Ice Ice Baby!

I'm always shocked to hear the number of people who are terrified to drive on ice and snow. I agree that if you can stay in, that's the best policy but some times there's no choice, you have to drive in the elements! I am always so thankful to my dad for teaching me a lesson that I will never forget...

I was a senior in high school in Byng, Oklahoma (on the outskirts of the large metropolis of Ada.) We lived outside of town and the school I attended was in the country. My dad always drove me to school when weather was bad. My senior year it was icy and snowy and I got all ready for school and walked in the kitchen and said "ok dad, I'm ready." He just said "well, good luck, take it slow and tap your breaks when you stop!" I was shocked, "WHAT? You want me to drive in this? Are you crazy?" He calmly responded "Karyn, you're going to be in college next year, who's going to drive you around when you're out on your own?" I stood there and just stared at him, I was shocked, scared and somewhat excited to try it on my own. I gathered my things and walked out to my car, he again reminded me to go slow and tap my breaks when stopping.

I did it. I left on my own and drove 8 miles on the country roads to get to my school. I did fine, perfectly fine. It was a great lesson for me.

It wasn't until about 3 years later that I found out that he had followed me the entire way. He wanted me to learn, but I was still his baby girl and he wanted to make sure I was safe. What a great daddy!!!!

Open Entry....I LOVE IT!

Well I know I waited along enough to show you the pictures of my newly opened entry way, and wood floors!! It's taken a while but it was SO WORTH IT!!!! I know, I know if you're jealous my husband can do stuff like this, no worries...you can hire him to come to your house! ; )

"What happened to you, are you hurt?"

I'll tell you what happened to me....this place happened to me! It's fun as heck, but sooo painful!! My dear friend Heather told me about Bouncincraze! They have Family Fun night on Tuesday & Thursday nights and it's from 4:30-7:30 for $7 per kid (parents are free.) It was so fun!!!!! AND I earned tons of activity points on WW...that was a big bonus!!!!

The first "bounce" you see when you walk in is this bad boy....and you know my girls obsession with our 4 legged friend Scooby! It rocked. We had so much fun. We jumped and played for almost 2 hours....it was fun but I'm sore. I'm walking around like I've been in a car accident, but it was worth it! If you want your kids to sleep like rocks, burn 600 calories, and possibly tear your meniscus...then I would highly recommend it!!!

I don't camp!

Pettijohn John Springs Christian camp was the closest I have ever come to "camping". It has cabins, hot water, bunk beds, and A/C in the chapel... I barely survived it. I'm no diva....but I just don't get camping. Lily has been talking about a family "camp out" for months! So I tried to convince her that you could camp in your own home!

Last night we had our first annual family "camp out". We got all necessary supplies.

Food & Entertainment - CHECK


A camping pallet to sleep on - CHECK

Keeping our family close so we'd stay warm - CHECK

Watching Tinkerbell on a big screen, eating popcorn, with the heater on, no bugs, and no chirping crickets - CHECK!

It was great! Now granted DJ and I had to camp out on the couches as well....and I'm not gonna lie, I woke up at 12:30 and went to my bed and slept until 4:30 and then came back to the couch, so they wouldn't know! I can't even camp in my own home apparently. I suck.

Tales from the Scales

Today was weigh day. I went back, and stepped on that scale. I was nervous and excited. Nervous because I've done this before and know some weeks you can do everything right and your body doesn't respond, and excited because I had eaten so great and felt so wonderful! One huge step for me this week was that I actually COOKED at home instead of eating out! We have always eaten out on the weekends, but since September we have eaten out during the week a LOT!! It was hurting us financially and I was feeling the physical burden as well.

I was thrilled stepping off that scale and seeing I had lost 4.2 pounds!!! To break that down into something I can grab hold of....that's a little over 16 STICKS of butter that have dropped off my bongos!

If you build it UP, they will come....

The remodel pictures are coming soon....very soon!

Keep your eye out...

Sexy Job??

I didn't go to college to be an executive assistant. I actually got a degree in PR and my first job out of college was at a bank. One of the execs needed an assistant and I interviewed, the rest is history! I worked for him for 8 years, and then our department got transferred to Dallas. When that ended I had to decide, do I still want to do this exec assistant gig, or use my degree, and I did what was logical....I picked which made more money! DUH! I didn't know until NOW that I have a "sexy job" , lucky me!! ; )

I found this article today on MSN....

Depending on where you work and whom you work with, the words "sexy" and "job" shouldn't share a sentence. Even if you check all romantic notions at the door when you punch your time card, not everyone does. Plenty of people are just as attractive as -- or more attractive than -- the profession they choose. Not just the obvious picks, such as athletes, doctors or models, but also some whose attractive quotients rise when they're on the clock. Here are 10 careers that have more sex appeal than you probably realize:
1. Administrative assistants When you visit almost any workplace, a smiling administrative assistant greets you. Very often you don't know if you're in the right place, whom you need to speak with or even what you need to do. Administrative assistants know the answers and, because they're your first points of contact, they have to be well-groomed and kind to visitors. Knowledge, good looks, a nice personality and helpfulness? Yes, please. And since they frequently work closely with high-level executives who value their opinions, they often possess a hidden but large cache of power. Administrative assistants pretty much have the whole package.

Hmmmmmmmmm......well okay then! I guess if their definition of "sexy" is; kicks the printer when it jams, yells at people for not being at meetings on time, says to customers in a very sweet sappy voice " oh sure, thanks so much for calling" and then slams down the phone and says "I hate you", sprays Lysol around the 1st floor after all these stinky boys have had lunch, mutters the phrase "I'm not your freakin' mother" every time I load the dishwasher in the break room......then they're right, I AM SEXY!!!

Oh NUTS!!

We play the bongos! Yes that's right, we're all musicians. Only our "bongos" are butt cheeks. (Classy, right? I can only pray my girls never decide to be percussionists!!!)

A few minutes ago I was holding Addy and I pulled her pants down and started to play the bongos. We were all laughing and then Lily said, "Dad we've never seen your bongos!!!! We never get to play your bongos!" DJ replies "There's a reason for that kid!" Then without missing a beat she said "But we have seen your NUT!" HOLD UP!!!! "What did you say, his what? You've seen his what???" (DJ is trying to pull himself together and wipe up the coke he just spewed across the room and I'm trying to figure out where she's heard about nuts...and then it hits me...oh she means...) "You know dad your peanut!" (She confuses the word peni$ for peanut, which I am completely fine with!!)

So, in closing, I'm thinking to myself........should I really post this on my blog? Do DHS workers filter blog spot posts? My Nana's gonna read this!! I am confessing to the world I play my children's rear-ends like small leather covered drums. And then I think.....ehhh, if you don't like it you can kiss my bongos! ; )

Confessions of the drive-thru junkie, candy bar eatin, potato chip Princess

This will be my book title in a few years....just wait!!

If you know me, you know I've done Weight Watchers! My dream job would be to be a Weight Watchers leader and help people break barriers and break the cycle of being overweight. But.....apparently WW thinks you should actually be at your goal weight to do that! (Jerks!) ; )

Saturday night, I wanted pizza so we ran through and got Hideaway (best pizza EVER) and when we walked in, there was my old WW leader! It wouldn't have been a big deal, if I would have been there with the intentions to eat one slice with some salad, but you know that wasn't my intention!

I've talked about "getting back to goal" for almost 3 years now! I've said "I'm gonna get serious! I'm gonna do it! I will lose 33 pounds by the time I turn 33." But.... I've done nothing! I've talked the talk, but I ain't walking the walk. I work out almost each morning which is HALF the battle, and I am proud of myself for that (and know that's what has kept me from gaining more weight), but the choices I make on what I eat are terrible! Poor eating habits are a learned behavior, and I feel like I am teaching my girls habits that will haunt them the rest of their lives. I can not do that to them!! I want to break the cycle.

I figured that I have joined WW over 10 times! I came within FIVE POUNDS of my goal when I found out I was pregnant with Addy. And the rest....well....is NOT history. I have to do it! I have to do it for me, and my health, but I also have to do it for those two little girls who look up to me, and watch every move I make.

So tomorrow I will walk back in those doors. I'll climb up on that cold metal scale and face the music. And I'm not stopping until the fat lady.....until the SLIM LADY SINGS!!!

Please Pray

Our family is asking you to pray for DJ's sweet cousin Emily White. Emily is only 8 years old and this summer they found a small tumor on her neck. It's been months of doctors visits, and finally 2 weeks ago they removed the tumor. Unfortunately, the news was not what we wanted to hear. Cancer. Acinic Cell Carcinoma.

In the coming weeks they will do surgery to remove the remaining tissue around the tumor. There is no chemo treatments available due to the rarity of this kind of cancer. They can do radiation but our prayer is that is not needed. Matt & Diane haven't told Emily or their boys about her condition, but would like to spread the word so people can be praying for her and their family.

Cancer has hit our family hard over the past few months. Both of our grandmothers, my dad, and now Emily. As much as I HATE cancer, I do know that God can heal her. We are asking that He fully heals her. We know that through Christ all things are possible.

Happy New Year!

I wanted to wish all my "blogger buddies" a Happy New Year! We actually stayed awake until midnight to ring in the new year. Once the clock struck 12 we kissed, we kissed the girls, and we had a family prayer for 2009. The past year was good, but had challenges as well. DJ started his business and it's gone great and we have been blessed because of it. Lily started kindergarten and she has done amazing! But, from about May thru December, things were rough. Damon's grandmother passed away, one of my best friends grandfather's passed away, my dad was diagnosed with cancer, and my grandmother passed away. Even through the pain, we felt God's love and were blessed to have such an amazing family and great friends to support us! We couldn't have made it without them!

What will 2009 hold? I know that my girls will turn 3 & 6 and DJ and I will turn 33! We will hopefully celebrate our 9th anniversary! ; ) Lily will be a first grader and in school all day! Wow! So much to look forward to.

Since I can remember we eat black-eyed peas on New Year's Day. We really do it out of tradition and something different, we don't necessarily believe that eating a little pea it will bring good luck!!!

DJ, on the other hand, doesn't eat anything he's FORCED to eat!! He doesn't like black-eyed peas at all. Won't eat them...not even one spoon full. I have fought him each year since we got married...and he refuses! I have told him "Maybe you won't have that bad Johnson luck, you always talk about it you'd just eat some black-eyed peas!" Nothing!! He won't do it. This year victory was mine!! I found a recipe and tweaked it to make it more like something we would like. He loved it. Well maybe the word "love" is strong, but he did say "If you can trick me into eating black-eyed peas that way, I'll do it!" All I know is, if 2009 really sucks, I'm in trouble!! ; )

Karyn's Tricky New Year's Day Dip

1 can ranch style black-eyed peas (drained/rinsed)
1 can southwest style corn (drained/rinsed)
12 oz shredded cheddar cheese
butter, salsa, onion, garlic

Use butter to saute the onion, salsa & garlic. Once that is hot, mix in the cheese, KEEP stirring! Bring the heat down a little and add the drained peas and corn. (Keep stirring.) Serve it hot with tortilla chips. Delish!

Happy New Year!