Shaping Up To Be A Mom

Blog Design from The Momma Bird!

2012-02-11T12:05:00.000-08:00

Hey kids, check out my new blog button (and while you're at it, why not copy the code and post my button on your blog?!) and social media buttons!

I won a giveaway from The Momma Bird (facebook/blog), for $25 toward her blog design options. I chose to have her do my social media buttons, as well as my blog button with the code box below it (she didn't charge me the extra $5!).

Michelle was great to work with and designed my buttons quickly! She even did them on a Saturday, and responded immediately to my suggestions.

I will definitely be contacting her again when I want a new design or blogger blows up or something (she's a wordpress fan...might have to look into that).

Anyway, if you have a blog and want it to look oh-so-pretty, give her a call!

2012-02-10T12:08:00.001-08:00

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

Linky Followers

2012-02-09T22:24:00.000-08:00

I'm going to give Linky Followers a try! I signed up earlier today and was immediately overwhelmed by how busy the dashboard was. When I signed up for Pinterest, they had me from the beginning because of how ridiculously easy it was to set up and go! This might be a different story, but I'm going to give it a fair chance!

See the new button on my sidebar? I'm going to be co-hosting a Linky Followers follow fest, on Valentine's Day! I will post more information about that soon.

In the meantime, here is a link to an in-depth tutorial on using Linky Followers. I want to quote what she says at the end of her post, because I like it:

"I would suggest considering at least joining Linky Followers and adding your blog even if you haven’t decided on adding the widget to your blog page. This will allow people to find you and add your blog to their readers even if you choose not to use it to follow other blogs. That way if GFC does disappear someday, you will have an account already established in Linky Followers with followers in place."

Hopefully tomorrow I will get a chance to take some time with my Linky Followers account, get it set up, follow all my blogs, and then see how I like using it! I will report!

Pizza Dip!

2012-02-08T22:56:00.000-08:00

I pinned this recipe awhile back on Pinterest, and we gave it a try on Monday night. The picture above links to the original post with the recipe.

Here's mine:

The bottom layer of sour cream, cream cheese, and MAYO?!

Added a can of pizza sauce

Mozzarella cheese

Green peppers

And pepperoni!

Here is the finished product!

We had a loaf of french bread to dip, and it was quite delicious. Did you know that you can soften bread by putting it in a paper bag, wetting the bag, and then putting the bag in the oven at 350 degrees for about 5 minutes? Well now you do.

Not the healthiest meal by a long shot (hey, there were green peppers!), so I don't think it's going to become a staple, but it was a fun, different meal, and I had fun trying something new!

I'm spent!

2012-02-02T22:27:00.000-08:00

Wow, I worked hard today!

First was a trip to the grocery store with both kids and an almost overflowing cart full of food. Luckily, I have the best behaved kids in the world (yes, I know that will come back to haunt me), and the errand wasn't too difficult. Also, it was (is) nice to have a house full of food! I'm going to be trying out some of the recipes I've pinned on Pinterest, so I'll be reporting on those!

Our afternoon was pretty relaxed, but then in the evening I ran 3.5 miles, no walking or stopping, including a steep hill halfway through, and then we went up to the basketball game, where Daniel's band was playing, and I completed my PT workout there, which involved 100 meter sprints, burpees, and kettleball lifting. And yes, that meant I was carting around two kids (one in a carseat) AND a 25-pound kettlebell.

So I'm tired, but I feel awesome. I don't know if I mentioned this, but my best friend's husband (also my husband's cousin) is interested in becoming a personal trainer, and when my friend mentioned this, I half-jokingly said he could practice on me anytime. Next thing I knew, he was texting me about my goals and emailing me a weekly workout plan! I would be a complete fool to turn down or slack off on FREE personal training, right?! And his workouts have been great so far! They are really short (like 10 minutes or less so far), but INTENSE. I have been sore all week. It's awesome.

Running is going well. I'm still depressingly slow, and I honestly don't think that will improve a whole lot before race day, but the most important thing is that I finish the race. I also really want to run the whole thing, even if I might finish sooner with walking intervals. Actually having that race date looming is making a huge difference in my training (thank you, Daniel), because I can't slack off, and I know I would otherwise. For that reason, I think I might need to sign up for a half-marathon after this race!

And now goodnight!

Winners!

2012-01-31T22:17:00.000-08:00

Rafflecopter has spoken, and it seems to like my sister! No seriously, as I was having it pick the random winners of the Cents of Style giveaway, it chose her THREE TIMES! I let her have her one win (which I would have done had it chosen anyone more than once) and continued to have it pick randomly until we had four (different) winners!

Winner of the Brooklyn bracelet: shopfreak!
Winner of the Kay hat: Rachel Newswander!
Winner of the teal earring set: Mandy Burt!
Winner of the wooden leaf necklace: Mallory Weeman!

Congratulations to you ladies, and thanks to everyone for participating! Keep an eye on my facebook page, because we are going to be introducing A LOT of new product over the next few weeks. There is also a promotion going on where hostesses can receive a free scarf, so let's book some parties!

I will be contacting winners by email, and they have 48 hours to respond before a new winner will be chosen. Thanks all!

10K Training Update

2012-01-28T22:53:00.000-08:00

Today I ran 4 miles without stopping or walking. That might not seem like a very big deal to you runners out there, but I don't believe I've ever done that before. In fact, my longest runs before today were 3.5 miles, and I didn't run those straight through. My pacing is still laughable. In fact, my 5K time during this run was a little slower than my last 5K when I walked a little bit of it. I think I'm just afraid that if I push myself too hard I won't finish the run. I need to push myself harder, especially since my app tells me exactly how fast I'm running. I should be able to pick a pace and not let myself go any slower. I'll try that on some of my shorter runs this week.

So my Saturday long runs will just keep getting longer, but 4 miles is the longest that I run during the week for the rest of the training. Now that I know I can do it fairly easily, the training should be a breeze.

Saturday is still the best day for me to run because I can go out midmorning. During the week I have to run very early morning when it's still dark out, because Daniel has to leave for work before 7am, or I can run in the evening, but that gets in the way of dinner. A few times I've had to go running right after dinner- not fun.

Anyway, training is going well. I don't expect to finish in a respectable amount of time, but I do expect to finish! And it is my goal to run the entire 6.2 miles. It's all in the mind!

Ideas for repurposing formula cans!

2012-01-26T20:05:00.000-08:00

11 Months

2012-01-20T23:23:00.000-08:00

I can't even begin to explain how much joy this little nugget brings me every day! Vanessa is now 11 months, and she is the sweetest, most easy-going, loving little girl. She just loves to play and explore everything around the house, and when we go out she just loves to look at all the new things she sees. She is very close to walking, and I think she will beat big brother, who walked about a week after he turned 1! She is also just starting to say a few words. She says Mama and Dada, along with a lot of other babbling. I got her to say cheese the other day, and she has a peek-a-boo book and says "peek-a" when she looks at it! I also think I've heard her say "kitty," referencing her favorite stuffy.

She adores her big brother and puts up with a lot of rowdy "love" from him. The two of them play together a lot throughout the day. She makes the funniest faces and loves to laugh and eat! She's just so huggable and kissable, too!

Happy 11 months, Vanessa! You are almost 1 year old, my big girl!

Cents of Style Giveaway!

2012-01-20T07:11:00.000-08:00

Here we go, folks! I'm doing a Cents of Style giveaway, now that my Facebook page has reached 200 likes (and counting)!

You must first "like" my Facebook page to get your first entry (or already be a fan), and then there are other ways for you to earn entries, including sharing this giveaway with your friends, getting others to "like" my page, placing orders, and booking parties! All the details are in the Rafflecopter widget below this post.

The first three items will be given to randomly-selected entrants. The fourth item is a bonus giveaway, for which I will select a random winner ~~if I reach my sales goal of $1000 for the month of January (I'm less than $200 away, so keep those orders coming!)~~ because I met my sales goal this month!

The giveaway ends on February 1st! Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Training Week 1

2012-01-14T19:25:00.000-08:00

I did all my runs this week, which was an accomplishment in itself! I really didn't want to go tonight, but I did it anyway. Three nights ago I ran a 5k without stopping, and tonight I ran another 5k, with a little bit of walking, and I was three minutes faster than last time! That's a good sign. Also, I'm super sweaty, which means I pushed myself- also good!

I'm still very slow, but I feel great knowing that I have 7 more weeks of training to get in better shape and improve my time.

Now for some frosted flakes, Amazing Race finale (we are watching old seasons- never watched it before), a hot bath, and some reading! Also I have to do some work tonight, but I'm going to think more about the fun stuff! I knew I would appreciate relaxing tonight more if I went for a run first- mission completed!

Pin, pin, pin, all day long...

2012-01-13T19:01:00.000-08:00

Neil

2012-01-13T18:41:00.000-08:00

I've had too many "feeling horrible" days this week! Time to be awesome instead.

30 Before 30: #16

2012-01-12T12:16:00.000-08:00

16. Run in a 10k race

Daniel used my "30 Before 30" list as inspiration for my Christmas gifts, so for one of my presents he signed me up to run the 10k that happens simultaneously with the Phoenix marathon and half-marathon. I started training for it on Monday, and last night was my second training run. I was supposed to run 3 miles. It didn't specifically say without stopping, but I'm assuming that is implied for all these training runs.

So I did it. I went out around 7:15, in the dark, and ran 3 miles. Actually I ran 3.1 miles to see what my 5k time would be. It's pretty embarrassing how slow I am, but I was very proud of running the whole distance without stopping. It made me know that I can handle 6.2 miles.

The longest distance I've run up until now is about 4 miles, and I've only run a full 5k maybe 2-3 other times in my life, and that was before having kids!

So I know I can run the distance, probably without stopping or walking, and now I would just like to improve my speed! I have 8 weeks of training before the race on March 3rd, so hopefully that will help me to get a little bit faster!

Regret

2012-01-11T21:30:00.000-08:00

I'm happy to say that I don't regret many things in my life. Sure, I've made more than my fair share of mistakes, but I like to say that if things had been different, I wouldn't be where I am now. And I like where I am now, so I'm happy how things have gone.

But one of my regrets that I do have is that I didn't buy my wedding dress. Okay, now that I wrote that it makes me feel superficial and dumb.

When I got married, I wasn't crazy young, but pretty young (21, engaged at 20). And I didn't know a lot about temple weddings, so I got a lot of advice from my sister-in-law. She had rented her dress, so I went to the same place and rented my dress from them. I love this sister-in-law and don't blame her at all, but I really wish I had bought my dress. The same place I went to sold the dresses too, so I could have bought the exact dress that I ended up with (which I did love). Or at least the tiara I wore in my hair!

It wasn't even a question of money at the time. The cost of my wedding was extremely modest, when you consider the average cost of a wedding, and my dad was more than willing to buy me whatever dress I wanted.

I decided to have fake flowers, which I'm happy about, because I still have my wedding bouquet. We still have the crystal temple from the top of our cake, and a few other mementos. And of course lots and lots of pictures (although I wish we had paid more for those too- they are good but not great).

I just googled the place I rented my dress in Tucson (Gowns by Pamela). They are still in business, and it might be a strange request, but I wonder if they would be able to find my dress and sell it to me if they still have it. Or at least the tiara! But that's a no-go as far as money is concerned. And superficial. And dumb.

And this is all just because I saw a pin on Pinterest of a little girl sitting in her mom's wedding dress. I'm sure it's just hormones, but it hurts my heart a little bit.

I am a genius.

2012-01-03T10:06:00.000-08:00

As you can see, I'm not much of a "magnet" kind of girl:

I don't like the front of my fridge to be messy, and I like having things that match my kitchen decor. Functionality is also good. I have a shopping list notepad that I use regularly, the big magnet actually flips up to reveal a list of phone numbers for babysitters, and the circles are buttons that I made into magnets, with colors that match my kitchen, for times when I do need to post something on my fridge. I'm not entirely heartless. I do put up my kids' artwork from time to time!

But after having our heater fixed the other day, our repair guy gave me this big ugly calendar magnet with his information on it. He's a nice guy who did a great job (fixed our ac in the summer and our heat in the winter- yes we were that lucky this year), and I do want to keep his information handy, but I didn't want to compromise the beauty of my uncluttered fridge appearance.

Then a stroke of genius hit! The heater must be magnetic, right?!

BAM! Slapped that baby onto the heater itself, so now his information is not only handy, but it's right in the place where I would need it and not on my fridge!

Okay, so maybe other people already do this? I don't know. But it was pure elation when that magnet stuck onto the heater. What can I say, I have a love for organizing!

What do you think? Genius or something everyone already does?

January goal

2012-01-02T23:14:00.000-08:00

I want to be able to do this by the end of the month!

My pushup challenge in December went great. By the last day I was able to do 40 deep, controlled pushups in a row. I figured I should have another goal for January. This one is maybe a bit ambitious, and I also don't have a day-by-day plan to get there! I guess that's something I should do. It's a little harder to quantify flexibility, but we'll see how it goes!

I will also be doing lots of running in January and February, preparing for my 10k in March! I'm sure stretching after every run will help a lot. I'll post a picture of my best attempt...maybe!

Cash Only- 2012!

2012-01-01T22:09:00.000-08:00

I guess you could call this our major resolution for the new year- we are going cash-only in 2012!

It's a little bit of a scary venture, made even scarier by the major reactions from relatives! But I think we can do it. We will be budgeting from week to week and withdrawing actual cash each week (8 days from Daniel's paycheck to mine, 6 days from mine to his, which works out well because his is larger!). We will use that cash until it's gone and then...it's gone! We will pay our bills as usual, but the cash allowance will need to cover groceries, other food, gas, entertainment, and any other things that come up. We are hoping that this method, along with just deciding to scrimp for a year, will help us to pay off our credit cards and see a debt-free 2013!

I think this is going to be great. It will help us get a better idea of how we spend our money, limit unnecessary expenses, and we are only committed for a year, so if anything comes along that I want badly, I can just tell myself that I only have to wait until next year (or budget for it)!

We've done really well in the last 5-6 months, paying off our car 8 months ahead of schedule and (almost, give us 5 more days!) paying off Daniel's credit card. Now we just have mine to worry about, along with our regular bills.

We both definitely want to have another baby in 2013, so we are planning on doing the "prep work" during the last half of 2012. ;) In clearer language, I want to get pregnant this summer. And when baby #3 does come along, we will be in the market for a minivan. Hopefully that will come close to coinciding with the demise of our PT Cruiser (Did I say demise? I meant we'll be finished using it.). Our goal is to make the PT last the entire year of 2012 and then we will probably sell it early on in 2013 to hopefully get some money to put toward our minivan purchase! The car has been very very good to us, so we're knocking on wood. However, it's almost a given that it will not be reliable during the daytime hours this summer, so we will be limiting our summertime driving (except in the early morning and at night)!

I'm looking forward to a lot of other things in 2012, but this cash-only deal is going to be a pretty major effort. I feel really good about it though.

Happy New Year!

30 Before 30: #30

2011-12-27T22:48:00.000-08:00

If you hop on over to my "30 Before 30" page, you will see that number 30 on the list is crossed out! Daniel got me a Rubix cube for one of my Christmas presents, and I officially know how to solve it! I learned by watching YouTube videos for at least an hour tonight (maybe closer to two). There are seven steps, and the first three I have memorized. The last four have sequences of steps that I just haven't memorized yet, so I still have to look at my notes. But it shouldn't take me very long to memorize them, and then I'll be solving this baby everywhere I go! As it is, I unsolved and resolved my cube at least three times tonight, so I'm pretty solid.

29 to go. Two years, four months, and 27 days left! :)

Edit: I have now memorized all the steps and have solved the cube repeatedly. I'm kind of obsessed. My best time is 3 minutes, 4 seconds. I am a master.

2011 in review

2011-12-22T23:45:00.000-08:00

In January, Carter was enjoying his Christmas present, and I was in the final stages of pregnancy!

In February, our family of three became four when we welcomed Vanessa!

March was spent adjusting to life with two kiddos!

In April, Daniel gave Vanessa her baby blessing.

We traveled up to visit family in Payson in May, and had pictures taken!

June was filled with wonderfully lazy mornings!

In July we all flew to Maine (not actually Canada) and spent a fun week on the beach!

Daniel and I performed in Sweeney Todd in August.

I signed up with Cents of Style in September and have been growing my business!

Carter and Vanessa went as Steve and Blue for Halloween in October!

In November, Daniel and I directed our first professional musical, See Rock City & Other Destinations!

And finally, Vanessa is about to have her first Christmas!

2011 was a great year! 2012 is going to be even better!

And even more!

2011-12-14T18:53:00.001-08:00

More Cents of Style December products!

2011-12-12T15:16:00.000-08:00

"The Barb" hat in black, brown, and gray- $12.60

"The Brooke" cuff and earrings set in green and purple- $17.60

"The Eve" necklace/earring set- $12.60

"The Camera" necklace- $10.60

"The Ginny" necklace/bracelet and earrings set- $12.60

(necklace can convert to bracelet when you take the ribbon off!)

"The Tree" necklace- $10.60

"The Maca" bootie heels- $37.60

"The Cecilia" scarf in teal- $12.60

"The Liz" scarf in white and gray- $12.60

"The Wendi" scarf in fuchsia, black, purple, ivory, and green- $12.60

"The Elise" earrings in gold and silver- $8.60

"The Jasmine" ring- $9.60

"The Leah" earrings- $8.60

"The Lila" necklace (silver)- $12.60

"The Lydia" earrings- $8.60

"The Megan" earrings- $8.60

"The Piper" earrings- $8.60

"The Venice" earrings- $8.60

Do this with me!

2011-12-01T09:26:00.001-08:00

Santastic!

2011-12-01T08:55:00.001-08:00

It's Vanessa's first Christmas and her first time seeing Santa! Doesn't she seem old to be having her first Christmas? I guess that's what you get when you are born in February! It's old hat for Carter. He was busy telling Santa all of the things he wants for Christmas.

She almost lost it! That little face just puckered up...

But Gramma saved the day by handing Vanessa a woodstock stuffy. I think she just didn't realize we were still right there! She saw us by the camera and started smiling!

Success!

Favorite Tumblr

2011-11-30T22:15:00.001-08:00

This is copied from Healthy Is Always Better, my favorite diet/fitness tumblr, but I assume it originated at the tumblr address (codenamecollarbones) on the picture itself. Nice quick picture reference!

Here are some more I like:

Cents of Style December Line

2011-11-29T20:21:00.001-08:00

All items can be found here, and you can "like" my facebook page to get all updates. Use code 0512 at checkout for 10% off your whole order!

Couch to 5K

2011-11-28T22:12:00.001-08:00

I've done it before, and I'm doing it again. My level of fitness has just been so low since having babies that I need to start back at the beginning. I think it's a good idea. There just isn't any way I could go out and run for an hour straight right now.

But I truly enjoy running, which is a blessing! Tonight when I went out I hit that point where you feel like you could run forever, so I ran through a walk interval.

I'm using the 5K Runner app, which I like a lot. It lets me listen to my own music while I run, and the voice cues are very pleasing! Every few runs it gives you a badge to, I guess, feel good about yourself. I don't care too much about that, but it's cute.

I finished the first two weeks tonight, and I'm hoping to finish the program before the end of December. That way I can start January with a jump start on my new year of better health!

Baby Love

2011-11-20T18:55:00.001-08:00

Last night while we were at our show, my mother-in-law watched our kids. Carter slept especially late for his nap, so she decided to wake him up so he wouldn't be up all night. She brought Vanessa into his bedroom and put her right by his face. Vanessa broke out into a huge grin and started babbling. Carter opened his eyes and immediately reached up and put his arms around Vanessa.

I love that my kids love each other.

9 months!

2011-11-19T15:14:00.001-08:00

My mom is getting ready for Christmas... My two little ones are my parents' only grandkids so, yeah, they are doted on! My mom was taking pictures of them for her Christmas cards.

Vanessa turned 9 months yesterday, and as I type this (with one hand) I'm cuddling her while she downs a bottle of formula. Looks like she's about ready to stop nursing, and I'm ready for it too. She isn't even dependent on a nighttime nursing to get to sleep because we've been so busy with our show in the evenings, that my mom or Daniel's mom has been putting her to bed a few nights a week. If she takes a bottle in the morning, then I'll know we are ready to move on to the next stage!

She is such a silly little girl, and I love her!

Her big brother is pretty awesome too!

Welcome Petite Readers!

2011-11-17T06:00:00.000-08:00

Okay, I actually welcome readers of all sizes, but today I suspect I may have a few new guests to my blog coming over from La Vie Petite, one of my favorite fashion blogs! Cori is hosting a giveaway for me today, so if you don't already follow her blog, then you should! She has amazing style and you could win free Cents of Style jewelry!

Since some of you reading this don't know me yet, I thought I'd give you a quick and easy tour of who I am and what I write about on this blog (because, you know, it's not super obvious from my header...).

1. Fitness and Nutrition

I started this blog back in 2008 when I was getting ready to have my first baby, and I wanted to blog about getting back into shape. Now that I have two body-wreckers *ahem* babies, that is still a major focus of my blog! Right now I am about to begin a diet and exercise plan based on the principles in this book:

Related Posts: Resolutions, Overshot It, First Workout

2. Fashion

Not too long ago (a yearish?) my sister showed me Elaine's blog, and ever since then I've become interested in fashion. This goes along with the whole fitness and nutrition thing, because right now I don't feel like I can dress exactly how I want until I get back into shape. But I'm taking on fashion challenges anyway and starting to learn what works for me. I also signed up to be a stylist for Cents of Style, which I love because it keeps me on top of the fashion trends, while I get great deals on accessories and make a little money on the side. And so can you!

Related Posts: Day 7, In Action

3. Family

"But I help them love each other, father, mother, sister, brother, cheek to cheek!"

So far our family is me, my husband Daniel, my son Carter (3), and my daughter Vanessa (9 months).

Related Posts: Little Boy Says, Pumpkin Patch

4. Theatre

I'm a theatre person by profession. I earned my degree and teaching certificate, but now I am primarily a SAHM. I still work, often, as a freelance director and choreographer for musical theatre and show choirs. It keeps me busy and creatively stimulated! We are always rehearsing for something!

Related Posts: See Rock City, Sweeney Todd

5. Interior Decorating

I am no professional decorator, but I love it. We bought our first home in 2009, and I have painted almost every square inch and decorated each room in my style. The posts below show before and after photos. Here's one example:

That's an old photo; we now have a headboard and artwork above it!

Related Posts: House Part I, House Part II

Well, I think that's the bulk of it! Was that quick and/or easy? I hope so! I hope you see something you like that makes you want to stick around! You might also check out my 30 before 30 page and help me accomplish some cool things before I get old. Because once my age begins with a 3, well it's kind of all downhill from there, isn't it?! Just kidding, you ~~old people~~, 30+ year olds!

Thanks for stopping by. That's me. Who are you?

Centsible on sale!

2011-11-16T19:06:00.001-08:00

From now until the end of the year, Centsible items are on sale for $6.60 a piece. But if you use my stylist code 0512 at checkout, they are only $5.94 a piece. No shipping charge, no tax, no better way to fill those stockings or treat yourself to some new accessories! Check back because new items are about to be posted any time now!

Cents of Style

Follow me on Google Friend Connect, because the more followers I get, the more giveaways I will do!

Little Boy Says

2011-11-15T20:04:00.001-08:00

I need to do a better job of writing down the funny things Carter says. I love this idea from Cheri at I Am Momma Hear Me Roar.

One thing I do now is I pdf print my Facebook page month by month (at the end of each month I backtrack to the beginning of the month, select it all, and use win2pdf to save it). I'm not a very good journal writer, but I feel like my Facebook page is a pretty good representation of everything we do as a family! Many of Carter's gems are in those archives!

Here's a few for your enjoyment:

Me (taking my iPhone from Carter): You need to put your head down and close your eyes, because you are tired.
Carter: Noooo!!!
Me: I know, it's not fun to take a nap, is it?
Carter: It's not fun to take phones away from people.

Carter, talking about his toy: "Thomas can go to the farm, and then to the ice cream shoppe, and then he can go into the barn, and we can fold it up and carry it away from our sisters!"

Carter: (clearly going in his diaper, and seeing me look at him) "Nuffing...nuffing going on over here."

Me: "Carter, you have two Sir Topham Hatts, Vanessa can play with one."
Carter: (crying) "I haaaave threeeee!"
Me: (laughing) "You have three?!"
Carter: (crying) "I neeeeed fooooouuuur!"

Me to Vanessa: "Where ya going, big butt?"
Carter: "Haha! You got it wrong. It's Vanessa!"

‎Carter: "Vanessa's awake!"
Me: "What's she doing?"
Carter: "Just being a goober. You come see the goober!"

Me: "The faster you get a diaper change, the faster we can go downstairs."
Carter: "No, faster I might fall!"

I've been pinning...

2011-11-14T20:02:00.001-08:00

Halloween 2011

2011-11-14T16:42:00.001-08:00

Steve and Blue from Blue's Clues!

2011-11-14T09:36:00.001-08:00

A few recent pictures of some new Cents of Style products!

Floyee boots and India ring

Object flats ($26.60, use code 0512 for 10% off) and Spring scarf (from older collection)

Thursday's Theatre Thing...

2011-11-10T07:56:00.001-08:00

...is back!

I know, I know, I said I was going to do this and haven't in weeks? months? I do have a very good excuse, though! I haven't been blogging about theatre, because I've been up to my neck IN THEATRE! But my show opened last weekend, so I finally have a little bit of free time! This week has been a beautiful thing!

I directed the show See Rock City & Other Destinations for Arizona Onstage Productions, and Daniel was music director and plays percussion in the pit. It has been a truly fabulous experience. I have never directed a professional show (most of what I have directed has been for kids or non-professionals). It was great for me because it gave me the chance to see if I had it in me. I'm happy to report that I think I do.

So it wasn't a perfect process. The company's Artistic Director did not want to hold auditions for the show, so it took a long time to get it cast to begin with, and not everyone in the cast is an experienced performer. One review of the show said there is no weak link in our cast, but that's being pretty generous. At the same time, I am incredibly proud of everyone in the show. Some were fantastic to begin with, and others have grown throughout the process.

We've struggled with ticket sales and filling the seats, but our first weekend was more successful in that respect than we expected. We are still nervous for the last two weekends of the show, but we'll just see what happens. We got one really good review, and hopefully that will draw people in.

We got three reviews, and the overall point of the reviewers was that there are serious flaws in the writing of the show. I don't disagree with that, but at least that is something that was out of my hands. One reviewer said, "There is little to critique in Megan Tenney's direction, and Daniel Tenney's musical direction." I couldn't really have asked for more than that, for my first professional effort!

So overall I am very happy with the show. I hope that I get a chance to direct again in the future, but I'm okay if it's not for awhile! The driving back and forth is too much, and I need some time to focus on other parts of my life. I am so grateful for the opportunity I had, and I'm very pleased with how it turned out!

Day 1- Family Day!

2011-11-07T21:37:00.000-08:00

Daniel and I decided that since we've been over-the-top busy lately (hence the lack of blog posts), we would do 6 days during the month of November (maybe spilling into December) with each combination of family members.

1. All four of us
2. Daniel and me on our own
3. Daniel with Carter, me with Vanessa
4. Daniel with Vanessa, me with Carter
5. Daniel with kids, me on my own
6. Me with kids, Daniel on his own

This morning Daniel surprised me by having taken the day off school, so we did our family day today. I don't think it could have gone any better! We relaxed in the morning, catching up with our tv shows and playing with the kids. Then I went grocery shopping while Daniel stayed home with the kids. I brought back lunch for all of us, and then shortly after, both kids took naps. I took a short nap too! We did more playing and house cleaning during the afternoon, and we grilled out cheeseburgers for dinner. It was a rainy, chilly day, so it was just perfect to spend it at home together.

Our show (more on that later!) has been taking up every free moment of our time, and now that it's opened we have a little more time on our hands! And by that I mean that Daniel still has a full time job, is getting ready for his students' holiday concerts, plus he just started rehearsals for the community Christmas concert that he conducts, and I will still be traveling to Tucson twice a week to teach dances for the two musicals I'm choreographing at Basis, as well as traveling to Vail one day a week to work, and fitting in 9 extra work hours while at home. I'm also trying to do Cents of Style parties and boutiques, plus we still have 6 performances of our show left, over the next two weekends. That is our "light" schedule.

But today we had nothing all day and all night, so we relaxed (and got some necessary home chores done- like 6 loads of laundry)!

Cents of Style November Line!

2011-10-31T20:52:00.000-07:00

New November products! Get 10% off with code 0512 at checkout!

Cents Of Style in Action

2011-10-31T08:49:00.001-07:00

Winner!

2011-10-20T07:51:00.000-07:00

Random number generator picked number 3, which was one of Cynthia's comments!

Congratulations! I will email you with details on how to get your free copy of My Memories, and we expect to see some awesome pages that I can post on my blog!

Anyone else who wants a copy can get $10 off the software, as well as a $10 credit in the store, by using the code STMMMS66795. That's a $20 value, and a lifetime of fabulous digital scrapbooking!

Thanks for participating, and stay tuned because I'm going to be doing a Cents of Style giveaway very soon!

8 Months!

2011-10-18T22:19:00.000-07:00

8 months and pulling herself up on everything! She definitely wants to keep up with her big brother!

Such a sweet baby girl. I love her.

GIVEAWAY- My Memories Digital Scrapbooking Software!

2011-10-13T10:51:00.000-07:00

The makers of My Memories Suite recently offered me a freecopy of their software to try out and review. In addition, they are going togive a free copy to one of my readers! Read on!

I was really excited to try out this digital scrapbooking software. First of all, I am not super skilled with my hands and so realscrapbooking is not very appealing to me. Second, I have done a little bit ofdigital scrapbooking in the past and, while I enjoyed it, I found the program Iwas using to be extremely complicated, with more options than I knew what to dowith.

I expected My Memories Suite to be a simpler version of whatI had tried in the past, and I am happy to report that it IS easy to use, whilestill offering a plethora of options.

I’m a pretty computer-literate person, so I like to open anew program and be able to use it with just a bit of trial and error. MyMemories Suite took me a little bit longer than I would have liked to figureout how everything worked, but after about an hour of playing around with thesoftware, I feel confident and comfortable using it. I was a little overwhelmedat first because there are three toolbars- on the right and left sides of thescreen, as well as at the top, but I soon found out that, for the most part,the toolbars have all the same options. I think it would be less confusing ifone toolbar was completely eliminated, and therefore the user would not bebombarded with so many buttons and options, many of which are redundant.

That one gripe aside, I can honestly say that I LOVE thissoftware! It took me no time at all to put together a couple of cute pages:

What I like best about My Memories Suite is that it isperfect for any level of digital scrapbooker. The software includes a “fastfill” option where you choose your template design and your pictures, and theprogram generates all the pages for your album, inserting picturesautomatically. This whole process can take just a couple of minutes.

And for those who like to take their time and make all thedesign decisions themselves, My Memories Suite is fully customizable! You canmake pages from scratch or edit the premade layouts and templates any way youlike.

The software comes preloaded with plenty of backgroundpapers with customizable colors and textures, embellishments, etc, but thewebsite also includes a store where you can purchase inexpensive “expansionpacks” of templates and extras.

My Memories Suite includes some features that are unique todigital scrapbooking, and which I haven’t seen elsewhere. You can makemultimedia pages that include background music, narration, or video clips! Youcan export your pages in a variety of ways, including sending them to youriPod. You can get your albums printed in book form and include a pocket inside thecover to keep a DVD of your album.

The My Memories Suite software costs only $39.97, and fromwhat I’ve seen of the software, that is a great deal!

In addition to this giveaway, the My Memories Suite people are offering a special discount: $10 off the My Memories Suite software AND $10 credit for the MyMemories.com store. The code for this discount is STMMMS66795. Please feel free to share this code with anyone and everyone!

But one of my lucky readers is going to get a copy of MyMemories Suite for free!

Mandatory Entry: Visit the My Memories website, take a lookat their digital scrapbooking kits, and then leave a comment here with the nameof your favorite one.

Extra entries: Leave a comment on this post for each extraentry you complete.

*Follow my blog through Google Friend Connect

*Like My Memories on Facebook

*Like Megan’s Cents of Style on Facebook

*Share this giveaway on Facebook by linking to this blogpost (This can be done once a day.)

*Link to mymemories.com on Facebook and share my discount code: STMMMS66795

Giveaway ends at midnight on Wednesday, October 19th, and the winner will be announced Thursday morning, the 20th. Good luck!

The (Cents)ible Collection

2011-10-12T21:09:00.000-07:00

Cents of Style has just launched a new line of specially-priced accessories called The (Cents)ible Collection!

These items are each priced at $8.60, but if you order through me, you can order them in sets of 3 for $20.60. If you order through the website, you can get the usual 10% off with my stylist code 0512, but you have to email me your order if you want to get the "3 for $20.60" deal.

AND, for a limited time (now through Saturday the 15th) you can get 30% off your order from the (Cents)ible Collection. If you order online, use code CENTSMT for 30% off your order, or you can still order through me, in sets of 3, to get the 30% off the $20.60 deal, which would make the items 3 for $14.42, or $4.81 each!

Here are some of the items for sale as part of this new collection:

While you're at it, "like" Megan's Cents of Style on Facebook, to stay informed of deals and to be eligible for giveaways!

Giveaways!

2011-10-11T02:52:00.000-07:00

I have some potential giveaways coming up here, but first I need to know that I've got some readers out there! I know at least some people read without commenting, so now is your chance!

Leave a comment on this post if you are a reader of mine and would like to participate in some giveaways! And if you are not already a follower through Google, well what are you waiting for?!

Exciting things ahead- don't miss out! ;)

Boots!

2011-10-09T22:42:00.001-07:00

Three late additions to the October Cents of Style line- these awesome boots! I ordered the brown ones!

Black and gray boots- $32.60, brown boots- $38.60.

They will be added to the website at www.mycentsofstyle.com this week, but in the meantime, you can preorder from me. They will go fast! Use coupon code 0512 at checkout for 10% off your whole order. No tax or shipping charges!

Cents of Style Fall Line

2011-10-09T22:37:00.001-07:00

Cents of Style recently released the new Fall line, and here are some of my favorites:

These items and lots more can be found at www.mycentsofstyle.com, and you can get 10% off your entire order by using coupon code 0512!

Perfect 10- second half!

2011-10-09T20:17:00.000-07:00

Here are the last 5 days of the Perfect 10 Challenge:

Deals at Target

2011-10-05T21:46:00.000-07:00

In the past two weeks, I have found incredible deals at Target!

First I found this mirror:

It was $29.99, marked down to $7.48! I don't have a place for it yet, but it's going somewhere. It's definitely my style, and um, $7.48?! Yes please.

Then, I found these chairs:

So cute, so comfy, also $7.48 each! The blue and green match Vanessa's nursery perfectly. I put the blue one in her room, since her walls are green, and the green one I put in Carter's room. They are sturdy enough for an adult to sit in, and they easily fold up. They also came in black.

I knew they wouldn't last long at that price, so I bought two without even knowing if I could fit them in my car! At the time we had both car seats, our double stroller, a full-sized keyboard, and a stand for the keyboard! I don't know what I would have done if I HADN'T gotten them to fit, but it wasn't a problem.

Hooray for awesome deals!

Under Construction!

2011-10-05T21:38:00.000-07:00

Does this picture bring anyone else back to the 90s?

I am working on some major changes for my blog. For example, I probably spent the better part of an hour this evening trying out fonts for the header I just uploaded. Still not satisfied...

Anyway, please stick around, and hopefully you'll be pleased with what you see. I'm still going to be posting, but my blog will probably go through several phases of design updates, so forgive me for the inconsistency while I try to find something permanent!

Opinions welcome!

Thanks for reading!

Cents of Style

2011-10-04T23:05:00.000-07:00

I've signed up to be a stylist for Cents of Style! They offer the cutest accessories for the best prices- never any tax or shipping charges.

This is a link to my pinboard for Cents of Style products! We just added lots of new fall items, so check it out! They all link to the site where you can order what you like.

Use order code 0512 for 10% off your order!

I'm working on getting a facebook page up and going, but for now, here is my pinboard!

Rachelle's "Perfect Ten" Challenge

2011-10-03T11:19:00.000-07:00

Rachelle is hosting a 10 day fashion challenge on her facebook page, and we are halfway through!

She made 20 of these adorable cards with outfit clues, and you get to pick one card each day for ten days. Here is an example:

Here are my first 5 outfits. 5 more to come!

Stripes and Paisley!

2011-10-03T10:19:00.000-07:00

I love stripes. I love paisley. I do not usually pair them together!

BUT, I bought this skirt at Old Navy and nothing, I repeat, NOTHING goes with it! The "blue" is not really blue, and the "white" is not really white, so it's impossible to match. I'm thinking I'll need to just wear a yellow or red shirt with this skirt most of the time.

That being said, I actually really like this combination, with the paisley shirt! I could see myself wearing this...well, somewhere! I am not super adventurous with clothing, but this could work. Maybe it should be a challenge for me to take a picture of myself wearing this outfit out in public somewhere!

Thanks Elaine, for the rule-breaking suggestion!

Skirt- Old Navy

Top- Kohls

Shoes- here (10% off your whole order with code 0512)

Exercise is addictive

2011-09-24T00:58:00.000-07:00

I need to re-addict myself.

Why do I suck?

2011-09-12T21:10:00.001-07:00

I just spent a couple of hours scouring the web for advice on feeding my family healthy foods (planning, shopping, and cooking), and also on couponing.

I feel like I'm exactly where I started!

First of all, there is far too much information out there! I want it simplified!

I'm okay with doing a lot of startup work, but then I want my weekly/daily work to be quick and easy.

So I guess I need to come up with some kind of binder of recipes (maybe 10 breakfasts, 25 dinners, and a list of lunch options) so I can get comfortable and familiar with that many meals, and then I can add new recipes to it every once in awhile when we need something new. I have no problem with having a set of regular meals that are good, healthy, and quick(ish) to make, because I'm just not that interested in food and cooking, but I do want my family to be healthy and well-fed. Maybe I can also make several copies of the ingredients needed for each meal, so when I plan the week's meals, I can just pull out the slips of ingredients that I need, and then I have my grocery list!

As for couponing...well maybe I should start with one thing at a time. But really, I do all of my grocery shopping at Walmart, so that simplifies it for me quite a bit. The only other store nearby is Safeway, so it wouldn't be that hard to get a Sunday paper each week and start collecting coupons for those two places.

Okay, just had to "talk" that out for myself! Any thoughts/advice?! What's a good recipe that I can include in my repertoire?

The Deal

2011-09-06T15:46:00.000-07:00

Wow, the 21 day challenge went by quickly! That was really fun, and I have to say that it wasn't easy posting all those pictures of myself. I'm nowhere near where I want to be, weight loss-wise, but I have to remember that the people I admire most, I don't admire because of their physical appearance. I should be able to dress well and feel good about how I look at any weight, which is what the challenge taught me!

That being said, here is the deal with my current health situation:

I finally went to the doctor's, because the weight I was gaining just didn't make sense to me. I mean, my diet is far from perfect, and I wasn't out running miles every day, but it just didn't seem to add up correctly.

So I had my thyroid levels checked, and it turns out that my thyroid is severely abnormal. In fact, my doctor said he hasn't seen a thryoid so abnormal in years. Apparently the higher your number is, the more underacting your thyroid is (causing weight gain, fatigue, etc), and whereas a normal number is around 4.5, mine was 198. He said that it's unusual to see a double digit number, nevermind a triple digit. So I'm basically on thyroid medication for life. I don't know how that happened, but at least now I'm on the medication I need for it.

My doctor said that explained the weight gain, because when your thyroid is that low, it's basically like having zero metabolism. So my body wasn't burning calories like it should every day. In the almost two weeks I've been on medication now, I've lost about 5-6 pounds. So it looks like the medication is doing its job, which is to get my body back to a normal state, where diet and exercise can actually make a difference!

So one health problem solved.

Then, long story short, I had a gallstone attack and had to go to the emergency room last week. I didn't know I had gallstones, and now I realize that I had attacks in the recent past that I thought were back spasms (because you can feel gallstone pain in your back). From what I've read and after talking to my doctor, it looks like surgery is going to be the best option, because the pain will most likely just get worse unless I have my gallbladder out.

So now I'm going to have gallbladder surgery.

From what I've found through online research, the surgery won't cause me to lose or gain weight, but it could help put me into a better position to lose weight, just like with the thyroid medication.

So now I'm super stressed out, just because I don't really have insurance (more long story that I won't get into), so we are trying to figure out the best way to go about paying for the surgery (and for the (probably) super expensive emergency room bill that is coming our way). We have a handful of options, but none of them is cheap.

So that is my update on my life right now. On one hand, I'm super stressed out and upset about finances, but on the other hand, I'm hoping to see improvements in my health (most importantly getting that surgery so I don't have to deal with this pain anymore!). I have other things going on, but I feel like I can't think about anything else until I know what is going to happen with surgery and our finances. I'm meeting with the surgeon on Friday, for a consultation and to find out exactly how much the surgery will cost. If it's under a certain amount (with a cash discount, hopefully) then it might make the most sense for us to just pay for it out of our own pocket. So I'm definitely going to be on edge until Friday, and then even if the news is not great, at least we'll have the information we need to go forward with making some decisions!

So if you've read this far, feel free to send some positive vibes our way! We could definitely use them!

Day 21- Killer Outfit!

2011-09-04T15:55:00.000-07:00

Today is the last day! Today's prompt was to put together a "killer outfit" using the knowledge and experience we've gained from taking the 21 day challenge.

Well, I'm still away from home, so I only have what I brought with me. But yesterday I ran over to Walmart to buy some food, and I saw this dress. I love it! It was on sale for 11 dollars! So that's my outfit for today, and I felt comfortable and pretty all day. I probably wouldn't have chosen these shoes, but again, I only have what I brought.

Wish I could have had these shoes for this outfit:

Vanessa also only had what we brought for her, but I love her little striped skirt and complementary tee! Very girly.

Thanks, Kayla, for all the fun and fashion inspiration!

Day 20- Sunday Shoes

2011-09-03T21:33:00.001-07:00

Sunday shoes...on Saturday. Not a huge fan of the outfit, but we are away from home so I only had what I brought. And the shoes are borrowed from my sister-in-law! Vanessa's rocking some sparklies from Walmart.

Day 19- Adorn Your Head

2011-09-02T13:29:00.000-07:00

I love this headwrap. I've been asked if it came with this skirt. It didn't, but they do match nicely! I've been asked if it's a "dance" thing that I wear when I'm dancing to keep my hair out of my face. To which I reply, "no, it's a 'bad hair day' thing that I wear when my hair looks bad!"

Vanessa is rocking her sunhat. She was very tolerant during this photo session! I think she likes her hat!

Day 18- Statement Jewelry

2011-09-02T13:18:00.001-07:00

I'm wearing my remix item (white peasant skirt) for my third time! We'll see if I can sneak in a fourth before the end! My jewelry is from my favorite place to get accessories- www.mycentsofstyle.com. This site has amazing jewelry, shoes, handbags, hats, and scarves, for very low prices, without any tax or shipping charges! Their inventory moves very quickly, and the bracelet I'm wearing is already sold out, but you can get the cameo necklace here.

Vanessa, in her pretty jewel-toned dress from Macys, is wearing one of my faux pearl bracelets, wrapped twice! I never let her wear jewelry, but we made an exception for the picture! ;) Maybe once she's older and not putting absolutely everything in her mouth!

Day 17- Repair and Wear

2011-09-02T13:09:00.000-07:00

I don't actually have a pile of clothes that need to be fixed, so instead I cut these former pants into capris/board shorts. The pants were from JC Penney, and I had already cut off the bottoms. They were the drawstring elastic bottoms that didn't work for me because I'm so short, but I think I cut the pants just a tiny bit too short. I really liked the way the pants fit, but they didn't look right with sneakers and were still too long for flats. I was unsure about cutting them until I realized I had already ripped one side a bit by stepping on the bottom, so that made my decision!

I'm not crazy about them, but as far as "around the house" wear, they are PERFECT! Super lightweight and comfy.

Flip flops from Target, shirt from Old Navy, headwrap from Walmart or Target, I think.

Vanessa didn't have any clothes that needed alterations either, so she went with the alternate prompt and broke a fashion rule by wearing leggings as pants! Also she is wearing a onesie underneath those leggings. Also the binky because it was almost naptime! Imagine if an adult tried that. Amazing what babies can get away with!

Day 16- Menswear

2011-09-01T20:48:00.001-07:00

We are running behind! Due to an unexpected early morning emergency room visit (for me), and some necessary recuperation time, I'm a little behind on my challenge days! We missed linking up to the hair day, but hopefully we can get back on track tomorrow and not miss any more!

My menswear outfit consists of black pinstriped pants and black heels from Kohls, a patterned top from Forever21, and a tweed blazer from who knows where?! It's very old.

Vanessa is wearing some blue and grey cotton shorts from the boys section that my mom bought for her. Come on! People think she's a boy when she's completely dressed in PINK! She's "girling" it up with a grey shirt with a pink ballerina on it.

Day 15- New 'do

2011-08-29T20:41:00.000-07:00

So this post is delayed because of a health emergency. :( But here are our 'do's!

I cannot begin to explain how incredibly horrible I am with hair. So I won't try. But I'm bad. Really bad. So I kind of took an easy way out and went with a top knot. I'm still being honest, though, because I have never worn my hair this way! I started with just a high bun, and then I didn't think it was drastic enough, so I went as high as I could. I don't think I would actually wear my hair like this regularly, but the bun I did before I decided to go higher is something I would do again. It looked cute and was very freeing- no hair in my face or for Vanessa to grab!

Vanessa's rocking a faux hawk. That's right.

Day 14- Copycat

2011-08-29T20:10:00.000-07:00

Inspiration picture:
This is my friend Rachelle, who is a stylist for Cents of Style. I bought these same sandals she's wearing in this picture, and wanted to recreate a version of her red, white, and blue outfit! Click the picture to go to her Cents of Style facebook page, where you can get her code for 10% off!

It was a lot harder to find an inspiration picture for Vanessa! They do not have many baby fashion sites! Anyway, I found this one that I like, and I used what she had (no long bloomers), and combined it with my red, white, and blue theme.

Day 13- Neutral with a Pop!

2011-08-27T14:59:00.000-07:00

Today we celebrated big brother, Carter's, 3rd birthday! I'm wearing a top from Forever21, which I didn't think would go with anything until I tried it with these dress pants from Kohls! Undershirt is DownEast Basics. My shoes are the pop! They are from here. Definitely could have used some jewelry, but we were in a rush!

It was harder for Vanessa, as most of her clothes are bright colors, but we managed with her white skirt (I think that is 4x for her!) and a Carter's top with a green-yellow fish!

Note: For anyone unacquainted with kids' clothing, Carter's is a major brand. It is also my son's name, in case anyone is confused!

Wow, 13 days down, 8 to go!

Happy Birthday, Carter!

2011-08-27T14:53:00.000-07:00

3 years old

2 years old

1 year old

On his actual birthday!

Love our little (big!) guy!

One of those days...

2011-08-26T23:02:00.001-07:00

Yeah...so today...

AC went out yesterday, so today my house slowly heated up from about 88 degrees to about 94 degrees before it finally began to drop again in the evening.

Rented a carpet cleaner without realizing that my parents already own one and then got frustrated with how quickly it ran out of fluid and how often I had to refill it. Went ahead and spent a few hours shampooing carpets even though my house was super hot.

Planned on shampooing all the carpets in my house, until I realized that 1. it was 94 degrees in my house, and 2. that would be impossible to finish today all by myself. I don't have the room to completely clear out each room, so I had to do half a room, wait for it to dry, and then move the furniture, do the other half, wait for it to dry, and then move the furniture back. I got 1.5 rooms done. Will finish the other half of room 2 in the morning, then I have to return the cleaner.

Got no break, because as soon as Carter finally took his nap (after getting up over and over again), Vanessa was awake and finished with her (too short) nap.

Waited for the AC guy who was an hour late, just to have him tell me that our compressor is shot and needs to be replaced which 1. probably won't happen until Monday, and 2. will probably cost 1-2 thousand dollars.

Did I mention that I was shampooing carpets because we were planning a little birthday party for Carter at our house tomorrow? Well, had to replan that, since we won't have AC.

Got a bad rash. Don't know how. But it hurts.

Started to feel sick with allergies- scratchy throat, runny nose, feeling run-down.

Spent from 9-10:30pm putting the house back into (relative) order from when I messed it up earlier, thinking I'd be shampooing all the carpets.

Spent from 10-11pm trying to get Vanessa to sleep- first she wanted to play, then she wanted to cry a lot.

And then I wrote this blog. With a fan blowing on me. At least there's only 49 minutes left in this day. At least the Benedryl I took is probably going to put me out pretty soon.

Hopefully tomorrow will be better.

Day 12- Jazz up your Jeans

2011-08-25T20:08:00.001-07:00

Jeans- Old Navy
Silver heels- Ummm, maybe Kohls? I bought them to wear to prom with my husband a couple of years ago!
Top- Kohls
Bracelet- www.mycentsofstyle.com
Necklace

Vanessa is jazzing up her OshKosh jeans with a Carter's tunic tank and a Gymboree headband!

Day 11- Dress or Skirt

2011-08-25T20:07:00.000-07:00

Denim skirt is an absolute must. Want to know my secret? Mine is maternity!!! AKA, it has a very nice comfy elastic waistband!

Top is from Kohls, and I don't wear it too much. Let's just say that it shows off the "ladies" a bit too much. Looks great to me when I look straight into the mirror, but considering how EVERYONE is taller than me...

Shoes from Forever21, and they are my FAVORITE of ALL TIME. I wore them on vacation to Maine and sadly they fell apart. I mean, like not wearable.

But my friend turned me onto this magical substance:

And now my shoes are all better! Hooray!

Once again, Vanessa is wearing "best of Walmart." But isn't she styling in her graphic tee and striped skirt?! Should have added a bow but we were rushed (as always)!

Day 10- Closet Orphan

2011-08-25T20:05:00.000-07:00

Brought out this old tank sweater. Not usually something I'd wear in the summertime, but with just the DownEast Basics Wonder Tee underneath, it was cooler than you'd expect (um, but I didn't go outside so...). Pretty sure it was from Kohls. As was the necklace. As were the pants. I like Kohls. Flip flops from Target.

This was a harder challenge for Vanessa, since she grows so fast that she doesn't have time to create closet orphans! However, this pink tunic and leggings set was given to her, and she hadn't worn it yet because the sizing was off with the season. It's a winter outfit, and it was too big for her this past winter (she was born in February). But I actually think the sizing is just off in general, because it's 6-9 months, and the top is still big on her. She is wearing 9-12 months these days. So maybe she'll get another chance to wear it when the weather cools down a bit!

Um, great hair brought to you by luck. ...I brushed it.

Day 9- Monochromatic

2011-08-25T20:04:00.001-07:00

This outfit brought to you by Spanx! No seriously, the sweater and skirt are both quite old. I like the combo though, even though it's a LOT of purple. I wish I could lie and say the boots are a wine color, but I cannot. They are brown.

Boots- Ross

Skirt- Old Navy

Sweater- Target

Necklace- http://www.mycentsofstyle.com/

Just wish I had these shoes to complete the look:

Vanessa's entire purple outfit was brought to you by Walmart. And I bet the binky was the most expensive item.

Um, extra points for choosing a bright color? For BOTH of us in the same color? For a matching BINKY? ;)

Day 8- Mix Fancy and Casual

2011-08-24T13:59:00.000-07:00

Skirts and Sneaks!

Call me crazy. But I have ALWAYS loved the look (and feel) of sneakers with skirts. That made this day pretty easy for me. My shirt and cardigan are from Kohls, sneakers from Target, and skirt thrifted from DI.

Vanessa has an OshKosh shirt, and her Kohls white peasant skirt (her third remix!!!), along with her pink Walmart pseudo-Cons.

Okay, she pulls it off better than me. I can admit it.

Day 7- Layer Accessories

2011-08-21T14:16:00.001-07:00

I really liked this one! I started with a neutral base outfit, which allowed for a lot of accessorizing options. But I ended up going really neutral with the accessories too, using all silver. I really loved the outcome though. I felt very put-together and classy for our stake conference.

I'm wearing an Old Navy maxi skirt, Walmart top, Old Navy cardigan (got it yesterday on clearance for $12!), a layered necklace and an anchor necklace from Forever21, and earrings from Kohls.

Vanessa doesn't own a lot of accessories yet, so we put two headbands on her that matched her pink OshKosh onesie and Carter's denim jumper!

Carter snuck into the picture, but he's not layering any accessories. Just one tie.

Day 6- Get Creative

2011-08-21T14:11:00.000-07:00

Took me forever to figure out what to do for this day! I was going to use one of my husband's ties as a sash, but then I realized that, since they are made to be tied around a neck, they would NOT fit around my waist! So instead Vanessa and I just wore the boys' ties! I think it's cute. I need to stop using my iPhone for pictures because the quality isn't the best, but my tie has a pretty, jewel-toned paisley pattern on it. Kind of matches my flip flops, which of course you can't see!

Day 5- Belt It!

2011-08-19T14:03:00.000-07:00

I decided that, in traditional "me" style (overachiever), I would be clever and instead of just participating in the challenge, I would dress up Vanessa each day in the challenge style! Extra points?! ;)

My outfit is called "pink on pink!" Belt and bracelet from Forever21, undershirt from DownEast Basics, shirt from Kohls, skirt thrifted, and heels from Target.

Vanessa is wearing a Carter's dress, with a white lace headband as a belt! Very baby chic.

Day 4- Color Blocking

2011-08-19T13:49:00.000-07:00

This was a pretty easy one- I do like combining my solids. Vanessa liked this one too. She has a lot of solids and looks so cute in her white skirt!

Not the best picture, but it'll have to do for now! My undershirt is actually bright red and matches the sandals I'm wearing. This was Vanessa's and my second outfit with our remix items (white peasant skirts).

Sandals

Day 3- Mixing Patterns

2011-08-19T13:48:00.001-07:00

I had two versions of this outfit. My other one was this same top and shoes, with a white skirt that has a brown underlay and brown flowers at the bottom. Not quite as daring as this combo, so since it's a fashion challenge, I went for the less safe option...and ended up loving it!

Top from Kohls, skirt from Old Navy, shoes from Cents of Style.

Vanessa cheated, just a little bit, because her Carter's outfit actually came as a set! She's mixing a bold, modern flower print with a small polka dot print on bottom!

Day 2- Tuck It In

2011-08-19T13:44:00.001-07:00

I did not like this day. I do not tuck things in. I do not have the stomach for it.

I did end up liking this picture though! The shirt is tucked in, and it only works because I have the jacket on, but I could see, maybe, possibly, wearing this sometime. As long as I wear the jacket too!

Vanessa took the easy route in a onesie and pants- very preppy chic.

21 Day Challenge- Day 1

2011-08-19T13:30:00.001-07:00

Okay, so I couldn't resist! I'm joining the challenge a couple of days late, but you aren't required to do every single day to participate anyway. As it is, I'm too late to link up to the first two days, but I want to complete every day anyway!

So the challenge for Day 1 was to pick an article of clothing to remix three times throughout the challenge.

We decided to remix our white peasant skirts! Look for them at least two more times!

Thursday's Theatre Thing

2011-08-18T21:35:00.000-07:00

Okay, let's wrap this up so I can move on to more interesting theatre topics!

I started at UNH focusing on musical theatre, with secondary education as more of a backup. My first year was hard because I couldn't get cast. That was a rare year where the musical was the spring semester (they only did one mainstage musical), plus I didn't get into the Intro to Musical Theatre class that was important for freshmen to get seen, so nobody really knew me at first. In the spring I did get cast in Follies, and I also got into that class, so it got better from then on (a little). It was a VERY VERY hard year, in all respects.

However, in the dead of winter, my mother heard on the radio up on Maine that Funtown USA (a local theme park that I grew up going to) was auditioning for professional performers, so one weekend I drove up there and auditioned. It went well, but I didn't hear back for a long time. Eventually I did hear back that I was cast, and at the end of the school year I moved back home and started rehearsals for those shows.

For anyone who doesn't know theme park entertainment, it generally consists of short (20-30 minute) musical revues with a general theme that ties together cover songs, with a small cast of singers/dancers and a crap ton of quick costume changes. That first year we rehearsed 14 hour days for 2 weeks (working before and after the park closed, which is like a long-running fear of mine- being in a theme park or arcade after it's closed- random I know), and we did a 50s-60s-70s revue, an Americana revue, and a kids' show. It was a fantastic summer where I learned a lot more about dance and performing. There was a lot of drama with the park staff, because they weren't used to having performers and didn't always understand how it was different from regular park employees. For example, if it rained and we couldn't do our show (our stage was outside), they expected us to clock out but stick around to see if the rain let up so we could clock back in and do another show. Um...no. If you are requiring someone to be at work, they need to be getting paid. But looking back I remember all the good things. It was a pretty sweet gig. We did 4 shows a day that first summer (the next two summers we did 5 a day), and in between shows we just basically sat around and relaxed. We had to set up for the next show, but that didn't take very long. And we did need the downtime, because it was hot out and we were singing and dancing.

So that took up my whole summer, and then I returned to UNH for my sophomore year. I still only did one mainstage show, No No Nanette, but I was more involved in the department and did some smaller showcases and things.

I auditioned for Funtown in the winter again, and got cast again, so I returned there for a second summer in 2004. That's when I met Daniel and, well, that's a whole different story! Anyway, that was an amazing summer, and we just had so much fun.

At the end of the summer I went back to UNH for my third year and quickly discovered that if I worked it just right, I could graduate with my BA at the end of the year! And I did! That year I really focused on the education part of my degree, because I basically had decided to be a teacher by that time. I loved my theatre education classes- great bunch of people and fun assignments that directly related to my career plans. That year I did Titanic the musical, as well as Much Ado About Nothing. In the spring I got a job as the director of an after-school drama program, where I directed Godspell, Jr. That was my first real directing gig, and I was in charge of it all- choosing the show, casting the kids, directing, choreographing, costumes, lights, sound, music directing, etc, etc, etc! It was awesome and super successful! The kids were fantastic, and I was SO pleased with the results.

In May (2005), I graduated with my BA, and two days later I turned 21. I was engaged, ready for a third summer at Funtown, and then planned to move cross country to Arizona! And I did! Daniel and I performed together at Funtown for our last summer, and then I packed up my newly-purchased station wagon with its well-functioning AC and moved to Arizona.

There was a good program at UNH that was a fifth-year program, where you could get your Master's degree and a teaching certificate in one year. That would have been a good option for me, had I been sticking around, because it would have been my fourth year, having graduated early. I'm glad I moved when I did, but not being able to complete that program is one thing I wish I could have done. I applied for and was accepted to the University of Arizona's Master's/teacher prep program, but it would have taken two years to complete, so I didn't end up going. Instead, I completed an online program to receive my Arizona teaching certificate, and that's what I did for the 2005-2006 school year, while Daniel finished his Bachelor's degree (which came with a teaching certificate as part of it, so we both student-taught in the spring).

Once moving out here, I got involved with the Institute at the UofA, which had a great auditioned musical theatre program, and I did two years with them. Both shows were good experiences where I got to choreograph and got plenty of stage time, but the second year I got a great part, where I was really challenged acting-wise, and (sorry to boast) really rose to the challenge. I'm really proud of that part- one of my favorites to date.

I also got involved with some less-than-great theatre companies and did some seriously bad shows. That got me down for awhile there, because I went for a period of a few years where I wasn't having any good theatre experiences. Daniel and I couldn't find two full-time teaching jobs within commuting distance for both of us, so he ended up taking the music job here in St. David, at his old high school, and we moved down here. Luckily, I ended up with a plethora of opportunities (though most of them required driving into Tucson) to teach, direct, and choreograph musical theatre and show choirs.

The real breakthrough came in the fall of 2009, when the director of a local (GOOD) theatre company put out a job opportunity for someone to choreograph his school's (he's also a drama teacher, in addition to being artistic director for his company) after school drama program's musical, You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown. I sent him my info right away, and he hired me. He actually knew me, because by then Daniel had done one or two shows with his company. It was a great experience; I love that show, and I ended up being credited as Associate Director, because I did all the blocking and a lot of direction in addition to all the choreography.

Daniel got lucky again the following summer (we are up to 2010) and got cast in the 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, so we continued our relationship with this director and his company, and he asked me to come back and choreograph for his school again. So all of last school year I did the same thing, only this time it was two different shows. During that year, he asked me to choreograph Sweeney Todd (which we just finished doing), and at the same time precast me in the ensemble of the show. Daniel auditioned and got into the ensemble as well.

So finally I got my chance to be part of one of the actual company's shows, and it was a great experience. I again got promoted to Associate Director, because I ended up in charge of a lot of things beyond choreography, and at some point during the rehearsal process, he asked me to direct the company's next show, See Rock City.

And that brings us to now! We closed Sweeney last weekend, and now all the focus is on MY show! I'm assembling a production team, casting performers, and studying the script like crazy to prepare to direct the show. This is by far the most professional, biggest thing I've done, and I'm really excited and nervous, but confident that I can do a good job. I know reviews aren't everything, but if I can put up this show AND get reviewed positively, it will be a major accomplishment for me. I would still like to do more as a performer, but I have gotten so much work over the past few years as a director/choreographer, and that's okay with me! I think I'm good at it, and I love it!

Thanks for reading!

6 months today!!!

2011-08-18T06:59:00.000-07:00

And sitting pretty!

21 Day Challenge

2011-08-17T21:39:00.001-07:00

It seems like everyone I follow is doing this! I wish I had the time, but I just don't right now. I know I just closed my show, but I'm opening a show in a few months, and I have SO MUCH to do to get ready for it. This is my FIRST big-time directing gig, so 1. a LOT is riding on this and 2. there is a lot more that I'm responsible for than I ever have been in the past!

It's late and I'm rambling. I discovered Pinterest today (I knew about it, but finally got an account), and now I don't know how I'll ever get anything done again!

There are not enough hours in the day or days in the week or weeks in the year for me to do everything I want to do.

But I'm going to try!

But I have to focus on my show right now!!!

Very inspirational!

2011-08-17T21:35:00.000-07:00

From: www.healthyisalwaysbetter.tumblr.com

2011-08-17T15:45:00.000-07:00

Addicted.

Some recent outfits

2011-08-15T23:24:00.000-07:00

I've been reading some fashion blogs over the past few months (mostly ones written by LDS girls), and that (along with hosting a party for http://www.mycentsofstyle.com/) has inspired me to pay a little more attention to my clothing and accessories! It's been a struggle since baby #2 to be able to wear anything that looks remotely cute, but I think I've succeeded a time or two.

Here are some recent looks:

Shirt and tank from Kohls, capris from Old Navy, bracelet and shoes from mycentsofstyle.com

Top from forever21, skirt from Old Navy, bracelets from Delias

Shirt from Rue21, flip flops from Target, blazer and skirt- too old to remember!

Red shirt from DownEast Basics, striped top from Kohls (I think), capris from Old Navy, sandals from mycentsofstyle.com

There you go, now stop looking at me!

Thursday's Theatre Thing...a day (and a few weeks) late!

2011-08-12T10:19:00.000-07:00

Part 2- finally!

In the summer after my freshman year of high school, I auditioned for a local summer stock theatre, Hackmatack Playhouse. My little sister auditioned as well. It was our first "professional" auditions, and the panel of directors seemed very happy with my audition and very amused with my sister's. Not that she wasn't good- the opposite- she was not afraid at seven years old to get up there and sing her heart out! They cast both of us in The Wizard of Us (her as a munchkin, and me in the adult chorus), and they offered me an apprenticeship position, where I would perform in the ensemble of one show and work tech for another. I got paid a stipend of $50 for the summer (probably about 6-8 weeks of 40+ hours a week).

For those of you who might not be familiar with summer stock, the general rule is that one group of performers is hired for the whole summer and performs in 4-5 shows, back to back. So when you begin performances for the first show, you begin rehearsals for the next show during the day. That summer I rehearsed for Wizard of Oz, and then performed in Wizard of Oz while working in the costume shop during the day, preparing for the musical, The Who's Tommy. Then, I worked as a dresser during the Tommy performances, while many of the same performers were rehearsing Forum during the day. So my schedule wasn't as crazy as some, but it was busy and I loved every second of it. We had high school apprentices, like myself, who were in one show and teched another, local college interns who were in the ensemble of all the shows and teched all of them as well (as much as they could while fitting in rehearsals), and core cast members, who were other college students from Boston and New York who played all the leading roles in the shows, and who did NOT have to tech shows. Interesting hierarchy, but it worked! They even had one separate dressing room area for the "lead" of the show, as well as specifically marking off certain seats in the dressing room for other principals.

That particular theatre is amazing. It is literally a barn that was converted into a fully functional, professional theatre, with an amazing stage and technical elements. They have a smaller building called the rehearsal barn, where early rehearsals for the shows take place, where the stage area is all taped out on the floor, so you can have accurate staging. The costume/scene shop is another separate building, as is the box office/concessions; they are all red and white wooden buildings that match the main barn/theatre. The grounds are landscaped with grass and cedar chips, with picnic tables and benches in various areas.

I learned SO MUCH that summer. I learned about the rehearsal process, how many elements it takes to put together a show, and how to sew! I pulled period costumes from the wasp-infested top of the costume shop, I did company laundry, I took apart and put together a sewing machine by figuring it out myself, I learned about choreography, I sat and sewed while listening to the Tommy cast practice their difficult harmonies, I witnessed the men practicing jumping into the trap door of the stage, I became a part of all the backstage silliness, and learned about the core cast members' plans for their career paths and began to plan my own. Etc, etc, etc. It was a magical summer, and when it rained... I can still smell the wet cedar chips and remember running through the rain to get to the dressing room to change over the laundry, while the cast of Tommy was singing "Sensation." In addition to the things I learned about theatre that summer, I gained confidence and improved my own talents, and my intentions to pursue theatre were solidified.

The next school year I helped with tech for the fall play, and then in the spring I performed in two musicals at once! I did Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat at school and The Sound of Music with a local company (same one that did Oliver, but this time directed by the scary director!), about 30 minutes away. There were several days when I would go to school all day, stay after from about 3-5:30 for one rehearsal, and then drive 30 minutes to my other rehearsal from 6-9ish, then drive 30 minutes home. My sister was in Sound of Music with me as well, so my mom drove us both to those rehearsals. In Sound of Music I was one of the nuns, and in Joseph... well that's a long story. To make it short, at the auditions we were tested on singing and dancing and they marked down who could do which satisfactorily. A small group of us were singled out to be "Jacob's Wives" while a larger number were declared "chorus" and others were "dancers." Those of us who had been singled out basically ended up being blended in with the chorus, and the dancers were the ones who really got spotlighted. It was a little frustrating for me, because I had stood out as a singer and a dancer, and those who had not been able to sing were getting all the stage time. As it turned out, I got pulled out of the chorus more than once to fill a dancing position, so I got plenty of stage time.

For the spring play that year we did "The Dining Room" which is a huge ensemble play that can be done with a small number of actors playing many characters, but instead they cast many actors playing 1-2 characters each. I was one of the few who got 3 roles! I played a 5-year-old (they never said her age), a 10-year-old having a birthday party, and a 16-year-old, in one of the funniest scenes.

I don't remember exactly what happened that next summer, but I didn't go back to Hackmatack. It might have been because they had a shift of artistic directors, and I don't remember if I auditioned or not. Either way, they did The Sound of Music, and my sister did that production (moving up from playing Gretl the first time, to playing Marta this time!). I worked that summer, and returned to doing theatre my next year of school.

As a junior, I played Laurie in Brighton Beach Memoirs, then was ensemble in South Pacific, with a lot of dancing parts, and then I stage managed Arsenic and Old Lace (along with playing a dead body onstage!). The next summer I ended up back at Hackmatack, this time performing in two shows! I got to be in the ensemble of Damn Yankees and The King and I. I didn't do as much tech that time around, but I had an amazing time once again, being part of summer stock.

My senior year of high school I got cast in a play called The Wrestling Season, at a local theatre, and due to that role, I wasn't able to audition for my high school's production of The Crucible. It may have been a poor decision, as I was talked about for the lead in The Crucible, but I stuck with my original show and had a great experience.

The musical that year was Into the Woods, and I finally got my chance at a lead role. Up until then, our musicals mostly featured only one female, and there was another girl in my grade who was a fantastic singer, and for that reason she scored all the leads. Everyone expected me to be cast as Little Red, which would have been great, but I was happily surprised to get the part of the Baker's Wife, which is still my biggest role to this date, and I had so much fun performing it!

Another conflict happened with the spring play my senior year, as I had made the All-State Choir, and the weekend of our rehearsals and concerts conflicted with the spring play. So I wasn't able to be part of that at all, but my drama teacher (who was consistently supportive and awesome during my whole high school experience) let me sit in on auditions and weigh-in on casting.

Another cool thing about my senior year was that my high school tried something different with English classes. Instead of requiring a full year of plain-old senior English (which I took anyway, so I could take the AP English exam and get college credit), they had a bunch of different half-year options such as college composition, mythology, etc). One of the options was Play Reading, so I got to take that and be exposed to a lot of playwrights I hadn't known about before then. In addition, that year they made my drama teacher full-time, so she offered some new courses, including Comparative Acting through Film and Directing, both of which I took and thoroughly enjoyed. I also got more involved with dance my senior year, taking a jazz and a tap class at two different local studios.

Once again, this is getting too long, so I will wrap up part 2 by saying that, after a tour of colleges in upstate New York, New York City, and Connecticut, I decided to stay close to home and go to the University of New Hampshire for Theatre, with concentrations in both Musical Theatre and Secondary Theatre Education. I was awarded a major academic scholarship for my class rank and SAT scores, as well as a musical theatre scholarship (through an audition with the UNH theatre department). I worked the summer before starting college rather than doing theatre, and in the fall I moved into my dorm and began college life as a theatre major!

Top Ten Tuesday

2011-08-09T08:23:00.000-07:00

Today we have my top ten favorite musicals!

Okay, so this is a CURRENT list, meaning my top ten favorite TODAY! This will be ever changing, as I discover new musicals and old ones I've never heard. Of course I'm biased toward the ones I've been a part of, but regardless, I love these 10 musicals dearly!

10.

Really fun songs, great for choreography (some of the best I've done), funny, and short & sweet. Proof that even a silly little musical can have a powerful effect; one of the most moving lyrics to me in all of musical theatre comes at the end of The Baseball Game: "Dear Penpal, I'm told where you live is really quite far. Could you please send directions on how I can get where you are?" The last song is touching as well: "Happiness is anyone, and anything at all, that's loved by you."

9.Urinetown is hilarious, clever, and smart, with some fantastic music. Another choreographer's dream show. Best song- "Run, Freedom, Run!"

8.I have to admit that I have not actually seen High Fidelity! The Broadway production bombed and only did a few shows, and they didn't film it for the the Lincoln Center library. The rights to perform the show have just recently been released, so hopefully it will see a good run in regional and community theatres. "I'm approaching infinity and happiness!"

7.This isn't one I expected to like, and I'm not a fan of the movie, but it's a fantastic musical. The music and dancing is upbeat and fun, and the writing is smart and witty. The characters are real and engaging.

6.This one has been a favorite since I got to play The Baker's Wife in my high school production. Just Sondheim being brilliant. "Running away, go to it. Where did you have in mind? Have to take care, unless there's a 'where,' you'll only be wandering blind. Just more questions- different kind."

5.One of my favorites since I heard it being played over and over again in the scene shop at my summer stock theatre. Campy and fun, great music and choreography options. VERY high up on my list of shows to direct/choreograph. Saw it in Boston, and it was perfect.

4.I think this show is so high up on my list, first of all, because of the productions I've been involved with. We did this my freshman year of high school, and then my summer stock theatre did it, and that production was possibly the best production (excepting Broadway/Off Broadway productions) of any show I've seen. Hilariously funny, with great music and choreography options...I'm starting to see a trend here!

3.Jason Robert Brown's 2-person, heart-wrenching show is a favorite in the Tenney home. We kind of wish we had the voices to do this one together! Maybe someday. "Have I mentioned today how lucky I am to be in love with you?" "Would you share your life with me for the next ten minutes? For the next ten minutes? We can handle that. ...And if we make it til then, can I ask you again for another ten?"

2. The Who's Tommy is not a traditional musical, but it ranks high on my list and in my heart. I got to be a part of a production in my summer stock years, and it will forever be a favorite. A rock opera, it has very few spoken lines, but the music (which is of course adapted from the Who's album) is unbelievably powerful and the technical elements mindblowing, when done well. "Listening to you, I get the music..."

1.I got to see In The Heights on Broadway a couple of years ago, and it immediately jumped to the top of my list. It was hailed as a hip hop/rap musical, which it is, but that is an incredible understatement. The success of the show is due to the powerful story of relateable characters, told through geniusly composed music and lyrics. "I'll make you proud of everything I know."

There it is- top ten Tuesday. Took me all day to get this post finished- started over 12 hours ago! Get these cast albums and listen to them. Or better yet, buy a ticket to a show.

Blogger...

2011-07-30T20:19:00.000-07:00

I hate to overshadow my last post, which extolled the greatness of my husband.

BUT

Did you see how bad the formatting was? Because I didn't...not while I was in the editor.

I HATE blogger's editor. I hate how the formatting is always bad. I hate that you can't copy and paste. I hate that it reverses the order of your pictures and puts them all at the top of your post after you've written something.

I can't take it anymore.

I'm leaving you, blogger. I'm leaving you for SOMETHING BETTER!

Flashback

2011-07-30T19:54:00.000-07:00

Daniel and I had a nice little lunch together the other day (maybe it was dinner? anyway both kids were asleep), and we didn't have our usual lots of things to talk about, so I asked him where he was 10 years ago. He had just started his mission and was getting ready to leave the MTC and head out for Korea. 10 years ago, I was doing summer stock in Maine, performing in The King and I at the time, if the dates are right in my head.

We went through each year- 9 years ago, 8 years ago, right up to this time last year. It was a fun little walk down memory lane, to go from the few years before we met, up through our whole relationship (of over 7 years now). We said things from "proselyting in Korea" and "performing in a theme park," to "probably making out with you" and "road tripping across the USA together" and "throwing up from first trimester sickness."

We've fit a lot of experiences into our 7 years together- enough to make me positive that we are in this together for the long (long, long, eternity-long) haul.

The past several days have all started with me feeling like they were going to be bad days, but Daniel did something different each day to turn it around for me. It was almost as if he was a super hero, physically grabbing the day and flipping it upside down.

I love my husband, and I can't put into words how much I love our children.

I have a family here on Earth
They are so good to me

I want to share my life with them

Through all eternity

Families can be together forever

Through Heavenly Father's plan

I always want to be with my own family

And the Lord has shown me how I can

The Lord has shown me how I can

This, too, shall pass away

2011-07-29T21:19:00.000-07:00

Well, I missed my second Thursday's Theatre Thing, so looks like I can't even handle two in a row! I'm going to blame it on being too busy with actually doing theatre! Oh well, I'll remember for next week!

Today you get a little bit of wisdom!

When I was growing up, my gramma had this plaque in her bathroom that had a poem on it, and at the end of the poem it said, "Remember, this too shall pass away."

That poem always struck me every time I read it. The idea is that whether you are having a wonderful, happy moment, or if you are struggling, the good and the bad both pass. So you should enjoy the good while it lasts, and hold on during the bad, because neither lasts forever.

I've heard that a popular Hebrew phrase, "Gam zeh ya'avor," means the same thing.

Anyway, I think of that phrase often, and I think that, for me, it applies most importantly to being a mom.

The potty training will pass, as will the endless questions, as will the spitting up.

But so will the quiet moments cuddling with a sleeping newborn, so will the morning smiles of an infant so happy to see me, so will the little arms that give such strong hugs, and so will the little voices that say, "I wuv you, Mom!"

Today, find a moment to stop and cherish before it slips away.

Is this the problem?

2011-07-27T08:39:00.000-07:00

I'm having such a hard time with weight loss. Or should I say weight gain? It's like someone is playing a joke on me.

I don't know how much of the problem is my mental attitude, but something occured to me the other day. I don't believe in myself.

Oh, I do in other areas, but I don't actually believe that I can do this. I don't believe I can get to my goal weight, I don't believe I can control my cravings, and I don't believe I could run a marathon or reach any other (even much smaller) goal that I set out to achieve.

What's the deal with that?

It definitely affects my motivation level. Of course it does! If I don't think I can do something, then why even try?

But how can you begin to believe in yourself?

Forgive me for being cynical, but every piece of advice that is out there is contradicted by something else. And I realize I'm getting older and I've had two kids and everything, so I shouldn't expect to eat like I always have and look the same as I did in high school. But I do not feel like my body and weight reflect my current eating habits. Something is not right. Maybe it's nursing not being nice to me this time around. And sorry for the TMI, but I haven't had a period since having Vanessa (and NO, I'm NOT pregnant, and YES, I AM sure), which I feel like is affecting me big time.

I'm really considering going to the doctor to ask if there is some problem. When I was pregnant, they gave me some thyroid medication because mine was slightly off (can't remember in which direction- hyper or hypo), so maybe that has something to do with it. But I don't currently have insurance, and I was hoping to keep it that way for a few more months at least.

I may just have to suck it up and pay for insurance and go see the doctor. I think I will ask Vanessa's doctor what she thinks at Vanessa's 6 month appointment, which is coming up in about 2-3 weeks. Maybe I'll see what kind of progress I can make in that time period.

Sounds like as good a plan as anything else. I'm off to the gym!

Top Ten Tuesday

2011-07-26T13:17:00.000-07:00

Time for another Top Ten list!

Coming off from my Maine trip, today's list will be:

Top Ten Foods to Eat in Maine!

10. Amato's

This is an Italian sandwich shop that sells much more than just delicious sandwiches. They sell pizza, pasta, and all things Italian, and they do it RIGHT. They took the place of a little restaurant I loved to eat at as a kid, but they won me over anyway. I had two meatball parmesan subs while in Maine this time, and they were the best I've ever had!

9. Whoopie Pies

A true Maine treat, this is two mini chocolate cakes held together by a creamy vanilla frosting in the center. Very tasty for chocolate cake lovers!

8. Wormwood's

This is a small family-owned restaurant that sits right on the water in Old Orchard Beach, which I don't think many people know about. I don't think the place has been redone since the 70s or earlier, but it's part of the charm. We go there for their out-of-this-world club sandwiches, which they make with sliced egg, and which they serve on their famous (to us) glass fish plates!

7. Mary's Cookies

I forgot about these until we were in a little restaurant in Kennebunkport (see #6), but they are these huge soft chocolate chip cookies that are to die for, and which are only sold in the Kennebunks. I think I had four while I was there!

6. Old Salt's Pantry/Aunt Marie's/Clam Shack

These three I'm lumping together, because they are all little counter restaurants in Kennebunkport, and we hit up all three for one meal. Aunt Marie's used to have the best cheeseburgers, which they no longer sell, but they are known for their freshly-squeezed lemonade, which is made with just the right balance of sweet/sour, and which I used to get on all my work breaks when I worked down there. Old Salt's has great sandwiches and breakfast items, and we got delicious grilled cheeses from them while we were there. The Clam Shack is the place to go for seafood!

5. Chunky's

It's known as Smitty's now, but it'll always be Chunky's to me. We didn't get a chance to go there this time, but it's a movie theatre/restaurant which has tables with super comfy individual seats (think captains' chairs from minivans). Their food is amazing, and who doesn't want to watch a movie with a full meal service?!

4. D'Angelos

Another sandwich shop that I love because they make a turkey and cranberry sauce sandwich that is so delicious. I got two while we were there. This is a chain that goes up and down the East coast, but isn't found in the west!

3. The Bagelry

This is actually in New Hampshire, and it is where I worked my first two years of college. They make their own bagels on site, and they are amazing. Even more amazing are the add-ons. I like to get a french toast bagel, toasted, with two servings of cheddar cheese (not melted), with crispy bacon, and "super cheese" sauce. I also like to get a salt bagel, toasted, with turkey, garlic and herb cream cheese, and two servings of cheddar cheese (not melted). I also love their cinnamon chip muffins, chocolate chip cookies, and tortellini salad. I got all of the above, minus the cookie, on our last day before coming home. I bit into the bacon and cheese bagel and said, this is breakfast in heaven, every day, for sure.

2. Pier Fries/Bill's Pizza

Two counter restaurants in downtown Old Orchard Beach- Pier Fries used to be located actually up on the pier, but now they are down on the main street. They sell fries by the cup, pint, or box, all day long, and they are best when completely doused in vinegar and covered in salt. Bill's is right next door, and they serve delicious New York style slices or whole pizzas.

1. Pizza by Alex

A family-owned restaurant in Biddeford, Maine, EVERYONE local knows and loves this place. We had it 3 or 4 times during the 8 days we were there! They use an old brick oven, take only cash, and serve only one size of pizza- small. But the pizza is to die for. Even Daniel, who has only had it a handful of times, says it is the best pizza in the entire world. My order of choice is extra pepperoni, which I don't get anywhere else, but it's a must-have at Alex's.

Do you like my name?!

2011-07-24T13:41:00.000-07:00

Okay, I'm asking for help here, so all of you lurkers (all 2 of you) are required to respond to this post!

I'm interested in blogging more, and eventhough I'm not looking to make much or any money from my blog, I am thinking about at least formatting it and acting as though it's a big deal, so that if it ever did catch on (even a little bit), I would be prepared for it.

For that reason, I'm thinking of purchasing a domain name, so that I wouldn't have to have the .blogspot in my URL. Domain names can be gotten pretty cheaply, but once they are taken, they are taken!

At this time, I CAN purchase www (dot) shapinguptobeamom (dot) com, but I don't know if I'm completely sold on the name of my blog.

I like that it's kind of a play on words- it references the fitness/weight loss part of the blog, which was its original concept, while also referring to anything that is part of a mom's life.

But is it too long? Not catchy enough?

Should I try to come up with a new name before getting a permanent domain?

Respond to this, or I'm coming after you! Alternate blog name suggestions are welcome, too!

Maine Trip

2011-07-22T14:31:00.000-07:00

This month, we traveled to Maine along with my parents and sister, for a glorious week on the beach in my hometown! I hadn't been home in over two years, and I probably won't be back for at least as long, so we filled the week to the brim with activities, family and friends, and delicious Maine food! Here is the week in pictures (many more on my facebook page)

Vanessa being difficult on the planeGetting Dunkin Donuts before exiting Logan AirportOur beach house Making the walk to the beach that I made for my whole childhood Carter with his great Auntie Bling-Bling Vanessa's first taste of Alex's Pizza Carter enjoying a true Maine treat: a whoopie pie! Vanessa enjoying the rocking bench on our porch Carter riding the rides at Palace Playland- he LOVED the trucks! Me and Daniel riding the Matterhorn, which we did back when we first met Holding hands PIER FRIES WITH VINEGAR The whole reason for the trip Candy store- not actually Canada Kids getting ready for bed before another fun day! Where Vanessa spent most of her time on the beach- in our shady canopy! Carter had so much fun in the sand and ocean! Dinner with family Touring a lighthouse- after our tour two years ago was canceled, we finally made it back! Climbing to the top View from the boat- could be a Maine postcard! My parents took Carter on the Downeaster train- a highlight for him! Fun in the sand! More fun on the rides We all fell asleep on Daddy on the long plane ride home!

Such a fun trip!

Thursday's Theatre Thing

2011-07-21T07:34:00.000-07:00

I want to blog more, so I've recently been looking around to see how other people set up their blogs (especially some of the more successful ones, though I'm not looking to make any money this way). Some of the bloggers write about certain things on certain days of the week, and I really like that idea.

I was hesitant to start, because it will be a big committment for me to write every day when I already feel stretched to my limit, but I'm going to try, even if I don't get to each topic each week.

I knew theatre would have to be one of my topics. It's my passion, my hobby, and my career, all at the same time (um, awesome?), and I right away thought of "Thursday's Theatre Thing" because I'll be writing about all kinds of different things related to theatre. Many of the blogs I read are by crafters- people who have a knack for creating beautiful things with their hands. I am not one of those people. I wish I was, and sometimes I think I should spend more time learning how to craft and cook and things like that. Then I remember, oh, those people aren't in rehearsal for hours and hours each week. I do different things with my time. So I will be writing on Thursdays about the thing I know and love- THEATRE!

So I'm going to kick off this Thing by just writing about my background in theatre. In other words, why you should listen to what I say! I do mostly musical theatre, so Thursday will include information about music and dance as well.

Sorry, this is going to be long! Feel free to skim!

Edit: This will be part 1- I am including way too many details!

When I was very little, I loved to sing. I sang all the time, and when I started elementary school (a Catholic school), I joined their choir as early as Kindergarten or 1st grade. I continued to sing in school choir throughout elementary and middle school. I attempted dance classes when I was 3, but we'll save that story for another post.

I always loved music, and theatre, and dance, but my first involvement in a production wasn't until 7th grade. One of the teachers who did theatre outside of school decided to direct a play version of A Tale of Two Cities. I auditioned and of course figured I had a chance at the lead role. And of course I didn't get it and was crushed! I was cast as one of the dancers in one scene that included a party dance section. I was totally appalled that I had auditioned to act in a play and all of a sudden I was an unnamed dancer in one scene! I told that director in no uncertain terms that I was not interested.

I don't remember how or why, but he must have realized how passionate I was about acting, because he asked me to be his assistant director. I accepted that role, and I remember running a couple of rehearsals and blocking a courthouse scene. Then, a role opened up that he hadn't cast (another small group of students was actually writing the script themselves, adapting it from the book), and he asked me to play the part. It was one of the witnesses in the court room scene, a slightly sleazy waitress (?) who continually said, "Dahhhling!" And that was my very first theatre role. We must have performed the play sometime near my birthday, because I remember my English class all saying, "Happy Birthday, Dahhhling!"

Then, in 8th grade, a couple of students wanted to direct A Christmas Carol, and I was cast as the Ghost of Christmas Past, which was one of the larger roles, so I was very pleased!

At that point, I had totally caught the theatre bug, and I wanted more! I took a drama class in school that year, but it was huge and filled with really outgoing, loud kids, so I kind of blended into the background. So that summer, before I started high school, I began to look at theatre opportunities outside of school.

I auditioned for a summer production of Oliver, which was being produced by a local theatre group called Seaglass Performing Arts. I didn't know it at the time, but the lady who ran the group and usually directed the shows was a complete terror. Had she directed the show, I might have never pursued theatre, but luckily she had hired a different director for Oliver. I was old enough to be cast in the adult ensemble, rather than being one of the kids, and it was a great first community theatre experience. The show was very professional, and it gave me a great introduction to how theatre should be done. I ended up playing the part of the milkmaid in "Who Will Buy" which was a great singing part, as well as being part of a short dancing foursome during one of the dance numbers (I have a picture- I will try to find it!), and I even got a speaking role at some point during the rehearsal process. I got to play a dying old lady and die onstage. It was integral to the plot. :)

Nearing the end of that show, I went to an audition for Wait Until Dark, at another theatre company, and got the only young role in that show. The character is supposed to be 9, I was 14, and we changed the line in the show to say that I was 12. Later on I found out that I was the only young person to audition for the show, but the director assured me I would have gotten the part anyway. At least that's what he said. This show was also a fantastic experience for me, as I learned more about acting, being onstage, and what goes into a production.

Then I started high school, and I was accepted into the audition-only choir, which helped to validate to me that I was actually a good singer. I didn't know whether I had a chance or not, but I sang in that group all four years of high school, and it was a huge part of my identity at the time. I had learned to read music in middle school, and then that teacher left during my 8th grade year, but I will forever be grateful to him for teaching me how to read music. He was replaced by the choir teacher who I then had throughout high school, who was a huge influence on my life and singing/performing career. Singing in the KHS Chamber Choir was definitely one of the best experiences of my life so far.

Some of my classmates made a fuss about how freshmen didn't usually get into the drama classes at the high school, so they then were accepted into the drama classes. I didn't make a fuss, so I didn't take any drama classes my freshman year. However, I did get cast in the musical, "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum," as one of the courtesans, and later more specifically as one of the Geminae. One of the other girls and I, once we dressed alike and wore the same makeup and jewelry, looked remarkably alike! It was a small part, but there were a lot of people who auditioned who were not cast, including one of my upperclassman friends who informed me that "freshmen get the small roles." My high school did two plays and a musical each year, and as a freshman I was not cast in either of the plays, much to my distress!

At that point, and probably earlier, I had made the decision that performing was what I wanted to do with my life, and that summer I auditioned for a summer stock theatre in Berwick, ME, called Hackmatack Playhouse. Working there changed my life forever.

To be continued...

Thanks for reading!

Vanessa- 5 months!

2011-07-19T19:40:00.000-07:00

Vanessa turned 5 months old on the 18th!

She also had her first solid food- rice cereal, so exciting!

It seems like Vanessa has grown up a lot lately!

She loves to smile and laugh at her big brother; she plays with her toys and is very good at grabbing objects (and bringing them to her mouth, of course).

She rolls back to front as soon as you put her down on her back, and she can scoot around in a 360 degree circle on her tummy.

She scoots back and forth a bit, which I haven't really seen her do, but if I put her in the middle of a blanket on the floor, she always ends up completely off it! I think she will be an early crawler. She's already getting her legs up under her and can get up very high on her hands and toes (at different times).

She gives me the biggest smiles in the morning when I go to get her, and she adores her Daddy.

She is getting more vocal with her babbling, with more of a variety of sounds, and she can blow raspberries.

Another development that we saw while on our trip to Maine was "object permanence." She was playing with a paper that my mom had, and when my mom took it away, she cried and squealed. As soon as my mom gave it back, she quieted right down! It was so cute!

Vanessa is just a joy! Such a good baby, and so fun to be around!

Reading!

2011-07-02T10:46:00.000-07:00

Carter is now reading! Yes, most of it is as a result of memorization, but he is definitely reading words. He learned his letters forever ago, and the ABCs is often his song of choice. Then he started learning letter sounds, with a lot of help from a dvd called Letter Factory.

From there, he started spelling out everything he saw, from stop signs to store fronts. "Der's ABCs on dere!"

Then he started "reading" some of his books, mostly by memorization and having the pictures for context.

The past couple of weeks I've been reading The Green Mile, and he kept wanting to spell all the words on the cover, and then he'd ask me, "What's that spell?" The title stuck with him, and he kept saying, "...your Green Mile book!"

So Daniel made him some flashcards with words like Mom, Dad, Cat, and Dog, and he just loved spelling them and saying the words. He started by just spelling them, and then I started asking him to just say the word without spelling, and he learned SO FAST!

From there, I tried spreading out all the cards and asking him to pick out certain ones, which he got right. Then I asked things like, "which card goes 'meow?'" He got all those right too!

And the thing is- he LOVES this! We wouldn't be pushy with him if he wasn't interested (he's not even 3 yet!), but yesterday he asked Daniel to make him some more cards, and Daniel said he would after his nap. So as soon as Carter got up he said, "You make me new cards, I got up!" Then he said, "Make me lots and lots of new ones!"

So Daniel has been adding a few each day, and each time he demonstrates what it means. So for "cold" he had Carter touch the freezer and spell the word and say the word. For "train" he used one of his toy trains.

Here are the words Carter can now successfully read:

Boy, Nap, Mud, Dog, Hot, Book, Bed, Carter, Red, Cup, Cat, Baby, Mom, Cold, Train, Toy, Dad, Blue, and Hat

So proud of my little reader!

Promoted!

2011-06-30T09:57:00.000-07:00

Well we are now in full swing rehearsals for Sweeney Todd! Daniel and I are both having a blast. He has been really lucky over the past three years to have performed in a string of quality shows, with decent to leading roles. I have been lucky as well, getting lots of working choreographing, but virtually no performing. It is very nice to be in a show with professionals! At one rehearsal I looked around and thought, "What is wrong right now? What feels off?" And the answer was- Everyone is really talented! So great to be a part of a talented, professional cast!

So far things are going great. I started out as choreographer (which is mostly just movement/staging, as there is very little actual dance in the show), and I've since been promoted to the title of Associate Director. The Director is a really sweet guy who is a good friend of ours now, and he said after realizing how much I was helping to form the show, he wanted to offer me that title. It will be rightly deserved, too, because he is a little (okay a lot) scatterbrained, so I'm doing a lot of the logistical work, organizing rehearsal schedules and making sure all the bit parts are cast, etc, in addition to a ton of artistic work with the ensemble and leads as well.

Here is the back of the ad cards that are going out:

I circled in red the part where I'm credited. Both of our names are above there, as well, as part of the ensemble.

Daniel, meanwhile, auditioned for and got the tenor part of the quintet in the show, was asked to sing tenor for the rest of the songs to help out that section, got a solo in one of the songs, and was asked to be the tenor section leader! Yeah, the choral director likes him. And rightly so. The choreographer/associate director likes him too. ;)

The show is going to be amazing; I'm really excited. I'm basically eating, sleeping, and breathing Sweeney Todd right now, and I couldn't be happier about that! The cast is made of up THE best performers in Tucson, and it's bringing together a lot of people who knew about each other but hadn't worked together yet, so now we're like one big happy family! Right?!

And on top of the fun we're having, it's a paid show! We are each getting paid to be in the ensemble, and I have yet to get my contract, but I will get paid as the associate director as well. It will probably even cover all the gas we're using to get to and from rehearsals!

In other news, we have 8 DAYS UNTIL MAINE! I'm really excited to go, but of course disappointed in my weight loss efforts. More about that in a different post, but let me briefly say that at this point, I think the best thing I could possibly do is go running each of those 8 days (or otherwise work out for about an hour a day), and drink water, water, water!

So 8 days, 2 work days, 3 rehearsals, 1 day of church... I. CANNOT. WAIT.

Crunch Time (literally)

2011-06-10T23:25:00.000-07:00

Sorry about that last post (the angry post, not the rolling post, that was cute)! I kind of had raging hormones for a couple of days there.

Anyway, I haven't been very strict with myself since the 27 days of no sugar, and I think I've gained back maybe 3 of the 8 pounds. Not the end of the world, but it's frustrating that instead of losing more, I have to lose what I already lost before losing more! It's hard to tell because my weight really does fluctuate a lot, but I definitely need to get back on track- a strict track.

I have been exercising more, so that's good. I need to keep that up and make sure I'm doing something every day; right now I'm doing about 35 minutes 2-3 times a week, and I need to up that to 5-6 times a week!

I have 27 days left until our Maine trip, and my goal between now and then is to lose 8 pounds. That'll be a total loss of 13 pounds since I started trying, which is pretty good for about three months. It'll also get me past my recent lowest weight and well into a new "tens" digit.

I can't weigh myself very often because my husband threw away my scale. One too many meltdowns on my end I guess. Anyway, it's probably good since my day-to-day weight isn't the best factor of how well I'm actually doing. More than anything, I'm going to be able to tell how I'm doing by how my clothes are fitting.

It's super frustrating that I can't get a hold on this. What's the secret? I don't mean the secret to weight loss. I have all the information and knowledge I need there. I need the secret to willpower, because I have none!

Well someone is succeeding!

2011-06-08T21:46:00.000-07:00

GIVING UP

2011-06-03T10:02:00.000-07:00

I am so angry, and so ready to give up. I lost eight pounds, which are slowly coming back! Yesterday I exercised for about 3 hours, and it didn't make a difference. This is impossible, and I hate it, and I'm so angry. I HATE the way I look, and I HATE trying to change it, and I HATE the fact that it doesn't even work.

I get puked on about 80 gajillion times a day, which means that if I'm wearing the one outfit I have that fits (note that I didn't say "looks good"), I no longer have anything to wear. Of course that's probably just because the laundry isn't done (because the laundry is NEVER done), and I probably didn't get around to that because the dishes are overflowing, and Carter probably just managed to say "mama" ten thousand times in two seconds, and it's pretty likely that both kids need diaper changes, and I'm about to explode over here.