365 {9.30.11}

It has been one very busy day!!
I wrapped up final details in the office, enjoyed a good-bye lunch with my work peeps, and good-bye dessert with some church peeps!!

Tonight we got together over froyo to see our friend Richard before he leaves tomorrow, for Missouri (which is so weird because the doctor I work for is also moving to Missouri!!),  as he starts a new beginning in the military~I heard a lot about Missouri today, LOL)!! 



Good Luck Richard!!!

365 {9.29.11}

Every end is a new beginning! 
I have mentioned before that the office I have worked in for 9 years is closing on September 30th, which is TOMORROW!!  Today I pulled charts for the VERY last time!! 


The last couple of months have been really surreal; especially leading up to this final week.  I am amazed at the outpouring of love and appreciation that the patients have shown all of us!!  Of course they are sad that their doctor is moving away, but surprisingly they are also sad that they won't have us (Ashley, Josh and myself), to assist them anymore.  We have gotten so many nice comments, cards and gifts that it makes me really thankful to have touched these people in a special way, (a smile, taking some extra time on the phone, listening, even when I wasn't in the mood!!!).  I try to live my life by the golden rule "treat others as you would like to be treated."  I guess I write this to say, you never know who's life you are touching, so make sure you treat everyone with respect and kindness!! 

Ashley and Josh have gotten new jobs~HOORAY!!   I will continue to work until the end of November to assist patients with record transfers and billing issues.   I have a few things in the works, and I am excited to see what my "new beginning" will look like!!

365 {9.28.11}

Last night I dropped my truck off at the garage because the "check engine" light has been  on *boo* for over a week.  Mike replaced a few parts, but it was still runny badly!!  So we bit the bullet and brought it to the shop.  Luckily it was a $100 fix (gotta love that!!  usually it is $500+). 
Mike called me today at 11:30 and said it was ready to be picked up.  I could walk, or take the Alex Bus over to the shop.  I decided that since Josh comes home for lunch, I would just hitch a ride with him when he goes back into work~on his scooter. 

Of course my brain was thinking POTD (photo of the day)!!  My original plan was to take a photo of both of us on the scooter (I had my tripod and remote all ready to go), but for some reason, Josh was not "down" with that, LOL!! 

Why wouldn't a 22 year old boy want to take a photo with his mommy hugging him on his scooter??  I don't know either, *wink*

So Josh took a photo of me!  And he MADE me wear a helmet (safety first!).



And it is so nice to drive my truck and not stall at the stop lights anymore!!

365 {9.27.11}

I got a phone call from Josh on my way home from work, he wanted to know what I was making for dinner (a question he asks me EVERY day, LOL!).  I told him either grilled chicken or lemon chicken (I knew what was coming next)...

"Mom, make the lemon chicken!!!"  This meal is usually requested by Josh for his birthday or any occasion when he gets to pick the meal. 


It is pretty yummy if I do say so myself!!  Josh was a happy camper tonight!

The recipe is HERE!

365 {9.26.11}

Today while I was checking out FB, a few of my friends mentioned how to enable the NEW Facebook timeline~I was curious, so I went through the 8 steps to enable it, you can get them HERE.  I have to say, even though I do not know where anything is, LOL!!  I like the design and the new timeline!! 



*if you don't have the new profile yet~my profile will still appear as the old format, until everyone changes, which I think is 10/3.  but if you enable the new format, anyone who also has the new format will be able to view it in the new version.

365 {9.25.11}

Dumped my weekly iPhone photos onto my computer :)



Here is my weekly phone dump:  (from left to right)

*  My favorite brown sandals broke at work *sad face*
*  Wondering if my hubby gets tired of seeing me in jean shorts and tank tops (my uniform), LOL!!
*  Still LOVING my new washer & dryer!!!
*  Crazy Pete eyeballing me
*  Posting insurance payments at work
*  So happy the apples are back in season (they are nothing like the ones from Woodstock!!)
*  Date lunch with my hubs!
*  Saturday morning coffee
*  Church program (currently learning to be BOLD)

Linking up to...

365 {9.24.11}

Mike is at the church tonight helping out with a youth function, so I went grocery shopping (my least favorite job!! glad it is done!),  and while I was there, I picked this up for dinner...


I call it Sushi Saturday!!  (and yes I ate two before snapping the photo, cause I was hungry!).

I put my groceries away and sat down with my dinner, while I checked my email/Facebook.  Kodi of course was sitting right next to me hoping for a few bites (don't worry~I gave him 3~YES he is spoiled!!). 

I really do not know when my Saturday nights became so darn exciting?!

365 {9.23.11}

When I first got my DSLR camera, my family was not as excited about all the picture snapping as I was (but I was determined to learn!!).  Luckily I have 4 pets, who, for the most part, do not mind getting their photo taken one bit!! 

I had to grab my camera today when I saw Crazy Pete laying on the landing in some really nice lighting (I am always looking for nice lighting!!)...brought back lots of camera learning memories.
Thanks Crazy Pete!!!

365 {9.21.11}

I have not walked Kodi all week, because of my schedule, (it is too dark by the time we are finished with dinner).  Luckily tonight I was able to take him~we both have missed it!!  The sky was extra pretty tonight when we walked through the park at 6:45 p.m. and the temps are cooling down and it was so WONDERFUL!!

365 {9.20.11}

Today I worked a 10 hour shift~so when I got home after 5:30, I did not feel like making dinner~I went for my old standby~grilled cheese & tomato soup!!  This is such a comforting meal for me!!  YUM!! 



*I use my George Foreman grill for my grilled cheese sandwiches, it makes them EXTRA YUMMY!!  Just like a panini.

365 {9.18.11}

My weekly photo dump :)



From Left to Right:
The "check engine" light came on in my truck this week *boo*
The empty bag of Tootsie Rolls at work
my eye, LOL!
Charts at work (which I will miss, 2 more weeks until my office closes~crazy!!)
My favorite cup (filled with Crystal Light Raspberry Lemonade)
Trip to Auto Zone to figure out what is wrong with my truck (my awesome hubby will fix it for me).
Yummy Pizza Mike and I had on our trip to Old Town Scottsdale
I ate 2 pieces (an skipped my weigh in on Saturday, LOL!)
my NEW iPhone case~LOVE it!!!

365 {9.17.11}

It has been a few days since I have done a Kodi photo *wink.*



Today Kodi, Josh and I had a fun game of catch in the living room.  Kodi had a blast~this is his favorite ball (it is a little worn out!!).  I was happy to put off my to-do list to play with that cute doggie and Joshie!! 



I am getting to be quite the procrastinator, I blame Kodi, LOL!!

365 {9.16.11}

Today Mike and I had a date "day" (as opposed to date night).  Since it is mid September, I have been thinking ahead for our annual Clark/Worthington Christmas Photo shoot.  I had a few places that I wanted to check out~so Mike and I decided to make a date of it.
Mike always takes good care of my vehicle~safety first!!  Checking the air in the tires.


We drove to Old Town Scottsdale~which I love!!  So many neat things to look at!!



This reminded me of Kodi...


Not sure what type of plant this is, but it looked neat!!


We even saw some ducks :)


I cannot resist posing with some random lawn art!! 



And my hubby is the best!!  He always holds my purse for me while I am snapping photos (LOVE him).



We ate lunch at a YUMMY Pizza place, but I took photos of that with my iPhone (will probably be included in my weekly photo dump this weekend).

It was a fun day!!  And I think I found our photo "spot", I emailed a  photo to the kids for their opinion, LOL!

Our last stop was a cute little gelato place (I think I am going to skip my WW weigh in tomorrow~for reals!!).  We both decided on espresso chip (it was really hard to make a decision!!). 



Check out all those flavors!



Such a fun day with my one of my favorite peeps!!

365 {9.15.11}

My Thursday POTD (photo of the day) is a little late, LOL!!  Yesterday I worked an 11 hour day, so when I got home, I made dinner, and Mike twisted my arm to watch a movie with him (there really wasn't too much twisting involved!!).  We watched Secretariat and it was a really good movie!!  By that time it was almost 10 pm and I was too tired to update the old blog!


So here it is...
Living with 2 boys this is something I find more often than I would prefer *wink*

365 {9.14.11}

Today I had lots of stuff to accomplish, but for some reason my motivation is somewhere else!!  I did however, make it to the post office to mail a package to my friend Anja in Germany.  She asked me to order something in the states for her and ship it~I was happy to help a girl out!!  I decided to write out a few letters while I was making the trip to the post office :)



And while I was taking my POTD (photo of the day), I spied a cute doggie taking a nap!!

365 {9.13.11}

Have you heard of Pinterest??  It is an AWESOME website that is a virtual pin board~it is FULL of EYE CANDY!!  There is so much to look at, and so little time!!  Tonight it is rainy and dark, and sorta feels like winter here in AZ (even though it is 90 degrees outside, LOL!).  I am browsing and pinning and enjoying some time wasting!! 



If you want an invite just leave me a comment with your email address :)  I will be happy to enable hook you up!!

365 {9.12.11}

I know I say it a lot, but I LOVE my iPhone!!  On my way to work, when I am stopped at traffic lights, I check my email, Facebook, or snap a photo (I am quite a multi-tasker!!). 
While waiting  (forever!!!) for the light to turn green on my way to work this morning~I thought I would snap a photo and send it to my hubby (I do this quite a bit, no surprise there, I bet, LOL!!).  Does anyone else do this crazy stuff??

I got a little busy at work this morning, then was preoccupied with other stuff and totally forgot to send it to him...

So here ya go Mike~this is me driving to work thinking about YOU :) 

365 {9.11.11}

Here is my weekly photo dump~I seriously LOVE my iPhone!!  Just some random shots from throughout my week.



from left to right:
worked on statements at work this week
found a mushroom on my walk
Kodi checking out the bunnies on our walk
home sweet home (my favorite place to be!!)
snack (which I should NOT have bought~they are addicting!!)
dentist appointment
me with my clean chompers
date night in
my Sunday indulgence (after I ordered I realized that pumpkin spice is back~getting that next week!!)

365 {9.9.11}

Today I had my "every 6 month" dental appointment~am I the only one that gets excited that you get to go home with some goodies?? 



I have one small cavity, and an old silver filling that needs to be replaced~so it looks like I will be going back before my usual six months :(

365 {9.8.11}

Tonight Josh and I took Kodi to the Bark Park~He loves running free and playing with the other dogs.  He sat on my lap in the car on the way over and the way home from the bark park~I don't think that doggie is at all spoiled~do you???

The photo is blurry, since it was pretty dark and the lighting at the park was terrible~but that's all I got for today :)

365 {9.7.11}

I mentioned in a previous post, that the office that I work at is closing at the end of this month (I have until the end of November).  I have worked there for 9 years and it is kind of bitter sweet.  I really do enjoy the job that I do there, but sometimes change is a good thing, right?

Today I had my first interview.  It has been quite a while since I have been the interviewee (I was usually the interviewer).  I wasn't really too nervous, I had extra copies of my resumes (which were requested), and I checked with my fashion consultant, A.K.A. Ashley, regarding my attire.  When I arrived (which was 25 min early), I was interviewed by 3 people that were probably the ages of Josh, Ashley and Nate~now that made me feel a little OLD, ha ha!!  Boy, things have changed~now I sound like my mom *wink*





I think the interview went well~I will hopefully know in a few days :)  I will keep you posted!!

365 {9.6.11}

Today I enjoyed seeing my friends back east posting on Facebook about their kids going back to school and the arrival of fall. 

When you live in Arizona~fall comes much, much later than September 6th.  Today in Phoenix it was 107 degrees and the kids here have been in school for almost a month now. 

But today I put our dinner in the crock pot and lit my favorite candle, that I purchased at The Christmas Barn on one of my visits back home to Connecticut.



Inside the house it is 78 degrees, we enjoyed Apricot Pork Roast for dinner and it smelled like Cinnamon Apple~pure bliss, for a moment. 
Happy Fall!!

{365} 9.5.11

This was supposed to be yesterday's post, but my camera's battery pack died and needed to be recharged for me to upload my pic's.

Yesterday Ashley and my friend Cindy came over to make our own laundry soap (we are so domesticated!!).  I came across this recipe on THIS blog.  I was a little leery about it, because I LOVE the smell of Tide~but $20 to make the batch and it lasted 9 months (family of 4), I was all over that savings!!!

I used it this morning and I was delightfully surprised with the light clean scent, and it did a WONDERFUL job on my laundry too!  I am thinking this may last me an entire year!!

It is really very simple to make and took about 10 min.
You can find all the ingredients at Walmart for just under $20~I bought my 5 gal bucket at Home Depot for $4 (to mix and store the soap in).


Ingredients
1 4 lb box Borax
1 4 lb box Arm & Hammer Baking Soda
1 4lb box Arm & Hammer Washing Soda
3 bars of Fels-naptha soap

2 small containers of oxyclean or store brand oxyclean (I bought the big tub)

Start out by grating the Fels-naptha soap (I used my 25 year old food processor {that I origianally purchased when the cutie below was born to make my own baby food} and it worked GREAT).  It looks like grated cheddar cheese.

Then mix everything in the 5 gal bucket~VIOLA!  That is it!!

This is how I store mine in my laundry room, (you use 1 Tablespoon per load).

and since my battery died at the last step~it is a good thing Cindy brought her camera~you can see us with the finished product~HERE.

Let me know if you try it, and if you like it!

365 {9.4.11}

I take lots of photos each week with my iPhone, so I thought I would try to do a weekly photo dump. 


Here is Sept 1-3 (from left to right)
new contacts
new GPS which I finally used
camera gear (did a mini shoot on Friday)
Fruit stock up at Costco
lunch
my Illustrator class (that I am VERY behind in)
Kodi's toy
nap after playing
TO-DO list for the weekend
Friday night date night
Pete eating his treat before Kodi steals it
putting dishes away
off to my WW meeting
Saturday nap
movie with my hubby

365 {9.2.11}

A friend of mine had a baby boy two weeks ago, Mike and I went over last week to drop off a meal and I was hoping to snap a few photos, but baby "W" was not up for a photo shoot.

I went back today, with props, and he did so good!!  I cannot wait to have a few moments to edit the rest of the session, but here is one, cause he is so darn cute I couldn't wait!!

365 {9.1.11}

Last night I uploaded 487 photos to Costco's Photo Lab (they do a really nice job and since my screens are calibrated they come out perfect!!).  If you know me, than you know that I Love, Love, LOVE to look at photos.  I could sit and look at photos for hours and hours, even other peoples photos! 

{I love my digital camera and look through my picture folders on my computer quite often, but there is just something about holding the photo in my hand that I just LOVE, so I always print them out}.

After work I ran over to Costco to pick them up (3 huge envelopes~when I told the girl I had a lot, she asked if I was Gretchen, LOL!!), I could hardly stand the suspense, but I waited until I got home, got comfy in my cut off sweats and tank top and ripped into them!!  Unfortunately dinner needed to be made, so I had to put my picture gazing on hold.





This stack is September through December 2010 (I take lots of photos, LOL!!).  I am hopefully going to finish up my 2010 Project Life album soon (actually it may be 2 volumes).  The hard part is narrowing down what photos to put in the album, cause I LOVE them all. 

**Project Life 2011-2012 version will be available for purchase in Oct/Nov, more info here.  I am super excited about the new binders that are coming out (cannot make up my mind which one I am going to get).