eating out at a Mexican restaurant tonight, I got the most random thought (I always get random thoughts, that's just me though.) I love plain cheese quesadillas with a passion and I was craving one tonight. Looking over the options I had in front of me, a quesadilla wasn't even a choice, so we kindly asked the employee if I could order one and he said yes (it is only a tortilla and cheese, not that hard). As we sat down to eat, I said to Justin, "quesadillas are my go to food." They are my back-up, my comforts. I have many of them. I'm not the type of person who likes to try new things. Every now and then I get the itch to try something new, but most of the time I always fall back to what I know.
I love high heels. I think they are so cute, but I don't wear them enough to be able to wear them comfortably. I even have a few pairs, but cannot tell you when the last time I wore them was. I'll try them on in my bathroom, then quickly kick them off and slip into some flip flops. Ahhh, flip flops, my go to's.
Everyone has go-to's though. Of course we find something we love and stick with it. It would be stupid not to. It would be boring to not try new things.
I will always love Victoria's Secret lip gloss, MAC cosmetics, Old Navy flip flops, cereal and quesadillas just to name a few.
But who knows, maybe in the future, I will have new go-to's =)

Happy Thursday my friends,

What I've learned

It seems to me that this past six months has been a huge learning experience, and an eye opener. Although I would rather not have gone through what I have been through, it's made me grow up a lot. I obviously cannot change it. I would be lying if I said I wouldn't change it. Because I wish things had ended differently and I was in a state of pure ignorance. I would change it in a heartbeat.
But life had other plans and I had no say in it. So I go with the flow and hope for the best.

I've learned patience is a virtue, it's something I wish I had more of.
That really good friends show themselves when it matters the most.
My husband is definitely my rock.
Writing has been an outlet for me.
Photography has been my creative outlet.
I cannot control the future, no matter how much I wish I could.
We are our own best advocates.
The power of prayer can be healing.
Things in life just don't make sense. We just have to accept it.
And even when we are in our darkest days at our darkest hour, there is still glimpse of light, albeit small, but it's still there.

Years ago when I was in high school I used to have a collection of my favorite quotes and poems in a five star notebook. It traveled with me wherever I moved, and I would read through it less and less over the years. I haven't seen in it in who knows how long. Tonight a line from a poem I wrote down in there popped into my head. I kept racking my brain trying to think where the poem was from. Then I remembered my quote book. I have no idea where it's at and I don't even know if it made the move to our last house about three years ago. But I did find the poem online and wanted to share it with you all. If you are ever feeling down or low on yourself, read this...

After a while you learn the subtle difference
 between holding a hand
and chaining a soul.
And you learn that love doesn't mean leaning,
and company doesn't mean security. And you begin
to learn that kisses aren't contracts
and presents aren't promises.
And you begin to accept your defeats
with your head held high and your eyes open,
with the grace of an adult, not the grief
of a child.
And you learn to build your roads on today
because tomorrow's ground is too uncertain
to walk on. After a while you learn that even
sunshine burns if you get too much.
So plant your own garden and decorate your
own soul, instead of waiting for someone
to bring you flowers.
And you learn that you really can endure
that you really are strong
And you really do have worth.

-unknown.

Happy Sunday (or early Monday morning) my friends,

A little pick me up

Haha, meet my new background on my iphone. I love it! It makes me laugh every time I see it. I used to have a background that had a quote on it about staying strong but felt it was time for a new one. Nothing wrong with a little pick me up right?!

Happy Tuesday my friends,

Living with angels

I still have my old ultrasound pictures that I had no idea what to do with. I had one taped up in my bathroom so I could look at it everyday, but when I had my miscarriage I took it down because I couldn't handle looking at it. So they sat in a junk bowl on a counter in my kitchen. I didn't know what to do. A part of me wanted to throw them away but after about 5 seconds I threw that idea out of head. I finally decided I wanted to put them away in a little memory box. So I told myself I would be on the look out. Yesterday we were at the grocery store and I found the perfect box (of all places!).

What could be more perfect than angels?! I didn't have much to put in there besides my ultrasounds pictures and a few special cards people gave me. I was too scared to buy anything right away.
So for now my last remaining memories lay with the angels. I knew the day would come when I had to pack up the few things I had, and I suppose today is as good a day as any.

Happy Friday my friends,

Thankful Thursdays

I'm jumping on the band wagon here. I've seen many blogs do this and thought I should start because I think everyone should take a minute and think about what they are thankful for. Especially if you are going through a hard time and are hurting...it hurts just a bit less if we stop and think about the good things in life.
A little side story real quick. I made my Thankful Thursdays badge with an apple blossom for a special reason. I love finding out what different things symbolize. And I found out that apple blossoms signify that better things are to come. Which I think fits so perfectly into my life right now, I just had to incorporate it in here somehow!
So here we go...I'm thankful for

having hope: After everything that has gone on this past year, it would have been so easy to lose hope in myself and in God. But no matter what, I kept that hope that "better things are to come." I have been sad, angry, bitter about everything I have been through, but I have not lost hope.

                                                
                 (Another apple blossom badge I made)

My doggies: They are my fur-babies and are my constant companions. I swear they look after me as much as I look after them. Whenever I need a cuddle or a hug, they are more than willing to give me love!

Of course Justin: I honestly do thank God for him everyday. I think he is the only one who can handle my craziness : ) He's up for anything (even if it is a chick flick. He doesn't like it but will do it for me!) and helps me when I have a crazy new hobby I want to take up.

Celebrity magazines: Is this weird that I'm thankful for them?! I look forward to the Friday when Us magazine shows up in the mail. And sometimes at the grocery store, I will buy a People or OK! magazine and feel so happy! It's the little things in life I suppose.

another obvious one, my family: both Justin's and mine. Even though we don't see each other all the time, it just feels comfortable whenever we get together.

my Canon camera: I don't think I will ever fully master what all my camera can do, but it has been my creative outlet and my new passion.


I have so much more I am thankful for but will save those for later weeks. What are you thankful for?

Happy Thursday my friends,

Skye

Meet Skye, the newest member of the family...not a permanent one though!! Nope, I am so excited to share with you all that we are a foster home for POPP. It stands for Pets Over Population Prevention and is a local animal shelter here. I have been wanting to do this for some time now and finally went through the process of being a foster home. If you know me at all, or have been reading my blog, you should know that I am a huge animal lover and advocate. Nothing breaks my heart more then to hear stories of animals be abused or abandoned. In fact I will not read articles about it, or even watch the ASPCA commercials because I will start bawling. I wanted to help in some way but didn't know how. Then I went to their website to see what I could do and this instantly caught my attention.
Yes, we do have enough animals in our home. Yes, we are always trying to keep up on the constant shedding around the house. Yes, sometimes our animals can get on our nerves. Yes, sometimes animals are a lot of work. But, knowing that we could help save an animal's life and give them the love some of them have never known trumps all that.
Skye is our first and will not be our last. I plan on opening up my home to many dogs in the future until they find a loving home of their own. She is lucky enough to already have gotten adopted. However, her new owners aren't able to take her until the beginning of August and the shelter doesn't always have enough room. So we are lovingly taking care of her until she can go to her permanent home.
Yesterday I saw that she had a tag on her collar and got a knot in my throat when I read what it said on it...

"I am loved.

POPP foster pet"

Yes Skye, you are loved.

Happy Tuesday my friends,

Wine and eggs

But not together, that does not sound appetizing!
I had a great girlie weekend while the hubs was out of town. My friends and I love wine so it was a wino girlie fest! We went to a winery and after we did some tasting, we sat outside with our bottles of wine and a packed picnic my friend brought and ate and drank the afternoon away.

We also went swimming Friday and Saturday and I'm happy to say I got some sun and got to cool down in this scorching 100 degree weather. I'm normally not a big swim fan, I can't remember the last time I actually went. But it was so hot this weekend and the thought of drinking some wine while swimming...well there was just no other option =)
And this morning I got up and was craving some eggs. Let me side track for a minute and tell you that I have a new found obsession. I saw a documentary a while back called Food Inc. and it changed the way I will eat forever! I'm not a big meat person anyway, I could live perfectly well without it, but Justin likes his meat so I eat it with him. I never really thought about what goes into the food that I put in my body. I never thought about the hormones that could possibly be added, or the antibiotics, or even if the animals lived in cages or not. All I knew was that when I was craving a hamburger, McDonalds or Red Robin had just what I wanted! Well this documentary opened my eyes to know where my meat comes from. I started researching the local grocery stores to figure out who carries organic meat (I never thought those words would be coming out of my mouth!) and let's just say it isn't very many. I would just like to go down the street and grab whatever meat is cheapest, it would make my life much easier. But now that I found only a few stores that carry what I want, I have to drive further. I don't know if this eye opening experience is a good or bad thing. Sometimes ignorance is bliss. But I do like knowing the meat I put into my body is treated humanely and free of the bad stuff. Anyway, all this talk leads to my breakfast of eggs this morning.

The one thing that isn't hard to find in any store are eggs. Every store I've seen has a big selection of these eggs. And they are actually quite good! And this all leads to me sharing a secret with you. Or it may not be a secret and I'm just now in the know! I learned this little trick from Miss Paula Deen on how to make your eggs fluffy...

Just a dollop of this and viola! Doesn't have to be light, that's just my preference =) And if you all knew this, then sorry it wasn't much of a surprise!

And I'm excited to share something with you all in an upcoming post! (And, no, I am not pregnant!)

Happy Sunday my friends,

Oh to be healthy...

It's hard! I'm not going to lie, it takes a lot of work to be as healthy as one can be. It's so easy to just go out and buy quick fix meals that are sooo bad for us. And it's so easy to come home and lounge around and not do any sort of physical activity. And the worse is when we are in a rut and can't get out of the routine of not being healthy. Is it just me? Maybe so.
When I was in nursing school all I did was study, work out, and sleep. Maybe do some eating here and there. Nursing school was so challenging and took up all my time. I had no time for friends or play. I got into this routine of working out at the local gym 6 times a week. 6!! I would run for 45 minutes and do weights afterward and 500 sit ups. Needless to say I dropped the lbs right off! Now I couldn't even think about running 45 minutes, I think I burnt myself out on running during that time!
Now I am so not as hard core as I was in nursing school. I wish I was. Who knows what motivated me to be gym rat like that. Maybe it was the need to relieve the stress of school? Maybe I actually liked it? Who knows, but whatever it was, it worked for me at the time.
I do like working out. I love the way I feel afterwards and I love the way my energy goes up. It's just the part about getting the motivation to do it is the problem. I go to the gym and do the machines, and do some classes that I will probably forever go to because I l-o-v-e them! But for right now I am doing the 30 day shred and am hooked. But I think I will be doing it for longer than 30 days =) It has 3 levels and I just went to level 2 and oh. my. lanta. It hurts. I really thought I was going to die. I thought my heart was going to stop. But it didn't (thank god!) and my new challenge is to get to level 3. Along with that I have been trying to eat better. Trying is the operative word. I cannot do diets. Or diet pills. So I try and just eat healthier and still allow the foods I like but smaller or healthier versions. And also, I have a new found love of salmon. We made it the other night and it was good...

And...also notice the homemade healthier version of pasta salad. Which was also yummy. I am by no means a cook but I was pretty impressed with myself. Oh, and this is my hubby's dish, I did without the corn. They say it's all about portions right?!

Happy Friday my friends,

Umm, am I ok?

Hi, my name is Elise, and I am a hypochondriac. Like, big time. I wrote an entire post on this very subject months back, and it pretty much describes me in a nutshell. I'm not ashamed of it, heck I embrace it as a part of who I am! Although if I could turn it off like a switch, I would do it in a heartbeat. Because honestly, it's quite annoying. Thinking a new symptom I may be experiencing one day could be a tumor, or because I have an unexplained bruise on my leg, "it is a sign of leukemia." Now don't get me wrong, I don't sit around my house like a hermit imagining symptoms all day long. I can go weeks, even months without thinking these things. And when I do, it usually only lasts for no more than a day because lets face it, it really wasn't a tumor or leukemia. My bad =)

I have said these very words to Justin probably no less than a thousand times "I think I'm dying." To which he shakes his head, or rolls his eyes because he's heard it before. Which kind of makes me wonder, "am I crying wolf? What if one day I actually do get sick and he doesn't believe me!"

Now with all this said, Dr. Google is my friend. I can find the good, the bad, and the ugly on there to confirm my worst fears. I don't know if being a nurse adds to the drama because I can back it up with legitimate knowledge (however not too much because I do take care of babies after all, but I do remember some stuff from nursing school!)
Anyway, the whole point I am trying to make here is that I have not gone to Dr. Google in a while, and when I did, it was only for a split second.
I have been getting bloodwork off and on these past few months after my miscarriage to rule out causes as to why I may be having them. I have been tested for autoimmune disorders, clotting, thyroid etc...all of which have come back normal. Then I got tested for MTHFR. Honestly, I don't know what it stands for, all I know is that it is a loooong name. I read that 40% of the population has it. There are different severities of it, it can affect different things in your body. Well I asked to get tested for it because a few of my friends have it and I know a bit about it from them. And I heard it has been linked to miscarriage. Now I won't bore you with all the boring medical terminology and tell you that I am heterozygous on the c677t gene...oh wait, I just did! All that means is that my body doesn't absorb folic acid like it should. I guess clotting issues is a big thing with this too, but my clotting tests and a specific clotting test they did at the same time as the MTHFR came back normal. Since this is my genes and I can't change it, then all I have to do is take an activated form of folic acid so my body doesn't have to do it for me. Could it really be that easy? I sure hope so. That doesn't mean that is what caused my miscarriages, but I'm all for excluding all possibilities. I guess vitamin B12 uptake is affected too so I have to take an activated form of that as well. Now with all this said, you think I would go running to google to find out all possible scenarios. But I haven't. I did google it at the very beginning just to see what it was. But haven't been back since. Very weird. Which leads me to my question, "am I ok?!" Normally I would google the h out of it, but actually I am ok with the answers I've gotten so far. Well kind of, I did have to go to another Dr. in the office to get a prescription for the special prenatal vitamin, but hey, we are our own best advocates right?
So I pray to God that taking these pills is what does the trick. I know it could have nothing to do with it, but in all sincerity, I hope it does. I hope it's that easy, because for the sake of my sanity, that's all I can tell myself right now.

And just for laughs...

Happy Wednesday my friends!

Versatile blogger award

Thank you Trisha for my first ever nomination!

For this award, here's what to do:

1. Thank whoever gave you this award

2. Tell 7 things about  yourself that readers may not know

3. Pay it forward by nominating 10  bloggers you have recently discovered

Hmm, 7 things you guys may not know...I have to think here, because I have been ridiculously honest here on my blog =)

1. Elise is actually my middle name, I do have a first name, but that my friends shall remain a secret =)

2. I actually have horrible eyesight. I wear glasses/contacts and my dream is to get lasik surgery.

3. I don't tweet (gasp, I know!) I signed up for twitter a few years ago to see what the craze was all about and didn't get into it.

4. I am however part of the vampire craze. Not a die hard, but I do love them. Twilight, true blood, and I'm now hooked on a new series.

5. My hair is naturally curly/wavy but I straighten it most days. 

6. I am afraid of clowns and even the thought of sleepwalkers creeps me out!

7. I absolutely love milk! Could drink it all day long if I wanted.

Don't know if I could come up with 10, but I will do what can. I nominate:

1. Erin from Our Great Adventure

2. Jennie at Welcome to My Wonderland

3. Lara at Heart in the Clouds

4. Kelly from Life is a Box of Chocolates
5.Britt from Peace B.E.G.A.N
6. Shannon from ...and baby makes three
7. Betsy at Too Beautiful: Living after losing Olivia

Happy Tuesday my friends,

Cuteness all around

My teeny tiny doggie finally got a much needed haircut. I always wait until the last minute to get her groomed and by that time she looks like a mop, her hair hangs over her eyes, and she is a poor sight! But bless her heart, she goes with the flow and doesn't seem to mind. I usually take her to a certain groomer but they couldn't get me in soon enough (or should I say, they never answered their phone) so I made an appointment at Petco. Yes, I was desperate, but I figured, it's hair, and if they butcher it, it'll grow back.

 Here is a before picture

And a few after...

She says "I love my new haircut!"

They sprayed her with some doggie perfume and she smells wonderful, but I'm sure it won't last for long =) For those of you that don't know, she is a silky terrier, and here is a fun fact I got from my co-worker: Her breed is supposed to have really long flowy hair that goes down to the ground...yeah right, like I can maintain that! But way back in the day people used to send these dogs into the mines to chase away rats before the people would go down. Well their hair was supposed to be really long so the rats couldn't bite them. Yuck! Well she will be doing no rat chasing anytime soon, so her hair will stay short!

And speaking of cuteness, I was watching a panda breeding documentary on the smithsonian channel (yes we have like a million channels) and I now want a baby panda bear.

                

Aren't they just precious?!? Even the adult ones are cute, but watching them interact with each other and their trainers was so cute. The show said they look like little kids in a bear costume playing, and they really do. If you have the smithsonian channel, you have to watch it, I was going "aww!" the entire show!

Happy Monday my friends,

California Girl at heart

I think I was always born to live in California. Specifically southern Cali. I don't know why, but whenever I think of the beaches I feel calm. I've only actually visited Southern Cali (San Diego) once and that was last year. But that was enough for me to get hooked and fall in love with it.

Even though I do love summers here in WA state, I always secretly wish I was at the beach. Which is weird for me because the ocean scares me. It scares me because when you stare out at it, it is never ending. But it's  beautiful at the same time. And when I was at the beach (whether it was Cali or Mexico or even the Oregon Coast) I felt a sense of calm.

So if the opportunity ever arose for us to move there, I would take it in a heartbeat. But for now, I will just have to dream about it, and visit when I can.

Happy Friday my friends,

Moment of Silence for Cohen