The Travel Back To Arizona

Well, we made it back to Arizona last night about 8pm and much happier with this travel than on the way there. We stayed south so we didn’t get into bad weather. When we left Wisconsin there was terrible fog until we got passed Des Moines. The fog was so bad you couldn’t see 20 feet in front of your car. That slowed us down just a little bit. Then we hit really bad thunderstorms in Kansas and that was scary as Andy was hydroplaning across the interstate because the rain was so heavy. We managed to stay away from Nebraska because we hate that state now. We did however go through the brake happy state of Iowa again and I swear those people love their brakes. Mechanics must make a ton of money replacing brakes on cars left and right. Missouri wasn’t a bad state to drive through, but they had some weird road signs that bothered me. I find it rather annoying that they had a mile marker every .2 miles telling you and I found that rather annoying while I was driving and very unnecessary. They also had a sign that said Pre Passing Lane ahead. What is that? Pre Passing Lane? I have only heard of a Passing Lane ahead, but I guess there is a lane for you to go in before you are ready to pass someone…mmmm…didn’t get it and I still don’t. I guess I will have to ask my friend Jessica (who is from there) what a Pre Passing Lane is. Once we hit Kansas I saw a lot of Jesus billboards saying that if I don’t believe I am going to hell. I am glad WI or AZ doesn’t have billboards like that as I found that annoying too. The rest of the trip was fine. The dogs were fine in the car and Madison stalled every stop because she would take her time going to the bathroom at every stop…I am talking 20 minutes to find a spot to pee. I did my fair share of driving again and I figured I drove 13.5 hours of the 28 hour drive. Actually we clocked the travel time on the Jeep and it’s a 26 hour drive, but with two dogs and stopping it turned to 28 hour drive. At least this time it was better than the drive there. I don’t think we will do it again. I am a big fan of planes now and Andy and I tried the drive, but don’t think we will do it again. The dogs will be happy to stay at the PetSmart Hotel the next time we decide to visit Wisconsin.

Ready To Go Back To Phoenix Weather

So far my Wisco holiday vacation has revolved around snow, cold and bad roads. We started at a cool negative nine degrees and now we are at a balmy 23 degrees. Let’s just say the negative nine degrees was a rough day for Izzy and I. The cold temperatures were just bringing bad road conditions which then ended up canceling plans that I had to see people. I have felt somewhat like a prisoner in my parent’s house because I haven’t done much due to the roads. At least in Phoenix when its 115 degrees outside you can still leave your house safely without worries of ending up in a ditch or getting in a car accident. I have never seen it snow so much here since I was a little kid. In fact it’s snowing right now and will continue to snow through the day. It’s crazy! I am also coming down with a cold too, but how can you not when you go from -9 degrees to 23 degrees in a matter of one day. Last night I did manage to get out for a little bit as Andy and I went to the Badger Basketball game. Other than that I have hung out with my family and did some shopping close to my parent’s house just to get out. I am bummed because I am probably not going to see one of my closest friends while I am here. Why, you ask? Because of the crappy weather which leads to crappy roads! I am ready to leave this crappy weather and go back to Phoenix where I do not have limitations on what I can or cannot due because of Mother Nature.

Journey Across Country

We made it in one piece to Wisconsin via the Jeep Cherokee and in less time than I made it last year by plane, but only beat last year by one hour. A trip that was supposed to take us about 26 hours took us 30 hours. So, those 4 extra hours consisted of extra stops, long stops and states that don’t plow their interstates after a massive snow storm. When we left Phoenix we ran into some snow covered roads in the mountains, so that was the first thing that slowed us down. Then we were good until we got East of Denver. The interstate from Denver to Nebraska was covered in snow. I found it very interesting that a state like that did not take care of their interstate at all. That took me driving pretty cautious and under speed limit which was very frustrating. We were hoping that once we were to enter Nebraska that state would have enough common sense to plow their interstate’s, but that state was the worst state we drove through. Andy and I have declared that we hate the state of Nebraska. We ran into three rolling road blocks…what’s that you ask? Well, it’s where the State Trooper’s drive in the middle of the interstate with their lights on going 30 miles per hour to slow down traffic. Why? Don’t know, other than they are a bunch of corn loving assholes! Excuse my language, but you can imagine how frustrated we were because it’s not like it was just for one mile, but more like 10 – 15 miles of that. So, we were thrilled to leave Nebraska and enter the state that is Brake Happy…the damn Iowans. Yup, those assholes don’t know how to drive. It was constant brake city and for no reason what so ever. I have never seen so many people step on the brakes for nothing. It was ridiculous. We finally ended up in the great state of Wisconsin about 11pm and were at Andy’s mom’s house at 1am. I do have to share with everyone that I did my fair share of driving. I calculated that I drove approximately 13 hours of the 30 hour drive, so that isn’t exactly half for you auditors, but it’s pretty close and I am happy with that. Andy and I will not be doing this next year so we will have to figure out another game plan for the dogs because driving across county is just not for us. At least we didn’t kill each other in the car and we are still together, so that’s a plus!

On Our Way To Wisco For Xmas

Well, today we are heading back to Wisco in the Jeep Cherokee. I would like it noted that I am not a fan of this long drive nor am I thrilled to be sitting in a car for the next 24 hours, but we are able to bring the dogs with us this way. Plus, it can’t be any worse than my travels last year. For those that don’t remember, let’s recap.

I woke up on Friday at 5:30am and went to work. From work I went to the airport to catch my 5pm flight which had a stop in Minneapolis. Once we got there they said my flight was delayed until midnight, well midnight rolled around and my flight was delayed until 8am. Keep in mind that I am traveling alone and Andy was already in Madison. I found a bench in the airport and parked it. I spent my time on the phone talking to people and playing Tetris on my phone, but I mostly spent my time pissed off as I lay on the bench looking like a homeless person who was freezing her butt off. Finally, 6am rolled around and I was able to get some breakfast. After wandering around for a while I head back to my gate to find that I was delayed another hour. We finally boarded at 9am, but didn’t take off until 10:30am. We get to Madison only to find out the fog was so thick that we couldn’t land so we hovered for about 30 minutes before they took us back to Minneapolis. Once I got back there they told us they were going to send us to Madison by bus and the bus will be there at 3pm so be ready. Well, 3pm turned into 6pm which is about the time that I lost my mind in the airport because I was a frustrated woman with not sleep who has been awake for 37 hours now. The buses finally came at 7pm and I barely made it to Madison at 1:30am on Sunday morning because the roads were so bad. I got to my parents house at 2am and got a few hours of sleep before it was time to get up and smile pretty for family photos.

Now, how can driving across country for 24 hours be worse than that? If it is I will seriously have to think about my Christmas travels next year.

Andy Finally Did It...

After the past month of Andy carrying the flat screen from our bedroom outside to watch football on Sunday's he finally brought one home. On Saturday, he told me he was running to Sears to get a gift card for a Xmas present; however, that is not the only thing he brought home. He carried in the Vizio box with a 32” flat screen TV in it. I was like “Do we really need that?” Of course we do, so Andy can enjoy the AZ weather while watching football outside, then basketball and top it off with baseball. I think we need this like we need another animal in the house, but whatever. Actually, I think this will come in handy during the summer while I am floating in the pool and there is a GOOD Lifetime movie on. Yup, that sounds about perfect! Now, he just needs to mount it and get an outdoor cover for it so dust doesn’t get inside and ruin it. How spoiled one can be once you move to AZ. This is something you definitely cannot do in WI.

Fun Night of Fu Fu Fondue and Good Friends

Last night our friends had a fondue party that we went to. It was a really good time and I must say that they did a great job of setting up a fondue party. There was a station for a cheese fondue with one pot of orange cheese and another pot filled with white cheese. The choice of dippings were a bunch of different blanched veggies and bread. My friend, Amber, was very proud of herself for blanching the veggies. Then there was a meat station where you had your choice of chicken, beef or shrimp to cook in a pot of oil or chicken broth. Then to top the fondue party off they had a chocolate fountain with bananas (which were AWESOME), strawberries, animal crackers, pineapple and a couple other options. I was pretty impressed with the setup of the fondue party. Kudos to the Campbell’s as this might have been better than the Melting Pot, but I wouldn’t know since Andy has yet to take me there. There was also a game of cards, progressive rummy, the same card game as when we were camping…these are the campers that we hung out with. Needless to say Andy and I were nowhere near winning the card game. I guess we are just not card people. The evening topped off with my friends making fun of me and not believing in me…yup that’s right. They think I will not last in the car ride back to WI for the long journey home for Xmas. They think I won’t contribute to the driving…they are wrong. (Oh, by the way, we are driving back to Wisco for Xmas…yup, driving.) They think I am high maintenance, but I am not sure where they got that idea. I drove myself out here when we moved here, the whole 24 hours I drove by myself so I am sure I can contribute my half of the driving this week. We are going to keep a record of how much I drove so I can prove to my friends that I am not high maintenance, but instead medium high maintenance.

You Know You Are An Arizonian When...

I found this online and find it absolutely hilarious. It’s a list of things for you to realize you now live in AZ and can now say you are from AZ instead of the actual state you are from because you read this list and laugh or agree to it. I would like to share them because I think it’s pretty funny now that I have been here for more than 3 years and I can laugh (and agree) to most of these.

1. You buy salsa by the gallon.
2. Sunscreen is sold year round and kept right at the checkout counter.
3. You can attend any function wearing shorts and a tank top.
4. Your Christmas decorations are hung while it’s still 90 degrees outside.
5. You think a red light is merely a suggestion.
6. You think someone driving wearing oven mitts is clever.
7. Most of the restaurants in town have the first name "El" or "Los".
8. You think 60 tons of crushed rock makes a beautiful yard.
9. You notice your car overheating before you drive it.
10. Your house is made of stucco and has a red clay tile roof.
11. You no longer associate bridges (or rivers) with water.
12. You see more irrigation water on the street than there is in the Salt River.
13. You know a swamp cooler is not a happy hour drink.
14. You can say 115 degrees without fainting.
15. Every other vehicle is a 4x4.
16. You can be in the snow, then drive for an hour and it will be over 100 degrees.
17. Vehicles with open windows have the right-of-way in the summer.
18. People break out coats when temperature drops below 70 degrees.
19. You discover, in July, it only takes two fingers to drive your car.
20. The pool can be warmer than you are.
21. You run your air conditioner in the middle of winter so you can use your fireplace.
22. Most homes have more firearms than people.
23. Kids will ask, "What's a mosquito?"
24. People who have black cars or black upholstery in their car are automatically assumed to be from out-of-state or nuts.
25. You notice the best parking place is determined by shade instead of distance.
26. The AC is on your list of best friends.
27. Monday Night Football starts at 7:00 instead of 6:00.
28. You realize that Valley Fever isn't a disco dance.
29. You can finish a Big Gulp in 10 minutes and go back for seconds.
30. The water from the cold water tap is the same temperature as the hot one.
31. You can (correctly) pronounce the words: "Saguaro", "Ocotillo", "Tempe", "Gila Bend", "San Xavier", "Canyon de Chelly", "Mogollon Rim", "Cholla", and "Ajo".
32. It's noon in July, kids are on summer vacation, and not one person is walking on the streets.
33. You experience third degree burns if you touch any metal part of your car.
34. You know better than to get into a car with leather seats if you're wearing shorts.
35. Announcements for Fourth of July events never end with "in case of rain......"
36. When someone asks how far you live from a location, it's always in terms of minutes, not miles.
37. Everyone's smiling and talking about the great weather on rainy days.
38. You have to explain to out-of-staters why there is no daylight savings time.

Exhausted From Firm Holiday Party

Last night we attended my firm holiday party which I am glad it is over with because that is an annual event in which marketing is in charge of and heavily involved in. I spent most of last week revolving everything I did at work around the holiday party. It was crazy and stressful. It turned out great though and everyone seemed to have a great time, so that is the best part for me to see everyone enjoy themselves at a party that I put a lot of hard work and thought into. I had the party at the Venue of Scottsdale which is decked out like Bourbon Street in New Orleans so we had a Mardi Gras themed party with a casino event. I had the employees gambling for chips in which they could trade in for raffle tickets at the end of the night where they put their raffle ticket in a bucket for a prize of their choice. I had 30 prizes with some examples being a Wii bundle, a Kindle, a $500 airline gift card, a Sony Blue-Ray DVD player, etc. There were some pretty nice prizes and it was fun to select the items and shop for them, but the best part was to see the winners get excited that they won. Andy and I were trying to win the airline gift card, but we did not win anything. Oh well! It was the best turn out the firm ever had so I am pretty excited about that too. We didn’t get home and in bed until 3am. We are not used to being out that late anymore because we are old now, so we have both been exhausted today and just lounging around the house. I am exhausted, but happy the event is over with for another year, but now it’s time to start finding a location for next year that will top this year’s location.

Christmas Came Early for Captain

Christmas presents have begun to arrive at the house today. Andy and I received matching luggage from my parents while Captain received two large boxes as well. I don’t think my parents realized when sending the luggage that they were giving more than just luggage…they gave a crazy cat an amazing present made of cardboard. As many know Captain is very playful and definitely not your ordinary cat. He has always been different in a way that he liked to play in the shower when he was younger, he plays fetch with the ball and he loves attention and pets from all people. He has always reminded us of a dog. Anyway, we would have thought Captain would have become mild mannered by now since he is 4.5 years old, but tonight (and every other night) he proved to us that he is still a very playful kitten. He has spent much time playing in this large box batting his ball in and out and crazily jumping in and out of the box like a jumping bean. I wish I had video of this behavior to post so you can see his true personality, but I did take a couple cute pictures of him in the box while he was resting in between his crazy moments of jumping in-and-out and then up-and-down. I hope he doesn’t become mild mannered, like other cats, for a very long time as he is very entertaining. So, Merry Christmas to Captain has he enjoys his box from his grandma and grandpa.

Lazy Four Day Weekend

Well, the four day weekend was very nice and it makes me think that I need this kind of rest and relaxation every weekend before going back to work. If not four days, then at least three. We didn’t do much this weekend, but we did manage to see the movie Four Christmases and take the dogs for a couple walks to get some more exercise. It was Izzy’s first walk and she didn’t know exactly what to do. It was super cute. She just followed Madison and did whatever Madison did. She wouldn’t walk ahead of Madison, but only stayed behind and followed her. If she did get ahead of Madison then she stopped and waited. That Izzy does whatever Madison does and follows that dog everywhere. It is so cute to watch. I also managed to get a little Xmas shopping done too, but online of course. Yesterday, I realized that instead of lounging all weekend, we should have painted the retaining wall in our backyard or repainted our living room like we have wanted to do, but nope, instead we were lazy. It was great! I also managed to start the third book in the Twilight series. That series of books is so addicting. I wouldn’t advise starting the books unless you are prepared to become addicted to them. So, it was an enjoyable weekend and the retaining wall and living room, and all the other house projects will have to wait for another weekend.

Turkey Day Recap

I hope everyone had a great turkey day as I know we did. Our friends made some really good food. I must say that I was impressed there was no canned cranberry mold sitting on the table. There was a green bean casserole though, and of course Andy had to offer me some green beans by following with “I know how much you like them.” He said this in regards to my previous post and he did this with a smirk on his face. Now anyone who knows Andy can definitely picture him doing this. They also had fabulous Yams. Yummy! Since I go to Turkey Day specifically for the stuffing I was very pleased to see they had three different kinds. I have never seen that one before. I was in stuffing heaven with three options to choose from. Of course that took up the majority of my plate. Following dinner we all filed out to the patio to watch football and drink some more wine. Apparently we went through 10 bottles of wine by the end of the night. It sounds like a lot, but it didn’t seem like a lot. We then went over to another friend’s house for some shits and giggles before we called it a day. Now, its black Friday and I will be doing my shopping online as I am not one to deal with all the crazy people out-and-about shopping today.

Two Days Until Turkey Day...

Or shall I say two days until my four day weekend? I have never been one for Thanksgiving, but I have always enjoyed my days off of work. At my firm we get Thanksgiving Day and the Friday after off, which then equals a really nice weekend. If it weren’t for it being the busiest travel time of the year then I think I would want to go somewhere for my extended weekend, but since I don’t feel like dealing with the crazy people at the airport we are just staying put. Andy’s dad and girlfriend are going to be in town for 24 hours and we are going to our friends, Tom and Karen’s, house for Thanksgiving dinner at 2pm. Why do they call it a dinner when it’s at 2pm? Mmmmm…never really got that one. I guess I have never been into the holiday because I don’t care that much for the food. Turkey is ok, but I am not a fan of mashed potatoes and I definitely hate green bean casserole that always seems to make it to the dinner table on Turkey Day. Just the look of it is awful. I do like the corn and the stuffing that is always served. I am a big fan of stuffing and so I guess I always go to Turkey Day looking forward to a big plateful of stuffing. Oh, the other horrible thing on the dinner menu is always a can of cranberries. That is also one I just don’t get. Why open a can of cranberries and plop it on a plate when it’s still in the shape of the can? Why not do something with it? Make it look like there was some effort put into the cranberries. So, I guess you can say I am not a fan of the canned cranberry mold that is typically found on the dinner table at Thanksgiving along with the nasty green bean casserole. So, needless to say Thanksgiving is not on my top choice of holidays like some people I know. My top choice of holidays are Halloween, Christmas and of course the birth of Jaimi!

Izzy Takes A Swim...Again

Today started out with Andy wanting to watch football outside so he took our flat screen off our bedroom wall and hooked it up outside so he could enjoy the fabulous AZ weather while drinking a beer. Our friend Tom also came over to watch football all day outside. I did go and check on them and I saw two men with their beers, each had a laptop so they could keep up on their fantasies while they were watching some game. However, Tom had his laptop plugged into the wall and this created a hazard around the pool with the dogs out there playing and wrestling. Izzy was chasing Madison around the pool, like she always does, and she tripped on Tom’s laptop cord, the laptop went flying toward the house and Izzy went flying into the pool. It was pretty funny to see. Izzy started paddling fast with her front paws to keep herself afloat, but the look on her face screamed that she was scared. Andy bent down and fished Izzy out of the cold pool…once again. Tom got his laptop and thank god it was still working after a quick reboot. Izzy was cold, wet and scared. I grabbed a towel from the closet and wrapped her up and held her until she fell asleep. Below is the picture of Izzy all wrapped up in the towel soaking wet. She laid in the chair all wrapped up like this for an hour.

Home Sweet Home...Again

I arrived back in AZ last night after my flight landed with a plane full of snow birds. I felt a little guilty like I was part of bringing the cause of our congested highways to Phoenix. I actually sat next to a snow bird and heard her story of her second home here and why her and her husband bought the second home. All I kept thinking was if she was on the highway at 5pm or not. After the plane landed I went to pick up the girls at the PetSmart hotel. They were so excited to see me that it was adorable. The hotel said the girls behaved themselves during their stay. However, Madison did chew up the pet bed they provide for each “hotel room.” I was not shocked as this is normal Madison behavior when she gets bored. I just thought that with Izzy in the same room as her she wouldn’t get bored and there would be no destructive behavior. Obviously that was not the case. Andy got home only a few hours after I did and the girls were just as excited to see him as they were to see me. Again, it was so cute that it was a Kodak moment! I did manage to bring home a cold with me. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised because I was out in 30 degree weather on Saturday for more than seven hours for the Badger game and the festivities. Andy does not have a cold at all…lucky guy! I must say it is good to be home, with our puppies and in the 80 something degree weather.

Go Badgers!!

Well, we went to the Wisconsin vs. Minnesota game yesterday and it was freezing. I think it was about 35 degrees yesterday. I did dress for the weather as I wore winter tights with jeans, four shirts and my awesome puffy North Face coat. I also had hand warmers in my shoes and gloves, and I was wearing one of those head bands as well. I must say that I was a trooper as I piled on the clothes to face the freezing cold and I managed to hang outside for about 7 hours before I complained. It was around the 7th hour that I was just done and sick of the cold weather. That is when we all walked to get some food and then onto an indoor bar so I could take off some layers and enjoy a WI bar in a sea of red. It was a good time. It’s always nice to come back to WI and hang out with friends…while you all freeze your butts off outside. I must say that only in the Midwest will you see thousands of people standing in 35 degree weather drinking, laughing and having a great time. Once we got to the game it wasn’t that cold because the stadium walls were blocking the wind. I might add that we did beat Minnesota and therefore we got to keep the rival ax. Andy is at the Packer vs. Bear game today freezing his butt off again. We will be heading back to a nice 80 something degrees tomorrow! YES!!!

Happy Veteran's Day

Today is Veteran’s Day and many people don’t even notice because they are so busy with work and family that they don’t even realize today is a holiday until they head out to their mailbox and find it’s empty. Another reason this day goes unnoticed among many is because this holiday is not recognized by many businesses. This holiday does not go unnoticed in our house because Andy is one of those rare “bankers” who get this holiday off of work; this holiday among the 50 holidays his employer recognizes. This is never fair because there is always some holiday that Andy gets off of work for, so instead of heading to work this morning he stayed in bed while I was up and getting ready for work. What’s worse is that he got to spend the day with the girls (our puppies) while I was super busy at work all day trying to get things done before I jet off to Wisco on Thursday. The only extra “holidays” I get off that Andy doesn’t is the Friday after Thanksgiving and the day after tax day, April 16th. This does not compare to Andy’s numerous extra holidays. It seems like he has one holiday every other week. Well, I did tell him that he should celebrate this day and head downtown to the Phoenix Veteran’s Day parade. He is not into parades so he did some errands and hung out at the house. Sounds like my kind of holiday!

All About Madison and Izzy

Yesterday Madison and Izzy had a vet appointment to get all their latest shots they need. We especially had to get this done before their stay at the Puppy Hotel next weekend. Before they get their shots they have to get weighed and Madison was the first to brave the scale and found out she is a solid 52 pounds while Izzy weighed in at 17 pounds. Izzy has gained 10 pounds since we brought her home a month ago. However, the vet thinks she is still pretty thin and we agree with her. First, she had a growth spurt recently and this could be the cause of her being thin. She has gotten pretty tall with her long legs…just like her daddy. Second, she plays so much that she forgets to eat. Her and Madison will play in the backyard for hours until they both pass out tired. So Izzy prefers to play over eat. We are now monitoring her eating better and make her take breaks from playing. Getting Izzy was the best idea ever! Her and Madison get along so well and they are just like little kids. They both want what the other has all the time and Izzy follows her big sister around everywhere. Izzy always wants to be around Madison; it is so cute! This morning Izzy experienced the pool as she fell into the frigid 60 degree pool. They were chasing each other around the pool (just like kids do) and of course Izzy slipped and fell in. Good thing Andy was out there to fish her out because he said she just started to sink instead of trying to swim. We expected this to happen one day because of how they run around the pool so fast and we didn’t get a chance to teach Izzy about the pool because by the time we brought her home the pool was pretty cold. This is one reason why we are always outside when Izzy is outside. The pool incident scared her. She didn’t stop shaking for a half an hour and I was there to baby her. I wrapped her in a towel and held her until she wasn’t scared. I wish I could have seen her when she fell in the pool because it was probably a funny sight to see. Below are pictures of the two of them. My favorite is of them sunning together each on their own lounge chair.

A friendly game of tug-o-war. Well, it looks like Madison is winning.

The two babies sunning themselves!

Below: A game of wrestle and it looks like Izzy pinned Madison.

Home Sick

I am home sick today, and actually I left work early yesterday because I felt just awful! I am feeling better today, but still sick. I am spending my day resting and pretty much bored. I am not a fan of being home sick, but then again who is? My stomach is upset, I am nauseous and my head hurts really bad. Kind of like a headache, but there is no headache. I wonder if it’s just filled with so much mucous and boogers and that is what’s causing the pain in my head. Yeah, I know that sounds hot doesn’t it? Andy worked from home today, but he didn’t tend to my sickly needs, but he actually worked. He is pretty good at this working at home thing. I on the other hand would not be so good at it. He worked all day long while I lay in bed or sat outside with the dogs while they played. I plan just to rest and relax all weekend since I need to make sure I am healthy for our trip back to Wisco next weekend. Go B adgers!

Pretty Good For Someone Who Is Directionally Challenged

Well, I am going to have to say I am pretty proud of myself for finding my way around the Phoenix area on Saturday without getting lost. I picked up my girlfriend from the airport (who by the way was in town for only 24 hours to attend a wedding, but that is another story) and then headed to Tempe Marketplace. After that I managed to take her to the wedding she needed to go to in Ahwatukee. I then proceeded to a Best Buy before heading home. I did all of this without getting lost or calling Andy for directions. Hey, this is pretty good for me since I am directionally challenged and my journey took me all over the Phoenix metro area. I was so proud of myself when I got home. Before I left the house I warned Andy that I might have to call him for directions to get around the city so be prepared for a phone call. Of course he wasn’t surprised because it surely was not the first, nor the 50th, time I have left the house and had to call for directions because I got lost. He just responded with “Pay attention.” I laughed and was on my marry, but nervous way. I did call later to ask him if he had found the batter charger for our camera, but he answered the phone with “Where are you?” expecting me to be lost and asking for directions, but instead I just wanted to know if he found the battery charger or not. I would have to say I did pretty well this past Saturday for someone who is directionally challenged.

Halloween Outcome

Ok, so yes, yesterday was a little rough so that is why I did not post pictures of the Halloween party like I said I would. We did have a lot of fun and therefore I have been delayed on posting about the party…I was out of commission yesterday. Andy and I went as Madonna and Alex Rodriguez. Some people figured it out, but others had no idea. I dressed up as the Like A Virgin Madonna from the 1980’s so some people thought I was just a bride while Andy was a Yankee’s player. I was like “Come on people, don’t you read your US Weekly?” Once I explained it people got it, but it’s not as funny when you have to explain things. We did see some great costumes though. There was a guy who dressed up as a golden parachute…now that was clever. There was another guy who dressed up as the guy on the DVD cover of Office Space. You know the guy wearing a million post-it’s…yeah that was funny. There was another guy who dressed up as Picasso’s Blue Period. He had a blue shirt on with blue tampons glued all over his shirt and Picasso’s signature on the shirt. I thought that was pretty creative. Anyway, we had a great time and here is a link to our pictures on Snapfish. Enjoy!

http://www2.snapfish.com/share/p=33331225754149341/l=438499064/g=36312535/otsc=SYE/otsi=SALB

Fabulous Halloween

I hope everyone had a fabulous Halloween yesterday because it is the best holiday of the year! Well, we initially had plans to go out in Old Town Scottsdale last night with some friends, but we did not have our costumes ready for the big party tonight so we did not have costumes for the block party last night. We spent our night finishing up our costumes for the party tonight. If I wasn’t in Boston last weekend we would have been prepared and would have been able to go out last night, but I guess we don’t need two nights of boozing for Halloween. I guess one night is plenty. Andy did get me a Halloween card and a big bag of candy. I could do without the fattening candy, but he did get my favorite candy, Twix. What a thoughtful guy! We are going to the party as Madonna and A-Rod. Andy is pretty happy that he didn’t have much to do for his costume; however, he thinks he looks like a douche in his baseball pants. I think he looks pretty cute! I on the other hand have the big task of getting my mop top into a blonde wig. It’s a task every year. I also have a mock wedding dress with an actual veil…which should make mom proud. Anyway, I have to start prepping for 10 pounds of 80’s makeup and hiding 20 pounds of hair in a small space. Will post pics tomorrow.

Home Sweet Home

Well I am home from Boston and I made it back in one piece…well a pretty tired piece that is. Since I was there for such a short period of time I never adjusted to the three hour time difference, plus I went out every night I was there and stayed up Pretty late and had to get up pretty early every morning. I am hoping to get to bed early tonight to catch up on some sleep. If you have never been to Boston it is a pretty cool city and I would recommend you visit. It is such an old city that it has a lot of history. The buildings were so old and it was neat to see Brownstone’s for homes since that is not something I am use to. The roadways were pretty tiny which made me realize I could never drive in that city. If I ever did I would be an insurance companies dream because they would make a lot of money off of me. I was able to see the popular Newbury street which has all the great shops and a few restaurants. I went to the North End two nights in a row with a group of people for dinner and drinks. The North End is like a Little Italy. There are a ton of Italian restaurants and bakeries there. It was just a neat area to even walk around as it kind of looked fake…like a movie set. Let me tell you the cobblestone streets made it very difficult to walk in heels. I didn’t know everything was in cobblestone or I wouldn’t have gone out in heels. Don’t worry I was a trooper and managed to get by…I just walked a little slower than everyone else. By the way everyone walks there. It’s great! If I lived there I wouldn’t even own a car as I would either walk or use the subway system. The food was absolutely amazing at this restaurant we ate at last night called Pezza. If you are ever in Boston I would highly recommend it. Pezza is a really nice Italian restaurant. I got the halibut and it was amazing. Probably one of the best dishes I have ever had. The locals would crack me up with their thick accents. I am not use to that around Phoenix. I would have to say that my short trip to Boston was pretty cool and I had a GREAT time. I am glad to be home though where it’s 93 degrees outside.

Going to Boston

This weekend is going to be spent in Boston working. Yup, I am going to spend all day Saturday flying across country for a two day conference and then spend another day flying all the way back to AZ while Andy spends a relaxing weekend with the dogs. I have a problem with this. I do not like to fly so if I am going to get on a plane I like to make it worth it. I will be in Boston for two days only which is also equivalent to the amount of time I will be flying, so for some reason to me that doesn’t sound like it’s worth it. Plus, I get antsy, so to be on a plane for five hours is not my cup of tea. I can typically do three hours without going crazy, but in past experiences I know that anything over three is rough on me. I tend to get really bored, so I will be packing my portable DVD player, a book and my mp3 player to help keep me occupied for the long flight. Also, not to mention the three hour time change, but I won’t go into that. I would love to see Boston, but I don’t have much time for that as it seems as if I will be holed up in my hotel most of the time filling my two days full of fun at a conference on accounting marketing. That might be a good thing because I checked the weather report and it says a high of 50 degrees with a low of 40. Uhmmm…sounds pretty cold to me, so I packed plenty of sweaters. Meanwhile Andy will be animal sitting Madison, Izzy and Captain at a beautiful temperature of 85 degrees.

My Favorite Holiday is in Nine Days

My absolute favorite holiday is coming up in less than two weeks and I am pretty excited for it. I just love Halloween. It is so fun to come up with a costume, get dressed up and go out to see what other costumes people come up with. Every year for the past 11 years I have always come up with a good costume and went out to meet all the other crazies out there and for the past five years I have been doing this with Andy by my side. As you have read before Andy is not a fan of theme parties so he is especially not a fan of Halloween. He just does not like to get dressed up. If he had his way we would stay in for Halloween or be lame and show up at a Halloween party not dressed up, but he doesn’t have his way on this one. When we first started dating I explained to him that I LOVE Halloween and this is what I do every year. I mean I even start thinking about my costume in July. How crazy is that? I also let Andy know that I am not a fan of Valentine’s Day so as long as he gets dressed up in a costume and celebrates my favorite holiday with me (with a smile on his face and no complaining about getting dressed up) then he is off the hook for the dreaded V-Day. Andy felt that was a good deal so every year he puts on a smile and gets dressed up for me and we don’t celebrate Valentine’s Day. I finally purchased my costume last night and Andy is in the process of getting all his pieces purchased too. I am not going to ruin the surprise for all, so you will just have to wait until I post pictures after Halloween, well actually after November 1st. We have a Halloween party to go to on November 1st that we go to every year. It’s a good time with friends, costumes, creepy decorations and of course witches brew. I will display pictures following our party in less than two weeks.

Charity At the “Lake”

Last night Andy and I went to a charity event for my work. The event benefited a charity who is a client of my firm. The nonprofit department invited me to attend so of course I said yes. It was an outdoor event by the lake with some really good food, wine and a nice band. There are two things wrong with that sentence…lake and outdoor. The event started at 5pm and it is still really hot here to be holding an event outside. Sometimes once the sun goes down it cools off a little, but of course not on a night where I am at a charity event in dress pants. I was so hot that I was borderline miserable. The other thing that is funny is that it was held at Tempe Town Lake. Now for those who don’t live here let me explain this so called lake. It is a wider portion of the canal that people call a lake. So there is no breeze coming from the so-called lake. I have known about this lake but never visited it before. I have driven over the bridge that crosses this lake, but again never really actually stood in front of it laughing until last night. Coming from Madison which is surrounded by lakes makes me laugh at what is called Tempe Town Lake. It’s not a lake, it’s a wide canal. Other than the heat which caused my feet to sweat (and I hate sweaty feat) we had a really nice time enjoying the wine, great food, a nice band and of course the fabulous lake.
Correction: Ok, I guess it's not a canal, but instead the Salt River. Still, it's not a lake. It's far from a lake.

Check Your Lids Before Cooking

Madison has been pretty good since we have brought home Izzy to entertain her; however, she did strike again. Tonight I was making dinner and was boiling water. Once the water was boiling rapidly I grabbed for the lid and screamed while dropping the lid because it was extremely hot. My first instinct was “what the hell?” and “how did that happen?” I have never been burned by grabbing for the lid handle before. Then I looked at the lid again and realized the rubber that covers the metal handle was missing and it was missing from all the lids to our pots. That is when Andy came in to see what all the commotion is about. I asked him about the rubber missing from the lids and he said “Oh, yeah, I forgot to tell you about that.” Yeah, I guess so! Apparently Madison got into the cupboard where the pots and lids are kept and chewed the rubber coating off all the lids. This apparently happened recently and Andy just forgot to tell me. I didn’t notice the missing rubber because who inspects their pots before cooking? I just did what I normally do and then found out that my fingers are on fire from touching extremely hot metal. So, as I type this I am typing slowly because the padding to my left hand fingers are pretty raw right now. I suggest anyone with a puppy who is a chewer to inspect the lids to their pots before boiling water.

Quick Trip to Badger Town

Andy and I were just back in Wisconsin for a quick trip this past weekend. We were in town to see family, friends and relive the old days tailgating and attending a Badger football game. Hey, that is how our relationship began five years ago…on a Badger football Saturday downtown at the Big 10 Pub. We were able to see our family, a few friends and do the Badger football experience all in the few days that we were there. We did not get to the Big 10 Pub where it all began, but we did get to our old stomping grounds at the Stadium Bar and Grill. I prepared for my WI trip by packing sweaters and making sure I would be warm enough for a few days in the cold, but to my surprise it was absolutely gorgeous the whole time we were there. I even mentally prepared myself for a frigid weekend in Wisconsin. Hey, you must remember that the week we left town it was in the upper 90’s in Phoenix and I didn’t even bother to check the weather report for Madison because I just assumed it would be cold. I was thrilled to find that it was perfect weather. I spent most of my time at home with family because once you are away from them you learn to appreciate them more and want to spend as much time with them as possible. I also did get to see a few friends while I was home, but the most fun I had was going downtown decked out in my Badger red and hanging out at our old Badger hangouts. It brought back so many memories. We got back to Arizona last night and let me tell you that I had a great time in WI and I am looking forward to our next brief visit in a month for another Badger football game.

Seven Pounds Can Create Exhaustion

I am absolutely exhausted and the reason for this is a seven pound Boxer puppy named Izzy. With all the running around, babysitting, potty training I swear I feel like I just had an actual baby…minus the painful giving birth part. I swear this puppy is so rambunctious and into everything that you cannot leave her alone for thirty seconds otherwise she is doing something that she shouldn’t be doing. She is also the reason why I haven’t posted in a few days because once I get home from work and take care of her I shower and pretty much pass out. You might think that I should be use to this because of Madison, but you might be surprised to find out that I did not participate in raising Madison until recently. By “recently” I mean since I have changed my attitude towards her, which was about a month ago. So, I am not use to puppy behavior. Andy and I have been taking turns in waking up in the middle of the night to take her outside to go potty. At least she wakes us up to let us know she has to go instead of just going in her cage. She is also pretty good about telling us she has to go to the bathroom when she is just chilling in the house; however, not when she is on our bed. She has peed on our comforter two times now and I can be part to blame for not responding to her cries that she needs to get down and go to the bathroom. There is nothing like washing a peed on comforter at 9:30 at night when you are already EXHAUSTED! Even so, Andy and I feel she is still a pretty good puppy…or at least compared to Madison. Despite my exhaustion it has been worth it because Izzy is so adorable and cute that I am glad to get up in the middle of the night to let her go to the bathroom. I mean how could you get mad at this face?

Making Room For One More

On Thursday we picked up our new addition to our family. Our new Boxer puppy is absolutely adorable and the biggest sweetie. We had a hard time picking out a name for her, but we settled on Izzy. Izzy is currently 7 pounds, but I am going to enjoy it while it lasts because before you know it she will be a solid 50 pounds…just like Madison. Now we have two dogs and one cat. Captain seems to be ok adjusting to another dog in his house. Madison just wants to play with her so as of right now everything is going good. Of course Andy and I are exhausted because the first two nights were long with Izzy getting up to go to the bathroom and crying at night. She is not use to a crate and I am sure she misses her parents and siblings. She has been doing very well though with potty training so far. I know it’s only been two days, but these two days have been a breeze with her…maybe that’s because Madison was such a terror that any new puppy would seem like a saint. Before we picked up Izzy from the breeders I did purchase plenty of puppy toys and items ahead of time to make sure she is completely spoiled when she would arrive at her new home. I have added pictures to my Snapfish account of Izzy. I know I sent out an email about the pictures, but I have added new ones since. I will continue to add more pictures to this Snapfish folder. I will include pictures of the two dogs together playing nice as soon as I take them. Enjoy!

http://www2.snapfish.com/share/p=64841223167419384/l=431344555/g=36312535/otsc=SYE/otsi=SALB

Dreading the Return of the Snow Birds

Today is the first day of October and normally I would be thinking thoughts of cool weather, leaves and everything associated with the Fall season. Now that I live in Arizona that is not in my thoughts, but instead I am thinking about the swarm of snow birds that will soon be making their presence in this fabulous state. I do love living here, but it’s hard to get in the mood for the Fall season and it’s even harder to get excited about my favorite holiday in a few weeks because we are still hovering around 100 degrees. Plus, I am dreading the snow bird season that is right around the corner. I already started to notice the highway being more busy tonight on my way home from work and that got me thinking about my soon to be nightmare commute home from work every day until April 15th. Once all the blue hairs decide to enter the state and crowd the highways my commute will go from 35 minutes to close to an hour to get home from work. If I was in charge of the Phoenix Metro area I would make a law for all blue hairs who want to live here during their winter months, and this law would be a courtesy to all the actual residents of Arizona. My law would state that all snow birds are not allowed on the highways from 6am – 9am and then again from 4pm – 7pm to allow the actual residents of this state the easy access to the highways after a long day of work. I mean there is no need for them to enter the highways during this time. If they must leave their homes then they should stay clear of the highways and only use the main roadways. I am just dreading my soon to be extended commute to work and the blame falls on the snow birds for this. I am glad to get away from the congested highways soon and make a quick trip back to WI for a taste of Fall with some cooler weather and a good Badger football game.

Partying With One Year Olds...Not 20 Somethings

I guess when you get older your party invites turn from kegs and body shots to blue birthday cakes and Little Mermaid decorations. Yesterday Andy and I went to a one year olds birthday party. I will have to say this was my first invite to a friend’s child’s birthday party. I guess that’s what happens as you get older. The invitations to friend’s birthdays that end with a two day hangover turn to attending your friends kids birthday parties that are decked out in Little Mermaid and don’t include tequila shots. Andy and I had no idea what to get a one year old for her birthday. Whenever my niece or nephew has a birthday I just buy whatever my sister tells me to buy. It’s easy and I never have to stress out in a store because I am not up on the latest thing for children. Andy also had no idea because whenever he buys for his god kids he goes off the suggestions of their parents or his mom’s suggestions. This time Andy and I were on our own and it was scary. I wanted to make sure we got the little girl a great gift, even though she is only one and has no idea what’s going on. I decided to ask someone at work who is totally into babies and she gave the best suggestion of all…or so Andy and I thought. She said to go to Target and go to the one year old aisle and pick something out. Well, that sounds easy, but Andy and I got to Target and found out there are so many things in the one year old category that we just didn’t know what to do. The look on our faces was probably priceless and could probably say a lot about how much experience we have with this. After some time we settled on this stuffed dog that played music, flashed lights and was suppose to be some kind of a teaching tool. We showed up at the party with our thoughtful gift and we were ready to celebrate. I am looking around thinking…is this what happens when you turn 29…partying with one year olds and not 20 something year olds?

It's A Girl!

So, on Sunday I found a Boxer breeder in the area that has some puppies ready for an October 1st sale. They were so cute online that Andy and I decided to contact them. I know when we started this doggie journey we wanted a one year old rescue dog, but when I came across this website I just had to inquire about the puppies and go see them. We went to the breeder’s house tonight and as soon as we walked in I saw the puppies in the backyard and just melted like butter. We went to the back and met the puppies’ parents, which by the way are absolutely beautiful Boxer adult dogs. I immediately pet the mother and then bent down to meet her babies. I immediately was swarmed by six or seven puppies wanting attention. They were just so cute that I didn’t even know what to do. After watching the puppies for a while Andy and I picked out the puppy that was sleeping the whole time we were there. We picked the sleepy head over the cute rambunctious little girl. We stuck around for a little bit to hang out with our new baby girl. I then put down a deposit for her and we were on our way home. Of course we took a couple pictures before we left. Now, we are starting all over with puppy training and I am ok with that. Andy and I will start stocking up on puppy supplies as we think of a name for our new addition.

Madison Never Had A Chance

We have had Madison for a year now and we have thought she is a purebred Boxer, or at least I thought that since that is what Andy told me. Many people who have seen Madison would comment that she couldn’t be a full Boxer because of her snout, but I would always say she was. This past week while I was online a lot looking at all the different kind of dogs to see all my options for a second dog I noticed that Madison really didn’t look a lot like all the other purebred Boxer’s online. Sure, she resembled them, but her nose was different. Last week is when I came to the realization that there is no way she is a purebred and that is when I told Andy what I thought. He agreed, but we were unsure of the other breed she is mixed with. Of course I wanted to know what my dog is mixed with, so I was looking at a lot of pictures of mixed Boxers online and still didn’t know. Then, this past Saturday when we were in Petsmart a stranger commented to Andy on Madison’s good looks. She also mentioned that Madison is probably mixed with a Rhodesian Ridgeback. Interesting, since I knew nothing about this breed. Of course I looked this dog up online and saw a picture which resembled Madison almost to a tee. Yay, we found the other half that makes up Madison. I then looked up the temperament and anything else I could find on this breed. Let’s just say that I feel a Boxer mixed with a Rhodesian Ridgeback might not be the best idea as this mixture has no chance of ever being a well behaved dog. First, Boxers are known to be naughty and mischievous, plus their profile says that once Boxers get bored they will get into everything and become naughty. The profile also says that this breed is not for a first time dog owner. Then when I read about the Ridgeback I found out that when this breed is bored it becomes destructive. Yes, the profile actually called the Ridgeback to be destructive when it is left alone and becomes bored. I know about destructive as it can be defined by the site of our kitchen over this past year. The destructive mess Madison has made in there could tell many stories. The profile also says that Ridgebacks are also not for a first time dog owner either. Ok, since both breeds are generally naughty and troublesome why combine them? It’s like not even giving a dog a chance of even being remotely good. It’s like stripping all hope from this dog of ever becoming the “Harvard Grad” of all dogs! Nonetheless I feel that I figured out where my dog came from…a Boxer and a Ridgeback…and this explains all of her antics and bad behaviors over the past year. I can’t blame the dog now…she never had a chance! It's in her blood to be naughty.

Bubbles Just Isn't The One

We went to visit Bubbles today and unfortunately it did not work out. Bubbles is just too much for us. He makes Madison look like a saint. He was a very cute dog and there were other families there that were interested in him, so I am sure he will go to a great home. I just couldn’t say yes because he seemed too aggressive for me and for Madison too. I just didn’t want to have a dog like that in our small house. That’s ok though because that is what meetings are for. You meet the dog to see if it’s a good fit before you decide to make a commitment and take it home. Once we got home I was back online filling out an adoption application for our runner up choice at the AZ Boxer Rescue. I am confident we will find Madison a playmate, but it will just take time to find the right fit.

Bubbles Update

The adoption agency is working with Bubbles foster family to setup a time to meet us and Madison on Saturday. I am really looking forward to meeting Bubbles because he is so cute. I am sure that he and Madison will get along great, but I am concerned about two things that I learned today. One thing is that Shar Pei’s drool a lot and I am not a big fan of doggy drool. I am hoping that Bubbles has more Lab in him than Shar Pei to offset some of this disturbing doggy drool that I read about. Another thing is that I saw the Shar Pei Lab’s can get a little bigger than I thought. Bubbles description said he will be about 50 pounds, but I just want to see how big he is right now at 9 months. I just don’t want a humungous dog in the house. Madison is about 45 pounds so 50 won’t be bad, but that would be my maximum at doggy weight. If Bubbles doesn’t work out like I hope we did find a second choice on Petfinder. Her name is Punky and she is a Boxer who is about one year old. Seems to be the same age as Madison and absolutely adorable. It didn’t mention how she is around cats or much about her personality, so there would be a lot of questions there too. We will just start by meeting Bubbles sometime this weekend and go from there.

Let's Be Crazy and Add Bubbles

It’s a little scary to have two animal lovers be together as a couple and live in a house together. I say this because Andy and I both absolutely love all animals that I am afraid one day we will have our own zoo in our house. I do have a friend back in WI who has warned me of this zoo since Andy and I began dating. This love of animals drove me to do something crazy tonight. I was on http://www.petfinder.com/ looking at all the dogs around one year old in the Phoenix metro area that is in need of a home. I wonder why I did this knowing I have crazy Madison in the house that is out of control most of the time. I feel I did this because Madison needs a playmate and plus I want a normal dog. Not only did I peruse through http://www.petfinder.com/, but I also filled out an application tonight for Bubbles. He, yes Bubbles is a male, is a Shar Pei Lab mix, nine months old and absolutely adorable. Of course I did not pull an “Andy” when wanting to get this dog because I asked him how he felt about it. Of course Mr. Animal lover himself thinks this is a great idea. That comment then pushed me further to fill out the application and email into the animal rescue. About an hour later I was on Yahoo checking my email as if the rescue would actually email me back within the hour. Of course they did not, but I am sure I will be waiting patiently, or rather impatiently, tomorrow for an email or a phone call. I also feel that my recent change of only positive thoughts and vibes has had something to do with this insane doggie adoption. Even though my experiment has only been three days I do have to say my positive attitude has made a big difference in me and in Madison. Or, I could just be telling myself that. Anyway, below are pictures of Bubbles. Of course if he is the one who gets to become a part of the Czarnezki family then he will have a new name as I am not a fan of Bubbles. I couldn't see Andy calling a dog by the name of Bubbles either.

Day One of Testing Positive Vibes

Fall Sundays are booked for 4+ hours of Andy watching the Packer game at the Tilted Kilt (a bar in Scottsdale) with our friend Tom. I have always used this time as my “Jaimi time” which usually consists of working out, relaxing or just catching up on Lifetime movies. During the fall of 2007 it was never relaxing nor was it ever considered “Jaimi time” because I was always babysitting Madison as she was super naughty last Fall. Today was the first football Sunday that Andy was going to leave me with Madison and let’s say I was a little worried as I was looking forward to “Jaimi time” and I didn’t think I would get it while babysitting crazy. I will have to say she was much better than last year. I only cleaned up one pee mess in the kitchen and she only was wildly out-of-control for about 20 minutes. I did get to watch a full movie on Lifetime without any interruptions from crazy. I was pretty happy about this. Once Andy got home I decided to watch one of the many episodes of the Dog Whisperer that is on our Tivo. May of our friends have suggested we watch this show as it’s supposed to be really good at getting rid of dog’s bad behavior’s. We have been Tivo-ing this show for many months now, but neither of us has gotten around to watching a single episode. Today is the day I sat down to see what everyone has been talking about and to see if this show could even possibly help with our crazy dog Madison. I was very impressed with Caesar Milan, the Dog Whisperer, and I feel that I learned something from it that could help with crazy. Caesar says that dogs can sense your feelings of anger, frustration, anxiety, etc. and they will react to them. I decided that maybe Madison has been able to sense my frustration (and possible hatred) towards her and it’s probably not helping her behavior. I am going to try my hardest to not be frustrated or angry with her so that way she will not be able to sense these feelings and only sense positive vibes. Apparently, dogs react to their owners and in order to change dogs you typically need to change something in the owners…so, I am going to change my negativity and only give off positive vibes. I will try this for a while and see if this helps with Madison’s behavior. I will keep everyone posted.

Remembering 9 11

Today is a day to remember the victims of 9/11 and their families. To remember the heroes who risked their lives going into the towers to rescue innocent victims and to remember the heroes who took over the plane that crashed into a field in Pennsylvania instead of another building. Many people will never forget that day rather they were close to one of the crash sites or they were far from it but watched every moment on television as they replayed the images of the planes crashing into the twin towers over and over again. I remember that sad day like it was yesterday. I was living back at my parent’s house at the time and I was getting ready for work when my dad yelled that a plane crashed into the world trade center. I ran to the TV to see what he was talking about. At that moment I thought it had to of been a mistake or something happened to the pilot for something like this to happen. Then, when the second plane hit that’s when I realized there was no mistake or accident, but it had to be intentional. As the nation was up in a frenzy I had to go to work. I was a teller at the credit union at this time and I spent most of my day watching the news in the break room. The break room of the credit union is where I learned about the Pentagon and the Pennsylvania crash too. It was a day I will never forget and I certainly hope nobody ever forgets that day in which America was under attack!

No Sanwich Talk For Me

My neighbor at work has been married for more than ten years and for the past many months he has been making me think that being married is unbelievably lame and just downright boring. He calls his wife at least twice a day and each phone call is on speaker phone blaring up and down the hallway. I don’t get why his wife has conversations with him while he is on speakerphone so that everyone can hear how lame their marriage is. Anyway, here is an example of their daily conversation.

Husband: “Hey, what are you doing?”
Wifey: “Nothing.”
Husband: “What did you eat for lunch?”
Wifey: “A sandwich.”
Husband: “What was on your sandwich?”
Wifey: “Turkey, lettuce and some mayo.”
Husband: “I had a sandwich too.”
Wifey: “What was on your sandwich?”
Husband: “Turkey and mayo.”
Wifey: “So, we both had a sandwich.”
Husband: “Now what are you doing?”
Wifey: “Nothing.”

I swear this is their daily conversation; however, you need to say it at a snail’s pace and then it will be more like what I hear every day. I just laugh my butt off throughout the five minute conversation. It did get me thinking though that this is what marriage is like. Is this really what marriage is like? If so I don’t know if I want to sign up for marriage, but I guess marriage is what you make of it. I don’t know if I could allow myself to get so boring as to reduce myself to sandwich talk. I don’t even ask Andy now about his lunch. I have no idea what he eats for lunch and I am ok with not knowing. I guess when I do get married I swear I will not raise the white flag to sandwich talk.

Happy 50th Birthday

So, it’s my mother’s birthday today and she turns 50, which is crazy because my mom can’t be 50 already. Where does the time go? I still remember living at home and attending high school like it was yesterday. Where have the years gone? I remember the days when 50 seemed unreachable and so old, but now that I am older 50 is just a number and it doesn’t seem so old anymore. Well, Happy Birthday mom and I hope you spend your young birthday doing something fun and special!

For her birthday I looked up the meaning of September 9th for her and this is what I came up with. This is to you mom…hitting 50 isn’t so bad…you can swap your heels for a pair of Velcro shoes now! :)

Your Birthdate: September 9

You are a born idealist, with more pet causes than you can count. You prefer be around others, both when working and while relaxing. Generous and giving, you believe you can change the world one person at a time. You're open minded and tolerant. People feel like they can tell you anything. Your strength: Your go-with-the-flow flexibility Your weakness: Your flair for the over dramatic Your power color: Pine green Your power symbol: Circle Your power month: September

What Does Your Birth Date Mean?

Another Reason I Like Living in AZ

Last night we went to our friend’s house for a Packer party. Granted I am not a football fan, nor can I keep the attention span long enough to watch a full game, but I do like a party. Our friend Tom just installed a flat screen TV outside on his patio. What better place to watch television? This is something you cannot do in WI because your TV would be ruined in 2.5 seconds due to the weather. A television could not last outside in the winters or the storms in the summer, but here in AZ you can watch TV outside all year round. I know this has been putting ideas in Andy’s head as he said he would love to mount a flat screen outside that way he can float in the pool with a beer while he watches some game on TV. He has been mentioning this quite a bit lately. I like the idea of other people doing it; however, I don’t think we have a big enough porch for this. This is just another reason to live in Arizona…watch television outside while you enjoy the beautiful weather!

Sideshow Freaks and Drunk Drivers

Well let’s just say Andy and I had quite the night filled with bad servers, sideshow freaks and drunk drivers. Quite the combination huh? Well, we started out the night having dinner with a couple we are friends with at My Big Fat Greek Restaurant and we had one of the worst servers I have ever had. I could go into a long list of reasons why she is bad, but I won’t because I know you will just trust me on this one. We then left the restaurant and ventured down to First Friday’s; which is an art walk in downtown Phoenix and it is suppose to be a place to enjoy art and purchase artwork from starving artists. Our friends who haven’t been there in a couple years told us how nice it is to do the art walk and check out all the local starving artists; however, a lot has changed in the last two years since they have been there. Let’s just say First Fridays is not for the local artists of Phoenix anymore, but instead it’s for all the sideshow circus freaks to come out and display what it’s like tripping on acid. Yes, you get the picture. From there we went to a bar called Cocomo Joe’s to watch a cover band. We each hand one drink and hung out for a while. We were tired and headed out about 11pm when we were sitting behind a motorcycle at a stop light on our way home. There was a Toyota Tacoma next to the motorcycle and the next thing I saw was a black Chevy truck coming full speed ahead at the Tacoma and rear ended him. There wasn’t much damage to the Tacoma, but the Chevy was completely mangled and was dripping a lot of liquid. The driver pours out of his truck and that is when I realized this guy is completely drunk. The driver was stumbling everywhere and mumbling obscenities to himself. The Tacoma driver was a young kid around 20 years old so I felt bad for him. While the drivers stayed in the street we pulled over into a parking lot while we waited for the cops to come so we can give a statement. Plus I wanted to see the drunk driver get hauled away for his stupidity. Next thing we saw the drunk driver got back into his truck and slammed the door shut and sped away fast. We hung out with the kid until the cops arrived. All I kept thinking is that it could have been us who got rear ended because Andy was behind the Tacoma and decided to change lanes just as he was approaching the light and sat behind the motorcycle. It’s pretty crazy and just reminds you not to drink and drive!

I hope You Find This As Funny As I Do

I feel the need to share this absolutely hilarious and ridiculous email with everyone. First, most everyone knows that I have a crazy ex-boyfriend who pops up now and again with random text messages and emails. This ex-boyfriend has some serious issues as he is the one who was physically and emotionally abusive. Well, let’s just say that yesterday was my day to receive a very random email from him. Usually I just delete these or ignore them because they are so random as they are about once a year. However, this one had me laughing so hard that I shared the email with everyone around me and now I am sharing it with you. First off, who would write such an email? Second off, who would write such an email and then send it to an ex-girlfriend who can't stand you? Ok, I am laughing as I am typing so I will stop the anticipation and just paste the email for everyone to read, laugh and say “what?”

Hi! I hope you are doing well.

I had to send you this picture. 9-10 years ago you said something to me that I have never forgotten. You said Brian, you workout everything on your body except your abs. You need to work them too!

And you were right. So every morning I get up and do at least 200-300 crunches and other abs exercises. For 31, I feel great!

So thank you :)



So, now I say “Where are the abs? I see no abs? I only see ribs!”

Theme Parties with Chatty Carl

In Arizona people have parties all the time; however, they are never just your basic party with food and beverages, but they always have to have a theme of some sort. When I lived in WI I never went to a themed party unless I was 8 and the theme was Barbie where images of Barbie were on the paper plates, cups and napkins. Since we lived here we have been invited to themed parties such as Trailer Trash, 80’s and even your worst sweater party. Andy hates themed parties because he thinks we should just be able to go to a party without dressing up or making a big deal out of it. I for one am all for themed parties, so Andy is a pretty good sport about them, especially when he dresses up for Halloween. Our latest was last night when we went to a Japanese themed birthday party for a good friend of ours who turned 35. The positive thing for Andy is that we didn’t have to dress up. Our friend’s wife is a corporate event planner so she knows how to throw themed parties and has all kinds of cute details. She had a Japanese paper in the bathroom next to the toilet and all the food was Japanese like sushi, pot stickers and spring rolls. Besides a full bar they also had saki bombers and pear saki shots. I wasn’t feeling good all weekend so I decided to be the designated driver while Andy had his fair share of saki bombers and shots. He turned into Chatty Carl that I spoke of in an earlier post. Again, I was very amused by this. He cracks me up when he drinks. About midnight when I was the last sober person at the party it was time to go since I could not hold a conversation with a single person at the party anymore. It was pretty funny to watch everyone turn into mush, but I was getting bored since I had no one to talk to since all the guests were making no sense. Our friend lives about 25 minutes from our house so it was a long (and comical) drive home with Chatty Carl in the passenger seat.

Football and IKEA Chaos

I would have to say I am a super star girlfriend who has recently earned herself some girlfriend bonus points. Last night we went to the Cardinals vs. Broncos pre-season game with a friend of ours. One of our friends is a season ticket holder and had two extra tickets and asked me if Andy and I would want to go with him. Of course I was not that interested because I just have no interest in football and especially not a Cardinals/Broncos game, but I said yes because I know Andy would want to go. He recently said he would want to go to a Cardinals game this year just to check out the stadium. I endured a whole football game for my man. Now that is love! Then this morning I watched the Badger game on television with Andy. I usually only watch half the game with him before I move onto Lifetime; but I watched the whole game with him. Talk about super girlfriend status. Even though I am not much of a football enthusiast I had a good time at the game last night with Andy and our friend and again this morning watching the Badger game this morning with Andy.

Oh, an update on our pantry door – following the Badger game we drove to IKEA (aka the cluster f*&% of all stores) to see if we could get a new door to replace the one Madison ruined (read how in an earlier posting). We got lucky and did not have to purchase a whole new pantry as they did sell the door separately. Also, IKEA is another store that should ban children. Talk about a playground for children, or parents that allow their children to think IKEA is a playground. We had to dodge in and out of the aisles so we didn’t bump into or run over children. It was chaos. On my way out I saw a box with a sign above it that read “Please give us your comments to help us improve our store.” My first thought was “Yeah, don’t allow children in your stores as it might help the actual customers shop better and faster.” Again, this would be a rant stemming from my previous post titled “Kids Should Not Be Allowed in Public.”

So, it’s been a good couple days filled with football and IKEA chaos!

Congrats to Me!

I just want to let everyone know that I was promoted to Marketing Manager just like the firm had promised. Remember about two years ago when I was promoted to Marketing Specialist and put in charge of the department I was told that when I finished my Bachelor’s degree at ASU I would get promoted to Marketing Manager. I got the news yesterday and I am pretty excited about it. It doesn’t change my duties at all because I am still in charge, but I am excited to have the proper title. So it’s time to celebrate!

Madison Strikes Again

We have had Madison for almost a year now and we have had to fix and replace so many things she has damaged that I thought she couldn’t come up with anything new to destroy in the house, but she found something to ruin and it just adds another thing on our list that we have to replace. Last night Andy just started making tacos for dinner while I finished up doing the Wii Fit (my latest obsession, and still is) when all of a sudden I heard a crash followed by Andy’s potty mouth being directed at the dog. I looked in the kitchen and saw Madison’s latest attempt at destroying everything in her path. In our kitchen we have a tall glass kitchen table with wrought iron high boy chairs. When we moved in I purchased three tall and skinny pantries from IKEA that matched the kitchen nicely. It was a temporary fix for not enough cupboards in our small kitchen and was suppose to last until we could re-do the kitchen the way we wanted. They are tall and skinny, made from wood with glass doors trimmed out with silver/metal. Madison was sitting on one of the high boy’s, which she has been told a thousand times that she is not allowed to sit in them, so Andy yelled at her to get down. When she jumped down toward the pantries the wrought iron high boy followed her and crashed into one of the glass doors and shattered in a million pieces all over the kitchen. It was quite the sight to see. To my surprise I did not get mad, yell or scream, but instead I just laughed internally and gave Andy a hard time for his out-of-control dog. By the way, it was not the time to give Andy crap about his dog misbehavin’ or rub it in that his dog it out-of-control while I laughed as he swept the floor. Yeah, not a tactful time for that. Madison was put in her cage while Andy cleaned up her mess for the next two hours. We are now down to two pantries and will be making a trip to IKEA this weekend to see if we can just replace the door instead of buying a whole new pantry. One pantry was not cheap even though it was purchased at IKEA so we are hoping we can just buy the door since we think I bought all three in pieces like IKEA usually sells their stuff. Anyways, hurricane Madison strikes again!

New Reality Show For You Addicts Out There

Last night Andy and I were watching this new reality show called America’s Toughest Jobs. Ok, I am hooked on reality television, but this one is different. They take people and put them on the toughest jobs and if they can survive then they go onto the next tough job and if the boss on that job decides they just weren’t cutting it then they get sent home. Last night was the first time this show aired and I just happen to stumble across it as I was channel surfing on my Direct TV guide and I am glad I did because I am now hooked. The first tough job these people had to do was crab fish. I don’t know if you ever saw the reality show called Deadliest Catch about crab fisherman, but Andy and I were addicted to this show for a while. It’s where you go crab fish up past Alaska in the Bering Sea in the freezing cold for hours on end. Plus it’s a death trap of a job because you could easily get killed. These innocent people who perceived themselves as tough had to go be crab fisher people and let me tell you if I was on this reality show I would have just said “Let’s save the competition and I will just quietly go home right now.” I am no quitter, but if you think I am going to stand on a boat in the middle of no where when its 10 degrees outside you have got to be kidding me. Andy of course agreed with me that there was no chance that I would have survived the first challenge. He thinks I can’t handle physical labor. It’s not that I couldn’t handle the physical labor part, it’s the part of being in the freezing cold all soaking wet on the verge of my death as this shabby fishing boat rocks up and down bringing in tons of sea water every time the nose of the boat slams back into the sea on the downturn of each wave. No thank you! This is from the girl who moved south to Phoenix to escape the Wisconsin cold winters. I will keep watching this reality show and see if I come across a tough job that I might actually do…but I don’t think next week is the week for me because according to next weeks preview it’s on Ice Road Truckers. Again, cold weather and I just don’t go together. If you are looking for another reality show addiction I would suggest this one is for you. It’s on Monday nights at 9pm and I think it was on ABC, or CBS…or maybe was it NBC. Who knows…that is what the Direct TV Guide is for!

The Phone Order Fear

Last night was Andy’s big draft day for his fantasy football league. Just like millions of other men out there in the world he was looking forward to this day when he could pick his players to create his fantasy league. As you read earlier I just don’t get it, but even though I don’t get it I was being supportive last night. I did not make fun of him once and I even took the dog out to go to the bathroom while he waited online for the next chime to let him know it’s his turn to pick. I even ate dinner at 5pm with all the other blue hairs in the world just so Andy could make his draft on time which was scheduled for 6pm. I am not a fan of eating at 5pm, but I am such a good girlfriend that I gave in only after probably one joke about accommodating his fantasy draft. Andy wanted to order Chinese food for dinner because he said he was hungry for it; however, I think it was because he didn’t trust that I would have dinner cooked by 6pm. Anyway, Andy has this weird issue with ordering food and I just don’t get it. Anytime we order food he makes me order because he just doesn’t like calling. He will throw a tantrum if I don’t order it. It’s actually pretty funny. I asked him 20 times last night for a reason as to why he has an issue on ordering food over the phone and he doesn’t know why this is. I remember his mother telling me that Andy was always like this even as a kid he would make his younger brother order the pizza. Which, by the way you can order your pizza online now instead of over the phone so you can imagine how happy this makes Andy. He will actually order pizza online over Chinese food if I refuse to call. The only reason why I refuse to call is just to see if Andy will actually give in and call, but he just won’t. Andy’s issue is actually to my advantage because when he pulls the “I am not calling” thing he says “I will buy if you call” which works out to my benefit. Anyway, maybe someday he will surprise me and pick up the phone and make that call to our favorite Chinese delivery and place the order for Moo Shoo Pork and Chicken Fried Rice!

Sweating It Out At Dave

Last night we went to see the Dave Matthews Band at Cricket Pavilion (which is an outdoor arena). I mean, what else do people do when it’s 112 degrees outside; go to an outdoor pavilion to see a concert? Well, on Thursday night Andy mentioned going to see Dave and my first thought was the memory of two years ago when we saw Dave in the month of August at Cricket and it was so hot out that I was miserable and we agreed never to attend a concert outside in Phoenix during the months of June, July or August. After I reminded Andy of our last experience we both agreed on Thursday night that maybe it was a bad idea after all. Well, on Friday we both agreed that at least it was something to do and we had a couple friends that were going and it would be fun to tailgate with them. After this agreement I checked the weather and it said 112 degrees for Saturday, which brought back nightmares of two years ago, but I figured I would make the best of it. We got there early to tailgate with a couple friends and when we rolled into the parking lot the temperature on Andy’s car was reading 111 degrees. I was a little worried about swamp ass and being miserable, but we got lucky as we got to park in the shade. As we sat there in our own sweat with our friends enjoying our drinks our one friend made a comment that at least there was a breeze. If you think a hair dryer on high heat pointed right at your face is a nice breeze, then yes, there was a nice breeze; however, I didn’t see it that way as I sat in my own sweat because by now my shorts were soaking wet. We finally went into the concert at 8pm and I was thinking “Boy, it cooled off out here” and really it was about 100 degrees outside and not 111 degrees. I felt crazy for even saying that it felt like it cooled off because it was still 100 degrees. When we did leave the concert at 11pm Andy’s car registered 97 degrees and let me just tell you that I am so ready for fall weather. I did tell Andy that I would be the designated driver and drive us home because the pavilion was a good 30 minutes from our house. Let’s just say he took full advantage of his designated driver. It was too funny. He was cracking me up. As many people know Andy is a quiet guy, but when he drinks he turns into Chatty Carl. He always makes fun of me for being Chatty Cathy when I drink, but he was just as bad. He was cracking me up. We ended up having a great time at the concert even though I could feel sweat beads run down my butt, which was gross by the way. It was fun to hang out with friends and Andy’s drunken stuper was absolutely hilarious. Andy and I always seem to have a great time with each other no matter what we are doing and I like that we are able to do that.

Pool or Grass?

I read an interesting article yesterday in the AZbusiness magazine. It was talking about the future of Phoenix and I would like to share some information from the article. AZbusiness was predicting that in the year 2040 Phoenix will no longer be a metropolitan area, but instead a megapolitan area because the population will be 10 million people. The megapolitan will consist of Phoenix and Tucson being combined as one. It may seem kind of crazy since there is quite the distance between the two cities, but I guess seeing the Phoenix area’s growth it could be possible. Another thing it mentioned was that since water might be scarce in 2040 with 10 million people in the area that they would have to control how much water you use by making you choose between your pool or your grassy lawn. I thought about this for a minute. If a government official came knocking on my door and told me I had to choose between the grass we have in the front yard and in the backyard or our pool, what would I do? Let’s flash forward to the year 2040. I am now 60 years old and heading towards retirement, and who knows if I will still be living here, but for shits and giggles let’s just say that I still live in Phoenix in 2040 and I have both grass and a pool. I am also thinking about the summers in Phoenix and I am assuming that in 2040 the summers will probably be longer and even hotter, so my vote would be for the pool. Hey, I will be heading toward retirement and will have nothing to do all day long, but float in a pool. I need something to float in while I turn my skin into leather so I can be just like all my other retired friends here. That was an easy decision, but to think so far ahead it was kind of a crazy moment I was having envisioning being 60 years old and what life would be like. I am assuming Andy would also vote for the pool too. I know he wouldn’t want to do yard work when he is 58…remember he is younger than me. So, the decision would be hands down for the pool.

Any Suggestions Would Be Appreciated

I am looking for suggestions on cutting dogs nails, specifically a dog that is difficult and will not let you touch her feet. Andy and I have had Madison for almost a year now and we have never been able to cut her nails, so you can imagine how long they are. They are so long now that they are lethal weapons. Every time she jumps on me I feel her stabbing me in the side and it is painful. Andy and I have asked around for suggestions and I feel we have tried everything. We took her to PetSmart at least a dozen times and asked them to do it for us and every time they came back saying they were unable to do it. These are trained dog people so if they can’t even cut her nails then how are we suppose to? We were also suggested to use an electric sander. Andy has a small hand held sander looking thing that he thought would work, but of course the noise scared her more than anything, so that didn’t work. We also read online to give your dog Benadryl as that will knock them out and then we should be able to get those claws cut, but of course that hasn’t worked yet either. We have tried this approach a few times and so far I haven’t seen Benadryl knock this terror out at all. So, you see what we are up against? If you have any suggestions on getting these claws cut before she stabs me one more time please let us know. I am ready to try anything if it means no more abuse from the dog!

Kids Should Not Be Allowed in Public

Ok, so maybe my title is a little harsh, but it seems that no matter where I go in public I have to deal with kids who are not disciplined and were never taught how to behave themselves in public. On Saturday we were in Super Target and I was pushing the cart down an aisle where two kids were standing and they did not move over even though they saw me coming. They completely ignored me and did not move. They were between 7 and 10 years old and no parents were around either. So, now, besides knowing the parents didn’t teach their kids manners they also are not informed about child kidnapping or pedophiles. Folks, we live in a big city filled with pedophiles and kidnappers, so it might be wise to be near your kids in a Super Target. Of course their rudeness annoyed me. On that same day we were at Rock Bottom around 5pm for some drinks and I got up to go to the bathroom, but to my surprise I didn’t know the women’s bathroom is a playground for unruly brats! The bathroom was filled with 5 girls between the ages of 5 and 10 running around slamming doors, looking under the stalls and playing in the water. This was all done with yelling and screaming and of course the parents are not in the bathroom with them. Where were they? Probably sitting at their table thinking their children are behaved enough to use the bathroom alone, but they were completely wrong. These girls were monsters! These are only two examples of what happened this past weekend, but I find myself running into this behavior almost every time I leave my house. You know how they have smoking sections at most places? I propose having children/family sections in restaurants, hotels and of course airplanes. This would make my life easier. Maybe you can’t ban children from public places or segregate them, but maybe parents should go back to the good old days of beating (uh, I mean, spanking) their children instead of being afraid of discipline because it might leave a psychological scar that can’t be removed! That’s crap because I got spanked and I turned out just fine! Hopefully I didn’t offend any kid lovers or parents out there, but I am tired of bratty and misbehaved children roaming the earth.

It's Just Rain

Last night I realized that I am turning into an Arizonan rather I want to or not. When I first moved here I didn’t understand the monsoon season as it just seemed like another thunderstorm and I didn’t understand why people would drive slow in the rain since it is just rain and not snow or sleet. I also didn’t understand why people would stay in their homes when it rained almost like it was a blizzard and unsafe to leave their homes. I mean for god’s sake it was just rain. I did learn though in the last three years why they call a thunderstorm a monsoon. A typical mid west thunderstorm in Arizona is called a monsoon because it originates as a monsoon in Mexico and we are just getting the affects from it. Well last night we had another “monsoon” and we had dinner plans with Andy’s dad and Shelley (yes, they are in town) and I found myself thinking maybe we shouldn’t go to dinner anymore because of the rain. Then I was thinking “What is wrong with me? I am turning into an Arizonan who thinks it’s best to stay inside when it rains.” Well, needless to say we did go to dinner and I did get that thought out of my head ASAP because after all it is just rain and not a blizzard like most people think here.