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Thursday, May 31, 2012

Thrifty Thursday



Brooks Brothers pocket square and nato straps. JCrew broken in chinos in classic fit.

Half off of outlet price.

Memorial Day sales started on Thursday. Crazy outlet crowds started Friday. Timing is everything.

Tuesday, May 29, 2012

Doggy Duesday

Our sweetheart relaxing on our bed on a sunny day.

What made us smile. Week of 05.21.12

Kyreen
  • Family time. This week, we focused on spending more time together as a family. With everyone so busy with work, school, and other social events, it's hard for everyone to get together on a daily basis. So this week, we made it a point to try harder at getting together even if it was just a couple hours out of our days. 
    1. On one of my night's off, I got to hang out with my little brother Kevin. We drove to Gilroy and walked around the outlets. Not necessarily to shop, but just to talk. I think it's so important to keep the line of communication open with teenagers-- which is why I think Kevin and I are so close. We call it our "bonding time" where we talk about school, his friends, and what's going on in his life.
    2. Date night. We re-instated date night last week, and we were successful at doing it again this week. Took hubby to the outlets to "window shop". We also discovered a sushi restaurant there. Who knew there is good sushi in Gilroy? Now we don't have to drive all the way to SJ to get some decent sushi!
    3. Mini BBQ with time around the fire pit. We had a small BBQ on Sunday followed by s'more making around the fire pit. We even followed that up with a game of Mario Party on the Wii before bed. When the kids were younger, we all used to play Mario Party and Smash Brothers together. We can get really competitive which makes for a lot of laughs. 
Glen
  • Cleaned out my email inbox. It's embarrassing to admit, but I had over 400 emails sitting in there. I'm following a new system and now it gets emptied every day. Virtual clutter is still clutter.
  • Gilroy Outlets. As stated above, we had a date night in Gilroy. I wanted to go window shopping and ended up taking a bit of the view home. On the plus side, we got Memorial Day sale prices without the Memorial Day rush.
  • Getting chased by a dog. Thankfully it was our dog happily chasing us around the park. It was exhilarating running around with Kai and Napoleon. I hope to do this regularly. We all need to play more often.

Thursday, May 24, 2012

Thrifty Thursdays


I absolutely love scented candles. What's better than the scent of freshly baked cookies or frosted cupcakes? Getting them on sale for $1.50 a piece with a free glass holder for each one purchased!

Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Learning to Run

My Nike Free 3.0
I have never been a runner, nor the athletic type. I had played tennis in high school and college, but that was pretty much the extent of my short lived athletic years. So when I decided that I wanted to start running, hubby was a little surprised. As always, he was 100% supportive of my goals and also wanted to look up some information to help me get started.

I injured my knee playing tennis years back and every now and then I'd get pains to my knee when I exert myself. So, I wanted to know the best way I can start running without the risk of re-injuring my knee. Hubby did a lot of research and had recently discovered the newest revolution in running-- barefoot running. I'm sure like lots of people, I had always thought the best shoes for running were the ones that had the most cushioning and heel support. Barefoot running shoes have thin soles. The thin soles are just enough protection against the elements (concrete, rocks, broken glass, scorpions, etc).

This type of running helps to get your feet into proper stride, with the impact on your forefoot and not on the heel. Striking the heel with each step actually causes injury to your knees while striking on the forefoot corrects your posture and helps prevent injury. This article is one of many that hubby found that got me interested in this type of running. This link also has a guide on how to start barefoot running as well as more links to articles on the subject.

After learning about this type of running, I was ecstatic to get started. My little brother had Nike Free shoes that he swore by, found out later on that they were the Free 4.0. Did some more research online to figure out the differences between each Nike Free shoes. I can't believe how many versions of one shoe they had! So I went to our local mall and tried them all out-- the Free 5.0, 4.0, and 3.0 plus the Nike TR. Out of all the ones I've tried on, I really liked the Nike Free 3.0. It had the least support, but I figured I'm going to start slow anyway and I can always progress into these.



Tuesday, May 22, 2012

Monday, May 21, 2012

What made us smile. Week of 05.14.12

Kyreen
  • Getting voluntary cancelled at work. I was cancelled, voluntary or forced, for the first time in over two years. Which in turn gave me three nights off in a row! Such a small thing but it had a profound influence on my morale that week.
  • Baby shower at BJ's for a coworker. It was the first time since the economy hit that we all got together outside of work. We threw a shower for one of our coworker's who's having a baby due next month. I was a lot of fun to get dressed up with the ladies I work with and get together without having to hear call lights going off. 
  • Girl's night out. This past weekend was all about the ladies! Went out with my girls for our annual "Mother's Day" shopping trip to San Jose. We ate out for lunch and dinner, and literally shopped for almost 12 hours. Can't wait till next year!


Glen
  • House within a room within a house. Kyreen and I have finally started season 7 of House M.D. Yes, I know we're way way behind but with hockey being on every other day, it's hard to keep up with any show on TV. So, we abstain (from House) until the DVD/Blu-ray comes out. Then we proceed to torture ourselves even more by not watching all of the episodes in a single sitting.
  • Well-fitting pants are hard to find. Kyreen found me some on her "girl's night out". The fact that this girl still thinks of me when she shouldn't be is one of the reasons why I love her (and why she's stuck with me).
  • Saladmaster. Months ago, I cleaned out the shed and found a curious purple box that belonged to Kyreen's mom. In it was a Saladmaster. After doing a little research, I found out that they're not sold in stores, they're only sold door-to-door, and they're built like tanks because they're made in the USA. Our unit was brand new. It has found a new home on our kitchen counter.

Thursday, May 17, 2012

Thrifty Thursdays

Paid $32 for over $90 worth of products thanks to coupons and store deals.
Whenever I can get my Sobe Lifewater for about $0.50 each, I'm all over it. Also, I love the Eucerin lotions as it helps so much with my eczema. Other items pictured are Clorox 2 stainfighters, BIC razors, Carefree liners, Nivea lip gloss, Coppertone sunblock, Dr. Scholl's Fast Flats (a girl's best friend), Garnier face cream, Old Spice deodorant, and Listerine.

Tuesday, May 15, 2012

Monday, May 14, 2012

What made us smile. Week of 05.07.12

We're moving WMUS to Mondays because it just makes more sense. Doesn't your week start on Monday? Right?


Glen

  • My new camera. A couple weeks ago I lost my camera. You can read more about it on Valley of the Saints, my personal blog. As for my new camera, I'm excited to be able to continue to learn about my new hobby of photography.
  • Frozen fish. At Target. Swordfish and Halibut that were selling for $25 per package were clearanced down to $3.44 and $6.44. Our freezer is now completely full. Of fish.
  • Mother's Day. This year's Mother's Day involved an entire day of cooking and cleaning. I was happy to do it because 1)I love cooking and 2)it's fun making people smile. Hope your Mother's Day went as swimmingly as mine.
Kyreen
  • Nurse's Week. This year, nurse's week was celebrated at my work. The last two years, with the economy as it was, the hospital couldn't do anything special for the staff. This year, on one of the nights I worked, I was able to enjoy some Myo frozen yogurt courtesy of the hospital. Also, I got to go home voluntarily half way through my shift.  
  • Date night. Hubby and I had made it a point a while ago to always designate one night of the week to date night. However, since we have been so busy lately we haven't been able to do that till this past week. Date night consisted of The Avengers movie (which is freaking awesome btw) and dinner at our favorite Denny's in Morgan Hill. Yup, it was a perfect night.
  • Mother's Day. Yes, for the most part it is a holiday probably created by card companies, but it gives me the opportunity to reflect on the time I did have with my mom and to celebrate her memory. I also received the cutest card from my little baby Napoleon and a very sweet handwritten letter from hubby. Did I mention I already had a feast waiting for me with my faves right when I woke up? 

Thursday, May 10, 2012

Thrifty Thursdays

One of my favorite things to do is coupon. No, I'm not an "extreme couponer" with a gazillion tubes of toothpaste or towers of toilet paper overflowing in my garage. The reason I like to coupon is because I love to save money. In today's economy, I find it very important to try and save as much money as I can, and that means not paying retail on everyday items or even on things we want. Whether it be that bar of soap or even a cruise, we shop around to find the best deals. Saving is just smart.

So I'll begin with my favorite store to coupon at, Target. Last week, I came across this awesome deal on Green Works products. As we try to make the move to more organic and eco-friendly items, why not save some money in the process? Saving the planet + saving money = Win!

4 Green Works products, a tank, and a Glucometer.

Paid $9.89 for over $40 worth of products.

Tuesday, May 8, 2012

Doggy Duesday

Took Napz shopping for his birthday last  year and this is what he picked out. Of all the toys, the only one left alive is the little lion.

Monday, May 7, 2012

A Proud Moment





Kevin had his prom this past weekend, just like I've posted on Things that made us smile. I thought this deserved it's own blog entry as it really was a very proud moment for me. Normally, prom is associated with parents being overly giddy and embarrassing taking pictures of their sons and daughters. Yes I was guilty of that, but that was just the surface. I know for me, I was overwhelmed by emotion. You see, just 5 years earlier, the reality of our situation was that Kevin may not have even made it to his prom. He was diagnosed with cancer and for the past 5 years we've seen him battle through it. The months of treatment and the even longer years of recovery has molded him into the person he is today. And to see him healthy, happy and turning into a wonderful young man made this event even that much more special. We're so proud of my little brother, and I know that mom is looking down on him smiling too.





  

Sunday, May 6, 2012

What made us smile. Week of 04.29.12

Glen

  • Family time. Last sunday I played basketball with Kyreen's brothers and Dad. It's sad that my new family isn't as involved with each other as I've been blessed with in my childhood, but it makes finding time for each other a little more special. After basketball, we all sat down and ate dinner together. It's a rare event.
  • Life, filtered. On the ride home last Monday the sunset, clouds, and sky combined to create a stunning view. The entire world looked as if it had been instagrammed. Hey, when you commute 70 miles home each day, you gotta find things to appreciate about it.
  • Coming home to a cooked meal. There's little that I appreciate more than coming home to a meal cooked just for me. The way to a man's heart is through his stomach and Kyreen has wooed me yet again.
Kyreen

  • Prom. My little brother Kevin is growing up-- he had prom yesterday. It was nice to see how far he's come and to see that he's turning into a great young man. Also we got to do the annoying picture taking that's involved before he headed off to prom with his date. 
The fam with Kevin and his date Chelsea.
  • Cinco de Mayo. Or rather just Saturday May 5th. Hubby was oh so sweet in being my DD as I got to spend the night dancing and drinking with my girls. It's been a long while since we've done that and it was definitely nice to let loose.
  • Reconnecting with old friends. Friday night we got to have dinner with Glen's old friend Dave. It was nice to catch up and to finally meet their little son Isaac. He's the splitting image of Dave and has his energy to boot. Then today we got to spend a little time with my old friend Yvonne for her son Aaren's birthday. Yvonne is probably my oldest friend here in Salinas and it's always nice to catch up with her even if it was just for a brief time. 

Friday, May 4, 2012

Today, Napoleon threw up.


This morning, while Kyreen slept and while I was getting ready for work, Napoleon made me proud.

He threw up.

Ok, not normally something to be proud of, but get this - he threw up properly. As I was ironing, he suddenly went missing and then I heard a bit of commotion behind me. I slipped past the curtains ready to tell him to "shut up" (Kyreen were sleeping, after all). Curiously, he was gone. I checked beside the bed, in the bathroom, in the closet... nothing. Then I heard him heaving.

He was in the bathtub. The BATH tub. Napoleon HATES baths.

You have no idea how happy I was. I had a smile from ear to ear and a tear in my eye. He doesn't throw up often but as soon as he starts heaving, I immediately take him to the bathtub. This maybe happened 3 or 4 times in the last 6 months. Today, he took it upon himself. It was one of my proudest moments.

And then he vomited. Twice.

Good boy.