Warning! one of the photos in this blog may burn your retinas!

Normally I title my blogs after quotes that I find on various websites, but today friends (12!) I had to warn you that the images you are about to see may indeed burn your retinas. For a while now Matt and I  (and when I say Matt - I mean me) have been painting all the walls in our home.  The wonderful (note the sarcasm) builders of our home decided to only primer our walls - which means any time we wiped down the walls with a damp rag - off came the primer. Lovely, right? So we picked a nice neutral "bone white" color for most of the walls (I do have a pumpkin orange wall in my living room that I adore - come over and I'll show you!).
As with most household projects one project becomes many.  It all started off because the toilet paper holder in our bathroom was coming off the wall - again superb building. So Matt decided to knock a hole in the wall, add a 2x4 and then patch it up... because of this, our once brown wall would have to be changed... which I was totally ok with considering I wanted to change the colors of our bathroom to match our "poppy theme" in our home.  We thought that we would also paint the wall behind our bed the same color.  So while Matt was fixing the the now gaping hole in our bathroom, I started painting our bedroom. We decided to pick a nice golden yellow... more like the color of honey butter.  To my dismay our perfectly chosen honey butter color (called "golden yellow") turned out to be the worst possible yellow imaginable.  Matt referred to it as "bee vomit" because he is 100% sure that bee vomit would indeed match their outer color.  I cried. A lot. We rushed to the Depot to find a new perfectly chosen color... this time we took the drapery that we were trying to match.  The new perfectly chosen color still isn't right... but I liked it well enough to decide to change my drapery.  See what I mean when I said one project becomes many. I also decided I hated our glued on mirror... which turns out was barely stuck to the wall... and we got a very pretty classy mirror to replace it... again one project turns into many.
 So you think this story ends here? No my friend, it does not.  I started applying this new color... that just so happens to have a metallic sheen to it to the bathroom wall that was now perfectly repaired... well apparently somewhere from going from our original brown to a light coating of primer to the new metallic soft yellow... we again got a horrendous yellow... only this time it was a totally splotchy yellow... the brown was bleeding through! OMG!!! I said enough is enough and asked Matt to pick up the "bone white" that I discussed earlier and I would just paint the walls the same shade as the rest of the house (because later we will be replacing our cheap plastic bathtub/shower with tile)... Matt asked if I thought it would be ok to buy the paint from the Depot since all the other paint in the house had come from Walmart (which by the way is rated the best from  Consumer Reports) I agreed that the Glidden paint would be fine. Wrong.  Apparently Glidden's base color is different then Walmarts base color and now our bathroom wall is a lighter color then the rest of the walls in the bathroom. sigh. This never ends.  So what we have decided to do is paint all the walls in the master bath the Glidden bone white and just deal with it. Needless to say, my toilet paper is sitting on the window sill in the bathroom because the holder still hasn't been installed. damn damn damn.

So I leave you, reader  with this quote: Some painters transform the sun into a yellow spot, others transform a yellow spot into the sun ~ Pablo Picasso. and to continue the quote: and some paint their walls the color of the sun. 

Whatever you're thinking about is literally like planning a future event. When you're worrying, you are planning. When you are appreciating, you are planning... ~ Abraham Hicks

I do it to myself I tell ya.  So do you (reader 12) recall that in December I planned Makenzie's first birthday, made homemade gifts for Christmas and the holiday itself, and how I got a little a lot stressed out? How I promised myself not to over-do it ever again.  Well quite frankly friends, it's in my nature to over-do it.  I think I must strive for perfection.  I think that I live for the stress.  I am not by any means a procrastinator, so it's not like I let these things creep up on me to cause the stress, no, I am a victim of wanting public praise. 

ok so now that we are caught up I must tell you about my newest ... creation.  Every year the fire district that I work for puts on a large Employee Appreciation Dinner (EAD from now on, cause thats too much to write out)  and when I say the fire district puts it on, I mean they pay for it.  The actual work belongs to me and Stacy (did you go see her blog? http://www.scottandstacysadventures.blogspot/).  The planning for this event starts in late summer - and when I say planning I mean the formal sit down and have a meeting planning.  The real planning never stops.  I am sure like me, Stacy, has already started conceptionalizing next years gala. so anyhow, back on track, we as a committee meet in the late summer and start getting a feel for what we want for that year's dinner.  Our committee consists of several people - a couple firefighters, a couple chief officers, another office person or two, a chaplain etc... Plans start and over the course of several meetings these plans turn into reality.  By the actual event, it ends up being me and Stacy and that have done the bulk of the work with a few supporting people... Maybe they think we have it covered, maybe they know to just let us handle it, or maybe Stacy and I don't work well in groups and just do it all ourselves, because nobody can do it as well as we can.  yes, my friends, I do it to myself.

   Our big EAD was this last weekend and it was a huge hit!!! I can't tell you how many people told me it was the best dinner yet... maybe I can't tell you how many because I had a little too much to drink. just sayin'.  We had our EAD at a new location this year and it was gorgeous!  Anything is better then the fairgrounds with it's wood paneling and farm animal stench! The food was delish (tri tip and grilled chicken), the company was fabulous, and everyone was dressed to the nines. what the hell does dressed to the nines even mean... now I have to go google that. Every year we have a slideshow (thanks Stacy) that displays photos taken through out the course of the year - this is the evenings big hit! We also have a silent auction, awards, and open mic.  It really is the event of the year... at least for those of us in the fire district.

Astrology: or when the stars enlighten illuminated who dazzle a bunch of lunatics ~ Paul Carvel

Today's post is brought to you by the letters W T and F.  No, mom I will not explain what those letters are.
I'm sure my readers (12) haven't been under a rock and have learned that the astrological signs we all know and love have changed. Well the signs haven't really changed, they (who the hell are THEY anyways - what gives them the right - stupid PHD!) added a new sign, but you my friend (12) probably will have to change. what do I mean? well if you, like me,  were a Libra, are now a Virgo - which means YOU have to change.
  I was once a smart lover of peace, love, balance and harmony.  Now according to THEM, I am a perfectionist, an introvert, naive, and think I am better then everyone else. (OK well some of the new qualities might be true... kidding friends, kidding!)
   On the bright side of this major disaster, I laughed so hard I about peed myself at work on Friday when I was telling Stacy (scottandstacysadventures.blogspot.com) about the changes (she was under that rock I was telling you about earlier).  Stacy (Kenzie too) went from a Sagittarius to an Ophiuchus. WTF is a Ophiuchus? well in the words of Stacy - "a man with a serpent between his legs". LMAO right?  The worst part for Stacy: she has a tattoo of a Sagittarius symbol proudly displayed on her wrist.  Hope she finds a damn good tattoo artist that can morph her cute little symbol into a Greek God with his phallic snake proudly displayed. I'm thinking it could be a sleeve tat.
     To lessen the blow of this major change in our horoscope reading world THEY decided that these changes will only effect persons born in 2010 and beyond.  Ok really? so the 2010ers and younger are just *poof* different? my husband says its a bunch of BS... but of course he would say that... he was and still is a Leo! 
     It's a good thing I don't have to change my sign because some scientist with nothing better to do then screw up the universe said so. And if they told me I had to (you know if they pointed a gun at my temple) then I'd tell them I'll compromise and become a Librgo because that's what us Libras do... we compromise.

We don't stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing. ~ George Bernard Shaw

Oh the games we play. Literally! I never knew a one year old could be sooo much fun!!! Makenzie sure does bring the kid out in me and her daddy! I hadn't played peak a boo, hide and seek, patty cake, or just plain gotten down on the floor and played in years.  The dishes and mopping the floor can wait - they will be there after Kenzie's bedtime. The memories need to be made now!

 I often think about the things that need to be done, like exercising, or grocery shopping, or after work meetings... and I struggle with where the line is. To me each of these things takes time away from my girl... and since I am a full time working mommy the precious hours each night are just that... precious. The weekends fall under the same category.   Matt works evenings and I work days, so the 2 days we get as a family are so important! I was telling Matt today about how a strong foundation makes for a strong family, and without the hours together and as a family we would have cracks in that foundation.  So this coming weekend we have vowed to play.

The crab that walks too far falls into the pot ~ Haitian Proverb quote

I am sorry reader (12) that it's been a week since I have written - we've been sick! yuck! Makenzie had her first cold and fever, first reaction to a food, and first glimpse at the terrible twos at one years old. And my battery to my car died in the babysitter's driveway. What a horrible start to the new year! I can only hope that all our bad luck is now out of the way and only good things are to come for 2011.
  So the reaction to a food... Thursday I made crab cakes for dinner for myself and rice and turkey for Makenzie.  I decided to let Makenzie try the crab cakes... what could it hurt? Crab is my all time favorite food. Ever. and was super excited to see if Makenzie liked it as well as I do.  In goes the crab. Not even 2 minutes later my little one was covered in red splotchy spots all over her face. I freaked out! I called Matt and left a message with a coworker (reminder: Matt works night shift) and then called my mom (who is an RN). Mom told me to call the Dr., so I did - I left a message and while waiting for the return call from him, washed Makenzie's face and hands with soapy warm water. Matt came home and did the once over on our baby girl. I was still panicked at this time.  Makenzie never showed any signs of swelling or difficulty breathing but I was scared that if the crab could make her skin react what could it be doing to her insides. The spots started to go away.  Dr. Hempel called back and said in the 10 years of being a physician he has never seen an anaphalactic response to a food - so that eased my mind - and only wished I knew that before I freaked out! and the crab was terrible by the way.

Dogs are not our whole life, but they make our lives whole. ~Roger Caras

They say "man's best friend is his dog". Our little Sunny Moo isn't our best friend. She's our dogter. say if fast reader (12!) it kind of sounds like daughter doesn't it? Sunny came into our lives after the loss of her half sister, Moo Shu past away in my husband's hands at only 6 weeks old. Mooshi developed a problem called "swimmers dog".  Basically it was a result of an over protective mother and a lazy pup.  It is when the pup doesn't move much because their mother doesn't make them.  It causes a flattening of the ribs and thus suffocating the puppy.  We knew that Moo Shu wouldn't live when we brought her home, but we thought we would like to give her as much attention and love as we possible could - it was less then 12 hours later she died.  Moo Shu's grandmother and Mother were pregnant at the same time and both delivered liters within a week of each other.  So when Mooshi passed away our friend Thor and Leah (the breeders) brought over Sunny (and Moo Shu's Mother) not as a replacement to Moo Shu but as a new puppy to love.  We quickly fell in love with lil' cute fluffy Sunny and she filled our home with many smiles and wet puppy kisses. We spoil her terribly! She truly is our other child. We were fearful when we found out we were pregnant that Sunny would become just a dog and not our other baby.  We have worked really hard to let Sunny know that she is special and very loved - all the while tending to our human child.
  Sunny and Kenzie didn't really see eye to eye... (although they weigh about the same - 17 lbs) from day one... but once Kenzie started getting Cheerios and other treats Sunny started to warm up to her.  I see a future of my two girls paling around together, getting dirty in the backyard and snuggling on the couch for many years to come.