Wishful Wednesday ....Easter

'I wish' .... I could re-live one Easter memory from my childhood, and it would be the Easter we moved into our new house!

March/April 1993 was a BIG year ..... we had just moved during the school year, which was a tad bit scary for a 7 year old.  The worst part about it was moving away from Abby, my next door neighbor and best friend in the entire world.  Thankfully, I had my chin held high because we were moving to a BIGGER house with my bedroom being on the second floor (super far away from mom and dad's room), and the most exciting thing .... A POOL!!!


I remember it like it was yesterday!!  We had just moved a week before Easter, we got all dressed up in our fancy Sunday Easter outfit, and there was ab absolute thrill of hunting for eggs in our new backyard ..... pure joy in itself.  I sadly admit I was such a baby and threw a fit because my big brother swooped up majority of the eggs.  I just didn't understand how he could run around the pool so fast and gather all the eggs from the rest of the backyard.   After the hunt, Mom made him give me some of his eggs since my basket was bare.  Haha -- I wish I could relive this moment RIGHT NOW and be able to hold my own in that backyard and pickup more chocolate candy than him!!!!

The other thing I remember vividly this same week as an adorable 7 year old :) .... was going to a NEW school.  The first day at my new school was April 1st!!!!  Little did I know that the teachers had arranged an April Fools joke and were switching classrooms for the first hour of the day.  Here I am .... a new student, entering a strange classroom, and I was totally confused when a teacher came in yelling April Fools.  I was like "huh!!"  

To relate to me as a little kid dealing with sibling rivalry, 
I will leave you with these photos my mom just sent me .....

1992 - LOVES IT

just priceless in our colorful outfits!

1993 - This photo cracks me up.

Glad I am the ONLY one ready for the photo!!

What Easter memory would you like to experience again??

Link up and share away!!!!

***NOTE:

When adding your link below, click on the title of your post on your blog and make sure it is the link to that specific post instead of your main blog url.

Water consumption

1.  75% of Americans are chronically dehydrated.


2.  37% of Americans, the thirst mechanism is so weak that it is mistaken for hunger.


3.  Even MILD dehydration will slow down one's metabolism as 3%.


4.  One glass of water will shut down midnight hunger pangs for almost 100% of the dieters studied in a University of Washington study.


5.  Lack of water, the #1 trigger of daytime fatigue.


6.  Preliminary research indicates that 8-10 glasses of water a day could significantly ease back and joint pain for up to 80% of sufferers.


7.  A mere 2% drop in body water can trigger fuzzy short term memory, trouble with basic math, and difficulty focusing on the computer screen or on a printed page.


8.  Drinking 5 glasses of water daily decreases the risk of colon cancer by 45%, plus it can slash the risk of breast cancer by 79%, and one is 50% less likely to develop bladder cancer.  

ARE YOU DRINKING THE AMOUNT OF WATER YOU SHOULD DRINK EVERY DAY?? 

Wishful Wed Topic ....Easter

With Easter less than a week away, this week's topic is:

'I wish' .... I could re-live one Easter memory from my childhood, and it would be the Easter that ______!

Give yourself something fun to blog/post about on Wednesday and don't forget to tell us why.  All you have to do is come back on Wednesday, attach the new fancy button, and link up with your web address with MckLinky.

A hard ducky life

If anyone is looking to invest in a toy company 
Multipet International .... is your line!

You see ..... these duckies have had two different lives!!!

Ducky #1, on the left, is what new looks like, and 

Duck #2, on the right, is the result of almost four years of fun.

Harley and Willis have torn this duck to shreds, licked it to death, and really showed it who's boss!!!!  That is not dirt on the duck .... it is just grime, which is disgusting.  Of all the toys in the house, this was their fav, but I am most impressed by the fact that the the squeaker held up until just a month ago.  

This past Friday, many long hours were spent with my little-one at the vet getting an abdomen bladder x-ray, which is entirely another post in itself.  The short story is I was hoping for bladder stones to be a solution to our problem, but the x-ray left us with no answers and back to the drawing board.    

ANYWAYS, like any good mother, we stopped by the pet store to pick out a new toy for being such a good girl, and I was shocked to see a new, clean, fluffy DUCKY just like the one I purchased almost four years ago!!!  I went back and forth considering buying another toy from the Multipet line, but I went with my gut and thought I should go with what I know the pups would like.  

Boy did Momma do good.  The dogs went nuts over the new duck, wouldn't let it out of the sight, squeaked it for hours, and had a grand ole' time.  

It had a good life, but I believe after looking at the filth and dirt on it, it's time to RIP.


Would you believe me if I told you I went on the toy lines website and wrote a review about their product because it was THAT good.  It was the best $8.95 I have spent in a long time :)

Kibbles all around

Willis better not be dying on me anytime soon because I just bought a MONGO size ... 40 lbs to be exact ... of kibbles for his "mature" self!!

Little Harley has to be on special prescription food for crystals in her urine and high maintence self, so it's up to Willis to make progress on this huge bag alone.

I think I am going to date the bag to see how long it takes to get through with him only eating one cup a day!!! Haha - it was too good of a deal to pass up.

Wishful Wed ....Handbag

'I wish' .... I could afford either one of these Louis Vuitton handbags without putting a dent in my pocketbook!

When I lived in Dallas, handbags were a more common purchase than it has been for me since moving to the Pacific Northwest, also known as a hippie-town!  People just don't care here, nor do they know who half the designers are.  Last week, a girl asked me if my Gucci bag was Coach .... haha I thought to myself, "I paid too much for this bag to be Coach!!!" but of course just smiled and said "Nope!"

So, I would love to bring home one of these gorgeous 

Louis Vuitton handbags, which would be timeless pieces 

FOR-EVER!!

The Monogram Galliera PM $1280

OR The Monogram Trevi PM $1660

**This pattern has totally grown on me

I will now go back to reality and realize this may not be the most realistic purchase considering I have a handful of lovely designer bags, but hey, one can always wish to add another to the mix :)

What bag do you wish would plop on your doorstep mysteriously?!?!  Add your link below!

***NOTE:

When adding your link below, click on the title of your post on your blog and make sure it is the link to that specific post instead of your main blog url.

I'm sadly addicted

I am from the South, and I LOVE me some sweet tea!

Google Image

Remember this story when the McDonald's employee told me, "Man good thing I don't like tea because I would be diabetic if I drank as much as you did!!"

Well, I am back on the bandwagon since my dear sister in law gave me her famous/simple sweet tea recipe.  Did you notice the pitcher in the picture only has ONE GLASS???  I have been in heaven and would be stupid to admit, which I will do to hold myself accountable and hopefully slow down ...., that I drank an entire pitcher in 24 hours by MYSELF.  Then, I made another pitcher and finished it quickly 24 hours later.  

WHAT WHAT!  Who does that?!?!?!  Ohhhhh my!  I better be careful so the sugar doesn't attach to my booty.  Thankfully, I also drink a TON of water to balance it out, and too worked it off at 6am this morning in Crossfit!!

What drink is your weakness?

Wishful Wed Topic ....Handbag

'I wish' .... I could afford this ______ handbag without putting a dent in my pocketbook!


**You pick, expensive or a steal ... doesn't matter.  
What new bag do you wish was yours??

I am always in the market for a gorgeous new handbag, who isn't right?!  So maybe hubby will read the next post and surprise me for my big 2-5 bday coming up in a couple months!!!

Give yourself something fun to blog/post about on Wednesday, and don't forget to attach a picture and tell us why.  All you have to do is come back on Wednesday, attach the new fancy button, and link up with your web address with MckLinky.

Pantry Cleaning

I decided it was time to clean out the pantry since we had a tons of goodies hidden way in the back that I wasn't even aware of!

My first good find, an unopened box of Bisquick, and I had a brilliant idea to attempt to make fresh biscuits. We were making breakfast for lunch anyways, so I put Gabe in charge of the Cheesy Garlic Biscuits, thanks to the recipe on the back, and they turned out FABULOUS! I seriously don't think I will ever buy store bought biscuits again ..... And sadly we didn't have any leftovers since Gabe ate nine and I had two!! Lol!

Next, after lots of throwing out and organizing, I have come to the conclusion that my 30-something husband is really a five year old by his love for food and especially sugary cereal. It's somewhat comical, but quite scary at the same time.

***Yes this really is the top shelf of my pantry and ALL shown are my husbands.  My cereals are actually to the left of the first box on the left.

His favorites ... Lucky Charms, Corn Pops, Cinnamon Toast Crunch, Froot Loops, Apple Jacks, Fruity Pebbles, Golden Grahams, and more. These are total opposites from my favorites since I grew up not eating any of the cereals above and only ate Special K, Oat Squares, and Granola. But a special thanks to my husband for teaching me about Cinnamon Toast Crunch. Ohhh how it changed my life, for the better, but I can pass on every other shown above.

What's YOUR favorite cereal??

Don't you wish you lived at my house to eat all these sugary cereals with Gabe - haha!

Heavenly

Work lunch on the patio with two great friends, an incredibly view of the Seattle skyline, and soaking up the rays and the amazing 60 degree weather!!! It's a great start to a weekend ahead ....

Now, if only I had a yacht to hop onto!!

UW Advanced

Ok, so remember when I was complaining commenting

on March Madness???

Google Images

Well, the University of Washington (aka Dawgs or Huskies) gave us a little scare being down 15 pts at one point during the second half, and thankfully our Dawgs ended up scoring the winning basket with 3 seconds left!

GOOOO HUSKIES .... 

now you are one of 32 remaining!!

'I wish' .... I could win the lottery REAL soon, and I would hope to work part time to keep my sanity!

Let's be realistic, who would want to work after winning a beau-coup of money, but I think it would keep me grounded and at least somewhat sane!  I have been working since I was 16 and have always enjoyed it. 

So, if I was to win the lotto tomorrow, I would for sure continue to work, at least part-time and then possibly shop the other half :)    I truly would continue to work as a means to stay busy and feel accomplished (especially now as a real grown up).  It would be a totally different story if I was a mom because I would paid to do what I imagine I would love best.  Ohh the future mommyhood days, which are absolutely worth a million dollars :)


As difficult as it is, I am going to holdout on sharing what I would do with my winnings because that will be saved for another Wishful Wednesday in the future!!  On that note, if you have a topic you would like to participate to in the future .... someone else would probably like it too, so email me at seattlesmithsblog@gmail.com.  I would love to hear from you all, and I was absolutely shocked with the 80 links last week -- that's an all time high!  So, keep em' coming and bare with me as I make my way to each one every week, the list keeps getting longer!!

Would you quit your job or continue working??

Feel free to play along and give yourself something fun to write about.

***NOTE:

When adding your link below, click on the title of your post on your blog and make sure it is the link to that specific post instead of your main blog url.  (Ya'll did really good with this last week -- keep it up!)

Thank Goodness

All I have to say is, THANK GOODNESS FOR MOTHERS!!

Pic from Oct 2009

I am sad to admit that I took for granted all of the vacations my mom planned for the family and the blood, sweat, and tears that went into them .... BUT I absolutely recognize and am thankful for it now, hah.  That still counts right?  My mom is a traveling queen considering she is a flight attendant and just really good at it.  She traveled on a Tahitian Cargo ship just because, went to China by herself, and the Holy Land with a group from church.  She is WILD to do all this and leave Dad at home, but hey why not!!!!!

She was in town for a Seattle overnight, which means we get a few hours to play, spend time together, and make a quick visit to Trader Joe's!!!!!!  Plus, we got to Skype with the rest of my family .... Guess who isn't homesick anymore :)  

SO, I mentioned to her I was extremely frustrated attempting to our trip to Thailand.  I have been so excited about it, but I just feel like I can't make any strides because it is so difficult getting things to come together when it is on the other side of the world, and I hate the fact that I just can't pick up the phone and call someone without going through a travel agent.

WELL, Momma Lugar helped me out tremendously and shared with me a little site that I think is pretty heavenly.  You better believe that I will be spending hours on it in the next couple days because it simplifies traveling and makes it easy!  HECK YES!!!  

The site is www.intrepidtravel.com

Hubby ...... 

you and me are officially PLANNING 

and making HEADWAY on Thailand!

WOOHOO

Wishful Wed Topic ....Lottery

This weeks topic: 

'I wish' .... I could win the lottery REAL soon, and I would hope to ________.

**The real question is would you

1.) quit your job/career 
2.) continue working

And, of course, tell us your reasoning!  I am anxious to read your thoughts, so come back Wednesday for some fun.

*NOTE:

When adding your link below, click on the title of your post on your blog and make sure it is the link to that specific post instead of your main blog url.  (Ya'll did really good with this last week -- keep it up!)

***Then, add your link below with MckLinky by clinking "YOU ARE NEXT."  This way, others can click directly to your WW post.  Get it?  If not, feel free to email me and I will try and explain better.  Hope everyone can visit at least two or three other blogs (or even more) and leave them some love!  Thanks for making WW so amazing.

For the month of March

I am officially losing my husband starting this week to .......

Google Image

It reminds me of when we were first dating, and he genuinely told me it's his favorite part of the year.  I do like the fact that he LOVES it that much, but come on ...... so many hours of bball under one roof with only one TV.  

Thank goodness for laptops so Gabe and I can still spend a little "quality" time together since we will at least be in the same room - Haha!

Are you with me?

Me:  "Do you like the name Brady John?"


Husband:  "No, We don't live on a farm and our family won't be marrying their cousins!"


Me:  "Really.... "    (I was speechless)

I love love love (and love some more) a double name.  I get excited when I meet someone with a double name, I tack on Marie to a handful of loved friends, and double names overall make me happy.  They're unique and often remind me of my southern roots. 

Apparently, I have some work to do before we ever have a child.  My thought behind it is that our children's first name has to be pretty fancy with their last name being THE most common name in the world.

Do you like double names?!?!  What's your favorite?