Movie and Meals

I am finally getting around to watching Silver Linings Playbook tonight. I meant to watch it in theaters and never got around to it. I decided to rent it from Redbox. The nice thing about movies coming out on a Tuesday is that not too many people are renting movies on a Tuesday night. I had no problem picking it up at the closest Redbox.

We've been on a horrible kick lately of eating out so I make sure to meal plan this week. I tend to switch things around a little but the tentative plan is:

Tuesday- Skinny Taste Chicken Pot Pie
Wednesday- Spaghetti with whole wheat noodles
Thursday- Chili
Friday- Quick Skillet Steak with Onions (and mushrooms for K)
Saturday- Greek Salad with Chicken
Sunday-  Chicken Cordon Bleu

I'm using quite a few Skinny Taste recipes. That is my go to website for recipes that are healthier and still appealing to K. I have yet to try one of her recipes that I disliked.

Hope everyone else is enjoying their week!

DIY

I talked about my DIY/pinterest project about a week ago. Below is the wreath I made.

The actual "pin" on Pinterest did not work. It seems this happens a lot and I usually try to unpin pins that lead nowhere. Luckily this pin still had the name of the website in the picture, Shanty 2 Chic. The post with the project can be found here.

The project was fairly easy. I used much more hot glue than I expected. I wanted to make sure everything was securely attached to the grapevine wreath. Also, when you are wrapping the jute around the MDF letter there really is no science to it. You just have to wrap it around your letter the best way possible and use as much glue as you need.

Below is another pinterest project I completed a while ago.




























I couldn't even find the pin I used for this one. There are numerous ones on Pinterest. I used a frame from Hobby Lobby that was already painted. I got a piece of sheet metal from Home Depot and cut it to fit in my frame. I put cardboard behind the frame and used adhesive (super 77) to attach the metal to the cardboard. I used the same adhesive to attach the fabric over the metal and cardboard. The magnets are some that my sister had given me, I did not make them.

I think I'm going to try more Pinterest after these two were pretty successful.

Birthday

My birthday was on Thursday. I turned 29. Last year of my twenties! K and I went to lunch on my birthday. Then my mom and her boyfriend came over for a little bit that night. Friday I had lunch with my sister. K and I went out to dinner that night too. We had Brazilian food for the first time. We both really enjoyed the food, especially the fried bananas. Tonight we're going over to my mom's house for dinner. We're having soup (chicken noodle and pizza) and salad.

I've had a really nice birthday weekend so far. I took Wednesday through Friday off work. I did not do too much, but it was nice to just relax!

My mom got me some Fiesta plates and bowls. We have cheap casual dinnerware from Target and I was looking for something a little better. After doing some research I decided I wanted to start getting Fiesta. I love the mix of colors and most of the reviews were very good. Plus, they make all kinds of assecories and its easy to add items without having to buy an entire set of dishes. I've already been on Macy's website looking at pieces many time, scoping out my next purchase.

Animal Science

I have not talked about my job much on here. It was not completely on purpose. However, I probably won't discuss it too much on here. I like my job, but I'd rather just keep it at that. I've heard too many horror stories about blogging or other social media ruining someone's career.

I will say I work in the Agriculture field. I do not deal directly with animals or crops on a daily basis.

I originally wanted to be a large animal veterinarian. I went to Ohio State University (go bucks!) and studied Animal Sciences. After a 8:30 calculus class I quickly decided I could not make it through all the perquisites, highly selective admission to veterinary college, and the four plus more years of college. I decided to stick with Animal Sciences and ended up minoring in Agricultural Education.
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Why did I decide on being a large animal veterinarian in the first place? I was raised on a farm. My dad farmed row crops but we always had horses, sheep, and goats around. In third grade I was given a choice, I could continue with Girl Scouts or join 4-H. It was an easy choice for me. I had loved animals from an early age. 4-H it was.

If you've never heard of 4-h before 4-h.org describes it. "Since its humble beginnings more than 100 years ago, 4-H has grown to become the nation’s largest youth development organization. The 4-H idea is simple: help young people and their families gain the skills they need to be proactive forces in their communities’ and develop ideas for a more innovative economy." 

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Through 4-H I raised pigs, rabbits, sheep, and chickens over the years. I also took on photography, cooking, leadership, and gardening projects. I was even a camp counselor for several years.

When I entered high school I joined FFA. Previously known as Future Farmers of America, "FFA makes a positive difference in the lives of students by developing their potential for premier leadership, personal growth and career success through agricultural education (FFA.org)." 

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Through FFA I not only showed animals, I also learned a multitude of life skills. I competed in a competitions including job interview, parliamentary procedure, public speaking, livestock judging, forestry, and many more. Additionally, I was a chapter officer, committee member, event organizer, and worked through my senior year as part of my agribusiness class. I also attended numerous leadership events and conventions.

While I definitely enjoyed college MUCH more than high school, FFA was definitely the best part of my high school experience. I would recommend either of these programs to any parent for their child. These programs are not just for farm kids. There are many projects and opportunities for anyone in both 4-H and FFA.

Was anyone reading this part of a club such as 4-H or FFA? 

Boston

I am deeply saddened watching the news. The marathon is a wonderful event that should focus on the achievements of thousands.

My thoughts are with everyone affected by the horrible events in Boston today.

Spring?

So, here in Ohio I'm not sure if Mother Nature has figured out that it's spring. It has been cold and rainy all week. It was supposed to be in the 60's today. Instead I think we had two hours this afternoon in the low 50's. I like living in a state that actually has seasoned, but by this time of year I'm ready for some nice weather!

I walked Angel and Reagan at the park with my mom. Angel decided to jump into a flooded area and take a little swim. I cannot wait to take her to try out dock diving this summer. I also went to my mom's house and helped her walk her dogs. She has two dogs, Molly and Isabelle. Molly is a chow and lab mix. Isabelle is a lab and boxer mix.

I also went and bought supplies to make a wreath I saw on pinterest. I'll post pictures when I'm done. Well, only if it does well haha. Most of the DIY projects I have tried from pinterest have actually turned out well. The fact that I choose the easy ones might and I've only made about two help. I'll try to take pictures of them all and do a collective post on my pinterest success.

Dog Anxiety?

My dogs have been extra clingy today.

Reagan sitting next to me.

 Angel "helping" me put on shoes.

I could barely get my shoes on this morning. Angel is usually worse than Reagan. I was thinking about getting Angel a Thundershirt. If you've never heard of them, basically they use constant pressure to lessen anxiety.

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I'm worried about how it will fit and if it will actually work. I spend enough money at Petsmart that hopefully they will let me at least try it on her. Hopefully I'll be able to update soon and let you know if it fits.

Trader Joe's

Trader Joe's was pretty busy today. I need to go during the week next time. It was hard to browse when you could barely make it down the aisles. Here is what I ended up getting:

Pretzel thins, dog treats, laughing cow, feta cheese, English muffins, better n' peanut butter, pomegranate white tea, and pistachio nutmeats.

We also stopped at Whole Foods (aka whole paycheck) and I picked up this popcorn. I love popcorn but hate the hulls, so we'll see how this is. 

Weekend

How is everyone's weekend going? Mine is going well. I walked the dogs yesterday with my mom and sister. I also met up with a friend for ice cream or actually frozen yogurt.

The weather has been fairly nice this weekend, though not in the 60's as the news had originally predicted.

Today I'm thinking about heading to Ann Arbor to go to Trader Joe's. I wish they had a location here in Toledo! They have so many unique items and the prices are not nearly as bad as Whole Foods.

Game of Things

How was your Easter?

Mine was nice. We went to my mom's house for dinner. There was all kinds of delicious food including a spiral cut ham from Costco. After dinner we all played The Game of Things.
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To play the game one person reads a category off a card, such as "Things that you would ask a psychic." Everyone, besides the card reader, writes down their answer on a strip of paper. The card reader then reads each answer and you go around trying to guess who wrote the answer. Some of the answers get pretty interesting.