Half Full Friday {7.30.10}

This week I am happy that:

Tomorrow Joey's dad is coming down from Arizona and staying for 2 weeks.

I paid off one of my credit cards and put $ into savings with this paycheck.

Am doing a little shopping tomorrow for more professional work clothes as our dress code at work is changing.

I've cut out bread from my diet and only had it once this week!

I'm almost done with Eat. Pray. Love.


Check out what Eyegirl and others are happy about this week! http://www.lifeaseyeseeit.com/

Monday Mantra {7.26.10}

This week I am going to an Astros game and my father-in-law is coming down and staying for 2 weeks!

I believe that I am going to have to be the one to motivate myself.

I'm addicted to staying cool. I do not like to sweat!

I hope that I can get back on track with my eating and exercising.

I'm jealous of noone this week.

Soundtrack/Mantra of the week: "Whether you think you can or think you can't - you are right."  ~Henry Ford

Weekend Recap: A Garden Wedding & Hard Labor

Friday, I took a half day off work and Joey and I headed to Waxahachie, TX for my cousins wedding that evening. This is a first cousin, my dad's niece, who we never really got to spend a lot of time with as my mother and my grandmother didn't get along. So I hadn't seen her in years. Shes 5 years younger than me and has a 8mth old beautiful baby girl.

They had an outdoor wedding at The Greenery in Waxahachie. When Joey and I had first got engaged, I had wanted an outside wedding and after attending this one I was soooo glad we didnt. First of all it rained. So they had to take everything off the tables and then put everything back on the tables after the rain went away. Joey and I had to help in this process. My family had to do everything their selves at this venue. There were no staff from The Greenery to help with anything. We had to set all the chairs and tables out, decorate and then after everyone left and to take everything down and clean up. We were sooo exhausted. Second it was hot as hell! I truly believe you should NEVER have an outside wedding in Texas, especially in July, the hottest month of the year! And the worst part about this wedding was the bugs! I had all sorts of animals crawling on me and poor Joey got bit all over his body.

The decorations they had were beautiful and everything was DIY. Here are some pics:

Wedding Cake and Cupcake for their baby

Grooms cake

The Bride and her dad

So what did you do this weekend?

6 Ways to Support Your Spouse

Lately I have been feeling like I haven't been supporting Mr. Lopez in the way he needs to be supported. As you know right after we got married his company went out of business. He had been with the same company since he was 16 and the only job he ever really had. He has his degree in Political Science with a minor in History. He had decided he wanted to try teaching and get his certification but hes now decided that he doesnt really know what he wants to do.

I thought by giving him some ideas or checking to see how things were looking that I was helping him but everytime I ask him he gets definsive and doesn't want to talk about it and we end up getting in a fight. Since I got my degree in Communications I like to communicate which means i like to talk about our problems and like most men, Mr. Lopez doesnt. The whole 7 years that we dated, I never really cared about being the Best Girlfriend ever but now that we are married I really want to try to be the Best Wife I can be. I have really been having a hard time with this. I have so many different thought going on in my head and I will admit most of them are pretty selfish and then i feel guilty.

For example, I wanted to have my first baby when I'm 27 and in four months I am going to be turning 26! My goal is not looking really realistic right now and it saddens me. I wanted us to enjoy our first year of being married and do some things before we started to have kids and that hasn't turned out the way i wanted it. My first year of marriage so far is looking to be one of the hardest that we've ever had together. Anyways I can across this article from back in February and thought it might help.

6 Ways to Support Your Spouse

1. Learn about the different types of support in marriage. In Lawrence’s study, four kinds of support were identified: physical comfort and emotional support (listening and empathizing, taking your spouse’s hand, giving your spouse a hug), esteem support (expressing confidence in your partner, providing encouragement), informational support (giving advice, gathering information), and tangible support (taking on responsibilities so your spouse can deal with a problem, helping to brainstorm solutions to a problem).


2. Figure out the type of support your spouse needs. Just like there are different ways of giving and receiving love in relationships, there are different ways of giving and receiving support in marriage. For instance, your husband may feel most supported when you find and share information about saving money on medical care costs. In contrast, you might feel supported when your spouse does extra chores around the house. To cope with money problems in marriage, ask your spouse how he or she gives and receives support. Don’t guess!

3. Avoid giving too much “informational support.” The results of the University of Iowa study showed that too much informational support – usually in the form of unwanted advice-giving – is the most detrimental. Lawrence says husbands and wives can’t go wrong with esteem support. So, encourage your spouse by expressing confidence that you will overcome your money problems together.

4. Don’t assume that your spouse needs a particular type of support. “The assumption is that men just want to be left alone and women want to be held and listened to,” Lawrence said. “In reality, different men want different kinds of support, and different women want different kinds of support.” Also, remember that spouses may appreciate different types of support at different times of the day, week, or month.

5. Ask for the type of support you need. Talking about your marriage and money problems is key to a happy, healthy relationship! If you need support, ask for it – and be specific about the type of support you’d like. Don’t assume your spouse knows how to help you through these financial difficulties. Afterward, talk about what worked and what didn’t, and adjust accordingly.

6. Remember that it’s the effort that counts. Don’t give up if you’re not immediately successful at supporting your spouse. “Both parties are more satisfied if the husband gets the right kind of support, and if the wife feels like she’s supported,” Lawrence said. “Husbands shouldn’t throw their hands up if they’re not sure what to do. They need to stay in there and keep trying, because we found that women appreciate the effort.”

Is there anyone else out there going or been through this same thing before?

Monday Mantra {7.19.10}

This week I am going to see Wicked and going to a cousin's wedding!

I believe that I am a very impatient person and should work on that.

I'm addicted to True Blood!

I hope that Joey figures out what he wants to do soon so we can start saving up money for a baby!

I'm jealous of noone this week.

Soundtrack/Mantra of the week: "Well we can't all come and go by bubble!!"

Weekend Recap: Hanging Out with the Nieces

This weekend we had my nieces over for fun at the Lopez House! I try to spoil them a little when I see them becasue I don't see them very often. They live in Bonham, TX which is about a 5 hr. trip one way. They have been down for the summer and staying with my other sister but this weekend they stayed with me and Uncle Joey.

Friday night when we got them we had dinner which Joey cooked for u. Then we went and got blizzards from DQ and came back to watch Shrek The Third. On Saturday we woke up early and ran errands. Had to go to the pet store and grocery shopping. They brought a disposable camera with them and wanted me to get them printed for them and also to buy them another one so of course i did. Then i thought it would be a good idea to have a picnic at the park for lunch. Not such a great idea. It was hot as all heck! I'm not an outdoorsie type of person and HATE to be hot and sweaty. It was so hot in fact the girls could barely play because the metal bars were really hot. Needless to say we didnt stay very long. Here are some pics of our time at the park:

After lunch we went home to take a nap and yes Joey and I took one too! I love naps! Then we decided to take the girls to Kemah for dinner and some fun. We ate at Joe's Crab Shack and rode a few rides. The lines were pretty long but we had an intersting time to say the least. They have a few rides there and a new rollercoaster they just built called the Bullet. Joey and I have never been on it before so didn't really know what to expect. The kids wanted to ride it so we decided to not knowing that we were gonna seem like bad "parents" after the fact. The ride was SUPER fast going 50mph at parts and having a 92 foot vertical drop! Needless to say there was a whole lot of crying and to quote my youngest niece "That ride almost gave me a heart attack!"

We also rode the Ferris Wheel and took the train around the park. Overall I think they had a blast! They are getting so big. Its amazing to see them grow up. Here are some pics of us at Kemah:

30 Vows of Summer Updates Part 2

A while ago, I took part in Mama Kat's writing workshop, declaring my 30 vows of summer. I'm going to try and stick to every single one, and update as I go!
Here's what I've been up to this summer...
1. Go to as many of Joey's baseball games as I can to root for my honey! (Went to 1 game so far)
2. Continue growing my hair super long :)
3. Plan a party at my house for friends at least once. (Had a party at my house)
4. Price gutters for our house.
5. Get flood insurance.
6. Get prepared for a possible hurricane.
7. Find places for wedding gifts.
8. Loose 10lbs. (Havent gotten serious and just had to cancel gym membership b/c of financial struggles)
9. Spend time with my nieces and nephew. (Went to Lakehouse with them and enjoyed swimming and playing the Wii.)

10. See Eclipse opening night! (Saw it July 3)
11. Take hubby to baseball game. (Got free tickets from work to see Astros vs. Cubs on July 27th)
12. Do more (any) yard work!
13. Continue working out twice a day at least 3x a week.
14. Wear bathing suit without complaining.
15. Visit my dads grave.
16. Take a trip to Schlitterbahn.
17. Buy a few summer outfits.
18. Read lots of books :) (Now on 2nd book for book club- reading Eat. Pray. Love)
19. Go swimming in our community pool. (Went swimming with Joey's brothers and mom)
20. Go visit my foster parents. (Visted them on Father's Day and to see Eclipse and Wicked!)
21. Paint at least one room in house.
22. Spend more time with friends.
23. Not complain too much about the heat.
24. Drink more wine!
25. Go outside more!
26. Travel somewhere (anywhere)! (Going to Dallas area for wedding next weekend)
27. Complain less in general.
28. Be more relaxed.
29. Not stress so much about work. (Not happening! Gotten worse and now looking for another job)
30. Enjoy the summer!

Weekend Recap: The Lakehouse

This weekend Joey and I spent the weekend up in Livingston with my sister, her husband, my nephew and my nieces at their lakehouse or I should say lake trailor. My brother-in-law's family has a trailor out near a lake with a pier, a paddle boat and a fishing boat. We left Friday right after work and came back Saturday night since Joey had a baseball game yesterday.

There was no phone reception, no intranet and no cable. It was actually very nice to be secluded for a day and hang out with my family.  It was so nice and quiet and peaceful. We swam, cooked on the grill, played Scategories and Taboo, drank and played the wii. And it was a nice change of scenery.Joey is terrified of drowning and therefore does not go swimming or ride water rides. I know it sux! I love the water and grew up going to the beach every weekend and going to the pool or waterparks. So it really sux that I don't get to enjoy that with him. Plus I think being wet in the pool, or lake or beach is just sooo sexy.

But even though Joey doesn't like the water he did get in the paddle boat with us and even went fishing for his first time Saturday morning. I got in the water and went swimming with my sister and nieces and nephew and we had a blast. I did get some sun which is nice b/c I am way too white! Here are some pics to show you just how much fun we had.

What did you do this weekend?

I Got Nailed

So this morning as soon as I got in my car to go to work my tire pressure light came on. I'm thinking just great! It's POURING outside and I don't want to take the chance of getting a flat tire in this weather. So I head over to Discount Tire to find that I had to wait for 40 minutes until they opened. I was the first car there and there were a few more cars that showed up after me. Of course since it's pouring outside we all decide to wait in our cars instead of standing in a line outside.

Probably 5 minutes before they opened some lady pulled up and decided to be the first to stand in line. I was like who does she think she is? So i got out of the car and stood in line after her and then everyone else decided to do the same. While I was waiting for them to fix a nail that was in my tire, one of the ladies who showed up right after me this morning started talking to me about the woman who pretty much cut in line in front of all of us. I thought it was pretty funny that she said the same thing i was thinking earlier.

So I started off this wonderful Thursday getting nailed! How was the start of your day?

The Versatile Blogger

My day just got a little brighter thanks to Amy over at Ha ha. Wait. What? I have been stressing about work a lot lately and have recently (as of today) decided that I'm no longer happy at my current job and am ready to start the search for a new one.

I'm not sure my blog as been very versatile lately with all the wedding recaps but I PROMISE that is going to change!

So the conditions of this award are:

• Thank the person who gave you the award.
• Share 7 things about yourself.
• Nominate 6 other blogs.
• Notify the new winners.

7 Things About Me:

1. I would have sex everyday if the husband would let me.
2. I can eat a whole container of cream cheese icing in one sitting.
3. I miss my dad terribly.
4. I watch a lot of TV. (I get addicted to shows easily)
5. My new obsession is True Blood.
6. I was born with an extra toe on my left foot and had it removed when i was young.
7. I would have love to have been a children's psychologist.

The winners are:

• Happy Hour with a Housewife
• Flip Flops & Combat Boots
• Burning River Bride
• Float On
• Life As Eye See It
• My Life In Purple

Wedding Recap: Leaving for Honeymoon

So ladies this will be my LAST wedding post! I am glad to put this amazing event behind us and focus on our future. So here are some pics of us leaving the venue to go on our honeymoon!

Wedding Recap: Reception