Dear Outside World,

This is what is keeping me from loving Ohio. The kids out of school for 5 days because of snow and ice (it's currently a snow, ice, snow sandwich with more snow forecasted for tonight and tomorrow). No cable which means no internet, television, or phone. Then the Wii decided to shut down (probably out of principle) and then the electricity wanted to follow suit. Yes, we have a gas stove and heat but...um...they both want electricity to turn on. Brilliant!! Thankfully, the owners of our house have backup battery lighting in most rooms. It's dim but better than sitting around with candles. And we've got the woodstove and the gas fireplaces to keep warm. It could be much worse. But, still, did I mention tomorrow will be day number 5??? Dear Outside World, I'm going crazy. Thankfully, Jeremy noticed the psychotic gleam in my eye and quickly let me use his aircard and charged the laptop in his truck. Otherwise I might be screaming outside, flapping my arms, sliding on the ice, looking like a crazy lady. It was a very, very close call.

Hey, but the good news is that I've had lots o' time to take photos of icy things. I'll post a couple when I get my own computer back :)

A Moment of Weakness Or Perfect Timing?

Ok, so maybe we have been talking about it for a few months. And maybe we both thought the other was joking. Maybe our hands aren't full enough with kids and activities and settling into a new place. Maybe we had been looking and looking but were really just window shopping. Really! And, then, Friday night we met her and by Saturday afternoon she was home with us. The pictures aren't great but I think it's pretty obvious why she has us all smitten

Noun, Verb, Adjective. All of the Above!!

Tonight I put the kids to bed and got ready to fire up the computer. Jeremy looked over and said "Whatcha gonna do?"

"Oh, just this," I said, gesturing toward the laptop.

"What are you going to do with it?" he questioned. (I know, totally nosy, right? :))

"I don't know. Maybe blog." I shrugged.

"Is that a verb? Blog?" he said.

Poor Jeremy! Yes, of course blog is a verb. What do you think this is? 2003? :)

Why?

Why would anyone choose to move here? School has already been cancelled for tomorrow because the windchill is supposed to be down to -20. Ridiculous!

Athens, OH
Current: 2°F
Fri 9°/ 2°

If You Just Tilt Your Head And Close One Eye...

Is it bugging everyone else as much as it's bugging me that my first picture with the new camera (below) doesn't have one straight feature to it? The rain is diagonal, the wind has blown the lid to the feeder off center, my head was apparently tilted judging by the deck railing. It's killing me and yet making me laugh at the same time. I promise you I won't bore you with any more practice shots (unless, of course, they actually relate to something I'm blogging about...kids and such). That, my friends, is how much I love you!

It's Here, It's Here, It's Here!!

I got my new camera yesterday afternoon and I charged up the battery last night. I couldn't wait to try it out today but the weather just wasn't cooperating and since I was home by myself there was no one inside to stalk with it. So, I took just one shot. I'm really liking the camera...I just need to figure out how to use it...well.

Maybe the weather will be better tomorrow and I'll find some time for goofing off...er...experimenting (serious, grown up, no nonsense experimenting).

New Year's Resolution

Normally I'm not a fan of the resolution on January 1st. After all, if you need to change something or do something, why wait until the beginning of the year? But, this year, well, I've had to make one...kinda. Jeremy and I have been talking about getting healthier a lot lately. I mean, neither one of us has the metabolism of a teenager anymore but we both still enjoy food like we do. So, we've talked about eating better (which would carry over to the kids as well) and exercising on a much more regular basis. But this was right before Thanksgiving and while I was anxious to get started I also knew that I'd have no willpower against holiday food. So, we waited until January to make our changes which, I guess, means that this is officially a New Year's Resolution. Normally, I wouldn't be telling the world that we're making any sort of goal but, hey, maybe the extra pressure will be a good thing? Maybe it'll keep me on track because, goodness knows, I need all the help I can get. Small goals at a time is the trick we're trying this time. My goals for January? Increase the amount of water I drink everyday, add several days of exercise every week, and make sure I'm getting 4-5 servings of veggies everyday. Oh, and lose 5 pounds by February 1st. I have to have something to measure, after all :) I'm not exactly sure what Jeremy's goal for January is yet. I know he wants to cut back on soda and exercise more and eat more "real" food but I don't have specifics at the moment. So, feel free to bug us and nag us and ask us how it's going. Once February comes, I'll let you know how we did and what the additional goals are for that month.