Tag Team, Back Again

(Anyone catch the reference?)

I was tagged by both Nicole and Shosh, so here goes. I did one a while back, so if you care to read the 5 things I wrote there, feel free to check it out. I'll do new things this time, and try to make it shorter.

Here are 6 things about me:

1. I love maple bars. You know the donuts that are rectangular and covered in maple frosting? Yep, I absolutely adore them, and have ever since I was a kid. I don't eat them very often, but if they're in front of me, it's next to impossible for me to pass it up. I don't even want to know how many calories are in one, but I'm sure it's a lot. That's why I try to stay away, because they are a trigger food for me.

2. In 5th grade, I was in the school spelling bee. I did pretty well, but I eventually was ousted by the word "lever". It wasn't that I didn't know how to spell "lever", it's just that I thought the moderator said "lover", so I correctly spelled "lover". Unfortunately that is the incorrect spelling of "lever" and therefore I was out. They even played back the recording to make sure she said the right word. Boy did I feel stupid (and I was mad, because I wondered how far I could have made it- I'm usually a really good speller).

3. I used to collect Marvin Martian "stuff". You know, the little alien from Looney Tunes? It started in high school when a friend of mine imitated the chemistry teacher and said that's who she sounded like. Then somehow it turned into this partial-obsession. I had a bunch of stuff: watches, key chains, plush, books, notebooks, mugs, a poster, slippers- even the alarm clock. I still have the slippers; I think I'll bust them out and wear them on Christmas morning.  ; D

4. I (sometimes) make jewelry. I haven't for a while, because I was way burned out after last Christmas, but it's been a hobby of mine since my freshman year of college. It started with hemp necklaces, and evolved into stuff made with beads and wire or metal. In fact, I made the jewelry I wore for my wedding. It was all made out of freshwater pearls- a 3-strand choker and matching bracelet, along with earrings. I also made bracelets for each of my "bridesmaids", who were all of my sisters and sisters-in-law, and for my niece who was the flower-girl.

5. I would love to go on an Alaskan cruise. The Hubs and I almost went on one last September. However, we ended up getting super-cheap airfare to Orlando, so we went back to Disney World instead. It was tons of fun, and a lot warmer than Alaska would have been, but I still hope to go on one some day. (The Hubs has been to 48 states- the only 2 he has missed are Alaska and Oregon... don't ask me how he missed Oregon- it's a shorter drive than to California).

6. Last, but not least, when I was a kid, one of my very favorite skits/sketches on Sesame Street was "Me and My Llama". You know, where the girl takes her llama to the dentist? For some reason I loved that song, and I was fascinated by the whole thing. It didn't come on very often, but whenever it did, I would get so excited. And now that I found it on YouTube (seriously, you should check it out), I think I'm going to make part of the song my ring tone on my cell phone. LOL. I'm sick of having the same ring as everyone else.

So now you know more about me than before, and probably more than you ever needed to know. But hopefully it made you laugh a little. I tag Ashley, Carly, Kiki, Marcy, Nan, and Tammy. Have fun!

To give a quick update, I had an awesome workout last night. The Hubs had his game night, and I was left to my own devices. So while watching Biggest Loser: Special Edition (the military wives episode, a re-run on the Style channel) I hammered out 45 minutes on the elliptical machine. It has been months since I went that long on the elliptical, and considering my recent state of "rest", I'm amazed I made it through. And it was a strong workout, too, where it felt really good, and I pushed it pretty hard.

Then I ate dinner, which was some leftover vegetable beef soup, and a grilled cheese sandwich. But it wasn't any old grilled cheese- I tried something new and it turned out pretty tasty. We have a "snackmaster" machine that makes grilled sandwiches (I think it's a Cuisinart sandwich grill, or something like that). We got it for our wedding and we use it all the time. I decided I would try making a sandwich with a Laughing Cow cheese wedge, instead of a slice of cheese, and see how it turned out. I also added in a couple slices of thin turkey. And you know what? It was actually really good. So, if you're into Laughing Cow, try it out. I also recently discovered that they sell Laughing Cow at Costco, and you can get 4 "wheels" for just over $8 (that's 32 wedges total). At the regular grocery store, it's normally around $5 for 8 wedges, and even Wal-Mart is $3.

Anyway, after dinner I watched Biggest Loser: Families and did my upper body strength training and abs. I decided to kick it up a notch, and bumped up my weights on a few of my moves. So my bicep curls were done with 10 lbs instead of 8, and a few things I changed to 8 lbs instead of 5. Wahoo! Pretty soon, I'm going to have to make bigger dumbbells to do my chest presses/flyes. Back in the day, I used to be able to do them with 25-lb dumbbells (right now I'm using 10). Then again, that's when I could do 45 push-ups in a minute, so obviously it was forever ago. About Biggest Loser, I'll just say, I love it when there's scandal and drama and they switch things up. And how about that crazy, long hiking challenge? Makes my tiny hike last Saturday seem like a walk to the mailbox.

I almost forgot. In my previous tag, I talked about my pet tarantula and said that I might post a picture. Well, for your viewing pleasure, here he is. His name is Phoenix. Isn't he cute? (I don't think he was very happy at being woke up at 6:00 this morning to pose for his close-up)