Saturday, August 18, 2012
Because I can, I will.
So, I have been super stressed out with my new job. Starting over and all has been both humbling and terrifying. I was almost to the point of thinking all was lost and I was doomed until I made a new friend at work. This friend and I are both new to the office, stressed out and very fortunately live a minute away from one another. One day, for some random reason in the ladies room, we were discussing a skirt I tried on in the closet that I no longer fit into and then the idea popped into her head that maybe we should run together in the neighborhood to get some exercise and lose weight. I wasn't quite sure if I should tell her right off that I would rather DIE than run around the neighborhood because I really needed to make a friend and nixing her plan without giving it a try wouldn't seem very "friendly." So against all my inner desires and determination to never ever run unless I was being chased, I started running with her. At first, I did everything wrong. I ate pizza and drank soda before the run and then didn't wear the right clothes. Slowly though over a week or so we built up my endurance to where I could run for 10 minutes without stopping. Granted, I wasn't running fast, but I was running longer than I ever had before. A few more days into working out, I started to notice that I missed it when I didn't work out for a day. We also started doing classes together and it has been very awesome to have someone there to make me laugh when I'm being a baby or when the move in class is just too hard. We seem to be getting better and better and though I haven't lost any weight really, I have noticed that my mood has changed quite significantly at home and sometimes even at work. I know in part that it is due to endorphins and all, but I also think it has to do with the fact that I have made a little friend. She is a lot younger than me, but she is so funny and has such a great spirit, that I feel I have more energy around her and I think that is making me happy too. So, even if things stay stressful at work, I will at least be building up my body of steel so that I can eventually enter a Cross Fit competition or something and become a professional body-builder/IT Recruiter.
Saturday, July 7, 2012
San Diego Rocks!
We just go back from a great family vacation! Every year we have a family meeting about where to go the following summer and the choice for this year was San Diego!
Getting away from our quiet life and heading out is an adventure in and of itself, but doing it with kids and pets is way more complex. We not only had to make sure we had a way to keep our fish alive for 5 days, but we also had to reserve a kennel for our dogs 2 months in advance. The boys had never been on a plane before so we had to make sure they were packed correctly and that they had an idea as to what to expect going through an airport check-in process. Once we were in the car heading to the airport, I got that feeling I always get when I don't know if the trip will live up to all the time planning and paying for it. I guess I live a little glass half empty.
The ride on the plane was a breeze for the boys. When we finally landed, we got our rental car and headed out to our hotel in Mission Valley. I must say that I couldn't have picked a more central location than Mission Valley. We were close to just about everything we had planned to see and do. Although there were more pluses than minuses with our hotel choice, I wasn't too impressed with our lodging selection. We ended up at the Courtyard Marriott San Diego-Mission Valley. Although it is a brand new hotel, a few things didn't impress me very much. First of all, you will need to budget in $16/nt to park in their uncovered parking lot. This was a very unexpected cost. Also, normally when I stay in a hotel, there is a personal safe in the room for your valuables. No such luck here. I had to go downstairs to guest services every time I needed to get more cash or put some of our other valuables away. They also had an annoying habit of not stocking the room with enough towels or coffee, so we called down every day asking for things. Aside from that, the rooms and lobby were clean, so I guess my biggest needs were met. I should also mention here that our rental car ended up being a Ford Focus. Man is that thing tiny! I cursed every time I had to drive it. The gas and brake pedals are so sensitive, we were jumping with every move I made. I regularly drive a big SUV so this was a reminder to me that no matter how much I think I want a Mini Cooper, I actually don't like feeling like an itty bitty spider on the road! OK, enough about that. on to our sightseeing adventures...
First we ended up at the San Diego Zoo. I think it was about 68 degrees and though it was a little cold, after walking a mile or two, I was pretty comfortable. I took about 100 pictures while my husband read all the little info plates on each of the animals. I think its so cute that he does that. He tries to make an effort of learning something new on a regular basis and it was interesting to have him tell me an interesting piece of information while I was taking my pictures. My youngest son really enjoyed the giraffes. I think of all the animals there, I probably took 10 of them alone! After about 3 hours of walking and telling them "no, I won't buy you (fill in the blank)", the boys were super tired so we ended up heading out without seeing the birds and aquariums (which to be honest, I was really not into seeing anyway). Birds weird me out and fish are way boring.
On Wednesday (4th of July), we went off to the pier and walked around. I took pictures of old ships and submarines, but since it was cloudy, and 60 degrees, we got out of there and headed back to the hotel to warm ourselves back up a bit. Later in the afternoon, we went out to Sea World. I would like to warn everyone that this place (in my opinion), is a HUGE waste of money! I was bored, the boys were bored and my sweet husband was trying with all his might, to stay positive so that I wouldn't lose my temper over the let down it was. The rides they wanted to go on were down and some of the ones that were water rides were just unthinkable given how cold they were already with the weather not cooperating. I didn't think in a million years that I needed to have them wear long pants and jackets in July. I was so close to buying them sweatshirts in the gift shop so that their teeth would stop chattering! Sadly, everything about this day was a big let down and we just went back to our hotel without seeing the fireworks show. :(
Thursday, was everything I had dreamt our vacation would be. We woke up and although we had been through a rough time the day before and were a little irritable, we marched on over to the Marine Corp Recruit Depot. This was an unplanned trip on my itinerary, but turns out that of all the things I had shelled out hundreds of dollars for, the boys enjoyed this cheap (free) adventure the most! They had a nice museum depicting the history and the battles the Marines had gone through. Once again, I took about 100 pictures. The boys even got to see the Marines on Family Day, which is when the families of the recruits who were about to graduate from boot camp, get to see them for the first time in 3 months. Both of my sons, decided that day that they both wanted to be Marines and that they were very proud of the fact that their dad is a Marine.
By about noon, we drove ourselves out to Escondido to the San Diego Wild Animal Park. It was here that I had the best time. I saw all kinds of animals and they were all so close, that I felt I was in danger on a couple of different occasions, but my husband assured me that the wires around the animals were electrified so I was as safe as I was when we were at the zoo. I took so many pictures here and the park was so beautiful and clean, that I highly recommend coming here even if you can't afford all the different safari packages. Next time, I come out, I am definitely socking some money away so that we can take a caravan to get even closer to some of the animals. The views at the park were also spectacular. I think if you love animals and are a real photographer, that this place is a dream come true!
Our last place to visit was La Jolla. Even though the sun had shown itself this day, it was still a little cold to get in the water. I was very determined to make sure my boys saw the Pacific Ocean though so we headed out west till we ran into water! All and all, it was nice to end our trip to San Diego on a high note. I took so many pictures of both the boys, but my youngest likes to pose the most right now, so I put all his smiling pictures up today. I think when my oldest gets his braces off, he will finally smile again, at least I hope so.:)
On the way back home, we had a little pow-wow about where we will be going next year. The choice...Puerto Rico! :)
Getting away from our quiet life and heading out is an adventure in and of itself, but doing it with kids and pets is way more complex. We not only had to make sure we had a way to keep our fish alive for 5 days, but we also had to reserve a kennel for our dogs 2 months in advance. The boys had never been on a plane before so we had to make sure they were packed correctly and that they had an idea as to what to expect going through an airport check-in process. Once we were in the car heading to the airport, I got that feeling I always get when I don't know if the trip will live up to all the time planning and paying for it. I guess I live a little glass half empty.
The ride on the plane was a breeze for the boys. When we finally landed, we got our rental car and headed out to our hotel in Mission Valley. I must say that I couldn't have picked a more central location than Mission Valley. We were close to just about everything we had planned to see and do. Although there were more pluses than minuses with our hotel choice, I wasn't too impressed with our lodging selection. We ended up at the Courtyard Marriott San Diego-Mission Valley. Although it is a brand new hotel, a few things didn't impress me very much. First of all, you will need to budget in $16/nt to park in their uncovered parking lot. This was a very unexpected cost. Also, normally when I stay in a hotel, there is a personal safe in the room for your valuables. No such luck here. I had to go downstairs to guest services every time I needed to get more cash or put some of our other valuables away. They also had an annoying habit of not stocking the room with enough towels or coffee, so we called down every day asking for things. Aside from that, the rooms and lobby were clean, so I guess my biggest needs were met. I should also mention here that our rental car ended up being a Ford Focus. Man is that thing tiny! I cursed every time I had to drive it. The gas and brake pedals are so sensitive, we were jumping with every move I made. I regularly drive a big SUV so this was a reminder to me that no matter how much I think I want a Mini Cooper, I actually don't like feeling like an itty bitty spider on the road! OK, enough about that. on to our sightseeing adventures...
First we ended up at the San Diego Zoo. I think it was about 68 degrees and though it was a little cold, after walking a mile or two, I was pretty comfortable. I took about 100 pictures while my husband read all the little info plates on each of the animals. I think its so cute that he does that. He tries to make an effort of learning something new on a regular basis and it was interesting to have him tell me an interesting piece of information while I was taking my pictures. My youngest son really enjoyed the giraffes. I think of all the animals there, I probably took 10 of them alone! After about 3 hours of walking and telling them "no, I won't buy you (fill in the blank)", the boys were super tired so we ended up heading out without seeing the birds and aquariums (which to be honest, I was really not into seeing anyway). Birds weird me out and fish are way boring.
On Wednesday (4th of July), we went off to the pier and walked around. I took pictures of old ships and submarines, but since it was cloudy, and 60 degrees, we got out of there and headed back to the hotel to warm ourselves back up a bit. Later in the afternoon, we went out to Sea World. I would like to warn everyone that this place (in my opinion), is a HUGE waste of money! I was bored, the boys were bored and my sweet husband was trying with all his might, to stay positive so that I wouldn't lose my temper over the let down it was. The rides they wanted to go on were down and some of the ones that were water rides were just unthinkable given how cold they were already with the weather not cooperating. I didn't think in a million years that I needed to have them wear long pants and jackets in July. I was so close to buying them sweatshirts in the gift shop so that their teeth would stop chattering! Sadly, everything about this day was a big let down and we just went back to our hotel without seeing the fireworks show. :(
Thursday, was everything I had dreamt our vacation would be. We woke up and although we had been through a rough time the day before and were a little irritable, we marched on over to the Marine Corp Recruit Depot. This was an unplanned trip on my itinerary, but turns out that of all the things I had shelled out hundreds of dollars for, the boys enjoyed this cheap (free) adventure the most! They had a nice museum depicting the history and the battles the Marines had gone through. Once again, I took about 100 pictures. The boys even got to see the Marines on Family Day, which is when the families of the recruits who were about to graduate from boot camp, get to see them for the first time in 3 months. Both of my sons, decided that day that they both wanted to be Marines and that they were very proud of the fact that their dad is a Marine.
By about noon, we drove ourselves out to Escondido to the San Diego Wild Animal Park. It was here that I had the best time. I saw all kinds of animals and they were all so close, that I felt I was in danger on a couple of different occasions, but my husband assured me that the wires around the animals were electrified so I was as safe as I was when we were at the zoo. I took so many pictures here and the park was so beautiful and clean, that I highly recommend coming here even if you can't afford all the different safari packages. Next time, I come out, I am definitely socking some money away so that we can take a caravan to get even closer to some of the animals. The views at the park were also spectacular. I think if you love animals and are a real photographer, that this place is a dream come true!
Our last place to visit was La Jolla. Even though the sun had shown itself this day, it was still a little cold to get in the water. I was very determined to make sure my boys saw the Pacific Ocean though so we headed out west till we ran into water! All and all, it was nice to end our trip to San Diego on a high note. I took so many pictures of both the boys, but my youngest likes to pose the most right now, so I put all his smiling pictures up today. I think when my oldest gets his braces off, he will finally smile again, at least I hope so.:)
Sunday, June 24, 2012
Change is good
Hi y'all!
Well, I have just completed my second week at my new job. There have been some huge pluses with only a couple of minuses. The pluses are big ones to me. I have a really great and reputable company to sell and there is extensive training involved to make sure I get on the phone and get the right message across to our clients. The minuses are that I am having to seriously adjust my sleep schedule so that I can wake up earlier and leave nearly an hour before I used to so I can get to work on time and then there is, of course, the incredibly long drive home. What I've learned though is that if you like where you're going every day, the drive doesn't seem so bad. The other thing that's been hard is that no one really knows me here, so I have a limited number of people that say "hello" to me and that's taking some getting used to. I guess I just need to be more charming or dress a little cuter! Women will always say something to you if something about your outfit catches their eye. :)
There has been one thing that has surpassed all my expectations with this new company. I am no longer sad in the mornings on my drive into work. I no longer dread Sunday nights knowing that I have to endure another week working in a place where no one cared anymore. I have yet to be mad or sad or gloomy. The only thing that has really made me sad is knowing that the people I left behind have a different feeling about me than they used to, but I can't express enough how relieved I am. I do also have some financial things that are going to be tough for a couple of months, but I am very blessed to know that God has taken care of me in every single instance of my life. If he wants me to be successful here, he will make it happen and make it happen in a way that I will know it had nothing to do with me, but all to do with him. I am very grateful to have everyone that is still a part of my life and I look forward to the possibilities that this change has already started in me and my family.
Well, I have just completed my second week at my new job. There have been some huge pluses with only a couple of minuses. The pluses are big ones to me. I have a really great and reputable company to sell and there is extensive training involved to make sure I get on the phone and get the right message across to our clients. The minuses are that I am having to seriously adjust my sleep schedule so that I can wake up earlier and leave nearly an hour before I used to so I can get to work on time and then there is, of course, the incredibly long drive home. What I've learned though is that if you like where you're going every day, the drive doesn't seem so bad. The other thing that's been hard is that no one really knows me here, so I have a limited number of people that say "hello" to me and that's taking some getting used to. I guess I just need to be more charming or dress a little cuter! Women will always say something to you if something about your outfit catches their eye. :)
There has been one thing that has surpassed all my expectations with this new company. I am no longer sad in the mornings on my drive into work. I no longer dread Sunday nights knowing that I have to endure another week working in a place where no one cared anymore. I have yet to be mad or sad or gloomy. The only thing that has really made me sad is knowing that the people I left behind have a different feeling about me than they used to, but I can't express enough how relieved I am. I do also have some financial things that are going to be tough for a couple of months, but I am very blessed to know that God has taken care of me in every single instance of my life. If he wants me to be successful here, he will make it happen and make it happen in a way that I will know it had nothing to do with me, but all to do with him. I am very grateful to have everyone that is still a part of my life and I look forward to the possibilities that this change has already started in me and my family.
Friday, June 8, 2012
Moving on
What a week! After 6 years of working with one company, I resigned. It was bittersweet because I was told by so many of my co-workers that they were going to miss me and that they wished me all the best. The hard part was leaving my boss. He was such a wonderful and charming person and he taught me so much. I know I will never forget him and hugging him goodbye was probably the most difficult thing I have done in the last 10 years. I hope that he remembers me and after he gets over being sad, that he realizes I really only left because it was time to go to a place where I could grow in my career. I had to take a risk and do something about being stagnant in my professional life. I want to be able to be like him one day. I want to be able to inspire and mentor people too. I want to change lives the way he changed mine. One day, when I have achieved these things, I will call him and thank him again for giving me the confidence in myself to move on and achieve what I was meant to achieve.
Friday, June 1, 2012
Caramel Chex
I made a snack today that my husband keeps going back to the kitchen for so I know it must be good!
Caramel Chex Mix -
9 cups Chex Rice Cereal
1/2 c. butter
1 c. light brown sugar
1/4 c. light corn syrup
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1) In a large microwaveable bowl, pour in all of the cereal
2) In a 2 cup microwaveable bowl, put in the butter, brown sugar & corn syrup and microwave on HIGH for 2 minutes, stirring after 1 minute. Add baking soda and stir until dissolved
3) Pour caramel mixture over the cereal, folding it in so that you get it all over the cereal. Microwave on HIGH for 4 minutes, stirring after every minute. Cool for 5 minutes
4) Spread mixture over buttered baking sheet or on wax paper to cool for at least 5 minutes. Break into pieces of desired size & enjoy!
Caramel Chex Mix -
9 cups Chex Rice Cereal
1/2 c. butter
1 c. light brown sugar
1/4 c. light corn syrup
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1) In a large microwaveable bowl, pour in all of the cereal
2) In a 2 cup microwaveable bowl, put in the butter, brown sugar & corn syrup and microwave on HIGH for 2 minutes, stirring after 1 minute. Add baking soda and stir until dissolved
3) Pour caramel mixture over the cereal, folding it in so that you get it all over the cereal. Microwave on HIGH for 4 minutes, stirring after every minute. Cool for 5 minutes
4) Spread mixture over buttered baking sheet or on wax paper to cool for at least 5 minutes. Break into pieces of desired size & enjoy!
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
Starting Over
My name is Patricia and I am turning over a new page in life. I want to be myself again after years of conforming and trying to stay under the radar. I have finally realized that in order to move ahead you have to be take some risks. Risks were something that I took before I had a family. I remember those decisions, some were good and some not-so-good, but they made me a more well-rounded person. The last few years have been great. I have enjoyed my life being in order very much, but I have felt restless and stagnant. I know that there have been several things that I've always wanted to try or improve upon, so I am going to chronicle my journey and see how I change along the way. As I write, please feel free to comment and lend some words of wisdom!
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