Wednesday, December 29, 2010

Happy sparkly people!

Well it's that time again. . . new years. Time for all of us to set some goals and take some action. My new years resolutions are so very stereotypical that I am almost humiliated to be blogging about them but hey! You have to be accountable to someone right? Might as well be a bunch of cyberspace blog stalkers! :)

Goal #1 ~ Time to lose the baby weight! I figure it's a good time to do this seeing as how there are no longer any babies in this house. The goal is to go from my current 160 to a more reasonable 125. Richard and I got each other gym memberships for Christmas. (Well technically I gave him the "LL cool J abs" he wanted so badly and he treated me to the "Eliza Dushku physique" I have had my eyes on. We are so generous!) I also re-registered for www.sparkpeople.com today. I really do love this site and I recommend you check it out. I have some before pictures but to be honest I am so sad about them I will not be posting them until I have some progress ones to go with!

Goal # 2 ~ Get more organized! (I told you... super predictable!) Anybody who knows me knows that I am disorganized and a little stressed out ALL THE TIME. So I have my time management plan to help me now as well as a new day planner and a constant strive to make things more simple, less cluttered, and more clean!

Goal # 3 ~ Get back to school! It's time. I have regretted every minute since high school graduation that I didn't go to college. I think that if I don't go there is a good chance that my kids won't go. . . and I want the best for them. I want to make more money too. I want BIG things in life and I won't get them if I keep on this path. So I should be enrolled by the summer semester.

Here we go 2011! The year of Kayleigh!

Tuesday, December 21, 2010

It got a little un-KIKI for a minute there!

Hello dear friends and family! Thanks for coming back to the blog. I was having a little bit of a downer for the past month and a half and it seemed inappropriate to share that here in my little land of happy and care free. How have you been? I've missed you!

Most of you have probably heard that I am not working at Comcast anymore. I loved my time there. I met a lot of really great people and had some really great experiences. That job was something I really needed at that point in my life. It walked me through a divorce, learning to love again(especially loving myself), and building a great environment for our modern family. I am so thankful that I had my time there and while I am sad to be leaving, I am excited for what the future holds!

So with a job loss in the month of December there was potential for mass hysteria. How will I give my kids a good Christmas?!?! How will we pay the bills?!?! How can I stay home all day with the kids and not go insane?!?! Aaaaahhhh!!!! But because I surround myself with amazing people and have learned a few important lessons along the way. . . the world kept turning. A few quick shout outs:

*Frankie and Adam, our sweet sweet friends that have helped us out far more than we have helped them. Adam donated one of his own Christmas trees from his business to our family so that we could have one. I don't think you realize how important that big green bush is until you don't think you will have one. The memories you make decorating it, gathering around it, the fun of watching it glow every evening. . . those things can't be replaced. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

*Rosee. Those of you that don't know Rosee are seriously missing out. We weren't always so close but I have grown to cherish her as one of my closest friends. Thank you for checking on me often, being my mommy support friend, assisting me with getting more organized to save my sanity, and mostly for listening and accepting me and supporting me no matter what!

*Reata. The greatest not quite mom-in-law I have ever had. This woman has given me well over $1000 worth of scrapbooking stuff in the past few weeks. Thanks for supporting my new hobbies! Kisses!

Crystal. My sassy little sister. I thought I was helping you, letting you stay with us in a time of need. It turns out that you are really helping me. I have been so happy to have you here with me and the girls and to get to know you all over again. You bring sparkle to my house and a little bit of sass. I love you.

Dad and Christy. When I said we could use a little food to help us get through while it all gets straightened out I expected a dinner or two. You went above and beyond. I think you guys cut my grocery budget by 60%. Thank you so so much for all your help. We really appreciate it and love you!

Richard. My love. You are amazing. Not only did you support me emotionally and tell me that it would all be ok, you ACTUALLY made it all ok. And then you offered me a different solution for the future, opened my eyes to the possibilities. We are lucky to have a hard working, loving, supportive, but mostly fun man in our lives. I am excited to go into the future with you!

Well I have a new daily time management system and a bunch of new things to work on so it's time for me to go. Happy Holidays to all of you and thank you so much for being a part of my wonderful life!

Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Silly boys, girls can hunt too!

It's that time of year again. Everybody gets all bundled up in their camo pants and orange vests. They sit around a fire, smoke and frozen breaths billowing into the sky. They shiver uncontrollably as they dream of the perfect score. They picture something big and manly they can use to adorn the living room wall and brag about to all of their friends.

Well it occurred to me that girls can do this too! Why leave all the fun up to the smelly boys?? Here is the story of my first hunt!

It was a chilly October night. The wind was blowing. . . . . some random direction with a little bit of rain mixed in. I was wearing jeans and a hoodie. (A girl as cute as myself wouldn't be caught dead in camo and orange) It had been a long trek through the night finding other random items in the Winco jungle but I was ready for the big score!!

There he was, sitting tall on a cardboard box above all the others. He was beautiful! I couldn't wait to show him off to all my friends.

(This is a dramatization. Not actual picture of actual pumpkin)

This is where it gets a little gruesome but you are just gonna have to suck it up and deal with it. I have always thought it was cruel to just use the animal for bragging rights, you gotta use the whole thing! That is exactly what I did. So I slammed that big boy up on the table and pulled out my biggest knife. . . . . .

(Again. . . this was a little too crazy for mid-action photos. This ones a fake.)

Next came the messy part. Now I am not the type of mom to leave the kids out of the murder and mayhem. This was a family endeavor dang it!! "Kids you get in there and rip those guts out!!" This was new for them, they usually only paint the ones we bring home. Surprisingly they adjusted quickly and called it "him" the entire time!

We seperated the seeds to roast later. I didn't like them but the kids thought they were tasty. Just baked them with salt, pepper, and cumin.

Next I was going to create my "Dinner in a Pumpkin"

1 Medium pumpkin cleaned out and roasted for 45 minutes at 375
1.5 pounds Ground beef
1 medium onion chopped
1.5 Cups chopped mushrooms
1 Tbsp minced garlic
Salt, pepper, and cumin.
1 Cup chopped cilantro
1 Cup frozen corn
1 can white beans.
1 family size can of cream of chicken soup.

Saute onions and garlic in some olive oil for about 2 minutes. Add ground beef and stir until browned. Add spices, corn, mushrooms, and cilantro, and beans until warmed through. Mix in soup until mixture is creamy but thick. Pour into pumpkin and bake for another 25 minutes.

We placed ours on a bed of fall leaves the girls had collected earlier. Instead of serving out of the whole in the top of the pumpkin we had to cut a piece out of ours because one side collapsed. It was still beautiful and tasted delicious. Luckily there are left overs for my lunch today!




So there is the story of my very first hunt. I'm sorry to report one pumpkin was harmed in the making of this blog. At least I will be well fed while battling the protesters!





Monday, October 25, 2010

Part 2: A tale of two ladies

I think there might have been a misunderstanding with my last post. Mom and Heather "got it" but they get me most days so that doesn't surprise me too much. Hopefully this post will clarify.

Let me start with saying this, I am not on a search for approval. I am not looking for reassurance that my like is worth while and means something. I think my last post might have come across as a pity party, that was not my intention. I was trying to remind myself & other women like me that we should constantly be striving to better ourselves and situations. With that let me also say that I am grateful to have to have friends that would support me in a pity party if I were throwing one.

Now let me tell you about these two ladies I know.
Kayleigh: A little bit quiet. Married too young. Overwhelmed and irritated mother of two. Creator of debts. Dreamer of big things but do-er of very little. Chronically dependent. Socially anxious.

Kiki: In love with life. Adventure seeker and risk taker. Fun & active mother. Financial fanatic. Fashion passionate. Student of the universe. Strong willed, independent woman.

My ultimate goal here is to get a little closer to the Kiki side and pull away from those Kayleigh parts that have been holding me back in life. I'm psyched! Let's go!

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

Part 1. The Journey Begins.

We have all been there, you are making your way through the produce section on a desperate search for the final pieces of some dinner you are throwing together at the last minute. Your hair is a mess, as usual, and make-up was nowhere near the top of your to-do list today. Because this is real life and not a romantic comedy you are wearing the only pair of jeans that don't have something wiped on them by baby hands and a shirt that wasn't as lucky. You reach for the last onion and turn to escape the craziness that is the store and head back to the craziness that is home.

That's when it happens. Like hitting a brick wall you run into "THEM". ("THEM" is a role that can be filled by a few different people. The bitchy cheerleader from highschool who always looked like she had a team of professionals prepping her for her appearance in home-room and now has a successful modeling career. The nerdy kid nobody admitted talking to because your social status would drop miles per minute. He has a REALLY lucrative job with microsoft. Or heaven forbid, the worst of the worst, that jock that ditched you at homecoming.)

The following conversation always follows:
Kayleigh:(Smiling as if she is totally glad to see you) "Hi ______! It's been forever! How are things?"

THEM: "I know! We haven't talked since high school! I am doing REALLY great. I ______ (fill in the amazing life story and experiences.) What about you?"

Kayleigh: "Oh you know, just working and 'living life'."

The conversation ends. You exchange numbers and promise to talk soon. You go home to the craziness and realize you forgot the dang onion!


Living life. That phrase has started to haunt me recently. What does it mean exactly? I know I am living. I have a pulse. I breathe. But other than that it all just sort of blends together doesn't it? The living gets lost in the shuffle. I don't think that will do any longer. I want to wake up every morning glad to be living. I want to feel all the beautiful things this life has to offer me.

And so the journey begins. . . .