The Sopranos?

No, the Sopranos weren't in town. (Disappointed?) Just Cool Breeze (on the right) and my BIL. They clean up nice, don't they?


This photo was taken after my grandmother's funeral. I believe it was the last time we were all gathered at my grandparents' farm. The only good thing about a funeral is getting to see the men dressed up in their big boy clothes:) And maybe the food.

I have three friends who lost their fathers this week. Please keep them in your prayers.

License Alert

A friend sent this to me via email last week. Scary!


Check your driver's license.I definitely removed mine...I suggest you all do the same.. Now you can see anyone's driver's license on the Internet, including your own! I just searched for mine and there it was...picture and all!Thanks Homeland Security! Go to the web site and check it out. Just enter your name, city and state to see if yours is on file. After your license comes on screen, click the box marked "Please remove." This will remove it from public viewing, but not from law enforcement. Please notify all of your friends so they can protect themselves too.http://www.license.shorturl.com/

Fat Tuesday

Despite what you may think after reading the title of today's post, this is not another round of the Blogger Butt Smackdown! I just want to wish you all a HAPPY MARDI GRAS!!

I thought it would be fun to have a little impromptu party at Casa de Envy to celebrate. The first thing you need to do is find a mask.




Mask photo compliments of www.rapides.k12.la.us/chapmanm/Mardi%20Gras%2...
Next, you need to round up some mardi gras beads....flashing is discouraged. HEY! Don't fuss at me! It's my party, and I'm allowed to make up the rules!!!

Bead photo compliments of blogs.menupages.com/boston/Mardi%20Gras.jpg

Cake photo compliments of www.andreasrecipes.com

Now that you are wearing your mask and beads, grab your favorite beverage. Make sure it goes well with a nice slice of King Cake!! Or not.... Just make sure you have a drink in your hand, because I'd like to propose a toast:

CHEERS to you my friends! Laissez les bons temps rouler!

Let me know if you will need to spend the night......these parties can go REALLY late.

South Beach - Week 8

I want to apologize to you all for being M.I.A. this past week. Snow White picked up a nasty stomach virus, my Great Uncle Paul passed away (he was in a class all by himself:) ), and I feel like I've been running a day late and a dollar short since last Monday. WHEW!



The weekend certainly helped make up for the chaos of last week. Friday night, Cool Breeze and I went out to dinner with Mom x 2 and her hubby, and another awesome friend and her hubby. The restaurant of choice? 3 Monkeys! Was it a coincidence that all THREE of our men were celebrating birthdays? I think not. Heehee! We went to a local joint after leaving the restaurant, but that freak-fest requires its own post...later in the week!



Now, back to our coverage of the Blogger Butt Smackdown. Are you still with me? Am I still with me? I have neglected my exercise routine to the point of embarrassment. I have not stepped foot into the gym for two weeks.....and it shows. Since I do not own a set of scales, I have no idea where my weight is.....BUT, if I gauge it strictly by the way my clothes feel, I'd guess that I have undone all of my previous progress:( DARN!



This week, I am RECOMMITTING to exercising a minimum of three times per week. Hold. Me. Accountable. If I don't do it...FUSS AT ME!! I'm not as hard on myself as I should be, and I WILL regret it when the weather turns warm.



I have done pretty well with the healthy food aspect of this diet. I've had a few cookies, and some pudding, but most days I have no trouble sticking to the good stuff:) I believe this is probably the reason why I don't already weigh more than Cool Breeze....I don't have much of a sweet tooth, and I LIKE healthy foods....always have.



Bottom line (no pun intended! Well, maybe!) is that I HAVE TO EXERCISE OR I WILL GAIN WEIGHT. PERIOD. I keep hoping that my pre-pubescent metabolism will return from a thirty-year hiatus, but it doesn't look promising. I'll just have to take matters into my own hands, and fight my fat the good, old-fashioned way...in the gym:/

BHE Needs...

I found this cute activity on Facebook. Google your first name and the word 'needs'....for example....'BHE needs'. List the first ten things that show up. Here goes:



-BHE needs an agent to become an actress.

That's the REAL reason I'm trying to lose weight. Bwahaha!

-BHE needs food, badly.

Turkey on whole wheat for lunch. YUMMY!

-BHE needs to get her act together.

Can't argue with that one!

-BHE needs some self-esteem and self-love.

I'm not THAT pathetic! Maybe.

-She only has 1 3/4 cup of butter, but BHE needs to triple it.

1 3/4 cups of butter + one large loaf of crusty bread = 17 hours on the elliptical

-BHE needs a family who will access and work with a therapist.

Hear that Cool Breeze? I've finally lost it.

-BHE needs a nap.

Yep.

-BHE needs a vacation.

Double Yep! Preferably somewhere WARM!

-BHE needs to receive both emotional and substance counseling.

Does anyone else notice the disturbing pattern here?

-BHE needs guidance.

Take me to your leader....




Just for fun, I Googled Cool Breeze as well!



-CB needs nude models. Wait. WHAT?

-CB needs one of these. I can't even imagine.

-CB needs you when he comes home. I hope so!

-CB needs to punish himself. Wouldn't it be more fun if I punished him??

-CB needs a real serious butt-chewing. Wonder what he did.

-CB needs more sleep. And less cereal before bedtime.

-CB needs a change of style. Nah! He's pretty darn stylish.

-CB needs help drinking vino. Well now. I WONDER who could help him with THAT!

-CB needs a ride. Anytime:)

-CB needs help from The Oregonian. Say WHAT?

Feel free to use this. I'm too darn tired to tag anyone. Lucky you:)

South Beach - Week 7

After almost two months of Smacking Down the Blogger Butt, are you all ready to start searching for that perfect bathing suit? Me either, but let's give it a whirl, shall we?



About ten years ago, we vacationed with another family on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. I REALLY liked my girlfriend's bathing suit, and asked her where she had purchased it. She told me it came from Lands' End, and gave me her catalog to take home.



I ordered one of the swimsuits as soon as I returned home, and anxiously awaited its arrival. It did not disappoint. The sides didn't ride up, the top didn't sag, and it looked brand new after countless hours in the sun and hundreds of washings.



Every summer since then, I have ordered at least one suit from Lands' End. Of course, each year I have covered up more and more, but there is always a suit available that looks stylish AND covers what shouldn't see the light of day!



I have recommended these suits to family and friends, and have never heard a single complaint! Take a few minutes to check out their on-line catalog. (Just click one of the links on this post.) You'll be SO glad that you did:)

Q & A

www.huje.co.uk/.../huje/decor/question-mark.jpg

It's been a long, crazy week. I have nothing funny, witty, pathetic OR sad to post about today.

Ask me a question. I will answer in the comment section. Keep in mind that I reserve the right to plead the fifth!

Have a WONDERFUL weekend:)

6 + 8 = 14

Nadya Suleman, a single mother of six, recently gave birth to octuplets.

I'd like to know what thoughts have crossed your mind while watching the news coverage.

There are no right or wrong answers, Class. I just want to know what you think.

BHE

I'm Bringin' Fresca Back!

I never was a fan of Tab...







But Fresca was a different story...




With apologies to Justin Timberlake....."I'm bringin' Fresca back. Yeah! Those other sodas don't know how to act. Yeah!" (You get the idea:/) Stop laughing. Snow White is the singer in the family, not me.



I have been a Diet Coke fanatic for years, and I never thought anything else would even compare. Well, it now seems that little Miss Fresca is running a close second....

South Beach - Week 6

Copyright © djart/0012/ImageEnvision.com

Welcome to Week 6 of the Blogger Butt Smackdown diet challenge! Are you still with me? I hope so:)

I told you last week that I was struggling with some unhealthy cravings. Well, I gave in...just enough to keep the craving monster at bay! CB and I went out to eat twice over the weekend. Friday night, I ate one bite of garlic bread (best. bite. ever.) and a small amount of angel hair pasta, along with my salad and grilled salmon. Saturday night, I ate two small red potatoes with my 4 oz. steak and broccoli. I also ate a bite of Snow White's dessert - some sort of triple chocolate cake devil!!! Amazingly enough, I am now back on track, and thrilled to be eating my healthy stuff again:) It didn't take OVERindulging to satisfy me. (That's a relief.)

The weather in Virginia has been BEAUTIFUL the past few days! Warmer temperatures force me to realize that bathing suit season is not too far away....which is the kick in the pants I need to stick with this weight-loss program. The warmer temps also remind me that the Virginia Blog Fest will be here before we know it! Go over and get registered if you haven't done so already!!! The photo at the top of the page illustrates just ONE of the many fun activities being planned. The blonde in the front? That's Chesapeake Bay Woman...our fearless leader:)

Have a fabulous Monday!

Love, BHE

The Bean

Sure. She looks all cute and innocent, but don't let THAT fool you.

The Bean (names have been changed to protect the guilty) is really an Evil Sleep Saboteur (ESS). She goes to bed at night like a good kitty, but around 3 a.m., she morphs into an ESS and emerges from the dark recesses of Snow White's room. The ESS stealthily enters my room, and begins to claw at the side of the mattress. Quietly at first, then with reckless abandon. If she is unable to rouse me from my slumber, she will find a plastic bag to shred, or she will simply begin to FLING HERSELF against the closet door. (We would be in BIG trouble if she had opposable thumbs) As I struggle to get to my feet, she rushes to the door to be let out - finally free to pee, hunt, or whatever it is that she does out there.

Now, in the summertime, she will remain outdoors indefinitely. She will lounge by the pool, climb the dogwood tree, and deliver decapitated vermin to the porch. In fact, she has so much fun out there, that I have to coax her inside on balmy mornings before I leave for work.

Evidently, 15 degrees does NOT constitute "balmy" in her book. Just as I begin to fall back asleep, the ESS will begin attempting to open the outside door. She will jump up and wrap her paws around the doorknob while FLINGING HERSELF against the door. Just in case we hadn't already heard the commotion. (Remember the thumb thing?)

Once again, I roll out of bed and stumble to open the door. The ESS immediately heads to her food bowl for nourishment. She needs as much energy as possible to begin Phase II of her Master Plan. Phase II is comprised of a number of random acts of violence that will ensure that I am unable to fall asleep - for at least two hours. For example: scratching the sofa, chasing her tail, doing somersaults while chasing her tail, tearing up random scraps of paper in Snow White's room (homework), and biting the ends off of CB's boot laces. This madness ensued about two weeks ago, and I am SO over it! If I am going to walk around sleep-deprived, I'd like for it to at least involve some sort of overindulgence.

The winter has obviously been too long, and too cold for The Bean. If she doesn't get some outside time soon, I may NEVER be able to rid my home of the ESS. It's supposed to be in the 60's here this weekend. Keep your fingers crossed!

South Beach - Week 5

Week Five of the Blogger Butt Smackdown is in full swing! How is everyone doing?? I've read your blogs, and I KNOW that there is A LOT of weight being lost out there in the blogosphere! Whether it means losing inches or pounds, it seems that all of the participants are making progress. YAY!!

I haven't been on the scales for two weeks, but there are some subtle signs that my weight is continuing to drop. Last Sunday, we were getting ready to head over to Mom x 2's house for the annual Superbowl party. Both pairs of my "fat jeans" were in the dirty clothes, so I grabbed my "skinny jeans" out of the closet. ( Around the end of December, I had attempted to wedge myself into these particular jeans. I. Could. Not. Breathe. ) Much to my surprise, they fit!!! I was even able to bend over without turning purple from lack of oxygen! It was a GREAT day:)

There is one thing with which I am beginning to struggle. Cravings. Keep in mind that I really do enjoy all of the healthy foods that I have been devouring for the past month. However, I'm starting to crave carbs. Bad carbs. You know, pizza, burgers, fries....all of the things that made me overweight to begin with? I feel just like a little kid who wants to hide in the pantry and scarf down a dozen chocolate donuts before anyone notices:/

I've thought about giving in to these cravings on a small scale, but I'm afraid it will lead to bouts of overindulgence and rationalization. Why would I want to do something that will set me back?

Tell me about your BBS progress, and tell me what you are doing to stave off the cravings. What are you craving? What healthy foods are you substituting for the old, fatty ones? Is there a way to make lasagna a "good for you" food?

Talk to me...

17

My baby is seventeen years old today. Having her has taught me unconditional love, and has brought me immeasurable joy.


She can light up a room - even when she is modeling a dress made of wallpaper and magnolia leaves.




She is beautiful....inside and out.



Happy Birthday, Boo Boo! I love you:)

Virginia Blog Fest '09

Mark your calendars for Virginia Blog Fest '09 - July 16 - 19 in beautiful Mathews County, VA!!!

Once again, the Blogger Butt Smackdown update has been interrupted in order for me to bring you a special message: We're having a party, and you're invited!!!

Curious? Head over to Chesapeake Bay Woman's site for the details. Over the weekend, she was a productive event organizer. I, on the other hand, moved furniture, ate oysters and made copious quantities of chili. Obviously, I have some catching up to do......

Make plans NOW to join us for an opportunity to FINALLY meet your friends who live in the computer!! Cookouts, boat rides, and maybe even a few history lessons await your arrival! You don't want to miss out on the fun:)

The Blogger Butt Smackdown update will resume tomorrow. I can't wait to hear about your progress:)