Not quite 30

So it's my birthday today! Celebrating the big 2-9. It's not too hard but it is a little depressing to only have one year left in my twenties. Oh well. Guess I should start popping out kids soon since I'm getting so "old" LOL.

I have a lot of updating to do since last week I was in VA for work and then we had a pretty busy weekend. Just wanted to stop in and say hi!

I'll leave you with a picture that I thought was pretty sweet. My brother took the picture and it was timed perfectly with my friend Melanie taking a picture of me...


And then here's one with me and my boy...

Saw my first fishfly of the year today...

...and you know where I saw it? Down my shirt, chillin' in my bra. Nice. It was during our bike ride that it decided to fly into my shirt. Awesome.

For those not familiar with a fishfly (or mayfly which I think is the proper term for it), this is what it looks like.

These little buggers usually show up around this time, last for about 2-3 weeks and then disappear until next year. They are totally harmless but pretty disgusting. In some cities, party stores have to turn off all their outside lights as to not attract to many at night, but in the morning you'll still see them out there with hoses/shovels/brooms try to get rid of the aftermath. Oh and at a stop light later on in the night, you pretty much slide to a stop because of all the dead fishflies on the ground.

Here's a good description...they're pretty much useless.

Life Cycle: Adult mayflies are very short lived, surviving only one or two nights. During that time the adults mate in swarms in the air. They are also attracted to lights. Eggs are deposited while flying low over the water, or by dipping the abdomen on the water surface or some even submerge themselves and lay eggs underwater. Adult females lay eggs into water and often die on the water surface. Immature stages develop through several stages instars by molting during development. The number of molts varies depending on the species, temperature and water conditions. Immature stages then swim to the water surface or crawl onto rocks or plants. There, they molt into subimagoes with wings in seconds or minutes, which fly quickly from the water to nearby plants where they molt again into adults (imagoes). Mayflies are the only group of insects that molt after they have wings. In all other orders winged forms are as only found on adult forms, the last stage of development. A typical life cycle will last one year.

Pest Status: Common aquatic insects that generally go unnoticed; occasionally, large numbers of adults (and subimagoes) emerge during certain times of year in synchrony and are sometimes abundant enough to be a nuisance; most problem situations occur when they are attracted to electric lights at night. They are medically harmless. Immature mayflies are an important food source for fish. Many lures and artificial flies are patterned after them.

They are definitely a nuisance in some areas around here!

Happy Day for the Fajah

So we went to breakfast this morning with Jim's parents and his brother and family. It was so nice of them to let us know that they had planned on doing this breakfast thing, oh, like 14 hours beforehand. We don't do the church thing and we don't have kids so we like to sleep on Sundays :o) I know, I know, it's Father's Day and all but this isn't the first time this has happened. I always feel bad for Jim though because Sunday is his only day off and he had to get up the same time today that he normally does for work. Oh well. My dad isn't even home this weekend. My parents are at our cottage but I did call to wish him a Happy Father's Day. The good thing about getting up that early is that we got a bunch of stuff done and still had the rest of the day to do whatever.

Our first stop was Costco. We noticed they had a coupon for the GPS we wanted to get so we were able to purchase that. We went with the Garmin nuvi 265WT.

Then after that I wanted to stop by the mall to find a few things to wear for work. I'm going to a meeting in Virginia next week and it's supposed to be like 90 degrees so I wanted something not too hot to wear. Well at NY&CO I found the cutest dress...

And while this can't really be worn to work, it will look cute with the black leggings I bought that I swore I'd never wear.

After that we hit up Sonic so I could grab a Cherry Limeade and then we went to a nursery so I could find a stand for my bowling ball. Bowling ball you ask? Why yes. My mom took an old bowling ball did some crafty stuff to it and made it a garden "statue". I think it looks pretty awesome and now I FINALLY have a stand for it.

Jim and I just got back from a bike ride and and I think I'm going to go relax for awhile. Hope everyone had a great weekend!

Oh and here's me and Jill at the bowling fundraiser we had last night...

The vet is a pain

So last week our lovely Cheeto started peeing whenever and wherever with a little blood in his urine (sorry, a little TMI). I called the vet to make an appointment and since he was due for his yearly stuff, they wanted me to bring a stool sample too, cool, whatever.

So we get to the vet, he does his thing, diagnoses Cheeto with a bladder infection, gives us some antibiotics, tells us he wants to see Cheeto again when the medicine is gone and we go on our merry way. This was last Tuesday.

So on Tuesday of THIS week, I get a call from the vet telling me that Cheeto has roundworm. I asked the tech if I'm to assume that our other cat has it as well since they share a litter box. I mean, when we take them a stool sample they say it doesn't really matter which one it's from since if one cat has it, the other one probably does too. Well she told us NOT to assume that and to bring in a stool sample from our other cat Mowee. Fine. So I go tell Jim that Cheeto has roundworm and while he's a little confused since our cats are indoor cats, he says ok.

So at work yesterday I start thinking about the call from the vet and wonder why it would take an entire week for them to let me know Cheeto has roundworm. Did they analyze the right sample? Did they mix them up? Did they call the right owner? So I call the vet, pose my question and get put on hold. The tech comes back to tell me that it is indeed roundworm and they are not mistaken on that. Hold on a minute...that wasn't my question. My question was a) why did it take so long to tell me and b) are you sure you have the right cat? Then she tells me the test was run LAST Thursday! "Oh, nobody called you?" Uh no. "Well they're supposed to call you when they get the results". Well they didn't. So then I ask HER if I should assume my other cat has it as well and she says yes. WTF?! Do these people have any idea what they're talking about? Do they communicate with each other? Did they have different books in school or something?? So I say yes, I want the medication for BOTH of my cats and I'll be up there later to pick it up. It was about 2:30-3:00 when I called.

So at 6:00 when I go to get the medicine, they don't have it ready for Mowee. Seriously?? I was SO annoyed at this point. Then there's confusion in the computer system, confusion with why Mowee was prescribed more when Cheeto weighs more and is actually the one that was diagnosed with the roundworm. UGH! Apparently we give them a dose now and then in three weeks give them another dose, wait a week, take in another stool sample and hope the worms are gone. Sounds easy enough right? Wrong.

These pills aren't small. Cheeto we have no problems giving medicine to. He's had his fair share of vet visits and medicine so he's pretty easy. Mowee on the other hand? Forget it. Liquid is probably the easiest, or really tiny pills but these roundworm pills? No way. So we gave it the old college try. We tried different techniques, different positions. There was no way she was taking this pill. So now, we've decided to just take in a stool sample of hers to have analyzed and if she does have roundworm, the vet can give her the pill.

Oh and at the vet I asked if there were any known intestinal side effects from the pill since Cheeto already has some issues. It took us forever to find a combination of foods that doesn't mess him up so we hate to disrupt his intestines with anything lol. The tech tells me he doesn't think there are any side effects. When I get home, Jim opens the packaging and reads: SIDE EFFECTS: GI SIDE EFFECTS ARE POSSIBLE BUT UNLIKELY FROM THIS MEDICATION. Down a little further it reads: CATS AND DOGS MAY EXPERIENCE SALIVATION, ANOREXIA, VOMITING, GAGGING AND DIARRHEA WHEN GIVEN THIS MEDICATION. Sweeeeeeeeeeet. And guess what? Cheeto's puked like 3 times since last night and has gross poo. Cool.

Man I hate giving him medication.

Look how sad he is...

You know you want it - XII

Jazz up your plain jane shoes with some fun shoe clips from Absolutely Audrey



Love these fun flower pins from Linda & Harriett



I thought this cuff from GS Lillian was really cute.


Apparently I have a thing for pink cake stands because I blogged about one in another post. This one is from nowdesigns and can be found here



I just thought this pillow from Pier 1 was really cute and girly

You know you want it - XI

I subscribe to Real Simple and it is my absolute favorite magazine! Here's a few links that caught my eye in the past few issues...

Summer is here...well sort of (in Michigan anyway), but here are some Five-15 Minute Workouts to help get in shape!

Want to know what other tasks you can use a plain old coffee filter for? Well check out 101 New Uses for Everyday Items to find out.

Are you a list type of person? These checklists for everything will excite you then! Also, check out Jott and Evernote to help keep your life in order.

Aren't we all looking for the best bargain? Well learn how to live life on less.

And here are The Best Lip Balms as road tested by Real Simple.

I thought this next product was pretty cool. EasyBloom Plant Sensor shows you what types of veggies, fruits, herbs, flowers, trees, shrubs or houseplants will grow where you live. You put the sensor anywhere, inside or outside, where you want to grow a plant or have a plant you want advice on. The Plant Sensor will measure sunlight, temperature, water drainage and humidity. Then you plug the sensor into a USB port on your computer and easybloom.com adjusts the raw sensor data with your local growing zones, climate, and hourly weather.



And here are a few chairs that I thought were cool...

Resin and Aluminum chair from Cozydays

Osaka Round Back Armchair from World Market

I love these Bamboo Folding Chairs from Ballard Designs

Oh, and this is sweet. Iceorb...the first vertical ice tray that makes, chills, serves and stores

It's never too early to plan

The past two days I attended a retirement seminar at work. At first I thought it was going to be super boring, but I actually found it interesting and now want to subscribe to Money Magazine to keep up with everything. We learned all about how social security works (if it will still be there when we retire), how much I can expect to need when I retire (only about 2-3 million dollars...still have a ways to go on that) and the best way to invest for retirement. There were probably only a handful of us in the seminar that are in our 20's and 30's but I really think going to these classes early can only benefit you. I'd rather know what I need to do now that wait until 5 years before I retire to go to one of these classes, only to find out that I had totally screwed myself. So start planning now!

Let's Go Red Wings

Only one more win! We kicked butt last night with a 5-0 win!!

All the pretty flowers

As I was playing around with my camera yesterday, I realized I haven't taken any pics of the flowers we planted this year. I decided to go with Pansies...I just love the color.

Let's Go Red Wings

Have you heard? The Detroit Red Wings made it to the Stanley Cup Playoffs this year once again! And they're playing the Pittsburgh Penguins once again. We're up two games to none so only two more wins for us and the Cup is ours again! It's fine if we lose one in Pittsburgh because then they can win one in Pittsburgh and come back to Detroit to win the Cup here!