Moving and Packing, Packing and Moving

My list continues to grow. With every one thing I mark off, two more pop up. Seriously, what's up with that?!

I think downsizing is what's making it a little more difficult. If we were just moving to a same size apartment, or a house, it wouldn't be this way. I could just pack stuff up a week before and toss it in a room to at the new place to sort though later. We don't have that luxury this time.

I've already emptied three shelves of a 5-shelf unit (boxed for storage, that is). I've boxed for storage our DVD collection. Just the DVDs. We still have a 4-shelf unit of blu-ray and xbox games. That one won't get boxed as those are the ones we usually seldom never watch (it's the ones we go to when we actually watch a movie that isn't on cable or Netflix or Amazon Prime or HBO Go).

And, my latest accomplishment, I've boxed up my important papers.

I am a recipt/bill/paper pack-rat. I keep all my important papers throughout the year in a drawer in my office. At the end of the year, I empty it into a bag/box/large envelope (to sort though at some point) and start fresh in the same drawer for the new year. My goal is to sort through the previous year and get rid of receipts I no longer need, random papers that got tossed in there, forms I filled out for work but don't need to keep anymore, etc. Of the five years worth of papers I went through the other night, only one year was already sorted and toned down to essentials. That's how "great" I am at the sorting part.

What are the essentials? Car tag paper work, bills that were paid (mainly medical stuff), bank statements (still in the envelopes they came in), some water bills (also still in the envelopes), paperwork from new accounts, etc. I also ran across my wedding folder from 2011...I kept it all!

I'm glad we have our own shredder now...cause I filled that puppy UP! I even emptied it BEFORE I started shredding stuff! I think I filled a 13 gallon trash bag with receipts to trash and shredding bits. Confetti, anyone?

I still need to do so much:  the spare room closet, the spare room storage, the stuff under the bed in the spare room, the last two shelves of the 5-er, the 3-shelf unit in the living room, the hall closets, under the bathroom sinks, and my closet.

I did get some more boxes...the banker boxes. I thought those would be good for books and magazines. That way they don't get too heavy and there are handles to carry them.

It's just A LOT to do!

But then, anyone who has ever had to move knows what it's like!

 Happy Wednesday, y'all!! 

The Nail Files - On A Silver Platter

As you may (or may not) have seen here, I got some lovely polishes for Christmas. I've tried out two of the three, but had yet to try Essie's On A Silver Platter.

I was intending to do it over another color since it has a clear base, but hadn't decided which one yet. Yesterday morning, on a whim, I tried a layer on my thumb just to see what it looked like without a base color.

Uh...AMAZING!!

I ended up just going for it with out a base color!

 This is angled so you can see the gold micro-glitter coverage at certain angles/light.

 This gives a better idea of the clear base, but the holographic/iridescence of some of the other glitters in there. Even the blue flakes have a bit of a holographic shine to them in certain light.

I did two coats to try to "even out" the blue glitter. But I really didn't need to.

I think I have a navy blue that this will be AMAZE-BALLS over, so stay tuned for that test run!

And, as always, I'm linking up:



Head over and check out some of the other great manicures and show some love!  :)

Happy Friday!

The Moving To Do List

We are moving!

And while Mr S is gone, I've decided to take the time and start packing up the non-essentials of the apartment.

We're also moving into a smaller apartment, so part of the packing is working to downsize stuff...like our DVDs, tchotchkes, etc.

It's a bit of a daunting task.

Monday evening I started sorting the DVDs, alphabetically. We have A LOT!! And that didn't include the Blu-Ray movies or the Disney Movies (Disney Movies get their own category, thank you!)!

Tuesday I started packing them. I decided to inventory them, too. Because as I was sorting, I discovered we had three copies of Ocean's Eleven. THREE!!! And that's not including the original with Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, and Sammy Davis Jr. And there were other movies we had more than one copy of. I realize that happens when people get married...you join stuff together and get duplicates of stuff.

**Update on Ocean's Eleven - it was really only two copies. The third copy was actually Ocean's Twelve, which, in my defense, the covers look VERY similar. Similar - as in one is white and the other is black.**

***Another duplicate movie update - we had two copies of Sex in the City. I'm pretty sure both were mine. If not, I don't really want to know!***

Today, I got the rest added to the list and attempted to pack them. However the remaining containers I have are smaller than the one I used yesterday and M-Y won't fit. So I need another 20 gallon container to finish packing the movies (payday on Friday!) and those will be done.

I also realized my alphabetical powers have dwindled a bit. There were about three movies that were mis-alphabetized. Oh well, it happens

My next task is our closet. I realize I can't do much with his stuff. But I desperately need to sort out my clothes and shoes. Cause we're getting a smaller closet to go with the smaller place! And I know there are tops in there I haven't worn in over six months. There may be some dresses and pants in there, too. I see a trip to the Salvation Army in my future...for a very large donation!

Another thing I want to do is pack up some of our non-essential kitchen stuff. You know, all the stuff we registered for when we got married but haven't used because we don't entertain because we live in an apartment. The stuff we still won't use for the next year or so while we're in an even smaller apartment than we're in now. Yeah...that stuff.

I've also got to go through the stuff under the bathroom sinks and downsize all that. And figure out how I'm going to store my expanding obsession collection of nail polish. Cause the current system won't fly over there.

And I have three black drawer towers (inherited from my roommate 4 years go...thank you Mar) that have become junk drawers. It's beyond time for those to be cleared out. Besides, I've already got plans for them as extra storage space around the new place!

There is a lot to do. Thankfully, I have the time to do it.

Now if I could just find that motivation. I left it around here somewhere...

First Full Day Away

Yesterday I took Mr S to the airport. He was headed to Idaho for a month.

A Whole Month!!

Now, I did sanction this trip (AKA...he asked me if I would be okay with him being gone that long before he committed to it).

But still...

What's really weird is that I'm usually a loner, anyway. I'm just used to having him around...to come home to, to share a bed with, to fight over the TV with.

Today was the first full day with out him. Honestly, it's all good. Nothing exciting happened.

And, to be honest, this isn't the first time we've been apart this long. He did a work trip last year for just as long. But I was able to go spend some time with him for the half of the first week, so it didn't seem so long. Finances won't allow that this time around.

Thankfully, since we're also moving next month (the week after he comes home we start the process), I have something to focus my time and energy on  while he's gone. The plan is to have all the non-essential stuff packed up and ready to go.

We'll see how accomplished that plan is come February 13!

The Nail Files

One again, I'm linking up with the gals for:




This past week I kept my nails fairly simple:

I don't remember the names, but both are Julep colors. (I think the black glitter is Beatrix from a previous Bombshell box...the white is one I've had for about a year). The glitter is a clear base with black, gold, and iridescent flecks (that are hard to see in these pictures). This was my weekend through Monday mani.

Right now I'm sporting one of my Christmas colors:

Essie's Mochachino (forgive the chipped tips...this mani has been on since Wednesday morning). The picture doesn't do it full justice as there's a hint of shimmer to this color that really sets it off nicely. It may be one of my new favorites (I know, I say that a lot).

I'm feeling a little adventurous for my next mani, so hopefully I'll have some cute nail art for you next week.

Until then...happy Friday, lovelies!

The Nail Files - New Year's Eve/Day Mani

I did these Tuesday, New Years Eve, while I binge-watched Downton Abbey. Aside from running the dishwasher and cooking dinner, doing my nails was the only thing I did all day while sitting on the couch with one of my favorite British shows. And, since I was having a lazy day, I kept it simple:

Julep's Claire under Sinful Color's Ice Dream.

Before settling on Claire, I actually had four different blues on four fingers trying to decide the right shade to go under Ice Dream (from my Christmas haul). I think Claire was a perfect choice. Ice Dream went on very well. It's a clear polish with tiny silver glitter and larger blue flakes. The picture doesn't do the silver justice, but you can kind of see it there. And it has nice coverage, for a glitter polish.

Now, come join the rest of nail polish junkies and show off your manicure from the week!

Happy Friday, dolls!

Words for the New Year

I receive the Quote of the Day from Goodreads in my email every day. I don't always read them the day they come in, and I don't save all of them. But the ones that strike me as important or in need of remembering are still in a folder in my email.

Here is the quote from yesterday:

I hope that in this year to come, you make mistakes. Because if you are making mistakes...you're Doing Something. 
 ~ Neil Gaiman

Happy Thursday!

Weightloss Journey

As the first day of 2014 I thought I'd keep with tradition and do the usual weight loss goal for my year. I know, everyone sets out at the beginning of the year with a weight loss or healthier lifestyle goal. And about February, everyone has given up on that goal.

I did the same thing last year, only I made it to about June or July before throwing in the towel, for the most part. I didn't fully give up...I was still paying for weight watchers and I was still keeping track of my food (most days, or maybe two - three days a week). But I wasn't really enthused about it anymore.

I lost about 15 pounds the first three to four months last year. Which, when you think about, is pretty good! I was okay with that. But then I hit a wall. I gained a pound; I lost a pound; I lost another pound; I gained a pound back. No matter what I would do, including boot camp twice a week at one point (only for a month, though...might have been the problem), I couldn't push past that mark. And I need to push past it...I'm still about 50 pounds over weight (based on medical information).  *Thankfully, I'm tall and can hide it very well...but I feel it, so it doesn't really matter that much.*

So while my goal is lose weight and get healthy this year, it's more about pushing past that wall I've hit. I'm going to make a  more conscious effort to do more activities and be more active. I bought some work out stuff the other day at Walmart that I'll be testing out later today...I'm actually excited about it! And I've done some research for stuff I can do at home...squat challenges, ab challenges, etc.

Don't get me wrong, we have a gym here at our apartment complex. And I plan to use the treadmill from time to time. But if you've been around this blog long enough you know that I get extremely board walking/running in place. And I have no workout partner, so stepping out on the street isn't in my plan. I'll need to do what I can here at home. On the flip side, Mr S is back on his call center schedule, so he'll be home when I am and we can go to the gym together (when he goes). That will be nice and some helpful motivation...since I HATE going alone!

I'm still going to do weight watchers as it seems to be a good method to keeping track of my food. I'm also going to pick back up with my weekly posts. I want to stay accountable to someone...and you, my blogging dolls, are the winners for that category! I also have a co-worker that is getting married in May and she is stepping up her game too. That will help with encouragement on the work front...we just work different hours and can't work out together, usually.

But I'm determined to make this work. I'm tired of being heavy. I'm tired of one flight of stairs winding me. I'm tired of rolls, muffin top, and back fat rolls! I want to be able to wear my swimsuit and not feel uncomfortable about my hips, belly, and thighs. I want to wear skirts and not feel ashamed of my legs. I want me knees to not hurt when I walk all day because they've been carrying around an extra 50 pounds that they shouldn't have to carry.

I want to be healthy!