I think

I may turn this into a cat blog. I fear my Facebook friends are starting to think I'm a little cat crazy.  I don't use this blog for much of anything anymore, so why not?  Stay tuned for future posts about my 3 cats and other rescue work I do.

Please help this woman reach her goal!

Please check out and email subscribe this blog - It's in the Genes. She is a friend of a friend here in Michigan who has incurable stage 4 genetic breast cancer.  No woman in her family has lived past the age of 53.  She is in the process of writing her memoir and for some reason her publisher wants to see her blog reach 5000 subscribers before she will publish it.  Her memoir is "the story of the four generations of women in my family who have carried the BRCA 1 gene".  She is up to 800 subscribers so far. Please help her reach her goal of 5000 subscribers by early March. Check out her blog and sign up to be an email subscriber. You can also read a part of her memoir.

Breast cancer is near and dear to my heart having lost my best friend Patty to this dreadful disease 10 years ago this month, as well as my good friend Maryann 17 years ago.  My mom is a 7 year survivor.

Yeah, found some more pieces to my vintage china!!

I think I wrote on my other blog a couple of years ago about the Johnson Bros Windsor Ware Wild Turkey china that I inherited from my grandmother.  I received 12 dinner plates and a gorgeous (and huge) platter two or three years ago from my dad when my grandmother was living in the nursing home.  I put it out every year whether or not I'm hosting Thanksgiving dinner. It's a way for me to remember my grandma who passed away 6 months ago at almost 101 years old. It reminds me of the many dinners I enjoyed at her house growing up. Plus I just adore the china - it's so "vintage Americana" - although it was made in England.  My friend Anne came over for dinner the other night and we enjoyed using the turkey dishes.  We decided to look on eBay and the Replacements Ltd websites and found some matching teacups & saucers! I'm so excited. I ordered 2 off of eBay and already received them yesterday. They are in mint condition and match my plates and platter perfectly.  The teacups/saucers are a bit younger than my grandma's plates/platter as they have a patent number, whereas my grandma's pieces say "patent pending". I'm not sure how old they are, but when I look on-line it says the pattern was made between 1951-1974 and then discontinued.  I'm guessing some of my pieces are from 1951. Either way they are old.  Someday I would like a curio or china cabinet to display them all year long.  My mom has a bunch of china that was painted by her grandparents, and it looks so pretty displayed in a glass cabinet. Anyway, just wanted to share my excitement!   

Teacup and Saucer

Dinner Plate

Platter - big enough to hold a large turkey.

My table decorated a couple of years ago

Happy 4th Anniversary to Us!

4 years ago today Tarzan and I were married. It was a cold, but sunny autumn day.  I cannot believe it has been 4 years already, but I am so incredibly grateful.

The Survey Says

I swiped this from Sweet Pea. Feel free to swipe it for your blog if you want....

1) What is your dream occupation? My dream occupation would be to be able to work full-time at my soap and candle business Backyard Soaps & More! I'd also love to teach yoga on the side.

2) What is the best dish that you can cook? I make awesome pumpkin chocolate chip cookies, as well as zucchini bread, but as far as a main meal goes - my husband's favorite is my Spaghetti Bolognese. However since I'm trying to eat less meat, I haven't made it in ages, but it is delicious.

3) Have you ever been mentioned in the newspaper? Yes for track and cross country when I was in high school and college, and for my Backyard Soaps business several times over the past 9 years.

4) What’s the worst and/or most memorable job you’ve ever had? Worst job has to be at Kmart as a cashier in high school. People were so rude and one time I totally lost it and threw coins at a mean customer.  For some reason people shopping at Kmart were meanies. However I was also a cashier at a grocery store in high school and college, and I loved it. Grocery shoppers were always happy customers!

5) When you were a teenager, at what age did you envision yourself getting married? How old were you in reality when you got married? I envisioned late 20s, but in reality it was late 30s (38).

6) What’s your most hated household chore? What’s your favorite? Most hated...cleaning the bathrooms. I hate cleaning sinks, toilets and showers. Most favorite...doing the dishes. I cannot stand dirty dishes in the sink and I actually find washing dishes soothing and relaxing.

7) What’s your earliest memory? Being in my crib as a 2 year old and banging my leg braces against the crib. I was born with my feet turned in and wore casts as an infant, and then had braces as a toddler that held my feet apart by a bar.  I either remember or maybe I just think I remember (from being told stories) laying in my crib and banging my legs against it. Not sure if it was because I hated wearing the braces or I just thought it was fun to make noise. My mom recently gave me the shoes that were attached to the brace. Once the price of gold drops (if ever), I'd like to have them dipped in gold as a memento.

Florida vacation pics

 We went to Florida at the beginning of September, and I'm just getting around to uploading these to my blog. We stayed in Boca Raton, and took day trips to West Palm Beach, Miami, and the Keys.  It was a great trip. 

West Palm Beach

Tarzan in Boca Raton

Obligatory couple-self-portrait

Mr. Baywatch

Zippity Do Da, Zippity Day

A nice man offered to take our picture

Tarzan snorkeling

Tarzan after snorkeling, I made him keep on his gear for a photo op.

Our German friends Julia and Martin with us after snorkeling

Dinner in Key Largo

Gorgeous sky with sun setting in the clouds - Key Largo

House hunting in Chicagoland

I'm in Chicago this week visiting Tarzan and sort of house/condo hunting. Unfortunately within 18 hours of being here I came down with a damn head cold so that is making me feel like crap.  I did however meet my realtor yesterday and looked at 7 condos. I only liked 2 and both of them had an issue - the one that I liked the most was absolutely adorable, awesome paint colors, in great shape, but didn't have a basement. The other one was really nice - huge rooms, a finished basement, but it was kind of far from Tarzan's office and the yoga studio I hope to go to when I move here.  Most of the other ones were total dives and looked nothing like the pictures posted online.  Plus some of them had renters in them right now and OMG they live like total slobs. I cannot believe how some people live - it's disgusting.   Tarzan found a great condo last week, but he failed to ask if they would accept cats and when I look on the Craigslist ad for that one, it doesn't say that pets are allowed. However it doesn't say that they are not allowed either, so Tarzan left her a message.  I hope to see a few others before I go back to Michigan on Saturday.  We had been waiting to see if Tarzan was going to Germany for training, but that appears to be on hold, so we are not going to wait. I hope we can find something before winter is upon us. We haven't tried too hard to rent out our house in Michigan and now Tarzan isn't sure he wants to rent it at all. We may just keep it and have 2 houses. 

It's been a while

It has been more than a month and a half since I've written on my public blog.  Sorry! I can't seem to keep up these days.  I will be posting some pictures of our trip to Florida soon, and trying to make more of an effort with blogging.  Just to fill you in briefly on the last 6-7 weeks:  attempted an FET with our only remaining DE embryo in August and got the call as we were driving to the clinic that the embryo died during the thaw process.  I've been working through my grief and getting back on the "living child-free by force" path of life.  I'm not going to go into any detail on this blog, but suffice it to say that I am doing much better. I'm enjoying life and still making plans for our big move to Chicago.  No news on a moving date yet, but I hope we are moved by January.  Tarzan and I had a fabulous vacation in Florida last week, and I am hoping to go with him to Germany in Oct/Nov when he is supposed to go for work.  That's all for now. 

My nephew

My nephew Reed is in the local newspaper today for his upcoming year abroad in Germany as a Rotary Club Exchange Student.  Woohoo - go Reed!   You can read the article by clicking here.

House for Lease

Tarzan and I decided that we are tired of living apart. We don't see a transfer back to Michigan anytime soon. In fact he even has a potential opportunity for an internal transfer to Orlando. Whenever we can get our house leased, we are moving to either Chicago or Orlando. If you know anyone looking for a long-term house lease in a northern suburb of Detroit, let me know!  Or if anyone has any advice on how to market to ex-pat families working for large companies on  3 year assignments - please advise. That would be the perfect!

• Perfect for an executive or ex-pat and family

• Stunning interior with cathedral ceilings and neutral colors
• Custom window treatments/draperies
• Large lot, great for kids to play
• 2800 square feet
• 3-car garage
• 4 bedrooms
• 3.5 baths
• Office, Den, and Great Room
• Dining Room, and spacious kitchen with breakfast nook
• Long-term lease welcome
• No smokers or pets please

Some Q&A

I got this from Sweet Pea and I decided to add in question #4 since it was missing.

1) If you could live in any country but the USA, where would you live? Probably Spain, since I lived there for 3 years in my late 20s and absolutely loved it. However Italy would be nice too since my hubby is Italian and has family there.

2) Why did you title your blog "Family Tree of Two"? I started this blog after my failed DE IVF cycle last year because I wanted to have a public blog to talk about other things in my life besides babymaking. Infertility no longer rules my life and Tarzan and I are making the most of our Family of Two. Granted our Family Tree is much larger than Two, but the blog name just kind of fit what I was feeling at the time.

3) How many "in real life" people know about your blog? My mom, my nephew, and a couple of friends. Plus I've become IRL friends with several awesome ladies whom I met through blogging.

4) What book are you reading right now? Several, but the most interesting one is "How God Changes Your Brain". Very thought provoking and fascinating.

5) What kind of clothes do you wear? Mostly casual because I work at home. Capris and T-shirts right now. I have a lot of dressy clothes, but rarely wear them anymore.

6) What are you having for dinner tonight? Probably just sliced cucumber with lime. I went out to lunch to Bravo with a friend visiting from Boston, so as you can imagine I ate way too much. I've lost 10 pounds in the last few months and do not want to gain them all back, so dinner tonight will be very low in calories. Plus I'm going to yoga and pilates, so by the time I get home at 9:30 tonight it will be too late to eat much.

7) Where do you "blog" at? In my office at home.

8) Do you like to cook? Yes I love it. I started cooking a lot after I got married in 2006 (hence the weight gain and now weight loss) and I got to be a pretty good cook. However since hubby is working in Chicago right now, my cooking has been greatly reduced. It's boring to cook for one. Plus I'm eating mainly fruits, veggies and beans on this diet, so it doesn't require much cooking.

9) What's your beverage of choice at night? I love wine, but have been trying to cut down, so lately I've been drinking herbal tea at night.

10) What would you most like to know about your fellow bloggers who read this? I really am just wondering who reads this blog, since it isn't my main blog. That one is private, and this one is kind of boring - I'll admit it. It's just a place to write things that I don't mind the public knowing.

I was on TV

I was on TV this morning on the Fox Detroit Morning Show along with a few of my employees for a Made in Michigan segment. My company Backyard Soaps was featured! It's so exciting!

Visit to Chicagoland

I got to spend 9 days with my husband from 5/22-5/30 in Chicagoland. It was so nice to be together again; we actually felt married! haha. I worked from the hotel during the day and we had 2 weekends together. We went up to Lake Geneva, Wisconsin on one weekend, and toured various towns around Chicago the next. I also found a great yoga studio and went to 4 classes; her classes are way harder than the classes I go to in Michigan. She kicked my butt, but it was so worth it! I even got Tarzan to go to a class with me on Sunday morning - thankfully we were the only 2 students! He realizes now that yoga is not easy at all! haha.

I passed!!!

I cannot believe it either because that exam was sooooooooooooo frickin hard! I took the 4 full hours to answer all of the questions - I think I had 6 minutes to spare. I thought for sure I failed it. My heart was beating out of my chest when I hit enter and had to wait 60 seconds for the results. When it said "Congratulations" I thought well they don't say that if you failed.....so that means I passed! OMG I can't believe it. I thought I was going to pass out from the excitement, and my entire body was shaking from head to toe! I can have my life back, and now I can write those 3 letters next to my name! I am now PMP Certified (Project Management Professional). Woohoo!!!!

Oh and I still have my cold, but my adrenaline kicked in....and the Claritin and Dayquil helped too.

Timing Couldn't be Worse

for a damn head cold!! Ugh. I felt it coming on last night, but I was hoping my sore throat was just caused by drainage from my tears over Kelly dog. Nope - woke up with the telltale signs of an actual cold - sore throat, crappy feeling. My exam is Monday afternoon - I'm planning on studying hard this weekend, but now I get to feel like shit doing so. I will have to see how I feel on Monday morning because if my nose is running I will have to move the exam - they don't let you take anything into the exam room - no kleenex, no cough drops, no nothing. Plus I don't want to get anyone else sick. I just got back from Kroger and stocked up on Airborne. I'm hoping I can turn this into a minor cold.

This also now means my surgery scheduled for Thursday could be in jeopardy - may have to move that out too, which could result in a 6 week delay trying to get on my doctor's surgery calendar. I will see how I feel on Monday and call the doctor's office and see what they say.

I haven't been sick in a year and 5 months - why this week? I'm so pissed.

Goodbye to my sweet Kelly girl

Got the news today that my favorite dog Kelly is going to Rainbow Bridge (aka pet heaven) tomorrow. She's a 12 year old black Lab whom I used to take on walks along with her brother all over our neighborhood. Their owners (my friends) moved to Boston at the end of last summer. Kelly has the fatty tumors that Labs get and I guess one of them is getting really bad and causing her pain. Today they are celebrating her last day - as I type this they are on the front porch having a birthday party for her. Earlier today they took her to the dog bakery, to the dog park, and to the dog wash. She is the most lovable, sweetest dog I have ever known and I have been bawling my eyes out all afternoon. She gave and received so much love in her 12 years. Although I said goodbye to her last August when we went on our very last walk before they moved, and I knew I would never see her again, my heart is sad. My friend Ann (Kelly's owner) is being so brave for her 3 children - creating happy memories today. I want to do something for the family. Does anyone have any ideas?

Studying is going well

Yes I know, I've fallen off the face of the earth when it comes to my blogs. Thanks to Good Eggs for the kick in the pants. The good news is that studying has been going well the last couple of weeks. I did have a panic attack about 3 weeks ago regarding trying to retain all of this information. I had been taking sample 200 question exams and I passed a couple, but also failed a few which sent me into panic mode. Turns out I just wasn't ready to start taking the entire 200 question exam. My PMP coach talked me off the ledge, and we came up with a study strategy that is working very well for me. I have since re-focused on reviewing individual chapters and taking the sample exams pertinent to that chapter. I've also found that creating my own flash cards has been a great study tool. Just the act of writing them out has resulted in many light bulbs going off. I am going to move the exam out one week to April 26th, but I'll be ready by then. That is 2 weeks away and I have my study plan mapped out every day until then. I also have 2 more group study sessions the next two Wednesdays, and the coach we have for those sessions is an awesome teacher. I'd actually love to work for him someday - highly intelligent and he actually makes project management fun!

Okay enough about that boring PMP stuff. Unfortunately there really isn't anything exciting to talk about. Hubby was home this weekend and we had a great weekend together. We are trying to figure out where to go on vacation this summer. We want to go to Italy, but it will depend on airfare prices.

We got all moved into our new building for Backyard Soaps, and the new space is absolutely amazing. It's so nice for our staff to have room to work and move! The new retail store looks great too - it's not as crowded as our other one was. I need to post some pictures, but unfortunately my camera sucks at indoor pictures. Our new, professionally done wholesale catalog arrived as well and is already resulting in new orders! Yippeee.

Kitties are all doing well; Pachi and Rascal got their spring lion-cut hair cuts, and they've all enjoyed a few forays outside (with full supervision of course). Today Tarzan fixed the cat tree that my 20 pounder Guido had smashed to pieces, so he can now enjoy his perch on high.

Oh and I'm having surgery on the 29th, a laparoscopy to check for endometriosis. May as well rule that out before we decide what to do next.

I'm alive

but work is kicking my butt right now. Between work and studying for my PMP exam - (to be taken on April 19th), I have no time for anything fun like blogging, Facebook, etc. I'll be back soon!

We're in the newspaper today

Sorry to brag, but I love it when my business gets published in the newspaper. We are on the front page of the local Port Huron Times Herald printed paper, and on their website version as well. That's my mom pictured at the bottom of the page (can't see her on the picture on my blog, you have to click through to read the article). Of course they didn't get the cutest displays in our store, but they did get the house that separates the retail store from the factory. That big picnic table is full of our sale soap - we are having a big moving sale right now to get rid of stuff before we move to the new place in a couple of weeks. I'm heading up tonight to see progress on the new place and take some more pictures.

Here's a picture of the article, but you can click here to read it fully.

Fun in the Snow up north

I took my nieces and nephew, plus their 2 dogs Lilly and Cooper up north to my dad's cottage last weekend in Waters, Michigan (between Grayling and Gaylord). We had a blast visiting my dad, my aunt, cousin and sledding in the snow. The dogs were besides themselves with glee running around on my dad's 20 acres. We had perfect weather and were able to enjoy the winter wonderland. We also celebrated Reeds's 16th birthday.

We visited my 100 year old grandma in the nursing home on the way home. Very nice to see her and pure entertainment. She can't see or hear very well and so she thought I was my niece Emma, so then Emma and I kept taking turns kneeling by her chair and talking to her - she thought it was Emma the entire time. At the end of our visit she thought she was our aunt, not our grandma. Too funny. Yet at times she was completely lucid and had a great conversation with my nephew Reed about his upcoming year abroad in Germany. Great weekend!

Cooper wants to go sledding with Reed.

Lilly leaping into a snow bank.

Cooper and Lilly running down the driveway which is more like a road.


Emma sledding

Blaire sledding

Reed and Blaire

Aunt Kelly (me) and Emma

Lilly and Cooper looking for birds. They are Braque du Bourbonnais (French Pointer dogs), so they point for birds all the time

Reed and the icicles hanging on the cabin

Charlie, my dad's 12 year old Lab. We love Charlie.

Lilly wearing my hat in the car and Blaire smothering her with kisses.