Mini Vacay

The Fam in Gatlinburg, TN

Last Wednesday Barry and I packed up and drove to Dillard, GA to meet up with the family. My parents used their timeshare to rent a condo in Sky Valley, which sits right on the border of Georgia and North Carolina. It was the first time that all 11 of us were able to spend a vacation together (2 Grandparents, 3 daughters, 3 son-in-laws, and 3 grandchildren!) Its so beautiful up there. Unfortunately, we didn't get to see much on the drive up because we got in after dark.

The next day we (all 11 of us!) drove to Helen, GA to go river tubing. It was a great surprise to arrive in Helen and feel like we just drove into Bavaria! All of the houses have the same Hansel and Gretel look and there are all these fun shops and restaurants. We quickly found the tubing place and got our gear. Tubing in the mountains is nothing like moseying down the Ichetucknee! The average depth was about 12 inches, the river had a rocky bottom and goes much quicker than in flat Florida. We had so much fun! Towards the end they take your picture, so we got all linked together so we could hope for a fun group shot. When we got back to the main camp, it turns out they only charge 9.95 for a CD that includes all the pictures you want (up to 400!) So we got some GREAT shots. I'll try and remember to post them soon.

From Helen, we drove to Tallulah Gorge. Its in between Dillard and Helen so it would have been ridiculous to be this close and not visit. It is beautiful! Barry and I ended up going down one side and up the other, and probably took 1000 steps to do it!

(going down wasn't nearly as bad as coming up!)

I know the baby got plenty of oxygen that day because my heart was racing. But we took it slow and I was very proud that we did it. :)

At the bottom of the gorge!

On our way back up, maybe?

My Parents. How cute are they?

On Friday, we drove north to Gatlinburg and visited Ober Gatlinburg. Its a quaint amusement park in Gatlinburg that was a lot of fun for both the kids and us big kids. The coolest part of the day, though, was as we were going up the ski lift to the Alpine Slide, a black bear walked right underneath us!!! It was unreal. I love wildlife. Seeing it in the zoo is one thing, but seeing a for-real black bear in the mountains was just unbelievable. I was only quick enough for one snapshot before he went into the woods. It was a-mazing.

Getting ready to go down!

We passed my dad on the way up!

From Gatlinburg, we drove across to see Angelle and Laurie and their families, but broke up the drive by stopping at my brother in law's parents house for a much-needed good night's sleep. I woke up Saturday morning to the sound of the dogs barking and the smell of bacon. mmmm... to my happiness I walked into the kitchen to see the largest pile of bacon and sausage links that i have ever seen. :) After a delicious breakfast, we headed east to Monroe.

We arrived just before 1:00 and spent the next day and a 1/2 with the Maddex's and the Galler's. We always have so much fun together and I was so sad we were only there for a day. But we made the most of it and played lots of games (Loaded Questions is hilarious!!), watched the kids play and just caught up. By Sunday afternoon, Bryan ALMOST had me convinced to talk to Rhi about buying her house on the cul-de-sac. Sorry, Rhi... its a no-go.

After a 6 hour drive home, we came home to an empty house! Our roommate had gotten the keys to her new apartment and ended up moving out just a few hours before we got home. The first thing we do? Get nekkid in the living room. It was marvelous!! It was nice to have her, but it's nice to have our place back.

Now it's back to the daily grind. *sigh*

Cravings

This was an email I wrote last week to my family... now i can share with everyone!

True Story: Yesterday I wanted McDonalds French fries and a BK Whopper. I seriously considered driving through both places just to get it. I also wanted a Wendy’s Coffee Toffee Twisted Frosty, but was afraid of being disappointed when I got there if they didn’t have a decaf version. Then I thought for a substitute I could get a DQ Brownie Batter Blizzard, but it was too out of my way so that idea went quickly by the wayside. (but not before scanning a mental map of the Southside area to be sure I wasn’t missing another DQ somewhere.) I was able to resist though, and came home and made chicken pot pie that tasted DeLISH! :)

Telling the Friends

Saturday we spent the day telling friends and showing off the little cashew's picture.

First stop was our Kung Fu instructor's. He's been a mentor of Barry's since Barry was about 16. He's like a father to us and it was the hardest not talking to him. He was so excited and promised me a shopping spree when my belly starts to sprout! He said 'no daughter of mine will be caught in ugly clothes. You're gonna look cute!" I can't wait for that day!! :)

Then we FINALLY told our roommate. We were certain she had figured it out already, with the father's day cards floating about the house and my "What to Expect" book on my night stand. But she claims she was oblivious and she had a great reaction.

That night, we went over to our friend Bozz's house with some friends for the UFC 100 fight. I kept giving Barry the 'eye' to say something. Finally right before 10, Barry says, "Before the fight starts, i want to say something. I'm going to be a Dad."

Crickets.

They were waiting for the punchline! If you known Barry before he met me, people would have put money on the bet that he would never get married and have kids. Enter Mandi, 2001. BAM! Did I mess his plans up or what? :) So everyone started looking at me to confirm, which I did by pulling out Cashew's picture, and then they were like, "Woah. Congratulations?"

I got a little googly at that moment when I realized it was the first time I heard him say "I'm going to be a Dad." I've been keeping my distance on the mushy stuff because I know he's scared shitless and I want him to come to terms with things on his own.

So, it's pretty much out there. It's killing me to not put the picture on facebook, but we are waiting to tell Barry's brother when he comes to visit on the 24th. Once he knows, it's on!

Drum Roll, Please...

Ok, SOOOO...


We went to see the doctor today. After 5 weeks of keeping it under wraps...


We are pregnant!


!!!!


Here's the story.


By June 4th, I had been feeling physical PMS symptoms for over a week without Aunt Flo showing her ugly head. Also, because of my charting, I knew something was different with my body. My stickers went from the usual PCOS yellow to green. Normally, I would've been glad and thought that all that Metformin was finally kicking in, but i quit taking metformin because it never seemed to work for me. The only other time my chart started looking greener was when I had lost about 10 pounds, but those 10 pounds came back and didn't seem to want to leave anytime soon. Something inside me told me to just pee on a stick.


Barry was out in Orange Park hanging with the guys and my roommate was in her room or something. I grabbed a pee stick out of the pack and went into my bathroom (they were housed in the guest bath for some reason). I peed. Within seconds, there were 2 blue lines.


...WAIT. What does that mean?? I left the box in the other bathroom!! AHHHH!!! My heart is racing. I run to the other room, grab the box, and run back. Oh. My. God. 2 blue lines mean POSITIVE???


Oh Shit.


I called Barry and said that he needed to come home.

"Why?"
"I don't want to talk about it over the phone, just come home."
"Are you pregnant?!"
"Maybe. Just come home."
"Shit, ok."


I spent the next who-knows-how-long sitting on the end of my bed. Looking at the floor. Looking at the mirror. Looking at my watch. I told myself I couldn't just sit in silence, so i turned on the TV. Seinfeld? Ok. Whatever.

That's when the tears came. Holy Shit. How are we going to afford this? OH, shit, I know this isn't what Barry wants right now. Fuck, is he going to blame me for not charting right? OMG. How are we going to afford this? I was just getting used to the idea of not needing to have a baby. Seriously? My sister wants to get pregnant so badly, this should be happening to her, not me. Shit.

That conversation went on over and over in my head until Barry came home. I guess I looked like a drowned rat, because when he walked into the bedroom, he says "That bad, huh?"


So we got ready for bed and just talked. Yes, I was overreacting when I thought he would blame me. He was very grounded the whole time. After a few hours, the conversation turned to names. By 1:30am, we had our initial decisions. (and no, I'm not telling yet.)


So, as the weeks go on, we're getting more and more used to the idea. I still don't know how we're going to afford this little cashew, but I think things have a way of working out.


This morning I had my first visit with my amazing doctor, Dr. Raspa. He did a physical exam and then we listened to the heartbeat. The HEART BEAT!! After that he snuck me into the sonogram room and gave me a quick snapshot of Cashew's big-ol' head, and I got to see him kicking away. Oh it was the most amazing feeling. I didn't cry, but I was grinning ear to ear. Barry said I was glowing. That made me happier.


Tomorrow we will be 10 weeks along. Here's what babycenter.com says about Cashew:


Though he's barely the size of a kumquat — a little over an inch or so long, crown to bottom — and weighs less than a quarter of an ounce, your baby has now completed the most critical portion of his development. This is the beginning of the so-called fetal period, a time when the tissues and organs in his body rapidly grow and mature.He's swallowing fluid and kicking up a storm. Vital organs — including his kidneys, intestines, brain, and liver (now making red blood cells in place of the disappearing yolk sac) — are in place and starting to function, though they'll continue to develop throughout your pregnancy.
If you could take a peek inside your womb, you'd spot minute details, like tiny nails forming on fingers and toes (no more webbing) and peach-fuzz hair beginning to grow on tender skin.
In other developments: Your baby's limbs can bend now. His hands are flexed at the wrist and meet over his heart, and his feet may be long enough to meet in front of his body. The outline of his spine is clearly visible through translucent skin, and spinal nerves are beginning to stretch out from his spinal cord. Your baby's forehead temporarily bulges with his developing brain and sits very high on his head, which measures half the length of his body. From crown to rump, he's about 1 1/4 inches long. In the coming weeks, your baby will again double in size — to nearly 3 inches.

(a baby at 10 weeks)

PS. We are still not announcing this on facebook, due to wanting to tell certain people in person. These people, luckily, don't read my blog, so you guys lucked out. :)

Tomorrow Teaser

I can't wait until tomorrow!!

This week has just dragged on, and tomorrow, after waiting many, many long weeks, I will(hopefully!) finally have some answers. If all goes well, a LONG post will be in ya'lls near future for your reading pleasure.

...Stay Tuned...

The Joys of Makeup

I've never really been one of those girly girls. I am horrible at shoe shopping and only wear makeup when I feel like it. BUT, my foundation had been on empty for over a month and I felt it was time to 'take the plunge' and go makeup shopping.

Who would have thought that Sephora could bring me so much joy! Nichole and I spent probably an hour in the store. I got my foundation fairly quickly, but not before having a pretty lady test them to be SURE i got the right shade, and then give me a little foundation make-over. Then I realized that my mascara was getting dry, so it was off to the mascara section. I love that you can try everything before you buy it. Black or Brown? I went with the Sephora brand Brown plumping mascara.

Then, I decided to splurge and get a lip gloss, too. Oh, the fun to be had trying on lip gloss! Who knew? I ended up getting the first one I tried on, but not without MAKING SURE by trying at least 5 others. :) I REALLY wanted to get something by Kat Von D (LA Ink) because she had color names like "Stripper" and "Sexer". Plus I think she's just super hot.

So ANYWAY, instead of doing the work that needs to be done before my 3:00 meeting, I'm telling you how pretty I feel right now, just 'cause I'm sporting some shiny, purple-tinted lips. :)

PS This was the first make up i've purchased since before my wedding, so spending 60 bucks every 2 1/2 years isn't so bad... :)

Bored.

It's 9:07am. I'm at work and I've finished my work for the day. I've got a few more things that I have to wait on others before I can do, which will be done by about 11:00. Other than that I have NOTHING to do.

What a huge switch from a few weeks ago, eh?

At least I get to leave early today to see my bestie, Angelle and her beautiful family and baby boy bump! Can't wait!

Apologies

Hey all,

I know i haven't been around in a while. I want to apologize. I have a few big things going on right now in my family and I'm not ready to talk about them quite yet. Be patient with me and I will let you all know soon enough.

Thanks,

Mandi

Friday Night

After Thursday and Friday's roller coaster, I decided on Friday night that I needed beer. What I really wanted to do was go smoke hookah, but i couldn't find anyone to go with me, so i came home without plans. Barry was hanging out with the guys, and my roommate came home with nothing to do as well, so I pulled out Tyler's Ultimate Book and went straight to the dessert section. Nothing like baking desserts to unwind after a stressful week. I settled on Chocolate Cracked Earth, so we trekked to Winn Dixie for some ingredients (and beer!). Well, lo and behold! Edy's ice cream was on sale. We get to the check out counter, each with a 6 pack of beer and a 1/2 pint of ice cream in our hands. I know the sweet cashier must have seen the desperation of a woman on a mission to de-stress on my face, because she carded me! WOOT! I thanked her and proudly showed her my ID.

After we got home, we made the cake together while drinking and enjoying conversation and listening to music. (It reminded me of my college days with Angelle and Laurie -awww). It was the perfect solution to a stressful week: beer, baking, conversation, beer, music, then delicious chocolate cake, beer, and ice cream.

The End.

Day from Hell

Thursday afternoon was probably one of the worst. days. EVER.

After boasting about how ready I was for my project to go live, we invited our president and CEO to attend Thursday's weekly meeting for a demo of the wonderment that was created under my supervision. I was a little nervous, but I had gone through my checklist and confident that I have done all I could.

Things were a little shaky from the start. My nerves were showing. Then the first person on the agenda to present was late. No biggie, we'll go on to the demo, then catch up when he gets here. That just started a snowball effect of all the items on the agenda getting all over the place. Without my knowledge, another committee member invited members of the operations department to the meeting as well, from which brought on a bazillion questions. The questions were all very healthy, but, as to not bore you with banky details, spawned MORE questions to implications that I thought I had reconciled, but apparently did not. It became, for lack of a better term, a complete cluster fuck. It felt like my whole project unraveled before me, all the while my boss, the CEO, and CFO watching. The meeting finally ended (an hour later than normal), I got back to my desk, and sort of just sat there in shock. I was certain that I was ready. I didn't know what happened. I felt like I got punched in the stomach. I knew I wasn't an idiot, but I didn't know if they (Exec Management) knew that. The issue was one that I, coming from a retail banking background with no back-office experience, could not have known about unless someone had informed me. It was like, "how am I supposed to know to carry an umbrella when I've never even seen a rain cloud before?"

I came home and could barely speak. I laid on the couch and kept mumbling in a whisper. I got a few tears out, and finally got an appetite enough to cook something for dinner, which got my mind away from work, which allowed me to enjoy the rest of the evening.

I woke up Friday morning with a knot in my stomach. If you read my previous post, you understand how important the success of this project is to me and my career. When I got in the office and opened my email, there was a message waiting for me from my boss. "Let's meet at 9:00." It was about 8:43. I took a deep breath, went over my notes from yesterday's meeting, and met with him. I kept telling myself to keep it together, which probably just made it worse. I sat there while he spoke and just let the tears roll. I was frustrated, embarrassed, and without the right words to express how I felt. The tears and my inability to stop them just got me more frustrated, which caused more tears and embarrassment.
What he had to say was much better than I was expecting to hear. Luckily, it was realized that if I had pulled off this project by myself, that it would've been nothing short of a miracle. SO they decided it be best to move my department (all one of us) to operations, gaining access to the rest of the back-office team for support. It will now be a group effort. This was great news for me. They realized I wasn't an idiot (thank God).

I am sad that I won't be under my current boss anymore. He is a great tell-it-like-it-is kinda guy and I really appreciated him and his guidance. But, I am comfortable with my new boss, however, and look foward to working with him. This new road I'm on feels a lot less bumpy. It may be a bit winding, but at least now i have GPS.

Question to my Non-Bankers

Hey all! I have a question for all of my non branch-bankers:

If you were to shop for a bank online, what words would you “google”? What if you were looking for a specific banking product or type of bank? Your input is very important to me.

I look forward to reading your comments! Thank you!

With These Powers Combined...

I decided on a small tactic to help curve my after-lunch craving for sweets. I brought some tooth brush and toothpaste to work and keep it in the bathroom. After I eat lunch, I brush my teeth instead of popping a mint. Hopefully my minty mouth will prevent me from eating the almost always prevalent sweets around the office.

So it's a win-win! No extra sugar PLUS the gingivitis-fighting power of Crest! My dentist would be so proud...

Landfill Lubber

I know it sounds strange, but it's a pretty cool place. Lemme 'splain.

We live a half mile from an old landfill (closed in the 80s) that they decided to turn into a golf course, as most landfills seem to find their fate. The decision was made a way back in 2002, and eventually a sign was posted that Sunbeam Hill Golf Course was coming soon - Fall 2008.

Well, Fall 2008 has come and gone, and what we have left is a beautifully landscaped landfill complete with half-paved golf cart paths, 2 sand traps and a few greens. It looks like the economy, coupled with some erosion damage from last year's tropical storm delayed the opening of Sunbeam Hill.

What's great for us is that it's a great place for a good workout. There's a small fence, but it ONLY covers the bridge to prevent vehicles from crossing. There are no "No Trespassing" signs and seems to be pretty much left alone. Because of the hills and the golf car paths, it makes for a pretty strenuous jog. We've been out there 3 times so far to walk/jog the path. Barry had his heart rate monitor on and recorded burning over 500 calories in 30 minutes!

On Friday, we used it for a romantic place to lay under the stars. Its slowly becoming "our" landfill. :) I'm hoping the owners of the property take their time in opening.

Playin' Hookie

Because of my awesomeness at work, paired with TPC in town and most of the 10th floor execs off anyway, I decided to take Friday off. It was the first day in the history of my working career that I took a day off "just because".
Thursday night I purposefully turned off the alarm clock and proceeded to sleep in until after 9:30 on Friday. Ahhh..... that felt good. I had made mental plans to go to Wal-Mart (*shout-out to Garret!) and buy fabric and a pattern to make a business suit. Well, the choices weren't what I was really looking for as far as patterns for suits and fabric, so I opted for a cute sundress and a pair of slacks. (I don't think my talents are up to par yet for a business suit, anyway.)
Now, before you go and think I'm all Martha Stewart, hold it right there because I haven't really made any clothes since Jr. High Home Ec. I asked for a sewing machine for Christmas because I decided that I really enjoyed sewing in Jr High and thought I could pick it right back up again. So far, I'm doing pretty well! I've made 2 snuggies (THAT'S RIGHT!) and decided that it's time to step it up for some real clothes. I got excited when ALL of my clothes making supplies for a dress and a pair of pants totaled under $20. I could get used to that!

I came home to my hubby working on his homework and started rummaging through my goodies. He started making lunch, and then realized that we had the perfect trifecta: it was a weekday before 4:00, we were both off from work/school, and it was Star Trek's opening day. Sold! I put down the bobbin and hung up my Suzy Homemaker hat. After we ate lunch we headed to AMC Theaters and got 2 tickets for the 2:30 showing of Star Trek. $10.00 total, woot! We were full so we didn't have to buy snacks, and because all the rug rats were still in school, we got great seats. It was awesome! As we were leaving, we realized that Wolverine had *just* started and decided to make it a double feature. We liked Wolverine too, but not nearly as much as Star Trek.

When our movie date was over, we came home, quickly grabbed our togas, and headed back out the door for our friends Bozz and Robin's "Greco-Roman Let the Good Times Roll" party. :) We wore our sheets, ate spanakopita, and watched Troy whilst enjoying the company of our friends. There was beer pong going on outside, but we opted to stay in to avoid the skeeters. It was a great idea for a fun party - thanks Bozz and Robin!

As we started to head home, we noticed the full moon. I decided i wasn't ready to go home and wanted to enjoy the moon light. We headed to "our" landfill**, laid out our "togas" and enjoyed a wonderfully quiet moment under the moon and stars.

It was a great start to a mostly** wonderful weekend!

**Explanations forthcoming - one blog at a time!

Jesus, Hair Loss, and a Hot Box

Work, lately, has been quite stressful. It all came to a head last Wednesday when my boss called me into his office for what I am dubbing a "Come To Jesus" Meeting. He explained that if my project succeeds, that I'll be rewarded, but if it doesn't, I'm pretty much gone. He basically said "shit or get off the pot". I didn't really realize I was on the pot in the first place... I left his office confused and frustrated. I didn't know whether to cry or scream. The rest of the day I was pretty quiet. I came home, ranted to my hubby and roommate and went running. (Literally RUNNING to get rid of some steam.) After a few days to cool off, I came to a few conclusions:
1 - I was PMSing last week and got emotional - which i am usually very good about not doing at work.
2 - The shit seems to be running downhill and maybe I'm getting the brunt of it.
3 - it's getting close to go time and everyone's probably getting a little nervous.
From my Jesus Meeting, a fire was lit under my ass. The "go-live" date is meant to be June 1st. After creating a list of things that "need" to be completed before we go-live, my boss asked on the 30th if i could get it all done by Fri, the 8th. I gulped and said "yes". *YIKES!*
Of course, as I was working the items on my list, it ended up growing instead of shrinking. Once one thing started to get done, 2 more things took its place.
Finally yesterday, I sucked it up and sent my boss another email with the updated list and explained that I will be more realistic with a due date of the 15th. (remember, Go-Live was SUPPOSED to be June 1). As you can imagine, my hair was falling out.
Today, however, was like a new day. The sun was shining, and even though my A/C is out in my car, the drive to work wasn't that bad. The first task of the day was to tell our processor (the people who host all of our 'stuff') that we are not paying for something that should cost the bank $$. Well, not only did I get them to give it to us for free, but I also go them to agree to refund over 3X that amount in fees that I thought were unjust.
GO ME! You have not idea how much I was dreading that phone call and it went so well! I emailed my boss and he was very happy. That little boost must have really got me going because by 4:00, I had completed everything that I could on that list. Every item was either completed or pending approval. Oh...what did you say? "What day is today?" Why, today is the 5th! Hells yeah.

I walked out of the building shortly after 4, a bird gave me a beautiful whistle, and my hot box of a car didn't even bother me for the first 1/2 of my drive home.

Today was a good day.

Eight Things

Alix at Casa Hice tagged me on this, so here goes!

8 Things I’m Looking Forward To
1. Lunch at Mama Fu's today!
2. Our 2nd anniversary tomorrow and dinner at Cobblestones with my sister and her husband (we share the date - tomorrow is 8 years for them! :))
3. Completing the Memorial Day 5K on (you guessed it!) Memorial Day (May 25th)
4. Going to see Depeche Mode in Tampa in September!
5. Getting my weight under control. (this should be #1)
6. Hopefully suprising my Grandpa for his 80th Birthday in August
7. My Dad's retirement on April 24th, and his party on My 3rd :) I'm so proud of him!
8. Working out with my Hubby tonight :)

8 Things I Did Yesterday
1. Spent 2 hours at Kung Fu
2. Went to a Premier Jewelry party
3. Booked my own Premier Jewelry party for some free jewelry! (May 24th!)
4. Finished last week's Unit episode that we missed
5. Emptied the dishwasher
6. Finished watching Season 3 of The Office (FLIPPIN HILARIOUS!)
7. Turned on the A/C (yikes!)
8. Checked my Facebook

8 Things I Wish I Could Do
1. Blink my eyes and my house will be cleaned and organized.(wiggling my nose would also be acceptable)
2. Dye my hair without dying the sink, counter, and bath mats.
3. Profit from inventing, patenting, and using a transporter, like in Star Trek.
4. Eat as much keylime cheesecake i wanted without it going straight to my boobs, belly, and ass.
5. Had the time to organize, date, and put all my pictures in frames and/or albums
6. Host my own travel/food show with my husband so we could eat and see the world on someone else's dime. AND they'd pay US!
7. Find the perfect property and build our dream Deltec home in the Colorado Rockies.
8. Open people's eyes to truly understand the correlation between the rise in obesity and rise in disease and how, literally, you become what you eat. (myself included)

8 Shows I Watch
1. The Office
2. The Unit
3. Dancing With the Stars
4. How I Met Your Mother
5. Iron Chef America
6. Big Bang Theory
7. Good Eats
8. Diner's Drive-Ins, and Dives

8 People I Tag (I really don't follow that many blogs, so here's pretty much all of you. Sorry)
1. Angelle
2. Rhiannon
3. Laurie
4. Erin
5. Mike
6. Stacy
7. Nikki
8. Garret

I've Got Balls.

I'm rising to the challenge that was set forth by Alix at Casa Hice, who rose to the challenge from Liz at Eternal Lizdom, who rose to the challenge from Lisa @ Adventures in Motherhood, who I'm sure got it from someone else.. This is what they say:


A fun little challenge... that may be hard for some, easy for others: Post a picture of yourself right now. As you are right now. As you read this. No running to get dressed or put on make up or fix your hair or whatever. Just YOU!Anyone brave enough to play along? Ready... Set... CLICK


So, here it is. Me, slacking off, blogging and taking pictures of myself instead of doing the bazillion other things I should be doing at work:

Anyone else out there got some big ones?

An Update on Me - Work

A quick blip before I update the world on what's going on with me at work:
We went to the gym again today and did a spin class. It was surprisingly easier than i expected - i didn't feel winded afterwards! And then we did our weight training quickly before having dinner at Bono's with friends Mike and Ben. It was a good night!

Now, back to our regularly scheduled blog:

Work. Way back when, I created a list of things I wanted to blog about to update everyone. That was March 3rd. Oops. I now realize that I haven't told ya'll that I no longer work as an Office Manager at my Bank. Around the end of January, I was called downtown and offered a position as sort of a "go-to girl" for my boss as well as to spearhead a new project that has been in the works for about a year now. Other than the project spearheading, it was kind of a vague meeting when I asked what my position would be. I was told to come up with my own title! It's a rare moment where you get to make up your own title. So naturally I came up with one:

Queen of the Universe and All Things Banking

They didn't think that would fit on my business card, so I just went with my officer status for now (Community Bank Officer).
I moved to the "10th Floor" downtown, which is where all of our back end processes as well as our executive offices are held. It's an exciting place to be. I'm settling in quite nicely and really am enjoying not having to answer to customers or deal with employee drama.
My position is ever-evolving and I'm learning where I'm useful. The project they've given me includes 4 separate implementations that I am simultaneously managing. They are things that, if successful, are going to bring our company to the next level. I am now coordinating meetings and reporting to not only my boss, but to numerous members of executive management, including our CFO. Needless to say, it's been a challenge and there are days that are more than stressful.
I've been given the opportunity to shine through this new challenge and if my projects thrive, I feel I will be putting myself on the map as a successful business woman and banker. It's kind of exciting and I'm enjoying almost every minute of it. :)

An Update on Me - Workin' Out

I realized that I really haven't been posting what's been going on in my life lately. I thought I'd fill you in.

I've been really bad about working out. Since a few weeks before my Grandma's funeral (her DOD was 1/29/09) until last week, I think I worked out less than 5 times. Bad Mandi. In that time we had the funeral in Chicago, flew to Puerto Rico and went on a cruise to the Caribbean, and I've fully submersed myself in my new role at the bank (more about that shortly). About 2 weeks ago, however, I decided to do a Body Combat aerobics class at the Y. I was 30 seconds into the dance-punch weirdness when I realized that it was Thursday. DRPH! THURSDAYS are when I could be at my real Kung Fu class learning real Kung Fu from one of the best in the world. (Really.) I could've kicked myself. Literally. Then and there I vowed that the next Thursday I would go to Kung Fu. I'm SO glad I did. I had a great work out and felt like I had never left (it had been over a year.) That moment in the Y's Studio B started a snowball effect of great reinforcements to get back into it. Getting back to Kung Fu to start, then my friend Susan sent out an open invitation to join her in a Memorial Day 5K, and of course, reading about Alix's amazing journey. Reading Alix's account of her weight loss has really hit home. You see, she and I are the same size. Well, I should say we were the same size. She's now a beautiful size 12. (You Go Girl!) She's lost 40 pounds and looks great. I'm ready to be a loser too!
So... I've been back to Kung Fu 3 times and yesterday we printed out a 13 week triathlon training program. Last night we went to the gym to run and swim, but due to the lightening storm the pool was closed. (it's an indoor pool - go fig.) So we ran and did then a resistance training program Barry found. We ended up spending 2 hours at the gym. It was a great "date" and I really enjoyed the working and spending time with my husband. Memorial Day is 6 weeks away and I'm confident that I will be able to run my 2nd official 5K that day.
Tomorrow we will do a spin class for our "bike" day and then do the same weight training. Woohoo!

OK, my work out update ended up being must longer than i anticipated. I'll try and write about more "Updates About Me" tomorrow. :)

"Case of the Mondays"

Barry is always complaining that he is the only one that takes the trash out. "It only takes 30 extra seconds" he says. I succumbed to his logic this morning and decided to take the trash out.

Thirty seconds, my ass.

I walked down the stairs with my usual morning items in tow: My purse, makeup bag, lunch bag, carnation instant breakfast glass, and my keys. When I get to the bottom of the stairs, I notice the trash and think to myself "Fine, I'll do it." As I'm reaching down to pick up the trash, my keys slip out of my hand. All thoughts of a full glass of liquid escapes me as I grab for the keys (as if they were about to fall in to hot liquid magma and never see them again.) Carnation Instant Breakfast goes everywhere: into my lunch bag, all over my hand/wrist/watch, and of course on to the tile. Here's where you think "Tile? What's the big deal?" Well... the bottom of the stairs is where our litter box is and if you know Barry and I at all, it's not a place we tend to sweep out that often. So now i have chocolate milk flavored litter splayed all over the tile, my new Tissot drenched in chocolate milk, and chocolate milk flavored pot roast for lunch. I "gingerly" removed all of previously said items from my hands and run upstairs. I try to get my watch off, but because it's a great watch it doesn't come off easily and the task of removing it is just exacerbated by the chocolate milk. So i wash it off the best i can whilst still attached to me, grab the paper towel, run down stairs, clean up my lunch, wipe up the chocolate litter, stuff the dirty paper towels into the trash bag, and take a breath.

I decide to take 2 trips. I grab my purse, makeup, and lunch bag and put it in the car. I go back and grab the trash and throw that in the trunk and make my way to the compactor. Of course when I get there there is 3 or 4 bags of trash sitting right in FRONT of the door to the trash compactor. I mean, how lazy can you be that you can't open the effin' door and throw your shit in. Literally, someone bagged their SHIT and had it just sitting there. Shit. I'm not kidding. Poop. (Gross.) Anyway, sorry. So i throw my trash in, throw the shit it, get back in the car and to the gate before i realize that I forgot my effing carnation instant breakfast sitting on the shelf where i left it. I yell "Fuck it." and head off to work. Thirteen minutes after my initial trip down the stairs.

When I arrived at the parking garage, for some reason I decided to use the "monthly use only" entrance, which i very rarely do. I reach out my stubby arms to scan my card, glance for the green light, and start to go. The gate doesn't move. WTF? I back up, scan it again and notice the light goes red-green-red. Hm. Ok. I try again. RedGreenRed. Damnit. Now the line is backing up and I have to reverse my car to go into the other lane with large truck grills glaring at me in my small sedan. I manage to get into the other lane and retrieve a ticket, but not without hearing an unimaginable pffping sound from my tire as I kissed the curb. Shite. I'll be damned if i popped my tire. I drive forward and don't notice anything strange (thank goodness), park and head to the stairs without looking back.

By the time i get upstairs I'm just watching the minutes until I can call Barry. I tell him my whole story and explain that this is why I never take the trash out and why I'll never do it again before work.

He say to me, "Sounds like you got a bad case of the Mondays." It's a good thing he wasn't within reach...

TV FX Guy

OK, its my turn.

It seems that a lot of my blogging friends have had to start monitoring their comments due to negative and/or cruel feedback left. This isn't nearly as bad as what y'all have gone through, but its another small example that people don't follow the golden rule of "If you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all."

Last month, I wrote a post about Bob & Sheri about how I pretty much worshiped them. (Not exactly, but you get the point.) ANYway, today I received a comment from a random guy explaining how much he despises them. Not that I really care what his opinion of Bob & Sheri is, everyone's entitled to theirs... but why would you post a comment that is in direct opposition just for S & G's? Makes no sense to me. I was at least hoping to look at his blog and maybe gain another interesting blog to read (see - me staying positive?) But he doesn't even have one. He's just a rogue Negative Nilly.

Now all i can do is overreact and become hypersensitive... But as Alix says, comments are like crack... and I don't like no bad crack.

Oh well... at least it gives me something to blog about. :)

Confessions of a Banker

I feel like such an idiot, but I'm a glutton for punishment and I can't seem to keep this to myself. I have to tell someone! So here it goes...


I've been in banking for eight years. Yes, 8. And this banker JUST realized that the Equal Housing Lender icon...

...is a house with an equal sign inside it. I thought it was just a drawing of a house with lines. I didn't really pay much attention to it.

Pathetic, I know.

From the Desk of Denise Carmichael

Since I get to read all the fun antics your kids are up to, I thought i'd share an email my sister just sent me:

Why Mom's have to be fast-thinkers and flexible with a sense of humor:

I have to get the boys out of the house before I lose every hiding place I have!

Reason #1)
Remember the "Elf on the Shelf" that visits us before Christmas every year (Buddy)? He popped in today and you'll never believe where he was hiding: in the back, top part of Mommy's closet!
Ashton was playing in my closet just now, looks up and yells, "Mommy! I see Buddy! He's here!"
I try to convince him it isn't him: "No, that's just a red glove."
"No Mommy- I see his face!"

damn.
Thinking quickly, I look happily surprised and say, "How did he know you'd be playing down there? He must've heard Braydon was sick and he wanted to check on him. Sneaky Buddy!" =)

Reason #2)
Here's what happened this morning:Ashton's looking in the closet upstairs for something, so I ask him, "What are you doing?"
"I'm looking for the drum set that's in here."
"What?"
"Before Christmas there was a drum set in here that looks a lot like the one Braydon got. I just remembered it- if I can find it then we can both have one!"
He continues searching."Ashton, there's no drum set in there.""Yes there is- Daddy showed it to me before Christmas! It's in here somewhere."
Jason had a different story, but either way- now I've lost that hiding place.

I better get the boys out of here before they discover their Easter presents!

Irony

What is the definition of irony?

Having a moment of feeling very proud of myself for checking my purse to make sure I didn't forget my cell phone on the way to the parking garage, only to walk up 4 flights of stairs and half way to my car before realizing i forgot my car keys. Then having to go down the elevator, walk 1 1/2 blocks back to my office, dig in the purse for my access card, open the door, wait for the elevator, go up 10 flights, grab keys, go down 10 flights, walk 1 1/2 blocks, walk up 4 flights of stairs and go home.

Fat Day

Yesterday I was having a fat day. Most days I don't look in the mirror before going out because i know my clothes and know what i look like in them. Yesterday I should've taken that extra 30 seconds, just to be sure.

I arrived at work and went through my normal morning routine: Turn on the computer and log in, then get my station situated and go get my water and go to the bathroom. Our bathroom at work has a full wall mirror right before you get to the actual area w/ the toilets. I stop in my tracks and realize that i look like a burnt sausage link - wearing grey slacks and an "almost" black top that is a few years old. Many rolls abound. My shirt shrunk a little and i've expanded a little... not a good combination. I stop myself in my tracks for a second and get that nasty knot in my stomach. UGH. 'It's gonna be one of those days', i think.
Back to my desk I go, with the idea in my head that i'm about to get put in a skillet and eaten for breakfast so I try to make myself look as small as possible, which of course, as you know when you're having a fat day, has the opposite effect. I decide then that i really need to eat healthy and drink alot of water that day.
Drinking alot of water on a fat day is a bad idea when you work at a place with a full length mirror to look at as you walk in and out of the bathroom. It became a vicious cycle of drinking water, having to pee, seeing myself in the mirror, looking fat and feeling like i should drink more water, then having to pee... well, you see the pattern.
So today I went back to Kung Fu for a good ass-kicking workout. It felt great to be back at the school and to see some old friends. But the best part was that i felt like I really hadn't left. I remembered all the terminology and even felt good sparring. A few more months of this and alot of potty breaks, and hopfully my Fat Days will be few and far between.

Hey! I'm Married!

Not that I didn't know that, but its nice get reminded every once in a while.

Today was a great day, even though I'm exhausted. We had a very productive day of cleaning and organizing. We were a great team and the day just flowed. Normally I have to beg Barry to help me with things around the house and then I just end up doing it myself so I don't have to hear him bitch. I probably do it right the first time anyway. But today we woke up, took a shower and got to cleaning. Throughout the day we had kiss-y moments and silly innuendo comments that would make both of us giggle. There was no bickering or griping on either of our parts. Barry was willing to help with everything and actually got things done without direction from me! We worked from about 10:45 until 7:30 with just a short break for lunch. I really wish I took a before and after pictures of our closet because it is COMPLETELY organized with room for more junk! Gotta love space bags when they don't get ruined by cats. All of our winter clothes have been sucked of any air and reduced to dense cubes of plastic and fabric. Our entire wardrobe, less what we're wearing, is washed and put away, and the last load of towels are drying. Anything that hasn't been worn in a year or have been labeled "One-Day-It'll-Fit-Again" have been put aside for a garage sale next weekend. I've got 2 new under-the-bed plastic bins sitting under the bed (go fig) full of things that were formally taking up space elsewhere and my closet base boards were vacuumed for the first time since, well, ever.

The house is still a mess since we really only scratched the surface of what we intend to complete by April 1st, but there were definitely accomplishments today. I just hope we can keep this momentum up!

Face 2 Face

Monday morning I left the house to the tune of Barry saying "Have it in your head that we're working out tonight!" I was all up for it too.

Then my friend at work, Jennifer, got 2 tickets to Elton John & Billy Joel's Face 2 Face tour for a late Christmas present from her brother and asked me to go!! When I called Barry I told him I couldn't work out tonight, I had to go see Elton and Billy. !!!! AHH!!!! Not only were we seeing 2 of the most amazing singers of all time, we had CLUB seats, Section 113 row B (practially floor- but better!)- I felt like a little kid going to Disney for the first time - I was so excited!! I now understand what those girls were screaming about during Beatles Mania.

Needless to say, my monday turned out Fan-Effin'-Tastic. Here's some pictures:

Bob & Sheri

For my Charlotte friends, you know exactly who i'm talking about. The Bob & Sheri morning show. For those who don't, Bob & Sheri is a morning show syndicated out of Charlotte, NC. When I was living in Daytona (2001), I would listen to their show religiously. There was something about their style and sense of humor that made them so much fun to listen to. When I moved back home to Jax, not hearing them was one of the things I missed in the morning.
Fast forward to January 2009, Girls Weekend in Savanah. I turn on my radio and who do I hear?! My beloved Bob & Sheri!! Sunny 103.3!! I got so excited. I listened to them all 2 hours on the way home, and it wasn't until I got to downtown Jacksonville that they started to fuzz out.
Normally, I can't stand white noise. Any flicker of quality in the reception and the station changes. Well, for Bob and Sheri, I can tolerate it. I even changed the way I went to work so i would travel north around the river instead of south, in the off chance that the 8 miles in either direction would make a difference. (I know, its a sickness, really.)
SO anyway, I thought i'd share. Good night, and I wish you good reception.

The Cruise

From Feb 14-22, 14 members of the Swedlow family went on a cruise to the Southern Carribean on the Carnival Fun Ship Victory. It was a helluva of a good time. We visited 5 countries, plus San Juan, PR and St. Thomas, VI. We flew to San Juan on Feb 14th, spent valentines day in Old San Juan and boarded the ship the next day. Old San Juan is beautiful- we could've spent a few more days there!

(One of San Juan's many sloped coblestone streets)

I could write forever on the daily events, but I'll just mention my favorite day and just show some pics from the other days.

My favorite port, by far, was Dominica (pronounce DOM-a-neek-a). Five of us picked up a taxi in town and our guide, Bobby, gave us the best tour ever. We walked on black sand beaches, soaked in a hot spring, swam in crystal waterfall pools, and felt the heat of their volcanos. It is simply the best kept secret in the Carribean. I hope maybe sometime soon to spend a week there to experience all the amazing things to do on this awesome island. (we didn't get to dive!!)

(He even bought us the local beer! YUM!)

(Barry, Rachel & Sharon in the hot spring)

(I love this picture!)

(Doesn't Barry look like an angel? - this is Jacko Falls)

All of those pictures were from Dominica. Here are some other pictures from the cruise :)

Josh & Barry (Cousins) by the smoke stack

Waiting for the R-rated comedian to start!

(In order: Dave, Rachel, Stephanie, Melissa, Mandi, Barry, Sharon, Bruce, Josh)

I clean up nice (this is one of the formal nights)

Relaxing in the hottub after a "brutal" day on the islands

An amazing view of our ship (on the left) on the island of St. Lucia

One of the lounges on the ship: we thought it looked like a strip club :)

One of Barry's classmates is from St. Kitts and mentioned that the best local dish to eat in the islands is Roti, kind of an Indian/Carribean burrito. Needless to say, it was de-LISH and we tried to find some on each island as each one cooks them just a bit differently. Roti King was our favorite. SO GOOD!

This is the Skirt Steak with Yuca Mofongo from El Jibarito in San Juan. OMG, this was one of the best dishes i've EVER had - and that's saying alot from a foodie. We ate there 3 times in the 2 days we were in San Juan.

Me and one of the cruises infamous towel animals

A crowd of us just before we board the Carnival Victory!

The Gang

The List.

I realize i've been a horrible blogger. But what sucks is I have SOOO much to blog about and no time to do it! SO, to hold myself accountable, I'll give you a list of the things you should hear from me:

• The Cruise!
• Bob & Sheri
• Elton John/Billy Joel
• Work
• Grandpa
• My Hubby

Premios Dardo Award

I received my first Blogger Award! Alix, over at Casa Hice awarded me. Awww... Too bad I had to read it four times to figure out what it was. But anyway, here's the skinny:

"The Premios Dardo Award acknowledges the values that every blogger shows in his or her effort to transmit cultural, ethical, literary, and personal values every day."

Really? Thanks Alix! And now, here are my instructions:

STEP 1: Respond and rework. Answer the following questions on my blog, replacing one question that I dislike with a question of my own invention.
STEP 2: Add one more question of my own.

Sounds good, so here goes...

1) What are you wearing right now?
My baby blue terrycloth robe that I've had for probably 20 years. Sexy, I know.

2) What is your biggest fear?
Loosing my loved ones before it's time. and growing old. Life is too short.
3) What was your worst subject in school?
Geometry I think. I blame those damned proofs. And WHEN am I ever going to use that?! Never. That's when.
4) Who is the last person you hugged?
My Takari Boy. He's quite huggable. (PS He's my eldest kitty.)
5) What websites do you visit when you go online?
wouldn't you like to know?

6) What was the last item you bought?
A Chocolate Peanut Butter Fudge pie from the Village Inn. Barry made me do it. ;)
7) If you could go anywhere in the world, where would you go?
*sigh* I love to travel, so this question is not specific enough. I mean - do you mean pick up and go right NOW? Or if I could only pick one place? I mean, technically I could go anywhere. But where would I go? Should I pick a place I've already been or a place I've always wanted to go?

...See what I mean?

8) If you woke up tomorrow and were the opposite sex, what is the first thing you would do and why?
The FIRST thing to do would be to check out the goods! Then, what else would there be to do? OH. I'd pee outside, standing up, and write my name on a fence.
9) What is your most embarrassing moment?
I don't get embarrassed too easily anymore, but when I was in high school I had my fair share. The worst one was when I went on a date when I was sick, puked in my mouth at the Olive Garden table and swallowed it thinking he wouldn't notice. He did. And that was just the beginning of the night-o-barfing. it was bad.
10) What was the last movie you watched?
Just finished watching Swing Kids. Young Christian Bale - he's even hot as a Nazi.

11) If you had a whole day to yourself with no work, commitments, or interruptions what would you do?
*sigh!* Hang on... let me ponder this wonderful thought for a moment...

...Ok, I'm back. I think I'd go get a pedicure, then find a hammock on the river and read and relax, looking at my beautiful toes every once in a while.
12) If you were to win the Powerball, what would you do with the money (besides invest it)?
I'd buy a mall, then build my dream Deltec homes - one here near family, then one in Colorado. Oh and I'd take a cruise around the world.(114-days!) 13) In your opinion, who is the most significant person in history and why?

I really don't know enough about history, but I just finished watching Swing Kids, so I would say Hitler was pretty significant. There are both positively and negatively significant people out there.

14) What is the stupidest thing you've ever done at a bar?

Soooo... there was this time during Bike week when I was living in Daytona for school. By Thursday I was dying to get on a bike, so i went to a local bar of which I happened to have a class with the manager. I was new to Daytona and I really didn't know anyone. I ran into a client of mine from the bank (I only knew him because I cashed his checks) and I get invited on a bike ride through his friend. I had no purse, so i ask the manager to hold my phone/keys behind the bar and go on a ride to the Iron Horse with this random man without a cell phone. He turned out to be the sweetest guy ever, but i found out the next day that my client had just met this guy the day before and didn't know him from Adam. Dumb. Really.

And now I pass the coveted Premios Dardo Award to another lucky few... The winners are...

Angelle

Mike

Laurie

Erin

Please display the Premios Dardo Award prominently on your blog, post the instructions, and pass the award on to the deserving blogs of your choice! (The true instructions call for 8 winners, but i really don't read much more than 8 blogs, so I'm bending the rules a bit.)

Cheers.

Just to illustrate how freakin' sweet my Grandma was, one of her requests for her funeral was to pop open a 40 at the gravesite and have one last beer for her, then leave the bottle as the vase for flowers instead of a regular vase. Unfortunately, they couldn't find Old Milwaukee in a 40oz, so we had to settle for Budwiser. :)

Cheers, Grandma.

(always a rebel, she was. Even in her after life. :)

Last Trip to "Grandma's"

I can't believe this is the first time I've actually been on blogger in like 6 days. I've either been that busy or that lazy. I think it's a little of both.



Part of it has been because I'm not sure what to say about my grandma. We've known it was coming for such a long time. Before it happened I thought I was ready. But there was so much hype about it - one day she's got a few days "max", the next day the nurse is saying it could be weeks - that I just got tired of the non-updates. Predicting the future is not exactly a science. Well, life caught up to her at about 3:00 on Thursday, January 29th, 2009. I got the call from my mom while at work. I got a hug from my boss then went to the bathroom. It was the strangest feeling, sobbing on the toilet in a public restroom. I was so afraid someone would walk in, but at the same time hated being alone. I pulled myself together and got to the elevator before a good friend, Steve, stopped me. When I told him, he stopped what he was doing and got into the elevator with me and let me sob on his chest down 10 floors. Its the little things that people do that really make me realize what great friends I have, even co-workers.


Fast forward to Saturday. My mom, Barry, and I got on a plane to Midway (Chicago) at the ass-crack and landed about 10:00am. We took a detour to Chinatown (yum!) before going to Union Station to take the train to Lake Villa. I've mentioned before that the biggest fear I had was seeing my Grandpa. When we got there he was in their room. I was able to hug him for a long time. I tried to be strong but I just cried in his arms, with our family around us. I was so afraid that my favorite place in the whole world would have somehow lost it's magic without Grandma. Yes, there was something missing, but luckily not all the magic was lost. I realized that although Grandma leaving us was unbelievably hard, her life and body wasn't what defined the love in our family. The fact that EVERYONE was together, for the first time since all 8 cousins were children, kept it all real. Kept the magic of that house alive. We spent 5 days crying, laughing, looking at pictures, crying and laughing some more.

At the viewings and at the funeral, Barry told me I shouldn't have to "be strong" for anyone, but grieve for myself. I think that even though I've lost both my mom's parents, plus 2 of Barry's uncles, that this is the first time I've experienced true grief. I loved all of them, but my Grandma Jo like no one you'll ever meet. If you were lucky enough to know her, you are a better person because of it. Grief is just the weirdest feeling. One moment it seems as though I'll never feel joy again, and then I quickly recover and can laugh and talk about where we're going to get dinner. At the actual funeral Wednesday morning I was a flippin' wreck, but at the cemetery I was fine. I know it'll get easier...

I think my Grandpa will be OK. He will probably even come down to visit in a few weeks. :)

As for me, I'll keep her in my heart (and on my foot).

I love you, Grandma.

A New Addition

Illinois was FREEZING! Literally, it was colder than my freezer outside almost the entire time we were there. I will talk more about my trip later, but first I wanted to show you this:

Pay no attention to my jacked up toes, I have my mother to thank for those. (ha! i rhymed!) Wha - Oh, yeah - the tattoo! I decided that I was going to get a tattoo for my grandma and convinced my cousin and aunt to get one with me. We opted for just a simple heart on our feet. But I really wanted her name on it, since my name is also Jo. (Amanda Jo Hart Swedlow). Turns out that on Monday- when we were going to get them- I got stupid sick with a stomach virus and there was plenty of things still to do for the wake that night, so we didn't get to the tattoo parlor. Thank goodness, because I got home today and went to "my guy" instead( he's a friend of a friend who does awesome work). He did a phenomenal job of drawing this up and i love it. :)