tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-168812552024-03-14T03:32:46.205-07:00Life is for Living, right?Too many people just sit and let life pass them by! I don't want to do that!Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09182054237708585905noreply@blogger.comBlogger571125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16881255.post-12916838895223175962023-01-03T15:17:00.014-08:002024-01-25T14:44:45.720-08:00What I am Watching in 2023<p> Rather than doing a recap, I will attempt to catalog the various movies that I'm watching this year. I'll have a separate post for books, although, there will be a lot of beach reading on there, so maybe I will just make that one private. Not to say that what I'm watching won't be... </p><p>A lot of what I watch is "background" TV/movies while I'm working on busywork. </p><p><b><u>Movies</u></b></p><ol style="text-align: left;"><li>Deadpool - Watched this with the guys. Pretty funny, with bonus beauty - Morena Baccarin. </li><li>What If - Cute rom/com with Daniel Radcliffe </li><li>The Sting - Watched this outside at Paris' house for his birthday. It was my first time seeing it and it was a little slow paced, but still decent!</li><li>Clue (Amazon Prime) - got a message saying this was leaving Prime at the
end of 2023, so watched this again! I love Madeline Kahn.</li></ol><p><br /></p><p><b><u>TV shows </u></b></p><ol style="text-align: left;"><li>Survivor 43</li><li>Winning Time (HBO) - Ridiculous and so fun to watch. Loved this. Can't wait for season 2! <br /></li><li>Hung (HBO) seasons 1-3 - Story about living in LA... I went to a friend's house who was hosting a party game night. One of the friend of a friend plays the son on this show, so I watched this to see him as a teenager in there. <br /></li><li>Julia (HBO) - season 1 </li><li>The Makanai: Cooking for the Maiko House (Netflix) - really cute and fun to just watch the food. </li><li>Dark (Netflix) - finished seasons 1-2 in February 2023, moving on to season 3! Update: finished season 3 in early March 2023. While I enjoyed the show, after watching 1899 first and the end of that first season and then the end of season 3 Dark, I'm done with these creators. <br /></li><li>House (Amazon Prime) - </li><li>Game of Thrones - my during work background TV for Feb 2023. Only 10 years late! </li><li>Mandalorian -Season 2 - watching this as it comes out in March - April 2023.</li><li>We Married as a Job (Netflix) - super cute Japanese show about a couple that starts out as a "contract marriage" and then eventually fall in love.</li><li>Wednesday (Netflix) - watched the only season of this. Enjoyed it, and will watch season 2 when it comes out.</li><li>Call the Midwife (Netflix) - this has been in my queue <i>forever</i>, and I finally started it. I've been zipping through, so far in season 3 or 4. </li><li>Survivor 44</li><li>Abbott Elementary (Hulu) Season 1-2 - Super cute. Loved it. <br /></li><li>Succession (HBO) season 4 - Finished off this series. It was a ride!</li><li>Full Swing (Netflix) - documentary on the PGA golf tour. I love documentaries, and sports ones are always fun, so really enjoyed this. The initial LIV Golf situation is talked about quite a bit in this season, so a great way to learn about some of the history of it.<br /></li><li>The Last Dance (Netflix) - inspired from watching Full Swing. This focuses on Michael Jordan, and his last season with the Chicago Bulls. You get to learn about everyone that was on this dream team back in 1995-1996. Almost done with it, but thoroughly enjoying it. </li><li>Endeavour Season 9 (PBS) - This is the final season for Morse and crew. When I'm writing this (7/2/23), there is one final episode to watch, plus a documentary. </li><li>Endeavour re-watch (Amazon Prime) - Seasons 1 - 6 Watching this final season has made me nostalgic for Morse. So, started re-watching it and already done with the first season. The thing about PBS is with their very short seasons with a year in between, it's so easy to forget everything that has happened almost 10 years ago! Oh man, I love Morse. He's exactly my type, except for the blond hair,
but I can overlook it. He's loomy, too smart for his own good, tall,
skinny, and has a strong sense of justice. What's not to love?</li><li>Suits (Netflix) - Suits just showed up on Netflix, so I started a re-watch of this too. I had originally watched it until around season 6, and then lost interest, so let's see how far I can get into this. This showed on Netflix around mid-June and I'm already on season 3, so making good progress. Update- stopped watching this and started other stuff. It was too hard to watch while doing data entry type tasks. </li><li>Winning Time (HBO) - season 2. Similarly fun and enjoyed it.<br /></li><li>Survivor 45 (CBS.com) - The winner was fairly predictable, but a decent group of contestants this season. <br /></li><li>SVU (Hulu) - Seasons 1 - mid season 3. I watched all of this while it was airing and going back and doing a rewatch. <br /></li><li>Reacher (Amazon Prime) - Season 1 and Season 2 started at the end of 2023.</li></ol><p><b>Update as of 1/2/24</b> - This has been a very imprecise list of stuff I watched last year. It's kind of fun to look back on, because I had forgotten that I watched a lot of this! I think I'll try again for 2024, and also include books. I bought a Kindle Oasis in November and have been reading way more than usual!<br /></p>Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09182054237708585905noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16881255.post-62920258331483759092021-01-03T23:03:00.000-08:002021-01-03T23:03:06.471-08:00Reflecting on 2020<p>One of my friends was asking on Facebook what good came out of 2020 and I was going to reply to her question, but then I thought, "Hey, I should write this up somewhere for posterity!" So, here we go...</p><p>I had started writing something up in mid-August about the pros and cons of sheltering at home. Looking at those now, four months later, they are still mostly true actually. Jason and I have been working from home since about mid-March. I had one client I saw a few more times on a monthly basis, but we have since moved to 100% remote work, so I haven't not left my house for work in months. This has been a huge plus for me. </p><p>I've broken things down into categories! Who doesn't love categories? <br /></p><p><b>General life</b></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><u>Not killing each other</u> - Jason and I have managed to be together 24/7 for several months now and haven't killed each other! This one feels pretty major actually. So, I'll say this is #1 with a bullet. </li><li><u>Great jobs</u> - We are both so fortunate to be able to do our jobs remotely. Not everyone can and I think my stress levels would have been over the top if I had to be out and about with people this whole year.</li><li><u>Good friends</u> - We are also fortunate to have a core group of friends to be in our Covid bubble. There is a lot at stake when you're in a bubble with others. There is a lot of trust and I'm happy we can trust our friends to make wise decisions. That said, as the saying goes, "Trust, but verify!" So, even though we are in a bubble, we are still wearing masks while around others. <br /></li><li><u>Bullet Journal</u> - I started bullet journaling in June and I love it. Here's a <a href="https://bulletjournal.com/pages/learn" target="_blank">brief video</a> that describes what it is and how it works. It has helped me manage my stress this year, by keeping track of everything I need to be doing. I bought a new journal for 2021 and after I finish this post, I'm going to start prepping it!<br /></li></ul><p> <b>Food</b><br /></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><u>Bread maker</u> - I finally started using the bread maker my mom gave me YEARS ago. The loaves of bread are fairly ho-hum, but we've been using the heck out of the dough cycle to make rolls, garlic knots, and focaccia bread.<br /></li><li><u>Zojirushi rice cooker</u> - We purchased a 10 cup Zojirushi rice cooker. We have been using it pretty regularly. I love that it has a timer to cook rice. I can set it up in the morning and not have to worry about forgetting to turn it on at the right time. The rice turns out really well in it too.<br /></li><li><u>Instant Pot with Air Fryer</u> - I had a 6 quart Instant Pot, but I let my brother take it when he moved out last year. I went ahead and bought a replacement one, but this time, I bought the 8 quart Duo Crisp, so it has an air fryer lid that came with it. We've been using this at least once a week since we purchased it. It makes dinner a breeze. Our favorite recipe is air fried salmon, which we make almost weekly.</li><li><u>Eating out</u> - We have still been patronizing our favorite restaurants, getting take out a couple times a week. </li><li><u>Meal Planning </u>- I've been better about meal planning. This has been a little more critical to do, especially since we've been using <a href="https://inst.cr/t/M2paQkQxdzFk" target="_blank">Instacart</a> (referral link!) for all our groceries. Pre-pandemic, I could walk to our local grocery store and pick up last minute items all the time. I'm not going in grocery stores, so it helps to plan ahead.<br /></li></ul><p><b>Work/Money</b></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><u>Stable job for Jason</u> - Jason had the same job for all of 2020! Woo-hoo!</li><li><u>100% working remotely</u> - I successfully moved most of my clients to 100% remote work. One client wanted me to still go to his home office, but I declined, so I think he found someone else to do the work. Totally fine with me as he was one of my smaller clients and one of my BFFs who was working for him no longer does. She was part of the draw of me going to his office every few months. <br /></li><li><u>New clients in 2020</u> - After a few months of less work during the first few months of the pandemic, things picked up and I got several new clients during the pandemic. Overall, my revenue was up about 25% from 2019, which was up 50% from 2018. <br /></li><li><u>Even more clients</u> - In just the last two weeks, I have three new clients that are going to start up with me in January and February 2021. </li><li><u>Value Pricing with Mark Wickersham</u> - I joined the Value Pricing Academy with Mark Wickersham. Before I joined in mid-2020, I was billing all customers hourly. I've been taking his course and shifting my whole mindset and business to use value pricing, rather than hourly. I think this will be a real pivoting point for my business.</li></ul><p><b>Health</b></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><u>No COVID-19</u> - We didn't get Covid during 2020, so that's a huge win! <br /></li><li><u>Down 10 lbs</u> - I'm down about 10 pounds from this time last year. I think a lot of it had to do with using Noom for the first two months of 2020. I just cancelled the subscription because I haven't really been using it since the pandemic started in mid-March. I got too far behind and then it just felt overwhelming to try to "catch up" with all the articles and participating with my group.</li><li><u>Physical</u> - I skipped my annual physical in 2020 because I normally do it in late March, which was in the early part of the pandemic and I was just too freaked out mentally to be able to go. I have an appointment scheduled for mid-January 2021, so hoping that nothing has developed since my last physical almost two years ago.<br /></li><li><u>Garmin Instinct</u> - My brother gave me this smartwatch for Christmas about a year ago. It was the perfect gift. It's something I would never have bought for myself, but turns out, I love it! I wear it basically all the time and the data it provides helps me realize when I'm over-stressed or not rested enough. I love tracking things in the app. And I just got sidetracked and checked out all the Garmin smartwatches and I think I'm still good with my Instinct. The ones with the full color screens are cool, but my watch has a ton of awesome features and it only has to be charged every two weeks.<br /></li></ul><p><b>Exercise </b></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><u>Peloton</u> - This has been the shining star of the last third of 2020! We ordered it in late August, it <i>finally</i> arrived in late October. Before buying the bike, I had <b>never</b> taken a spinning class. This was part of why I had been resistant to trying this out. But then our friend Renee got one and loved it. So we decided to try it. There is a 30 day money back guarantee, so I figured that if we didn't like it, or weren't really using it, we could return it. Needless to say, we have been using it! And not just the bike. I love the strength classes in the app too. This really deserves its own post, so I will leave it at... We've used it a lot since purchasing it and looking forward to doing even more rides in 2021! I logged 2,000 minutes of workouts/classes in 2020. Not too shabby! If you are buying a bike and want to save $100 on shoes or other accessories, here's my code: DRM9WH<span color="unset" style="-moz-box-align: unset; -moz-box-direction: unset; -moz-box-flex: unset; -moz-box-ordinal-group: unset; -moz-box-orient: unset; -moz-box-pack: unset; -moz-context-properties: unset; -moz-control-character-visibility: unset; -moz-float-edge: unset; -moz-force-broken-image-icon: unset; -moz-image-region: unset; -moz-orient: unset; -moz-outline-radius: unset; -moz-tab-size: unset; -moz-text-size-adjust: unset; -moz-user-focus: unset; -moz-user-input: unset; -moz-user-modify: unset; -moz-window-dragging: unset; -webkit-line-clamp: unset; -webkit-text-fill-color: unset; -webkit-text-stroke: unset; animation: unset; appearance: unset; backface-visibility: unset; background-blend-mode: unset; background: unset; block-size: unset; border-block: unset; border-collapse: unset; border-end-end-radius: unset; border-end-start-radius: unset; border-inline: unset; border-radius: unset; 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text-decoration-skip-ink: unset; text-decoration: unset; text-emphasis-position: unset; text-emphasis: unset; text-indent: unset; text-justify: unset; text-orientation: unset; text-overflow: unset; text-rendering: unset; text-shadow: unset; text-transform: unset; text-underline-offset: unset; text-underline-position: unset; top: 0px; touch-action: unset; transform-box: unset; transform-origin: unset; transform-style: unset; transform: unset; transition: unset; translate: unset; user-select: text; vector-effect: unset; vertical-align: unset; visibility: unset; white-space: pre; width: unset; will-change: unset; word-break: unset; word-spacing: unset; writing-mode: unset; x: unset; y: unset; z-index: unset;">DRM9WH</span></li></ul><p><b>Socializing and Hobbies<br /></b></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><u>Hanging with </u><u>faraway friends</u> - I've been playing Die Crew every Tuesday with the same group and it's been great. Especially since three of them aren't living near me at the moment! It's been great to reconnect with everyone Zoom and Discord.</li><li><u>Continuing Wednesday night gaming</u> - I'm still playing games every Wednesday night with my usual crew. It's nice to have consistency.</li><li><u>Thursday night trivia</u> - What used to be my in-person Tuesday night trivia morphed to Thursday night trivia with Nikki and Paris, hosted by the always fun Steven. </li><li><u>Rotary</u> - I tried to attend as many Rotary meetings as I could this year. We kept it alive and even had a virtual wine tasting event in November! It was super fun. I miss seeing my fellow Rotarians, but it's been nice to hang with them, even virtually.</li><li><u>Virtual Puzzle Events</u> - Sadly, the annual NPL convention was cancelled, but instead we had Conline and then Conline2! We also moved our Puzzled Pint meetings to virtual as well, so it's been great keeping up with everyone each month via Zoom.</li><li><u>Letter Jam</u> - Nathan made an online version of Letter Jam!! It's been so fun and we've used it quite a bit. <br /></li></ul><p><b>TV/Movies/Podcasts</b></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Tiger King - watched via Netflix Party Chrome extension... seriously, didn't EVERYONE watch this?</li><li>Love is Blind - watched via Netflix Party Chrome extension with Nathan and Chia<br /></li><li>Kim's Convenience</li><li>Schitt's Creek</li><li>Queen's Gambit</li><li>Wonder Woman 84</li><li>Mandalorian season one - still need to watch the second season </li><li>The Boys</li><li>Atypical</li><li>The Vow (documentary)</li><li>Fake Doctors, Real Friends - Scrubs podcast with Zach Braff and Donald Faison, where they have one podcast episode per Scrubs episode. I'm still pretty new on it, but I just LOVE TO DEATH</li><li>Britney Runs a Marathon <br /></li><li>I'm sure there is more, but those are the ones coming to mind. <br /></li></ul><p><b> </b></p><p><b>Random Highlights<br /></b></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><u>Diana is pregnant!</u> - One of my friends is pregnant! Currently on bed rest, due in early February. But she's my age and had not had much luck in the first several years of being married, so thrilled to soon have a baby in our group! But also, she moved to Arizona (sad trombone!).<br /></li><li><u>Shane bought a house</u> - She and JJ bought a house in September! Sadly, it's still an hour away, but at least it's somewhat nearby! Once the pandemic is done, looking forward to actually seeing it in person. </li><li><u>Two person cookie party</u> - My normal cookie party was cancelled due to Covid, so on December 18, Nathan and I baked several hundred cookies while masked and then drove them around to deliver them to various friends and clients. It was a very exhausting day, but we kept the tradition alive!</li><li><u>Alt BGG.con</u> - We rented a house with our bubble and had our own gaming convention. I was sad to miss BGG.con, but glad we could keep this tradition alive as well. The two really exciting things from this were: a saltwater pool at the house, which I utilized just about every day, and going to Cortina's multiple times to pick up food and snacks. </li><li><u>Three(!!!) cabin trips</u><b> - </b>Nathan and I made THREE trips to the cabin! It was SO nice to get out of town and just be in a quiet space! It's so peaceful there. And the birds. I miss the birds so much! I sometimes watch <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ejnoxuh3NTw&t=12s" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">this video</a> when I want to see them. The chickadees will literally eat out of your hands. </li><li><u>Paris had a heart attack</u> - Fortunately, it was mild and it happened a week <i>before</i> Thanksgiving, so it was before the insane surge of Covid cases so he was able to be seen and treated quickly. If you could time a heart attack, he did it just right.</li></ul><p>There may be more, but for now, this will do! If I delay in posting this, I'll forget and next thing I know, it will be 2022! This was fun! I'll have to post more in 2021. Happy New Year to all!<br /></p>Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09182054237708585905noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16881255.post-10394091130252591052016-03-20T22:05:00.001-07:002016-03-20T22:05:12.674-07:00My Favorite Dallas RestaurantsMy friend Marc wanted some eating recommendations for his friend who is working in Dallas this week, so I worked up a list and thought I should post it here so that next time I can just send a link to this page...<br />
<br />
We go to Dallas every November for BGG.CON and this is pretty much my to-do list every year:<br />
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.yelp.com/biz/pecan-lodge-dallas-3" target="_blank">Pecan Lodge</a>
- BBQ, but it's kind of far, closer to the heart of the city. If he
goes with maybe 5 other people, he can skip the line and go to the front
to the "big orders" register and order a trough, which is enough for
about 6-8 people depending on their appetites.</li>
<li><a href="http://www.lockhartsmokehouse.com/" target="_blank">Lockhart Smokehouse </a>- If they have it, get the bread pudding. Also, the beef rib, which is
only made on Wednesdays and served until the run out, so get there early
for lunch on Wednesday. </li>
<li><a href="https://www.yelp.com/biz/meat-u-anywhere-bbq-grapevine-2" target="_blank">Meat U Anywhere BBQ</a> - A bit north of DFW. They open at 6 am with breakfast burritos/tacos made from BBQ. :-) Perfect for morning BBQ.</li>
<li><a href="https://www.yelp.com/biz/damians-cajun-soul-cafe-arlington" target="_blank">Damian's Cajun Soul Food </a>-Iit's in Arlington, only open 11 am - 4 pm during the week, but
delicious. I never miss it when I'm in Dallas. The peach cobbler and
cakes are a must!! Prices are very reasonable.</li>
<li><a href="https://www.yelp.com/biz/hard-eight-bbq-coppell" target="_blank">Hard Eight BBQ </a>- Also, not terribly far from the airport, maybe a little northeast... The worst of these amazing BBQ restaurants, but still solid.</li>
<li><a href="https://www.yelp.com/biz/andalous-mediterranean-grill-irving" target="_blank">Andalous Mediterranean Grill </a>- Freshly made pitas, variety of meats/kabobs and about a dozen veggie-friendly options. The fried cauliflower is amazing. </li>
<li><a href="https://www.yelp.com/biz/babes-chicken-dinner-house-carrollton" target="_blank">Babe's Fried Chicken House </a>-
Great fun with a group. You choose your meat and all sides are
family-style with unlimited refills. The whipped potatos and corn are
crack-tacular. They have multiple locations, but we usually go to the
one in Carrollton. I usually get the fried catfish or chicken, but
people <i>love</i> the smoked chicken. </li>
<li><a href="https://www.yelp.com/biz/elotes-la-esperanza-fuel-city-dallas" target="_blank">Elotes La Esperanza</a>
- This is a cart in front of a Fuel City gas station. There is also a
taco stand right next door to the gas station. I'd recommend both of
them. The elotes cart is cash only. </li>
</ul>
Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09182054237708585905noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16881255.post-40564530037340633482015-07-31T18:27:00.001-07:002015-07-31T18:27:53.911-07:00New-ish House, New-ish BudgetWe started budgeting in 2013. It's worked out pretty well. I feel like we're both on the same page with money and we have a common outlook toward our future. -- I originally wrote these first couple sentences almost a year ago, but it still holds true.<br />
<br />
We have a new-to-us house, which has changed our budgeting.We did a ton of remodeling and used savings plus some cash flow to fund all the renovations. In addition, my work-life has been turned upside down in various ways since last September. Right now, I'm working <i>very </i>part-time and it's kind of weird. I've been getting little projects done around the house, but it's just weird not having someplace to go every day. Thankfully, Jason is gainfully employed. :-)<br />
<br />
On the plus side, I've been able to volunteer a bit more, exercise a bit more and cook more, so overall, it's been pretty positive. I haven't been pursuing a full-time job just yet because we're waiting to adopt. So I'm using this time as a time to get refreshed. I have no idea how long it will take to find children to adopt. We're adopting through the foster system. We got officially licensed in April and so far, we've only received one call about twin boys, but they fell through. I'm not sure why the process is so slow. Maybe bureaucracy? I have no idea.<br />
<br />
Since 2013, we've been using <a href="http://mint.com/">Mint.com</a>, but last week I decided to try something else. The best thing Mint has going for it is that it's easy. It's a lazy man's finance tool. You enter all your information and it will automatically download your transactions. The bad thing is that the budgeting tool sucks. It's so hard to interpret. So last week I downloaded <a href="http://www.youneedabudget.com/" target="_blank">You Need a Budget</a>. The interface doesn't automatically download everything, but I can download transactions in Quicken format and upload to the program. It also has mobile apps for iPhone and Android. August will be our first whole month using it. I'm excited to see how we like it. I already like how the budgeting looks WAY better than how it's formatted in Mint. <br />
<br />
The next financial goal is to pay off the house early. We've been paying a little extra toward the mortgage each month. If we precisely followed the <a href="http://www.daveramsey.com/baby-steps/" target="_blank">Dave Ramsey Baby Steps</a>, we'd pay any extra we have in our budget toward the house after putting our 15% into our retirement plans. I'm not sure if we will follow this exactly. We will have to scrutinize the incoming funds for August to figure out how much is reasonable.<br />
<br />
More of an update on You Need a Budget after I've used it for a full month.<br />
Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09182054237708585905noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16881255.post-57133482745752420562014-09-08T23:03:00.001-07:002014-09-08T23:03:56.738-07:00Still going...I was listening to Dave Ramsey a few weeks ago and someone had written in with a question about whether flipping houses was a good way to make some money on the side. His reply?<br />
<br />
He said there are three rules in real estate... (paraphrased)<br />
<br />
<ol>
<li>It will cost twice as much as you think it will...</li>
<li>It will take twice as long as you think it will...</li>
<li>YOU are not the exception...</li>
</ol>
<div>
I'm not flipping this house. We're remodeling it to live in it. And yet, this encapsulates my life lately. Our original remodeling budget was blown out of the water. Well, not "blown out of the water," but definitely more than we thought we would spend. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
We're delaying the AC installation until after we move in to help cash flow that expense. In a rare occurrence, procrastination has paid off! The energy efficiency rebates offered by our city are doubled starting 9/1, so we'll get a rebate of close to $1,600! Very exciting!</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
I've been my own general contractor and it's been fun, but a little stressful. There are so many details every day! Thank goodness I've been working part-time since May. It's given me plenty of time to meet with plumbers, electricians, inspectors, and and and! It's rapidly coming to a close and I can't wait. I'm ready to just chill out.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
But it's good. While packing, I found a card from my grandfather that he sent when I bought my first house in 2000. I read it aloud to the new Jason and then filed it away and pretended that he sent it to me for this house too. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Pictures to be posted soon! This was rather disjointed, but it's the update. </div>
Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09182054237708585905noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16881255.post-24258541810705758912014-06-25T13:59:00.001-07:002014-06-25T13:59:52.609-07:00In EscrowAfter months and months of searching, we are finally in escrow! And, because I'm a procrastinator, we're actually almost all done with escrow. We should be signing all the docs on Friday, the loan will fund Monday, and then it should be recorded Tuesday, July 1st, aka: The Day We Become Homeowners!<br />
<br />
It's been a really bumpy road getting here, but I'm happy to report that since entering escrow with this home, everything has been going relatively smoothly! No crazy real estate agents or weird sellers. <br />
<br />
When we started looking, I told Jason, "I'd love to buy a house in Burbank..." I didn't expect it to actually happen because: (a) homes in Burbank are typically a tad bit more expensive than other areas, (b) the ones that are for sale (in our price range) are what we affectionately call "Frankenhouses" due to the illegal, weird room additions, and (c) the market is so crazy, we never expected to actually win a bid in such an in-demand area.<br />
<br />
Well, what I thought would never happen is happening. We are almost owners of a home in Burbank! It's a 3 bed/2 bath house in the flat part of Burbank. It's about 1,800 square feet with a spacious 2 car garage in the back. And in true SoCal real estate fashion, it needs some cosmetic work, plus central air. The sellers have lived in the house for the last 40 years without air conditioning. Shocking, really...<br />
<br />
We have a long list of things we'd like to do. Once we get keys next Tuesday, we'll have to go and figure out what we "need" to do before we move in. <br />
<br />
Here's a picture of the front of the house:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0sEWfuEaM6skn6rCVbwJraHfdzlWjU0mXXPepMe-geau5HI0pmAFcwxV3onjRLyX7sfqoN4Kg_pl_rSLs3sg32nB8Ks4wMaZnx4VeOSXQCEv19wg__1lab6V1mOZi1jjp5gB6/s1600/01+House+Front.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0sEWfuEaM6skn6rCVbwJraHfdzlWjU0mXXPepMe-geau5HI0pmAFcwxV3onjRLyX7sfqoN4Kg_pl_rSLs3sg32nB8Ks4wMaZnx4VeOSXQCEv19wg__1lab6V1mOZi1jjp5gB6/s1600/01+House+Front.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
More to come!<br />
<br />
<br />Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09182054237708585905noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16881255.post-69021871308399938982014-02-26T16:56:00.000-08:002014-02-26T16:56:09.216-08:00Buying a House in Los AngelesWe've been considering buying a home in Los Angeles. Actually, more than considering... we looked for a few months last fall, bid on a couple houses... one we really wanted, but didn't get.<br />
<br />
Here was the situation:<br />
<br />
The home was listed for $599K. We really liked it and knew that they already had multiple bids, so we bid $631K. The sellers put out multiple counteroffers for $640K, with the add-on of removing the appraisal contingency*. We responded to the counter accepting the increased price and agreeing to pay up to $20K over the appraisal price in cash, if the home didn't appraise for $640K. Well, the sellers ended up going with other buyers. Who can blame them? They chose the buyers who had ALL CASH. Crazy. Who has $640K in cash lying around to buy a house? I can only assume people who just sold their own homes in this crazy market... And this is a fairly typical scenario in the Los Angeles housing market the last year or so. <br />
<br />
<br />
After that, Jason's job was a little tenuous and we knew there was a very good chance the company would run out of money (being a fairly new start-up). So, we took a break during Christmas to re-think everything.<br />
<br />
And now we're back. Starting to look at houses again. When we're at these open houses, we see kids younger than us (get off my lawn!), browsing the same houses we are and I think to myself, how can they even afford this house? We have a good down payment saved up and decent paying jobs and even then, we're like "wow, this is going to be a stretch!" I just don't know how they're doing it. <br />
<br />
I'm so tempted to stay in our apartment. I have the added bonus of being the apartment manager and only paying $950 in rent! So it's hard to imagine going from that to over $3,000/month with the mortgage, taxes and insurance. I keep crossing my fingers that a 2 bedroom will open up in my building and allow us to move within the building (keeping the building manager discount). <br />
<br />
As it stands now, we're looking. It took almost three months last year to find one we both really liked, so who knows how long it will take this year. We can bide our time, waiting for the right home to pop-up. Or maybe that two bedroom apartment will open up... :-) Either way, I'm going to enjoy my below-market rent while I can.<br />
<br />
<br />
*Side note: The appraisal contingency is there to "protect" buyers from overpaying. If you bid $900K on a house worth only $500K, you can use the fact that it didn't appraise for enough to either back out or renegotiate your deal with the sellers. And if you're financing the home with a mortgage, then you're pretty much stuck because the bank isn't going to lend you more than the home is worth and not getting financing is definitely a way to back out of a real estate deal because there are usually financing contingencies as well.Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09182054237708585905noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16881255.post-2921457281632370172013-12-06T16:25:00.001-08:002013-12-06T16:25:55.529-08:00Food Challenge: Eating from the Pantry and FreezerAs I've been trying to take advantage of various sales, I've realized I have no room left in my freezer to freeze meat! I pulled out a prime rib roast to cook this weekend, just so I could make room for something else. My pantry is also pretty darn full. <br />
<br />
And as a random side note, I hate the way my spices are in my cabinet because it's so hard to read. I bought a plastic drawer thing that is *really* to be used as a filing cabinet. It has two shallow drawers on top and then one bigger drawer on the bottom for files. I'm planning on putting the spices in the top two drawers with the spices lying down so the labels will show when you're looking down. I'm thinking about putting the potatoes and onions down the in the big drawer. <br />
<br />
So, back to the freezer and pantry... I think I'm going to try to start cooking my way through it. And clean it out on an as-needed basis. I need to make space! We usually spend about $300/month on groceries. So maybe I cut that budget in half for January and try to use up the stuff in the freezer/pantry? With the holidays and actually being in-town, I think we'll need our full budget of $350 (added a buffer due to Christmas/New Year's). <br />
<br />
I think it's worth a shot! I'll bet I have things in my freezer that I've completely forgotten about! What I really need is a better system for keeping track of what I have in the freezer to cook. I'm going to research that and I'll post any techniques that work for me here.Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09182054237708585905noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16881255.post-73513899593174604702013-11-05T15:26:00.000-08:002013-11-05T15:26:56.823-08:00Non-Baby UpdateWe've been trying for a baby all year, so far no luck. So we decided to take the advice of Jason's parents to just get checked out and make sure everything is functioning properly. We both went for some tests. His was pretty simple. Meanwhile...<br />
<br />
My tests included:<br />
<ul>
<li>Pelvic ultrasound to check out the status of my fibroids (especially my biggest one which is now 12 cm all around!),</li>
<li>Vaginal ultrasound to then check for more fibroids - apparently I have even more in my uterine walls. Some of them are near where the baby would implant, so I had to go for another test (HSG) to check the lining because he couldn't tell if the fibroids were disturbing the lining of the uterus around the implantation area,</li>
<li>Ovarian blood test - This tested a few different levels and everything here checked out normally,</li>
<li>Hysterosalpingogram (HSG) - to check the lining of my uterus and the status of my Fallopian tubes. This test was to check the area around the implantation site to make sure those small fibroids weren't causing a bigger problem than the 12 cm one. Turns out, the lining at the implantation site looked good. And my Fallopian tube by the big fibroid is stretched out some, but it's not blocked or being squished. </li>
</ul>
<div>
The bottom line is that everything appears to be functioning normally. So now we're just wrestling with the next steps. My doctor is recommending taking Clomid for one cycle. It's an oral medication that should make me "drop" 2-3 eggs instead of just one when I ovulate. If that doesn't do the trick, then we can try injectibles which will "drop" several eggs instead of just one. The Clomid is supposed to help my chances of getting pregnant like 10% and the injectibles like 20%. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
We're definitely not doing anything for November. The time that I would be taking Clomid would be exactly when I'm at BGG.CON in Dallas and I don't want to be worried about having hot flashes and everything else while I'm around 1,000 of my closest friends. So the earliest we would try the Clomid would be December. And who knows? Maybe I'll get pregnant by then? <br />
<br />
We've also been seriously considering doing foster care, but I was informed by someone who deals with the foster care system that if we got pregnant during our licensing process, they would put us on hold until our child is one year old. So, I think we're going to have to give getting pregnant a little more time (both naturally and with the pharmaceutical help) before we decide to follow through with the foster care process. The foster care stuff requires its own post, so I'll save that for another day...</div>
Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09182054237708585905noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16881255.post-12948760876827452972013-11-02T22:40:00.001-07:002013-11-02T22:41:32.860-07:00BudgetingI went out to lunch with my BFF Shane today. We met up to catch up and do a little shopping. While we were out, I looked up how much I spent at Maggiano's the last time we did a liquid Saturday lunch. This got is on the subject of mint.com and budgeting. <div><br></div><div>Jason and I put all the money in a joint account and budget from there. She and her hubby (we each got married two weeks apart) have separate accounts and then put a set amount into a joint account to pay bills out of. </div><div><br></div><div>I am not a huge fan of their method, at least not for myself, but it seems to be working for them. There are so many different ways to budget and I think they're like outfits. Each fits in a different way. </div><div><br></div><div>The thing we can agree on is that we like Mint, which was not the case when I started using it. I hated it. There are certain things I still don't like but overall, it's been pretty great as we finish up 10 months of budgeting! </div><div><br></div><div>I think having the monthly budget meetings has been good for our relationship. We do talk during the month about how we're doing, but having that monthly check-in time is good to make sure we're still on the same page. </div><div><br></div><div><br></div>Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09182054237708585905noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16881255.post-41803478153895118242013-11-01T23:54:00.001-07:002013-11-01T23:54:14.341-07:00NaBloPoMo 2013In theory, I'll post a blog entry everyday in November. I'm this post at 11:45 pm on the first day of the month. I'm not sure this bodes well, but it's worth a shot anyway. <div><br></div><div>I may not post everyday, but I miss writing about the various events happening around here. </div><div><br></div><div>Topics to cover:</div><div>Being married a year!</div><div>Pregnancy quest</div><div>Foster care info</div><div>The Great House Hunt</div><div>Saving</div><div>Retirement</div><div>Puzzles</div><div><br></div><div>And given that BGG.CON is in a couple weeks... Games!!</div><div><br></div><div>Until tomorrow, aka: 9 minutes from now...</div><div><br></div><div><br></div>Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09182054237708585905noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16881255.post-51140623042675712672013-07-31T23:10:00.000-07:002013-07-31T23:11:12.658-07:00How to Cancel NYTimes Crossword iPhone App SubscriptionI'm not great at crosswords, but I wish I were! A lot of my cool puzzle friends are also crazy-good at crossword puzzles. I try to do them more often, which I'm hoping will lead me to be better at them.<br />
<br />
Enter the NYTimes Crossword app for my iPhone. I wasn't sure if I'd use it much, so I subscribed for a single month for $2.99. It auto renews, but I thought I'd remember to turn it off. I didn't.<br />
<br />
I just spent at least 10-15 minutes trying to figure out how to cancel the auto renewal, so here's how to do it for anyone else out there in the same boat.<br />
<br />
Open iTunes and connect to the iTunes Store. Under the very small "Manage" at the bottom, choose Account and log into your account. Pick Subscriptions and turn it to OFF.<br />
<br />
The app developer MagMic makes it practically impossible to figure out from their "knowledge base" on their website. Probably so they can milk you for $3/month. <br />
<br />
You're welcome.Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09182054237708585905noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16881255.post-59128171326743205092013-07-31T10:02:00.000-07:002013-07-31T10:02:41.304-07:00Meetin' in the Ladies RoomI need to write a post about my trip to my first National Puzzlers League convention, Contex. That will come later, maybe even tonight! In the meantime, I thought I'd tell you about my weird encounter in the ladies room at Black Angus the Friday after I returned from Contex.<br />
<br />
First, I was REALLY tired the week after Contex. I didn't sleep enough at the con, but it felt worse than that. It didn't help that I didn't get a solid 8 hours until after my trip to Black Angus. When I get tired, I get cranky. I complained more than maybe I ever have during our Wednesday night gaming playing Era of Inventions. Yes, I went last and got screwed, but I think the crankiness level was way up because I was just exhausted.<br />
<br />
When I get tired, I'm also much more emotional and will start crying at the drop of a hat. So, Black Angus... We're having dinner there for the first time ever together. I think the last time I had been to a Black Angus was with Dave, when we used a coupon out in Northridge and that was probably 3-4 years ago(?).<br />
<br />
I got upset about something and started getting weepy so I went to the restroom to just cry for a few minutes and get it out of my system. While I was in my stall, a mom and young daughter went into the big stall next to me. Their conversation went something like this:<br />
<br />
Daughter: I'm done!<br />
Mom: Um, I think you said you needed to go poopy...<br />
Daughter: Oh yeah. Well, I don't think it wants to come out. It's afraid.<br />
Mom: (laughs)<br />
<br />
Thirty seconds go by...<br />
Daughter: It's coming out!! My poop is coming out!!<br />
<br />
It's really hard to cry when there's a 3 (maybe 4?) year old next to you that is really excited about their poop coming out. <br />
<br />
So, I came out of the stall and started washing my hands. The mom said, "Are you okay?" I said, "I've been having a rough week..."<br />
<br />
She kept washing her daughter's hands and then said, "I know this sounds weird, but can I give you a hug?" <br />
<br />
Hmmmm... "No, I'm okay, thanks..." <br />
<br />
"Are you sure? Sometimes they help!" <br />
<br />
"Fine..."<br />
<br />
And then I was hugged my this complete stranger while her daughter hugged my legs.<br />
<br />
And you know what? It did help.<br />
<br />
I've seen women crying in the bathroom before, but I've never had the guts to actually offer them a hug. Next time, I will.<br />
<br />
We then exchanged numbers (her suggestion) because she doesn't know too many people in the area except for her mother-in-law and she's lived in Burbank for a year.<br />
<br />
Her first text to me after I met her that night was "Hi. My name is Cyndi. I think we're meant to be friends. :)"<br />
<br />
I think she might be right. <br />
<br />
I rarely eat at Black Angus. I rarely break down and start crying in a restaurant. And she happened to be in the bathroom at exactly the time I was (with no one else there). The timing is all there. <br />
<br />
We made a "date" for this Friday to grab dinner and drinks. I have no idea how it will go, but I'm looking forward to getting to know her better.Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09182054237708585905noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16881255.post-3506102614741697542013-05-23T09:29:00.000-07:002013-05-23T09:37:11.598-07:00Jonathan Gold's 101 Best Restaurants in LAMy favorite kind of to-do list... The ones that involve food! <br />
<br />
<br />
<iframe frameborder="0" height="400" scrolling="no" src="http://guides.latimes.com/jonathan-gold-best-restaurants-2013-map/embed/" width="600"></iframe><br />
<a href="http://ballots.latimes.com/lists/101-best-restaurants-jonathan-gold-2013/" style="color: #2262cc;">View Jonathan Gold's 101 Best Restaurants on latimes.com</a><br />
<br />
Here are Gold's top 20 restaurants:<br />
<br />
<ol>
<li>Providence - I've been here several times and it is amazing! </li>
<li>Urasawa </li>
<li>Spago </li>
<li>Mozza, etc. - I've been here </li>
<li>Kogi </li>
<li>Lucques </li>
<li>Animal - Jason and I went and it was okay. Not so great ever went back though. </li>
<li>Cut </li>
<li>Jitlada </li>
<li>Shunji </li>
<li>Rivera </li>
<li>Spice Table </li>
<li>Ink </li>
<li>Baco Mercat </li>
<li>Tasting Kitchen </li>
<li>Sea Harbour </li>
<li>Night + Market </li>
<li>Bestia </li>
<li>Hinoki and the Bird </li>
<li>Melisse</li>
</ol>
Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09182054237708585905noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16881255.post-78410646053473950702013-05-06T23:06:00.000-07:002013-05-06T23:13:44.146-07:00Budgeting Update - Fun MoneyWe just had our budget meeting for May. A little later than usual, but still in the first week so that's good. This month was a breeze compared to last month. April had some growing pains in it, but it was definitely worth it.<br />
<br />
We started budgeting in January 2013, using Mint.com to set-up different categories and allocate our spending. What we didn't have during January, February and March was "fun" or "blow" money as people out in the blogosphere like to call it. We had categories for shopping, entertainment and restaurants which probably encompass most of our normal "fun" money type expenses. Well, those plus travel, especially for me and all my game conventions! <br />
<br />
In April, Jason specifically asked for a category that would be his own so that he knew exactly how much he could spend rather than having a nebulous amount in the aforementioned categories. So, we picked an amount and I set-up two new categories in Mint: "Jason Fun" and "Stephanie Fun"! We have equal amounts to spend on whatever we want. We also have the amount carry over from month-to-month so that if we don't spend the full month's worth, the surplus will roll over to the next month (and vice versa). <br />
<br />
For April, we both finished with a surplus, mainly due to birthday presents from his family that we didn't deposit into our bank accounts until April. <br />
<br />
I had kind of resisted the idea, but I'm glad we did it. It helps remind me that I have money that I can actually spend! I tend to spend money in mini-sprees. I'll hit up a few places all in one week and then chill on spending (other than groceries and eating out) for the next few weeks. So knowing that there's this amount in the budget that I <i>can</i> spend is kind of liberating. It's also nice because I don't feel guilty about spending it. I know it's an agreed to amount in the budget, so it's not like I'm spending money we don't have!<br />
<br />
I think he likes it too because he can buy his video games or books or whatever else and not have to worry that I'm going to be upset that he's spending all the money and I'm not. I was getting upset about him spending our "restaurant" money on going out with his friends, so now that comes out of his fun money, so that avoids all arguments. And I can go out for my BFF lunch with Shane and not worry about Jason being upset that I spent $50 on lunch. It's a win-win!<br />
<br />
Overall, I've been actually enjoying the budgeting. It's a little weird, I know, but it's nice to talk about it actively, instead of just sort of talking about it whenever a problem comes up. I like that we're on the same page. We both know exactly how much is coming in and going out and where it's going. It prompts discussion about the future, both short-term and longer. <br />
<br />
Next up: Should I roll over my 401(k) to Vanguard? <br />
<br />Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09182054237708585905noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16881255.post-24141969096195520702013-03-11T13:11:00.000-07:002013-03-11T13:11:22.913-07:00Lent 2013Today is the first day of Lent (or rather, it <i>was </i>when I first started this post). I never observed (celebrated?) Lent growing up, so this has been a new idea to me as an adult. I'm not even sure what the whole entire thing is about, other than people usually give up something for the 40-ish days until Easter. And you're usually trying to pick something that is a challenge because it's supposed to be a sacrifice.<br />
<br />
Now, I've been thinking about what I could sacrifice. I could give up one of the usual things: caffeine, chocolate, soda, fried foods, etc. and all those would be a sacrifice, but I'm thinking I might go for something more fundamental, which would definitely be a challenge, but I'm not sure it would count as a "sacrifice". <br />
<br />
The idea I had on my way to work is that I could give up worrying for Lent. I've been trying to develop/foster/have a closer relationship with God lately and I think that consciously not worrying would be beneficial to that. I want to trust God and worrying certainly shows that I don't trust with all my heart. <br />
<br />
I'm reminded of the blurb in Tim Ferriss' <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1441737588/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1441737588&linkCode=as2&tag=liisfoliri-20">The 4-Hour Workweek</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=liisfoliri-20&l=as2&o=1&a=1441737588" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
where he mentions that a vast majority of the things we worry about either are (a) out of our control or (b) never happen. But they consume a lot of our mental energy. This could help free up my mind quite a bit, if I can be successful. <br />
<br />
<br />
Now, <i>how </i>to actually stop worrying is another topic, but I think that's what I'm going to have to figure out!<br />
<br />
<u>Update as of 3/11/13</u>: <br />
Here's what I've been doing: When I catch myself starting to worry about something, I make myself stop and just start thinking about something else that is unrelated to the the worry topic. <br />
<br />
The result? I've been much happier and less negative since the beginning of Lent. At least I feel like I have been. It's been pretty great actually. I have a lot of self-doubt about almost everything in my life and this has really helped me not dwell on it because mostly, it's ALL IN MY HEAD. My crazy, crazy head. I'll update again closer to Easter about this.<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
<br />
<br />Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09182054237708585905noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16881255.post-41634868001946191052013-01-19T21:59:00.000-08:002013-01-19T21:59:01.166-08:00Budgeting in 2013Jason & I are approaching our four month anniversary! So far, things are going well. We decided to try something new this month: write out a budget.<br />
<br />
We're using Mint.com to track all of our expenses. I have it linked to all my accounts (banks, credit cards, investments) so it can automatically pull the transactions from the websites. It automatically categorizes everything, so I just check in every few days to make sure that it doesn't need to be slightly adjusted.<br />
<br />
We sat down at the beginning of the month and decided how much we were going to budget for all our major categories: rent, utilities, food (groceries, eating out together and then our separate lunch accounts), entertainment, tithing, saving, car stuff, etc. I've been half-heartedly using Mint.com for the last few years, so it had some history to draw upon so we could guesstimate the variable expenses. <br />
<br />
It's weird to look at your money in advance and kind of earmark it. I haven't budgeted at all since I split up with my first husband. Mostly, it's just been me, spending money on whatever I want, whenever I want. My monthly expenses are pretty low and I typically try to be frugal with my spending (or at least not frivolous), but it's a very different experience to sit down before the month starts to decide together, <i>in advance,</i> what will be spent on which categories.<br />
<br />
It was different, but in a good way. It made me feel like we were a team, planning together how we wanted our month of January to look. It would also help us keep an eye on our money. Together. <br />
<br />
So far, I'm pleased with the mid-month results. We've been adjusting our restaurant choices so that we stay on target for our monthly "restaurant" budget. I've discovered that I care more about my manicures and pedicures than going out to eat lunch. I think we need a miscellaneous category to catch the monthly weird things that you aren't a "normal" monthly expense, but happen every month anyway, like buying a new TiVo or attending a game convention. <br />
<br />
I haven't been feeling stressed about money and that part has been good. It's been a very open topic, which I appreciate. Generally speaking, I think money is a common reason for divorce (or at least arguments) and while I'm sure we will have those arguments at some point, it's nice to be able to talk about what we want in the future and be able to start planning for it now.<br />
<br />
I assume we will do it again for February. I might be changing my work arrangement in the very near future, so that may cause us to have to redo the budget. Rather than have a blanket monthly budget, I think I like the idea of sitting down each month to look at the upcoming month. I think it will help us keep focused on it.<br />
<br />
Will update later on the progress! Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09182054237708585905noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16881255.post-74660643484569254142012-11-28T13:55:00.000-08:002012-11-28T13:55:49.007-08:00Hoping for a babyLast night, I took my first pre-natal vitamin. I'm not pregnant, but I would like to be, hopefully next year, so I took my friend Erin's advice and started taking pre-natal vitamins. <br />
<br />
It's a little weird imagining that a baby could be growing inside my sometime next year. However, the probability isn't <i>great</i> considering that I'm 37, soon to be 38. But I'm hopeful and willing to just put it out there. Yes, I would like to have a baby. <br />
<br />
I'm a little worried that letting the whole world (all five of you!) know that I've taken a pre-natal vitamin isn't a good idea. What if I don't ever get pregnant and then everyone knows my internal organs are failures? Or worse, just stubborn!<br />
<br />
I'm trying not to worry about it or focus on it too much. If it's meant to be, it will be. If not, there's always fostering or adoption. <br />
<br />
Fingers crossed!Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09182054237708585905noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16881255.post-16964544196854447872012-11-05T23:58:00.000-08:002012-11-06T00:09:27.520-08:00BGG.CON may be BBQ.CONIn preparation for getting ready to head out to BGG.CON next week, I made a map of some new potential BBQ places to hit while in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area. <br />
<br />
Here's a map which includes a few places that I definitely want to hit again:<br />
<br />
<ul>
<li>Babe's</li>
<li>LA Burger (for kimchi/bulgogi smothered French fries!)</li>
<li>Hard 8</li>
</ul>
<br />
Luckily, BBQ fits right in with the slow-carb diet that may or not be happening while I'm in Dallas on vacation...<br />
<br />
<iframe frameborder="0" height="350" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="https://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msa=0&msid=201209423782438454443.0004cdb5abb2f9ab95423&ie=UTF8&t=h&ll=32.731819,-96.944956&spn=0.445146,0.634326&output=embed" width="425"></iframe><br />
<small>View <a href="https://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msa=0&msid=201209423782438454443.0004cdb5abb2f9ab95423&ie=UTF8&t=h&ll=32.731819,-96.944956&spn=0.445146,0.634326&source=embed" style="color: blue; text-align: left;">Places to eat for BGG.CON (mostly BBQ)</a> in a larger map</small>Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09182054237708585905noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16881255.post-33854242183311663542012-11-04T23:02:00.001-08:002012-11-04T23:02:31.630-08:00Non-local trick-or-treatersThis post is a few days late, but here goes. As I was driving home from work on Halloween, I hit awful traffic, so ditched the freeway and took side streets to get home. I cut through the "nice" neighborhood that is only a few blocks away and it was JAM PACKED with kids, people, cars, everything. Normally, it's a pretty low key, quiet, uncrowded neighborhood. <br />
<br />
What is the deal with people leaving their own neighborhoods and going to the "nicer" neighborhoods for candy? When we were young, we just went in our neighborhood. We never would've had our parents take us to a more affluent neighborhood for better candy. I guess the thought just never crossed our minds. We wanted to run around in the streets we were already familiar with and with people we already knew, not roam around a strange neighborhood.<br />
<br />
Is it Robin Hood trick-or-treating? All I know is that if I lived in one of those homes, I'd be demanding addresses for kids when they came to the door. Not a local resident, no candy for you! Call me a grinch, but it just ain't right. Actually, instead of not giving them anything, I'd give them the lame candy and save the chocolate for the locals. A two-tiered system.<br />
<br />
It'd be fine if you were there with people who live in the neighborhood. But they aren't. I was chatting with a woman at work who took her kids to a nicer neighborhood. She said they give out the king size bars instead of the trick-or-treat sized ones. Really? Really lame. Because I'm sure that's what kids need. King-sized chocolate bars. I'm not sure exactly what I hate about this, but it just seems so wrong. Like it's not in the spirit of trick-or-treating, but maybe it's just me.Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09182054237708585905noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16881255.post-17893955741479224662012-11-04T01:43:00.001-08:002012-11-04T01:43:31.057-08:00SoCal Games Day #51We held SoCal Games Day #51 at the Little White Chapel in Burbank today from 11 AM - 11 PM. We had a pretty good turnout, about 50+ people there. <br />
<br />
A remarkable number right at the opening bell, which is a little unusual, but I think it was because there were two tables of Struggle of Empires happening right at the beginning, so all those guys showed up right on time to learn the game and play. All told, I think the teach took about an hour and then not sure how long each table took, but I think Jonathan's (the organizer) table took about 4-ish hours to play. My favorite part? The same group followed up Struggle of Empires with Hoity Toity, a very lightweight game. I guess they needed a palatte cleanser after a heavier game.<br />
<br />
I played: Ticket to Ride Team Asia, Shogun (for the first time in over a year), Escape (the new Queen game), Industrial Waste, Time's Up! and Tichu twice. <br />
<br />
Overall, had a great time. Tim and Heather came down from Paso Robles so Shane and Jon came down to have dinner with us. We had *awesome* Lebanese food over at Hayat's Kitchen. They were super-busy, so the service was slow, but that baklava is worth the wait!<br />
<br />
One negative: a guy peed on the floor in the men's room and I had to clean it up. Thank goodness Karl TOLD ME about it so it could get cleaned up. He also helped me clean it up, which was very sweet of him. Not sure who did it, but a message will be going on out the games day list tomorrow.Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09182054237708585905noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16881255.post-9561307791528768662012-11-02T23:58:00.000-07:002012-11-03T00:04:15.754-07:00Slow Carb DietI decided to accept <a href="http://www.fourhourworkweek.com/blog/2012/10/24/the-4-hour-body-challenge-million-pound-march/" target="_blank">Tim Ferriss' challenge</a> to try his <a href="http://www.fourhourworkweek.com/blog/2007/04/06/how-to-lose-20-lbs-of-fat-in-30-days-without-doing-any-exercise/" target="_blank">Slow-Carb Diet</a>.<br />
<br />
I started on Sunday, so it been almost six whole days. I think I've maybe lost of couple pounds. More than that, a pair of pants that I rejected on Sunday as being too tight fit better when I put them on Wednesday. They weren't loose, but they fit better because my love handles are noticeably smaller. So that is happy-making!<br />
<br />
I've never tried a low-carb type diet before because I love, love, LOVE carbs. Pasta, rice, bread, corn, potatoes, chocolate, anything really! But every time I've read Tim's blog post on it, I always wondered if it would actually work, so I decided to see if I could get through one day without carbs. <br />
<br />
It was tough. I won't lie. It didn't help that I decided to start on a Sunday to see if I could get through a single day without sugar. Especially hard when I was going out that night for trivia at a bar with awesome garlic fries and poppers. But I made it through. Once I made it through that day, I decided to see if I could last a week. <br />
<br />
And here we are, six days later. So, even though it hasn't been an official "week" yet, Tim's Slow-Carb Diet advocates having a cheat day and he recommends Saturday, so tomorrow is my cheat day where I can eat anything I want. I'm pretty sure I'll have a potato ball from Porto's and a Drumstick for dessert when I get home. I'll likely throw some chocolate in there at some point too.<br />
<br />
The weird thing is, the first two days were tough. Sunday was the worst. Monday was a little better, but still tough. But since Tuesday, it's been fairly smooth sailing. I haven't cheated once and honestly, I haven't even been that tempted.<br />
<br />
<u>My meals have been looking something like this</u>:<br />
<br />
<ul>
<li><b>Breakfast </b>- Scrambled eggs with sauteed onions and chives and a few strips of bacon</li>
<li><b>Lunch </b>- Spinach salad with chicken breast OR Mexican food (beans and meat, no tortillas)</li>
<li><b>Dinner </b>- Salad (Cobb), Shrimp Creole (without rice), smashed cauliflower, and more Mexican</li>
<li><b>Snacks </b>- Nuts, pickles, cheese, red wine in the evening</li>
</ul>
<br />
<br />
The nice thing is that I haven't been that hungry either. I haven't been really monitoring my portion sizes as much as I should've. I'll work on that next week. And I'll work on exercising.<br />
<br />
One of the ways you can "earn" the chance to eat carbs is if you do a 30 minute resistance training workout. I bought some resistance bands tonight at Target for $10. I figure it's worth a shot. <br />
<br />
I probably should've taken some "before" pictures, but I'm mainly just hoping my clothes fit better. I doubt it will be a long-term thing, but I'll just see if I can get through another week and play it by ear. <br />
<br />
My ideal goal is to keep it up until Thanksgiving. With BGG.CON coming up, I'm not sure how that will work out, although we'll be in Texas where we eat our weight in meat each November, so it might not be too hard to stick with a low-carb diet. Dallas is the perfect place for that actually. <br />
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More than "losing" weight, I just want to feel better about how my clothes are fitting and so far, we're off to a decent start. If I throw in some exercise, I might be able to speed up the process a bit. Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09182054237708585905noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16881255.post-68574194964227199982012-11-01T17:45:00.001-07:002012-11-03T00:03:19.799-07:00NaBloPoMo 2012Every year I toy with the idea of doing NaBloPoMo, which is the challenge to blog every day for the month of November. This year I should have absolutely no excuse because I can blog from my iPhone! So, let's just give it the old college try and see if I can even do it for a week.<br />
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Meanwhile, today I got a check-up. I went to have an echocardiogram done, a treadmill stress test and right now, I have a Holter monitor attached to my chest (insert joke here). The technicians who did the first couple tests said that, unofficially, everything looked normal. I hope that trend continues! I have to return tomorrow at 9 AM to have them remove and download all the information they're collecting for the next 16 hours. <br />
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Day one complete, but I reserve the right to add more whenever I want.Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09182054237708585905noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16881255.post-36867883845131328942012-10-03T14:08:00.001-07:002013-04-18T10:37:29.741-07:00My Jeopardy EpisodeMy Jeopardy! episode was online for a short while. Meanwhile, it was deleted from that site. <br />
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Here is a <a href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/wmj62655zvsug0o/Jeopardy_Season_29.mp4" target="_blank">link to my episode</a>.Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09182054237708585905noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16881255.post-88083767459075516592012-09-27T09:05:00.004-07:002012-09-27T09:05:59.963-07:00Me and Alex TrebekIr's me! With Alex Trebek! Tomorrow is the air date! Set your DVRs! Recap to be posted soon!<br />
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<br />Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09182054237708585905noreply@blogger.com1