The Lewisville Sheens

So Good

2011-11-22T15:22:00.003-06:00

Soo, the other night Tommy and I were doing some simple math (don't all couples?) and I reasoned that 15 times 5 is 125. I was wrong. We got onto the subject of SAT scores (shockingly, I didn't do well on the math portion) and in our search for Tommy's school papers we found...

Tom's school journal from 1994. As a result, we read the entire thing and I can't tell you how funny (and endearing) it's been reading the thoughts of an 8 year-old. So here are some gems (it looks like a long list, but I assure you it's' worth it):

8/26/94
In my desk there are Dinosaurs

9/1/94
I will do my best and listening and doing my best

9/8/94
Little sister or brother... I have a brother thats mean and green his name is HULK (note: No one knew about the OTHER Sheen)

9/12/94
On Hallawee nights me and my friend alwase make mud puddles out in woods

9/13/94
Yestorday my brother got a job at Chucie Cheese. He gits all the free toucans he wants. Today we are going to Chucie Cheese. (note: HECK YES!)

9/15/94
A fight with my best freind was in the mointian because I wouldn't go git the pillow hey I was a sleep

9/20/94
Recess is my favorit subject of all living time really!

9/22/94
Bananas taste great! It's a fruit you know.

9/26/94
Apples are juicy fruity and some make you tuity are family grows a garden about 20 acres it's true (note: Pretty sure that's not true.)

10/5/94
My big mistake...

10/6/94
The brooken window

10/7/94
Under my bed theres Beadlejuice. And under my bed is my brothers pea juice. its in a plastic brink (note: which brother?)

10/11/94
If I were invisible I would Love it so much yes

10/17/94
In the dark... there's a monster waiting to eat you

10/24/94
Making a sandwitch
1. Git some peanut butter
2. Git
3. Next
4. Eat

11/6/94
Skunks stink like crazy.

"Nov. Something, 1994"
Thanksgiving Day... I give thanks for... Dog's because if we didn't have dogs burglers woud still everything including Jurassic Parck.

1/20/94
Balloons are cool

and my personal favorite:
1/30/94
I am curious when... I don't know what's in a present and when I don't know how much money I'm going to get plus I'm curious when I don't know which button to push.

:)

Finally

2011-11-03T16:52:00.004-05:00

Hello, Sheens (and Cushings)!

Sorry for the very, very long time between posts, but we return to the blogosphere with a lot to share.

Baby B is doing great! We have seriously lucked out and don't have to get an orthotic helmet (the baby helmets for flat spots) which run upward of $4000. I honestly don't think Beck would care either way, but that is a serious chunk of cash. Sorry if that's tactless, but it's true. The whole Denton Sheen crew is rocking a hardcore virus that Tom probably picked up at work. I can honestly say caring for a sick baby and being sick while having a baby are two of the hardest things I've ever done. I think we are finally rounding the bend, though, but Beck is still the most sick of the three of us.

Besides very few bumps and bruises, life has been good to us. Tom's school is going really well and he is making amazing grades in both of his classes. We were both fortunate enough to get pay raises recently, so it's nice having something to show for hard work and to know that our bosses appreciate us. My good friend Katie is leaving a job editing and proofing articles for a company, so (with her recommendation to them) I will be picking up another job. It'll be a nice opportunity to bring in a little more money and to do something I enjoy.

We consider ourselves very blessed to have a great life and such a wonderful, healthy, and happy baby boy. I won't lie in saying that my pregnancy with Beck was a negative one. I was in no way prepared or sure about becoming a mother, but I can say with 100% certainty that he is the best thing in our lives. I am surprised every day at how much more I love him. It probably doesn't hurt that he's the cutest, smartest, and sweetest baby ever. Sorry, but he is.

And now... PICTURES!

Beckaroni and cheese

2011-04-27T10:30:00.001-05:00

Babies cry. A lot.

It makes me cranky.

That is all.

-Lyd

pictures of beckmeister

2011-04-03T23:52:00.002-05:00

Just a quick note to inform you all that we are loading fresh pictures of Beck on our picasa page frequently, so go ahead and check them out! Note: for those having issues seeing the pictures, i think i fixed it :)

ts

Beck Thomas Sheen - 3/26/2011 - 7lbs 13.3oz/19.75"

2011-03-31T15:32:00.002-05:00

This is Tombo writing an update on all that has happened in the last week. I cannot upload pictures at the moment, but the plan is to get a BUNCH of photos up on picasa shortly (UPDATE** - check out our picasa ( to find a few photos - I set it to Private and got as many emails attached to view it as possible, if you can't let me know and I'll put you on the list) So for the time being, I'll try and hit all the highlights -

Our Bexperience all started on Thursday, March 24th at Lydia's final doctor visit. Our doctor, Dr. Paroski basically stated that she would give Lyd about one more week until they really did something about getting Beck out, but also let Lyd know that she was a really good if not perfect candidate for inducing. Lyd could have kissed her. We decided to jump at the chance. Why not? Beck would be full term March 25th anyway!

The following morning we show up at Lewisville Hosp. at 7:30 - as we "check in" with the nurses we discover that Dr. P didn't set us up for Lewisville Hosp, she set us up for the newer hospital in Flower Mound. Lyd would tell it that I was this close to losing my cool, and she would be absolutely right. I didn't even get the chance though because the nurses set us up in a room and we were ready to go within a minute. First hurdle, check.

What they decided to do to start inducing was give Lyd Cytotec. A very tiny medication that looked like aspirin chopped up in 1/4s, she took two of these little things and had contractions every two minutes from then on. We started off at 1cm and after a while eventually got to 3.5. This is after like, 5-7 hours. Eventually the contractions started to get pretty hard to handle, and following the advice of some close friends and acquaintance we were quick at getting the epidural rolling out. After this was administered it was pretty much easy going - with one issue, Lyd was slow going on dilating. Pitocin was administered to help, but after a few more hours Lyd only made it to 5. All this sounded gravy to me, but it was getting late, Lyd had been in labor for like 12 hours already and the Dr. was starting to tell us that a C-section could be in our future. I can tell you that as much as we wanted Beck to get out of there, this really didn't sound like what we wanted to do. To be honest, it scared me.

And then Lyd's luck changed. She started to dilate more and more and the hours flew by like minutes.... well they did for me, I'm sure Lyd was feeling everything and not really enjoying it. When our new nurse, Kim, came on board things really started to pick up, when she came up and told us that it was time, you could see that even she was getting excited. Before the clock struck midnight we were on our way to pushing Beck into the world. There was no screaming, no crying, just Lyd breathing, Kim counting, and me smiling. The actual pushing part also seemed to fly by. Lyd was a FREAKING CHAMP.

After what only seemed like 20 minutes of hard work, at 00:33, on March 26th, Beck Thomas Sheen was born.

Weighing in at a mean 7lbs 13.3oz, and with a reach of 19.75 inches, he was beautiful.

Now to switch gears a little and give an update on how he's been since -

We could not wait to get home and just be on our own with Beck. We left Monday.
After leaving the hospital, Beck had lost about 1/2lb, so with some magic (formula) thrown into the feeding mix he is back up to weight, sleeping well and using up diapers fast. He could not be a better boy. There really isn't much to report beyond that, he is healthy, according to the doc at last check (Tuesday). Beck being healthy has already saved us $2,000.

We count our blessings daily with this little guy and we could not be more grateful that we have such a great family, its impressive to us... we didn't think life could get better, but it has.

The question we get asked the most

2011-02-28T20:55:00.003-06:00

Are your dogs going to be jealous?

ok thats really not the question we are asked the most, but it does lead into this:

Answer, yes, they will be jealous. Not jealous of all the attention Beck is going to get, jealous of all his sweet sweet gear. Thank you to everyone for the gifts, we are already putting them to good use.

So there

2011-02-02T15:15:00.006-06:00

"Snowmageddon" has hit North Texas. It is currently 18 degrees here in Lewisville with an expected low of 9. As in one less than ten. It is unbelievably cold with ice everywhere and rolling blackouts. Now, I know that other parts of the country experience extreme cold time and time again, but Lydia Sheen is ready for summer. Just saying.

I was inspired by Traci's top baby items post, so I'm stealing her idea and posting about the top websites Tom and I frequent. While this may not be as practical or as helpful, they can provide some laughs along with some useful info.

1. www.kraftfoods.com

Seriously, Kraft is vastly underrated in the recipe department. They have a treasure trove of every type of recipe you can imagine. I love allrecipes.com for the same thing, but Kraft's interface is so much nicer and their 'recipe box' is an easy way to keep track of your favorites. Plus, their e-mail list isn't going in inundate you with useless messages, but gives actual suggestions and really good ideas. They also categorize recipes in the usual files like desserts and appetizers, but spice it up even more with budget wi$e recipes and suggestions for every holiday you can think of. Love it.

2. www.firstshowing.net

I know that all of the Sheens love a good movie, and this is the site for the true enthusiast. Tom is the real expert here and the one that uses this page the most. It's a news website about movies. With daily updates on everything from scripts to rumors to reviews and trailers, it's got it all. Seriously, we read a review from the director of photography working on "The Dark Knight Rises" and it was an AWESOME article. This is where you're going to get the very first news of a movie or just an idea for a movie. I love it, because it puts all of the excitement back into seeing a movie. This website builds anticipation for movies you want to see like nothing else and rarely disappoints. It's well-written and amazingly informative.

3. www.hulu.com

I know that most of you probably already know about and use hulu, but I've got to be sure. Tom and I have very VERY limited access to TV, and this is our go-to source for shows that aired recently. Hulu updates their archives within 24 hours of an episode's original airing, so it's ridiculously convenient. AND FREE. What I didn't realize until recently was that they also have an incredible library of movies. I don't know how you can go wrong with a website that is like a TV and a Blockbuster in one. FOR FREE.

4. www.engadget.com

Nerd Central. Tom is helping me write this one, because I've seriously never looked at this website in my life. Apparently it's pretty awesome. It's a news website for everything tech and/or gadget-related. It includes reviews and updates on phones, computers, and literally everything that's related to technology. Powered by AOL, engadget keeps Tom up-to-date and up to speed on the "what's hot" in the nerd world.

5. www.cuteoverload.com

I saved the best for last. Cuteoverload has been a bookmark staple on my computer for years. It's pretty much a website of photos of cute animals. It acts as my therapy after a particularly crappy day, but never ever fails to make me laugh. I know it sounds super-cheesy and ridiculously girly, but I tell you- CHECK IT OUT. While I'm biased and think Bear and Beulah should have their own photo news feed, cuteoverload offers a wealth of pictures and videos that will seriously make you smile.

2 months to go

2011-01-25T09:22:00.004-06:00

We're into the home stretch, everyone! Beck's official due date is exactly 2 months from today. As nervous as I am, I am pretty much ready. We've got the major stuff down (i.e. diapers, hospital, etc.) ready to go, so we're just waiting on chunky monkey to finish cooking at this point. I am not one to gush about being pregnant, but I do have a few things to share.

I'll be honest in saying that this pregnancy took Tom and I completely by surprise. I am not embarrassed to say that I have no idea what I'm doing, but the general opinion is that no one really does. I was very scared and pretty apprehensive for a huge part of my pregnancy, but I've come to a really good place. I am so extremely excited to meet baby Beck, it's scary. I have surprised myself in a lot of ways, but what has given me unwavering confidence that I can do this is my husband. Tommy is undoubtedly the best person I know. I have heard women talk about their husbands frustrating them and not understanding their pregnancy woes, but Tom has taken everything in stride and has been nothing but supportive and helpful. I cannot wait to raise Beck with Tommy by my side, because I know what an amazing dad he'll be. No matter what this kid throws at us (which I'm sure will be a lot), I know that the man I have next to me will love us and that's really all that matters.

On a less sappy note, I go to the Dr. today and find out of Beckaroo has flipped over. He's been breech from the beginning (I picture a tiny Buddha riding in my belly), so let's hope he's scooched to a more birthing-friendly position. If not, it's C-section away. We have had little to no complications so far, but we did have a minor scare last week. I started having contractions while at work and got totally freaked when they were a consistent 30 minutes apart. I really lost it when they were 15 minutes apart and I'm sitting there trying to tell a patient what their root canal will cost. After several frantic phone calls to my Dr. and a lot of reassurance from the ladies at work, I was told to just let it ride and call the Dr. back if they got any worse. It turned out to be a whole lot of nothing, so I guess Beck's decided to extend his stay AS HE SHOULD.

I have to say that I am not a graceful pregnant woman. I really dislike feeling awkward, fat, and stretched. I cannot breathe properly and don't enjoy having to make other people lift things for me. I sound cranky and I know it, but I am much MUCH more excited about holding and meeting Beck than I am about being round and funny-looking. Sorry, but that's the truth. I can't wait to be a mom, but this pregnancy thing is not for me. Here's hoping the next 2 months fly by!

I hope this gave you guys a nice update since I'm such a hermit. I'm sorry for the lack of updates, but I don't know what to say or do most of the time, so forgive my lack of sharing. I hope everyone is doing well and we can't wait to see you all soon.

Lyd

P.S. That's right- the Packers are in the Super Bowl. In Dallas. In two weeks. HOoooooorah.

Thanksgiving

2010-11-23T17:03:00.004-06:00

Hello, all! As usual, it's been a while since our last post, so I'll try and catch you up on the most recent happenings with us. (The picture above is from our good friends Luc and Sofia's wedding back in August that we were lucky enough to be in. We're with Gabe, a friend we've had since middle school. No reason for posting it now, I just like it.)

First, as you all probably know already, we found out earlier this month that we'll be having a baby boy come March. I have to say that this pregnancy is flying by, but I am grateful for all of the advice, well-wishes, and even clothes (thanks Traci!) that everyone has been giving us. As for names, we're pretty set on Beck Garden Sheen. Beck is Ma Sheen's maiden name and Garden is an Anderson name. We'd toyed with the idea of waiting until baby's born to name him, but they all look cranky and squished at first, so that may lead to an Ebenezer Sheen or something like that. In general, this has been a very uneventful pregnancy which is more than fine for me. As terrified as I am of actually giving birth to this baby, I'm ready to get it over with. I have 4 months to go and I'm going to go crazy. As Tommy put it, "You hate anything weird happening to your body. Being pregnant must really be uncomfortable for you." Agreed. I am not a happy pregnant woman, just because I am SO FAR outside of my comfort zone. I really have no idea what constitutes as normal, but Beck is way way wigglier than I would have expected. Seriously, he is constantly moving and I'm afraid of what's going to happen when he gets even bigger.

On the work side of things, we're both working hard so that we can save up for baby and a few choice Christmas gifts, but things are good and we like it that way. I'll be going part-time (waaaay part-time) after Beck's born, but everyone at work has been incredibly supportive in whatever choice I make about work hours. A good friend that I work with, Bethany, is due to have her baby girl less than a week before I'm due, and I've been overwhelmed by the support we've both received. They are hiring another full-time staff member just so that each of us can have the schedule that we want. Seriously? They rule.

We hosted our very first Thanksgiving yesterday and it was a hit! We started cooking pretty early and other than a minor green bean setback, it was all delicious. I am very very lucky to have a husband that is so helpful and such a great cook.

Looking forward, we're scouting some new apartments since a fair housing law in Texas limits apartment residents to "two heartbeats per bedroom." We can have Beck in our one-bedroom until he's 6 months old, but after that we'll have to skedaddle. Luckily, our lease is up around the time he'll be 4 months, so no worries there. A few prospects have presented themselves, but the idea of moving again is daunting. Regardless, I'm excited to have a place that can actually house 2 adults, 2 dogs, and a baby. My idea of heaven is having a second bathroom. Seriously, that would be bliss.

Soo, if it's another month or so before we post again (which it very well may be) take care and we hope to see all of you very soon!

Lydia (and Tom... and Beck)

Behind Door #1 - A NEW CAR!!!!

2010-10-11T13:22:00.004-05:00

I have to make this fairly short and sweet, being at work, but I have been NEEDING to post about our newest addition to the family, BIG RED, a 2001 Jeep Cherokee. Though very similar to the 2000 Jeep Cherokee I owned 2 years ago(?), this was a better deal, and, fingers crossed, will last longer with the family, being that it was bought and paid for in full, and intended for shorter distances, thus saving Lyd and I ALOT of money and pain later down the road.

It was truly a miracle or blessing that we found Big Red. It was initially a deal online at a Ford dealership for 3,993. I saw it and called the next day, thinking that if it was possible to get it for 3,500, I would be all over it. I call and the guy says that they just lowered the price to 3,494. Sold, I told him. When Lyd and I show up that night (Thursday) we bring 3,000 in cash, offer it. And right then and there it was ours for 1,500 LESS than what the NADA/KBB price was, and EXACTLY what I had budgeted out for a new car. It was perfectly timed, too. Thats where the blessing is truly realized.

I sold the Bronco Tuesday to a girl from Houston who gave me 1850 in cash! No one I know thought that was possible, to sell that awesome p.o.c. for 2.5x what I had bought it for. Turns out that girl REALLY wanted that Bronco.

So to summarize the condition, Big Red isn't perfect, it's got 145,000 miles (what Sir Dude had on it when I sold that Jeep), its got some interesting additions to the interior, and there's a few things here and there. For the most part, its got a SUPER straight body, great paint, great engine and transmission, and the usual Jeep issues (exhaust issues, the sensors on the 2000-2001 Inline 6's were very sensitive, being that this year of engine were redone to help with emission laws). The interior is "Camel", which need only be summarized in one word: AWESOME. So BIG RED is literally everything I wanted in Sir Dude, but more importantly, Lydia is very happy with her.

Heres a few pictures that I could get off of my phone.

We're Back.. hopefully

2010-09-25T10:49:00.000-05:00

I am ashamed that we haven't updated out blog since the day before our wedding, so I am making an effort to BLOG MORE and BLOG ON!

Lydia

Hey guys! Check it!

2010-06-25T00:10:00.002-05:00

sooo....

twoearstoomany.blogpsot.com doesnt seem to get alot of attention, and normally i wouldnt ask this, but id really like you to leave a comment on a blogpost if you look at it. i need the criticism.

thanks!!

Updated TwoEarsTooMany for your

2010-06-24T02:05:00.002-05:00

viewing pleasure

I also wanted to give a quick update and say that this week, for both Lyd and I, is really the hardest work week we have ever had.

And we're getting married.

And you might not be able to see it, but Lydia and I are both very, very happy that we are getting married. Though the path getting there has definitely not been smooth, it was, and will be, the best time of ours lives.

Thanks for everyones help!

Tommy

NEW BLOG JUST FOR YOU

2010-06-02T23:40:00.002-05:00

Check. This. Stuff. Out.

The Life and Times of Bear and Beulah

P.S. You're welcome.

I love Google, here's why...

2010-05-21T09:01:00.003-05:00

We all have images and memories of our youth that we will cherish forever. Little things like the color of the house, or Saturday morning chores/cartoons, FHE and yearly softball games.

This is a quick story of one of those wonderful things from my childhood...

X-MEN.

I LOVED the x-men cartoon, I watched it as religiously as I could. The comics were understandably too risky, so I soaked up as much PG X-MEN as I could. Now, I cannot explain how certain images from X-MEN stuck with me, but if I see an old image of the X-MEN that I knew growing up, I get way excited and emotional. This type of experience is rare, but it recently happened this past weekend, and it happened in Arkansas, in the middle of nowhere, at a local thrift shop.

Jill Foley, Tyler and I were perusing the isles of what seemed like a pretty good shop, I found some boots (which don't fit, shoot) and tyler found a "conversation piece" (some kind of art project that lit up, with masking tape across it with those words above, "conversation piece") and Jill found a big bag of fabric for 8 bucks, (really, it was huge, like the size of a person huge). Anyway, to progress the story more I started looking through the puzzles for some reason, lo and behold I see an X-MEN PUZZLE!!

It had only 100 pieces and I hoped with all my heart that all those pieces would be in there. I dropped $0.50 and we were on our way home, back to non-x-men-puzzle-having Texas, just yesterday I put it together and as dreaded, there were quite a few pieces missing(there goes my hanging it up in a frame idea).

Well, I loved this puzzle, the image that is, not the fact that it was a puzzle. The image on the puzzle conjured up SOOOO many memories of my childhood. I had to have that image. blown up. and in the living room. Like, bus-sized poster blown up. There was only one problem... there was no way I could find the image.

A half-hour on google yielded no results. I didn't have the artist's name to go off of, all I had was that it was X-MEN, and that it was from 1995 (a good year).

Now, HERE is why I LOVE Google....

Insert Google Goggles. If you haven't heard, Goggles is a project that Google came up with recently where you can take a picture of anything, and google will do a search for said object. Ie, take a picture of the Eiffel Tower, and you will be given search results on who made it, when it was made, renovations, etc. etc. Its a great idea, but it was so new that I didn't think it would actually work.

Well I downloaded it onto my Android phone and WITHIN 1 SECOND, it had analyzed my picture, and given me IMAGE results of what I was hoping for, the picture was a cover of a book, maybe something I read when I was younger, who knows. The point is, Google gave me the answer I was looking for. An answer to a VERY tough question. WHAT IS THE NAME OF THIS X-MEN PICTURE. Google, thank you. And I love you.

Just a sad little post

2010-05-10T11:13:00.002-05:00

Its not obvious that when you meet me, and get to know me, you will see off-the-bat that I really don't want or even like a lot of newer things. Now to me, that is a bold and a broad statement. So I am going to focus this subject particularly on

CARS-

When it comes to cars, I know what comforts can be had. The main delights being an automatic transmission, fuel injection, disc brakes, power windows, locks, lights or leather seats, air bags, etc., etc. All these comforts are found in cars nowadays, included right out off the assembly line, sometimes they are taken to the extreme and you pay more for the extra comforts.

The average man, when asked if he could have any car in the whole world, what would it be?, the answer would most likely be some high-end, unattainable machinery that is sporty, powerful, rare, and expensive.

Now if you ask me, going back to what I previously stated, I wouldn't want anything normal, if the price was not an issue, I would hands down tell I would want a Toyota 4x4 pickup. Particularly a 1983, but would settle for any between the years 1979-1983. The reason is simple. Literally, simple. These trucks were simple, and made only for people my size. They featured tiny cabins, simple and strong engines, great drivetrains, simple care, best in class style and design, I mean really, the list goes on and on.

I want one so bad. The reason I'm writing this is to make me feel better. Everyday I check Craigslist and almost everyday I see one for sale, price usually maxing out at 3000, usually already modified, and always a good deal, and everytime I see them I get sad, because I have to pass on it, and that's just one more that I will never own.

So to end let me say that I am not normal, but I'm happy, and have hope that one day, an attainable Toyota will be sitting in my driveway, with the simple promise that it will be mine and make me smile, everyday.

2010-03-04T08:54:00.002-06:00

So I am indeed at work. Why am I not working? Well if I may just say these past two weeks have been very busy. Without going into details let's just say that part if my job is to cover other people when they are out, everyones job I can do (except the docs:D). I wanted this so that I could be helpful and keep a job for more than a few months. It's worked so far because I'm coming up on a year now! Anyway every day this past week and a half, there has been ATLEAST one person out, most of the time there were two people out and yesterday there were three people out. Each responsibilty falling onto me with little to no help from anyone. So I am entitling myself to a few minutes to wiring about work while taking a break from said work.

-Anyway, lyd and I are doing very well, wedding planning is moving along and we are making slow progress each week.
-I have begun a project of filming our dogs because each time I watch a video I either learn something new(who peed on that spot) or I see that my dogs have very different lives or faces when we are not around.
-broncos running well
-reading everyones blogs made my day.

-end

Blogging from another dimension

2010-02-18T09:17:00.002-06:00

Really though I am just seeing if I can update this more, if I can from this here phone then definitely be expecting more updates. Let's try adding a picture...

Hmmm.... Since this is not a pc or mac desktop then I guess that didn't work, ah well I guess this can't do everything.

UH-NUTHER snow DAY!! YAY!!

2010-02-11T19:43:00.003-06:00

So I have a few updates that I would like to personally involve those readers of this blog with. One it snowed today. Again. I think this is the most snow I have seen in Texas in the 22 years I have lived hear. Here's a video of what the dogs thought

And then later they thought:

Alright, now onto my updates...

On Wednesday last week the Bronco broke down, really it was just the rear drive shaft. It is made up of two pieces and they are joined together by splines. Well its old and it stripped so there was no power going to the rear axle, therefore no go on the road. Anyway, the part was $350 at Autozone and $200 at O'Reilly's. Easy choice, except it would take 5-7 business days to get shipped here. So bumming rides to work and back for a week basically sucked. So the part came in yesterday, I decided to install it myself, took about an hour, boom, done. YAY I have my own ride again. Now the great news took place this morning on my first drive with the new part. By replacing that part alone I have fixed/solved mysteries for about 10 DIFFERENT THINGS!!! It turned out that part of the driveshaft was loose, causing the noises on the highway, the vibrations at certain speeds, etc. etc. The thing drives like NEW!!! I am sooooo excited!!! And it of course, made me feel like a MAN! Word.

Now for today's good news, it snowed, but thats not the good news. I built a huge snowman when I got home from work which closed early, but thats not the good news. I lost my phone when running around taking pictures in the snow with the dogs and spent a total of 2 hours with Tyler and our friend Jeremy looking for it, but thats not the good news. I went and bought a new phone and as I was going to eat dinner with Lydia when we were walking out of the Sprint store (heres the good news) Lyd got a text saying that he FOUND MY PHONE!!! Literally, seconds after buying/activating the new phone he found it. Anyway, thats the kicker. Thats the news, I'm really distracted right now because we are watching some Family Guy, and I'm laughing pretty hard, so sorry if there is any mistakes in this post. The End, stay tuned for next time!!!

The good, the bad, the good

2010-02-08T22:34:00.002-06:00

First of all, this has to be one of my favorite pictures of all time. Bear Dog is so weird.

Anyways, it's been forever since we've posted and I'm sorry. We are so incredibly busy with wedding stuff (yay!), work stuff (ehn), and everything in between, there is literally little to no time for anything else.

Tom and I have been working out almost every night for a few weeks and we are feeling good! Come June 26th, we'll be 2 lean, mean, married machines.

We have hit some hiccups (hiccoughs if you're fancy) with a few things (like the Bronco being devastatingly ill) but we are working through it. Luckily, the IRS has smiled upon us this year and we are making the most of it, becoming debt free and saving like crazy people.

Work for both of us is pretty normal. Boring but true. I have been able to see some crazy stuff lately, and let me tell you- people have some weeeeeird teeth. To give you an example (this is GROSS, so skip ahead if you're weak-stomached):
Dental decay is soft. Your teeth are hard. When a Dr. is probing for cavities, they can tell if there is one there (w/o an x-ray) if they get a "stick"- if the explorer they're using literally sticks in the tooth. Some dude came in who had so much decay on one of his teeth that he could bend it. He called it his "rubber tooth." GUUUUUUUUH, that's gross.

Rubbery teeth aside, we are 2 lucky people. Things are good and we're moving along like we usually do.

Love,
L & T

Updates and welcome the NEWEST blogger to our online world...

2009-12-01T01:14:00.005-06:00

http://nocolontyler.blogspot.com/

Save that URL people, SAVE IT. It's an important url that will lead you to places where few men have gone, all the way to NO-COLON-LAND. Our very own, very bored, Tyler Foley has started a blog, and now, without having to ask me whats going on with that sunufagun, you can read it first hand! Tyler's dad recently picked him up a sweet Dell laptop, with all the tools needed to quickly update everyone on his life, his new body physique as well as daily eating habit updates!!

All joking aside, Tyler was getting pretty bored so he is having fun with his laptop, and Im jealous of all the fun he is having, and you should be, too. Kidding! (I just can't stop joking) I also dropped off my portable hard drive tonight, which included Fruity Loops for him, which if you don't know, is his music making program, he has mastered the program, so we shall see if he can master that new laptop.
funny, i used to think it was called a labtop, but that never really made much sense.
alright, now onto some photos and quick updates on thanksgiving day/weekend-

Well, it was fun, and I don't really have too many pictures of all that went down, besides this series, which I shall not title, but only provide certain details of the madness contained within the pictures (& polaroids)

1. 1st up we have T the Terrible Flying Monkey, attacking that dang stump out front of the Andersons that won't just sit back down in the ground:

2. Next we have the swift and mighty AIR BUM JUMP PLUMP! (well, the beginning stages of the said BUM JUMP PLUMP move, the jump up part)

3. When that didn't work, the stump practically threw me off! WHOAAAAA!!!

4. The mighty Cottonwood stump was too much for one T the Terrible, but I swiftly joined forces with the BEAST. It bellowed, and it barked, and it ROARED Freedom!! And I, I marveled in it's glory long enough to forget about that stump.

THE END. I like writing these kind of blogs, I think the pictures are fun and I say the captions in my head very animatedly so its enjoyable for me, but it being 1:30am, Im sure Ill go back to read this and nothing will make sense. But I hope the kids get it :)

HAPPY DECEMBER EVERYONE!!! YAY!!!

I should really be studying...

2009-11-23T21:02:00.002-06:00

Hello, all! It's Lydia- back from the grave.

Just a few quick hits to keep everyone posted.

First, Tyler is back in the hospital, and this time, to be completely honest, he had a brush with death. To keep it short and uncomplicated, the medication he'd been put on did not agree with him at all, resulting in a 105 degree fever and the threat of going into septic shock. Google sepsis and you'll see why this has been so freaking scary. After a blood transfusion (IN HIS NECK) and 16 L of fluids later, his blood pressure is back to normal (it was 70/unreadable) and he is finally out of the ICU. Unfortunately, it looks like surgery is his only option right now, so a few more weeks in the hospital and lots of time at home are in store, but we are thankful that our friend is persevering. We love him.

On a slightly less alarming note, I've got kidney stones. I am kind of tired of people asking how I feel, so don't be offended when I put it simply and say that I am impressed that something so small can cause so much pain. After 3 Dr.'s visits, a CT scan, countless urinalises, and a disgusting amount of water, I am finally feeling better. As Tommy mentioned, doctors use the 1-10 scale to measure pain (1 being little, 10 being a lot) and I can honestly say that I clocked in at a solid 9.9. So, I go to the urologist next week to see if the stones are small enough for me to pass on my own or if they're so big that I need to be put in a lithomincy machine where they shoot sound waves at my kidneys to break up the little buggers. Frankly, I just want to walk in and say, "Take my pee and put me in your machine." Done.

And now I have to study. Bleh.

1st DG Tourney! Tyler's home! Lydia's got stones!

2009-11-16T12:50:00.002-06:00

'Eres a few updates from yours truly, tomasito-
1. Over the weekend I participated in a little, micro, mini-tournament with the pros. I went with Luc-a-duc (pronounced "duke") and did alright. The game was had at Lake Park, which has two "water-holes" which sit right against the lake, unfortunately I lost one good disc, but also a water-disc, which ALSO unfortunately in tourney rules means you add a stroke, which stinks. But either way I was doing VERY well, including a put from 50ft, behind a cluster of trees/bushes standing 12ft high, and I just tomahawked (sp) it in. That was fun. But, I digress...

Tyler apparently came home and is under his mother's care. So he is doing as well as can be, he decided to go the route of medication, a hard-core medication that has its ups and its extreme downs (cancer is a side-effect? sheesh). The medication, called 'Himura' costs $16,000 for its first dose, however, thanks to fast acting feats by Tyler's family and his GI's office, he got aide, aide in the appearance of getting the Rx for FREE!! So thanks for all your thoughts and prayers. :D We will, as always, keep you posted.

Now onto the down part of this post, as well as the end, Lyd started having back pains this weekend, but when they started getting really bad, (on the infamous scale used by doctors, it was up to about a 8/9) it started getting even worse, ie omiting, pain in stomach, etc., etc. So we headed to the nearest ER and there they said that what she is experiencing sounds more and more like KIDNEY STONES!! DANG!! So today we are trying to figure out if this is going to pass or if its something worse. We will also keep you posted on this front.

Hope all is well with all y'all.

-tomas

Hospitals and bakeries

2009-11-09T10:48:00.002-06:00

I cannot believe it's already November! What happened to October?! We barely got to gear up for Halloween because we were so busy, but we've go the ball rolling on Christmas already in order to get the full effect- our tree is up and ornaments are patiently waiting to be hung. Hoorah!

This past Saturday, Tyler got out of the hospital and looked like he was doing pretty well that evening. Around 3:30 Sunday morning, however, we got a call, Tom sprinted upstairs, and off to the ER. So, T's back in the hospital and having tests done as we speak. I feel so bad for the guy. We went and saw him last night and he just seems so miserable, it hurts. We'll be heading back up there tonight to deliver our portable DVD player and a disgusting amount of movies to keep him entertained. I know it's selfish, but I really hate hostpitals and the whoel swine flu thing has got me on edge. When I get nervous, I talk A LOT and just keep on rambling, so Tyler just thinks I'm super-chatty and what's more is the nurses probably think I have OCD with my constant use of the hand sanitizer at EVERY door. I am such a nerd.

On a totally different note, my life's goal is to own my own bakery. I am in the trial and error stage of going through every one of my recipes. I have my reveries, however, where I try and picture how the place would look and what I would call it. Name ideas, anyone?

Well, this post has been short, random, and not-so-sweet for the most part, but it'll have to do, pig. It'll do.

-Lydia

Christmaaaaas!

2009-11-04T10:44:00.002-06:00

Just a quick update for everyone. I know Logan has a fancy calendar somewhere that keeps track of when everyone's going to be in Houston for Christmas, but I just wanted to let everyone know that after some ridiculous schedule maneuvering, Tom and I have managed to get 2 whole days to scoot on down to H-town. Pathetic, I know, but money is tighter than ever for reasons that aren't worth re-hashing. Regardless, We'll be heading south for the 26th and 27th.

On the subject of Tyler, he's got at least a day or two more in the hostpital. It's looking like they'be settled on Crohn's (Krohn's?) disease as the root of it, so hopefully he's reaching the end of this bit of it.

Halloween was an eventful night to say the least. I felt like such an old lady. T and I went with our friends Luc and Sofia to a concert in Dallas and it pretty much solidified these facts:
1. I am a home-body
2. I cannot dance
3. Girls (my age, at least) will dress as a skanky anything

Pictures to be posted soon. Have a great week!

L

Room #401

2009-10-29T23:19:00.004-05:00

I am currently on Lucas' iPhone in the hospital with Tyler,Tom, and Luc. Tyler was admitted a little while ago. Unfortunately, he's not doing too hot. Tom and I got here a few hours ago and the ball is finally rolling on some meds. he's looking a bit better. Keep him in your prayers and us too so that we keep up our strength while we run from home to work to school and back to the hospital. Huh, it's gonna be a looong night.

Dang, ya'll!

2009-10-23T10:32:00.002-05:00

I'm going to have to work harder to update this blog, because it makes my day seeing that you guys have read it!

Logan: I wasn't LOOKING for a dress, but I found it and I bought it. You can come over and get your nails painted any time, by the way.

In the midst of this crazy flu stuff (UNT had closing procedures ready to go on the first day of school!), I am EXTREMELY grateful that Tom's office held a vaccine for me. Both of us are innoculated and ready to face the germs. There are creepy signs all over campus that depict little germs waving their arms and saying "I'M COMING FOR YOU! WASH YOUR HANDS!" Ew.

I realized that I don't really talk about my job a lot. I have come to truly love where I work, due in large part to the people I am surrounded by. I cannot imagine a place that is more like a family than our office, and it's amazing. I have been blown away recently by the generosity of the doctor I work for. Times are tough for everyone, and in realizing I was on my own for tuition at the last minute, I confided in Dr. H. I won't go into details, but suffice it to say that I have the most supportive co-workers of all time. What I love most, though, is the quirkiness of it all. From rubbing Buddha's belly every morning to the plastic horse that moves around the office to Dr. P explaining a complicated procedure to me with just one shoe on, they never fail to make me smile.

In terms of school, I am kicking butt and taking names and (so far) have A's across the board. Oh, and gradutation is...

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 19TH AT 9 AM @ THE UNT COLISEUM- DENTON, TEXAS
Be there or be sooooo square. I've got to get the ball rolling on invitations, so be expecting something in the mail, Sheens (and Cushings)!

Hopefully, this Lydia-oriented post hasn't left you sleeping in your chair from boredom but rather with your nose to the screen in anticipation for the undoubted brilliance of the next line. HAH!

-L

C to the Razy

2009-10-19T17:24:00.002-05:00

I am sick and tired of writing in complete sentences, because I am in the midst of midterms, so this update will be in bullets. So there.

Tommy: Rocking his job like no one has ever rocked a job before
Lydia: Exactly two. more. months. of. school. MARK YOUR CALENDARS!!!!!!
Tommy: Giving flu shots and being nice to people who, frankly, don't deserve it
Lydia: Potting plants to bring life to our apartment.
Tommy: Selling the Bronco.
Lydia: Giving Tommy rides to work and loving it.
Bear and Beulah: Plagued with fleas no matter what mom and dad do.
Tommy: Putting up with all of Lydia's crap.
Lydia: Found a wedding dress at Goodwill (hold your horses)
Tommy: Doing laundry, washing dishes, and making sure Lydia gets to bed on time so she doesn't oversleep for school.
Lydia: Making dinners for Tommy and Tyler.
Bear and Beulah: LOVING the fireplace we've prematurely put into use (hey, 50 degrees is cold, ya'll)
Tommy: Introduing Lydia to everyone at work as "my lady" and making her giggle.
Lydia: Fighting off women at work who keep stealing looks at Tommy's picture on her desk.
Tommy: Being awesome.
Lydia: Trying to be half as awesome as Tommy.

hey-oh

2009-09-25T10:15:00.002-05:00

Last night Tommy and I went with Tyler to his sister Jill's art show in Dallas. Only one word is needed to sum up the experience: AWESOME. Jill is nothing short of a genius, as you will soon find: she constructed an ENTIRE MOUNTAIN HOME out of cardboard, complete with fireplace, pictures, and inhabitants. Seriously, the thing is literally built into the Conduit Gallery and is truly inhabitable. Last night was "craft night at the Mountain," so we trekked up there to do some crafts and to hear some of Tyler's new music. So fun!

I have been to other art shows where everyone is walking around so quietly, you'd think someone had died and everyone is very stuffy and critical of the works and their deeper meanings. Please. This was the exact opposite. I have a great appreciation for art, but you can have fun with it, too. Besides being fun to the extreme (there was even a campfire and S'MORES), Jill is phenomenally talented. I was truly in awe of what she'd done and super excited for her.

In addition to crafts (I made a rock with a mustache) and Tyler's tunes, Jill's boyfriend, Christopher, was there. As Tommy will attest, he has to be one of the coolest guys ever. He was DJ Low Rez for the evening, and played some wicked music along with some sweet background video. To give you an idea, he played a laser disc (yes, laser disc) entitled "fun activities" narrated by Bill Murray. Soon after came a video entitled "Flying Discs" in which two people in Central Park (both with VERRRRRY short shorts) demonstrated sweet tricks with a frisbee. Totally 90's, totally awesome.

Tyler's mom was also there with Tia and her three kids, all of whom are wicked cool. Miley and I bonded over tortilla chips which she kept sticking in my mouth and saying "mooore?" She even told me about the dog poo she got on her hand when she fell in the grass. It was more of her just sticking out her hand and saying "poo" while I made faces, but you get the idea.

All in all, a great night. I am looking forward to a real weekend. Hopefully I can shake off this cold so that we can go camping and enjoy this amaaaazing weather. Hope all is well with everyone, and HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND!

09/09/09

2009-09-09T10:09:00.002-05:00

So far, this has turned out to be somewhat true. My first class was canceled today, meaning I had extra time to get to school, type my homework, and turn in my application for graduation. So far, I have only gotten to school and typed about 3/4 of my homework.

I want to sit here and blog about nothing rather than doing homework. Guuuuh. Whine whine whine.

A picturespective on what i have been doing

2009-09-02T22:57:00.011-05:00

Well here is a brief look at what I have been up to. I have been
a. sleeping -

b. taking x-rays -

c. hanging out with lyd -

d. driving/working on the bronco -

e. Hanging out at home -

f. shopping - with success

g. working/taking x-rays

h. and more sleeping :) its been fun

"Twilight" by Tyler, Tommy, and Lydia

2009-08-31T20:10:00.003-05:00

Set to the musical stylings of Ghostland Observatory. This will CHANGE YOUR LIFE.

We made a movie

2009-08-28T10:05:00.003-05:00

Lydia here.

If you didn't know, Tyler Foley lives in the apartment above Tommy and I. I think we were all kind of wary about this situation at first, but it has turned out to be AWESOME. Tyler is a cool dude, and it is nice having a friend so close by. Honestly, I think we just watch "Freaks and Geeks" and go bowling a lot. A LOT.

Anywho, Tyler suggested to Tom and I that we make a movie (apparently, Tom's already a star in some 'Recess' movie), and we were both on board. Well, I said I was, but I will be completely honest in telling all of you that I am the most awkward thing on the planet. For serious.

So, what movie do we make? Let me tell you.... TWILIGHT. A couple of weeks ago, we hiked on over to a park in Flower Mound with a pea coat, lots of plaid, and a spray can of glitter to make cinematic magic.

I need to get the link from Tyler. I requested that he not put it on Facebook, because the ladies at work Facebook-stalk people, and I don't like that. Oh, I deleted my Facebook account, so don't be offended if I'm not your friend. I am your friend, just not in crazy cyber world. Well, I am, but- nevermind. You know what I mean.

SO, hold your breaths for the awesomeness about to grace your screen in the next few days. It's GOLD.

Uhh... Sorry

2009-08-26T18:06:00.003-05:00

It's been almost 2 months since either of us have posted anything. So far, not much has changed. We have been working our respective buns off, but having a lot of fun. I start school tomorrow for my LAST SEMESTER of college. I'll make Tommy poast (typo, but I'm leaving it) soon, becuase his are always funnier and more entertaining, and it's naptime.

Yes, we have no bananas

2009-06-30T18:40:00.004-05:00

Lydia here. I have no idea what that quote is from, but my dad says it all the time so I'm assuming it has something to do with the Marx brothers.

Regardless, Tom and I have been working our BUNS off at our respective jobs and [mostly] enjoying ourselves. Work has been kicking my tush since I'm there for 10 hrs each day, but I am banking (almost wrote baking) it like never before. Unfortunately, I am cursed, so any air conditioner I attempt to use simply stops functioning. Speaking of my luck, my car's a/c (I drive a Toyota Echo- not exactly rare) is made by Perjing Airlines. Why? I don't know. I do know, however, that it cost me $400 bucks and that's about half of what Toyota wanted. Mother huggers.

Tom is being super awesome by taking over a nurse's position at work while she's out. I told this to a Dr. I work with today, but I told him Tommy was "nursing." He told me I was very progressive and understanding for letting my boyfriend do that. I was confused at first, until I realized he thought I meant NURSING. As in babies. Moving on, Tom is putting in an EXTRAORDINARY amount of effort with little to show for it, but I couldn't be more proud. Hopefully his talents are recognized, and even if they aren't, I suppose he's learning quite a bit.

I have to say that the medical field is NOT what I'd expected. Doctors are people, too, and this is both comforting and frightening. I really do like the two men I work for, but it's definitely eye-opening seeing how a lot of things work. I do, unfortunately, work with a number of extremely negative women. Rather than being sucked into the gossip and pettiness, I find myself moving away from it and even rising above it. Truthfully, I am quite proud of myself. Granted, there are people that irk me beyond belief, but I find that taking 10 minutes and a stack of documents over to the paper shredder makes a world of difference. Hey, to each his own.

I hope that everyone else is doing well. Tom and I are officially back on our feet financially and ever-mindful of that fact. The prospect of a Sheen-a-Thon in the near future is nothing short of AWESOME, and we can't wait to see everyone very soon. We send our love and best wishes to everyone.

p.s. Tom DID get The Beast, and it's something else. It truly lives up to its name size, power, decibels, and gas consumption. 7 MPG rules. HA! Seriously, though- it rules.

Me new ride, eh! 1978 Ford Bronco

2009-06-09T23:15:00.002-05:00

It's not definite, but this might be my new ride in a little while, it's old, rusty, and awesome. Oh, and it also might be free :) yay!

Fist time. Full-time.

2009-05-20T12:12:00.002-05:00

Guuuuuuuuuh. Lydia here.

First of all, blogspot is being cranky and hasn't let me upload the pictures of our apartment yet, but I'll contact my technician (i.e. Tommy) and see what up.

So, I started my first full-time job ever this week. I LOVE this job. I LOVE the people I work with. I LOVE learning so many new things. The hours are kind of kicking my bum, though. So far, I've worked 10 hour days all week. It doesn't feel that long, but man am I tired.

And that's it. It's time for me to go back, because lunch time is over. Hope all is well with everyone everywhere and stay tuned for photos!

Hey! Ho! Let's Go!

2009-05-11T16:52:00.002-05:00

Photos of the Burrow (our apartment) coming soon!

I know I'm weird but...

2009-05-05T00:46:00.002-05:00

I just listened to Jason Lytle's solo album debut on NPR, all the way through. And though it has been about 4 or 5 years since I heard anything from the former leader of Grandaddy, I have to say that hearing his latest work is nothing short of astonished joy. I do believe that this album is one of the greatest works of art I have ever heard. It sprouts every thought and feeling I brought to this listening session and melds it together in ways I thought would never again occur in my life (especially after Grandaddy disbanded.)

Anyway, I had to share my thoughts and get that out of my system or I might have shut down, needless to say, this has been pre-ordered and I cannot wait to burn up that cd with thousands of listens.

-tbone

Update!

2009-04-27T12:34:00.001-05:00

Guh! we are finally all moved in. we won't have internet access for another week, so photos and more on the new apartment will be rolling in in a few days. i'm getting my fix here at the computer lab at school, so i'll be good for another few days :) hope all is well.

Tommy knows how to treat the ladies

2009-04-21T12:24:00.001-05:00

Tom: You smell like carrots and roses
Me: Thanks...
Tom: You're welcome.

Nice.

mooOOOoooving

2009-04-17T12:31:00.004-05:00

Lydia here.

Finally. After almost 7 months of crashing at my parents' house, we are moving out! We found a super-nice apartment in Lewisville for a ridiculously good price. To sweeten the deal even further, we get our first month's rent for free if we wait to move until the first of May. It's only 2 weeks away, and I would say that we're busy packing, but we're not. About 90% of everything we own is currently in boxes in a storage unit or in the attic. So... we wait. Anywho, it's super exciting.

Tom is completely rocking the socks off of his new job. From compliments from his patients to compliments from the doctors themselves, he is getting ample praise for doing well. I can't thank everyone enough for their support and well-wishes while we were both looking for jobs. To be honest, it was really rough, and we were scraping the bottom of the barrel for a while there. It was always nice to see comments and get phone calls reminding us that things would look up, and they did. So, thank you.

Today is a nasty, rainy day and I love it. I think I'm going to go make some soup and read a book. Yum.

P.S. The latest and greatest trailer for "Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince" is HERE. You will NOT be disappointed. Guh.

P.P.S. The new, oh-so mysterious blog is still in the works. I'm trying to get all of the kinks out, and that takes a lot of baking and eating. Get what you will from that :)

YAY! YAY! and YAY again!

2009-04-02T18:22:00.002-05:00

Lydia here. Let's talk school, because it is so ruling right now.

Sweet:
-I have 96 hours under my belt with 12 in progress and 12 to go (each class is 3-4 hours, so that's a lot)
-I have made an A in every single Spanish class I've taken in college, giving me a 3.8 GPA for my major
-I have an overall GPA of 3.3 (1 failed class, a few C's... and a remedial math class thrown in there for good measure)
-I WILL APPLY FOR GRADUATION IN AUGUST AND OFFICIALLY GRADUATE IN DECEMBER! This means PARTY.

I know this is totally irrelevant to anyone but me, but it MADE my week. I don't need any summer classes, and all of my fall courses fall into a nice little 4 hour block every day. GUUUUH. I am bursting at the seams. I AM SO READY.

...and... just as a teaser: I have a new blog in the works. I've been working way hard on it for a few weeks, so let's hope it's a little longer-lived than the last one....

Just to add

2009-03-26T14:06:00.002-05:00

Alright, to name a few more things that happened today:
1. I got a job - and it's going to be awesome - I can't believe I am in the healthcare business now
2. Lyd got her new iPod! I made up for this cruddy time we have been having, it's alot of fun!
3. I got to witness ANOTHER hole-in-one on the disc golf course today, Lucas made an AMAZING hole-in-one on the 7th hole at L.L. Woods. It was something to behold
4. Lyd got the news today that she PASSED her state licensing exam!
5. I finally, after about 5/6 months, received my motorcycle blank key. No more duct tape on that gas tank!
6. Lyd was praised in class today, her teacher told her she was her "star".
7. I found a sweet deal on a microSD card, which i think is only exciting for me.

I want to say the list goes on, but I think that that is a pretty sweet list that sums just about everything up.

We both want to say that these past fews months have really very extremely been difficult, to say the least, but if it weren't for our family and friends aiding and praying for us we would not have made it. This is a time-old lesson, but one which has now been DRILLED into our brains, so we thank you guys for all of your help. BUT I also have to say that it has been ALOT of fun just doing whatever I could do that was free. It's taught me that I don't need money to be happy, although money can help :D. Honk, I'm starting to sound not genuine at all. So let me just end this by saying that Lydia and I are happier than ever, and looking forward to our future together, our future careers, and our future with you guys.

Love all.

Tomasito

JOB TIME

2009-03-24T22:03:00.002-05:00

Lydia here.

I GOT A JOOOOOOOB!!!!!

I start my "trial" period working at a dental office on Monday, and if they don't completely hate me, then I get the job permanently. This job already rules.

Totally on the bandwagon

2009-03-19T13:25:00.002-05:00

Lydia here.

I consider myself a well-read person. I read constantly (literally. ha!) and really do enjoy it. I am completely comfortable saying that the Harry Potter series is way way up on my list of best books ever, but I have to admit that it was, at first, a guilty pleasure. While I was the perfect age when the series first came out, I REALLY got into them again (finally finishing the series) a year or two ago.

Onto my point... I resisted and resisted reading the Twilight series, because I first thought it sounded stupid and ridiculous. Deep down, I knew I would loooove the series based on what I'd heard (my best friend read and loved them, and we share almost the exact taste in books). So, I caved. Mom Sheen loaned me the first book around Christmastime, and I got around to reading it about 2 weeks ago. Suffice it to say that I read all of the books... in 2 days. I. Am. Obsessed. Guuuuh. I'm sorry,. Mr. Kerouac, Ms. Plath, Mr. Neruda, Mr. Shakespeare, and all of my other loves, but Stephanie Meyer knows how to make me swoon like a 16 year-old girl.

In other news, I have an interview with a dentist on Monday!!! It's actually Tommy's dentist, Dr. Kana. He's been extremely nice to me whenever I went with Tom to get work done, and was always willing to let me sit chairside and observe. So far, it sounds like a pretty set deal, but we'll see how it goes in a few days.

As for Tom, he's working so incredibly hard on finding a job, I know that it's got to pay off,and pay off goood. Unfortunately, most of the job-getting effort is out of his hands at this point, so we're just waiting and hoping that the right people get back in touch with him.

Tomorrow is my big 'ol state certification exam to become an RDA. I get to sit through something like 8 hours of lecture and review before taking the exam and being TOTALLY FINISHED FOREVER with my training. UNT is another story, since it feels like I'm getting my tush kicked left and right this semester, but I am so close to being done that passing grades are really all that affect me. Wait, that's not true. Arts and Sciences requires at least a C in all classes in order to graduate, so that's what I've got to do. Shut up, Lydia, this isn't interesting.

Other than those points, there's not much going on around here. Bear has figured out how to take off his own collar (????) and has nearly eaten through his rabies tag. Both pups for some reason have sprouted spots so that Beulah is not so albino-like, and Bear is coming closer to Dalmatian than ever before.

Things are stressful at times, but I appreciate that you guys let me rant on an on like this, and especially for letting me post when I'm seriously bummed. We really love all of the support you've given us in recent months, and can't thank you enough. Have a wonnnnnderful day, and see you soon!

Wheel of Fortune (unfortunately, not the game)

2009-03-10T00:10:00.002-05:00

I've heard that the Greeks came up with the idea of the wheel of fortune. Apparently, when you're at the top, you eventually roll around to the bottom, and vice versa. It seems like Tom and I have been stuck at the bottom for some time now, and I want to know when the HECK we're gonna swing back up, because this is freaking ridiculous.

Regardless, I've got the love of my life by my side, so I haven't totally melted down yet. Yet.

We're 4th Years!

2009-02-20T11:37:00.000-06:00

Happy Anniversary to Tommy and I for FOUR years together! Yaaay!

On top of that, Tom got his radiology certificate today! Yaay! Exclamation points! Yaaay!

Language Lab

2009-02-18T15:26:00.004-06:00

Lydia here. I am currently waiting for my knight in shining armor (Tomas) to come and save me, because I locked my keys in my car. Dang. The good news is that I put a few extra quarters in the meter, so I've got another hour and a half to spare.

In OTHER good news, Tom finishes his x-ray school this week, and I finish my schooling next month, so we're drawing near our goals. JOBS ARE NEEDED, in other words.

Valentine's Day was super-fun. We went low-key and looked at apartments (we found one!), thrift shopped, and went to a friend's moustache-themed birthday party. Pictures soon.

Other than that, we've been trying hard not to freak out about our dwindling funds, but we're doing alright in general. I hope everything is going well for all you Sheens and Cushings out there. Have a great week! 2 days to go until the weekend! HOORAH!

Crazy, as usual

2009-02-03T01:41:00.004-06:00

Hello, all! Guess who it is.... Nevermind, you know who this is.

Busy busy busy is what we've been. Both of us are rocking it in school- Tom in his rad tech program (which he is RULING) and I in my usual stupor at UNT as well as the dental program. In short, we are loving it. I can't wait to get a-working again, and I know Tom feels the same way. I see... an APARTMENT in our future. Well, that's the plan, because I'm going nuts being here with my family. Don't get me wrong, but after living away for a while, I've become spoiled and I need. my. space.

On kind of a weird note, I had a little scare recently. One night whilst putting on my jammies, I realized that I had a big 'ol lump on my thigh. Now, we're not talking bug bite or bruise, but a large, marble-esque rock under my skin. Usually, I would not have worried, because I know I have cysts elsewhere, but this really freaked me out. To be honest, a lot of my anxiety had to do with a friend's recent cancer diagnosis, so, being who I am, I started to get really worried. I resolved to stay on top of it and decided that if it weren't gone by my birthday (this month), I'd shimmy on into the doctor. Fortunately, it's disappeared completely. I'm thankful that I had this mini-incident, because it gave me the tiniest peek into not being healthy. I know this sounds cheesy and probably very overreactive, but I am not someone who dismisses their blessings. I tend to get bogged down in petty, trivial problems, and little things like this snap me out of it and make me happy and again thankful to be who and where I am.

In other news, we had TWO (yes, count them, TWO) "snow" days recently. In a freak turn of events (I suppose all weather in Texas is freakish, come to think of it), we were doused in ice. Roads were nasty nasty, and everything was shut down. We had a few power flickers, and I think the highlight of the entire storm was when my brother, Elliot, and I had this conversation:
Elliot: Did you see that?
Me: The power flickering? Yea.
Elliot: Oh, good. I thought I was just blinking really slow.

Awesome.

Lastly, here are a couple of pictures of us out the other night in Denton. It was a laaaaaate night, but we had so much fun, it was totally worth it. I have to say that we have some of the coolest freaking friends ever. Hands down, feet up. Enjoy.

Uhh...Sorry!

2009-01-09T00:28:00.002-06:00

Lydia here. So, it's been about a month since we've posted, and I'm sorry if anyone actually reads this, but we've been buuuuusssyyyyyy. I don't know if I can make all of the past month make sense in paragraph form, but I'll try. Bear with me!

Let's start with December. For me, I finished up at UNT with all A's (woot), a 3.5 average, and an acceptance letter from the National Scholars Honor Society. Hoooooorah. I also quit my job at the Montessori school. For the next few months, I'll be in school 5 days a week for 23 hours each week. I'm still tutoring at $25 an hour which means I have gas money and some spending money if I get some babysitting gigs in there as well.

As for Tom, the week before Christmas brought some nasty news: he was getting laid off on January 9th. Now, this was a maaaajor bummer at first, but it's turned out to be a blessing in disguise. First, they didn't just give him the boot and say "see ya!" Second, he has been/ will be receiving severance pay, paid vacation, and a floating holiday. And last, but not least: this has afforded T the opportunity to FINALLY enroll in a radiological technician (x-ray) program he's had his eye on for years. WOO HOO! With the severance pay and vacation, he'll be able to concentrate totally on his month-long program with little to no financial worries. Hooooraaay, Tommy!

Christmas RULED. I can never get enough of the Sheens, to tell you the truth. My only regret was that the Jordan Sheens, Cushings, and Logan Sheens couldn't be there, too. Tom and I had a blast with everyone, and can't wait to do it again soon.

New Years for us was booooring. We either got ditched or were too late in making plans, so we stayed at home to watch TV. Just like election night, we missed the milestone by a few seconds, but it was fun anyways. We sat around for another hour and then fell asleep.

For the past few weeks, we've been reconnecting with old friends, and getting into the swing of 2009. I've been planning like mad for another semester at UNT (only 2 more to go!!) and starting my dental school. I honestly don't think I've ever been so enthusiastic about anything in my whole life. Everything about this dental assisting career is appealing: the pay is nice (not ridiculous, but good), the employment rates are super-high, the program is fast (10 weeks), and the instructors are amazing. Fortunately, we split our course between lecture and a clinical study program where we are interning at an actual dental office. I am having so much fun, it's scary. For example, I learned how to take someone's blood pressure today. Apparently, it's now required at every dentist visit. Know you know, and knowing's half the battle.

Speaking of G.I. Joe's (is that right?), Tom and I helped our friend Lucas go through some 20-odd boxes he's had in storage for years, and it was hilarious. To name a few found items: a lobster claw harmonica, profiles of all TMNTs and their foes, an afro wig, copious amounts of VW Beetle paraphernalia, a duck made of pecan shells, TONS of G.I. Joe's, a bottle of red hots candies, a Swatch, Blue's Clues window clings, 16 girls' numbers, and an "I WANT YOU!" Uncle Sam poster.

That's about it other than a few games of disc golf, but it's been fun, and I'm looking at 2009 with a lot of hope and enthusiasm. I hope your holidays and new year are going just as well as ours are, if not better.

Wooo

2008-12-08T12:43:00.000-06:00

Thanks everyone for the well-wishes! This week is off to a much, much better start.

What a week....

2008-12-04T23:07:00.003-06:00

Lydia here.

SO, things have been nuts around here, hence the serious lack in blogging.

The week before Thanksgiving we crammed as much time in with our friend, Julia, before she jetted off to California :( We did midnight movies, camping (pictures to come), Friendsgiving (also with pictures), and much more.

Classes have ended which leaves only finals (YIKES!) and I cannot wait to be done. One week left, and that's it!

This past weekend, we were lucky enough to get to spend time with Derrick, Traci, Max, Brant, Chris and Ma and Pa Sheen. One thing I have to say that I absolutely LOVE about the Sheens is how much everyone laughs. I sincerely leave whatever time spent with them with a genuine smile on my face, and I couldn't be more thankful for that.

On a somewhat negative note, however, MY mom has had a ridiculous string of bad luck. About a month ago she was volunteering with Lowe's to expand CCA's community garden, and found that she'd gotten into poison ivy. Like Tom, she had a ridiculous reaction to it which lasted fooorrreeeevvveerrrr. A few weeks later, though, she was hit HARD with vertigo. I felt so bad, because she was so dizzy and so sick that she couldn't talk at first, and walking and driving are recently being reconquered. Being the nerd/hypochondriac that I am, I went onto WebMD to see what could've caused her vertigo, and it just talked about brain tumors and spinal bleeding, so I ended up sitting on my bed worrying my pants off. LASTLY, ma was in a car accident today. Apparently, a Lewisville city truck was stopped on Main Street with a few cars (including ma) stopped behind it. Well, a young man didn't see them stopped, so he plowed into mom's car which hit another car which hit another car. Her Trooper's a bit scrunched and probably totaled, but she just got a little scrape on her leg and a bump on her head. Scared me to death, though.

Today we celebrated my brother's 17th birthday! CRAZY! I can't believe little Elliot is 17! I love that kid.

As for me, I am FINALLY mobile after the nastiest stomach flu of my life. Not to gross anyone out, but I threw up about 8 times Tuesday night/ Wednesday morning. Miserable.

Tom's a tough cookie, too, though. He's been braving 30's-ish temperatures the past few days on his MOTORCYCLE. Note: when you are on a motorcycle, it feels much cooler than it actually is. In general, you subtract 20 degrees from the actual temperature. It's flipping freezing, dude.

To liven things up, we are SO STOKED FOR THE HARRY POTTER MARATHON ON ABC FAMILY THIS WEEKEND. I am still "recovering," and that is my excuse for staying indoors allllll weekend. Hoorah!

11/11/2008

2008-11-11T09:01:00.003-06:00

TODAY IS OUR ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY WTIH BEAR AND BEULAH!!!
It was one year ago today that we brought our twin babies home. To celebrate, B & B ran around the house reaaaallly fast this morning and Beulah snorted a lot. Wooo hoo!

In other news, Tom and I both played hookie yesterday (he from work, I from school) and spent the day together. Tom was wicked sick, so we mostly just putted around, but it was fun anyways.

This weekend brings an interesting event for both of us- camping. Let me clarify: I looove being outside (i.e. kyaking, walking, swimming, playing tennis, etc.) but I do. not. camp. Tommy kind of agreed to go on a camping trip with a couple of friends while I was snoozing away in bed, and I can't say that I'm excited. Regardless, it's our friend Julia's last weekend in Texas (uuuuuuuugh! DON'T GOOO!) so we're going to have fun, regardless of my opinions on sleeping outdoors.

I keep forgetting that I chopped my hair off, and I have a moment of panic every time I see someone who I haven't hung out with in more than a week. They give me this "WHAT?!" look, and then I remember that I'm bald, and it's okay. Anywho, I love it, and I just hope my little noggin stays warm this winter.

I hope everyone has a good week!

P.S. If you haven't already, check out the video of Max on Derrick and Traci's blog. Max's laugh must be contagious, because Tom and I both ended up laughing after watching it.

VOTE VOTE

2008-11-03T12:38:00.002-06:00

Lydia here. Tomorrow is election day!! I voted last week so I'm done with my part, but I'm ready to get some results. I'll probably be up all night watching the coverage, since this year a record number of people have registered to vote. Hopefully, they find their way to the polls and make it count, but we'll see. Prop. 8 voting is tomorrow as well, and I think I may be more anxious to see those results than that of the presidential election. I know that sounds horrible, but it's kind of true.

In other news, we are FINALLY DONE MOVING. We took it down to the wire on Friday and really wore ourselves out, but we are done and done. Whew.

I went on an OCD rampage this weekend and completely organized my recipes which took about... 10 hours in all, but it is so worth it. So worth it, in fact, I may post pictures.

Oye! Time for class! Have a good day, and DON'T FORGET TO VOTE!!!!!

one. more. day.

2008-10-30T09:19:00.002-05:00

UUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUGH

Moving has been the biggest pain in the bun EVER. Not only are we trying to get all of our crap out, but it's mid-semester. My teachers must have sensed that I was moderately busy outside of class, so BAM! Homework. Tests. Quizzes. Essays. Projects. We've been moving constantly until about midnight every night, leaving only the wee hours of the morning to do my school work. I may be a procrastinator, but, dangit, I will not go into class unprepared. I might as well not show up. Urg.

Thank you for listening to me rant. We will be out of our apartment by Friday. Thaaaaank goodness.

-Lydia

P.S. Does anyone know about staph infections? A kid at the Montessori school has one, and is actually in the hospital. I remember a bunch of kids at Marcus getting it, and I want to know what to look out for. Eck.

So...it lasted a week

2008-10-27T12:29:00.002-05:00

Lydia here. My hiatus is slowly dying, but I'll keep it short, regardless, since I haven't met my goal (I don't want to blog until after Nov. 4).

-Tommy= rocking a MOHAWK and wicked beard. I love it, and we'll definitely have to put some pictures on here to share it with all.

-Lydia= sick again (surprise). OH! And I VOTED! This is the first election I've been old enough to vote in (har har, I missed the 2004 date by like 3 months), and it was SUPER-EXCITING. Strangely enough, I've only told like 3 people who I voted for. Any guesses? Haha.

-Apartment= 90% empty. Save for the bed, tv, and clothes, we're golden. Friday is the moment of truth. Oh, and we've been mobbed by termites. DISGUSTING. They look like maggots and have eaten $200 worth of stuff since the maintenance men...nevermind. Have you ever seen termites going to work? They are Nasty with a capital N, because you can hear them eating and it sounds like rice krispies. GROOOOOSSSSSSSSSS.

-Thursday= bingo night in empty apartment with friends. In moving, we found that we have a whole bingo set, complete with wheel and everything. Awesome? yes.

-December= GOING TO SEE THE NUTCRACKER AT BASS PERFORMANCE HALL!! Neat fact: we went to middle school with the girl dancing as Clara!

-Puppies= Hating the incoming cold weather. The temperature's been flirting near 40 degrees at night, and Bear and Beulah want no part of it. To give you an idea, Beulah just stands on the sidewalk, shaking and whimpering when I take them out to pee. Geez.

-School= I register for my dental assisting program in November, and have actually already registered for the Spring sememster at UNT: Mexical Culture and Civilization, Spanish for Medical Professions II, Sociocultural Anthropology, Medical Anthropology, and the Psychology of Death and Dying.

Okay, so this wasn't short at all....

official break

2008-10-20T00:17:00.002-05:00

Sorry, folks, but you're going to have to rely on Tommy for blogs and updates for a few weeks since I'm taking an official break from the blogging world. I'll let Tom post about our adventures of this past weekend, and also let him give you the full run-down on "Captain." Gracious. Anywho, "see" you in November!

-Lydia

So. Much. Going. On.

2008-10-16T00:09:00.003-05:00

Lydia here.

OYE! Sorry for the looong hiatus, but things are crazy crazy around here. For me, it's the middle of the semester, so that means midterms, projects, and tests galore. Yay. For Tom it's the grinding 4 am wakeups that keep him in a strict schedule that mostly includes work and sleep.

Moving is... well, it's going. As most of you know, moving is a pain in the bun. I won't gripe any more, but take note that it's taking up most of our time.

Lately, Tom's been an exercise ma-sheen, and he's inspired me to be a bit healthier. Between school, work, friends, family, and everything in between, I find working out at the bottom of my list, so I've compromised and improved what I eat. So far, so good. I've had some slip-ups, but I'm not going to beat myself up about it, because, on the whole, I'm doing better. woo hoo!

Something exciting for me is that I think I can pull an A in all of my classes this year. So far, the lowest grade I've gotten on anything is an 84, so that's promising. I'm working hard, because I only have ONE MORE YEAR LEFT!

This Friday, Tom and I are going to a Halloween party at Jenna's, which is going to RUUUULE. We've got some great ideas for costumes, so once we decide we'll take pictures and let you guys have fun laughing at us.

This past week has been weird, too, though, since we saw Tommy Strong and his family about a MILLION TIMES in two days. Strange, but awesome.

Tom and my dad have been working hard on finding me a new car since nearly everything has gone wrong with the Beetle. TO make a long story short, VW has never released manufacturing details on any of their cars, therefore making it impossible for anyone but a Volkswagen dealer to work on them. This is called a monopoly, folks, and it is also the reason why there is a class-action lawsuit against VW. For example: Want a new key? $300. A new transmission (VW transmissions are un-rebuildable) $9000. HONK. I don't know about you, but I don't have that money. Heck, I still can't afford a spare key. Ridiculous. SOOOOO, a "new" car is in the works. I am kicking myself for taking out such a big loan on the Beetle since it has turned out to be such a piece o' crap. Dang.

In all, we're good. There have been a few hiccups lately, but we're doing well. As soon as we're moved things will calm down, but we're working hard to get there. Hope everyone is doing well, and keep an eye out for updates!

Weekends, I prefer the weekends

2008-09-30T09:34:00.002-05:00

Lydia here.

I deleted the other post, because I re-read it and realized that it was kind of all over the place. It mostly summed up our rockin' weekend with the highlights being:

-a midnight movie: We trekked out to the Inwood in Dallas after a dinner at Pei Wei with Lucas and Julia to see "Who Framed Roger Rabbit?" That movie scared the pants off me as a kid, and it's easy to see why. I had never been to the Inwood before, and I really regret not going earlier. It's not the coolest theater ever, but the vibe was great. Plus, they ripped out their chairs and replaced them with Love Sacs and Love Sac couches. Sa-weet. The only downside was getting followed by a VERY drunk girl and a drug dealer that had lured her in with some crazy lie. While the toasted girl went inside to find a phone to call a cab for a women's shelter (it gets weirder, I promise), the lady (drug lady) was creeping me out, because she kept trying to grab me, so I bolted inside as soon as I saw Julia. Well, it seems that walking away wasn't enough since she followed me and tried pleading her case again. She told me she'd been raped in Louisiana three weeks ago and had a number and an address for a women's shelter. I kept asking her what she wanted, but all she'd say was "I'm fine. I'm fine. I'm fine." At that point, Julia is practically shoving me out the door to go home, and Tom said he heard the lady say "Crazy people, I'm just trying to talk to you." Right.

-PACKING: We are really moving along with our packing, and it's starting to hit that we'll be gone by the end of this month. Yikes. It'll be a great financial break, and I keep reminding myself how lucky I am to have such accomodating parents. This sounds silly, but I'm really excited about having a yard for the pups to run around in. They LOOOOOOOOVE my parents' backyard more than anything, so they'll be getting filthy every chance they get.

-Jenna's 22nd: Harry Potter themed. 'Nuff said.

-Planning for MORE weekends: Soon to come is the arboretum, a pumpkin patch, another midnight movie, Luc's birthday, and Halloween parties!

Speaking of Halloween, I have gotten into the fall/holiday GROOVE these past few days. I am crafting it up like there is no tomorrow, and I've even got a start on Christmas gifts! I know it's early, but I had all my gifts done by November last year, and it RULED. There was no last-minute shopping (well, there was, because I lost a few gifts. Yikes!) and I had ample time to enjoy the holidays with friends and loooots of family. I cannot WAIT to see everyone again this Christmas, and I'm going to be cliche in saying it IS the most wonderful time of the year.

I'm sitting in the Syndicate which is a kind of lounge here in the UNT Union, and they've opened an Einstein Bros. Bagel shop this year, and the smell is killing me. Plus, I'm sitting next to a display of blackberry lemonade, and I have never been so tempted to steal something in my entire life. Yum!

I think that's enough ranting for now. Have a wonderful Tuesday!

PHOOOTOOO BLOOOOOG

2008-09-22T22:19:00.008-05:00

Here are some looong overdue pictures, in no particular order. ENJOY! (for some reason, the Harry Potter Party pictures won't upload, so those will be up...whenever)

p.s. Captions are BELOW the photos.

Ride at the North Texas State Fair and Rodeo, which turned out to be an expensive waste of time.

Another ride. See how fast they go? That's why we stick to the ferris wheel.

Aaaand another ride.

Can you smell what the Tom is cooking?!

Bear Dog loves playing Mario Brothers with mama.

Tom and I at the beginning of our Turner Falls hike this past weekend.

"I'm not sure how I feel about hiking..."

Can you see Steven waaaay at the top? Crazy climber, that one.

The beautiful view from atop the rock face.

Steven and Zeaf laughing in the face of death. Actually, they were warning the people below about the water moccasin in the water. Instead of heading for shore, some dude decided to try and catch it. Nice.

Tom being birthed by one of the caves. Seriously, though, this is how you had to climb out- on yo belly.

Mountain Man Sheen in. his. element.

View from inside Cowboy/Outlaw Cave.

Up, up, and away! Waay up.

See? I didn't just take pictures!

Looking DOWN one of the easier rock faces we climbed.

Face in the mountain. See the mouth cave?

MEN OF FIRE

This is the product of Steven leaping in an out of the darkness, scaring the daylights out of us. This is the face of anticipation.

Updates, some requested pictures, awesomeness ensues...

2008-09-17T19:10:00.005-05:00

Tomasito here, been a LONG week so far. I have been working 12 hours so far but hey, need dat mo-nay!

what have i been up to, well, besides work, Lydia and I have begun packing all our stuff, after looking at all the junk we have managed to collect, we realized that it is not a daunting task at all, and getting it started now will make it tons easier in the long run, obviously.

as for hobbies and what I have been doing while Lydia is at work, well, that would mainly just be working and having fun on the bicycle! I think it's nickname will be "Pooh-Joe", mainly because thats what the bike is, a Peugeot. I've had it for about....2.5 months I think, maybe up to 4 by now, but I have only begun taking an interest in getting it restored and in running condition for the past two months. I did alot of work on it, more than the usual rust clean up and tuning. I wanted to get this baby in like-new condition. So that's what I've done. I took apart and cleaned/scrubbed all the gears, redid the bearings where I could find them (steering and wheel area), put a new chain on it, redid some spokes on the wheels (they were breaking in half at the very beginning of a ride), HAD to put new tires on it, sawed off the handlebars, redid all the cables, redid the whole brake system, scorched off all rust (the bike was covered), paid to have a part on the derailleur straightened out so that it would shift right. And for some unknown reason, even to bicycle shop specialists, I had to straighten the actual chain because it would bend like 30 degrees at points around the chain, i figured it was that derailleur(sp) part being bent out of shape, and so far its done wonders. Now as for acutally getting out there and riding, I really don't do that. I just fix up the dang thangs. However, these past couple of weeks I have been getting out there and actually riding for exercise, I did it for about a week and finally decided to by a computer for the bike, which as been a great blessing, because having a computer means one thing to me, getting better, and seeing yourself getting better. Now don't get me wrong, enjoying a nice bicycle ride is great, and I do every time I go out, but I had no idea how fast I was going nor how far, so I spent the 15 bucks and got the computer, now I am writing down and tracking everything, from how far and fast I've gone, to what the temperature was(it has a thermometer, SWEET). So we will see how far this goes, I am trying to ride everyday now, and sometimes, I get to the point where I want to ride more that just once a day. It's strange what riding around is doing to me.

Alright, now the stories of riding around, first off, I hate leaving the puppies all to their lonesome selves, so decided to hook up a basket, which worked great, it was secure and the dogs were secure, or so I thought, apparently, I swerved too much one day, and the basket swayed the the left a little, instinctively, bear jumped, however, he is on a leash which I have tied to the bike and even shortened it so he couldn't move around very much, well, apparently the leash had too much length, so when bear leaped instinctively, again, feeling like the bike was going down, he ended up just hanging there, by the neck, and I was in the street. Don't worry, I immediately felt him jump, looked around and saw him hanging himself, tongue sticking out and all, and dropped the bike right then and there, he might have been in the air for no more than 2 seconds, all the same I knew that this story wasn't going to go over well with Lydia or anybody for that matter. But all the same, I can't just leave the puppies by themselves while I go out for a ride, so I thought about it and decided to use these really strong rubber straps instead of just my crappy rope knots, well, the solution worked, not only does the basket not move at all, but their leashes are more secure and the dogs are smart, they just lay down and look through the holes in the basket:) It's actually alot of fun having them with me, my rides so far have been to the park, where they will run alongside me for about.. 3 miles or so, then I pick them up and finish my ride. It's fun.

I hope this "city-beater" of a bike will last a long time, it's fun, the perfect size, and the color scheme rules my wheely-world!

Here's some pictures:

Here's the first system I had, basket w/ rope knots:

The Texan-French "Pooh-Joe"

Here's my computer mount and the griptape job

The new and improved Pup-Throne!

I love the graphics:

Every bike needs a rider, and one who is proud of his country, or atleast his sweet new shades.

It's Tuesday

2008-09-16T09:39:00.002-05:00

Lydia here.

They're taking our toilet "early this week.. well... at least sometime this week." I NEED TO KNOW WHEN WE WILL NOT HAVE A COMMODE. I'm not obsessed with our pot or anything, but come ON. This is ridiculous.

I may be a tad cranky, though, since (yet again) the munchkins at work have gotten me sick. The cherry on top, though, is that I don't have health insurance right now. Apparantly, one mother thought it was okay to bring her daughter to shool with strep throat. Nice. I'm praying that that's not what I've got, because that would be bad, to say the least.

40-something days until our lease is up, and I'm proud of us for getting a head start on our packing. As everyone knows, there is just soooo much crap you find when you've got to put everyhting in boxes. Seriously, we have something like 6325 tubes of chapstick, 251 empty spiral notebooks, and an endless supply of miscellaneous junk (so what if those aren't exact numbers?)

Anywho... it looks like I'll be saying adieu to the good 'ol Beetle, because it's just costing me waaaay too much to keep and fix. For example (and this is a real number), the air conditioning broke this summer and cost $500 to fix. Transmissions on Beetles are, apparantly, funky, so replacing one would cost (brace yourselves) $6000. uugh. Hopefully, selling Quinn will at least give me half of the money I need to enroll in the dental program at Brookhaven, but we'll see.

Blah blah blah. I'm done ranting.

WOOTen Hall

2008-09-10T12:37:00.002-05:00

That's where I am right now, and I always want to say "woot" whenever I walk in the door. Maybe I'll start.

This is Lydia, by the way.

SO! This week is...well... I don't know the word for it since there's some good, some bad, and some ugly things heading our way.

FIRST: Today is my dad's birthday. He and my brother are coming up to Dentron for a visit, and we'll be eating out and then heading back to the apartment for some saweet board games. I can't believe it, but my dad is SIXTY today! Ooooooold maaaaaaan.

SECOND: I have been bouncing around on one foot, and even had to stay home because of a "broken" foot this week (I say "broken" because I am sans health insurance right now, adn don't feel like forking over a couple hundred dollars to get an x-ray). On Sunday, Tom went out with his man friends to play airsoft, so I had the whoooooole day to myself. I decided to sit around, watch movies, and avoid doing my homework. It was awesome, but in the midst of my bliss, I dashed into the bathroom for something and totally crunched my foot on the door frame. Yikes. I kept thinking it'd feel better, but it's gotten progressively worse, and has resulted in a general swelling and bruising of my whole foot. Eh, whatever.

THIRD: This weekend, Tom and I are heading out to Sachse (I want to call it Sexy Sachse) to buy Brant's truck. The plan is to buy it, use it to move, and then sell it. In addition, we'll be wearing cowboy boots and listening to country music every time we're in the truck. Not really. Boots, maybe...

FOURTH: EL GRAN FINAL.. they are ripping out our toilet this week. I noticed a smell in our bathroom about a week ago and, upon investigating, found water seeping up from under the floor. Apparently, our neighbors called first, and it turns out that termites and a water leak have eaten away the entire interior of the bathroom wall we share. Nice. Soooooo, they've got to tear out our toilet. What do we do for a potty while this goes on? We have a key to an empty apartment across the complex. Nice.

Honk! I'm late for class. Have a happy Wednesday, everyone!!!!

a few updates before school

2008-09-08T10:18:00.002-05:00

Lydia here. Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays are my get-up-late days since I don't have class until 11, thus giving me time to blooooog.

SO! A few big things happening in the Anderson.Sheen household, mostly having to do with school and work, but what else do we do? Nothing.

Tom will (hopefully) be starting in the radiology program next month! Exciting! Besides being a really cool, it'll afford Tom some really great job possibilities. Unfortunately, it's on Saturdays and Sundays, which means we will be seeing very little of each other in those 8 weeks. BUT, it's only an 8-week program, so there really is nothing to complain about- it's a pretty sweet deal.

On the same lines, I'm hoping, praying, and saving for the chance to get to enroll in the dental assisting program at Brookhaven in Dallas. While it's going to help me get a waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay better job, it'll be rough. I'm already planning on taking 15 hours next semester, plus this one which runs for three hours on Tuesdays and Thursdays. It's a 10-week class, but during that time I won't be able to work, so...we'll see how that goes.

In more job-related news, I got hired on as a private Spanish tutor for a family at the Montessori school. Their kids seem really sweet, and they're paying me $25/hr, so no complaints here. The only problem is that I haven't the slightest idea as to where to start in teaching this girl Spanish. I took my first Spanish class 8 years ago. Yikes.

This weekend, Tom and I had a bunch of friends over to just hang out and eat. While only like 3 people said they were coming, we ended up having a full apartment, and it was great. I don't think we've ever had that many people in our house at one time before, and it just made me crave Christmas season. I want to be squashed in with a million family members around, having fun, eating food, and playing games. COME ON, DECEMBER!

Anywho, if I don't leave for class now, I'll be late, and Senor Derusha will give me heck. Check him out on ratemyprofessor.com, and see what I get to deal with. Will Derusha. Do it. Check out your professors, too, if you want.

Babies

2008-09-02T09:58:00.003-05:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, BEAR AND BEULAH!

1 YEAR OLD!!!!

Last Week of August

2008-08-29T23:33:00.001-05:00

It's been a looooong week for both of us. Lots of work, school, and some fun thrown in there, too. Hopefully, we'll find time this weekend to sit down and write a nice long blog for everyone to enjoy. Have a great Labor Day weekend!

"Stiff"

2008-08-26T09:29:00.002-05:00

That's the title of the book I'm reading right now. Tommy is in complete disagreement with me on this one, and I can understand why- it's a book on...well.. stiffs. Dead bodies. Cadavers. Sounds gross, I know, but it's fascinating. More specifically, it's about what actually happens to bodies that are donated to science. Personally, I have gained a HUGE amount of respect for both the "subjects" and the researchers conducting the experiments. You wouldn't believe the things we have today that keep us safe, thanks to the people who donate themselves after they're gone. For example: seat belts, air bags, safer planes, forensics, cadaver-finding dogs (they can find a body IN A LAKE just by smelling the surface of the water!), and skilled surgeons (they used to let students watch surgeries then give it a go on unsuspecting patients),just to name a few. Unlike Tommy, I don't get squeamish reading it, but that's totally different from being there in person. I think that's what I like most about this book- the author didn't sit at a computer and make some phone calls. Oh no, whe went first-hand to morgues, hostpitals, test labs, mortuaries, anatomy labs- the whole shebang. All of this probably sounds freakish and weird, but I can't help love a book that fascinates me as much as this one does.

Wooooah

2008-08-25T09:45:00.003-05:00

"First day of school! First day of school! First day of school!"

Paz Amor Tejas

2008-08-18T19:36:00.002-05:00

So, here's a quick hit as to what T-Money and I have been up to lately:

-Went to the North Texas Fair and Rodeo
-Saw someone arrested at Kroger
-Floated the Brazos
-Officially counting down to our move-out date (Halloweenie)
-Sold the Jeep (adios, Sir Dude!)
-Prepping for school (uuuugh, one week)
-and keeping busy busy busy

more phoots, videos, and details coming soon!

UUUUGGGHHH

2008-08-12T00:52:00.003-05:00

The people next to us moves out, and I'm assuming their internet/cable was cancelled... the only thing is, when the Verizon "box in the closet" (I don't know what it is, but it's not a router) is still on with no signal, IT BEEPS and BEEPS and BEEPS. It's just loud enough to poke my brain every 30 seconds and remind me that it's there. Better yet, it's coming through our bedroom closet wall, so it sound like my pants have their own cell phone or alarm clock or some other beeping object.

Oh, we're moving out of Denton as of Halloween this year. Not because of the beeping, although that would be a good reason.

TOTALLY

2008-08-09T01:22:00.001-05:00

First of all, THANK YOU, Amelia, for posting this. I couldn't agree more with the quip about leaving Bill out of the movies. (p.s. the picture is ridikulus! get it?)

Your result for The Harry Potter Husband Test...

Mrs. Bill Weasley

Your perfect HP man is Bill Weasley.

You like guys who are cool. And not cool in that fake, dicky way, but actually cool. He's so cool that they couldn't find any actor to adequately portray him, so they decided to just leave him out of the movies rather than risk not doing justice to his coolness. He's like the Chuck Norris of Harry Potter: plain freaking awesome. When Voldemort says "You-Know-Who", he's talking about Bill Weasley.

Take The Harry Potter Husband Test at HelloQuizzy

Tomas = Awesome

2008-08-05T00:47:00.004-05:00

After a really horrible weekend (and a crap Monday), I came home from work today to find that Tommy had cleaned every single room in the apartment and had dinner in the oven... all in under 2 hours... after his 10-hour workday.

I don't deserve that man.

A past revisited, a tale of woe and hope, by TB.Sheen

2008-07-31T21:06:00.003-05:00

i just did it. i just did that. you probably wouldnt believe me if i told you. so im not going to tell you, you i am going to write it to you and this being the internet ('net), you will HAVE to believe it.... I just went back in time and read a few of my posts from when this blog first started.

ya' see? that expression you just made of utter shock and disbelief beyond any measure ever seen! but seriously though, i went back and tried to see why my posts are different. not this blog, lydia has been keeping this blog alive so its not her, but why are MY posts, the ones that come straight from me, so, i dont know, so sucky wucky? well the answer is simple, my posts in the past were kind of like this one, they came straight from my head and were sometimes just tests to see whether or not my little chubby fingers could keep up with the slipstream of thought unraveling from me. and sometimes i would win. and then other times... well he he. lets just say some other times the result of the test would be these crappy, short, purely informative posts, just to keep my family and friends updated on my life.

so here is my attempt and truly writing a blogpost in which i really care about what is written. not just, hey, got a job, its awesome. but more so like this:

hey, i finally have joined the group of people who can call themselves "lucky" and say that i do indeed have a full, non contract/temp job now, one that i can and will work for as long as is needed. and then on to bigger and better things. the good thing about this is i will be able to finally have insurance, after about a 5 year hiatus from such benefits. also, i have been a contract worker for about 2 years now so its nice to have SOME solid footing. the huge drop in crude oil prices has totally helped my work/money/stress part of life.

speaking of my little mention about oil. your right, i actually have been reading newspapers at work, sometimes listening to NPR at home or on my phone, (never anymore because i ride the new BMW 'cycle EVERYDAY.) I found that those months that I listened to the newscasts were really beneficial. And since then I have tried keeping up on the news (local, world, and beyond).

anyway yeah, having a good job is nice, and as for what i do, i work in the glass industry part of POCO right now. I keep to myself most of the day and keep entertained by listening to the Harry Potter books ALL DAY LONG. AND ITS SOOO RIGHTEOUS, IM SO SERIOUS BLACK. word. head nod for that one. i have to stop here about HP, because i have an addiction sir, and being on the final book, i cant talk about it for some fear of forgetting the information i have gained these past few weeks on everything HP. oh yeah, that huge post lyd and i are going to do is still coming, but its a lot of time needed to pull that off, so hopefully this weekend.

as for my hobbies, they have stayed the same, but have been put on hold as most of my time is filled up with 12 hour work days and the ever needful and wanting desire to be with lydia. lemme make it clear, i WANT and NEED to spend all the time i can with lydia, so i hope it didnt sound like im complaining that my hobbies have been delayed, really, its just me being lazy. anyway, i probably mentioned it awhile ago but lyd found me an old Peugeot bicycle, and after it sitting for a month or so i got around to getting it restored. my opinion is thus. dang. dang, man. it is reallllly fast and extremely smooth. i cleaned off all the rust, put on new cables, adjusted all the derailleurs, which is a feat let me tell you, derailleurs were a mystery to me, but they are actually really easy to set or adjust, anyway, i polished the paint up, bought new brake levers, cut up the handlebars, and finally i put on a new chain. i have only ridden it once, and somehow, the new chain got bent up and out of shape, so now when i pedal the bike will switch gears on me and almost feel like its "skipping" sprocket teeth. it sucks, and im out 20 bucks because the place i bought it from has a no-refunds policy. anyway, i wanted to show it off, i hope these pictures do it justice, i used my new phone:

whoops! 'did i do that?!' how did that 'yota get in there, a well, i love it.
i dont know what my facination is with things on wheels, i just love the look of that bike, i would consider selling it but when i sold that old miyota bicycle a while back, i really missed it because that bike really was perfect in many ways. anyway, it will be my physical savings account, and in the meantime i will try to get some good fun and exercise out of it. :) i cant remember what else i was going to say, so im going to stop here for now, hope all is well with everyone and i also hope i can get more people to start looking over here at the T&L blog area also at the visualizewhirledpeace.blogspot.com, because the only one who reads that it seems is verity, which we are not complaining, but i think its pretty cool. speaking of cool, have you heard about the new search engine a bunch of ex-GOOGLE-ites made? it searches a vast amount more websites than google, its spelled "Cuil" i think, but you pronounce it "cool". alright, get your boogy on!

Coming Soon...

2008-07-29T13:20:00.000-05:00

A mega-blog complete with photos from our adventures at Medieval Times and the Harry Potluck.

CONGRATULATIONS, TOMMY!

2008-07-24T00:23:00.004-05:00

(this post will be mostly in caps due to sheer awesomeness)

TOMMY GOT HIRED ON FULL-TIME AT POCO GRAPHITE!!!!! WOOOHOOOOOO!

This is Tom's first non-temp/contract job in more than a year, so we are super-stoked, and I am so proud of my man. He works so hard and does such a good job, I try never to take it for granted.

p.s. I'm taking Tom to a super-cool new Dallas restaurant this weekend. It's a surprise, so you'll have to check in next week to see where we went!

p.p.s. This is one of my favorite pictures of all time. We both look so totally stupid, and I love it. Dang! Tom's lost a lot of weight, too. I, however, have gained a few poundies. Is there anything Tom can't do? I think not...

Three cheers for Tom!

Hip Hip HOORAY
Hip Hip HOORAY
Hip Hip HOOORAAAAY

-Lydia

zoom zoom

2008-07-20T21:42:00.004-05:00

so i did it. I bought aaaanotha motorcycle. and its very nice, and made for cruising. its a 1990 bmw k75. the condition it is in makes it worth about 4,000. but i got it for about half of that. heres a little introduction, sorry if you cant understand me:) i also want to put a couple of pictures in here. dang, the video didnt work, so pictures will have to suffice.

in other news, lydia and i have found out recently about a dog park in the denton area. we went to scope it out and found out that it is quite pleasant, that is unless you get there and unfortunately mingle with the wrong crowd, aka, crackheads and crazy ladies that hold their dogs up like the ancient Egyptians did to their cats. one of the times we went there were no dogs in the small area so we had to go to the big dog area and ended up saving beulah's life from being eaten by "sarge" a giant, bullying horse-dog. since then though, we stay far away in the small/shy dog/ashamed owners area. and for the next 3 or 4 times that we have been, the socializing aspect of it all for the two twins has kind of been helping their timidness. hopefully over time they will not be such scaredy-dogs.

lydia has been going to summer school and as far as i can tell, is enjoying spending her time in the planetarium looking up and watching the history channel in huge recliners, eventually falling asleep and getting A's! kidding, but there star machine is broke so no once can help it. anyway she WILL GRADUATE OFFICIALLY in 2010, sa-weet. Her OFFICIAL major and minor are Major is Spanish with a minor in Medical Anthropology. Hopefully getting to work as a translator in a doctor's office or hospital then onto becoming a doctor who ends up saving the world. we have high hopes :)

alright, enough smooching, lets get onto the pictures

here are the pics of the motorcycle, its fun, smooth, and perfect for my long commute, which is what it is for:

yes that is bear posing on it in the first picture. awesome. my superhero!

and heres proof that i am a man:

lastly i would like to share a story. when i was growing up, living at 1316 colonial place. i remember verity getting a picture and hanging it up in the upstairs bathroom. now this picture stayed there for a very long time, i think it was there even while through my high school years. it was a picture of a bear i think that had fallen into a toilet and the caption read, "someone left the seat up again!". the other day, i was reminded of this picture while talking with lydia, she had to go to the bathroom, so she goes in there, and through the door, interrupting our convo, i hear a "SPLASH, THUMP!" and immediately knew what had happened. it was swiftly followed by a , "aaaaawwwww MAN!" and that was followed by a mega eruption of laughter that did not allow me to breathe for several minutes as air spurted out of my mouth quickly and abruptly. HA. HA. HA. HA!!!!! sooo FUNNY!!!!" my reaction was obviously met by this face: >8|, which was follwed by a "so-ashamed" face. man it was funny, now i can lift up the seat in hopes that this actually happens again. i never knew it did. i always check the seat. hehehhe

alright, bed time so that i can be up AGAIN by 2(am). g'nite

oh btw, i saw batman the dark knight twice with lydia over the weekend. it was perfect, perfectly worth the 3 year wait.

New Blog!

2008-07-15T01:04:00.001-05:00

Lydia here. Since I've almost completely taken over Tom's blog (yikes!) I've started a side blog of my own to keep me from completely consuming imdbhasnothingonme. It's a bit girly, but you should check it out: www.visualizewhirledpeace.blogspot.com. Do it! Do it now!

I Wish It Would Rain

2008-07-10T23:13:00.003-05:00

Sooooo... it's late and I'm bored so here is yet another blog from Lyd Face, as my friend Rachel so lovingly calls me.

Things I love right now:

-Texas sunsets
-98.7 KLUV
-Tomas
-My astronomy teacher who sounds like Crush from "Finding Nemo"
-Swimming and sunbathing
-Paying less then $300 for textbooks for the first time EVER
-Cottage cheese and pineapple
-Logan and Brant for making me feel like less of a giant around the Sheens
-Poppa Sheen and his help with advice for school
-Sheens in general, actually
-Finishing one chapter of my life, and anticipating the next
-Thrift World & Goodwill
-New doctors who don't terrify me
-Getting to use a big 'ol telescope to see Jupiter and Saturn up close
-Being told by 2 people that they enjoy how funny I am
-Growing my hair out (it's almost as long as Derrick's now! (kidding!))
-Reading other people's blogs
-CuteOverload.com (I STRONGLY suggest a daily look at this website)
-My polka-dot backpack I bought for 95 cents
-"WALL-E"
-Beef jerky (I know I don't eat beef, but my protein deficiency combined with Tommy's taunting destroyed me)
-The knowledge that urine is sterile (I change loooots of diapers)
-Memories of Palio's
-Meeting new friends and neighbors (and their dogs- like Tiki who Bear and Beulah LOOOOVE)
-Cold soda pop
-Mi familia
-Sleeping in
-All things Harry Potter
-Recycling
-The return of air conditioning
-WEEKENDS
-Tomas

Weekday Update

2008-07-08T22:57:00.004-05:00

A few quick hits since tomorrow's super-busy and Tom's snoring away already:

-4th of July weekend was looooong, relaxing, and very much in order. We spent a great deal of it in the pool and hanging out with friends which was EXACTLY what we wanted to do. We attempted to go to Addison's Kaboomtown fireworks show, but almost died along the way in traffic and ended up missing most of it. Tom and I did, however, pretend we were in a spy movie by running full-speed back to our car in the parking garage. Sa-weet.

-Switched over to Sprint for cell phone usage and found an amazing deal (thanks Poppa Sheen!). Our phones are currently in the mail, so the excitement has waned somewhat, but it's still cool knowing we wont be using a thrift store phone and a pay-as-you-go phone anymore. Wooooot.

-Took Bear and Beulah to a dog park this afternoon which went smoothly for a while, but ended in me yelling at some lady. Details to follow.

-Tom's working super super hard lately, taking on a bunch of 12-hour shifts and being a trooper about it. Hopefully the sting of driving to Decatur everyday will be eased when he gets his new MOTORCYCLE :)

-And last but not least... (DRUMROLL PLEASE) LYDIA P. ANDERSON IS GRADUATING FROM COLLEGE IN MAY!!!!!! If all goes well and I get the classes I want in the spring, I will FINALLY have a degree. Suffice it to say that that thought alone has kept me working extra hard these past few weeks, and makes the onset of summer school bearable.

Thank you everyone for keeping us updated with your blogs- it's the highlight of my day to find out what everyone's up to. have a goooood hump day tomorrow.

"The Perks of Being a Wallflower"

2008-06-26T23:23:00.002-05:00

Here's a video and some photos to keep everyone updated. So far, so good, other than a hectic week. Expect another blog sometime next week. Have a great weekend!

This dragonfly was just hanging out on the Jeep's antenna. Speaking of, did you know that dragonflies bite?!

Crazy eyes!

An AWESOME shopping trip with the one and only Tyler Foley.

An anvil cloud- these are where tornadoes come from. If you see one of these, hightail it out of there. Luckily, this was way off in the distance so we just got to enjoy the lightning.

Here area few videos and photos to keep everyone better updated on our lives.

This video is just a sample of my class. Note: this was taken on an EXTREMELY mellow day.

Shake Shake Shake Shake a-SHAKE IT

2008-06-24T21:10:00.002-05:00

Lydia and Tomas here, providing you with an update on what's cooking in our neck of the woods.

Big plans for this weekend!! Friday night, Tom and I are treating ourselves to a double dose of movies. First, "Wall-e" and then "Wanted." Sa-weet.

As for Sunday...drumroll please.... HARRY POTLUCK! Movie marathon of the last three Harry Potter movies complete with home-made trivia game, HP-themed snacks, and costumes. Yes, we're nerds, but there's at least 3 other friends of ours that will partake in the nerdfest with us.

So, those are our totally awesome weekend plans. As for this week so far, we've been hanging around a lot with Senor Tyler Foley, Jenna, and Brian. We've had some rockin' times, most notably our discovery of a new Denton-exclusive restaurant; Mr. Chopsticks. See: good prices, great food, and the best service ever. Yea, he was that nice.

Something that is NOT cool, however (no pun intended) is that Quinn the Eskimo (i.e. Lydia's Beetle) has lost his ability to create conditioned air for its passengers. This means a hefty investment of $200+ and a week of sweating like crazy from Denton to Flower mound twice a day, every day. UUUUUUGH.

That seems to be about it, but stay tuned for further updates from the Burrow.

(Ten points to anyone who can name what the Burrow is.)

AAAARRR!!! ITS THE BLOGNESS MONSTAH!!

2008-06-19T18:52:00.001-05:00

you remember in waterworld when the guy with the long red hair, well at the end of the movie, he gets into the head dude's car, and then he yells, "HA! I've always wanted to drive this MONST-AH!!" yeah, thats awesome. and whenever I say monster in my head I always say it like that guy, you remember that? I dont know why that movie ever bombed. dot dot dot..... kidding, I love that movie.

I started to write this blog because Lydia kept bothering me about it, kidding, she gently nudged me and said that we could write one together. so I just farted in her face. it worked, so it was a great idea, I won't even tell you who is typing, just watch the better word use, better punctuation, better jokes, etc. etc. that's when youll know lydia is typing. Right now i am kind of watching the hitchhiker's guide to the galaxy. i started reading the book but just got busy in something else I guess, so I am trying to watch the movie for the...4th time in a row, and I have successfully gotten through the intro. awesome.

as you may notice, I am just kind of rambling, that is because I dont have much to say. so some quick bits. i stopped listening to NPR Radio because it gets more and more depressing everyday. This week at work I am doing 12 hour shifts, which aint fun, aint fun atall. and yes, aint and atall are purposely mispelled. man, i wish i could say more but heck nah, its time for bed. Ill type more later, chow!

Howdy Howdy

2008-06-12T23:12:00.005-05:00

This is how it goes down in our house when it comes to blogging:
Lydia: Tom, you really should blog. Everyone's going to get sick of me soon.
Tom: You always say that.
Lydia: That's because it's true, and you know you haven't blogged in, like, weeks.
Tom: Let's go bowling.
(So we go bowling.)

Surprise, it's me, Lydia.... again. I just wrote a big 'ol blog about what we do on a day-to-day basis, but I'll let the pictures speak for themselves. If the saying's right, I'll have saved a couple thousand words.

SO, here they are. (I promise Tom'll blog soon, but if he refuses I'll just turn this into a recipe forum :) )

Where's bear?

Sick on the couch. (Note the Coke-bottle glasses due to eye nastiness. Don't push your contacts' limits, friends)

Tom and Beulah cuddle like this literally every night. Super cute.

Re-decorated bedroom that we both (amazingly) LOVE.

This picture has "what up?" written all over it.

Beulah's a cool lady.

What happens when we clean and purge our closets? This happens. (I love that Beu is just chilling like nothing's off)

I don't know why, but I really enjoy this photo.

Mom's new GIANT GREEN UMBRELLA for their backyard. Saweet.

Check out my baby's baby blues.

On University Drive, close to home. Awesome? Yea, it is.

No explanation available nor needed.

Wild Friday Night

2008-06-06T21:02:00.001-05:00

Both too sick to do anything.

Crazay Weekend

2008-06-02T00:38:00.004-05:00

Lyd here.

It's late, so I'm just going to give a brief update on what's going on withme, Tomas, and everyone we know. Bullets are in order:

-Attending our first wedding together for friends Zeaf and Jen. Awesome. (Lyd and Tom)
-Still shaking off sun poisoning from, obviously, being out too long in the sun. This equaled fever, chills, and general ick. (Lydia)
-Getting cheated by a man selling a motorcycle. See: $600, jerk, small claims court, etc. (Tom)
-Finally recovered from a nasty allergic reaction (to who knows what) that led to face swelling and ridiculous amounts of vomit. (Bear)
-Staying strong, cool, and courteous through a topsy-turvy time at work. (Ma)
-Recovering from a spill on a motorcycle that took weeks to get running. (Dad)
-Finishing sophomore year at Marcus High. (Elliot)
-Hoping to go to Boston for Mike McCullagh's wedding. (lots of us)
-Baby-sitting for rock stars. (Lydia)
-Trucking along at work despite rough hours and injury. (Tom)
-Coming home safe and sound from the Rupublica Dominicana. (Luc)
-Getting dressed up to see the midnight show of "Sex and the City: The Movie" and loving every single minute of it. (Lydia, Jenna, Katie, Lorraine, Des, Summer, Lindsay)
-Being sick and sunburned. (Lyd)
-Being the best thing that could ever come into Lydia's life. (Tom)

"One Word"

2008-05-28T20:14:00.002-05:00

Lydia here. Tom's napping in the other room, so I thought I'd give this a go.

1.Where is your cell phone? purse
2. Your significant other? favorite
3. Your hair? brown
4. Your mother? saweet
5. Your father? funny
6. Your favorite thing? summer
7. Your dream last night? turkey
8. Your favorite drink? Propel
9. Your dream/goal? house
10. The room you're in? office
11. Your hobby? cooking
12. Your fear? dark
13. Where do you want to be in 6 years? married
14. Where were you last night? organizing
15. What you're not? conceited
16. Muffins? Spunkmeyer
17. One of your wish list items? books
18. Where you grew up? TX
19. The last thing you did? ate
20. What are you wearing? dress
21. Your TV? square
22. Your pets? twins
23. Your computer? Mac
24. Your life? saweeeeeeet
25. Your mood? comfy
26. Missing someone? mama
27. Your car? Beetle
28. Something you're not wearing? shoes
29. Favorite store? thrift
30. Your summer? needed
31. Like someone? lots
32. Your favorite color? pink
33. When is the last time you laughed? earlier
34. Last time you cried? dunno
35. Tag? Tom

FOTOS!

2008-05-23T11:38:00.003-05:00

Funny pictures for you to enjoy.

This kills me.

Tommy looks like a baby!!

Lydia loves searching for crabs at the Gulf.

This is the sound you would've heard had you been in the kyak, "Tommmyyyy!!! Come baaaaaack! Don't leeeeeeave meeeee!"

My friend, Jenna, saw this picture and laughed for about 10 minutes. She suggested we use this for our engagement photo when the time comes. Good call, Jenna. Good call.

Hilarious Palio's hijinks. My car is under there somewhere.

Tommy here, are you ready to float in space?!

2008-05-18T22:50:00.005-05:00

OK, so Lydia has been constantly telling me how much I neeed to blog. Well, here is the answer to your prayers. I am going to first smack up some news here on how things are going and what is going.

New job - It's again, at POCO Graphite, I work 50 hour weeks, and with that 10 hours overtime I am doing pretty well, about the same as I was doing at IBM. The work is long and monotonous, you could say that I am a machinist and that I basically take the raw graphite and, mainly using a band-saw, size the graphite into plates or blocks, depending on what it will be at the end of the process, but I basically work at the "prep-cell" area, getting everything down to size to fit into other machines. So some more details would be what exactly we do at POCO. Well, first off, no we don't make graphite for pencils, it goes just a bit further than that, we make things like heart valves, little discs that can be radiated and inserted into tumors to kill them, jet engine materials, and other items for the glass making industry. It's fun and we first got our start with NASA. So to explain a bit why we make so many cool parts, check this - graphite is carbon based, humans are carbon based, so using heart valves made of graphite means that the body will not reject that part, also, graphite has amazing heating/cooling properties, so NASA used this graphite concoction in their heat shield for a number of shuttles. Anyway, the people I work with are awesome, my first boss reminds me of "the dude" from the movie "The Big Lebowski", if you haven't seen the movie then let me say that this guy says "man" alot, "dude" alot, and other types of words which I cannot repeat. The other people are really nice and are warming up to me. For fun, I shaved my head into a mohawk and cut my facial hair into a go-T and huge farmer john 'hawks'. Heres a bad picture of the go-t and you can kind of see the hawk, again I did this for a joke but have yet to chop it off, as you can imagine, everywhere I go I see people staring. Oh, and that is a delicious Sonic Chocolate Malt by the way -

my eyes look weird.

Alright, I have also been looking for a cheap, worry free motorcycle to replace my long-gone Suzuki, which I have for about 3 years I think, great bike, but not good for the fast and long haul to work everyday. So I went this past weekend and decided on this bike -

I am buying it from a guy who customizes golf carts, by putting kits on them, so his carts would look like a Chevy Tahoe, a Lamborghini, etc, etc. Awesome.

Man, it's late, and I have so much more to blog about, but I am going to call it quits for now, Ill try to post more later, hope everyone is doing well, and thanks for all the calls I got for my birthday! I had like 16 in one hour, awesome!!!

Weekday Update

2008-05-08T13:44:00.003-05:00

Howdy, ya'll. Lydia here, as always.

As you can probably tell, Tom and I have been busy, busy, busy (as I'm sure everyone else is too!). So, as most of you may know, T got a new job at a company in Decatur called POCO Graphite. As our friend Lucas put so nicely, "Tom, you're actually a subcontractor for NASA." I laughed, then realized it's true. I'll let Tommy fill you in on the details of what his job actually entails as I'm afraid I'll describe it incorrectly.

The pups are doing well, and they're FINALLY recovering from their surgeries. Eck. I hate hate hate that we had to do that to them, but I suppose it's for the best. Our old baby gate broke months ago, and we've finally come around to buying a new one. Why wait so long, you ask? Because finding one that they cannot climb, move, or unlatch themselves has been a challenge. They're like teeny-tiny escape artist monkeys that look like dogs.

One. More. Final. To. Go. Then it's about 2 months of resting my brain until I start making nightly treks to the observatory for astronomy lessons. I'm dreading getting my grades back from this semester, but here's a hearty CONGRATULATIONS to Traci for kicking tush this semester!

Work at the Montessori school is going extremely well, too. In fact, I've been asked to babysit one of the kids in my class at home, which means I must be all right.

This weekends is big for us:
First and foremost, TOMMY'S 22nd BIRTHDAY EXTRAVAGANZA is this weekend, which I have seriously fallen behind on because of school. I've even forgotten to invite a lot of people, so lots of calls will be made tonight. Ugh. I'm a bad hostess.

Second, I'll hopefully be getting a moped this weekend!! Woot. While this may seem like a luxury, it's actually going to save me a ton of money. I drive aobut 15 miles to and from work everyday (totally 30) which is taking a hefty toll on my wallet since I only work part-time. I literally work to make my car payments and buy gas. That's it. Gas is about $3.50 here and only going to rise, so investing in a more fuel efficient vehicle isn't a bad idea. Plus, it'll save me about $200 in parking stickers a year for UNT. Woooo hooo.

Hopefully, this has reassured everyone that we're still alive and doing well. Have a wonderful weekend and happy Mother's day!

We Are So Boring

2008-05-07T09:19:00.001-05:00

Lydia does this: eat, work, study, sleep
Tommy does this: eat, work, sleep

Lack of blog due to chaos

2008-04-28T12:17:00.003-05:00

Lydia here (yes, again).

My apologies on behalf of both Tommy and myself, because of the craziness that is in our lives right now. Tom's got a morning-shifted schedule that begins around 4 a.m. everyday, ending around 10 with 10-hour work days in between. I am so proud of him for working so hard. I'll let him fill you in on the details when he gets a chance, but he's amazing, nonetheless.

Moreover, we had both of the puppies fixed last Thursday, and it's been miserable for them. To give you an idea, I cried when we picked them up, because I felt so bad, and it's been an uphill battle ever since. They used dissolving stitches, which would be fine for people, but for puppies with extra-long tongues, it's not so helpful. SO, we've got Bear in one of those ridiculous Elizabethan collars and Beulah confined to the bathroom, but that didn't stop Bear from popping one of his stitches and Beu from licking off the skin glue. AAARG. I thought I'd like to have twins in the future, but after these two, I just don't know.

To top it all off, this week is dead week, which means finals are in 7 days! WOOOOOOOT and ARRRRG all at the same time. I am stoked to get this semester over with, but not looking forward to the massive amounts of studying that it will entail.

Well, there's a short update on our lives. I hope everyone is having a great week so far, and good luck to Derrick and Traci on their NYC adventure!

Yea, it's finally happened

2008-04-21T20:46:00.002-05:00

It's official- school has taken over my life. It literally consumes 99% of my time. For example, I have my last assignment of the year due tomorrow, and it happens to be a presentation in French. Good night nurse! I haaaaaaaaaate giving asinine reports. Honestly, I am not nervous giving a well-researched presentation over biological warfare or some hooplah like that, but talking about my dogs is just stupid. Sorry, but it is.

I promise I'll get Tommy to write a blog soon, as you're probably as sick of reading my posts as I am.

Tomorrow's Earth Day, so celebrate by doing something...earthy, I guess. We're organizing our recycling and I may make a vegan and/or organic dinner tomorrow. hmmm..... what to do.

p.s. Tommy's birthday gift is the COOLEST THING EVER IN THE ENTIRE WORLD. Hopefully he'll let you know after he gets it. woot.

It's me....again

2008-04-16T12:41:00.002-05:00

Lydia here...again. I know you're probably tired of me, but TOO bad. Just kidding. or not.

Anywhos, I'm here in the Union at school, as usual, but I'm using one of those keyboards that's split. You know, the ones that are supposed to be more ergonomic? In reality, they just irritate me by reminding me over and over and over again that you're supposed to use your RIGHT hand to hit the "y" key. Dang, this is really throwing me off. This is making me think of my keyboarding class at Marcus. I had Mrs. Berry who was the single strangest/coolest teacher ever. She was exceptionally strict, but kind of batty so it cancelled out. I got a 110 in that class, and I don't even think that's possible. I'm a wicked typer, though. Well, I was until I met this keyboard. ARG! I'm just going to ignore the letter "y" for the rest of this blog.

SO, Tomas got the job!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WOO-freaking-HOO! I am so incredibl_ proud of him. Seriousl_, he's done such a great job recentl_, I can't wait for his birthda_ blowout. It's going to be sa-weeeeeeeeeet.

Less than one month left of classes. Goodness gracious, I'm going to pee m_ pants if I pass m_ political science class. 65% of the class failed our last test, _et he refuses to give us a curve and to change the format of the exams. Ma_be something's wrong with the test?! Psht. Bullhonk, I sa_. That mother-hugger better get it straight before the final, because I am NOT going to fail a 1000-level class. I've studied m_ buns of for the exams, and I sincerel_ don't think that a 52 is representative. Grrrrrrrrrrrr.

An_whos... Thanks, Amelia for the quote, it really made me laugh, and _ou can bet it'll be added to the quotes archive. If this book is actuall_ a reall_ lame idea, please let me know so I'm not prancing around like it's a good idea.

Blah blah blah. I guess I'll drag my sorry tush to class.

T-T-T-T-Tuesday

2008-04-14T12:24:00.004-05:00

Lydia here

So, tomorrow is the big day. Tom has his interview at Poco Graphite, and I can't stress enough how nerve-racking this has been for us. Honestly, the both of us need him to get this job like nobody's business, so we're asking that family and friends pray, fast, cross fingers, rub rabbits' feet, or do anything that they think may help Tom in his interview. Personally, I think he'll ace it, but I'm not one to shun a bit of good luck.

That's really all that's been going on lately, honestly, so here's an update on the quote book for you (remember, I'd love your help!):

(at the Montessori school)

Me: Kendall, do you need to go to the bathroom?
Kendall: No...
Me: Then why are your hands in your pants?
Kendall: I'm just pulling my panties out of my butt.

subtle.

-----------------

(again, at the Montessori school. sitting at the teeny-tiny table with Rachel and Brady, eating Nilla Wafers)

Rachel: When I was a baby I ate a bowl.
Me: That's not good- you don't do that anymore, do you?
Rachel: When I was a baby I ate my cubby.
Me: Did you?
Rachel: When I was a baby, I ate your hand.
Me: Ouch! That would hurt!
Rachel: (looking at Brady) When I was a baby, I ate Brady...
Brady: (pauses momentarily, apparantly in shock, then pointing angrily at Rachel) I EAT YOU!!!!!
Me: Brady, calm down. Rachel, let's not eat anyone, okay?
Brady: (muttering under his breath) I'm gonna eat your head...
Me: Okay, snack time is over.

It never ends.

that would happen to me

2008-04-09T12:38:00.001-05:00

I just typed a whole long blog about how badly things are going, but the computer froze and I lost it. It's not even worth re-typing. Suffice it to say that my new name is Crankster McGee.

-Lydia

Just a quick Pic blog of the BEST FIND OF THE CENTURY!!!

2008-04-06T22:36:00.010-05:00

Alright, because Lydia and I are wanting to watch the rest of Robin Hood Men In Tights before bed, we are going to co-blog quickly and share some pictures with you finally of our puppies, to show how big they have become, and of the best find Lydia and I have ever been lucky enough to come across... READ FOR FURTHER INFORMATION-

if you dare...

First off, the puppies, being cute. as always. i know this is gramatically and punctually incorrect, im just going quickly and putting periods and commas where I want. Deal.

This a bearific profile shot of Bear. He's handsome...

The pups were outside allllllldaaayyyyyylooonnnggg, so now they sleep sleep sleep.

NOW ON TO THE GREATEST DISCOVERY EVAH!!!!

AND YES, THIS WILL ALL BE IN CAPS, THANK YOU FOR LISTENING...

LYDIA AND I WERE DRIVING BACK FROM A VERY SUCCESSFUL THRIFT EXPERIENCE, ONE THAT WAS CHEAP AND LONG OVERDUE. AS WE ARE COMING DOWN WAKETON, TO GO TO THE ANDERSON'S, LYDIA ASKS, NONCHALANTLY, "HEY, DID YOU SEE THAT CHEST BACK THERE? IT WAS HUGE! I SAW SOMETHING LIKE THAT IN A MAGAZINE THAT I COULD USE FOR AN ENTRY-WAY." SHE LOOKS AT ME. i look at her. we look at each other. i say, "WELL, LET'S GO GET IT THEN, IF IT'S IN GOOD SHAPE."
AS WE TURNED AROUND, I DIDN'T THINK MUCH OF WHAT WAS GOING TO HAPPEN TO MY LIFE, BUT AS WE NEARED THIS 'TREASURE CHEST'(LYD: I'VE BEEN WAITING TO SAY THAT ALL WEEKEND) WE REALIZED HOW MUCH POTENTIAL THIS CHEST, 'SCUSE ME, TREASURE CHEST, HAD.

SO MINUTES LATER, AFTER FETCHING A LARGER CAR, IT BEING ABOUT 4 FEET WIDE, WE APPREHENDED IT.

LATER, AFTER IT WAS SITTING IN THE GARAGE, WE NOTICED IT HAD A LOCK, WHICH WAS LOCKED, AND THE HINGES ON THE BACK OF THE LID WERE TAKEN OFF.

SO FIRST THINGS FIRST, WE WANTED TO OPEN IT, JUST TO MAKE SURE THERE WASN'T ANYTHING INSIDE. WITHOUT TOUCHING THE LOCK WE TOOK THE LID OFF. AND THIS IS WHAT WE FOUND:

1. IT'S A SOLID CEDAR LANE CHEST
2. THE KEY FOR THE LOCK WAS HELD IN AN ORIGINAL ENVELOPE, AUGUST 27, 1941. SO IT'S 67 YEARS OLD.
3. THE INTERIOR IS PERFECT, INCLUDING THE ORIGINAL $100 INSURANCE POLICY NOTE INTACT ON THE LID.
4. THIS IS POSSIBLY THE BEST FIND EVER- SO I AM GOING TO USE SOME SPACES

WE FOUND 4 AUTOGRAPHED NOLAN RYAN BASEBALLS, FROM 1985. SA. WEET.

ILL GO BACK TO NORMAL TYPE NOW.

Here's proof-

(note we gave one to mr. anderson already for all the help he gave us in polishing it, fixing a foot, and hauling it.)

'Yota and the Bun'

2008-04-03T23:32:00.003-05:00

Man oh man, as everyone should know by now, the US of good ol' A is in a crisis. I blame Bear Sterns (sp), they shouldn't have been gambling with everyone's savings and social security money in the stock market, but who cares now, the federal government just gave them 18 billion dollars to stay afloat, because if they went bankrupt, everyone would be screwed. Thats what Public Radio feeds me anyway. So with gas prices being high I have considered a new vehicle, and yes I have hit my one year mark with Sir Dude, and I have loved every minute of it. If gas goes up to $4 or more, Ill have to part with it.... FOR ONE OF THESE!!!!

And yes, I am being serious. I would like my next choice of wheels to be another Toyota pickup. It would be so awesome, only a mid 80s version though. I write this blog today because this guy in our apartment complex has a 1982 Toyota Pickup 4WD(underlined)!!! AND ITS ALREADY CAMOUFLAGED FOR ALL MY INNER CITY HUNTING NEEDS. Im on the prowl, all you other 'yotas, this bad boy's gunna GITCHYA!!
It's got a new engine in it, with paperwork, but just needs the rear end tuned up, whatever that means. Oh yeah, and its been in a wreck but just needs the door panel popped out, nothing I am not used to from good ol Blue Bunny.

Anyway, I REALLY wanted to share this commerical with all you, 'specially the lucky ones who got to drive the Bunny for all those 12 long years we had her...

this ones for yo-

PHOTOS

2008-04-02T11:41:00.006-05:00

Lydia here. So, in an attempt to keep myself from completely freaking out about our financial situation (which seems like it just doesn't want to get better), I have begun to preoccupy myself with projects.

Project One:
-Organize the massive amounts of recipes I've found on the internet, in magazines, on jars, on boxes, etc. etc.

Project Two:
-Plan Tommy's 22nd birthday party. I have some wiiiiicked ideas for it, and I hope it'll be as big of a hit as it was last year, because that was the party to end all parties.

Project Three:
-Keep working out. This is something I've actually been doing consistently for just over a week, which is saying something since I haven't exercised since high school.

Combine those things with school and work and I've got a pretty full plate. Speaking of, Derrick mentioned in his and Traci's blog that they try and outdo each other as to whose day is harder. I was surprised to read that, because Tommy and I do the exact same thing, and it's not a malicious thing, but we started to get on each other's nerves so we've shifted to trying to outdo each other by competing in who shows their appreciation most.

The Cassavettes were here a few weeks ago for their annual homecoming show, and I was asked to take the photos of the band, and some of them turned out pretty well. Enjoy!

View from behind the band

Scott described this photo as "a baby bird hearing his first guitar solo"

TSJOME

The rockers

Robert Sutherland is a dancing foooool

Scott's dad is on the far left- he has the coolest name of anyone ever: Ace Jones. COME ON!

Mike and Scott

Matt Snow, drummer extraordinaire

Katie and Ryan

Jenna and Brian

A face fit for a zombie movie

I should be studying

2008-03-31T12:14:00.005-05:00

UPDATE: Yesterday at work, the tornado sirens went of around 3:30, thus ushering us into the bathroom in our classroom. So, for about 45 minutes, it was me and 5 kids sitting in the bathroom, reading stories and singing songs. Thankfully, they're too young to really have known what was going on- they just thought we were having circle time in the bathroom for the heck of it. It was pretty freaky for a while, because the hail got to be near-tennis ball size and it really did look like there was a twister a-comin' outside. Anywhos, it was a little out-of-the-norm and I thought it blog worthy.

Weird. I'm on a computer in the Union at UNT and on my first attempt to write this, all of the letters showed up as different lines in a barcode...spooky.

Anywhos, I guess the couple sitting in front of me has finished making out, so I'm not making a "SERIOUSLY?!" face anymore while wondering how PDA doesn't bother some people. I'm okay with holding hands, hugging, and a nice kiss, but rubbing your mouth all over someone else's face in public is...well, skanky, in my opinion.

In other news, I'm sick and tired of being broke, because living paycheck to paycheck is not a fun way to live. Money is stressing me out, and annoying me. This summer I'll have a full-time position at the Montessori school, so that'll be nice, but that doesn't change the fact that I may not make my car payment this month. Ugh, this is going to make me cry. I feel like such a bum. I've had a job since my junior year of high school, and I still can't get it together. I know that I'm still in school, but it just makes me feel so lame to not be able to stand on my own. bleh.

Enough of that, though. The weather has been gorgeous this past weekend, and continues to be that way today. All of this warm weather and sunshine just makes me want to go kyaking, because that's what you do when it's nice outside. Tommy got really into it last year with the Great Flood of North Texas, and, in turn, I got hooked on it. Tom actually HAS a kyak, but I just mooch and use Lucas'. We tried canoeing, too, but it was a bust. I just whined about how hard it was.

(as a side note, the computer I'm using is next to the Wells Fargo inside the Union, and some dude is sitting here counting out a gigantic wad of money. I think I'll rob him. Just kidding. It does feel like he's mocking me, though. God must have a sense of humor.)

Alright, I've blabbed on enough, and I've got a bit of studying to do. I hope everyone is enjoying the last day of March- have a good day!