The Simple Things

Sadness...for now.

 
Jillian, Jillian...how could you let Reid go? He's so darling. So what if he can't communicate! Den Farlow couldn't communicate either, but I gave him the chance and he totally proved himself.
(tangent...while we were dating, I would say to Ben, "You're so wonderful. I love you so much!"
His reply almost every time..."You're pretty okay too**."
See what I mean???)

But, I don't think it's over for the Reid-meister. Did you catch the promo??
"An unexpected confession changes everything".
They want you to think it's Ed or Kiptyn backing out.
It's not.
It's Reid coming back and telling her that he loves her.

Or at least that's what I think.

And E.D. I mean Ed. If it doesn't work there, it won't work anywhere. You sunk your own ship, buddy.

What do you think???

**p.s. did you know that that line is from Karate Kid? I didn't...until last week. Who knew that Den Farlow was quoting the Karate Kid while I was declaring my love for him? It's a good thing I didn't know. Or he might not have got my final rose.

Locking Up...

 

It's time. As much as it pains me (and it really does), I have to make this blog private. We had a freaky situation with someone approaching the girls last week and now I am SUPER-cautious about anything that has their names, etc.
So, I'll be going private at the end of the week. Don't worry!!! You can still read the blog. Just send me your email address and I'll put you on the "it's-okay-they're-safe" list.

I know. it blows. It totally stinks that there are crazy sick people out there.
But, safety first is my new motto.
So send me an email at benandlaura6 (at) msn (dot) com if you want to keep reading!

Darling.

Have you seen this wedding reception???

It is absolutely fantastic.  I adore everything about it. Seriously...if Den Farlow and I ever renew our vows, I'm totally doing this.
 

Or maybe for my 40th birthday bash.

Or, if I get sick and have to check out early, a Celebrate Life party.

Perfect!!! I adore every thing about this!

via

Over it.

 

Dear world.
He's dead. He was weird. He had a couple good songs in the 80's. That's it.
We won't mention that he was a freak show with too much plastic surgery who may or may not have been a pedophile.
Anyway,  it's over. He's gone. Now stop clogging up Access Hollywood and Entertainment Tonight. With all your craziness, I had no idea that Britney was engaged again!

xoxo,
Lola

Finally...

 
He's gone. I couldn't be happier. Never have I seen such a slime ball. Yuck. His smarmy mug while they were waiting for the Rose Ceremony made me vomit a little im my mouth. Nasty.

So, let's get to the good parts of last night...everything else.  Loved this episode.

Love that Jillian did not do the Fantasy Suite with the guys. good for her.
Love that they went some place cool.
I'm over Kiptyn. He's totally like a wet towel. No personality...just a drip. Plus, I don't think he's that into her. She's always initiating everything. I think he pulls out early.

Ed just is too much for me. First he quits, then he comes back. Now he's just ALL about her. I don't buy it. Nor do I like him. Because...
 
I'm all about Reid now. He has totally grown on me. I loved watching him and Jillian. they make me laugh. I think he'll take it all.

I think the producers want us to think that Ed is back and is sweeping her off her feet. But watch out for Reid.

Staycation Wrap Up

The Staycation was a success.
 
Emilie lost her second tooth (and pulled it out by herself!).
 
Grace got into things she shouldn't!
 
Claire helped me make LOTS of these:
 
Mmm.
We partied hard on the Fourth with our friends:
 
The girls bounced on the tramp.
 
Den Farlow channeled his inner 13-year old in a water balloon toss competition.
 
Em discovered the awesomeness of Sparklers...
 
And obviously, so did Ben!
 
Claire was not too sure about it, and we were content to sit and snuggle.
 
It turned out to be the PERFECT weekend!

The Party's at Our Place!

So we were supposed to be in Seattle today. Unfortunately Dad is still recovering from a surgery he had last week and is not strong enough for us to come crash his restful party! So, we pushed the trip home back a couple of weeks.
The girls (Emilie especially) were really sad. They know the fun that happens at Nana & Papa's house! Determined not to let them down, I loudly proclaimed that we were going on a "Staycation"! A whole weekend full of fun.
Today is Day #1. I got up, went to the gym, came home and made yummy waffles for the girls.
Then, we started our fun activities. Biking.
Now, Den Farlow and I are committed to fitness. I drag my can out of bed each morning at 5:25 to sweat like a man and burn calories. Den Farlow thinks about exercising, drinks water and loses 4 pounds. Anyway, because we're committed to fitness, we bought brand spanking new bikes. They are things of beauty. We also got Emilie a "hitchhiker" that attaches to Ben's bike. It rocks.
 
Em and Den Farlow with their sweet new ride.
 
Me and the littles. Pulling 75 extra pounds is good for the booty.

We rode up to a great park. Not easy and not short, but a lot of fun. Once there, we had a delicous picnic.
 
 
seriously...that claire is too cute.

After our delicious little lunch, we headed over to a playground that was perfect for my girls.
  
 
 

We played and frolicked and then made our way back home. Along the way, this happened:
 
Can you tell which one of these is faking?? :)

The Party's Rockin' at our house! WISH YOU WERE HERE!

Summer and my girls...

 

 

Loving summer. Loving being home with my girls. Life is good.

(picture by the fabulous Lori, who saved me when both of my cameras died!)

Dressing up the wall...

So in between working and working out, I've been sprucing up my house. I think next week I'll do a home tour (not much to get excited about, but I know Ash will like it), but here's a sneak peek.

A couple of weeks ago I re-did Grace's room. It was boring. I had a vinyl dandelion on the wall, but that was it. Lame.

then I saw a great fabric tree somewhere in the blog world. It looked easy enough, so we tried it out!

It was the EASIEST project ever...but extremely messy. Thanks Julie for being my extra set of hands! First, we gathered fabric from my stash and liquid starch.
Then, we made a template on wrapping paper.
 

Next, we basically modge-podged the fabric on to the wall. Dipped it in liquid starch and then SMOOTHED everything. I had a sponge ready to clean up the drips. Trust me...you'll need it!

Then, added the leaves and voila...a tree in Grace's room!!
 

Here's a look at her completed room:

 
(From the doorway)

 
(customized some curtains by sewing extra leaves to the bottom of some sheer panels.)

 
(her changing table/dresser)
 
made some letters for above the dresser. Easiest project ever. Customized them to match her PBK birdie and tree sheets.

 
(made a small play area for the girls in Grace's room. Hung the mirror at child's height over the play sink, so they can see themselves. They LOVE it!)

So there it is! Cute, huh?

To Hell and back...

So I don't know if you've noticed, but I've been MIA lately. Today I'm ready to break my silence and tell my story.

It started years ago with two pregnancies back to back. My body has never fully recovered, and I became complacent...yea even accepting of my doughy state. And then there's been this past year with my dad. Stress + more stress = eating. Eating = a even DOUGHIER Lola.

I had an idea. I needed something that would be tough. Something that would kick my trash each day, because obviously I can't do it myself. I needed something EXTREME!

Farrells Extreme Bodyshaping, to be exact. A 10-week program that is the equivalent of hell on earth.
The first day was death. Actually, death would probably be a better option.
We did a fitness testing, which was mortifying. I won't post my stats here. But let's just say that I had not done a REAL sit up in over 5 years. No joke. Probably more like 7. Push-ups?? Forgettaboutit. Seriously. I might have done one.
And then we had to run the mile. Timed. This was good. I start off with my friend Julie (who BTW HATES exercising with every fiber of her being). But then realize that she is 5'2" and I'm 5'9" and we do not run the same speed. She shouts "Save Yourself" and I take off. Now, keep in mind, I haven't really run for a LONG time. I have no concept of pacing yourself. So I take off. I'm passing people, weaving in and out and thinking to myself, "Wow! Who knew you were a runner?!" I was so excited.
Then...then we approach the 1/2 mile marker. And I die. Seriously, I have NOTHING left. I need to walk, which is humiliating. There I was, walking and SUCKING WIND, while all these people who i had sprinted by, jog past me.
I couldn't take it. That started a half mile of me sprinting pass everyone and then having to walk. Sprint...walk...sprint...walk. It was awful. I crossed the finish line with a mile time of 10:17. Ouch.

So back to Farrells. It's this 10-week body shaping program. it's not a diet or a weight loss program, it's all about healthy living and exercise.
I work out 6 days a week. 3 days are resistance training. The other 3 are cardio, which means serious kickboxing. I have wraps. I wear boxing gloves. I jab, cross, upper cut and hook punching bags. Oh, and did I mention I have a mean roundhouse kick? yep. it's true.
It's absolutely awful. I sweat like a fat man. Some days it literally pours off my face. But, I take that to mean that it's working.
The hardest part for me is the diet. 6 meals a day...15g protein and 27g carbs. And a veggie, but we all know I can't stand the veggies. No sugar. No soda. definitely no chocolate. ouch. 100oz of water a day.
Surprisingly, I like it. I like eating 6 times a day. I'm never hungry. I've tried some veggies that I like (sweet potatoes, asparagus, artichoke) and make much healthier choices for my family. It's been good.
The workouts are EARLY. I am up at 5:15 each morning and hit the ground running. It took my body a while to adjust at first. I was SO grouchy and hungry and craved ANYTHING sweet. Now, I'm better...but I'm always in bed by 9:00.

So that's the real story! I've been too busy kicking my trash to blog. I'm hoping for good results. They said 20 pounds probably wasn't realistic, but I'm shooting for that and hoping I get 10.
But more than the pounds, I feel so much better. I feel firmer and more toned. I feel healthier and have way more energy.
Who am I kidding??? i just want to look hot in a swimsuit!