thankful quickie

THANKFUL

for a good cup of coffee to keep my eyes open

for living next to a lot that makes me think I live in the country

for Bryan being so good at word games

my hair dresser that knows JUST what I like! Back in blonde!

What are you thankful for today? :)

Thankful Thursday

Thankful Thursday!

71. Harley - as much as I want to wring his neck at night when he's bouncing off the walls and won't let us sleep...I just remember this sweet face and his funny relaxing places, and forgive him for being a complete terror...

72. American Idol nights - It's kind of become tradition to curl up on the couch with some pizza and watch AI - we pretend we're the judges. PS - any other AI watchers out there? Is Steven Tyler becoming the new Paula?! LOL

73. Full Throttle energy drinks - this morning I totally remembered why/how those little suckers got me through two loooong years at college. Thanks for the extra little boost in the morning :)

74. Pinterest - a FABulous new site I stumbled across. I haven't quite figured out exactly how it all works yet however, there is something for EVERYone. For example I've found:

[super cute things I want to make]

[Quotes that make me smile

...and giggle]

[not to mention SUPER cute recipes!]

75. My new followers friends! I'm so glad you've stopped by my corner of blogger land :) Welcome! I try to check out your blogs as well, I'm sure we will be good friends :)

What are YOU thankful for this week? 

Sunshine? Hopefully you've got some of that Vitamin D in your neck of the woods! :)

Thankful Thursday

In many past blogs I've written about my amazing Mom here, here, and here.

It's really been on my heart lately that I need to pay some attention to another amazing person in my life as well.

My mom married my stepdad on July 17th, 1993. You could say that was a day that changed mine and my mom's life forever.

[My mom with her parents at her wedding]

Looking back I don't ever really remember going through the, "You're not my real dad stages" [or at least saying it out loud and if I did, I'm sorry Dad]

He was and always had been a great provider for our family. Growing up in California we had a pretty nice little life. House on a coul-de-sac, beautiful green grass with a palm tree in the front yard, and the beautiful California sunshine to soak up every day. When I started to get older and my parents added Wesley and Hanna to the mix, they soon realized that plush little California life was not as good as it could be because the school districts were not what they wanted. An opportunity arose and our family moved on up the west coast and settled in Washington. I was mad at both of them - they took me away from my school, my friends, and the only life I'd known. Now, I look back and realize that they loved me so much that they were willing to take me away from my school and friends to give me the life I deserved.

My dad is a frugal man. We laugh about it now, but really, one of my favorite memories is going to the store with him when I was a teenager because there was a sale on Tillamook cheese and toilet paper and he had coupons to use! He's taught me more about saving money, being realistic and the real world then I ever wanted to know, but I'm thankful because that grown-up part of my heart knows it's the right thing.

He may not be the most lovey-dovey kind of dad, but I know his heart and that he loves me as if he was my biological father. He even had a conversation with my mom one time and asked her, "Did you have acne when you were a teenager? Because I didn't so Amanda must have gotten it from you." ps-thanks mom! just kidding :) But you see what I mean?

A couple years back he lost his father to cancer. I watched him spend the months flying back and forth to and from Las Vegas making sure to spend all the time he could with him. On the day of his funeral I cried tears for my dad. I couldn't imagine losing your parent, and didn't want to.

On the day of my wedding, as I walked down the aisle arm in arm with my mom and my dad and biological father right behind me, it my dad that said, "Take it all in Amanda, look at everyone and how beautiful everything is. It's all for you two." I had held it together pretty much until then, but as you can only imagine, I lost it after that. The ugly cry set in lol.

[Me and my parents on my wedding day]

So basically what I'm trying to say is, I love you and am so grateful for the life you've provided for your family. I know we've disagreed and butted heads in the past, and Lord knows I'm sure we will in the future, but it doesn't matter. I'm sure I get my stubbornness from you ;)

Today I'm thankful for my dad.

Thankful...Friday a little late

However, late is better than never, right? :)

Last week I gave it dedicated an entire post to my Harley kitty - a little crazy-cat-lady, I know. But I sure do love that little fur ball.

66. Kisses from my husband - I love those lips!

[taken last April on Alki at sunset <3]

67. My mom - I really don't say it enough. Seriously, this woman is amazing. I love her more than coke slurpees [and if you know me, you know that's a lot] She drove kinda far out of her way on Monday to bring me Gatorade, pedialyte, and kitty litter, for Harley of course but I couldn't make it to the store to get it myself. She stayed for a minute said she loved me then turned around and drove right back home. I'm seriously spoiled, however, I want to make sure I NEVER take her for granted. I love you mom!

68. The Oscars - Growing up in my house, Oscar night meant something special. It meant Dad made a fancy dinner that night, and my mom and I sat in the living room huddled on the couch ooh-ing and ahh-ing about the glamorous dresses and handsome suits. We love movies, therefore we love the actors. Hopefully this Sunday I can be sitting in my parent's living room doing that very same thing :)

69. Best friends - This past weekend I was able to spend an entire weekend with this little cutie. I'm so blessed to have such lasting and amazing friendships. We took an adventure to the other side of the lake we live on, enjoyed a bonfire, ate a TON and laughed a LOT :) Best kind of weekend with my best friend. Can't get much better.

and last but not least

70. This little stud muffin aka the next AMERICAN IDOL - CONGRATULATIONS Stefano! You are making all of us so proud! You better believe you'll have most of King County voting for you! You are living the dream and it started in our home town! Get it! :)

What are YOU thankful for this week?

What are your weekend plans? I get to spend a lot of time at Hooters... yeah, more on that on Monday. Until then, I hope you all have a FABULOUS weekend! Soak up some sun [if ya got it in your neck of the woods!]

Thankful Thursday

61. Love - I have to say, I'm thankful for love. The mushy kind, the family kind, and the kind for yourself. But since it's February, national LOVE month, I'll be thankful for the mushy kind if that's OK with ya'll.

62. Antibiotics - Love em or hate em, they helped me get through this last week. I've had fevers, coughing attacks and body aches up the ying yang and would've been in WAY more agony than I was without those things.

63. My baby sister - This gorgeous young woman is growing up right in front of me and it's freaking me out!

What happened to my little crazy red haired sister who loved Dragon Tales and cheerios? Obviously those things when out the door when puberty hit, but dang... I miss those little red ringlets! LOL I love you Hanner, you are becoming a beautiful lady. And with my purse, your new lanyard, and a coffee mug, you look 10 years older. Stoooop it!

64. American Idol & dreams coming true - SO neat, I went to school with one of the kids that's made it to the top 40 (or so I've read on gossip sites) his name is Stefano Langone watch for this guys' name in lights, he gives you goosebumps! I wasn't best friends with him or anything but I had a couple classes with him, he has a really good heart and a POWERFUL voice that will knock your socks off! Go Stefano! :)

65. Firsts - the first dinner in our new home - mac&cheese and pigsinablanket, mmmmm!

What are my friends thankful for today?

I'd love to hear... see... whatever :)

Thankful Thursday

56. Plastic tubs - Every year our life ends up in these things, stacks of them. I don't know what I would do without them. Our life in boxes, sounds like a song...

57. Plans the hubby makes - I just learned that he wants to take me to Seattle for Valentine's day to spend the night at a fancy-shmancy hotel and explore the city, my heart truly melted when he told me that - romantic first Valentine's day as a married couple - Check!

58. Harley kitty - As much as he can drive me bananas at night time when he starts going crazy and running up walls and getting into the bread, I love my fur baby so much and can't believe he's almost a year old! He used to be so tiny, no he's a chunk-a-munk!

59. Great organization/storage ideas from IHeartOrganizing - I made a pact to myself  in my previous post that when we move into the new house things are going to be different this time and I'm going to make sure that things are organized. I will be doing that with the help of this love lady! She has SO many great storage/organizing/CUTE ideas -I can't even take it! Pretty please, if you are even thinking about doing some organizing of your own, hop skip or jump over to her blog, you won't be sorry!

PS I really want to make this project from her blog - SO CUTE right?!

60. Venti black iced tea from Starbucks with one Splenda -mmmmmm it's like summer in a cup. I LOVE iced tea, it's the perfect way to get caffeine in the morning without drinking coffee and getting the jitters - Thank you Starbucks for making such a perfect blend of summer dreamin for me :)

What is everyone else thankful for this week?!

PS - Don't forget to enter my very first GIVEAWAY! :)

Thankful Thursday

There are quite a few things/pictures I'm thankful for this week, be prepared :)


51. The Harry Potter Exhibition - *NERD ALERT* This past weekend was AWESOME! I finally got to experience the Harry Potter Exhibition at the Pacific Science Center in ALL it's glory! It's so neat! They have the clothes that the characters actually wore in the movie! AND things like sitting in Hagrid's chair, pull a mandrake from it's pot, and get sorted by the Sorting Hat...I literally almost cried I was SO excited! :)

52. Quotes - sometimes I just need a quick pick me up - where do I turn to? Pick me up quotes at Bits of Truth 

Exhibit A

Exhibit B

Exhibit C

Exhibit D

52 1/2. Half day Fridays -My office closes at 1pm on Fridays...Need I say more? :)

53. Dum-dums - I bought a HUGE bag of these little suckers [pun intended] for the office, they've been a huge hit in pacifying little kids, making us laugh when patients grab a handful of them, and satisfying our sweet tooth in the middle of the day.

54. Random dance parties with my co-workers - I'm pretty sure I have the best co-workers ever, but I've already told you that. When one of us gets good news, when we're filing, or when we just feel like being silly, we have random dance parties to my Pandora or Ruthie's iPod. Our favorite is 'You make my dreams come true' by Hall and Oats.

55. Old friends & babies - I absolutely love the friends that you don't see for a while and you can see them every so often and you pick up right where you left off. I get to do that on Saturday with Lindsey and Erica, and got to do it yesterday with Sara, my beautiful pregnant friend. I HAD to take a picture of her belly, because it is just ALL belly, she's gained barely any weight and looks fabulous! :) PS she and her husband are waiting until she delivers to find out the sex of the baby, I could NEVER do that! Ah! They've got patience!

What have you been thankful for this week? I'd love to hear-errr...see! :)

Thankful Thursday

46. Kellen Dean Thompson - Some of you may remember I posted a while back that I had gone to my girlfriend(&bridesmaid)'s baby shower, Ksavera. Well, yesterday she gave birth to a beautiful bundle of baby joy 7lbs 6oz 20inches. From what I know, the delivery went great, smooth and safe :) I'm SO excited to meet him, I feel like I've known him for the last 10months - well technically I have :) AH! Happy BIRTHday Kellen! Congratulations Ksavera and Jason - love you both!

[I love that he's got a little smirk on his face :) and that Ksavera looks GORGEOUS!]

47. New opportunities at work - Bryan and I both made strides in our jobs these past couple weeks, we are so thankful and excited to both be taking on more responsibility and can't wait to continue growing in our companies.

48. Parenthood - The TV show. I'm pretty sure I've never laughed and cried so much while watching one program, ever! I absolutely LOVE the characters and can't help but think that the script stays pretty true to real life! Plus - I get my weekly dose of Lorelai Gilmore (Lauren Graham) since Gilmore Girls is only in syndication now! ;)

49. BIG NEWS! - Big to us anyway :) We are possibly moving into a house. FINALLY... after three years of apartment living, we have finally found a perfect house for us to rent. It's two bedrooms, two bathrooms, SUPER cute kitchen and master bathroom, and best of all? It's on a LAKE! We would have 4th of July plans every year :) We're waiting to hear back on the application process, but hopefully all goes well and we will be moving before the end of the month :) Please keep your fingers crossed for us! I didn't want to say anything until it was final, but I figure the more people sending good thoughts our way the better, right? We are oh-so excited and just hope everything pans out :)

50. Pandora - I've said it once and I'll say it again - Pandora serisouly brightens up my day. It's almost like it gets in my head and knows what kind of music I need/want to listen to! Exhibit A: Yesterday I was missing Bryan - Obviously we live together, but some days I feel like we're either too busy or he has to work late, so we don't get to spend quality time together. Anyway, this song came on the radio and made me sit and daydream about my hubby - I love him so much and this song reminded me that even though we're not always together, he's always on my mind :) (PS I'm not complaing by any means, I know we have it really good. I give major kudos to you ladies who are in a long distance relationship or have a spouse that's deployed. You are MUCH stronger than I could ever be.)

Keith Urban: Album-Defying Gravity Song-Only you can love me this way

Well, I know there's a reason
And I know there's a rhyme
We were meant to be together
And that's why

We can roll with the punches
We can stroll hand in hand
And when I say it's forever
You understand

That you're always in my heart
You're always on my mind
But when it all becomes too much
You're never far behind

And there's no one
That comes close to you
Could ever take your place
'Cause only you can love me this way

I could have turned a different corner
I could have gone another place
Then I'd of never had this feeling
That I feel today, yeah

And you're always in my heart
Always on my mind
When it all becomes too much
You're never far behind

And there's no one
That comes close to you
Could ever take your place
'Cause only you can love me this way
Ooh

And you're always in my heart
You're always on my mind
And when it all becomes too much
You're never far behind

And there's no one
That comes close to you
Could ever take your place
'Cause only you can love me this way
Ooh

Only you can love me this way


What are you thankful for this week?

Thankful Thursday

41. My co-workers who have turned into friends - Bryan always teases me that co-workers don't become friends until you hang out outside of work. Well, I can proudly claim these ladies as my friends then! We had dinner for one of our other co-workers that is moving back to Hawaii, and I think we all realized how much fun we have together even outside of work [possibly more fun than we have at work!] These girls make me belly laugh every single day, and I know that if I ever needed anything they would be there. Love you ladies!

[Left: Front-me(receptionist), Back-Ruth(ultrasound sonographer)   Right: Front-Erica(medical assistant), Back-Lorraine(ultrasound sonographer)]

42. New Years Resolutions - Isn't it kind of exciting that with the coming of the new year, also comes the possibility of a clean slate? I think it is. In high school, one of my friends told me her new years resolution and it has stuck with me since, I think I will adopt it for myself as well this year.

To end the year with the same people I started it with.

So many people come into our lives, some are life-long friends and some are just toxic. Make sure you know who is real and who is fake, surround yourself with people who lift you up and make you laugh :)

43. Innocence - Man, what I would give to go back to simpler times and not be a grown up anymore, it's tough stuff! However, I can't take back the past, I can only preserve the present, and hopefully instill in my own kids and Sophia to stay a kid as long as they can. I took this picture on Christmas, Sophie sat in front of her new Disney Princess vanity and combed her hair forever. What?! Where did our sweet, little, three year old niece go? She had been temporarily replaced by a beautiful young lady, brushing her long golden locks. Time passes by entirely too fast...

44. Celebrating our first holiday season as husband and wife - that's all :)

45. Sunshiiiiine - Here in the Pacific NW we've been having crazy weather! Wind storms that have knocked the power out, snow, that eventually turned into ice... You name it, we've experienced it in the last two months. But guess what? My handy-dandy weather teller on my iPhone tells me that for the next six days we are in store for some serious sunshine. So what if the high is barely above 40degreesF - bring on the sun! :)

Alright friends, it's the last Thursday of 2010, what is ONE thing you are thankful for? Surely you can come up with just one? :)

Thoroughly Thankful Thursday

37. Road trips - Bryan and I have decided to take a road trip this weekend, I'm so excited. Some of our best/funniest/most thoughtful conversations come from these trips. I can't wait to pack peanut butter sandwiches, baby oranges, and venti size cans of Mucho Mango. Bring on the open road, some good tunes, and quality time with my hubby :)

38. Christmas decorations at work - I've been kind of bummed out this season since we decided to forgo a Christmas tree to save money. However, my awesome co-worker and friend, made stockings for our entire office and hung them above my desk. Lorraine, thank you for decking the halls and making my spirits bright :)

39. New blog followers - Hello everyone, I am thoroughly thankful for you this week! I love love love reading your comments and try hard to follow back! Cheers for new friends :)

40. My yellow, comfy pants - Ok listen, I have this pair of the most comfy pants in the world EVER! My dilema? Bryan thinks they are the ugliest pants in the world EVER. He hates them with a passion, I love them with a passion. Do you have that favorite pair of sweats that you just let out a big "ahhhhhhhhh" when you put them on? These are it for me. I'll be mortified when they are unwearable. Until then, I'm super thankful for my favorite yellow, comfy pants :)

(just you can see up close, how awesome they are, please excuse my ugly feeties :)

 

What are you thankful for this week my fabulous friends?

Thankful Thursday

 32. Harley - If you didn't think I was a crazy cat lady already, this may be the deciding factor. My cat was looking extra fluffy last night and kept hanging over the back of the stool like this, and was being totally cute so I decided he needed a photo shoot, I may be biased, but he's pretty stinkin cute. Until I have babies of my own, be prepared to see photos of him :)

 "No Edward, you do it like this!"

 "Please Mom, no more pictures"

33. Having cable again - Listen, we have been without cable or any kind of television for that matter, for two and a half years. There was a great deal on cable since we already receive our internet through DirectTV, so we decided to go ahead and do it. Can I just tell you how much I've TOTALLY missed the Food Network?! I'm not kidding, Bryan may come home someday soon and see me pretending to have my own cooking show in the kitchen. Just sayin... :)

34. The thought of sugar cookies - I had a MAJOR sugar cookie fail last night. I was beating the dough in one of my older stock pots because it's the deepest bowl shaped thing I have, and after it had chilled in the fridge, I went to pull it out and there were little black specks in the dough from when the beaters were hitting the bottom of the pot. I was sooo bummed, it was a double batch too! However, if at first you don't succeed, try, try again :) Right? Right.

35. My sister Hanna - This photo just makes me smile. Hanna came to our house to witness said sugar cookie fail, but despite the chaos in the kitchen, all she wanted to do was show Bryan and I her new favorite song, it's called "On the Brightside" by Never Shout Never. I love her so much, and love that she has so much passion for the things in her life, including music. But the look on Bryan's face is priceless... LOL



36. The Sing Off - I'm not sure if most of you are aware of my love for acapella music. I wrote about it yesterday and said it brings tears to my eyes because it truly does. I wish I had a fraction of the talent those groups do on this show. But our favorite group of the season thus far is Committed :) Seriously, sends chills down your spine...

What are you thankful for this week my friends? :)

Thankful Thursday

31. Love Letters

Did you write love letters when you were younger? 

Do you still write love letters? 

Have they changed a little?

Getting love letters makes my tummy flutter, my cheeks blush and my heart dance :)

 I absolutely LOVE love letters.

They can come in all different forms:

Letters in the beginning to say I like you

Pictures/Post its just to say I love you

Texts to say I appreciate you

Never underestimate the power of a good love letter, in whatever form it's in.

I am thankful for love letters and hope they never stop coming :)

PS - 365 Days in Pictures - This is a photo of a photo of a photo... Get it?