see what we can

packing dishes, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

Our friends are thinking about selling their house (where we live). So we're going to start looking and see what we can find. Nothing is certain yet. I'm starting to pack up stuff we don't use every day just in case. Moving sucks, so if I can make it easier, I will.

broken glass

Jason in bunny slippers, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

Look for it...

I didn't even have to stage this either. We had broken glass in the kitchen and he immediately went for my slippers. Too cute.

the good news

voted sticker, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

The weather is so nice tonight. Luckily my polling place is right around the corner. I waited for the sun to set and took a relaxing little walk. And voted. I'm going to make dinner and listen to the TV until the good news comes.

my relationships with people

Day of the Dead Bride and Groom, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

It has been a hectic second half of October.

My husband gave me his cold which turned out to be terrible gift. I got so sick but also my blood thinners were working a little too well and I ended up coughing up and sneezing blood like a walking plague.

I spent our wedding anniversary alone all day and sick while my husband worked. I was glued to the TV watching the latest news as Frankenstorm hit because many people we love were located in its path. Spoiler alert, everyone is fine.

I'm on a ridiculous waiting list for my surgery because I have been referred to a nerve specialist so I can have three surgeries in one. I just want a baby. I have no problem reinforcing the stereotype that barren Apache Junction women will steal babies just like in Raising Arizona. I'll do it.

Halloween was kind of a bust. Jason worked and I was still sick so I turned the porch light off like a mean old lady.

Speaking of... I'm becoming kind of anti-social. Not necessarily on purpose. This online writing gig is beginning to kind of rule me. On the plus side, I've become an even better speller without trying (I have always been an excellent speller). But I spend all of my time writing or preparing for articles and working on projects. I've accepted that I was a closet crafter and can finally live in the daylight without shame. But getting back to my relationships with people... all of this doesn't leave a lot of time for people. Kind of depressing. But especially being sick. Between being sick, writing, and sleeping, my entire week is spoken for.

Oh well. November holds promise.

doggy treats

jason baking, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

We're baking Bowie some doggy treats. I got the cutest bone-shaped cookie cutter on Amazon. The recipe is really easy.

little critter

New York Butterfly, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

I took this pic while we were visiting New York. I'm really amazed when my iPhone takes an awesome pic. I was trying so hard to capture the butterfly without scaring him/her away. It wasn't until I got home an noticed there's a second little critter on the flower too. How cute!

turning into the She-Hulk

my husband and his action figures, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

I love this picture so much. My husband found a few boxes of old toys at his mom's during our New York trip. He dumped them out in the middle of the floor and we played with them a bit.

My MRI went okay, I guess. I hate laying there for 30+ mins without moving. I get bored and start to get paranoid that I'm moving without knowing it. I played many rounds of the alphabet game with myself (Apples, bananas, cheese, dark chocolate, etc). I've had more than 6 MRIs in the last year. I'm probably turning into the She-Hulk. I'll know more about the MRI and everything else next week.

My husband has a cold. I spent the day taking care of him and trying to catch up on my writing. And P.S. I finally tried watching Dr. Who and absolutely can't stand it. Hate me; I don't care.

my nerdy awkward self

I met Mary Lynn Rajskub!, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

Disregard this total mullet I have going on. I'm trying to grow out my short hair, but more importantly, I met Mary Lynn Rajskub at NY Comic Con this past weekend!

I had no idea she was going to be there and my mother-in-law and I were just talking about how we loved her on 24. I was so starstruck because sure I have lots of favorite actors and actresses but she's different. I had a moment to tell her that watching her work in the last 10+ years really empowered me to love my nerdy awkward self and she said she loves when women tell her that. She was a sweetheart.

Aside from that vacation was great. We spent a few days in upstate NY for our friends' wedding, then headed back to Long Island to visit with family before comic con. It was great. The weather was chilly and the leaves were starting to turn. NYCC, although over-crowded and poorly organized, was fun. Meeting my Chloe was worth it and everything else was just gravy.

It's days like today I wish I had a maid or clone or Rosie from the Jetsons. Although my husband and I cleaned the house before we left, we were gone almost 2 weeks and we've got a ton of laundry. I'll spend today doing that, catching up on my writing (oh my, month is halfway over), and vacuuming up random dead crickets I keep finding and then WORK. My MRI is tomorrow and I'm just trying to get all of my ducks in a row before surgery.

scrabble hello

scrabble hello, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

Too mushy for words, right?

getting old in my young age

Jurassic Park for iPhone, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

I can't decide if I like the IOS 6 update for my iPhone. Somethings are annoying but I don't know if I just have to get used to it or if it's terrible or I'm just being an old lady about it. I started playing Jurassic Park a few months ago and I'm still pretty addicted. It's like Cityville, but people don't make as much fun of me for playing JP.

My blood is practically back to normal. My prolactin is off the charts-- which it shouldn't be because I'm not pregnant or breastfeeding. It was so high that it was somehow causing my body to metabolize my coumadin before my body could actually use it to keep my blood where it needs to be. I'm now taking about three times the dose of coumadin as last summer and it's almost back to normal. Meanwhile, I have medicine to help the prolactin drop down to where it should be. I take about 7 pills a day now. I have a seven-day pill box because I can very easily forget to take my medicine or in some cases I have taken it twice in the same day. I'm getting old in my young age.

I'm keeping busy with the crafting/writing gig to keep my mind off of the tumor and upcoming surgery. But also knowing that I have a large tumor where a baby should be, I find myself walking slower and taking it easier. As long as they get it out and I can still use my uterus, I'll be fine.

rejoicing and complaining

How to make Button Vase, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

Blogging, crafting, and writing are therapeutic-- to a degree. I made this button vase and jar recently. I have a tutorial and video here.

What I thought was just my endometriosis progressing turned out to be something different indeed. I went to my follow-up appointment with my high-risk OBGYN. We discussed the results of my fallopian tube procedure, which I already knew went well because I watched on a screen with my very own eyes as the dye travelled through my tubes and confirmed that they were not blocked from the endometriosis. My OBGYN confirmed that they were infact, fully functional and great but that I have a large fibroid tumor growing in my uterus.

The symptoms associated with uterine tumors are not anything out of the ordinary for me. Pelvic pressure and pain-- I've had for over a year from my endo. Heavy menstrual bleeding-- I have anyway because I take blood thinners because of my two blood clotting disorders.

I have to say, finding out that this was the culprit was very rewarding. Okay, yeah, I freaked out the entire first day I found out. But knowing that there was a reason I felt like I was getting sicker and I felt like I was on an emotional rollercoaster-- It's nice to know I'm not crazy or imagining these things.

They're doing more tests because I have three hormones that are irregularly high and low. They're doing more imaging of the tumor this upcoming week and then scheduling surgery. Surgery scares me-- I'm a high risk with my blood clotting issues as we learned last summer when I wound up with more than a dozen post-op blood clots in my lungs. It's scary. I won't deny that. But I also just want to get this show on the road so I can start rejoicing and complaining about babies instead.

the wrath of my moping

Owl Plates, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

My husband bought me these very cute owl plates because he always gets me cute stuff but also because the wrath of my moping when I don't get something can be fierce.

My friend Lizz is always sending me txt messages that say something like, "Don't go to Hobby Lobby unless you have money because they got new owls in!" The other day I got a picture message that was an entire display of these plates, cookie jars, mugs, S&P shakers, etc. I immediately showed it to my husband-- who happened to be showering at the time, but this was an emergency.

I'm going to hang the owl-shaped plates on the wall and the dessert plates will be used as such. But when we have kids, I'm packing them away somewhere high and secretive so no one can even think about breaking them. I say this because I was that kid and I'm sure I ruined lots of stuff my mom loved.

a lot of guff

Melted Crayon Window, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

This is one of my favorite DIY projects. There's something about crayons I will always love.

I recently discovered I've been plagiarized-- over a dozen times actually. I'm flattered and angered. Flangered. In all honesty, I've been having a lousy few weeks. My body feels like it's turning against me. It was rough enough but this new drama is the last thing I have time or energy to tackle.

I'm trying to focus my energy on happy stuff while I'm waiting for the thieves to remove my content. I take a lot of guff for watching shows like The Real Housewives of New Jersey-- but they have life lessons embedded too. I've learned a lot about dealing with people-- especially people you'd rather not deal with. I missed out on some of those lessons when I was home-schooled for high school. Also... "Holding onto anger makes you ugly." And Dina Manzo is far from ugly, so I'll consider her a reliable source.

So to keep me from stewing in my own anger, I'm working on new DIY projects for this month. I'm also planning out my costumes for NYC Comic Con in a few weeks. My husband and I are leaving Arizona for a bit to attend a wedding and visit with family. Thanks to my mother-in-law, we've got tickets to CC. I finally tried on my Ghostbuster flight suit this morning-- something I have been avoiding for fear it didn't fit anymore. Even though I weigh less than I did last year, I still weigh more than when I wore this costume in 2009 while promoting the next-gen Ghostbuster game. It fits just a tad more snug, but in all the right places. I feel more attractive in it now.

when I'm a millionaire

french lace cookie, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

This is a cookie recipe that I did an article for over the summer. You can check it out here.

Having said that, it's actually my one year anniversary writing on HubPages. Pretty crazy how time flies (excuse the cliche) but also I never saw this coming. I didn't think I'd stick it out and here I am.

I'm excited for Autumn! Along with the other 50 classic reasons, it also means the Arizona weather will cool down a tad and I can do tons of baking. I won't have to worry about my AC working that much harder when it's 115 degrees outside and I'm running the oven like a crazy lady. Small price to pay for doing things you love? Well no. Almost three hundred dollars for summertime electricity is far from small-- but someday when I'm a millionaire, it will be ;)

sounds advanced but feels archaic

Valentine Wedding Inspiration, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

I came up with some neat wedding ideas for a Valentine's Day Wedding. You can read about it in my work blog. It was a nice excuse to dig out my wedding dress and wear it for a short make-shift iPhone photo shoot. Coming up on my one year wedding anniversary-- unbelievable! Wearing my dress made me realize where and approximately how much weight I lost. Always a plus for a plus size girl!

It's hard to believe it's been almost two months since I've blogged for leisure. I've been balancing my time between working at the bookstore, my online writing job, and 20 other miscellaneous aspects of my life. It's a stress-free juggling act, so no complaints.

We've been trying to make a baby for over 9 months now. Putting a number on that just makes me realize that we could have had a baby by now! My endometriosis has been progressing and I've had a good amount of rough days lately. I had my Fallopian tubes checked last week in a procedure that sounds advanced but feels archaic. They injected dye into my uterus via a catheter which was terrible enough but the uterus immediately cramps when a bunch of foreign dye is introduced. I got to watch the process on a screen as it happened and let's just say that Fallopian tubes are tiny like angel hair spaghetti-- not at all like the giant sausage casings that anatomy illustrations would have us believe. Long story short-- I lived. And my tubes are fully functional and free from endometrial scarring since my last surgery.

something cute

lego monopoly, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

Getting ready to play some monopoly. We're taking advice from my boss and playing with Lego guys. It's something cute he does with his family and I love the idea. Jason is using R2 and of course, I had to be a little dramatic. I've got my creature from the black lagoon knock off with a spear riding a vintage horse.

We have quite a few Lego people that we've collected but need to come up with a way to display them. Let me rephrase that-- a way in which I won't have to dust their intricacies.

Rosson House

cptgame446 & ceck0face, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

Looking through wedding pictures and I really love this one. It was taken in front of the historic Rosson House in downtown Phoenix right before sunset. I'd absolutely love to live in a house like this someday.

when you open your mouth

29th birthday, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

So it happened. I turned 29. It was a pretty good birthday. My husband and I are now the same age for six months.

I remarkably lost weight, but don't ask me how. About fifteen lbs or more. I wasn't trying to. In fact, I have wanted to lose weight but haven't done anything about it. I figured I would be gaining more weight during my baking/blogging month which went so-so, btw. I look at my wedding photos from 9 months ago and can definitely see a difference. And my jeans are so loose and practically falling down. It's a great feeling but honestly, I would rather be huge and pregnant and ready to pop.

Eight months of baby trying so far. I can't get frustrated yet, and I'm not. God has been very good to my husband and I. My parents tried for three years to have me. I'd probably be a lot more patient if I had the luxury of time instead of a painful disease that's going untreated. Speaking of which... I'm going to start doing acupuncture for my endometriosis pain. I don't want to live my life on pain killers every day. Plus it will decrease stress and promote fertility. It's an all-round good choice as long as I can physically/mentally handle it. I hate needles. And with good reason. I hated them my whole life and in the past year, between a PIC line, hit nerve, and multiple collapsed veins-- I only like them less.

Work is fantastic. My only complaint is my borderline frustration with kids who do want to read but only want to read one series or type of book and shut down all other ideas. A little girl was arguing with her mother today because she only wants to read a children's series called The Magic Treehouse. Someone had bought us out of what we had and all of my and her mother's suggestions weren't good enough. Anne of Green Gables. Black Beauty. The Secret Garden. Nancy Drew. Little House on the Prairie. Judy Blume. None of these were good enough for her. She wouldn't even look at them. It's a teeny bit offensive because these are great books. She kept shooting me looks like I was an idiot for suggesting them and also from another planet. Is this what parenthood is going to be like? I want my children to read well at an early age and truly love it, but I don't want them to be snobby elitists who only read contemporary gimmicks and scoff classics.

A similar pet peeve is as follows: two people come in, one who genuinely wanted to come in and the other who is being dragged. The person who is there against his or her will always crosses the threshold and immediately says something like, "I hate books," "I don't read," "This place is boring," or all of the above. Do they understand how unintelligent they sound? I always end up thinking that they didn't even need to say it out-loud because I can tell. If it's a teenager who can't properly form sentences or use the correct tense or if they speak in double negatives I find myself thinking, "Yeah, I can tell you don't read because if you did you would probably make sense when you open your mouth." If it's an adult, the previous examples usually fit in addition to the tell-tale signs of what a lack of literature and reading has done for them, their career, and life choices.

Okay, now I sound like an elitist.

Global warming

beatnik mermaid, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

Job perk! Putting together random Legos to sell. This is beatnik mermaid. She comes complete with black turtleneck, cup of coffee and journal. She cares about issues. Global warming. Our oceans. Women's rights. The usual.

this month

pop cultured, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

This is the mailing list / newsletter for our customers this month. I came to work and was totally surprised. This totally makes my day!! I needed this. Thanks :)

Story of my life.

animal windows, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

I first visited the museum of natural history back in 2004 when my husband and I were dating. I fell in love with it for so many reasons-- I love museums for one, but there are so many more reasons. I see this picture and feel two things. I want to go back to NY (for even more reasons) and I get the urge to watch Night at the Museum. I took this picture because seeing the multitude of windows simultaneously for the first time and every time stirs such a wonderful feeling inside me.

We're going back to New York for a wedding in October and I simply cannot wait. I love New York so much. I think I grew up wishing I could live there someday or was that just everyone else's dream in practically every movie? If you told me I'd be living in my hometown for 30 years, I would have corrected you. I had such big plans as a teenager and young adult. I was going to shake the dust from my kicks (and not just figuratively, I live in the desert) and move on to greener pastures (again, literally greener).

I'm not disappointed. And I'm not reliving my decisions and mistakes at 2:30 in the morning because my birthday is coming, I promise. I still tell myself that someday, I'll live in New York. And I will. I have said goodbye to so many people who have left to live life in a different place and sometime it will be my turn. My goodbye. My going away.

But anyway. Getting back to it. I love any excuse to buy a new dress or new shoes. I don't think I've worn a dress since my wedding and it's killing me. Okay, probably not. I'll also get to spend time with my mother-in-law which is nice.

I think another one of my recipes won, although I could be completely wrong. I noticed a--- we shall call it a glitch in the Matrix?-- and I think I found a correlation between a certain something and a recipe that wins. My finding doesn't make it win... it's just more of a "dog ear."

I'm only up to Day 12 - Classic Banana Bread with Chocolate Chips

I'm not losing steam, just running out of train tracks? I have to finish this because I never finish anything. Story of my life. But also... my husband and I can only eat so much food. I wish I could donate perishable food. Maybe I can. Ideally, I could just invite my friends on Facebook to come over and eat a bunch of desserts and give me feedback. Sounds easy enough but people rarely take us up on the offer-- even when there aren't any ulterior motives or conditions. I have come to the conclusion that my husband and I are boring hosts. That's what I really wanted to say all along.

Goodnight.

nine days and 19 recipes left

pink popcorn, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

I had some kind of stomach bug the other day and it completely threw off my rhythm. I have nine days and 19 recipes left. I can do this.

Oh, I didn't even tell you. One of my recipes won! I'm happy of course, but since winning wasn't the goal, I'm still pushing til the end of the month. If a second recipe won, I'd be on cloud nine. I don't think I've ever used that expression. What does that say about me / the situation. Hmm.

Called my dad on Father's day. He was hoping I was calling with baby news, but nope, not yet. He then proceeded to tell me the ins and outs of the time one of our horses was struggling to get pregnant. True dad fashion.

Food break down.

Day 08 - Old Fashioned Coffee Cake with Chocolate Icing
Day 09 - No-Bake Double Berry Cake Squares
Day 10 - Pink Strawberry Popcorn Balls
Day 11 - Heavenly Carrot Soufflé

More another time.

some serious mileage

making popsicles!, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

I think I forgot I was taking a picture of the popsicle. If I didn't know any better, I'd say I'm a conceited camera hog or whore-- who knows.

The ants in my kitchen are back. I can't blame them. My kitchen has been smelling delicious lately. I'm putting some serious mileage on my kitchenware. I want a standalone mixer and I need a food processor. Notice I specified between the want and need. I also want a blender I saw the other day just because it's turquoise. I already have one. But you know me. Or do you?

Day 1 - Ciabatta Bread Pudding
Day 2 - French Lace Cookie Cups with Fresh Fruit
Day 3 - Cherry Craisin Oat Bars
Day 4 - Cinnamon Raisin Bread Pudding Cake
Day 5 - Peach Moo Milkshake
Day 6 - Chocolate Buttermilk Bread
Day 7 - Simple Potato Scones

Technically, I'm only two days behind.

normal or boring

ackbar in my pocket, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

What do people do at two in the morning? Well technically, I wonder what they do from about 1am-4am. I personally don't think I could get any more normal or boring, but then again, I haven't tried. I sleep. If I can't sleep, I'm watching tv, reading reddit, online. Nothing special. Right now. Writing this. In the background, I have photos uploading so I can finish a recipe article (day 6, four down, gotta catch up). In another window, I have Gwen Mars playing and I'm certain I'm the only person who likes them and owns their cds. It reminds me of being a teenager (16 in 1999), and doing exactly the same thing, I guess. Trying to type quietly so my parents wouldn't yell at me for being on the computer so late although these days it's more like trying to type quietly because my husband and dog are light sleepers. I'm a loud type-r. Typist. I type loudly.

I had no intention of saying any of this but I got an update that someone favorited a photo on my flickr. Not this one. Of me. Of all of me. It's nothing special but I wonder why someone would like it and favorite it at this hour. I'm so naive. (I had "naive" spelled incorrectly and didn't know until google chrome told me. I lost a regional spelling bee because I couldn't spell it when I was 13. And I still can't.) When I looked at their profile I couldn't see them but saw all of their other favorites. I think you get it. Am I flattered or disgusted? I dunno. I guess it's perfectly normal and I guess the wallflower in me wants to tuck it away as a compliment. In a book of compliments which I don't have but if I did it would be fairly empty. Oh sure. I get complimented. On how patient I am. Yep. Not really worth bragging or blogging about but here we are.

I need a housekeeper and a secretary

june 3rd fortune, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

In the next month, huh? I can handle that. Whatever it might be. Pleasant is good. I wonder though... are fortune cookies and their subsequent fortunes influenced by where they come from? I mean... is a good fortune from Panda Express only moderately "okay" in comparison to a good fortune from somewhere better... like China Garden? I wonder. Am I short changing my good fortune and future every time I eat inferior crab rangoons to save a buck?

I somehow got into the superstitious habit of not eating a fortune cookie with a fortune I didn't care for. If it was something I really wanted to happen, I sealed the deal by eating the cookie. Sure, I bet a lot of people buy stock into whatever you would call this, but I actually don't care for eating fortune cookies. I usually force myself to eat it in the name of good fortune. Or, if I'm home, I make my dog do it. Whether she intercepts that good fortune is still a gray area.

But I've still got a month, so okay. In the meantime, this baking/cooking challenge is going okay.

It's day 5. I have done 5 recipes to completion but have only posted three.

Day 1
Day 2
Day 3

I started out a day behind and one of my dishes turned out pretty badly (I'm not trying a second time), so now I'm two behind. I'm not worried. I got this. I made two entirely different bread puddings this week. Did I mention I ate one almost by myself? Ugh. Okay well the dog helped me finish it but Jason didn't because my husband doesn't like bread pudding. Or so he thought. He didn't care for one but I made a different one and he ate half of it today. Recipe challenge or not, I consider that a gold medal. He's such a picky eater. I eat most foods and love to cook. This is God's sense of humor. I'm glad He gets a kick out of it.

By the time I have finished a dish, I've got a sink full of dishes and still have to actually blog my food, recipe, process, etc. It's tiring. All I want to do at that moment is eat whatever I made and slip into a coma from the delicious cooking fumes, wake up, eat more, rinse repeat. I need a housekeeper and a secretary. Inquire within.

And yeah, I've got to stop angry blogging about dirty dishes. Heather Housewife over here. That's my Old-Maid-playing-card persona. I'd look all frazzled with a mountain of dirty dishes in the background with the appropriate "stink-lines and -waves" for effect. I've got it easy. There are far worse occupations that also begin with the letter H. I'll leave you with that.

time for everything but the dishes

Baby Heather, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

This is me making cookies when I was maybe 5 or 6. I don't understand the strange pose, but it's neat because I'm beginning a personal baking challenge that I'll come back to in a second.

This personal blog is over a year old already. That really blows my mind. I'll keep my cliches and idioms about "time" to myself.

This time last year, I was in the hospital and on the verge of losing my job/career to a dumb disease I never asked for. I feel like I toot my own horn to the beat of my sob story a lot. Do I? Well it's a personal blog for a reason, eh? Anyway. My point is I'm thankful. I say that a lot. But it's true. I have a lot to be thankful for. I'm thanking God every day. I used to hate working Sundays but I thanked God for my new job, working in a place I love and for people I adore. I have no qualms with working on the Sabbath. I spent a year in bed-- my Sundays are for living. Deal with it.

I've been busy, well busy for me at least. My 30 hubs in 30 days challenge for May was a disaster. I think I produced the least amount of material than any other month. I'm trying it again and to make it easier and more advantageous, I'm modeling it after a contest that's also going on. So for 30 days, I'm making a dessert every day. This was an awesome and terrible idea. Baking/cooking and then blogging about it can take a good chunk of my afternoon. Plus I'm still writing for work, working a few days a week and also spending time with my husband when we're both home.

There's time for everything but the dishes. I want a dishwasher so badly but it just has to wait, unfortunately. Anyway. I've made it three days with the dessert/writing challenge and so far so good. My only concern is gaining even more weight. I'm trying to lose weight (although when I say lose I mean through wishful thinking and not anything that I'm actively doing) and I ate the majority of the bread pudding I made the other day. Oh and well my other plan was to just hurry up and get pregnant and then when no one is looking just blame my weight gain on that. Blah.

I can't believe I get paid to prattle on...

My ciabatta bread pudding recipe/article

My latest popculture-work-blog about the history of the rerun.

another summer, another blessing

my grandmothers in the '30s, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

This is a side by side of my grandmothers. My paternal grandmother is on the left. I look more like my maternal grandmother (right) except for the nose. I put these pics together for an article I did about "Short hair on women: sexy or socially-unacceptable?"

I've had a heck of a month. I'm currently writing for two websites and recently got a traditional job. As in the kind where I doll myself up and leave the house. It's a change. I haven't really worked in over a year. I'm working in the local bookstore that originally hired me to blog for their website. It's been hectic but I am thankful. I also need to read more.

I'm very keen about fully emersing myself into whatever job I have at the time. Although I've been a life-long gamer, when I managed a videogame store I was playing anything I could get my hands on and reading about the industry daily. I'm really out of the loop lately and perhaps it's time for a new loop anyway. I almost want to compile a summertime reading list for myself, but I hate setting myself up to fail. I'll take it slow. I'm starting with Judy Blume's, Wifey. I read most of her adolescent books when I was younger and when "liking" her on facebook last year, I discovered she has adult books too. I'm an adult. I think.

This has the makings of a great summer. Anything beats last year. I can't say anything else without jinxing it.

cookies and ants and wasps, oh my!

stained glass cookies, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

I made these cookies with my mom yesterday for Mother's day. It was a fun day. Recipe and steps are here.

I had a quilt as a baby that featured a teddy bear picnic and some very cute ants were partaking in some of that picnic fun. It's a fond memory. The ants were smiling and overall cute. Anyway. I'm having some kind of ant problem in my kitchen with very tiny ants that don't bite. They're driving me insane because I can't seem to figure out where they're coming from.

On a similar note, we have a mud wasp who is trying to build a nest outside of our sliding door. I swear, we are being invaded. I thought I successfully killed his efforts with some scorpion-strength Raid, but I saw him again this morning. Thankfully, we've never had to use the scorpion spray. We bought it because it also kills spiders-- all of which are my husbands sworn enemies. I figured.. strong enough for a man but PH balanced for-- I mean, Strong enough for a scorpion, so hopefully it will work for a mud wasp?

We'll see. I understand the economy is bad. I'll feel bad if the ants are a homeless family and the wasp is just trying to build a home for his new wife (I can relate). But get out of my house!

These cookies stayed on the counter exactly long enough for a picture and then I put them in the frig. I've got ants on the brain.

a series of ramblings

J and H, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

New haircut. Having thick, curly hair in AZ can be murder in the summer. I like it.

In addition to my original writing gig, I am now also blogging for a local bookstore. Get PopCultured! with Heather Rode is a series of ramblings about all things popculture.

Jason and I are in the process of putting together a little home office in our loft area. I'm probably making it sound more intensive than it really is. We just have to move furniture we already have. With beautiful pictures of workspaces on pinterest, I'm determined to make it cutesy and organized.

More later.

scared puppy

scared puppy, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

It's raining and thundering so there's a scared puppy under my desk.

Summertime Goals

ants & teamwork, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

My right eyelid has begun twitching again. it started back in late 2010 when I was stressed at work. Getting it now makes no sense. I have no stress. I'm getting plenty of sleep. I'm eating healthy. I'm taking my medicines daily. I have to force myself to not stress over why it's happening, haha!

Easter and Passover went well. I can't believe it's almost summer. In blogs from previous years, I'd always have a working list of goals for any given season. For example, making a beautiful gingerbread house was on my list of winter goals and it never happened.

So, here we go. Summertime Goals, 2012 edition.

X buy some cute retro jogging shorts (extra points for contrasting-colored trim)

X trip to sequoia national park

X get or be pregnant by then

X trip to monument valley

X lots of swimming in new pool

X at least one get-together with friends we rarely see

X make homemade popsicles

X make homemade icecream

X cut all of my hair off, if I haven't already

X get some great lightning photos for the first time in 7+ years

a relaxing drive

new car, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

So we got a new car. Not exactly what we were planning to do. Our Camry was having some issues and the trade-in just happened to work out for us. It's quite nice. We took it for a relaxing drive to check out the wildflowers blooming now.

exactly this

my husband & I on our honeymoon, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

Disney was great. I never want to leave. Waking up the morning you have to leave is always the worst. Well, at least for me. Honeymoon was great. You can read about it here: A Disneyland Honeymoon. I hate to say it, but I hope that this was our last trip to Disney for awhile. I hope to return in a few years with a baby archaeologist or rockband or both (baby name foreshadowing).

My freelance writing is actually taking off and I sit here sometimes wondering how it even happened and in disbelief that I can make money doing exactly this. That people will read what I have to say. I never have short stories or concise thoughts. I always begrudgingly hide my journalism degree when I come across it.

If you told me blank ago that I'd be blanking, I would have said you were crazy. I fill in those blanks a lot lately. About everything. I still can't believe I'm married or that we have our own home or that I'm finally doing something that closely resembles what I went to college for and that the prospect of making money has nothing to do with managing whiny teenagers for 50+ hrs a week. Have I mentioned that no longer working for giant-video-game-chain is awesome? Yes, I have.

Oh well. I'll say it summore. I also can't believe that these days, my bad days are only a few a week and of course during my lady times. My blood has been stable. I can feel my endometriosis progressing again and the permanent damage from my pulmonary embolism is more annoying than painful. But being active and actively trying to make a baby wasn't something I could even think of when I was bed-ridden last year.

Crazy stuff. Crazy awesome.

rude or improper

pupstairs, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

She's never done this before, so I had to snap a pic.

So I finally broke down and joined pinterest recently. I put it off for such a long time because of my addictive tendencies. I saw it being a time-suck that would take priority over laundry, cooking and hygiene. I know myself. I got an F in grade school when I got a super Nintendo because Donkey Kong Country and Bubsy were more important than writing about president Garfield. And I'd like to also add that when I finally did write the paper, I made a bunch of stuff up and to this day I have a hard time remembering what parts truly happened in history and what is my own baloney.

Anyway. I'm not addicted yet but only because I'm still very confused by it. I'm convinced that I'm "doing it wrong." It's all very overwhelming and the idea of categorizing and filing stuff I like seems like a chore. So for now, I don't repin stuff, I just like it. I wonder if that's rude or improper pinterest etiquette. I dunno. But it has been a great tool for generating traffic to my "job blog."

You can find me on pinterest under heathersez

I'm still enjoying doing it. As a matter of fact, this month has been my most profitable. I've been getting a ton of traffic and that was even before I joined pinterest. I also started posting on facebook when I write a new article. I hadn't been doing that because, I dunno. Embarrassed? Why is blogging such a dirty little secret for me? It's a long story. Well, it's a short story, but maybe next time.

You can read my work blog over here.

Lately, I've been writing articles that are essentially installments in a wedding series. It's been a lot of fun. Getting married was so much fun. I'd do it again tomorrow, if we could.

Disney in two days. I'm a lucky girl. For lots of reasons, of course. Goodnight.

addicted to draw something

draw something!, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

Okay so my husband and I and most of our friends are addicted to draw something. It gets frustrating because a few of my friends are real Picassos (and I suck).

Today was funny because within seconds of each other my husband and my friend Patrick had to draw the same picture for me. Jason drew his and then added "Patrick's is better," not knowing Patrick had just drawn an awesome Frodo. We were all in different places at the time and my husband later said he was just pointing out that Patrick draws awesomely and could draw a great Frodo. Funny stuff. I had to share this side-by-side.

rituals are fun

easter eggs, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

These are eggs that I colored with my family last year. I'm excited for Easter. I always am. Sadly, it is the pageantry that excites me. I say sadly because it's the opposite of what Easter should mean for a Catholic girl... or what Passover means to my husband. I love buying a cute outfit and cute spring shoes especially for Easter Sunday. And I really love coloring eggs. What can I say? Pagan rituals are fun.

My dishes are being replaced... but I'll believe it when I see it. If they don't make me return the broken ones, I plan to make some sort of mosaic picture frame since they ARE our wedding colors. I was thinking today about the moments that have defined my adulthood. Moments that stood out and made me think or say, "Wow, this is a big deal. This is adult stuff." Ordering those dishes was one of those moments. They were our first "nice" dishes in our new house as husband and wife. I know. It's cutesy and ridiculous. I'll stop.

Speaking of husband and wife... Jason and I are finally going on our honeymoon. We've been married about 5 months but everything has been crazy. He had to go back east right after we were married and I wasn't cleared to fly by my doctor. Then I was in the hospital. Then we moved. We had only his income until recently and when I received my unemployment backpay, it almost all went towards bills. And our tax return went towards a washer and dryer that we had been without since we moved. The washer and dryer was also one of those "adult moments." Anyway. So next Thursday we're going to Disneyland. I can't even express my excitement. It's a honeymoon and Disney. It might sound tacky or cheap, but we really REALLY love Disney. Nothing could top a Disneyland honeymoon.

Oh. I guess I should say, we're only going to Disney if I'm not pregnant. We should know in a few days. If I am pregnant, then yay! and we'll just go out of town instead but nothing as thrilling or physical as a theme park. If I'm not pregnant, I won't feel that little sink of disappointment though because it means Disney! That will be an awful tease for any other month that I'm not pregnant. I'll want to go back every time.

I think this baby is waiting to come because he/she knows we haven't honeymooned yet. They know exactly how much of a pain in the butt they plan to be and know that if we don't go now, then he/she isn't going to let us for a very long time. It's actually quite considerate of him/her. So thanks baby!

monster posters

monster dining room, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

This took forever. I'm not in love with how it came out, but I'm too exhausted to care. They'll stay like this until we move. It required much more math and measuring than Jason or I care to do for at least a year.

I also really hate the uneven white borders that most have. I've had the posters since I was in college but finally got around to getting frames. Anything smaller is an awkward size that probably doesn't exist and I hate thinking about pricing out custom framing. Ugh. Maybe someday when we're rich.

I still need Bride of Frankenstein. I don't really want Phantom of the Opera-- I'm not a fan? And it's true, I have Dracula twice, but I really like both versions. We have some other monster posters that didn't fit-- physically or theme wise and I'm not sure what we'll do with those.

so many reasons

beautiful broken dishes, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

I purchased these dishes from Fab.com about 30 days ago. I used to love Fab.com, only hating how poor it made me feel because they have so many neat things that I just don't have the money for.

I've been impatiently waiting for these dishes for lots of reasons. They're beautiful. I fell in love with them the second I saw them. This picture does them no justice. They remind me of peacock feathers and my wedding and both at the same time. When I saw them online I instantly knew that if I didn't buy them and never found them again, it would make feel sad for the rest of forever. I probably sound dramatic; I'm a dramatic girl.

I woke up this morning and thought
A) when are my dishes gonna come?!
B) why does Fab.com shipping take forever?!
and C) how can people afford those $7,000 pieces of furniture on Fab.com in this economy?!

I said oh well and got to work doing the "paid-to-blog" gig. Not here. Somewhere else.

Later in the day, the UPS man came while I was going to the bathroom. I went to get them as soon as I was done, knowing that it was them. And it was. But you already know that.

I carried the box inside and opened it. Inside was the box of dishes with pictures like you would see on a store shelf. I opened that and began unpacking it. Jason came home and I even said, "Imagine if these were broken!" I said this because we have had a string of bad luck that either began or was highlighted by a very terrible washer and dryer purchase. I opened the dinner plates (the set also contained salad plates and bowls) and they were VERY broken. I knew it. They weren't even kind of broken. There were shards everywhere and ground up dust that used to be my dishes. I stopped unpacking them because I was so mad and didn't feel like vacuuming up glass/dust later on.

I called customer service and waited 90 minutes before hanging up because that made me even madder. I normally wouldn't have that kind of patience, but I put the phone on the counter and on speaker while Jason and I washed dishes and cooked dinner.

I don't doubt that the situation will be remedied. It's just a pain in the butt. I want these dishes. I don't want a refund. I don't want different dishes. These dishes were to be our first set of "nice" dishes and we loved them for so many reasons. Oh well.

posters we love

living room movie posters, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

We've hung more stuff as you can see. It's hard not to when Michael's has frames on sale.

We have two more that will have to go on another wall (E.T and Ghostbusters). I think E.T is one of my all-time favorite movie posters. It's simple but powerful-- if that makes sense.

We bought the two posters not pictured on Amazon for less than a dollar each and paid a couple dollars shipping. The printing quality is fine. The paper isn't any different from most posters. We wanted posters we love without spending a ton of money and that's what we got.

For extra nerd credit these three are hung in order of release date. Good grief, right?

stained glass window

stained glass window, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

I put this up yesterday and really love it. Otherwise this window faces a brick wall and it's the same wall that the neighbor cat sits on and taunts Bowie. So it's all-around useful! You can see this window in the earlier pictures I've posted of the house interior.

The colors are perfect too because the green matches the wall and the golden/brown colors go great with the couches/furniture. I bought it at home depot and spent about $40. It goes on just like any regular window cling. I had to buy two ($20 each) because of the window measurements and I didn't want a big obvious seam somewhere.

living room

living room, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

Here's a quick look at the living room. I can't decide if I like everything like this. We'll see. Everything is ours except the couches-- the matching sectional set and chairs belong to the homeowners.

a spooky story

dining room, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

This is a quick view of the dining room. We still have a ton of stuff to hang. You can see our ketubah hanging on the wall to the left. The front door is over that way too.

The sarcophagus is actually a book shelf that opens up. It's actually a pretty impractical and useless bookshelf. The shelves inside aren't deep enough for anything really. Maybe spices.. but it would make an even more impractical spice rack. You also can't hide in it-- if you were wondering. Maybe a small child could.

We bought it purely for coolness factor. There was an Egyptian import store in the mall where I used to work. They only had one and the gentleman who owned the store was nice enough to let us make payments on it. It took forever and then my mom and dad gave us the last little lump as a holiday gift back in 2008.

After December the store was gone and I never saw the gentleman again. I like to tell it like it's a spooky story but if my husband is around he'll chime in that the lease was probably up and they didn't want to renew. Boring!

Also in case you wondering... I don't think it's haunted. Or cursed. We never smelled anything funny. Heard any noises. No one died. Our dog barked at it for like a week and then stopped.

purple tulips

purple tulips, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

J got me pretty purple tulips for Valentine's day.

in my holster

fortunate, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

I always point out to others that the fortune won't come true if you don't eat the cookie. The last few years or so, I lost my appetite for fortune cookies. I love to crack them open and read and sometimes get excited, but I never eat them. When I opened this one, I took a picture of it and then made my dog, Bowie, eat it just for good measure.

Strange idea here, but it seems that the more time I have in my holster, the less I blog. And when I worked 70 hours a week, I used that as an excuse too. Oh well. I'm here now. Let's not argue.

I've been blogging for about 12 years now. I shake my head in equal parts of disbelief and awe, but I should know better. I'm not a girl of few words. I don't know if it's preparedness or hoarding. I can't make it a day wearing something without pockets. I always over-pack.

I'm also always derailing trains to catch ones with longer stories... anyway, like I was saying...

When I had some major life event (and I probably just mean arbitrary break-ups that timelined my existence), I left my blogs to die or deleted them entirely. It feels nice to know that maybe this won't be my last blog but it won't end with heart break.

I'm hopefully (cross your fingers for me) coming to an end with this long-standing unemployment fight. I haven't worked since August. I'm putting serious thought into making wedding invitations like everyone says I should. We'll see.

I never saw myself as a stay-at-home-Heather but there isn't any shame here. I keep any straggling guilt at bay by reminding myself I worked myself every day since a teenager.

Valentine's day

family watercolor, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

I painted this for Jay for Valentine's day. I'm a terrible artist but I really wanted to draw a version of our Christmas picture. We had heart-shaped pasta and built a fort in the living room.

in real life

chalkboard schedule, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

When I woke up today, Jason had written his work schedule down for me. He also drew a little surprise picture of S.Mouse. We're watching Angry Boys lately. I think every Sunday night I say how much I wish we knew Chris Lilley in real life. AND we were friends. None of that, of I saw him at an airport stuff. Real friends.

The cute chalkboard is from Ikea, btw.

just chilling

Bowie looking out the window, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

I love this picture. This window is in between the foyer and living room and it faces a brick wall. I normally keep the shade down for that reason but had the window opened earlier and I guess I forgot to draw it. When I was making dinner, Bowie started screaming and yelling. A black cat was sitting on the wall just chilling and Bowie was SO UPSET! I'll probably keep it closed from now on.

a short attention span

Wampa & Bowie, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

I love this Wampa rug. It was a wedding gift from my friend Sarah. We love it too much to put it on the floor and Jason wants to hang it on the wall with crossed light sabers. The latter is probably not going to happen. It's a little too geeky, even for me. So for now we just drape it over our sectionals.

We thought Bowie might be afraid of it but she hasn't seemed to mind. I came downstairs and found her napping like this. I guess she's not afraid because she hasn't seen The Empire Strikes Back. And that shouldn't reflect on us as her parents either-- she has a short attention span.

Jay's birthday

Indiana Jones Cake, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

Here's the cake I made for Jay's birthday. It's supposed to be a boulder. Get it? A flaming boulder I guess. I went for "happy birthday" letters instead of regular candles because that many candles would probably make him feel old. It's not even that many. We're in the prime of our lives!

It was a fun night. It was a surprise party actually. He expected a married couple we know to swing by at some point, so he was pretty taken aback when 20 people showed up. Good stuff.

Holy cows and new beginnings.

baby shirt in baby closet, a photo by Digital Heather on Flickr.

I bought this shirt during the summer and finally hung it in the closet of what we're designating as an eventual nursery.

It's a new year. We have a new life. Holy cows and new beginnings.

We moved into a new house about a week before Christmas/Hanukkah. We actually live right around the corner from my mom/childhood home. It has been hectic and I am reacquainting myself with my old pals, the internet and this blog.

Our house is mostly set up except that we threw a bunch of stuff in the baby room to be dealt with at a later date. Not pregnant yet. We finally just got the green light to begin and so, well, we have. I'm excited to impose mine and Jason's likes on first a nursery and then a living breathing person... ie, Star Wars nursery, duh.

More next time.