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.