Mmmmm....

Is it just me, or if you are used to something in your life and then you have to go without it (self-imposed or otherwise) it's ALL you think about?

When I can't go to the gym because of a change in my schedule, illness, or some part of my body is broken, (or nearly broken) ALL I think about is going to the gym.

If I'm used to being around someone or hanging out with someone all of them and then I can't or don't anymore, I think about them ALL the time.

When I'm on a diet that eliminates most, if not all, of the food I am used to consuming on a daily basis, I think about food ALL the time.

ALL. THE. TIME.

Seriously, I have never thought about food this much. And, I've never noticed how many stupid commercials about food and places that sell food run during the day.

On a positive note, I've lost 12 pounds so far.


Does anyone have a french fry or something?

Or even the ketchup that goes with it?

A blogging 'funk'

I think my week has been full of the Little Man because I haven't had anything to to say (other than baby stuff).

There MUST be something else going on in my life.

I'm pretty sure my little Subaru is going to live to see another summer. I've got to get it registered this week, but we replaced the radiator and is seems to be doing fine. And by 'we' I mean Justin's uncle went to the junk yard, found a radiator that would work and fixed it for us.

I started a diet. I figured I really need to lose some weight so I can get fat (pregnant) again in the future. It's pretty rough, but extremely effective. I've lost a total of 7 lbs since I started, and it hasn't been that long. But, since it's a pretty low calorie plan, if I'm a bit more ornery and tired if and when you see me, you'll know why.

We're done with our summer vacations and I'm pretty content to be home more. Not Justin. I think in the last week and a half we've almost booked 3 different trips. My husband, the traveler.

We have a busy weekend ahead of us. And I was just thinking how lucky we are to live near family. Between 15 and 50 minutes we can get to all 3 sets of grandparents -or they can get to us. And, since there isn't a lot of grandchildren to go around, they are all willing to babysit at a moments notice. I'm sure the novelty will wear off when child 2 or 3 comes along and more cousins, but we'll take advantage of the free babysitting while we can!

Speaking of baby stuff. The Little Man is crawling now. It's a little closer to a hop/jump with a lot of leg movement in between, but he's definitely moving.

I've got to get a gate!

That's one way to do it

The Little man is THIS close to crawling. The problem is he's been that close for almost a month now. The poor kid has had countless face-plants and appears to be getting pretty frustrated with his lack of movement.


Here's a video of what his typical day consists of.

Not crawling from Melanie Lafeen on Vimeo.

He has learned a few things though. For instance, when he's on his stomach and doesn't want to be there or would like to be somewhere else... this is what I get.

Strange thing is, it seems to work. Because I usually give in and end up moving him to wherever he'd like to be anyway.

Worst. DJ. Ever.

If Justin was posting about his 10 year high school reunion, this might have a different title. But, when the spouse of the graduate attends the high school reunion, said spouse tends to focus on the decor, food, and the music. So, MY title to Justin's High School reunion post is... Worst. DJ. Ever. (And yes, that scene from Love Actually truly brought you that title, but I couldn't find it on youtube).

So... Cottonwood High class of 1999 held their reunion at the high school. The decor consisted of black and yellow streamers and balloons strung up around the common area and tables. Oh, and a "9" and "9" balloon set up by the DJ. (This will become more important in a few moments).

The food? Not bad. I enjoy Meier's BBQ (You don't attend a singles ward with Brother Meier without growing to love their food). I'm pretty sure they weren't paying $35 a plate for the catering, but whatever.

The music? It's a reunion for the class of '99. What do you think the DJ might play? Maybe music from the 90's? Perhaps some loud, sometimes whiny, women like Sarah McLauchlan, Celine Dion, Sheryl Crow. Or, an homage to the great 'grunge/alternative' bands that were so popular like Green Day, Weezer, and Garbage. Even more 'timeless' groups that at least had some hits in the late 90's... U2, Smashing Pumkins, Areosmith -even Billy Joel.

Nope, this guy (who had vinyl records, I might add) played stuff from the 80's, 60's, and weird rap songs from who knows when. I understand throwing a couple of these songs in for some variety -but it's a high school reunion from 1999! It's not that tough. I'm don't know how much of our $35 a plate when to pay the DJ, but I'm pretty sure even I could have done better with a BOSE speaker, an iPod, and $25 from iTunes.

I think Justin enjoyed himself (despite the background music). His best friend, Jason, was there. I know his wife, Marie, so I had someone to talk to for most of it. Guess we'll see if they get the DJ straightened out by the time the next reunion comes around.

A lack of posting...

I have finally got around to creating our 'blog books' from blurb.com. I finished the last half of 2007 (we started blogging in May) and I'm working on 2008.

It's been fun to go back through the old posts and see how things have unfolded over the last few years. Especially the ones during my pregnancy. Isn't the Little Man a handsome little guy? (You don't have to answer that).

I've made a few decisions about the future of my blog posts. First, I'm going to upload the pictures in medium or large sizes. I'm hoping that if they're larger on the blog, they'll be be big enough for the book and I won't have to import all of the pictures again. Second, I think if I upload video's they will be their own post. (They don't transfer well to the printed page). And... I've noticed a lack of posts regarding a certain subject this year from previous years.

It's not that I'm a fair-weather fan -not at all. Plus, it's only August... we still have 2 more months. But, when the Red Sox are doing so poorly this season, it's left little to blog about.

I saw this on one of the blogs I read that kind of sum's it up. (Especially after last night).

Kind of reminds you of the season thus far.

The beginning of the end

If you know me, I don't need to explain my love for Subaru's. If you don't know me, and you don't own (and love) a Subaru, just believe what all of the commercials say -some people just LOVE their Subaru's.

That's me.

My little Subaru is almost 18 years old, but only has 150 thousand miles on it. (That's nothing for a Subaru). I bought it for a GREAT deal in 2003 and have been very happy with it. It doesn't like the summer, so I've made a repair or two almost every summer -at the most it was a $700 job. Most of it was around $300. So... about $500 a year. That's about a $40 a month. Not too bad.

Justin doesn't like old cars -driving in them or fixing them. And, I admit, now that I've usually got a baby with me, reliability means even more to me.

It's summer, which means it's overheating -even on pretty short trips.

We tried to get in on the 'Cash for Clunkers' deal, but for good and bad, the sub' still get's over 23 miles to the gallon. Not officially a clunker according to the government. Or, at least not one that would qualify for the $4500 deal.

So... we either keep fixing this one, buy another cheaper car with cash, or (gulp) start paying a car payment. We haven't had a car payment for over 2 years. I hate the idea of having one, and Justin hates the idea even more.

Plus... you know that Subaru love thing? I am really hoping on swapping my old Subaru for a new one.

So... if any of you out there would like to buy a used (but loved) Subaru, I'll sell it to you.

For Ten Thousand Dollars.

Anyone? Hello?

The "I forgot my camera" post

I haven't forgotten my camera to an event for a long time... until this weekend.

First of all -can I just tell you how glad I am that July 2009 has come and gone. I can't believe how much we've done this month. It was a LOT of fun (mostly) but man, am I tired!

A weekend in San Fransisco for the 4th of July.

One day at a Boys Scout camp with the Young Women, followed by a weekend in Idaho at a family reunion.

An overnight trip to girls camp for me, while the Little Man spent the night at Grandma and Grandpa Hardcastles. Followed by (I like to have at least 2 things going on at once at all times) a weekend in Jackson Hole. Complete with a 1am drive home and a visit to insta-care to make sure the Little Man survived his night in the frozen tundra. (I may have exaggerated the temperature -but just a little bit).

The end of the month was a ward camp-out -this is where I forgot my camera. This was just an over-nighter and only an hour away. AWESOME! The Little Man missed a nap on the way to the camp-site, and he didn't feel like taking a lot of good naps that day. But, he did okay and slept most of the night. It ended up being pretty cold last night too, so we attempted to bring him into our bed around 4, which never ends well.

He's asleep now. In his bed. And he doesn't know it yet, but we're done camping for the summer. I think we're all excited about that.