.Red Light, Green Light.

You've all played the game as a kid.

 When RED is yelled, you freeze...

Freezing is the most difficult part of that game for me.

So are spending freezes...

Mister and I decided to do this for at least a month, maybe 2. (minus trips that have already been planned...whoops)

No clothes. No accessories. No decor. No pampering. Only the necessities.

Has anyone else tried this? I would love to hear your outcome and reward for doing so!

.a place i would like to call home.

We've been house hunting ever since our early stages of dating. Stopped until we got married. Looked again. Stopped when we found out we could live in my parents house for 18 months to take care of it while they're gone. And now we're looking again. So many decisions: pool/no pool, how much are we wanting to pay per square foot, location, floor plan, how many bedrooms/bath, neighborhood, how much we want to put into a home.
Well, Levi and I don't agree very often on homes we like until this one. It's in the perfect location, awesome ward, great size home, amazing layout, everything about it is perfection. So we put an offer down on it and after we sat down with all the numbers of closing costs, down payments, utilities, our monthly bills, etc. I about fainted! I think it is just a little more than I am wanting to do right now. If we do get this house sooner than later, all of our savings will go towards it, we will have a mortgage, and 2 sets of utilities until June. I am getting just a tid bit nervous. We will be house broke and all of the things I have imagined of doing to our future home will have to wait. I am not sure I am ready for this! We moved into my parents house a year ago to help us get ahead (and i am sooo thankful for that!) and if we get a home 8 months before they get home, that is a lot of money we could have saved!! And we have to put everything into perspective on 1 income for if/when we have babies.
Are we ready for this? I know it's something we can afford, but are we living too outside our means?

.Periodically.

hi, i am emily.

and i love diet coke.

it is my only vice when i am trying to diet.

and if i could have 2, it would be diet coke and chips and salsa. mmmmm

for the most part tho, i'll take a diet coke

preferably from this place:

every time i drive past one of these, my car just automatically pulls into a parking spot right up front.

and i always have 75 cents to pay for a 32oz

purified fountain soda+crushed ice+styrofoam cups=AZ dream.

then it happened. july 1st, 2010, 10am. scottsdale, az

i am waiting for the results of my knee MRI.

dr waslewski walks in, and gives me the good news

i just have tendonitis and have to wear a band around my knee when working out, thats it!

phew....

well then i had a word vomit

a word that i didn't want to bring up

i asked him if my daily dose of diet coke would have a part with my knee pain

he said yes

uhhhhhh WHAT!?!!!!!!

he explained to me that diet soda (and regular soda) has phosphate+calcium or phophate+something.

well you pee out the phosphate along with the calcium or other substance that your body needs and it can cause easier bone breakage when you are older. (like 60+ older, but knowing me and my bones probably much sooner) 

he went on and told me that teenagers/college students who drink diet soda after diet soda stunt the calcium level that your body needs. and if i want all of my levels at the peek they need to be when i turn 30, i need to discontinue drinking my daily DC now...

 Dr. Waslewski did say i could have one periodically.

so i will start leaning off of them by going to Soda Saturday's only and then once i am strong enough, i will only have one periodically.

but you know what, if going off of DC will cure my joint problems and help me to keep my body strong, then that is just a.o.k. with me. i'd rather go off of the DC then get another surgery that's for sure!

.You Win Some...You Lose Some.

WIN:

I recently took a new job at Robison Ortho. It was a big decision for me to make, something I prayed about for a long time. The opportunity came across my path at the perfect moment. I had a bad day at work, actually it was the worst day I had ever had there, and my good friend Kerby texted me out of the blue and said they were hiring (she use to work there). I took my resume in that following morning and had a working interview that afternoon. I left feeling not too sure about it and was torn about what I should do. I loved where I was and have some amazing friends there. The doctors were awesome and I couldn't come up with enough reasons to quit. It wasn't until Dr. Robison called me 3 different times the next week asking me to come work for him (I turned down his first offer). After I accepted it, that next morning I woke up and had this over coming JOY fill my heart and spirit and that's when I knew I made the right choice. I finally felt ok about everything and was excited and ready to take this next step in life. So yes, I WON some, and I couldn't be anymore happier than I am right now!

I am going to miss all my friends there, 2 of which touched me in different ways every day. It wouldn't have been the same without them there.

{Kristen}

{Shawna}

If you are wanting BRACES or INVISALIGN, come see me at Robison Orthodontics!!!! My doctor is amazing, the staff is top notch and the office is the nicest office I have ever been in!!! We have 2 office's and our Mesa location is off of Brown&Greenfield, and our Gilbert location is off of Higley and the San Tan 202.

LOSE:

Levi took on The Biggest Loser Challenge at work 2 months ago. It was a $100 buy in. 14 guys entered in the competition(1st Place got $1100, 2nd Place got $300 and 3rd Place got $100). It started October 1st and went until December 1st. Talk about dedication, having to survive through Halloween and Thanksgiving!!! Levi did awesome, I am sooo proud of him! Not going to lie, I had my doubts about him sticking to it. But boy did he prove me wrong! He lost 40 POUNDS!!!!! WOW!!! He looks awesome and is proud of himself as well! All of his clothes now fall off of him and his shirts are just too big...Looks like he's going to be need some new clothes!

Congrats babe!! You did it!!!!!!

(Even if you did get 4th, you're still MY biggest loser :}1st place lost 60pds...)

Here are some BEFORE shots:

And here are the AFTER shots!!!