Catching Up...

Time flies...super busy @ work and a quick little vacation with Wade. First off...utter dog humiliation:




















Poor little thing. Macy had a bug bite on her head that she wouldn't stop scratching, so enter "The Cone." She was definitely in shock the first 24 hours...I think a little depressed as well. In fact the first 10 minutes it was on, she didn't move...at all! Finally after a couple of days, she realized that she needed a few extra inches of room to turn corners and go up the stairs. Yesterday was her first day back to normal dog freedom. Hopefully we didn't do too much psychological damage.
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Next...vacation:

To celebrate our 7th anniversary and spend Uncle Sam's tax refund, we headed off to the beach for a much-needed getaway. This is actually the second time back (we missed you Lori & Stephen) to the all-inclusive place just outside of Playa del Carmen. Is that a sign of getting older when you repeat vacations?

No matter what, it was nice to get away and relax, but the trip had a little of everything, the good, bad, ugly, and funny.

Here's the overview:

• Of the four days we were there, it was only hot and sunny on one. Cloudy and overcast the other three.
• Hence, no tan. I do have a random blotchy sunburn from the one day of sun. Note to self, aerosol, continuous spray suntan lotion doesn't work well.
• Big realization: I'm way too spoiled with wireless internet. Our first day resulted in a 5-hour wild goose chase searching for wireless internet access, so we could e-mail two urgent e-mails. Finally after a $40 cab fare, the Mexican Wal-Mart Internet Cafe saved the day.
• What are the odds that when you're walking outside full speed ahead that a bird can time it so perfectly to drop its excess right on top of your head? Well pretty good I guess, because it happened to me. Gross!
• We did learn a little trick. When you're a repeat guest, be sure to tell the hotel. Free T-shirts and a complimentary bottle of tequila sent to the room. We left it for the cleaning crew to enjoy. :)
• It is possible for a grown 30-year-old man to consume eight servings of ice cream in a four-day period without getting sick. I'm sure he won't gain a pound, either.
• Speaking of getting sick...it's not very fun to have morning sickness while in the middle of a little outdoor Mexican shopping center.
• Speaking of pregnancy, being three months pregnant and wearing you're regular swimsuit doesn't bode well together. Things are a-changing!
• See http://www.wadesrantings.blogspot.com for Wade's sound-off on foreign languages.

Overall it had its interesting moments, but we had a great time together!

Baby Strz

I've been blogging with a secret lately. I figure it's time to let the cat out of the bag...I'm pregnant!

I'm a little over 10 weeks now and should be due around December 6. The last couple months have been quite a roller coaster of emotions. Having been through a miscarriage last year, the first few weeks of this pregnancy have been a little different than last. Lots of worry and fear hoping that the same thing wouldn't happen.

But so far, so good. In fact right after 8 weeks, we were able to have the first sonogram. We could see the little heart beating and even hear it already. It's a pretty amazing and unbelievable feeling seeing and hearing that little beating heart...inside me??!! We are very thankful for the progress so far and are very prayerful that it will continue.

So, there you have it. Wade & I are getting more and more excited with each day that passes and the realization that this could be the baby we've been waiting for and wanting for some time. The journey continues!

Say it isn't so!

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I feel a little guilty. I've complained all day that Chris was voted off American Idol last night...the horror! But, I was quickly reminded that I didn't help the situation. I didn't vote.

What a good real life example (yes, American Idol can relate to real life). :) If you don't participate in the voting process, then you can't complain. So I'm sorry Chris, you were my favorite, but I failed you. :)

Go Wade, Go!

See Wade's blog for an update on Day 1 of his crazy, 150-mile, cross-Metroplex bike ride:

http://www.wadesrantings.blogspot.com

I'm proud! :)

AHA props

I try not to blog about too many work things, but this is a biggie that I'm pretty proud of (I am in PR after all). No matter your opinion about the former president, this announcement is quite impressive considering the scope and impact on the millions of kids it will affect. Some statistics say that this generation of kids could be the first not to outlive their parents if something doesn't change with their levels of nutrition or exercise. This doesn't fix the entire problem, but I think it is a reasonable and significant step in the right direction.

Alliance for a Healthier Generation and Industry Leaders Set Healthy School Beverage Guidelines for U.S. Schools

New York, NY – The Alliance for a Healthier Generation – a joint initiative of the William J. Clinton Foundation and the American Heart Association – has worked with representatives of Cadbury Schweppes, Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, and the American Beverage Association to establish new guidelines to limit portion sizes and reduce the number of calories available to children during the school day. Under these guidelines, only lower calorie and nutritious beverages will be sold to schools. This is the Alliance’s first industry agreement as part of its Healthy Schools Program, and it affects close to 35 million students across the country.

These science-based guidelines are just one part of the Alliance for a Healthier Generation’s overall strategy to help kids live healthier lives by decreasing excess calories consumed while increasing calories burned. Along with the Alliance’s other strategies, these guidelines will significantly impact the epidemic of childhood obesity. Launched in February of this year, the Alliance’s Healthy Schools Program works with schools to help curb obesity among their students by creating environments that foster healthy lifestyles.

For more information visit http://www.healthiergeneration.org/.

Bad Blogger

I've broken the blog rules of going way too long without blogging. I'm sure my dedicated readers are distraught. :) It's been a busy couple of weeks, and a recent trip to Las Vegas kept me away.

I have to say that I've had my Vegas fill. I don't think I'll have the desire to go back for about another 10 years. It was an interesting trip, since I was there with my parents. Pretty funny!

The highlight of the trip was the Celine Dion concert. I agree that she's the goofiest and at times, the cheesiest performer out there. Once you get past that, the performance is pretty great. She has an incredible voice, and the staging and dancers are impressive.

The downside of the trip is the sensory overload. I don't know how anyone can be there more than 3 days without losing it. Losing it mentally or monetarily.

I quickly realized that I'm too cheap for Vegas. The quarter slots were big time for me, and I had to search high and low for a $5 game table...hidden in between all of the $10-$25 minimum tables...no thanks!

Needless to say, I didn't come back any richer. Just a dull headache from the constant ringing and new appreciation for fresh air!

A little smug...

For the married folks out there, have you had that feeling when your spouse does something that makes you sit back and say, I told you so?

I'm having to make sure my smugness doesn't get out of whack.

I awoke Friday morning to an e-mail from Wade with a link...to his new blog!

I couldn't believe it and was cracking up. I've been blogging for about 4 months now. Wade has been a faithful reader, but has carried the attitude of "what's the point." I guess he figured it out, because as he says, he's come over to the dark side of blogging.

It's definitely bound to be entertaining...although after his first posting, I told him he sounded a little angry.

I guess the upside for me is that he's much more of a techie and helped me figure out how to post links over on the right-side column. :)

It's a little scary now that there are 2 Strzineks in the blogosphere...enjoy!

http://www.wadesrantings.blogspot.com/

Best/Worst

I saw this on Kent's blog and thought it was interesting...My 5 Best & Worst Purchases. It's a lot of pressure to think best and worst of all time, but at least off the top of my head, here goes:

Best Purchases:

• 3 credit hours of Business Math@ ACU - Odd that it's on my best list, because I got a "D" in the class! But it ended up being a pretty good investment, since that's where Wade & I became such good friends. Who knew, when I walked into the class and saw that empty seat next to Wade "how do you say or spell his last name," I'd be writing about it 10 years later and his last name would be mine?
• Macy - We're crazy about our dog! What would life be like without our co-dependent golden retriever?
• GAP jean jacket - I love it and have definitely got my money's worth.
• "Justified" - Justin Timberlake's first solo CD...it never gets old...he is the cutest!
• Sauchony tennis shoes - the shoes I trained and completed a marathon in. They got me through all 26.2 miles.

Worst Purchases:

• Light-colored carpet - I guess it was supposed to help design and flow, but it's sadly turned me into high-maintenance Kelly. I'm sure the carpet cleaning service we use would categorize it as a "best" purchase.
• Spanish class @ a community college - I thought I would go back to school to learn Spanish. I don't remember a thing.
• "Delirium" - We just went to the newest Cirque de Soliel show. I've seen others and loved them. No one told us that we should've been tripping on acid to enjoy and/or understand the show.
• Neon phone - I had my own phone line in my room during junior high. I thought it would be so cool to get one of those see-through phones that has neon lights. The phone drove me bonkers and woke me up all of the time. The ring was so loud and annoying, and the entire room would light up when it rang.
• MC Hammer pants -I still can't believe I wore them, but I did. I distinctly remember that they were black and purple paisley rayon pants. To coordinate, I had a super cool purple rayon shirt with coordinating black button covers. Yikes!

Feel free to share your best & worst!

Bye Bye Bucky

I'm addicted to American Idol.

In fact, I was about to have a heart attack when my Tivo ended the results show right as Ryan was announcing who was voted off....the horror!

So, I had to wait until the 9:00 p.m. news to find out the not-so-surprising news...Bucky is outie!

Chris is sill my favorite.
Kellie drives me crazy.
Katherine is good, but kind of boring.
Ace's boy band looks won't last much longer.
Elliot...not sure?
Taylor is so much fun, but won't win.
Paris is great.

Wow, scary that I just rattled off all of the contestants. Isn't this show targeting teenagers? :)

I just don't get it

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We live a couple miles from Texas Motor Speedway, so since it was another NASCAR weekend, I figured I should try to see what the hoopla was about. After all, you would think they were giving away the $1 million golden ticket by the crazy bumper-to-bumper traffic the last few days.

So, I watched on TV as cars raced around a big track for hours.

I really did try, but I just don't get it. I don't understand how it's a sport. I don't understand how it's entertaining to watch. And, I really don't understand this video, "Waiting for Race Week," which features some fellow Texans that came out 12 days before the race to get the best camp spot.

My favorite line..."We're all rednecks...some of us just have more fun than the others."
http://www.dfw.com/multimedia/dfw/news/archive/0331SPEEDWAY/index.html

Sorry to any fans out there, maybe I'm missing something?