A10CalGal

Ugh! I too am a hyperpigmentation sufferer. It was so weird...about 5 or 6 years ago I went to Jamaica for the 2nd time. When I checked my face at landing, everything was fine. By the time I got to my hotel, I looked in the mirror & was like WTF? It looked like I had been sunburned weeks before & was in the peeling process from far away. It was like the heat brought it out. So weird. Ever since then I've battle with it. My dermo said it is def from BC & as long as I was on BC it would never fully go away. I have been off BC for a little over a year & it has definitely improved. I use an Rx cream called Tri-Luma. It has both hydroquinone & RetinA in it. If I am religious about using it, it really makes a difference. You are supposed to use if for like 6 or 8 weeks, then stop for 6 or 8 weeks. I'm never that consistent with it.

Quote: Originally Posted by LC_Rachel well crap- then I say make sure you lay down the line with them. You are adults- you deserve to be treated as such. IF they are going to hold the money, the house or whatever else they use as leverage, then you should find a nice place to have it instead. I tend to agree w/Rachel on this. As silly as it seems, all this being over a candy buffet, it really is a pivotal moment in time. If you accept this treatment, which in essence is inappropriately controlling, you send a message back that gives permission for things to go down like this in the future. Perhaps finding an alternative & neutral location to have your AHR will be a big signal to FMIL that you are indeed adults, you don't need her crap & you can handle this stuff just fine without intervention designed to "teach you a lesson."

OMG Heidi!!! I totally got goose bumps seeing your pics! The colors are so vibrant. Your skin is beyond flawless - gorgeous!! And the rainbow she captured - how cool! What else? Oh yes - the love between you & Reggie just pours out of those pics. Fantastic chica!!!

WTF? Seriously? No candy buffet? Does anybody over there realize how ridiculous this is? I'm really sorry honey - this is totally crazy. And to go thru all the drama that has happened, and be told that they will not have candy at their house? I'm speechless.... And to me, the FMIL appology is totally empty. It's like "oh I'm sorry I crushed all of your dreams and made you feel crazy and sad all day, but I'm still going to crush your dreams. Sorry!"

Good morning Sarah! How sweet of all the girls to post these cute photos to cheer you up. I'm going to take it in another direction...this picture always seems to make TammyB happy, so I'll try it out on you:

haha!!! Nice! If I recall correctly, the chic modeling my dress looked like she had to pee her pants. Lets see if it's still out there... Ack, that's not the exact one I was thinking of...but in this one she does look extremely immaciated (SP?) and kindof in pain.

Actually, what Rachel just said reminded me....my husband has decided that I am smart & know every thing (duh!) & he is pretty much retarded. Isn't that deliciously horrible?

HAHA!! Ok, I'm sorry, but for me to understand what you were venting about I had to imagine the whole tirade in a british accent so I could make sense of it. got it. You are cute!! Yes - definitely, blokes are thick as you can get. They just can't wrap their minds around the idea that stuff like this needs advanced planning. Why can't they just decide they are coming a month before?? GRRR!!!

Jeeez!! All this over a $25 candy situation? Yeah, probably not so much. You are 7 weeks out, people start freaking out in the weirdest ways. Maybe FMIL is starting to feel like she's losing her position & she's lashing out in weird ways? I don't know. I think people just get fricking weird with weddings. My mom drove me INSANE the month before our wedding - she was super clingy and weird and acted completely not herself. In hindsight, I realize it was because she was nervous/anxious that her only daughter was getting married & she didn't know how to act. Whatev - it's your day girl. The drama needs to go. Hopefully you guys can figure it out & calm everything down.

Quote: Originally Posted by LC_Rachel Ugh- so glad those single club days are over! Totally! But man, they were some good times!

Quote: Originally Posted by JamaicaBride062108 I walked out of the room and came back to find him in his underwear on my couch! The direct quote was "Since I brought you home, how about a blow job?" WTF!?! Wow...I probably would have kicked him in the nuts on that one.

Oh, wow, I just thought of a WAY better hell date!! I'm probably about 27, living the happy single life, going out with friends, having a good time...you know, just chillin. I meet a guy one night out at a bar (I know, I know!) and we chat it up. I give him my digits, and he actually calls the next day. We set up a dinner date for the following weekend. I'm funny about strangers coming to my house, and I lived a bit out of downtown, so I drove to town, parked my car at a friends & caught a taxi to the restaurant. I was standing in front of the restaurant just waiting, and waiting & waiting. Nothing. So I finally go inside and there is a total scene going on at the bar inside...and date guy is all up in the middle of it! I'm talking body shot's type of scene - in a fricking sushi bar?? WTF? I'm like, yeah, ok...and I start to leave. He comes sprinting out the door "oh there you are! c'mon lets go sit & chat & eat sushi!" I don't know why I didn't keep walking...but I didn't. We sat down to dinner & this guy was just amazing. I mean I can drink a lot of alcohol for a girl, and I'm certainly no one to judge. But this guy was drinking so much, so fast, it was embarrassing. He was so drunk by the middle of dinner he was slurring his words & his eyes were barely open. I got up to go to the bathroom, and when I came back he was seriously passed the F out on the table! I was livid. The waiter wanted me to pay & get the guy out of the restaurant! I was like "hell no" - so I pulled the guy's wallet out of his pants, pulled out his Visa, gave it to the waiter & got the F outta there. So, needless to say, I never dated a guy I met in a bar again.

These are some great stories! I'm trying think of what to share...it seems I've had so many bizzar experiences that I've semi-blocked from memory. Here's one I can fully recall: About a year before I met my hubby, a guy I worked with & got along with well told me he knows a guy he thinks I would really like. I was kinda in that zone where I was ready to meet someone, so I was keeping my eyes open to possibilities. This work guy is very smart & seemed to understand where I was coming from, so I was actually quite interested to find out more about mystery dude. He's a mechanical engineer, owns his home, just moved back to the area from San Luis Obispo, drives a Porsche, blah blah blah. Over all a very nice guy per my work friend. So, I agree to meet mystery dude & tell work guy it's cool to pass on my work cell. Mystery dude calls, it just so happens he works not far from my work & we set up a lunch date. Our conversation was great & felt easy, so I was looking forward to meeting him. So of course, he pulls up in his black Porsche, so I know it's him (well, me & the whole front office!)....I run outside and get in the car. I immediately think he is super handsome in a Tom Cruise type of way. All giddy sitting in Tom's Porsche...We cruise down to the local deli, get out of the car...and BAM! it hits my - the mystery dude who I've made perfect in our 5 minutes together is a full 6 inches shorter than me. Totally boob height. I wanted to cry. I did actually try to get past the height thing. We went out on a few more dates & he was a really great guy. Oh yeah, until he started obsessively talking about his ex-fiance. And how he was going to spend Christmas with her family. Ummmm....yeah....I'll talk to you later Tom. Short asshole!

The science of tanning - took me a while to perfect back in my tanning days. So here's what I would do: I would equally divide the time of the session by 4 (so a 10 minute tan = four 2.5 minute segments). I would start out on my back (making sure the butt crease is eliminated) for the first segment, roll to one side with my arm over my head for the second segment (this addressed the side boob situation). Then on to the other side, and finally ending on my stomach. I did this because I found when laying stationary, I tended to get those weird bulb lines &/or I would experience uneven tanning. This rotisserie tactic worked out most excellently.

My group used the koozies for sure! We were not at an all inclusive, so we were drinking beer out of the bottle/can - that may have made the difference.

Quote: Originally Posted by Saraha So anyways Kevin was about to call his mom and blow up on her and after calming him down I told him I would write her an email.... so let me know if this is nice yet assertive: Hey Jaci! Its not too late to stop everything. I can return it all and eat all the candy LOL! JK! But Kevin and I really think it would be fun to have, I think it would look nice and all the guests would enjoy it. But if you really dont want me to do it I wont. How does that sound? Havent sent it yet? Are you kidding me...NO - DON'T SEND IT! You are already giving her the power with every single sentence in that email! EDIT _ OK, good, Maura got to you first!!

There was no way I was going to be able to not be in the sun in Cabo! Although, like Jamy mentioned, the days leading up to the wedding were pretty busy, so it's not like I got to languish on the beach all day. But realistically, every where I went, there was the sun. I did tan a bit before heading down to Cabo, so I had a great base tan. I just kept up with the sun screen & wore strapless stuff before the big day. I was most worried about my face - I tend to get this neat hyperpigmentation in warm climates that makes me look like I'm wearing a funky mask...so I kept a visor or hat on for sure.

I love that - contract with the Earth, printed out for every employee. DRRR! I feel good about my carbon foot print since we were very conscious (ok I was) about making our home Energy Star compliant. Based on the calculator Christine posted, our household carbon emissions (for 3 people) is 32,848 lbs per year. My yoga studio was giving away baby Douglas Fir trees last night in celebration of Earth Day. I brought one home & hubby was like "we live in the great northwest - do we really need another tree?" Yes dahling, we do!

Well happy anniversary! And YAY for boys who send flowers!

Yes, definitely breathe and take a step away from the candy buffet! Is the issue that she doesn't want candy in her house? Or that she doesn't want to pay for it? I'm confused....how expensive could it be?

Wow - what fun Abbie! Great pics too!

Quote: Originally Posted by LC_Rachel I like #2 on you best. I think it's very flattering on the waist, and your girls definitely look bigger (not sure if that's what you want though- I always do!) The back is lovely- I love the flowy look and I think it looks so beautiful in DW dresses. It's not as structured. However, I did see your "blue" dress. I like that better than the purple one. I would be hesitant about a dress with color though. I think it might be a trend that will look dated later. Just my opinion though. Either way, you look good in all the dresses. Go with the one you love the most. Ditto what Rachel said! You girls are LARGE and in charge in #2...so I think that distracted me initially. I like the over all feel of that dress though - the flowiness.

Dammit, dammit, dammit! I still don't have my cable in the new house....I can only hope this will be replayed many a time for my viewing pleasure.

Quote: Originally Posted by Janet Christa -- It's Benjamin Moore Revere Pewter. I also really like Behr Wheat Bread. They are both warm, inviting grays, not cold, stony grays. And trust me, I wasted like 140 hours of my life researching this! THANK YOU!!! Now you can divide your 140 hours by 2 houses. We saw a very similar color in one of the model homes for our community. Rafael keeps referring back to it...but ya think they could tell you what the color is?? Nope. I like yours & I think we'll give it a try

Quote: Originally Posted by Janet OMG why have I not seen this thread in MONTHS? Am I blind?!? I love all of your homes and being able to get some design ideas. Our house is in a total state of half-done. I have a feeling it always will be. But here are a few pics anyway: I painted the master bedroom like 4 times before I settled on this gray color: Hi Janet! OK, I love that grey you have in your bedroom. Save me some work & tell me the color!!