The DieDie Blog

This past Friday was one of my friends last days of work. We work together and the department had decided to throw a potluck for her. With my Florida Mum and Amelia in tow, I left the house and made it the short drive to Lithia headquarters. We went in, chatted up my coworkers and friends that missed seeing me, introduced my F. Mum, partook of the food and of course wished Carly well on her last day at Lithia. She’ll be starting as a paralegal on Monday.

Everything was pretty mellow and a lot of oh’s and ah’s went around the room for Amelia. Her big smile just about melts anyone’s heart. No joke. We are constantly getting stopped on the street or in stores so people can talk to her and comment on how awesome she is, big ego booster for sure. Yeah, that’s my kid, friggen adorable ain’t she? But I digress.

While I left my F. Mum to mingle with my coworkers, Carly’s boyfriend Ryan asked if we were doing anything that night. I had no plans set up and suddenly the thought of drunken Rock Band antics popped into my head. A party I suggested! With that simple phrase a wild fire was ignited. More so in the form of me running around all giddy like inviting our usual posse to come over. I hit up Jake and his finance Kay, they were in. I hit up my cube buddy Venom (no not his real name). I pestered the shit out of Michael for good reason. Every time I’ve had a party and invited him over, there’s always been some excuse as to why he couldn’t go. So why would I continue to ask him? Well, there was a time before that he would come to my parties. But money got tight and things at home got stressful. I can understand that. But I asked him none the less. Personally, I think the real reason he came was to continue talking to my F. Mum. I knew those two would get along.

So already I was getting a lot of excited yes’s. Which in turn excited me. I talked to Carly about possible games to play. She’d recently introduced me to Yahtzee so that was definitely on the docket plus we had our trusty Rock Band game as well as others for the Xbox. Everything was looking good.

After work F. Mum and I headed out to various stores to get the necessary supplies. Our first stop was of course the liquor store. We picked up Captain Morgan, Tequila Rose and Jose Quirvo. After that we stopped to pick up a blender and some strawberries for a homemade Margarita mix. We drove home and I added the extra bottles to my collection of alcohol which included Smirnoff Vodka, Triple Sec and a left over half bottle of rum. I had a pretty hefty stash and that didn’t include the alcohol that my guests would be bringing.

F. Mum set to work on the Margarita mix and Dustin and I cleaned up the house a bit. Amelia was doing a good job of letting us do our thing. All was set for a good ole time. It wasn’t long before my peeps started to arrive. Carly, Ryan, Jake, and Kay made it first. It was time to break out the Yahtzee!

I swear to the Powers that Be, that in between getting us shots and mixing kick ass Kamakazi drinks, Ryan managed to pull off not one, not two, not three, but FOUR Yahtzees! This man was insane! The whole room was in an uproar and with that we said screw the game there’s no way we’re winning after all that craziness. And by that time most of us barring the designated drivers and babysitter aka Carly, Jake and Dustin were three sheets to the wind. So in our drunken state there had to be another game to play. It gets a little fuzzy here but I’m assuming Dustin put in Rock Band. I can’t be sure but I do know the room was suddenly filled with music and the rocking out commenced.

In mid rock out mode there came a knock on the door and I jubilantly cried out, “MICHAEL’S HERE!!!” And then in walked Venom. Promptly I apologized and renditioned him with a “VENOM!!” But alas the hurt was done. He stayed though and partook of the now roaring drunk singers and players. It wasn’t long after that, that Michael and his wife Sandy showed up. My guest list was complete!

By now my F. Mum was already long gone. A lonely Tequila Rose bottle stood empty on the counter and the Jose was desperately trying to defend it’s last quarter bottle of life. Immediately she and Sandy were outside smoking and talking about anything and everything while Michael rocked out on the microphone. I took a break from all the action and decided to hop outside and see how everyone was doing out there. I don’t remember the conversation, but I do remember my F. Mum casually pouring her drink down my shirt. Whoops! She stated with a smirk. Back in the house I went.

Things tend to get a bit more blurry after that. I remember obnoxiously singing Welcome Home even though I wasn’t on the mic. And then some Timmy song when it was my turn. I didn’t know it but ended up cracking everyone up by singing the Timmy part like Timmah from South Park. Even Rock Band thought I did good.

I vaguely recall dancing with Kay and her stating that Jake was her pole. Interesting looks were exchanged there I can assure you. Then as all things must it was time to wind down. Venom left to meet some buddies at a bar. Sandy and Michael took off shortly after though not without a very drunk Michael playing ninja and hiding out in my front yard. To see his drunken butt scurry from the shrubbery to the street and dart past their car was hilarious. Sandy had to reel him in. Carly and Ryan took off followed lastly by Jake and Kay.

It was 3am.

Now I have to thank my honey Dustin for being the responsible one and taking care of Amelia the whole time. As I learned the next day she was pretty good. Only cried once when she was woken up by our particularly loud singing. But after she came out with Dustin and met everyone my awesome daughter promptly passed out with her Daddy. After about an hour nap Dustin came out and played some hardcore guitar chords for us on Rock Band. So I’m glad he got to get some fun in as well.

My thanks also goes out to Kay for bringing me a birthday cake and a pretty cool necklace of the moon phases. Sandy also brought me a present. I got a journal hand made out of recycled paper by Sandy herself.

So thank you everyone that came out and I look forward to this weekends up-coming post birthday Halloween party!

Here’s a few pics of that night.

Atkins.. My Atkins, not the full blown plan. That’s what I’m going to talk about today. You know why? Because not only do I have fat, I also have baby weight fat. That my friends sucks. It sucks on an extreme level. I had just started to crack down on my chubby butt when low and behold I find out I’m pregnant. So the past year has been nothing but packing on the weight. Now don’t get me wrong after giving birth I did drop 20 pounds, but that’s not enough.

I got stuck around 188 pounds and for a girl pushing 5’1 on a good day, that’s pretty scary. Even the Wii Fit cringed under my bulk. But I had a plan for fat busting. Aktins.

I had done Atkins before when I let my weight get out of hand and it actually worked fairly well. I loaded up on the 2 week program and cut out all carbs, which is what I eat the most. Only I found that my willpower wasn’t as good as I thought it was. So I would sneak in a potato here or a loaf of french bread there and bam would ruin my 2 week carb free stint. But then I’d start it back up again. And low and behold I had created my own version of Atkins. The perpetual carb purge. As I said earlier it worked like a charm.

Now I’m back on it. Just started for two weeks and managed to drop down to about 180. So of course I had to reward myself! Only I kinda went a bit over board. Pancakes! A Potato! And a lot of alcohol. What? Don’t you reward yourself with alcohol? It was a pretty good weekend. Had some friends over, indulged in some carbolicious food, and felt darn good. Til the next morning.

I hop on the scale and bam! Back up to 184! Oh no! My binge had cost me! But how much of that was water weight? I didn’t know so in my frantic obsession I weighed myself twice more and managed to wind down to 182. Thank goodness work took over from there and allowed me to forget about my flux in bulk.

I was determined to get back on track though. And I have done a good job of it today. Yes, all that happened this past weekend and today.

So what have I been eating on this bastardized version of Atkins? Well I’ll tell you!

Salads, broccoli, peas, green peppers, cucumbers, cheese lots of cheese, hot dogs, turkey meat, chicken, pork chops, eggs, and fish. Oh and sugarless carb free desserts. So it’s not a bad diet given the amount of veggies I include. But I do tend to suffer in the snack department. I’m still trying to figure that part out. At least for now I’m back on track.

What’s my next challenge? Facing down the left over All Hallow’s Eve candy. Bring it on!

Next week Wednesday someone who is very dear to me will be coming to visit. She is my Florida Mum. Let me tell you a bit about our history.

I was 15 when I ran away from home and through sheer dumb luck I ended up being taken in by a woman named Connie. She had just recently lost a set of twins and was in a very emotional time in her life. I, needed a mother. The timing couldn’t have been any better for us to meet each other. Little did I know that this woman would change my life and become the emotional support I needed.

At first I had been skeptical. My previous hideouts had been less than satisfactory. I couldn’t stay with my boyfriend’s parents as his brother and girlfriend kept trying to turn me in to the cops. So I had to find other places to crash. I had stayed with three previous women all of which had their own issues. One was a spoiled brat who’s parents paid for everything she wanted including her drug habit. Man did she have a sweet ass thunderbird though and at the time was one of the coolest people I had met. Then there was the lady who had a cop boyfriend and had decided to grow a conscious regarding my situation. I barely escaped being caught with that one. And then my briefest stay was with a lady who had a random encounter with a man she barely knew in a bar restroom. It was like a bad educational film.

So obviously I had a few trust issues. I didn’t know Connie and she didn’t know me. How was I supposed to know if she’d turn me in or not? Or if I’d have to get smuggled out in the trunk of a car to another destination again?  It must have been scary for both of us, but above all that we needed each other. We just didn’t know it at the time.

One thing I didn’t know right away was that she had been a runaway too at my age. I think it was that connection that drove her to fight so hard for me. The first time I remember feeling safe was the night she fought with her boyfriend over me. He wanted to get rid of me as I could get them all in trouble for harboring a runaway. But Connie was furious that he even suggested it. I can still recall the way the beer can seemed to explode as it hit his head and fizzed against the couch. With that “final word” she told me to come with her and we went on a long drive so she could cool off. At that moment I think we bonded. She had stood up for me. She wanted me. She protected me.

I look back at all she did for me and I can’t help but think that I took it all for granted. I could of helped with the housework more. I could have looked out for her more. It sucks that maturity can be so slow at times. All it takes is a few years to go by before you realize what a jackass you were. Damn you hindsight!

She is what I acquaint to a mother figure in my life. Yes, I have my real Mum but unfortunately we never developed that mother daughter bond. We do get along with each other, but I honestly don’t get her and she doesn’t get me. Connie, on the other hand, does. I have a real connection with her and can tell her anything without fear of judgment. She supports me even when I fuck up. That’s pretty sweet.

Now to the part of the “Florida Mum” title. My runaway days were over. I had turned 18, reconciled with my parents, graduated from highschool, and gotten a job. Things were looking up in my life, but Connie wasn’t complete. Her boyfriend at the time was a pothead and had started to get involved with crack. She was on disability from having carpel tunnel surgery on both wrists and the pay was small. It was looking bleak until she met someone who would change her life.

His name was Bruce and she met him online. Their relationship blossomed and became one of those rare internet love stories that you hear so much about. I think my favorite part of their story was when she first went down to Florida to meet him. They had so much fun but he didn’t think he was ready for a relationship. So teary eyed she waited at the airport for the flight to take her home. He shows up, spins her around and tells her that he doesn’t want her to go. It was so romantic. I wish I could have been there to see it. They are married now and she lives down in Florida with him. Hence her name of Florida Mum.

I’m glad things worked out for her. Whenever I go down to visit I can tell she’s happy. The stress that used to cloud her eyes is no longer there. She’s doing things she’s wanted to do. Heck she’s even got a book coming out soon! It makes me happy knowing that she’s taken care of. And I’m super excited for her to meet Amelia. This will be my Florida Mums first grandchild and I know that she will fall in love the moment she sees her. I’m counting down the days.

See you soon Florida Mum I can’t wait for you to meet my family. =)

Since giving birth I’ve been out on maternity leave for about 12 weeks. Having originally requested 8, the extra few weeks were both a bonus and a burden. On the one hand it was awesome to have more time to spend with my daughter and get her into a semi schedule. But the downside was my FMLA only covered 8 weeks, so for 4 extra weeks I was on my own money wise. Needless to say things got a bit tight. But now it’s back to work and back to making money. Goodbye Law & Order: Special Victims Unit! Goodbye Xena Warrior Princess! Hello web design and print ads!

Luckily, my employer was cool enough to allow me to work from home and after having looked at daycare prices I’m certainly glad they did. It’s ridiculous how expensive that is. I’m so relieved that I don’t have to worry about finding a daycare, getting the courage up to leave Amelia alone with strangers, and shelling out a paycheck a month to pay for it. But of course taking care of your kid while you work from home is no picnic either. So I’m going to relay my experiences of my first day back to work.

First of all let me state that I am not a morning person. I can get the perfect amount of sleep and yet still feel absolutely wrecked at 7 in the morning. Usually Dustin takes the morning shift and lets me sleep in until it’s time for him to leave for work. He comes in, gives me a kiss goodbye and the rundown of Amelia’s morning activities. Diapers been changed, what time she was fed, and that she’s sound asleep. That last part is always funny as no matter how passed out she is, the moment Dustin closes the front door she’s instantly awake and ready to play. I think she does that on purpose just to mess with me. It’s like I’m a drug addict chasing the dragon except my dragon is a few extra hours of sleep. And it never happens. So you can imagine how I was feeling at 7 am this morning, an hour earlier than when I’m usually awake. Zombeh DieDie was in full effect. But luckily a shower and some tea was all I needed to wake up.

I got the morning stuff all taken care of and signed in to work via Log Me In a pretty sweet website that allows you to sign into your work computer remotely. It’s 7:40am and so far everything’s a breeze. I went through my email and let the HR department know I was back so that they could reactivate my time card. I get a reply back that it’s been put in the system yet I won’t be able to clock in til tomorrow. Now considering I had spoken with them on Friday letting them know I was back Monday, I was a little peeved. Sure they had told me to email them on Monday when I was in, but couldn’t they have set this up on Friday so that I could at least clock in for my first day back? Apparently not. I then informed my boss so that there would be no question as to the status of my hours. So all good there.

I’m steadily plucking away when I hear the stirrings of Amelia. She let me work til 9 am and greeted me with the biggest smile. A good start to my work week. I fed her, changed her, and played with her til she started getting cranky. This is always a sure sign she’s sleepy and usually her morning nap is about 4 to 5 hours. I set her down and bam! She’s out like a light. Back to work I go.

Getting back into the habit of things turned out to be much easier than I expected. So far not a lot has changed at work. I took back my project management files and did some tweaking to get them up to speed. Granted I had a helper at work to take care of them while I was away, but everyone does things differently. So it’s never quite the same as your own order. I guess that’s the reason our department decided to “organize our filing system” on our own computers. I still have a ways to go on that project. All in all it was a very productive 3 hours. Around 1 o’clock Amelia woke up.

We ate lunch together, watched an episode of Law & Order and played with her toys. She’s friggen adorable when she’s bubbly and happy. But she took a shorter morning nap then usual and I could already tell by her yawns that another nap was soon to come. Sure enough at around 3 pm she passed out. So I was free to go back to the main computer. I say main as I also have a laptop to monitor my emails for when I’m out in the living room just in case any emergency projects/emails need my attention. I wasn’t really expecting any for my first day back, but you never know. Plus it’s always good to be prepared and to have a plan in place for those crazy days.

Overall Amelia showed me what an optimal day at work could be like with her. Now I just have to see what a bad day will be like. Hopefully, this good streak will continue. I already have some projects to work on and I’m feeling pretty good about them. Granted I’m probably a little rusty with eblasts and I hear there’s a newer procedure to go with them, but that’s the fun of work. I’m certainly glad to be back.

So how am I feeling now that my first day is over? Tired. I don’t think I’ve spent this many consecutive hours in front of the computer in my past 2 months off. It’s going to take a bit of getting used to as not only do I need to take care of the clients at work, but also the little client at home. I’m not doing this on my own though. I have a fantastic mate that makes sure I have the time to do the things I want to do. Plus if Amelia gets too unruly during the day, Dustin has promised to watch her when he comes home and allow me the time to focus on my work projects. Teamwork. That’s what it’s all about. Oh and ice cream! You can never go wrong with a little bribery.

Aloha!

Welcome to the first installment of what I hope to be a long and witty rendition of my life experiences. First of all, introductions need to be made. My name is Diane though at lot of my online friends refer to me as DieDie. Cute nickname picked up 11 or so years ago. Hence, the name of this blog. So, sorry to burst the bubble of those looking to find a blog about killing people. I know I know, the title is misleading. Stick around though, you might find something interesting enough to keep you here.

I’ve recently given birth to a beautiful baby girl named Amelia and I live with her and my future husband Dustin. It’s so strange to me that I’ve become a mother. In all my whimsical dreams I’d never really thought I’d be a Mom. Oh, I had tried with an ex boyfriend before to no avail and had since given up the idea. But, then the Powers That Be decided to spring me with… well an off-spring.

Dustin and I weren’t exactly dating then. The feelings were beginning to develop and after hanging out for months as friends had turned into something more substantial. Who would have thought that a failed condom on my birthday would result in such a wonderful outcome. Granted I was completely scared out of my wits at first, as was he. But having talked it out and come to the conclusion that we did indeed like each other more than friends, we decided to give parenting a go. I can honestly say that to this day I have no regrets. Not your traditional love story no, but who wants a standard story when happenstance  is so much more entertaining?  I can just see the look on my daughter’s face when I tell her, “No we didn’t meet on some romantic European cruise, your Father and I were just fooling around like two promiscuous bunnies. You’re living proof that condoms aren’t 100% foolproof. Maybe we should have double wrapped.” … yeah that’d go over well. I think I need to start working on my romantic cruise story before it’s too late. That at least is a mini version of my journey into parenthood. We’ll be visiting this topic repeatedly in future posts I’m sure.

Work-wise I’m all over the place. I started off busting tables at George Webbs when I was 16 and I’ve since found myself as a roofer, a pantry cook, a customer service representative, a sales lead, a provisioning and completion representative, and now as a graphic artist for Lithia Motors Inc. Basically, I’m a Jack of all trades.

I’m a quick learner, yet scared that I’m a complete failure. A lack of self confidence can be a wicked downer believe me. It’s stopped me from giving writing a serious go. I believe I have some talent. I’ve been participating on a vampire writing board for some time now, well over 11 years. I’ve been told I write the best villain characters there and that is a big ego booster. It’s produced a deep desire in me to write a book with some of those characters yet I always end up chickening out. So here I am with my first baby steps. If I can keep up a blog then I’ll be in the correct mental state to write seriously. I figure a regiment of posting will allow me to get into a habit which can eventually transition into a work schedule. We’ll see how this goes.

So be prepared to delve into my strange psyche. I’ll likely have random topics involving friends, family, video games, parenting, relationships, cooking, news articles, and anything else that piques my fancy.

This is DieDie and welcome to my blog.

Oh and PS. Only Muppets Will Judge Me.