Walkin in Memphis part 1

A couple weeks ago, hubs and I went to Memphis for the day.

It was alot of fun, expensive and a tad cheesy. However, I love Elvis and grew up listening to him and remember when he died like it was yesterday. I was only 9, but it was all over the news for weeks.

It is everything you would expect and more. I am not going to post a bunch of pictures because I think it would spoil it for someone who actually wanted to go. Here are a few to whet your appetite.
Elvis loved horses and there is still a stable here with rescue horses that Priscilla brought home.

This is to the immediate right as you enter the front door.

                                      This is like a Hall of Fame in his old racquetball court,

This is the kitchen where he made his famous peanut butter and banana sandwiches.

We saw the airplanes, the car museum and a tour of different memorabilia in a different building.
Here is the famous pink Cadillac. I hope my kids buy me a cool car someday!

Thank you for stopping by and coming along to see Elvis. There is MUCH more to post and see ! You will have to come back to see the rest.
JP ~

The WOW diaries

In the famous words of my chihuahua Hank " I can't catch a break arounds here"

Poor Kid has got himself into a bit of wow trouble lately.

You have no idea how hard it is to get after this face.

Wows are just like kids, maybe worse. They have to be watched, taught and treated like a regular sized dog. Otherwise they become devils of society.

My chihuahuas "Chi- WOW- wa" are well behaved, but not today for some reason. Hank is barky, sullen and well naughty. I am busy upstairs painting and trowing away trash from moving boxes and I am paying for it.

Hank is not your ordinary wow, he likes to be outside, plays fetch and really wants to be a big dog.
He really is my therapy dog, I have become quite attached to him for company, comfort, entertainment and my general well-being.



I had better get back to work and finish so my pup can go back to being my lap dog where he belongs.

The studio is almost open !

In my house in Portland I had my own personal space. It was where I made jewelry, blogged and well hid if truth be told. Hiding is so childish sounding, I should say something like "me time" " personal space" " mom's time out" but in reality I was totally hiding.

In the new house I have the same space but the paint is an assault on my eyeballs.

FUGLY ROOM OF THE DAY. Dun Dunna Duh .. Drum Roll please..........

Poo brown with a dark poo brown stripe. It makes my eyes bleed. This may have been cool for a jungle themed room but homeboy previous renter had horrible taste in every room in this house.
Wait until you see the guest room before and afters.
Then, there is this weird drop down of the ceiling with popcorn texture. It was more than I could take really it was.

New Color is this! Viola!

A lovely shade of mossy green called Fern Valley. Ahhhhh so much better.
If I have enough left over paint I am going to paint that section of wall that angles down. It will make the ceiling look higher and the room more open. Now it feels like I have to hunch down in here.

When it is all done I will give you a tour and what you say?? A GIVE AWAY???
 Why yes, my darling blogger peeps there will be a give away.
SHUT UP you say?
Nay Nay, I have something fabulous in mind and you will swoon over it.

So, keep coming back ! You wont be disappointed I promise.

JP~

Tornados and TinkerBelle

Catchy title eh?

I thought so. Last night Arkansas made national headlines with its sever weather storm front. Shawn and I like to make fun of weather guys when a huge storm hits. It's always named Arctic Blast 2011, Rain Zilla 2012, Storm Watch of the Century. They sure do get all worked up about the " Big One".

Last night was no different, we were in the middle of a weather pattern that could have blown my house away. Shawn was at school and I was home alone with the pups. I was quite unnerved and not at all pleased with our new home of choice's shenanigans.

See the red area that says Jacksonville? That's me. EEEKS!

We survived, the weather today is not awesome either and I am not thrilled about having to go clean stalls later if this keeps up.

Then there is TBelle, the little wow that I puppy sit for friends a couple days a week.

She is my own personal tornado. She does this all day long.

Now I am off to herd cats and try and paint my studio/office while they nap.
 This little girl keeps me busy all day long, so there is no telling if I get anything done at all today.

JP~

The Absentee Blogger

Good Day Blogger Peeps and fans who are hanging on by a thread,

          Well, we did it, we moved to Arkansas. This move was not without stress, strain and some second thoughts. However, we made it, found a house and are settling in to our new life here in "The South"

 I started this blog as an online journal of sorts way back in 2008 before the rise of the Devil known as Facebook.

 I needed an outlet and a reason to take lots of pictures and tell their stories. However, I can do that via FB now in about 20 words or less. Let's face it , I am a FB sell out. My blog posts were funny, creative and at times educational.

Now I am reduced to such trivial things as posting myself as being at a bar or how my Chihuahua's look cute a million times a day.

Not that there isn't a place for my wows and their uber cuteness, but I seem to have fallen off the originality wagon somewhere along the way.

So with that, I vow to make this blog the fun and quirky place to come sit for a minute with your coffee and travel along with me.
I am no Pioneer Woman (insert snarky eyes) but I am funnier,  more entertaining and a MUCH better cook.

For real peeps :)

So, come on back if you have left me, or welcome if you are new to the world of all things food, myself and well... Star.

It's a new journey.. again..

November of 2010 we embarked on a journey to Alaska. It's been rough to say the least. It's been a huge strain on my marriage, my personality and my desire to reach out and enjoy life.

Shawn and I have done our best to get out and embrace everything Alaska has to offer, and we have had alot of fun. However, it's not where we want to spend our lives on a permanent basis. Shawn and I are cowpokes, we enjoy ranch living, ranch life, open ranges and long warm evenings. We always knew we would retire in Eastern Oregon, or somewhere near his Dad's ranch in Oklahoma.

Shawn found out a few months back at a conference, that an opportunity in Little Rock, AR would be coming open eventually. (meaning in USAF, a year to 18 months). We knew it would be perfect for us, but also knew it would give us another year in Alaska to finish some must do items on our bucket list.

He got home from the conference and I kid you not , the job came open less than 4 days later.

So here goes nothing, we are moving again, this time back to the lower 48 and a left turn at Albuquerque.

Here is downtown Little Rock.

A State Park

Another State Park.

Johnny Cash's childhood home.

Also don't think I wont be taking my Mom and my sisters, Aunts, cousins for a trip to this place !

http://www.craterofdiamondsstatepark.com/

Hellllllllloooo sweet thing .. sigh.... Mommy is coming for you. !

I will also be visiting here.

Graceland

The immortal resting place of the coolest musician that ever lived. He had a weird Oedipus complex, but he still made awesome music and a bajillion lame movies that I love to watch.

So we embark on June or July, the date isn't final but it will be soon.

It will be the Alaska Hillbillies tour 2012. Two horses, three dogs, a cat and a beta fish!

Lordy, it should be an interesting trip!

Roller Derby? Really ?

My family thinks I've gone crazy, my kids think it's cool and my husband LOVES IT.

I play for a team called the Denali Destroyer Dolls or DDD for short.

I am in the back row third helmet from the left.



Every Roller Derby girl has a nickname she goes by. Some are cute, some are tough and some are well.. Way too raunchy to put here.
 My name is Payne Killer and my number is #800 mg. I wanted something else but my son thought it sounded like a porn star. oops This is a family blog!
It was so cool to hear my name called out in front of 1000 people.

and it's number 800 Payne KILLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLAH !!! Man, I do love me a crowd :)

These are the toe caps my sons bought me for Christmas. It's Bumble Bee from Transformers.
 I fell in love with them the moment I saw them and HAD to have them. Makes me feel like a bad ass.

Another picture of me. Far left, with white knee pads.

We won our first bout against a team called Midnight Sun Roller Girls from Fairbanks, AK. They were VERY sore losers and have made it very hard to be excited about our first win. I didn't get to skate because I had just had surgery, but I will be all good for the next one.

So that's the big excitement around here, as we have our next bout April 14th, and I actually get to play in that one.

I think I may have gone crazy, who at 43 joins Roller Derby? Me, apparently.

The Ghost of Blogger Past

Good Morning Blogger peeps,

          I am excited to begin again this journey I took when I started this blog. We moved from Oregon to Alaska, now we are moving to Arkansas in July.

I had to stop triathlon training due some some medical issues, that I just had major surgery to repair.

I have also joined a roller derby team here in Wasilla.

SO much going on that I need to catch everyone up!

The yellow Bumble Bee toe caps, that's me :)
Please forgive for my long absence, it's been such a rough year and I was feeling less than inspired.

I always wanted this blog to be funny, informational and interesting. None of those things I had in my writing arsenal the last year.
However, I am feeling better and excited about beginning yet another adventure and sharing it with everyone via this blog as Facebook is boring to me these days.

See you soon,
JP and Star

It's about to get as sweet as Unicorns and Cotton Candy here

Hank is growing up these days. We take him places all the time, he loves coming to work with me.
However his number one job is to keep me company. It's a career path he has taken very seriously as you can see in the following photos.



The picture above was at Shawn's Work BBQ on Sunday. He is not a fan of the children yet. They tend to mob him and get overly aggressive with the holding and petting. He does not like that one little bit.

Picture below is us coming home from work on Friday. We both had a big day at work.The floor I work on is Hank Fan Club central. So he was on his best company mascot behaviour all day.

Chihuahua's are bred to be companion animals. So we coined the phrase "companion-ing". It's what is on Hankie's resume as his skill set.



We were supposed to go shopping and run errands but someone needed a nap first and do some work on his " companion-ing" skills.

Blogger is pissing me off with this text alignment and photo alignment BS today. So the huge post about star will have to wait until I get home and use my other computer. Until then enjoy the cuteness :)

updates cometh I promise

It has been a busy busy summer, and frankly I haven't had the energy to update the blog.
Sorry Peeps.

On the bright side and dark side.

Star finally made it to Alaska

It was a nightmare and she is a little worse for the wear.

Next post will be the entire saga.

Hugs and Peppermint treats!

Oh and it only gets better ....

Ready for another lengthy post? Good, settle in then. Got that snuggie and slippers ready because here goes.

It's Memorial Day weekend so what does every other American couple do on a sunny day but go to their local Home Depot for some flowers. And to what do Shawn's wandering eye do appear? Dad's reels hanging in the garden area. Shawn says Hey Honey, aren't these your Dad's reels? I look up and immediately go Yep, those are them all right. So if I ever I get lonely for family I can run down to Home Depot and chill with the Garden Hose Reels I guess.

                                          

 Dad started this company back in 1984- ish , it was the whole reason we moved to SoCal in the first place.

I thought it was cool that all the way up here in Wasilla I see a bit of home.

 The whole reason for the HD trip was because Shawn brought these Calla Lillie's home for me from Costco. They are so beautiful and my favorite flower, so I needed to buy soil and other flowers to go in my containers. Pansies, Soil, Pots and voila! A container garden in about 30 minutes. Easy Peasy.

 The view of my backyard and the lake over the weekend. The weather was outstanding and just nearly perfect. Met the interesting neighbor and his less than interesting Pit Bull. Sorry but they scare me and I am not a fan of them running loose in my yard just because "everyone else does it". My dogs are NEVER allowed to run loose. EVER...Let's not get me started about the poop in my yard that I know is not my dogs poop. ugh so nasty...

Perfect for catching fish? Not really.. Shawn caught this bad boy about 12-14 inches. But nothing else all weekend.  We are buying a canoe so soon we will be going out farther than just the boat dock to cast. Shawn was very impressed that I knew how to cast a line even though I had not picked up a fishing pole in nearly 20 years. I told him, my Dad could put a pole in my hand and I would be happy for HOURS, sitting by myself just casting that line over and over again.

 We ended the entirely too perfect weekend with a campfire and Smores. It would have only been better if we had people over sharing it. The neighbors had a party with almost 100 people. We went over later after all the majority of them had left to chat, smoke cigars and drink. Yeah, life is rough out here.. So so hard...

 So that's the weekend round -up. Onto the diet for a second. Anything Amy's is yummy. These burritos are SUPER Yummy. Expensive but I'm not eating them everyday. Some days I just want to stick something in the microwave and call it good.

 These however were GAH-ross. Do not eat unless you like overly minty edible paste. Almost like the stuff we had in Kindergarten but I think worse. I wouldn't know as I wasn't a paste eater, but I am speculating anyway.

 So AK PonyGirl invited me to go on a trail ride while they marked trail for this weekends upcoming poker ride. I am not one to ever say no, so of course I went! She is a great trail horse, point and go. No drama just happily plugs along. I am beginning to favor the short ponies. It was so easy to throw a leg over her! I am used to Star where a mounting block/stump/step etc is required as she is tall and gets all kinds of pissed off if you mount from the ground.

We were out riding until almost 11 pm and it was just barely getting dark.  How wicked cool is that? When Star gets here we will be riding up in these mountains. Oh I cant wait!

So that's all I got so far, nothing terribly exciting and new to report here in the Last Frontier.

If you are planning to come visit, let us know as we would love to have you! 

JP~ Hugs and Love

Whats in my lunch sack?

Breakfast: Ezekiel Gluten Free Bread with Organic Peanut Butter and whole fruit Jelly.
Until I find low sugar organic Jelly, this will have to do.

Lunch and two snacks:

Almonds- Raw
Blueberries
Carrot sticks
Tuna
Hard Boiled eggs.

This I will divide up into little mini meals through out the day. Then will most likely drink a protein shake tonight before I go riding with friends. I will not have time to eat dinner tonight.

The usual dinner is meat and veggies, but Mr Shawn is a Carb Metabolism guy and needs more than I do , so we have included some pasta and cornbread for him. I just need to learn to say no, but I grew up on cornbread and it's soooooooo tasty!

So, do yourself a favor and go get the Bobs Red Mill ( Oregon Brand) Gluten Free Brownie Mix and add the extra Chocolate Chips in the mix. You will LOVE THEM. They are the best brownies we've ever made from a mix. I had ZERO heartburn and ZERO bloating with them and the lactose free Ice Cream.

Work out plan for this week:

Tonight: I am going riding on an actual horse for a couple hours- My abductors will be screaming tomorrow I am sure.
Thursday: Expresso Bike- 12 miles AKA The Vindicator
Friday: Nothin :-)
Saturday: Swim- 800 meters
Sunday: Swim-800 meters

It's raining here today, which sucks because I was just bragging it doesnt rain in Alaska to my Oregon Peeps.
oops ...

Pics of the ride tomorrow !

So let's start with this..........

This is the proof in the pudding.
I know the deal is when you see yourself everyday, you don't see any major changes. Especially if you are someone like myself who sees my figure as fat, bloated and ugly every single day.  So I often avoid the camera at all costs.However.. I needed to show my Blogger Pals that I am talking the talk and walking the walk here. 

After my initial Stage 3 cancer diagnosis in 1998 I wondered what my fate would be as a young single mother, new job, living with my parents. I felt trapped, hopeless and a failure.  I never thought in a million years I would be living this new life. While it has its ups and downs, trials and tears, good times and sometimes really bad , I wouldn't trade it for anything.

JP~ out

So whats in my lunch bag?

Like any good well bred Oregonian you carry your lunch in a Powell's Books Cloth Bag !
( PSA FOR NO MORE PLASTIC SACKS) :)
I pack my own food everyday. Although there are some days I'd rather eat a breakfast burrito , Diet Coke and call it good. I am not perfect ! Those breakfast burritos are the DEVIL. .....drool.....

Today:

Low Fat Turkey Lunch Meat from Costco
Avocado
Red Bell Pepper
Carrot Sticks
Almonds
Green Apples

I split all this up into three mini meals throughout the day. Sometimes I do it at home, but mostly I just do it at work.

I am trying to give up the Diet Coke/Pepsi but man is that trying to kill me these days.
Those folks who say drink Green Tea, are lame. Green Tea is good if your sick , but not if you are crashing at 2 pm and need cold caffeinated pick me up. Sorry but its true.

Last night we went out to eat and I had Halibut Fish and Chips. The fries were yucky so I only ate a few and the fish was awesome. After eating like this for awhile your taste buds become very aware of what tastes good and what doesn't.
Root Beer Floats(next time will use Diet A and W) with lactose free ice cream= GOOD
Over Salty not fresh fries/House made Cole Slaw = GROSS

It really is that simple, I buy organic as much as possible and only eat carbs in fruit, oatmeal and Sprouted grain bread. It's not for everyone and it can be expensive and a pain, but I am telling you its worth it!

Why I changed everything about me

Let me start off by saying this:
I have always been some sort of active, but never been a full on athlete.
When I lost alot of weight a couple of years ago, I didn't exercise much nor did work on the finding the causes of what was making me depressed besides being fat.
So, like most diets the weight came rolling back in. weird.....

I have a problem with associating food with guilt and combine that with a set of " I have a large A$$" goggles I seem to see out of , it was a recipe for disaster at some point in my life. Every time I would eat I would obsess about how it was making me fatter and uglier, how crazy is that? I still struggle with it even though what I am eating is 100% healthy, if I feel the slightest "full" the guilt and remorse creeps back in.

I never see myself as pretty, thin, or anything befitting that description. My weight has always been the topic of family discussion with my Mom, Dad and sisters, as we all struggle.

So let's add the additional strain of moving to Alaska and what do you get?  A fat, depressed, no horse to ride, cranky sloth. No joke.

So I took the steps to change how I FEEL and that would change how I LOOK.
I hired a trainer to help me train for a triathlon, God Bless Carla Goldberg
I researched diets.. alot... for hours.

Then I came across Isabel De Los Rios and the Flat Belly Solution.

It is the easiest two steps I have ever done in my life.
The weight has melted off and my body has changed dramatically. I feel amazing.

I have given up Dairy, Processed Food,meal replacement bars(unless I'm out on the bike) 99% of sugar, Gluten and Soy.

I am not lying when I say, the dark circles under my eyes are gone , my belly is getting flatter and my skin looks amazing. My PMS symptoms were about as half as bad as usual the last two months since I started.
Oh and the muffin top and third ass are almost gone as well.
SHA- FREAKING-ZAM !!!

When you husband says " Baby, your ass is shrinking" it's the best 4 words you will ever hear I swear...

Hugs and Love Blogger Peeps!
JP~

New Member of the Family

Look Away if you cant stand cute, because it's gonna get all kinds of adorable up in here!

 This is Baby Hank aka Hank Bouncer. He is our newest addition. He still lives with Aunt Darlene in Bend, because he is not old enough to be neutered and travel. When Shawn goes to Oregon in June, he will come home on the plane with him. He is a rescue of sorts and is what they call " Blue" Chihuahua.

Darlene already has plenty of "wows" as they are called, and Ive always secretly wanted one. Shawn swore on the Holy Catholic Bible I would never get one. Until this face came across Facebook, and well..  Shawn caved and I danced a happy dance!
Seriously could you resist a face such as this? I am checking into his first Bomber Jacket ASAP.

Saturday Trainer Carla and I did 11 miles on the mountain bikes. It's official I think it sucks. However, this was on the trail in the Mat-SU State Park, that was near the dump. Blogger Peeps this is NOTHING but trash bags and Grocery Sacks. It was unreal. I implore you to use reusable sacks and lessen your impact on Mother Earth. Just that one tiny change would make a huge difference.

9pm Alaska time Shawn wants to go for a stroll. My beehind is KILLING me from the day before but walking wont hurt right?? right..... This is him down by the lakes edge on the opposite side of us. Isn't it amazing?

Empty Nest has brought some new challenges to our relationship, mostly on my part I will admit. However, we are managing to come out on top and appreciate each other more and more everyday.
He literally is the best husband a girl could ask for. So whats better than a smooch at sunset ?

Not much I tell you, except maybe a cute little dog and my pony coming to Alaska soon!

Always look forward to the sunset my Blogger Peeps. Life is amazing, enjoy it and be present in every moment!
Hugs and Much Love,
Jocelyn

Vegas Baby and a few other mishaps

Last weekend was the infamous Carol BFF in Vegas girls trip.
It was mediocre fun at best. Long story, but my life was already going to crap when I left, and it didn't get much better once I got to Vegas. C'est La Vie I guess.
I am better now, but I have a long road ahead. 

 This is Carol my BFF from days gone by. We met in our early single 20's, she is still single and still tries to act 20. So yeah, that was tough to keep up with, I have no desire to be a 42 trying to be 22 year old woman. I like who and where I am right now. Not saying I don't want to be a hot mama, but I don't want to look like I'm begging for my youth back, which I am NOT.

This is a broke widowed military vet who was lured to Vegas by a woman on line who turned out to be a fraud and was down to his last 4 bucks.

He was 18 years Active Duty ARMY and 12 Years National Guard. I sat with him for over an hour in the 90 degree heat, prayed together and I gave him a few bucks to eat and ride the bus. I will never turn down someone in need especially a Veteran.

 Well since I gave up candy and these are my super favorites, I bought a t shirt instead. If I can't eat them I might as well wear them. Man, do I love me a RPBC fix.. ahhhhhh so sad. I ate too much sugar and Vegas and my body went into almost diabetic shock, man it wasn't pretty.

I am trying to get back on track for the triathlon training, I have had some feet/numbness issues that are alarming and my next option is a Neurologist. Yeah Me. Growing old is a big ol BEE-OTCH I tell ya.
The diet is going splendid and let me tell you my skin and digestive system have never been happier.
Stay tuned I will post all about it tomorrow afternoon I promise.

I fell off the planet ? Sure did and boy am I tired.

I know I know.. Total disappearing act these days. Its for a good reason though!
What Have I been doing?
Alot of this.......

and wearing these

 and riding this... I mean alot, all the time.. constantly.

 I am training for  triathlons in June, July and August. I have never been so tired !

Ive had to completely change my eating habits, my life style and attitude towards hard physical exertion which is ALL mental. So that's where I am for now, stay tuned for how I changed my diet and the weight melted off like butter......