Randomness and inappropriate google searches.

I'm so sorry Web MD for abusing your services.  And I'm sorry you know more about me than my closest friends.  I'm not sorry for cursing you when you told me the solution to my lower back pain brought on by spontaneous dancing can only be cured by surgery.  Maybe I didn't tell it I was a juicer.  And juicers are healthy people with no back problems. 

Yesterday this gem wouldn't load onto the blog but now it has so you are lucky.  My parents FOUND this awesome float on their boat.  Who needs a real jet ski when you have this little guy to balance on.  And they tried.  They tried so hard. 

Also this......my dog loves to hug.  He is the cuddliest pup I've ever seen.

Yesterday NOTHING worked.  My iphone had stopped communicating with GMail and Blogger, my office email passwords expired at some point and our service desk is in St. Louis so I couldn't call until 9:30am, our office phones weren't calling out, and our internet went out around the time some of these things were being resolved.  It was like a Monday amplified with a thousand bugs bites and back pain.  I needed an Arrested Development marathon in the worst way possible.

Last night we ended our Memorial Day weekend extravaganza, non stop partying with a game night with our small group.  They are really smart and really smart people don't title teams, Girls vs Guys.  They use chromosomes.  At least I thought they were chromosomes, hope they are.

Another amazing thing.  The most competitive guy in the world is in this picture.  And he is not holding a dog.  He is wearing a hot dog shirt.  It was hard to take his competitive spirit seriously last night with that beauty on.  Where do you find something that amazing?

A juicing hiatus is OVER.

The craziest thing happened yesterday.....I  had to exchange my juicer for a shiny new one (my old one broke....somehow as tough as it was, it couldn't hold it together long enough to be on the stove while the stove top was on.....womp womp, melted plastic smells like armpits).

 I was starting to get the shakes thinking of life without beet or kale juice so I needed a new one.  On our way, I got a call from my best friend asking for advice on buying her first juicer.  Craziness.  So I then preceded to wax on about juicing for an hour because that is really an interesting topic to listen to.




yesssssssssssssssssssss

 Luke was getting scruffier than usual and I knew it was time for my favorite thing.  I am a professional dog stylist if anyone is in need of that service for their scruffy pup.  He loves it too.  He just lays there while I snip away.  I get a crazed sparkle in my eye when it's time to snip.

At spin last night, the teacher played the strangest mix of music.  We started with Chris Brown (barf), transitioned to One Direction, a lil' Taylor Swift, the Beatles, back to 1D, back to The Beatles, throw in some Black Eyed Peas, and some stuff mixed in that I didn't know and you've got yourself stew goin' (not an actual stew....just pumped for AD!!).  It was actually kind of fun.  Pop music unlike Disney tunes are totally my jam.  I used to like the Biebs and I hate to jump on the hater train but wearing sunglasses inside REALLY bothers me.  He seems to do it a lot.  I can deal with overall attitude...I mean come on, the kid is a multi millionaire at 19, I'd probably be a punk too, but wearing sunglasses inside?  Deal breaker.

So heartbreaking to watch the news about the tornadoes in Oklahoma City.  We've been so fortunate in Tampa to not experience that kind of devastation in my lifetime as the people there are going through this morning.  Losing your children would be unreal.  Pray with me for those families waiting for news of their loved ones, that they are safe, that they are rescued, and that they will heal.

Did anyone see the woman who was being interviewed outside of her home expressing her loss when there was a slight whimpering sound coming from the rubble behind her and it was her dog trapped?  He was saved on air.  It was so sweet. 

Also the feed of parents waiting to hear updates from the recovery teams and seeing their kids running to them was so precious.  Life is so fragile.

100 posts!

Yesterday was my 100th post which is not very exciting in itself but I had a very exciting day.  Work has been so busy lately which is good, Pinteresting at work can fill a time void but it makes you very hungry.  After work, I had to take Matt to the airport for a short trip, a spin class to tackle, and hanging out with a group of friends. 

Fun story.

So we are all eating and chatting and one of my friends wants to take a group picture of everyone.  Um.  Group pictures are one of my favorite things ever, so yes. 

So everyone crowds around each other on the couch, 1.....2.....Samantha's pregnant!

Her husband then taped every one's reaction.  It was precious.  Her name isn't Samantha, but it is not official to the public yet so I don't want to spill the baby news prematurely. 

It was such a fun idea and I am so excited for them. 

I had to leave early so I could walk my little dog who had been cooped up in the house all day AND had gotten a bath (so it was a very sad day in Lukedom). 

I found myself asking him if he'd rather have free range chicken or cage free turkey with his veggies and fruits for dinner.  In that moment I realized how absurd I am.  My dog eats better than a majority of the world and sometimes me on a bad day. 

For the record.  He chose the chicken. 

Also, for the record.  Matt didn't ONLY clean my car of love bugs but also fixed our lawn mower using the power of his mind and the Internet.  Throw in two trips to Home Depot and he saved us $300. 

For my 100th post I'm going to do a circuit after work that is pretty tough and adds up to 100.  Clever.

25 sliding mountain climbers (I use paper plates)

25 push ups

25 lunges (each leg)

25 bicycling crunches (each leg)

Repeat 4 times

Cleansing for the rest of us.

So many hugs and awkward face kisses to everyone that shared my constant updates/tweets about Matt yesterday.  He barely had time to breathe during his press kick in NYC, and tonight he plays in the city.  So proud.  After VH1, i Heart Radio, and the Atlantic office for a live Q&A, he deserved a big drink.

Luke and I watched him for the Q&A......Luke brought the popcorn to spite me...he knows I can't have complex carbs after breakfast.




It has been almost one week of Bob Harper's plan and there has been A LOT of this....

Water is kinda making me start to gag.  I ended up taking some days off for my trip down South (only in South Florida does that entail traveling North).  No alcohol though.  My parents invited me to their favorite Wednesday night happy hour and I said "No, because I'm on an alcohol cleanse".  They thought that sounded pretty dangerous which I thought was funny until my mom asked me later why I was using alcohol to cleanse.

If I did that I might just look like this all the time.

 

 Note to family, I try some crazy diets/cleanses/etc. but if I ever go on a "nothing but alcohol" cleanse?  Go ahead and commit me.  I'll probably be baker acted by someone else anyway and I'd rather it be you.


It was gloom city in Tampa yesterday so I went to a spin class instead of walking the dog which really ticked him off.  I wanted comfort food and Bob's plan is pretty much anti-comfort so I had to think outside the box. 

Clean Eating Tomato Bisque:
-can of tomatoes (salt free)
-low sodium (actually low sodium) vegetable broth
-light coconut milk
-fresh garlic
-basil (I used dried but fresh would have been so good)
-curry powder

I sauteed the garlic for about 45 seconds on medium heat in about a tablespoon of water.  Then poured the can of salt free tomatoes into the pan, added a cup of low sodium veggie broth, a teaspoon of curry, half a can of light coconut milk, teaspoon of dried basil, and a prayer that everything would taste good.  It needed salt but was pretty tasty. 

While Luke hunted lizards on the porch,  I got to watch him and drink soup for about ten seconds until the mosquitoes found me.  I don't know why they were interested as I haven't had sugar in foooooooooooooorever.  They are probably still feasting on the bite of my aunt's Honey Bun Cake. Oh Lord. 

VH1 + Matt Hires!

If you don't have a job where you go to an office and it would be weird to turn on VH1 then you should turn it on at home around 10:30 am-ish to see Matt and his band looking fine and playing music.  He might be wearing makeup which I hope happens, just because that will be funny to talk about later.  I've an inkling of a feeling that Penn Badgley might be on the show too which gave me the fangirl shivers.....LOVE Gossip Girl.  Knowing Matt, he won't get a picture with him but I hope he does.  And I hope Penn is holding a sign that says, "Hey Rachel!" on it.  Dream come true. 

 

On the subject of dreams, I missed the high school bible study this morning because I had a dream I broke my arm and I woke up in so much pain I thought I'd actually broken it in my sleep.  About ten seconds passed and I felt fine again.  Super weird.  What was a dreaming about?  Oh you know, being tied up by a serial killer, the usual. 

 

I walked it out with Luke and did some yoga to ease into Wednesday.  Luke gets in my business all day- every day.  Happy May Day!

Hurts so good, still hurts.

The only pitfall of shopping locally is the hours of a store don't match my extremely forgetful brain and it's ability to remember my dog has no food to eat right after they close at 3pm on Sunday and remain closed on Monday.  Luke is so stoked to get gourmet meals though until they open back up today.  He is grain-free because he's a little prima donna so I steamed some carrots and pumpkin, sliced up a banana, and tossed in some dried salmon pieces that smell the worst.  He was a happy little camper the past two days.  He's going to be pretty shocked when he gets kibble again this afternoon. 

PSA for this fabulous Tuesday:  Get your annual skin cancer screening ASAP!  I go every year and they take no less than three biopsies to test for cancer.  The last time I'd gone, there were a couple that needed to be removed (scary) and the office I had gone to (which was a plastic surgeon to boot) did a terrible job with the stitches.  My stomach looks like Frankenstein Brides'.  Boo hoo for bikinis.  So I decided I was never going back there again and found a new AWESOME dermatologist.  Her name is Brooke Baldwin of Suncoast Skin Solutions in Lutz, which is kind of a drive but worth it.  My appointment was on time (a small miracle, in my experience at the old dermatologist, a 45 minute wait was expected) and for the first time in my adult life, I walked out with no biopsies.  And she did a thorough check and I felt bad for her because I definitely did not shave my legs which was a shame.    She also checked my feet which also too bad for her had been crammed inside of stinky ballet flats all day.  My favorite part was that they have cloth gowns to wear instead of the paper ones.  Thank you so much....the paper gowns are terrible. 

I have a super hero friend named Liz who spins probably 9 days a week.  She was going last night and I decided to join her, after which she laughed and said "I was in for a treat".  "Treat" to Liz does not mean the same thing as "treat" does to Rachel.  It was tough and I felt sweat dripping from my arm pit which has never happened to me before.  I wanted to shower after the first 15 minutes.  The teacher was kind of hilarious though and made fun of one of the girls in the class because she posted a picture of some lava cake the night before on Facebook.  I love that.  He was very motivating even if he decided that we were too fit for crazy things like "breaks" or "resting".  He probably said "last song" three times.  I hate pushing myself though and I feel like spinning with Liz is helping me overcome my mental block when it comes to that. 

Friday o clock.

I had a lot to do before my trip up to Tallahassee and knew I had an event to attend this evening so I better get in gear so I wasn't setting my alarm at 4am on a Saturday to clean our guestroom sheets before my parent's showed up to drive me to Grandma's (true story, that is happening). 

All of the clothes I bought for the Taylor Swift concert last week went back to Nordstrom because apparently I mistook my age for that of a high school-er.  When I showed my friend the outfits I bought for the show, she laughed.  That is never good.  I did find a new (to me) nail polish there....pale pink.  Shocker! 

 

 

We have an amazing house sitter that watches Luke and loves him almost as much as we do.  It takes a very special person to love our dog.  So I need to make sure our house if clean so she will continue to love him.  

 

 I don't know if it's because I haven't been running since starting my three week experiment but Luke's little life is in shambles.  I was watching TV last night and normally he cuddles up next to me, but last night?  He sat on the opposite end of the couch and just stared at me.  Like the awkward stare a person gives you that is creepy.  Luke has nailed it. 

 



He did this for AN HOUR. 



 

I'm not going to update my progress on Bob's plan on the daily.  It is less interesting than my usual daily life and no one wants to see a picture of more salt less vegetables on my stove.  Maybe I'll post a weekly update of my transition to Jennifer Aniston, so watch out.  I did buy some cilantro yesterday and that is helping flavor things a bit.  You kind of stop wanting food when it doesn't have seasoning.  Maybe that is the secret to Bob's plan.  Woof.  The workout last night was the best one yet though.  His workouts have been so simple (in what to do, not ease of doing) that they kind of get boring.  20 minutes of sit ups, push ups, and squats are hard, but I need more variety.  Last night was 5 rounds for time of 10 burpees, 15 chair raises, and 25 jump ropes.  It didn't look very hard but I was really winded. 

 

Embarrassingly winded. 

 

I can't wait to force my cousins to do this with me tomorrow. 

 

Maybe not though, one of my cousins is a Zumba instructor and she might make me do that which is my least favorite exercise in the whole entire world.

The Biggest Loser

I got some texts about the hummus I made for bible study on Tuesday and I wish I had a real recipe but I'm type Z about cooking and don't.  Here's the ingredient list with my twisted, very un-scientific measuring system.




Spinach Hummus Un-Recipe

-One big can of chick peas- bigger than the regular size but not Sam's Club size.  Drain those a little.  I just drain them into the sink but I don't rinse them. 

-6 cloves of roasted garlic, more if you like garlic a lot, less if you are nuts.  I do batches of this and keep them in the fridge but basically you cut the top off of a head of garlic, brush on olive oil and wrap in foil and roast the heck out of it.  It gets brown and delicious and sweet.  You can find actually good step by step directions of this online anywhere and not my jacked up instructions.  If your head hurts already from all the work it takes for just one ingredient, just use garlic powder.  It's garlic, it will still be good.

-Salt to taste.  I don't like salt (I mean, I love it but it makes my face look like a Cabbage Patch Kid so I tell myself I don't like it and that works like a charm).

-Probably 5 big handfuls of spinach to get it to this color.  I just kept adding it raw until it turned the bright green I was hoping for.  You can really add anything to hummus to flavor it, roasted red peppers, jalapenos, kalamata olives, sour patch kids, whatever you feel like.  This didn't taste like Spinach, I just wanted it to be green and I'm a genius. 

Add all ingredients to your food processor (my favorite kitchen appliance) and process until it starts to come together.  Chick peas turn super silky in the food processor and probably don't need any oil.  When I'm feeling like a supermodel I just add some water to get it to the consistency I want for less calories but for this batch I used olive oil and it does taste a lot better and consequently I don't feel like a supermodel but that's life.  I just drizzled about a quarter cup of it in while it was processing until I thought it looked right.  And I kept tasting it to make sure the saltiness was okay.  This whole batch made about three cups of hummus (maybe more, it was a lot).

I normally use tahini in my hummus too but I forgot about it and didn't.  It was still really good.  Even better the next day so the next time you remember a day ahead of time you need to bring snacks to bible study (<----never), make the hummus so it can sit around in your fridge and get better.  Aged to perfection.  Like me.  Ha.
We had a meeting for Hillsborough County FCA yesterday and I got to see the progress Camille is making on our office.  I know it looks rough but it looks so much better than before.  Once we get those awesome desks out of there and install the new desk we are sharing (Logan made it so it's cool) we can get cracking on submitting it to House Beautiful to use as a feature.  I ended up painting that table I put up here a while back pink and Camille was less than thrilled with the results.  Pinterest misled me and it wasn't my fault.  You can kind of see the base of it sticking out from behind that whiteboard, beautiful I know.  I should probably help Camille out and this office project might stop taking 5 years to beautify.  That would be what a friend would do. 

Funny story about Camille, she doesn't own travel coffee mugs so she drives and drinks coffee from actual coffee cups, she said her car can vouch for it too, there is coffee everywhere.  Yesterday she brought this little cup which was adorable, like her. 

I have another plug for my neighborhood and it's incredible culinary finds.  Mikey's Cafe and Bakery is the best. 
They did our cake and cupcakes for our wedding too.  And the were so good.

I had to pick up a pie for a co-workers birthday and because the cafe is literally a hop skip and jump from my house I walked Luke's cute butt up there to pick up a pie.  Peanut Butter is what I was looking for and lucky for me there was one left.  All of their pies are $14 and look incredible.  Everyone loved it and it fed about 12 people.  The slices were smaller than normal but about twice the height of normal pie and no one complained.  I didn't get to try any because I'm trying to avoid dairy forever but the office has nominated me as the birthday pie buyer for life.  Yay?  I'm guessing I don't get a raise for that.

A testimony to how awesome the contestants on The Biggest Loser looked at the finale, Luke couldn't take his eyes off them.  I love that show.  Everytime I heard Jillian Michaels talking to Danni during the last weigh in my eyes welled up too.  Love it.

Fitting in 24 hours of fun is tough stuff.

Yesterday's beautiful weather was perfect for walking and Matt was home so I got to leave my pepper spray at home.
 



We took the guys to Taco Bus for delicious tacos but one of them ordered the beef tongue taco and ruined it.

No one ruined it at Cigar City because it was delicious as usual. Yum. We didn't make it in time for the chocolate cheesecake keg which bummed me out but I'm pretty sure I'll make it to tomorrow. And one of Matt's band members looks like Robert Pattinson. Pick which one and he'll jump into the sun, face full of sparkle.



Luke is like his dad and a night owl, he sleeps all day and really gets hyper after midnight. This is what the rug looked like afterwards. Our house is the size of a kumquat so it's not like he has much room to run.

twinners

You've totally redeemed yourself!

I feel guilty about spouting my love for all of those big business chains yesterday.  I'm a local girl who loves local things too so I thought I'd move the spotlight away from big businesses and shine it on small businesses that I L-O-V-E. 

But first, a word of advice.

The absolute worst food pairing.  Red bell pepper and Cuban coffee.  Get out of my mouth. 

Another word of advice....fresh citrus.  All day.  My teeth are going to erode at 40 with so much citric acid coming their way.

Rachel's Favorite Places (in Tampa that don't make billions of dollars.)

My neighborhood is a pot of gold when it comes to restaurants/places to shop.  We only leave for all you can eat salad and Target. 


1.  Health Mutt-Seminole Heights

A local pet market where the ownership is the bees knees.  Luke was always itchy and looked mangier than usual before they moved into our hood.  Kendra, the owner, is a super sleuth and thought Luke might be allergic to grain so we moved him to a grain free food.  Done and done.  Now Luke is just mangy looking and not itchy.  He's our little "Pig-Pen".  A cloud of dust follows him around.  Everyone that works there is so sweet and they don't say you are crazy when you are whispering sweet nothings into your pup's ears while giving him a bath. 



Photo from Kendra-Yelp



We tried their dog wash for the first time yesterday and fell in love.  Maybe bath time won't be a quarterly event anymore because it isn't painful for everyone involved.  Doesn't he look so happy?

2. Stephanno's Pizza-Seminole Heights

This is the pizza place that resides behind out house which is too convenient for my skinny jeans.  The smell of baking pizza everyday? Thanks, but no thanks.  Their pizza isn't my fancy though, I come here (sometimes multiple times a week, gulp) due to the most amazing bread I've ever had.  It's the best.  They run out pretty much daily so if I don't want to cry myself to sleep, I have to order it before 6pm.  They put whatever you want on it and usually I get grilled veggies.  Just ask for a foccacia sandwich (they have eggplant, chicken parm, Philly cheese steak, meatball, turkey, whatever, it doesn't matter, it could be sliced deodorant and it would taste good on this bread).  Their California Cobb salad is also a favorite.  Get it without boiled egg and I won't throw up.

3. Mermaid Lounge-Seminole Heights

Our new spot.  Also everyone else's new spot.  It has been crazytown the past couple of times we've been there but it's so fun.  We can walk there and work off some calories before indulging in their incredible array of craft beers and wicked amazing truffle fries.  Right across the street from a crack hotel (which means we are a walkable distance from the crack hotel- sorry Mom) so the people watching can be entertaining but you are sure to find someone to talk to that will keep your interest.  True story- the first time we went, I found a gold mermaid charm on the floor. 



image from 83 Degrees Media



There is so much more but I don't want to overwhelm anyone. 

I told Luke that his Dad was coming home today and he thinks he is going to wait on the porch all day for him. 



"Nobody knows....the trouble I've seen..."



A HUGE success and a HUGE mistake.

Yesterday was kind of an amazing day. 

Weather wise it was kind of a terrible day and this little guy didn't understand.  He has very sensitive paws and doesn't like wet grass. 

Community wise, it was awesome. 

Food wise it was awesome. 

There were about 30 people that came out to support FCA Tampa at Sweet Tomatoes last night and I was smiling like a fool all night.  I am sure I set the record for the longest amount of time spent in their restaurant.  I got there around 5:45pm and left around 9pm.  I was planning on eating small plates throughout the night but I just ate about 4 full size meals. 


So basically this x 4. 

After mostly everyone left, Jeff couldn't leave either because he loves Sweet Tomatoes now just as much as I do.  A convert every day.  My work here is done.

The square half mile around Sweet Tomatoes is my favorite part of Tampa.  You have my favorite restaurant, my favorite grocery store, Target, Home Depot, Home Goods, Nordstrom Rack, Total Wine, and Cigar City Brewery all right there.  It's almost confusing as to where to go next because you want to go everywhere.  If there wasn't the eighth ring of hell Wal-Mart across the street it would near perfection.

A big group headed to Cigar City but I was tired (eating salad for 4 hours is exhausting) and those episodes of 24 aren't going to watch themselves. 

I couldn't leave the miracle mile without picking up my favorite cookies in the whole world though. 

PSA:  Whole Foods doesn't even bother carrying alternatives to their vegan bakery cookies because their vegan cookies are so incredible.  Everyone knows it and now you do too. 



Oatmeal Chocolate Chip and Regular Chocolate Chip

 I also have to express my concern for my own well being.

My mom isn't on Facebook and doesn't read my blog but if she did, she would have been embarrassed at the daughter she raised.  I've got my Facebook mom, Kerry C. though and she showed me the error of my judgement (lack of, really) and explained to me that spending $25 to size a $13 dollar ring is kind of stupid.  She was nicer about it than that but that honestly never even dawned on me.  I could have saved more than $10 dollars (that is a dinner at a salad buffet that should remain nameless) by just purchasing another ring in the correct size.  Yup.  How did I manage to get into college, let alone graduate?
Welp.  I love it?  And I'll learn some simple math in the meantime so I don't make that mistake again.  I've also hung up my math tutoring for a bit so I can learn the beauty of subtraction and addition and how important it is to being a human being that doesn't waste money. 

So embarrassing but not for me.

There was a very unwelcome sight on my desk when I got into work yesterday.  In addition to working with FCA Tampa and in high schools,I work downtown in the mornings for a real estate firm that manages buildings.  I love my job and the people I work with there but oui vey.  I took off one day.  One freaking day. 

And the emails.  Oh no.  Please no more emails.



I needed puppies and peanut butter stat.  I got a lot of questions about the peanut butter I make and I am so excited for others to enter into the incredible world of peanut butter making.* 

*Spoiler alert: the peanut butter making world isn't that incredible.

It breaks my heart that so many more kids are finding they are allergic to peanuts.  They will never know the amazing tastiness of my favorite food.  I tutored a young girl last year that was super allergic to peanuts and couldn't be around anyone that had eaten them recently.  Needless to say, we didn't work together very long.   

To make any kind of nut butter you need a food processor.  I tried my blender and it didn't work but it's a pretty crappy blender.  If you are loved by your family and friends and were given a Vita Mix for Christmas like you'd asked for, then three cheers for you because you win everything. 

Peanuts:  I buy raw peanuts in bulk namely because they are incredibly inexpensive.  If you were to buy pre roasted peanuts then you rock and have a lot of money.  Just kidding, but be careful to check the ingredients for hydrogenated oils and extra salt.  The beauty of making your own nut butter is knowing what you are putting into your body.  Look for the term "dry roasted" and "unsalted".  Roasting only takes around 20 minutes though for one batch and if you have no kids like me then you have all of the time in the world. 

Nutrtional Information:

I got the below information from the National Peanut Board which I hope is hiring because that would be my dream come true.  All peanuts, all the time.

Serving size is 1 oz or about two tablespoons (which is laughable) and 170 calories for dry roasted peanuts.  Not a nutritional powerhouse but it has 7 grams of protein in that small amount and 2 grams of fiber.  Not bad for 1 ounce of food.  I made the mistake of seeing how many calories are in one cup.  Gulp. 

In hopes of lightening up my favorite treat I got creative.  My favorite food to pair with peanut butter is everything bananas so why not just mix those right into the peanut butter itself and let it whip itself up into a silky delicious spread?  You are welcome.

Lightened Up Peanut Butter

One cup of peanuts

Two ripe bananas

One tbsp of vanilla

dash of salt

Serving size remained 2 tbsp.

Roast peanuts at 400 degrees for twenty minutes stirring half way through.  Allow peanuts to cool about five minutes and pour into food processor.  Process for about 3-5 minutes and add each banana one at a time.  Allow to process for about 30 seconds and add vanilla and salt.  Process for one whole minute or until you have reached the consistancy you like. 

	Nutrition Facts

  10 Servings

Amount Per Serving

  Calories107.1   Total Fat7.4 g      Saturated Fat1.1 g      Polyunsaturated Fat2.3 g      Monounsaturated Fat3.6 g   Cholesterol0.0 mg   Sodium233.7 mg   Potassium189.6 mg   Total Carbohydrate8.7 g      Dietary Fiber1.7 g      Sugars3.5 g   Protein3.7 g





I solemnly swear to get a manicure tomorrow.



Not sure how we got away with having the best weather in the world this week but Luke and I sure enjoyed it. 

We walked up to Starbucks to see Matt's parents for some coffee and so they could school me in not being a total distaster.  I totally lucked out in the "in law" situation.  Donna and Billy Hires are the most incredibly loving people I've ever met.  They give and give and give.  I take and take and take.  They have a lot to teach me about being less selfish.  I have a lot to teach them about pop culture.  It's embarrasing how much they have to learn.

 First lesson, Ke$ha.  Okay, maybe we won't start there.

My parents had seen the picture I'd posted yesterday of my house and wanted to come over for an intervention.  Just kidding, they don't read the blog and just knew I was probably due for my quarterly organizing intervention.  Like the rock stars they are they whipped my stuff into order in one fell swoop.  My mom even did my dishes.  And if you are a juicer, then you know your sink can get smelly if you leave that in there.  My mom knows now.

Only my mom can get a sink that clean.

While we were getting rid of stuff and getting things back in order I found this and really think it's time for another intervention of the hoarding kind.  I need lots of people to tell Matthew Hires that this is not worth anything.  No amount of time can pass where it will and there is no one on eBay that is willing to pay $1 for this print.  There is something about it that just screams, "Lion King".  Oh wait.  Yup, we own something that commemorates "The Lion King". 

Please tell me you own something that is equally embarrassing and we can have a garage sale together as a joke to see who buys what.  That actually sounds kind of fun.