Case of the Mondays...

I woke up to this.....

What happened to Spring?!

I digress.

Start over.

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That was my attitude this morning. Even though I had to work yesterday, and I was feeling EXHAUSTED...I wanted to make it a positive day.

I got up, got ready and headed to have my blood drawn and was running perfectly on time with time to stop for hot chocolate.

Get to lab, there is 9...NINE people in front of me...there is NEVER anyone there. I again decide, ok thats only like 10 minutes, positive attitude heather, positive thoughts!

I finally get called back and I will preface this with, I have very fair skin and good veins. The woman missed. Twice She stuck me THREE times, for one little vial of blood. I wanted to yell drug addicts could do a better job of finding my vein! (bad humor...i know.)

So now I realize I cant make it to work and stop for coffee, so I drive to work reluctantly to find NO ONE there yet. Win. This girl turned her car (more like slipped due to all the SNOW) right around and headed right to Dunkin Donuts. Vanilla Chai makes everything better, am I right?

So I get to work, my boss (mind you in the short time it took me to go get chai and back) thought it would be a good idea to shut the breaker off to my computer...which is connected to our server...which fried our network card.

Seriously...it was only 9am?!

I call our IT guy...no answer. *@#$. Called about 20 other people.

2 different IT guys

1 kind internet repair man

3 different box thingys 

and 6 hours later...we were up and running.

In fact, my desk looked like this most of the day....

I had to do 8 hours of work in 2.

Not happy. To top it off our fax machine broke in the middle of all this too so I was talking to our IT guy fixing our computers and on the phone troubleshooting our fax. BAH.

I am perfectly away that I should be thankful for health insurance, that I was able to have my blood drawn, that I did get my chai latte, and that my computer is all fixed and that I have a job to go to..but it was a ROUGH DAY.

Anyone else have a case of the mondays?!

Here's some humor to lighten up the mood...

Family Room Makeover

Furniture is a big deal!

and super expensive.

So after saving for what seemed like forever, we decided to finally purchase a new couch for our family room. We went to every store in the area and looked at separate pieces and sectionals. Browns. Greys. Tans. Blue. You name it, we looked at it. We settled on this three piece sectional in grey courderoy...not the ottoman though, they wanted $500 for that sucker..YA RIGHT!

People have mixed feelings on sectionals, they either love them or hate them. But some main factors in looking for furniture for our family room were comfort, style and functionality. 

Comfort: Our first couch had this giant cuddler seat that sucked you in, it was awesome but wasnt very good for company. Our second couch had short cushions so we couldn't really lounge or cuddle. So this couch has it all. It has deep seat cushions and is big enough for at least 6 people to sit comfortably. Most importantly, we can cuddle.

Style: Wasn't really important to my hubby, but since I spend so much time decorating our house I wanted it to be perfect. Something that wasn't going to blend in to much or stand out so much it was the loudest piece in the room. 

Functionality: I.hate.detached.cushions. Like a really deep hate. We have 2 cats and a dog. They all pee fur, year round. My husband is a chronic cushion squisher with his arm. So when I was looking for a couch it had to be something that fixed all of these problems. And that was a TALL order in combination with the style aspect!

I know we have only had it for two weeks, but I am so in love and happy with our choice.

Then it was time to add accesories!!

I love the yellow.

Then time to pick out some paint.

And then it was time to paint...and make a giant mess of the room

(also see how big and open this room is? This was taken from standing in the kitchen I wantd to make sure everything flowed well)

First Coat

Delivery Day!!

Curtains

Couldnt be happier!

Eek! So happy!

So thats what I've been up to lately...what about you?!

Meal Planning Board

I'm linking up with Carolyn for Hello Spring:Spring DIY

Even thought its snowing sideways and there is no sun in sight, here's to hoping spring is just around the corner!

How many times have you just grabbed take out for dinner because you didnt think you had something at home? Or you forgot to take it out of freezer?
I do it at least 3 times a week.
It was driving me crazy!

So I made a board.

It was SUPER easy.

All I did was take an 11 x 14 frame, grab some paper & chipboard letters

Section off your paper how you would like it....then decide "wish" doesnt classify for the kitchen/grocery lists...then decide on "buy"...duh heather.

Glue the letter's down and some ribbon/twine to separate the areas, and put it back in the frame.

I should mention I chose not to paint the chipboard bc I was going for more of a natural look...you ladies know what I'm talking about who doesnt love burlap?!

Bam. Ten minutes, thats all it took!

I love it, I keep track of meals we have everything for, snacks we have on hand, and then things we are out of and need to buy.

Truths..Why I started blogging

This post is very raw and honest. 

Be warned.

I have been going back and forth for three months deciding if/when I would post about this. But its a part of my life, a big part, so here it goes.

I started this blog thinking it would be a pregnancy blog soon enough. I was going to be that cute mom who had fabulous blogging friends and tons of posts about nurseries, cloth diapering, homemade baby food and the adorable outfits we would dress our child in. I could read "mom" blogs all day.

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Thats all I have ever wanted to be, was a mom.

Fate has other plans.

I am one of the 1 in 10 women with PCOS 

(polycystic ovarian syndrome)

Which is commonly associated with infertility.

We have been "trying" for 18 months...and I have been going through an absolute roller coaster of medications for the past 6 months.

Am I the first woman to go through infertility?

Certainly not.

But it changes your whole world, and surrounds your whole life. No. Matter. What. Whatever the reason for the infertility, it will undoubtedly change your life before you know it, even with the most positive attitude. I was someone who was very accepting, and thought I would just need a little help, and that it wouldn't be a big deal. Those hopes faded fast. And truthfully I didnt know what I was in for or up against. I didnt tell anyone but my husband, my parents and one lady I knew who went through a very similar situation. I began taking medicine, knowing what all the blogs and the internet say and from the advice that my friend gave me, I prepared for a sh*tstorm. No amount of chocolate, shopping, or sleeping could have prepared for the shear emotional roller coaster I am on. 

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I am anxious. 

I wake up every night around 3am wondering what I should be doing, what time I have to do what and a million thoughts are running through my head.

I am constantly thinking about what I should or should not be doing. My doctor suggested I lay off the caffeine, no alcohol, and then there's all those no-no foods associated with pregnancy.

Should I be working out more? This is a double edged sword in my head, working out can only help, but if I shock my system to much will it harm my chances?

I should not be stressing out so much and working to much. Its not good for my body, but the work has to get done.

So I hope blogging about this will help. And if I can help even one other person to not feel completely alone, then its worth it to me. 

I feel like my whole life is on hold.

Something changes when you are ready for a family, you dont want to go out drinking, your house, husband and family are your priority.

I dont want to do things for myself anymore, I just want to wait, I'm waiting for that better tomorrow.

But beyond the fact that the one thing I have wanted forever seems so far out of reach,

I am thankful .

(is this girl crazy?)

I am thankful I have found God again.

I am thankful I am able to pray again.

I am thankful I go to church.

I am so so SO thankful for my husband.

I am thankful to have a partner who supports everything and is the kindest, gentlest, most endearing guy I could have every dreamed of marrying. 

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So the moral of my story, which is just begining, is just when you think you have life figured out, it throws you a curveball. But try to find the positive. Yes, I thought I would have a baby in my arms by now, and not blogging about my struggles to get pregnant. But through this all, I have turned my faith to God that His plans for me are better than mine. I am thankful to have the world's most understanding husband, who will stand by my side, and support me more than I ever thought possible.

I will not let this define my life. 

Or my blog. 

This is just part of my journey.

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Here comes peter cottontail

Hoping down the bunny trail...Easter's on its way!

Yep this blog just went there.

Hope you had a fabulous weekend!

It was busy here as usual, worked most of the weekend, painted & did some decorating today!

Easter Egg Garland...via Target

Easter Basket with Eggs (had for years)

Giant Daises (I think Pat Catans)

Spring Garland  & Egg Nest via Target

Bunny-home made from my grandma

Egg Garland, Foam Flowers, EASTER blocks & Eggs

all via Target

How are you getting ready for Easter? Are you hosting the holiday?

P.S. There is some pretty B-I-G changes coming to our family room this week...stay tuned!

Cleaning Products

Its time to get down and dirty....what do you use to clean your house?

A year ago? My answer was probably whatever was in a cool bottle.

Now? I try to use organic or homemade whenever so lets break it down.

This guy is my favorite:

buy it here

Kitchen:

• Sink & Countertop: J.R. Watkins
• Stovetop: Baking Soda & Hot rag, or Weiman's
• Microwave: Hot water & Paper Towel
• Fridge: Lined with Glad Press N'Seal and J.R. Watkins
• Floor: Shark Steam Mop
• Other Favorite Products: Mr. Clean Magic Erasers

Bathroom:

• Countertops & Sink: J.R. Watkins
• Toilet: Scrubbing Bubbles Disposable Toilet Cleaner
• Shower: Method Daily Shower Spray & this Pin from Pinterst

Rest of the House:

• We have 2 cats and a dog, so Fur Managment is big.
• I love my swiffer for the surface
• My dyson & Shark Steam Mop for the floors
• A Microfiber Mop for in between

I make my own body scrub and laundry detergent. I hope in the next month or so to try my hand at making dishwasher detergent as well! I cannot say enough good things about our laundry detergent though...IF anyone is interested in getting my recipe & how I make it let me know :) I would be happy to share!

Spring Cleaning

I kind of went a little crazy.

And by crazy, I mean cleaning, scrubbing and organizing everything in sight crazy.

When I started, all of our kitchen cabinets were full.

Now?

I have 6 empty cabinets, and an empty drawer. I cannot tell you how good this feels!!

How did I do it?

I took everything out on the countertops, it looked like a HUGE disaster and then I started putting stuff back, piece by piece in a much more organized way, that was still functional for us.

This was my "baking drawer"

It had all of the toppings for cupcakes/cakes and decorating tools along with cupcake liners/wrappers & decorating.

I organized the stuff by holidays- Valentines Day, Easter, Thanksgiving and Christmas

I had another box for dye's and neutral colored sprinkles that didnt really have a "theme"

I took an old cup with a lid and put the misc. extra cupcake wrappers in the cup.

This was a quick, easy way to have a big affect on your house!

These pictures are the other small projects I did in the kitchen to help organize and spruce up the kitchen for spring!

Meal planning board, Soap holder pedastol

Next week I will have a tutorial on how to make a simple, quick, 5 minute menu planning board!

Friday Letters

This link up popped up quite a few times in my blogroll today...so I thought I would join up!

Dear Hubsy, Thank you so unbelievable much for this week. You have kept hope even when it was dismal, and held me when I needed it most. You brought me a shamrock shake at work today just so I could see you. i.love.you.too.pieces.

Dear Work, Seriously...slow down. I cannot keep up. And while you're at it, put the 8 filing cabinets away and rearrange everything and clean yourself up!

Dear Callahan, your the most adorable puppy ever and I'm sorry I havent paid much attention to you this week :(

Dear Gym, sorry for my absence, I will work on it.

Dear New bloggy friends, Stop by, say hi! Maybe there is a giveway in the future for 50 followers?!