It's Because of Lent...

...that sweets don't appeal to me anymore! Even though I don't need sweets (I really need to stop eating COMPLETELY for about two months!), I'm kinda upset about it! Hubbs and I decided to give up sweets for Lent. And when you live in a place where we eat king cake twice a week for about two months, and beignets and/or donuts on the weekends...IT'S SERIOUS!!! For the first few days of the Lenten season, I was SUFFERING!!! We still have my and Keanohn's birthday cakes frozen, plus part of a 7up cake from my aunt's bakery. I'm pretty sure I heard at least one slice of cake call out to me in that first few days! But, I resisted and I got to the point where I didn't even crave them anymore. Where I didn't think about the girl scout cookies that Kimmie is supposed to send to me (wonder where my cookies are ANYWAY...hmmm!) fast forward to Friday. We went to my parents house so that hubbs could help my dad move some furniture. There were three Reese's cups sitting on the table. Not packs...the little itty bitty, individually wrapped cups...and I thought I would pass out. John was so tickled: "I can't believe you've lasted over a month with no sweet and you're freaking out two days before Easter!" I think they must have been related to the cake because they, too, were calling me...but I resisted. But, I had a plan! My plan was to stay up until midnight Saturday (which would have OFFICIALLY been Sunday!) and celebrate my self-control with a bowl of ice cream with a slice of cake. I didn't fall asleep; when the clock struck 12:15 (had to MAKE SURE I lasted the entire Lenten season!), I got down to business:I had it HOOKED UP!!! I was ready to get TO IT!! I didn't get a whole lot...we DID walk in the race earlier! I tasted the first bite and...it was HORRIBLE!!! I liked it less than I did the brocholi I had with dinner...and I HATE brocholi! Hubbs came in the room fifteen minutes later, expecting to find me licking the empty bowl and found this:
"What's wrong?", he asked. "It's nasty!", I replied. "Umm, well, I'm glad you're enjoying it." He claims that he thought I said it was nice (yeah...right!). I think he was just a little TOO involved in the T.V. When we go to my Grandma's for dinner later, I'm sure there will be about 15 cakes and pies calling for me (just think of me as the "Dessert Whisperer"). And I'm gonna try a slice...just to make SURE this isn't just a fluke. If I really don't like sweets anymore, it's cool! Maybe I'll lose the other 40 pounds off my butt if I can avoid them!
So, we did the Crescent City Classic for the second year. Even though I am SEVERELY out of shape, I can normally walk the 6.3 miles with no problem. But, the night before the race, Keanohn thought it would be HILARIOUS to hide ONE tennis shoe from each pair I own. So, instead of racing with a comfortable pair which was broken in, I had to walk in BRAND NEW shoes! Let me tell you something: do you see my jawline?
You may THINK that's a look of determination on my face; in reality, it's me begging God to give me the strength to NOT sit on the ground and play peek-a-boo with Keanohn until John came back to pick us up in the truck! I made it (in just under 2 hours!) ...by His grace!
I am SO sleepy right now! I guess I should be, since it's after 5am. I'll leave you with the first two layouts I kreated as a design team member at Tally Scrapper! Have a wonderful and joyous day!

cyber crop

we're having a cyber crop over at tally scrapper. because i'm on the design team (did you notice that SHAMELESS plug?!?!?), i had the HONOR of coming up with one of the games! this is the layout i completed for it:
i've SEEN the other games and challenges...DON'T MISS OUT!!! it lasts ALL WEEKEND!!!

you take the good, you take the bad...

...you take them both and there you have the facts of life! i feel like i'm stuck in a tv show right now! bad news first: hubbs comes home yesterday and says, well, there was a layoff at work today. my mind INSTANTLY processed that OTHER people being laid off doesn't affect our bank balance so that left him! what sucks is that he's worked for this company for TEN YEARS and they didn't care enough about him to give him TWO WEEKS NOTICE? how do you just call someone OVER THE PHONE and say, "by the way, don't come to work tomorrow!"?!?!? and they couldn't tell us this before we made the trip to texas this past weekend? i mean, i wanted to be there for my friend but MY house and MY family come first...that money would have stayed in the bank! i keep telling hubbs that they won't be blessed for how they handled him; i keep BEGGING him that if he's asked to return, to PLEASE not do so without a raise! we'll be ok, though. if i just stop buying supplies every TWO DAYS we'll be able to continue supplying our account! ;)
so, onto the good! i FINALLY cut the last relaxer out of my hair and i'm officially natural! it felt like FOR EVA to me, but i know women who say it took eight MONTHS for their hair to reach the length my new growth has reached in five. here's the new look:
this was while we were waiting for my best friend's wife to get ready. here are a few more pix from the wedding:
this is my best friend, emmanuel
my two handsome guys before the wedding

emmanuel and ethan waiting for mommy to come
yeah...no, he REALLY wasn't interested!!!
emmanuel and rochelle thomas
strange fact: this is my best friend's second marriage...his first wife's name was rachelle; my middle name is rachelle. i think he just LIKES having rachelles around him!
did you look closely at the sidebar? see anything different? i made the spring design team at tally scrapper!!!! i feel like i have to strike while the iron is hot! what am i trying to do, you ask?
trying to take over the WORLD, pinky!!!

p.s. i didn't get to finish the layouts for emmanuel and abena before we went to texas, so i'll just have to mail them when i do! the dinner for my parents was really nice. they were really surprised! hopefully we can do a big hoopla next year (if God spares our lives!) i DID get to visit ikea and i was kinda disappointed!!!! SO MANY things looked giNORmous in the catalog and doll sized in person; other items were just cheap! still spent over $100! i'll go back but it won't be so urgent next time! and this is a layout i did today:
this dude is SO funny!!! when i observed him pacing back and forth, i almost wanted to scream,"pimps up, hoes down!" but i know that wouldn't be very mommy-like!!! he DOES look like he's cussing somebody, doesn't he? i promise i'm finished for the night!