Sandy, Schmandy

We survived Hurricane Sandy with nary a bump.  Despite all the dire predictions, it was really a non-event for us.  I know places like NYC and NJ were hit hard, but we didn't even lose any tree limbs.  It was a lot of rain and some wind and 2 days of school. The worst part about the whole thing is the silly dogs would NOT go outside unless I went with them.  So, each time they needed to go out, I had to suit up in my Frog Togs Hurricane outfit and march around outside in the rainy, cold, blustery yelling "Go Pee!" while they stood around looking at me like I was the idiot!  On the other hand,   I got a shit-load of scrapbooking done.  I was over a year behind which is UNHEARD of for me.  Now I'm up to this summer and our fabulous trip to Oklahoma.  Zack got all his homework done and caught up and John spent pretty much the whole time immersed in putting together the best fantasy football team.  I also finished all the post-remodel clean up and shopping except for the bathroom cabinets.  All-in-all a productive Hurricane for the Hyzy's. Now it's back to work and school like normal.

13 is my new lucky number!

I just finished doing another 3 day juice fast.  I'm getting to where I really like those things.  I figured after my belly bomb weekend with my dad, a juice cleanse was probably a good idea.  Get myself re-centered and back in the swing of things.  There really is something liberating about not having to eat anything.  When you get hungry it's time to drink a juice, you don't have to worry about what to eat, don't have to cook anything, don't have dishes to do.  There's no worrying about good choices or bad choices you just drink your damn juice!!  So, I got on the scale and Holy Weight Loss Batman... I am down 13lbs!  13 Freaking Pounds!  The scale said 120lbs and I about peed myself.  I don't think I've weighed 120 in forever!  Now granted, I'm sure I'll put a couple back on as soon as I started eating, but it's still pretty damn exciting!  I guess my little bouts of running really are helping out.  I'm stuck on 5 mins right now.  I can't seem to get past that point.  It's the damn side cramps that are killing me.  I've been repeating week 4 in the hopes that I can get the side cramps to ease up.  I don't want to proceed to running more if I can't run 5 mins consistently and now stupid Hurricane Sandy is "cramping" my style!  

Oh My God, I love my Tub!

TGBR is finally over, well the contractor part is over.  The cosmetic, pretties still need to be done.  Instead of spending the day preparing for Hurricane Sandy, I spent today picking out towels, rugs, shower curtains, hardware and even a mirror.  Today was about the 3rd day I've spent trying to find all I needed. If I'm going to be trapped in the house by a hurricane I better have a finished, pretty bathroom!  Repeated trips to and from Target, Bed, Bath and Beyond and Kohls, buying, returning and rebuying were the norm.  For now the buying is all done except for storage cabinets.  I can't find anything I like.  Everything that I've seen so far is white and white won't work.  I'm going to head out tomorrow unless Hurricane Sandy hits like they are predicting.

Shower curtain #1

Finally a mirror

Shower Curtain #2

It's hard to get a good picture 

I took my first bath in my fancy new bathtub and it was probably the best bath I've ever had.  My bathtub has arm rests and a magnificent sloping back so my dainty neck isn't strained!  Not only that, every part of my body was under the water, warm and toasty!























I did give in to the Hurricane Sandy fever and bought 3 cases of water and a four pack of adorable flashlights!  I only bought the water because, of course, our ice maker is on the fritz.  I'm sure my entire house is just plotting how to screw us over royally.  We just sunk every bit of our money into the bathroom, so I'm sure the ice maker is just the beginning of the Great Hyzy House Breakdown.  You know that's how it goes.  Spend all your savings and then suddenly the great breakdown begins...  But when that happens, at least I can take a nice bath!

Over the country and through the skies to Grandfather's house I went.

    I snuck off to Idaho last weekend and hung out with Dad.  It was great to just get away and do nothing.  They don't have WiFi or even a computer so it really was do nothing.  I could keep up to date with my fabulous iPhone, but nobody knew that, so it was my choice.  I must admit I did check in on Facebook at least once a day and I read all my emails, but I didn't answer even ONE!  Points for me.

     We started the visit off with a trip to Hall's Corner Bar where THE MOST AMAZING chili cheese dog lives!  I'm not sure you can truly appreciate the magnificence that is this chili dog.  It's got tons of chili, handfuls of cheese and sauerkraut!  I know, I know, one wouldn't think there would be a place for sauerkraut on a chili cheese dog....but...one would be WRONG!!  And if I'm being completely honest I actually think this dog is made up of THREE hotdogs!  So it's really a chili-cheese dog, dog, dog!  Ooohhh it's good!  I actually ate on it for 3 days and the leftovers were just as tasty!  So, first mission accomplished!  Despite gorging myself on red licorice, molasses cookies and jack in the box tacos, I did manage to walk and run on two days.  Although I must say I discovered that chili dogs, red licorice and molasses cookies are really not the best fuel for this running machine.  It was ROUGH!  The country up there is just beautiful, even with the fields all plowed over!  

It was most enjoyable, except for the one angry farmer who came outside on his porch and wanted to know "Why you taken pictures of my property?!"  I stood looking at him like a deer in the headlights I"m sure and squeaked out "I thought it was pretty....I'm just visiting my Dad."  He seemed okay with it and grumbled back into the house.  I wanted to yell "Paranoid much!" as I walked away but I restrained myself.  When I got home and told my Dad, he laughed and said, "That's old Marvin, he probably thought you were from the government!"  Sheesh!

    We ended up the visit with a trip to The Casino.  I've never actually been to a real casino before.  We've walked through them in Vegas and on our cruises, but it's really not my "thing,"  I can't see the point in feeding money into a machine where all you do is push a button.  There's no skill, there's no effort, there's nothing you can do to make the odds come out in your favor... it's all luck.  But my Dad was throwing money at me, I took a $20 and I came out of there with 8 cents!  My Dad won $335!  WTH!  I couldn't believe it.  Now, I'm not a Casino virgin anymore all thanks to my Dad!  I got in trouble for taking pictures in the Casino as well.  Took one, and the Casino police were all over me! I did sneak one out, but I'm probably in some "hold and detain" database now!  I'm not sure what it is that Idaho has against cameras, but tourists BEWARE!

All in all it was a great visit.  I'm always so happy to see my Dad, but at the same time it makes me very sad when I have to leave and I realize just how far apart we live.  The older I get the more I want to just gather all my loved ones close around me.  I worry about something happening to them or to me, I worry that I'm not going to see them enough or tell them how much I love them enough.  It's just a little bit sad.  I think my Dad feels the same way, he seemed very sad when I left and I just kept praying that no one would burst into tears because then we'd all go down!  As usual, I made the vow that we need to get together at least once a year and once a year is not nearly enough, but with the cost and the distance and our lives getting in the way we're lucky if we can do that.  It just sort of Sucks!  But I'm very happy for the time I did get to spend with him and we'll just keep doing the best that we can!  I love you Dad!

TGBR Update!

We're in week number 2 of The Great Bathroom Remodel.  It's all going very well if you don't mind the money hemorrhage that keeps flowing out of my purse, or the fact that if I don't make at least 2 trips to Lowe's or Home Depot per day it's not a complete day.

What is reassuring is that I love the tile and after much debate settled on Malted Milk for the paint and it's growing on me.  I like it more each day.  The closet is going to be awesome except for the fact that we forgot to budget for closet hardware, so as of right now it's just a big empty box.  I can't find a mirror or cabinet that I like, but that's not a critical problem yet.  It's like a treasure hunt every time I go into a store.  I must admit I'm a little bit tired of the dirt and the dust and the noise, but I think they are planning on being done tomorrow!  I want my house back to myself and clean!  I guess I know what I'll be doing all weekend!

New Recipe Night - Easy Tomato Soup - I actually cooked again!

I haven't been cooking for quite awhile so I decided to jump back on the bandwagon and make some real food finally.  It's just been a crazy couple of weeks.  It's not going to be any less crazy with The Great Bathroom Remodel going on, but if I use that as an excuse, then I won't be cooking for the next 2 months... Hmmm... actually I might be on to something there.

Easy Tomato Soup and Grilled Cheese Croutons

3 Tbsp olive oil

3 cups yellow onions, chopped ( I did not use near this much)

1 Tbsp minced garlic

4 cups chicken stock

1- 28oz can crushed tomatoes

large pinch of saffron threads

salt and fresh ground pepper

                                                        1/2 cup orzo

                                                      1/2 cup heavy cream

1. In a large pot, heat the olive oil over med heat.  Add the onions and cook until golden brown, add garlic and cook 1 minute more.  Stir in the chicken stock, tomatoes, saffron, 1 Tbsp salt, 1 tsp pepper.  Bring the soup to a boil and simmer for 15 minutes.

2.  Meanwhile, Cook orzo for 7 minutes (it will finish cooking in the soup).  Drain the orzo and add to the soup.  Stir in the cream, return the soup to a simmer and cook for 10 more minutes.

3.  Serve hot with Grilled Cheese croutons scattered on top.

Grilled Cheese Croutons

4 - 1/2 inch thick slices of country white bread

2 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted

4 oz Gruyere cheese, grated (used swiss w/a little cheddar)

1.  Heat panini grill or skillet.  Lightly brush four slices of bread with melted butter.  Spread Gruyere cheese mixture on slices of bread.  Grill until nicely browned.  Place on cutting board and allow to sit for 1 minute and cut into 1-inch cubes.  I also sliced some - to use as dipping sticks.

All in all, a very successful foray back into cooking.  Even the Zackman "ate" it.  He of course ate the grilled cheese.  He "liked" the soup, but mainly he just dipped his grilled cheese in the soup.  I don't think an actual spoonful of anything made it into his mouth... baby steps!

The Great Bathroom Remodel (TGBR) has begun!

Oh the banging, pounding, sounds of things falling and foul language that fill the air!  And that's just me doing the laundry!  TGBR has begun in earnest.  The dogs are completely discombobulated.  They can't settle down, they follow me everywhere and every time one of the workers comes into the house the cacophony of barking is ear-splitting. And I mean every time... carry out a bag of trash - barking, go out for a smoke break - barking, pick up a tool from the truck - barking, all 1500 trips to carry the demo trash out - barking, barking and more barking!  I keep yelling "it's the same people, it's the same people."  But for some reason, they don't seem to get it!  I spent the morning sterilizing Zack's bathroom since we'll all be sharing it for the next month or so.  Nothing really as gross as a teenage boys bathroom, unless it's a bathroom he shares with his older sister who flings mascara and makeup all over it!  But that baby is CLEAN now!  I can tell this is going to be challenging for me because there is dry-wall, tile pieces, dust and dirt showering down everywhere and I tend to want to get the vacuum out every time I go up the stairs, but that would be a colossal waste of time that could be better spent on Facebook, so I'm restraining myself!  The worst part of TGBR... doesn't look like I'm going to get 3 o'clock naptime any time soon!  Here are the beginning of TGBR pics....

looking through what use to be the closet

Cutting the wall down

No more sinks or mirror

There goes the tile

3 minutes may not seem like much to you, but it's my version of a marathon!

        I just finished my 3rd week doing my 5K trainer program.  It's 8 weeks from couch to 5K and for someone like me it's going to take at least 8 weeks to be able to run a 5K.  As a matter of fact when I look ahead and see that I'm supposed to be able to run for 35 minutes at the end of this program - I want to panic!  35 MINUTES!  I can hardly sit through a 35 minute TV program without getting bored and these people want me to RUN for 35 mins!!  Seems daunting and impossible!  So, I'm going to focus on the present.  I just finished week 3 which is the longest I've ever kept up any kind of running program.  Not that I've even attempted many running programs.  Today I ran for 3 minutes straight.  Go  ahead and laugh if you want to, but I am totally thrilled!  3 minutes and it wasn't even that hard, except the one uphill part!  I've been trying to time my runs so that I'm either on flat ground or going downhill, but occasionally a hill sneaks in and I want to die.  This time I kept going.  Zoey is hanging with me pretty well also.  She and I both feel the same way about running, at least that's how I interpret the looks she gives me when I say "Okay, Let's Go."  But, we're sticking with it and while I don't want to jinx myself, but I almost want to say I'm enjoying it.  I "almost" look forward to the run part of our walk.  Of course it helps that the weather has been beautiful and any excuse to be outside is a good one.   For now we'll keep on running...

Some say remodeling is just another way to say divorce proceedings... I guess time will tell...

The Great Bathroom Remodel 2012 is 2 days away.  John got a very nice little bonus from Spectrum for opening his clinics on time and under budget so we decided to stop talking and actually get the master bath taken care of.  It was the only thing about the house we HATED when we move in.  So, 6 years we're finally getting around to doing something about it.  I am very much looking forward to having a walk-in closet, but sad to be losing our double sinks.  Overall I think it will be awesome, but it's the process I am not a fan of.  Anyone who knows me, knows that I don't like change and I don't make decisions well.   We're replacing everything.  Sink, toliet, tub, mirrors, tile, paint and on and on and on.  It all has to be discussed, looked out, debated, chosen, ordered and lived with.  None of which I'm very good at.  When presented with too many choices I tend to want to cover my ears, curl into a fetal ball and begin humming to myself.  For the most part it's been an okay experience.  I'm really good at telling John what I don't like and he's really good at making decisions.  So, we've picked out tile, a vanity, toliet and bathtub... I just hope I like everything when it's here and in.  I'm so not good at imagining what something is going to look like out of the box and in my house.  I guess we'll just wait and see.  Here are the before pictures and hopefully in the not to distant future the stunning after pictures will be ready!

View from the bedroom

Hateful cabinets and sinks

Old tile

Most hated closet

Family Weekend 2012

She loves her pups

     Seems like every time I turn around another week has slipped through my fingers.  Everyday I sit down and I think "I need to blog" but by the time I slow down and get a minute I'm exhausted and the last thing I want to do is stare at the computer.  But, if I don't "just do it" I probably never will.  It's just been busy with the minutae of life!

B's apartment

    Last weekend, Zack and I and the dogs headed down to Radford for Family Weekend.  John was in Canada fishing with Markie so he missed out on all the fun.  We had a very nice time.  As always I think Brenna was more excited by the dogs than us, but what are you gonna do.  She has settled in very nicely at her apartment.  No drama with the roommates and they've bonded with most of the apartments in their building.  They all do lots of stuff together and seem to be having lots of fun!  Probably a little too much fun judging by the number of bottles that line their kitchen.  I just tried to keep my eyes averted when I went in the kitchen.  We didn't do much, just hung out and enjoyed being together.  We did get to go see some of her Labs and that was fun.  She's got a Zoology project that involves catching, killing and pining bugs to a display case.  She was very excited show us all her stuff.

 

Genetics lab

More genetics

Zoology lab - pining bugs

I love it, when the kids finally get along and like each other!  It warms a mommy's heart!  We went to see a hypnotist show, that was totally lame and fake!  It was a little embarrassing.  All in all, it was just nice to see how well our girl is settling in.  I just can't say enough times how proud and amazed I am by all she is doing and becoming.  All those middle school years and early high school years that we despaired that she'd become anything except a sociopath and now look at her!  It's lots of fun to see her, but it just makes me miss her more when we leave.  But, I'm so proud of her, that at least when we go I don't have to worry about her.  I'm just a little sad.

All those years I spent telling them to "pretend you are an only child!  Pretend you can't see or hear your brother/sister.'  Now look at them.  Brenna smothered Zack almost as much as she smothered the dogs. I guess something went right.