How time flies!

At least it hasn't been 3 months since I blogged last! It's hard to believe that it's Christmas time, and 2011 is almost over. I swear I was just making New Years Resolutions...

Things have been really busy with life, work, and weight loss! Sometimes I feel like I'm overbooking myself...it feels like forever since I've had a stay-at-home weekend all to myself, but I' really love it all the same :) Here are a few fun things I've been up to!

• Shawn and I visited Las Vegas in October. We saw/walked most of the Strip, visited the Hoover Dam, and saw some shows. Our favorite was the Cirque du Soleil Ka performance. We had 2nd row center seats, and the performers were close enough to touch! It was one of the coolest things we've ever seen. If you ever have a chance to see one of their shows, I definitely recommend it!

• After the trip to Vegas, my friends and I got together to celebrate Janna and Heather's birthday at Vino 100 in Round Rock. Even though I spoiled the surprise by peeking around the corner prematurely, a great time was had by all. I count myself lucky every day to have made such wonderful friends!

Back row: Stacey, Janna, Me, Carol. Front row: Heather, Kelly

• Stacey, Janna and I bought a cool Living Social coupon for a local place called Ceramic Lodge. It made me miss my friend Aimee and wish I had the talent she did. I'm picking up my pieces today (the Ceramic Lodge fires them once you're done, and you pick them up a week later)...hope they turned out well, I'll post pictures later!

• A group of us friends went to the Domain (a local outdoor shopping mall) to see the Christmas Tree being lit. It was a balmy 75 degrees...not very Christmas-like, but we all still had a great time. After the lighting, we had a chance to get our picture taken with Santa Clause and eat a delicious dinner at Maggiano's. Thank goodness it was a cheat day (On Saturday's I don't have to workout or stick to my diet plan), because the food was delicious!

Back row: Janna, Heather, Santa, Stacey, Me. Front row: Kelly

• My friend Stacey was generous enough to open her home to friends for Thanksgiving. Shawn was a good sport (he ended up being the only guy in a group of 5 other women)...I know Football and delicious food helped make it more bearable. I made a Turkey (using this recipe), rolls, gravy, and corn, and everything turned out deliciously! Here are a few pictures I "borrowed" from Janna:

Stacey set up a beautiful Thanksgiving Dinner table! She had a name tag with a sweet message at each of our plates

The delicious spread...just thinking about it makes me hungry for more!

"I am thankful for Amy because...she has a beautiful heart & soul. She is a friend I can turn to for comfort, reassurance, & without judgement Always."

"I am thankful for Shawn because...he is a good man to one of the most beautiful and strongest women I have had the pleasure of meeting. Thank you Shawn."

Shawn and his football = true love

Bailey and Me...he doesn't understand what it means to look at the camera :)

• My weight loss is going well too. I'm now down 64.5lbs since I began this journey on June 22nd (as of November18th, didn't weigh in the week of Thanksgiving). I feel so amazing, and more capable than I have in years. It won't be much longer before I'm down to a weight I haven't been since 2004, and that makes me so incredibly happy! There are plenty of temptations to indulge in delicious food and skip out on workouts, but I am working hard to keep my focus and stay on track. I'd rather sacrifice a little now to obtain my goals :)

Wow!!

Has it really been 3 1/2 months since I updated my blog?! I'll admit to slacking off in the blogosphere, but my life has been quite busy and fulfilled as of late. Here are a few highlights from the last few months:

• I survived "Credit File Assement". This was an extreme project deadline that was moved up on us and took blood, sweat, and tears to complete. No really there was blood...those files can give you a gnarly papercut!
• I turned 29. *sigh*. It was a wonderful celebration despite the age number. My sweet group of friends threw me a joint surprise birthday party, and my dear friend Janna and Shawn conspired to get me a surprise gift together!
• and.....
• Perhaps the biggest highlight since my last post is my weight loss. My friend Stacey (that I met through bookclub) has been acting as my personal trainer and nutritionist. In the last 15 weeks since we began working together, I have lost 46lbs!! I use the bodybugg (my surprise gift from Janna & Shawn) to track my calorie intake every day. Stacey and I work out 5 days a week, and the bodybugg tracks how many calories I burn. It's been very enlightening for me, as I've struggled with my weight for a number of years. I see things much more mathematically and logically, and I've had some pretty awesome success so far!

All in all, it's been a great couple of months. I'm feeling better than I've felt in years, and really enjoying all my blessings :) I promise to be better about blogging, even if it's just short little boring snippets.

Till next time...

"The Help"

I wish I had a gift for writing so I could do justice to my opinion of the movie :)

It was awesome. We had a great turn out from Book Club and there were no problems getting everyone into their seats. I think I had tears in my eyes (and trickling down my face, but that's beside the point) for the majority of the movie. Sometimes they were happy tears, and sometimes they were tears of heartache. I can't remember the last time I have felt so impacted by a movie. The actors chosen to portray the women I loved (and hated!) in the movie were phenomenal, and the flow of the movie was spot on. There were a few changes and things left out, but that's a given in any book to movie scenario.

I loved the movie, loved the book and look forward to seeing the movie again in a few months. If you haven't read the book yet I highly recommend it!

Only Two More Sleeps!

Wednesday Evening, 7:30 pm, I'll be watching a free screening of "The Help" (based on the novel of the same name) with members from my bookclub. I seriously am so excited! I loved this book, and hope the movie does it justice. I'll report asap with my thoughts :)

M.I.A.!

I realize I've been somewhat MIA in the blogosphere lately! There's been a lot going on the last month, including:

1. Moving (just a local move)
2. Having a sick puppy (he swallowed some chicken bones)
3. Worrying about my Grandma Blackham (she fell and cracked her pelvis)
4. Worrying about my Grandpa Blake (he's recently had surgery)
5. A conflict with my previous land lord, which took a week to resolve (water damage)
6. Worrying about my brother Matthew (wisdom teeth removal)
7. Worrying about my new friend Nancy (recently diagnosed with breast cancer)
8. Having a more involved role in the planning of our book club (due to #7)
9. Being super busy at work, partially due to taking days off because of 1-8 :)

But here I am, alive and well! In between all of those things, I've done a fair amount of reading which makes me unbelievably happy. I also bought myself an early birthday present:

I'm also in L-O-V-E with this new cup I bought. I've been eyeing one ever since Shawn bought one for himself a few months ago. He of course got a sports team (SF 49'ers), but I got a beautiful girly one!! It keeps my drinks cold for a long time, and I only need to get more ice twice a day (instead of like 4-5x)

So anyway...I'm still here, and according to Texas it's summertime! Hope all of you are doing well, and staying cool :)

Marvelous May Vlog

I feel brave for the second month in a row!! I had a blast doing the May Vlog with my good friend Janna.  Thank you Mamarazzi and Shawn for hosting, it's always so fun to see people's posts!

We're so sorry Emmy, Janna and I missed your question (my nerves always get the better of me). I'll answer below, sorry it's not part of the video. Emmy Mom @ One Day at a Time wants to know...

Is there a name you can't stand and why?  I hate being a hater...but I don't particularly care for the name Justin. I grew up with two different pervy Justins.
Do you like my your own name? Yes and no. Growing up I thought my name was boring and old fashioned. I wanted to have a cool name like Tiffany, Stephanie, or Rebecca. Now that I'm all mature, I like my name. It suits me :)

(As always, I apologize in advance for my super soft-spoken voice in the videos. I try to project, but it never comes across)

A few This or That questions:
Ocean or Mountains?
Sweet or Salty?
Early Bird or Night Owl?
Edward or Jacob?
Book or Kindle?
Manicure or Pedicure?
MAC or PC?

The third part of the VLOG was a bit of show and tell. Beth @ Living a Goddess Life wanted to know: What is in your handbag/purse?

Steve & Leisel's Wedding!

On Saturday Shawn and I went to his friend's wedding. He and Steve went to the same Computer Design College, and Steve helped him get the job he currently has. Steve and Leisel got engaged during the post-launch party last winter, so it was a real treat to see them get married.

The happy couple! The ceremony was beautiful, and their vows were really touching. I teared up...ok outright cried during most of it :)

Their wedding was held at the beautiful outdoor Gazebo at Shoreline Grill (Photo Courtesy of their website--we were right on time, therefore I didn't get time to snap any timely pictures)

They're both "gamer nerds", so they had video game themed tables

We sat at the Street Fighter table, haha!

The food was delicious! Notice the mashed potatoes in a Martini Glass? Yup--those are Po-tinis!

I know a photographer snapped our picture at the table once, and their guest book was a photo booth (we got to keep a copy), but here's a few pictures of our fancy duds!

Shawn looked really good in his nice outfit! Nevermind the slightly crooked tie. Now we need to find another excuse to wear our new outfits!

I tried on 87 different outfits and finally settled with this one :)

Silly Candid pictures!

Obligatory Mirror Picture! I sure do love this guy :)

Seaworld-Long Overdue!

I posted pictures on facebook of Shawn's and my trip to San Antonio a few weeks ago. Not that blogging about them is terribly time consuming, but I've made enough excuses!

I love the for us, San Antonio is a less than two hour drive. It's fun to get out of town, but nice to have a short return trip :) During our visit we went to the San Antonio Zoo, The Riverwalk, and Sea World. Here are a few pictures from the zoo!

Shawn and Me outside the San Antonio Zoo

Shawn trying on hats to see if he can find any to fit his big head

Don't worry, I didn't buy this!

I have no idea what the name of this animal is, but it's basically a 50 lb Gerbil. It was freakin' us out so I took a picture!

Shawn always looks like he's going to stab you, while I always smile like a fool :)

Us on the Riverwalk! It was a busy weekend downtown due to a Latino Festival, but we had a nice time despite the crowds.

We went on the Riverwalk Boat Tour. It was a breezy, cool day-perfect for a water tour!

Shawn and Me on the boat.

Seaworld was a blast!! We didn't have time to do all the shows we would have liked to do, but we did participate in the Dolphin Exhibit and the Penguin Encounter...knowing me, the Penguin part was right up my avenue!

Shawn and Me and our friend the Dolphin :)

Me feeding a dolphin

All of us in the group for the dolphin exhibit helped these guys do their aerial trick by slapping our thighs. It was so cool to see them do it exactly perfectly!

Aerial Trick Continued!

We actually got to go inside the Penguin Habitat. It was really cold in there (about 35 degrees and windy). It was loud and kinda smelly, but it was a dream true to see them up close and personal! You can see they're not terribly scared of people. Our guide (who's a worker there) said the ones that recognize his voice would come up to the gate and they sure did!

Penguins waddling about!

All of us in the group got to pet the penguin. They feel really different than I would have expected them to.

I think he wanted to come home with me, look how close he is to my foot!

Shawn and Me with the penguin we got to meet and pet!

Seven Facts

My Bloggy/Real Life friend Janna awarded me with the prestigious 7 Facts Blogger Award today. What a great way to celebrate a Thursday :) You post 7 facts about yourself and then pass it on to 7 of your most favorite bloggers. Here goes!

1. My favorite number is 7 (so clearly I like this award a LOT). It's been my favorite number since I had the opportunity to meet #7 Kevin Johnson from the Phoenix Suns when I was in elementary school. He and some other teamates came to a D.A.R.E. presentation we had. He autographed my team photo and I just thought he was the greatest! Did you know he's only 6'1"? Pretty short for a baketball player huh?

2. I drink a lot of water. I keep a gallon of water at work and refill it every other day. I also have a gallon of water in the fridge at home which I refill about every three days. Also I won't drink tap water, and I prefer to drink my water from a straw.

3. My favorite scent/flavor in the world is vanilla. I horde all things vanilla (chapstick, diet pepsi vanilla, lotion, candles, etc). My least favorite scent/flavor is cherry. I'd rather die than use cherry chapstick, or suck on a cherry cough drop.

4. I've been practicing ambedexiarity for a few years now. Below is a comparison between my right hand and left hand, any guesses which is which? I started out practicing writing names/phrases, but now I can actually take notes left handed while on the phone at work. Which rocks!

5. If you let me pick out any treat at the grocery store, I will chose a Butterfinger. Even though my favorite candy bar is a Snickers, Butterfingers take me back to childhood trips with my mom to the grocery store. If I was "good", she'd let me pick out a treat. Yes, I am an emotional eater :)

6. I have never had a cavity, and I thoroughly enjoy going to the Dentist. I wish I could go more than twice a year!

7. I have a very strong sense of smell. The elevator lobby at work smells like swimming pools, except on Thursday when the executive committe comes for their meetings. Then it smells like a combination of mens cologne and leather. Even though my office is on the 5th floor, I know the smokers go for their break at 11:30 and roughly 2:15 because I can smell them through the vents in the floor.

I hope you all play along, especially the 7 friends I tagged!

Aimee

Kelly

Amanda

Kristina

Winter

Becky

Melanie

my first vlog!

Even though I ABHORE seeing/hearing myself recorded, trying new things builds character! When I heard about Mamarazzi and Shawn's fun VLOG idea for April, I really wanted to join in. Much thanks to Janna for her "You jump I jump" idea that we film it together :)

The specifics of the VLOG are listed below. Stop on by Mamarazzi's page if you want to make fun of listen to other people's accents, and think about joining in yourself!


(Left-Amy, Right-Janna)
You start by saying the following words:

Aunt, Route, Wash, Oil, Theater, Iron, Salmon, Caramel, Fire, Water, Sure, Data, Ruin, Crayon, Toilet, New Orleans, Pecan, Both, Again, Probably, Spitting image, Alabama, Lawyer, Coupon, Mayonnaise, Syrup, Pajamas, Caught, Antenna, Rootbeer, Ambulance, Museum, Milk, Orange, Apricot


THEN you answer the following questions:

What is it called when you throw toilet paper on a house?
What is the bug that when you touch it, it curls into a ball?
What is the bubbly carbonated drink called?
What do you call gym shoes?
What do you say to address a group of people?
What do you call the kind of spider that has an oval-shaped
body and extremely long legs?
What do you call your grandparents?
What do you call the wheeled contraption in which you carry
groceries at the supermarket?
What do you call it when rain falls while the sun is shining?
What is the thing you change the TV channel with?
Where do you buy your groceries?

Happy Monday Folks

Sooo I found this lil guy at Walgreens this weekend and he makes me so happy. His belly full of jelly beans have been long since eaten, but it made me so happy to find a penguin during EASTER! This weekend Shawn and I are going to San Antonio and Sea World and I honestly am giddy like a child to see real life penguins :)

In an un-related story, I had a rough morning. I was 97% to work when I realized that I never put my work shoes back in my car (I'm one of those weird people that drives with house slippers on). It was 6:55am...maybe there are shoe-selling stores open at 6:55am?? I was in unfamiliar store territory and I sure didn't want to spend money on another pair of stupid brown shoes (I own 4 pair...3 of which I can't wear because they hurt my feet). So I opted to drive back home. I was SUPER grateful that I'm OCD and leave insanely early for work every day, so I only ended up being 13 minutes late...which was still 35 minutes early based on when my boss shows up.

There's a moral to this story. It's two part actually:
1. A penny saved is a penny not spent
2. Better early than late
...or something like that :)

Light it up Blue!

I have so many friends and loved ones who are affected by Autism. Here's my small part to bring awareness to a great cause that has so much importance to me. You can join me and donate to the cause here!

Me wearing blue on April 1st

Shawn, Bailey and Me wearing blue.

My friend Stephanie and her son Brennan. He has Asperger's, which is a high functioning form of Autism

time flies when you're having fun

Although work was stressful (my counterpart is on vacation for a week), I have been keeping up with the workload and actually learning a lot! Here are a few other (fun) highlights!

Tuesday night was book club meeting where we discussed Water for Elephants and Angry Housewives Eating Bon Bons. We had about 18 ladies show up this time. While I love the meetings, that many ladies together in one small room is sooo loud!! I loved when we actually went around the room taking turns commenting on both the reads, but besides that it was utter chaos. Here's to hoping there are some ground rules going forward!

Our books for April are The Red Tent (which I've already started-thanks for the lend Kelly!), and The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (which I've already read). We're also going to have a meet and greet with an author in May, so I'll be starting Already Home soon.

Janna and I went out for sushi after bookclub. Best $30 I didn't mean to spend!

My dear friend Kelly celebrated her 27th bday this week and decided throw a birthday bash on Friday night! Shawn and I brought Bailey to come play in the yard with all the other dogs. We had a wonderful time! (photos shamelessly stolen from Kelly)

Birthday girl Kelly with her little boy Henry!

Kelly's family lives on some acreage up north, and they put together a scavenger hunt. Janna, Shawn and I came in 2nd and won cool Sesame Street mugs :)

Bailey and Reese (Janna's dog) were the shy dogs together. Here's Bailey deciding if he's thirsty enough to go share some water with Miss Reese.

Shawn and I had plenty of errands planned for Saturday but Aunt Flow decided to tag along and make me feel miserable most of the day. At least we bought a gift for his coworker's wedding and had his/her eye appointments. Shawn got new contacts and spare glasses and I picked up some glasses for myself too. I've used reading glasses before but have found it irritating to take them on/off. The ones I got today I can wear all the time. I can really tell a difference!

Don't mind my frumpy-ness, I can see when I READ now!

Breaking the Ice

My friend Jenn at Perfectly Imperfect is having a fun link-up survey today. Such a fun way to ring in the new week! Stop on by if you want to participate, I'd love to see your responses :)

Q: What is your middle name?
A: Technically my parents didn't give me one, but I was lovingly called "amysue" when I was a lil' girl. After my split with my ex, I had it changed as part of my divorce decree. So now according to all things official I am Amy "Sue" Blackham. Kinda fun huh??

Q: When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up?
A: I wanted to be a librarian (so I could use the bar code scanner) or a teacher (so I could write on chalkboards) and a wife/mother. Though I'm neither a librarian nor a teacher, I still have high hopes for the wife/mother bit :)

Q: If you could have 3 wishes granted, what would they be?
A: 1}Lose all the weight I've put on, 2} Maintain said weight-loss and 3}World Peace. Now my definition of world peace is rather encompassing and may cause the wish granter to regret offering :)

Q: If your house was on fire and you could grab only 3 things before leaving, what would they be?
A: My dog, my favorite bra, and my pictures

Q: You wouldn’t be caught dead, where?
A: Alone at the movies :p

Q: If you could be any cartoon character, who would you be?
A: Belle from Beauty and the Beast or Ariel from The Little Mermaid

Q: Who was the last person you hugged?
A: My dog Bailey

Q: What do you think of when you hear the word "yellow"?
A: Lemonaide

Friday Confessional and Plea for Help!

I have this weird game I like to play at work. There are five stalls in the ladies restroom, and I coordinate the days of the week with the one I use. It kinda bums me out if someone's in the day-appropriate stall, or in the one next to it (because I have a rule to "leave a space"). Friday is the best day though, because I get to use the big handicapped stall :)

It also means it's time for another edition of Friday Confessional with Mamarazzi!

I confess that reading Diana's Friday Confessional last week made me realize I have a pretty serious confession of mine to admit...

I talk to this little guy and, well he talks back. Not really...but I make him talk back. I ask him questions and then answer for him in my weirdest, most embarrassing cartoony voice. For example:

Me: "Does Bailey want a treat?"
Bailey: "Oh YES MOMMEEEY!"

It's approximately that enthusiastic, with a slight elongated pause on the YES and an extra long EEEY at the end. He mostly answers with "yes, no, or right mommy." Super cute and endearing isn't it, so what's the big deal? Lots of people, including Diana talk to their pets. They're a part of the family after all!

Well...

Apparently I've started doing it in public as well. Shawn and I took Bailey to a Wee Rescue meet & greet at Petco. Shawn caught me having these "conversations" with Bailey TWICE! And loudly enough that people around us were giving me a funny look. I didn't even realize I was doing it!

So please...how do I stop my adorable quirky habit before it gets me sent to the looney bin?