The Blues

My little Miss B is unhappy. It just really sunk in for her that we are moving to another city, Portland, and state, OR, where we do not know a single person. I found her in her room last night listening to a mournful High School Musical song and crying. (The lyrics above are from the song she was listening to.) As she looked at me with her tear streaked face filled with sorrow, I almost lost it myself. She confided to me of her longing to stay and not leave her friends. The poor little thing. She has guilt over leaving a friend in her grade and keeps telling me that she is abandoning him. I have tried to explain that she can keep in touch with her friends here and she will definitely make more friends in Portland (not "new" -she feels like this means replacement of friends). It is as if my words have fallen upon deaf ears. She is having such a hard time coming to terms with move and I feel like nothing I have said is helping. If anyone has any suggestions or words of support for Miss B please let us know.

I wish I could do something to bring her sunshiny smile back.

Staying Off The Sauce

I admit, I have been in love with Diet Coke since high school. I didn't live with my parents during my high school years (which seems like eons ago now) and the family I lived with had a passion for Diet Coke. Wouldn't you know, it was love at first sip for me. When I was prego with Miss B I quit all sodas and didn't go back to them until recently.

Lately we have had an influx of friends over to the house to visit due to the big move. Everyone knows it's only polite to be able to offer your guests something to drink and even better if you can offer them food too. Since I am not exactly the perfect hostess I have aimed for semi-perfect by maintaining a variety of beverages in the fridge. A few weeks ago I noticed I needed to re-stock so I made a quick run to Target for groceries and more and as I entered angels began to sing and the giant display of on sale Diet Coke pulled me in. Gone were my thoughts of caffeine free drinks or healthy juices. All I could see was this beautiful display. Next thing I knew, I was throwing a couple of the irresistible little 8 packs (bottles) in my cart and I was good to go.

Days later, Mr C began to notice my beverage of choice with my every meal and he called me on it. "Um, they are for the guests." I squeaked out my excuse. After a repeat incident or two of this, it was clear I had fallen off the wagon. Mr C requested I get off the sauce sooooooooooo I have, but still needed a little kick every once in a while. I am really not liking coffee lately so I opted for something else a friend at Computer Co suggested, Red Bull (Sugar Free). OMG, what a great way to start the day. Red Bull definitely has a ZZzzzziiiiinnnnngggg!!! to it.

I was just thinking have I traded in one vice for another. Computer Co friend just told me of her trash can full of empty RB cans! Yikes!

Sorry to J.Crew, my good luck

Dearest J.Crew,

I just left a comment with Cloggsy about how I was not feeling the love from your fabulous store but like the addicted suckah that I am what did I do after leaving that comment? I hopped right on over to the J.Crew site to check out the sales. I found this so cute dress that I was more than willing to pack and take with me to PDX.



This cutie was only $29.99 and when I was prompted for a promotional code I entered EXTRA20 -I knew from browsing last week that they were running this extra 20% off promo on their sales items only. The promo was supposed to end yesterday but I thought "What the heck, why not?" and it worked!!!! So if you find something in the J.Crew sales area soon go ahead and enter the promo code: EXTRA20 and get an extra 20% before they figure out the loop-hole.

Happy Shopping!

The Countdown Begins

We have it....the official date. Drum roll please ................................... September 3rd. Yes you heard/read me right peeps, September 3rd we are leaving Tulsa and headed for the Northwest. I am crazy-stressed right now! I have to get 3 quotes from moving companies and we are packing some of our stuff to take on the "Oregon Trail" with us. The one thing that is driving me crazy (and let me tell you, it is a short trip right now) is going through ALL OF OUR JUNK. You never realize how much STUFF you have until you are forced to move it across the country. We have put out so much trash and sent so much to the Goodwill yet I still see a mountain of junk in my home. I wish I could get a dumpster on loan and just empty half of my house into it.

I still need to get together with so many of my friends before we hit the road.
:o(

For those of you who have past experience with a long-distance move please feel free to leave tips/comments here. I need your help.

Fabu Friday Freebie

It is almost back to school time and wouldn't you just love to send your kid with a cute one of these backpacks? I know I do. So if you hop on over to Monogram Chick and leave a comment and tell her that Kally sent you there....We both could win this!!! So click here and tell her what style/fabric you are in love with in your comment and don't forget me in the process.

Good Luck!

Congratulations!!!!

Some very good friends of mine, Jen and her family, have a new addition! After a wait that seemed like forever they have a son! They will be getting him from Ethiopia next month. Click here to congratulate them on passing court today and pray for a safe trip there and back to get the little guy.

The Kally Family Loves you guys!!!!!

A Wii Bit Sore

I love my Wii fit! We just got the fit on Monday and it is addictive. Surprising that you can really get a work out from this. I love doing the hula hooping, yoga, and the other aerobic work-out games like running and the step workout. -*Warning make sure you have good balance when doing the step exercises. I have somewhat bad balance issues (I run into walls & furniture on a regular basis.) and the first time I did this exercise I almost fell on my hiney. Yesterday I had improved by far and I am thinking about moving up from the beginner level.

Things I love about the Wii Fit
- It tracks how much time you have spent working out each day and praises you for coming back for more.
- It helps you understand exactly how much weight you need to lose per week based on amount of weight vs time to lose it in.
- The cartoon trainers. (They show examples of how each exercise should be done and encourage you as you go and when you are improving.)
- It is FUN! Last night I found myself telling Miss B "Go clean your room it's Mommy's turn on the Wii!" (And she made some progress on the disaster area we call her room.)
- After day 2 of working out on the fit my muscles are sore. This MUST mean I am getting a work-out from playing these games. (I will let you know if I notice any significant weight loss.)

Things I could do without regarding the fit
-When I stood on it with weight, height, and balance tests entered it made my cute little skinny Mii a little more round around the middle. (The thing won't even let you lie to yourself.)
- When it asks you to step on the balance board and you step on it says something like: Ow! or Ooh! (This does not make me feel friendly towards the cute little computer voice
-The male cartoon trainer's pretentious Steven Segal-like tiny pony-tail Mr C pointed out to me last night. -Yuck!

Promised Pics

Here they are the pictures of the flooding, my crafty card making and a little something extra just for you.

This was the printer room.



One of the many destroyed/waterlogged ceiling tiles still up there. A lot of the tiles were so soaked they fell or broke in half.



Mr C's office after the mess was cleared out and the blowers were brought in. Notice the nasty stain on the carpet from the water. Every room that was flooded has one of these "beauty marks."


Now on to prettier, happier things. Below are some of the cards I made! Aren't they cute?








After starting the new job at Computer Co I became obsessed with solving puzzles and found a couple of Rubik's cubes that I felt compelled to master. I did.....in two weeks. Here are the two I solved.

Monograms are a Must!

One of my favorite sites The Pink Clutch has made the leap into the wonderful world of entrepreneurship. I congratulate her on doing an excellent job so far. To check out her super cute, super neat monogram must haves (which is just about everything on the site) go on over to Monogram Me... This is monogrammed madness at it's very best. My faves are the monogrammed spa bags, the vinyl monogrammed stickers (you can put these everywhere) and for the Lilly Lovers out there Lilly Pulitzer Night Lights.It is just a hop, skip and a click away. Check it out.

***Above is a pic from her site of the fantastically fabulous monogrammed spa bags!!! Gotta love 'em!

Feelin' Crafty

Not much has been going on lately. Nothing exciting or interesting, that is.

Saturday we cleaned half of the junk from the garage which I am happy about until I start thinking about the other half that is left. Mr C and I went to see the new Batman movie, The Dark Knight. It was good, definitely a "guy movie" but VERY disturbing. After leaving the theater I let it be known that I would watching a comedy that evening. Out came Music and Lyrics, one of my absolute faves. I can watch that movie a thousand times and still love it. Am I the only one who has to watch a comedy after a really intense movie?

Sunday I went to a card making party. This was new to me but I have new found joy in making greeting cards. There were about 9 ladies at this party, 2 trays of cookies, 1 tray of cupcakes and a whole lotta fun! I made a total of six super-cute cards and I am seriously thinking about hosting a party myself. I supply the party place aka Kally's house, the demonstrator brings all of the supplies and we all have fun and leave with something cool.

I know in the past I have promised pics and haven't come through with the goods but this time I am serious. You see, the problem is my laptop is OLD and doesn't have enough memory for me to upload all my pics so Mr C has to do this on his computer. This is almost as hard as trying to get him to take out the trash. I have a guaranteed promise from him that tonight he will upload pics. Yippee! This means you guys will get to see Computer Co office flood damage and the cards I made soon. So check your computers for more to come.

Until then...Local Ladies, let me know if you would be interested in attending the card making party.

Preppy Give Away!!!!

Eat, Drink, Sleep, PREPPY is having a giveaway!!
If you haven't checked them out yet please do so.
They have the cutest preppy stuff. They are giving away a monogrammed apron!!!! Who doesn't need/want a fantabulous new apron?!?!
So here's what you need to do, go to the link above and leave a comment. Don't forget to tell them that Kally sent you so that I can win a apron too!!

You better hurry up this only lasts for a little while so if you haven't already click this link to get there and leave your comment & don't forget me!

Lots of Love and Good Luck!

Welcome to the Waterpark

I have been a little delinquent in getting this one to you guys but let me tell you what happened and you will understand....I hope.

Tuesday morning I arrived at the office of Computer Co and went through my morning rituals of turning on my computer and checking email when I thought I heard running water. Two of the girls up here are the type who might have a desk fountain but I knew for a fact that they didn't. OMG!!!!! I ran down the hallway to find the printer room flooded. It looked like it was raining in there and I don't mean a light sprinkling. It was a major downpour. My next thought was the server room. I raced down the hall to check it out while yelling at Mr C (we work for the came company) that there was flooding. The server room was wet but thank goodness the servers were okay. I ran back to my desk to call the building maintenance and of all times I couldn't find the number. Mr C came to my desk with the business card. I took it gratefully and then asked "Why is this card wet?" His reply to me was "Funny you ask." Poor Mr C, his office was flooded also.

After what seemed like FOREVER the building maintenance finally arrived to inform us that a line above us had broke overnight. -No, Really?- Come on did they honestly think I couldn't come up with that one on my own? The water stopped coming down about an hour later and the clean up began. Computers were moved to other offices to properly distribute the heat that they generate and people who were flooded out of their offices were sent to other rooms to share dry desks. It was an absolute mess and it smelled nasty from all the water soaking the carpets and ceiling tiles. I think every maintenance man in this four state area was in our office that day. We had shop vacs, blowers and dehumidifiers at every turn and it was all LOUD. I can't name a single person who hasn't complained of a headache from the noise.

Today on Thursday we are still in a state of discomfort and hazard here at Computer Co. We have empty offices with water stained carpets, blowers pointed at walls that are still wet, closets crammed with ruined desks and other office necessities, co-workers still piggy-backing off other's desks, a slightly mildewy smell wafting down the halls and worst of all....it is only Thursday. This means I still have one more day of this before I get my weekend and everyone else feels the same. -Like we have had two weeks crammed into four days.- We are all hoping for a quick and efficient fix for this but in reality none of us expects it.

Sorry for the gripe post but I had it building up. I will try to post pics of the visual horror story that we have going on here either tonight or tomorrow.

Travel, Shopping & Wiikend Activities

Mr C and I drove to the city to get Miss B from the MIL's house. When we arrived no one was home since Miss B was at her cousin J-girl's house. They arrived shortly after we settled down and Miss B almost knocked me over with her hug. (This has been one of her favorite things to do lately -to rush me like she is excited to see me and give me a hug but then instead almost tackles me.) Both Miss B and J-girl were jumping up and down with excitement squealing when J-girl came up and informed me she was coming to the mall with us. Originally, I did not have plans to go to the mall but they won me over with their excitement so we all piled into the car to hit the mall. -Later I asked Miss B why she told everyone we were going to the mall and she said "Well Mom, that is what you want to do every other time you come here. Yikes! My girl has recognized my love of the mall.-

Sunday: My Birthday! I had a great time. The day started slow. It was so nice to relax and not feel rushed to go somewhere. I played a little Wii Bowling and beat my high score. I have now officially bowled a 192. w00t! Then we went shopping and I purchased some cute tops from Marshalls and my favorite buy of the day -my little happy b-day to me- a Lilly Pulitzer nightie. I love, love, love it. We finished the day with a nice Italian dinner out and came home TIRED. ***Forgot we also went to see Journey to the Center of the Earth and it was okay, a little tense at times but definitely a kids movie(ages 9 & up). Miss B liked and at times she can be a bit critical of movies, for example, she was not that impressed with the lack of character development in Prince Caspian.**** I received a ton of well wishes on my birthday from all of my friends. Thank you!

Here is the Lilly. -Well, kind of. I just realized I couldn't download pics of Lilly clothes from the site :( so I found another pic elsewhere. Mine is not green but the pretty wave blue color.

Rollin, Rollin, Rollin

I am trying to get a fantastic blog roll together so if you are interested in being listed leave me a comment on this post or email me. I promise to check out your blog! ;)

Shoes for ....Me?

For the last couple of days we have been coming home to a sign on our door from UPS stating they tried to make a drop off when we were not at home. The slip of paper doesn't have a name for who the package is for but it does name that it is coming from Zappos! I was convinced I would be getting the neighbor's shoes and my curiosity would demand that I open the box. Sorry neighbor, thought they were mine. After getting home from an extremely exhausting day, Mr C asked me to check the mail. I was hoping to find money in the mailbox (still haven't received that long awaited stimulus check yet) but no money there just junk mail. :p When I went back inside I noticed another UPS notice for the Zappos attempted delivery. Dang-it, I was getting shoes even if they really did belong to a neighbor (with my luck they would have been Dr. Scholl's, blech!)! Oh well, I thought maybe the delivery guy would get a clue and stop getting my hopes up and deliver the shoes to the rightful owner. About an hour and a half later our doorbell rang so I sent Mr C to get it. It was UPS with the Zappos delivery. We tried to tell the guy he probably had the wrong address and he argued "No, it's a Zappo's delivery.....for Kally. I was shocked and then after looking at the small size of the box it was obvious there weren't any Kally sized shoes in there. I opened the box expecting flyers, promos and stickers since I have ordered from Zappos before but instead I found a gift card from the E family!!! Woot! I love you guys! Thank you so very much. It's always great to get surprise shoes.

So what do you think of these babies? I can hardly wait to get them.

Countdown to the Big 3-0!!!

Yes, I am putting it out here for all to see/read. This Sunday I will be turning 30 or 29 version 2.0 as I like to think of it. ;) Mr C keeps asking me what I want and I haven't been able to really come up with something concrete. At first I thought a new handbag would be nice. Then I read this from Ashley and figured a bread machine would rock! (Then thought did I really want to waste my B-Day on a bread machine? ...It is the gift that keeps on giving.) Got frustrated and pondered asking for jewelry but that is really more for the anniversary. Maybe I will try to get my friends together and go get so blitzed that I crawl in through my bedroom window like back in high school. (Thank goodness the parental figures are not computer savy and are clueless as to what a blog is.) Any suggestions for what to ask for....I am running out of time.

Sunday Explained

For those who were just crying out to know WTH?! Why did Nicole Kidman named her baby Sunday.... http://movies.msn.com/movies/celebritynews/kidman-baby-name/?GT1=BUZZ2

Whatever.

Bad Lipgloss

My admission: I love lip gloss, lipstick, chap stick, lip stains, lip balms....you get the point, right. Well, this morning I tried out a new gloss with the little lip brush on the end... twist, apply and go. I was on my way to work and lovin' my look. The Scene: My work desk is in a place where everyone stops by and chats. So by default I end up doing a ton of talking. I had not looked in the mirror since this morning until about 10 minutes ago. I made a quick stop in the ladies and when I smiled in the mirror I about passed out. Somehow my lip gloss managed to get off my lips and into my retainer. Yes you read that right, I repeat into my clear retainer. The Crime: What really chaps my hide the most about this: Why the heck didn't any of my co-workers tell me I had pink teeth?

Family Pics

Here are a couple of pics of the girls so you can match faces with my adventures.


A Bean cheesing it up for the camera.


Mini K and Me

Family for the 4th

My brother, his wife and their little girls (A Bean 3 1/2 & Mini K 8 months) came to town on the 4th to visit. Mr C and I decided we would take the girls with us for most of the day and so as they say...."The adventure begins."

We were warned that Mini K hates being in the car and also HATES having a dirty diaper. Brother Bud told me she screams at the top of her lungs while her face turns a lovely shade of beet red. Surprisingly, Mini K didn't freak out in the car and was a super-sweet easy baby at lunch. This prompted me to believe taking the girls shopping with me at TJ Maxx would be a great idea. First off I made the mistake of only bringing an umbrella stroller and not transferring Mini K and A Bean to a shopping cart. Everything I found that I wanted I crammed between the diaper bag I had strapped to the stroller and the handles of the stroller. All was okay at this point but could have been better. Then it happened....halfway through the store A Bean looks at me and says "smell poop" and come to think of it I thought I smelled poop too. Then Mini K begins to wail and her face looks like a tomato. I tell A Bean to HURRY and we hauled a** to the bathroom while half of my planned purchases fell to the floor leaving a Hansel & Gretel like trail of merchandise leading to the potty. Once we made it to the restroom A Bean heads for the larger stall and comes back out shaking her head. I looked in to see a toilet, no changing station was to be found in the entire restroom and I had a screaming her head off 8 month old that smelled really bad. A Bean and I cleaned off the sink and then put multiple layers of paper towels down for a make-shift diaper pad. I finally got Mini K on the very small sink counter and the diaper off to see..........nothing. It was gas. OMG, was I relieved and frustrated at the same time. By this time Mini K is happy again but looking a tad tired so I mixed up a bottle for her and she was out for the count in like 5 minutes flat. I had A Bean help me gather our store strewn merchandise and we headed for the registers. I was ready to go. Thankfully so was A Bean and Mini K. After my day with the girls I was forced to take a nap and thanked my lucky stars I do not have two kiddos so close in age. I can't wait for Miss B to get back from the city so I can give her a great big hug.

For A Good Laugh

Can you guys believe Mr C actually thought when Mr E had emailed something about Black Crowes tickets he thought that Mr E had Black Eyed Peas tickets? He actually thought the Black Crowes were the Black Eyed Peas! I laughed so hard I almost fell out of my chair. I appreciate the thought though. (Mr C thought it would be a great idea to get me tickets to see "the band with that chick in it.")

The Good The Bad & The Ugly

Tired today so.........Here is the latest Kally news:

The Good: I went to Reed Johnson Salon last night and got some highlights done and I love it. This place was pretty cool. It had a warehouse decor to it (but in a good not ghetto way) and the service was awesome. I am seriously thinking about going back for a cut.

The Bad: Since I was not supposed to shampoo my hair for 24 hours, I kinda forgot to brush my hair this morning. Oops, sorry Computer Co co-workers, I didn't mean to scare ya.

The Ugly: Today is a no make-up day. I wanted to give my sensitive skin a break so I just glopped on some lip gloss on the way to work. This means no pics of the new hair until tomorrow.

Let's Get Together

A friend of mine that I hang out with on a nightly basis has been ditching me for the past week. "What friend?" you ask. Well, I bet you are friends with this also. So.....if you happen to run into A Full Night's SLEEP please let it know I have missed it.

I have been waking up between 1 and 3am in the morning for the past week only to find Sleep has left me, and wouldn't you know Insomnia wants to spend some time with me. I have given in to Insomnia's demands: watching cheesy late night/early morning TV re-runs, old movies, laundry, emptying the dishwasher, gathering trash...even baking. But spending time with Insomnia has been leaving me drained the day after. I have missed Sleep so much that last night I decided to demand it stay the night.
Here was the plan:

Upon getting home from work, I quickly changed into exercise get-up and jumped on the treadmill for a 45 minute run. Next, I gathered yet another load of laundry to start. I watched a little TV during dinner. Then, I created a Mii on our Wii we just purchased last night. Of course, I had to play bowling for a while. Finally, I took an super-hot shower and passed out from pure exhaustion. I woke up this morning feeling better and hoping I can get together again with Sleep tonight. Sorry Insomnia, I do have a date with you on New Years though.

Spam Hurts

It is stupid o'clock in the morning and I am going crazy with insomnia. So far I have watched some crazy Robert Downey Jr movie, baked brownies to take to work tomorrow (oops I mean today) and have cleaned up my email accounts (even the spam).

Spam is what has brought me to you at this crazy time in the morning. In the past I have received the same old spam that everyone gets. You know what I am talking about, special just for men pills, pics of Hollywood starlets and attempts to sell me impostor designer everything. (Now get real I am not opening this spam and reading it. I can tell what it is by the subject line.) Well, for the last couple of weeks I have been receiving the strangest spam ever. The subject line says: Kally you look stupid, Kally you are so stupid, -& finally the kicker- Kally you are a moron. WTF?!?! The first couple of times I thought it might be a joke but now about 80% of my spam tells me how stupid I look. The sad thing is I am almost desperate to see those crazy just for men enhancement spammers attacking my email again. I mean really, one can only read that they are a stupid looking moron so many times before you really begin to wonder......Have any of you guys ever gotten any spam like this before?