Monday, January 31, 2011

Day 8-A place you've traveled to

Travel...well, I do love to travel. 

I guess today I'll follow the rules. A Place I've traveled to...my dream vacation that Heath took me on? Italy!?!?
My picture on the side bar is of us in Assissi. 

Heath promised me, when we were in college, that he'd take me to Italy, and 15+ years later he did! We went in April...and I loved it! Here are a few pictures of our trip...

 The Colosseum

 Lucca
 Pisa
 The Pope
 The Spanish Steps
 Trevvi Fountain
 The Vatican

 Assissi
 Florence
 Venice


Sunday, January 30, 2011

Day 7-Favorite movies

I love movies. Heath and I play movie trivia with songs and quotes. We watch at least a movie a day through Netflix, Directv, or iTunes! ha!?!? And, of course, I have a handful of favorite movies. I like nearly every type of movie, but NO scary movies in our house! I just don't get why people like to be scared.) And to actually name and identify them is a bit harder for me!

I'll start with movies that came to my brain immediately..because I watch them over and over again with no hesitation:

The Holiday (I own this movie and watched it at least 5 times over the Xmas holiday season. Kate Winslet is one of my favorites!)

Sense and Sensibility (I think it has something to do with a love story with three sister...and guess who plays the middle sister?!?! LOL)

And, I have to include Disney Movies!?!?
Sleeping Beauty

But, I REALLY fell in love with Princess and the Frog and it's music! LOVE!

The Blindside (I just love this story!)

Remember the Titans (I told you I love football!) 

Giant (My mom was in this movie as a little girl and I've always loved watching it!?!) 

And, the last one I'll pick is...
Fried Green Tomatoes



I really do not like having to pick favorite movies...because I like a lot of movies. It might depend on my mood!?!? If I posted this tomorrow, it might be a different list! Heath and I just saw "No Strings Attached" and I laughed till my sides hurt-great movie, not suitable for kids tho! I also like mystery type movies...I watched Sixth Sense again the other night and forgot what a great movie it was!?!? So, please know...these movies just scratch the service on my love of movies!?!?


Saturday, January 29, 2011

Day 6-A picture of something that makes you happy

A picture? A PICTURE!?!? I'm gonna have to have more than one b/c I love pictures. I take tons of pictures and can't just pick one!?!? That's insane!

I have limited myself...I really could do so many more, but I used my Photo Cluster template and chose 7 photos! these are the first seven that I came across from the past year and thought...oh I LOVE that picture!Please note, I needed about 30 more just from the past year!

(Going from top to bottom, left to right)
1. The kids waiting on Mom and Dad's stairs to see what Santa brought them Christmas morning 2010.
2. My nephew LG at the Christmas Eve service...he wanted to collect the candles and light them all.
3. Mac eye shadow (taken my SIL Holly). I LOVE Mac. This picture makes my heart go pitter-patter.
4. Heath, H, and M skiing in Crested Butte last Spring Break. Love this picture!
5. Lucca, Italy...I loved these bikes lined up in the street.
6. M and LG at the Suspension Bridge horse sculptures in Waco. I love this photo, especially with this photo action!
7. H and M taking pics in their Rangers jersey. We did a special photo shoot after they made it to the World Series. So fun!

LG made it twice...he took some great photos for me this Christmas. Sorry to my other nieces and nephews...I probably had some, just had to limit myself! See, and now I'm feeling guilty...please refer back to #13 in Day 1!?!? LOL

And now since I'm feeling guilty, I've decided to post two of my favorite pics from each side of the family from the past year. Jeez, I'm ridiculous!

Lee family at Disney minus Heath and my BIL Jay.

Nay family at Downtown Disney minus Sam and Molly!

Until tomorrow...

Friday, January 28, 2011

Day 5-Your favorite recipes

Oh jeez, this is hard. I cook a lot. I love to cook, and I love to try new recipes!

Since we are working on eating healthier, should I post healthy recipes? Should I post family favorites? Easy ones? The pressure of a recipe!


I'm starting with my mom's trash...Texas Trash! I'm not sure why this went to my brain first, but it did.   Here is a picture of it...when I made it for Xmas. (M took this picture!?!?)


So, I guess you'd like the recipe.

1 box each: wheat, rice, and corn chex cereal, cheerios
1 bag of straight pretzels
mixed nuts (these can be left out b/c of allergies or hatred of nuts)

mix all of this together in two large pans. (this is my turkey roaster.)

Sauce:
1 lb. margarine (yes that is POUND)
1 c Crisco oil
3 teaspoons Worcestershire
2 teaspoons garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon red pepper
1/2 box accent
1 teaspoon garlic salt
1/4 teaspoon of seasoning salt
2 teaspoon Tabasco

Mix and heat sauce until margarine melts. Pour over cereal and stir well.
Put in oven heated to 220 degrees. Cook for 2 hours, stir every 20 minutes!

YUM!?!?

Heather's Famous Chicken (well, not so famous, but my family totally loves it and ALWAYS eats it. It's my go-to recipe in a pinch.)

chicken tenderloins (frozen or fresh)--not breaded.
Olive Oil (or grapeseed)
Balsamic Vinegar

In a nonstick skillet, drizzle olive or grapeseed oil. Place chicken in pan and drizzle balsamic vinegar over it. Cook on medium heat, turning chicken so ask not to burn.

I serve it with a wide array of green veggies and even mac and cheese.

And my grandma's Chili

1.5 pounds of ground beef or turkey
28 oz. can of diced tomatoes
1 can tomato sauce
5 Tablespoons flour (if turkey, only 2)
3 Tablespoons chili powder
1 teaspoon sugar
2 teaspoons salt

Cook meat, drain fat, then add dry ingredients. Stir well. Add tomatoes and sauce, plus one can (tomato sauce size) of water. Simmer till warm.

Serve with fritos, rice, sour cream, cheese, or anything else you want. It's not spicy, if you like spice, add cayenne pepper or Tabasco!


Let's see...another one that is way more healthy. And, you may have already seen it on here.

Cilantro Lime Chicken

I guess I'll stop here, though I could go on and on!?!?

Thursday, January 27, 2011

Day 4-Your parents

My Parents: Ronnie and Kreta


This picture is from our trip to DisneyWorld in December. It was so cold!?!? We were at Rope Drop at Epcot on the first morning!

What can I say about my parents? I'm not sure if I'm supposed to tell you about who they are or just about how great they are!?!?

I gave a couple of hints about my parents in Day 1's 15 interesting facts. I'm more like my dad in my overall personality. When a situation is tough or stressful, we both decide joke telling is the best solution! My dad was the perfect daddy for 3 girls. He's sweet and understanding, and a cuddler. I love a good hug from my daddy. He taught us all about sports, maybe to his annoyance now!?!?

My mom and I are both middle daughters of 3...which brings certain "birth order" resemblances. My two sisters are more like her in personality traits, but I get my stubbornness from her!?!? And, my "I only like to follow rules if I don't think they are stupid." She has an incredible work ethic...has the #1 consignment store, Another Season, in Waco!?!? (voted by the readers of the Waco Trib) She's also a perfectionist, me not so much!

Anyway, there are some awesome lessons that I learned from my parents.
1. Live by the fruits of the spirit. If you live with love, gentleness, kindness, patience, peace, self-control, etc. you will be living like Christ. And, people will be drawn to you...and that will be your witness. Not that I am good at any of these, patience is a weakness for me...and I'm not always gentle! But, I do try.
2. Love unconditionally. period.
3. You CHOOSE to love your spouse everyday. There will be days you don't like them very much, but you can choose to love them.
4. Family first...you sacrifice whatever you need to for your family. Family time together is the most important to build relationships (even if it's just lying on the bed laughing together!).

Thanks Mom and Dad for all you've done for me and how much you've loved me! So thankful you are MY parents!

Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Day 3-Your first love

This is an easy one!?!?

My first love is my only love...I know I'm lucky.

Heath and I in Italy (our dream vacation) in April

At the age of 18, I had just graduated from high school, was getting ready to go off to college at Baylor. That summer, my family headed to DisneyWorld for a family vacation...it was a great summer! In August, like 2 weeks before going to school (I can't say off to school b/c Baylor was 10 whole miles from my parents.), I met Heath! You won't believe where...well, I say where, we knew each other in high school--or knew who the other was. We were country dancing...you know Texas 2-stepping, good stuff. We ended up talking most of the night. I can't even remember is we danced, but I'm sure we did. We met at Elk Hall. I dare you to go look up Elk, Texas. ha!

And, I swear, it was within a week, that I knew I would spend my life with him.

We were married 4 years later, not out of college yet. Yes, we were young! We've gone through half of our lives together and wouldn't change that fact! We've gone through ups and downs....moved all over the place, etc. But, I can honestly say, I love him more now than ever! I was blessed the day I met you, Heath!?!? (i hope you are reading this since I just spoke to you directly! LOL)

5 reasons I love Heath...
1. He loves me no matter what I do. He has unconditional love.
2. He modeled one of the most important character qualities to our children...perserverance. He has shown them an incredible work ethic and commitment through medical school and residency.
3. He loves to have fun and get silly with me and the kids. We love to laugh together.
4. He wants everyone around him to be happy, and usually makes sure they are, before he worries about himself being happy.
5. He helps me reach my full potential and ready my dreams and goals.

Monday, January 24, 2011

Day 2-Meaning behind your blog name

Yikes!!!
I should start off that I am ever-evolving. So, in order to tell you the meaning behind my blog name, I need to tell you the story of How I got here!?!

First, my design name is Haynay. That name came from teaching 2nd grade. I had this sweet student, William. One Spring day, he was standing in the bus line, and I was walking by. He yells at me "Hey Nay!" I turn around and say "Hey William!" He looked completely astonished, like you could push him over with a feather! "Why are you surprised?" I asked. "I've wanted to say that to you all year! I love that your names rhymes with HEY! But, I thought you'd be mad." was his response. Needless to say, he said it to me every single morning for the remainder of the school year. It stuck for so much longer than that school year--my sister-in-law, Holly, actually calls me Haynay as opposed to Heather most days of the week. I will remember him always for courage. (I did change the spelling for more continuity!)

So, my first blog was haynay...but it turned into my design blog, where I didn't really want to SHARE personal information.

Last year, 2010, I desired to start a new blog for my P365..which obviously didn't make it through the year. That blog then turned into to me just sharing personal stories and events. I've been wanting to revamp "2010 with the Nays" or "The Nays in 2010" to something different b/c it's obviously not 2010 anymore!?!?!

I left the URL the same, but changed the "title" of the blog to "Nay-sayers!" HA!?!? What would you put with Nay...it's so negative and depressing of a word--not a name!?!? I decided to go with Nay-sayers to represent what I am saying to the world.

Jeez, I talk way too much!

I forgot an important fact

Can I add 16?

16. I hate cleaning. I'm the worst housekeeper ever. That is all.

(and if I needed to delete one of the above so I can add this, it would be #12. I hate cleaning more than i love chick flix. Well that was easy.)

Day 1-Introduce, recent picture, 15 interesting facts

Howdy! I'm pretty sure that is the official greeting from the state of Texas! LOL...I no longer live in Texas, but was born and raised there and am definitely a native Texan! :)

An introduction...
...my name is Heather! I am wife to Heath, mom to H and M, WAHM (work at home mom--I design digital scrapbook products and when jobs come, freelance write elementary curriculum!), friend, sister, daughter, and overall Big Fat Dork! Like I said in my first paragraph, I am a native Texan, but live in Albuquerque now. I have no idea what else i need to include in an introduction b/c anything else I include would take away some of the interesting facts below!??!

A recent picture...a few days ago I posted a picture of myself for my OLW album, I won't repost it, but I had another picture taken that day as we were playing in the snow in Crested Butte, that picture is the one I decided on!?!?




Isn't it fun!??! I used the Hipstamatic app on my iPhone. Love that app! 

Seriously, I have no idea how I'm coming up with 15 interesting facts about me....that is going to be crazy hard!?!? And sadly, I'm not sure if I'm a creative, funny enough writer to hold your attention to get through all 15!?!?! But "Here we GOOOOoooo...." (think Peter Pan here!)

1. Heath and I met right after I got out of high school and got married during college...can I say our GPAs went sky high. We've been married for 14 years and 27 days. I can't believe he still puts up with me.
2. Since 2000, I have had 2 babies, lived in 2 countries and 4 states,  put my husband through med school, and residency, got my masters in education, started 2 new careers, and learned how to take pictures with my Canon EOS 20D in manual settings!?!?
3. For some reason, I function at a speed that at least doubles most people's natural speed. I get things done at a rapid rate, though not always perfect, it's usually correct! I have learned to slow down on many things I do. Because of this, most of my friends I get a freakishly large amount of things done in a day.
4. I have a serious addiction to Dr. Pepper. Please don't suggest I drink diet, it's gross! Since I am on a diet now, it's been 6 days since my last drink. I look forward to one at a later date.
5. I am not a girly girl, but not a tom-boy. I nearly hate the color pink, but birthed a little girl who thinks pink is the bees knees. I even painted her entire room pink a few months ago, nearly vomiting the entire time!?!?
6. Speaking of colors...I love color. I think, well, I'm pretty sure that i see colors differently than many people, most really. I have color memories...where I can match a color without having it with me, even weeks after seeing it. I am very color sensitive and when combinations are put together that are not pleasing to my eye, I almost  have a physical reaction...and always a verbal one!
7. I love office supplies...just ask anyone who has ever worked in an office with me. I can hoard post it notes and sharpies if I don't watch it. It's all illness I'm certain.
8. I have 2 sisters...I'm the insensitive one. Just ask anyone. I'm also the funny one- get that from my dad. I'm much more funny in person than on the computer. Sarcasm is my comedy of choice-which doesn't come across well through digital media. Robyn is my older sister...so glad she's pregnant right now instead of me!?!?! She's also BRILLIANT and totally in tune with everyone around her. It's quite amazing. Amber is my baby sister...so glad she will have a baby sometime after Robyn to keep my baby holding needs in check so I won't want another one! She just got married in June, so it's coming someday. She is super SWEET, has not one mean bone in her body. She just finished her MBA, completing the masters trifecta that my parent's raised. All three of us girls got our masters!?! She also just started a new job...and lives in Charleston where Southwest is starting to fly to! WOO HOO! Oh my that was a long one.
9. I have also "adopted" two more sisters...Holly, my sister in law, is like a sister to me. Love her so much, she makes me laugh often, though not as much as I make her laugh!?!? The second is my only girl cousin, Jenni!?!? I LOVE me some Jenni! We are those cousins who would visit each other for a week at a time during the summer, and play and play and play. We are very much alike and I just enjoy her company.
10. Sports...I love sports. I love football the most, specifically college ball...I am a Dallas Cowboys fan! Even though we stunk up the field this year, I still love them!?!? It was watching them on Sunday afternoons with my dad that I learned all about football. Also, I love watching my Baylor Bears in any sport! This past year, I was fortunate enough to take the kids to Houston to watch them play in the Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight! So proud...we also went to the Texas Bowl...our first bowl game since I was a jr. at Baylor! WOW!! Also love me some college baseball, and the Texas Rangers. We had a blast watching them get to the World Series this year! I also know more than most girls about sports in general...I love watching ESPN and obtaining crazy stupid facts. I love personal stories of athletes too. I'm a sports nerd. (In fact, we have Direct TV for NFL network and the ability to get all games of March Madness.)
11. I come from a long line of work-a-holics--on my mom's side. These women are also STRONG, which i love. I was raised knowing that I could do anything in the world that I put my mind to! My mom was an incredible example to me on working hard for what you want. I think my problem is that I don't always know what I want!
12. I love chick flicks. LOVE. My favorites are: Ever After, You've Got Mail, the Holiday, the Proposal, Hope Floats, and so many more! Love them!
13. Are you bored yet? I totally am one of those people who wants everyone to like me and approve of me. I do not want people to be disappointed in me, or not like me. I have a joke with my mother in law "I just want people to like me!?!?" I like helping people...so if you need help, let me know, just give me some notice...which leads to 14...
14. I need time to adjust. I can be flexible, it's just not immediate. I need time to come to terms of my plans not working out or needing to change. I might need to complain about it to. But, once I get over my own issues, I'm happy to change plans!?!? Prior Proper Planning Prevents Piss Poor Performance....This is actually my father-in-law's motto, but I have embrased it. It was natural for me to adopt. I like to plan my days, planning my errand "route" around the city to make the fastest possible time, we wont' even talk about my obsession in vacation planning...i'm a planner, I can't help it!
15. I love my family. Like LOVE my family. I would do anything for them, give anything to them. Although, because I'm not super affectionate and am "insensitive" it's not super obvious. But, overall, I would give a kidney to any of them...and probably any of my friends too. I am super loyal and a mama bear. Don't be hurting anyone I love because it won't be pretty what comes out of me if you do!

See, I told you I was boring. Those probably aren't the facts that you were looking for. They are weird and crazy, but I guess, that's who I am. I can't wait to get deeper into this challenge! I hope you enjoyed reading about me...I really do...see number 13!?!? Have a great day and I'll see you tomorrow!??!

Sunday, January 23, 2011

Tomorrow's the day

Okay, I think there might be several ladies joining me for "30 days!" Tomorrow is my first post! So excited to get started.

We have done very little this weekend, but this is the big thing that happened:


Heath had a small wreck in my car; luckily, no one was hurt! He was in the car by himself, so that's good! Monday, I'll probably be getting a rental car until we figure out what's going to happen with "Eve."

Eve was named after Eve on Wall-E. I teased Heath when I got to the accident sight that she's gone from Eve to Wall-e!?!? LOL

Hope you all have a great day! I'll be watching some football, relaxing on the couch, scrapping some pages, folding some laundry, and who knows what else!

Friday, January 21, 2011

I'm late to the party...that's nothing new

I've been totally enjoying Adrienne's 31 Flavors Blog posts in January! Age is my baby sister's BFF from high school. So, I've known her for a while now! And, she's inspired me to...wait for it...

CREATE a better blog!?!? Ha ha!

So, the first thing I'm going to do is "30 Days!"

Here is a bit of a run-down...now let's see if I can actually get this done! LOL

Day 1-Introduce, recent picture, 15 interesting facts

Day 2-Meaning behind your blog name

Day 3-Your first love

Day 4-Your parents

Day 5-Your favorite recipes

Day 6-A picture of something that makes you happy

Day 7-Favorite movies

Day 8-A place you've traveled to

Day 9-A picture of your friends

Day 10-Something you're afraid of

Day 11-Favorite TV shows

Day 12-What you believe

Day 13-Goals

Day 14-A picture you love

Day 15-Bible verse

Day 16-Dream house

Day 17-Something you're looking forward to

Day 18-Something you regret

Day 19-Something you miss

Day 20-Nicknames

Day 21-Picture of yourself

Day 22-What's in your makeup bag

Day 23-Favorite vacation

Day 24-Something you've learned

Day 25-Put your iPod on shuffle, first 10 songs

Day 26-Picture of your family

Day 27-Pets

Day 28-Something that stresses you out

Day 29-3 Wishes

Day 30-a picture

Age started on Jan 1, so thus me being super behind, but I've decided I can start whenever I want! ;)  I'm starting soon, very soon....let's say Monday. (My reasoning is I have to take the kids skiing on Sat, football on Sun, so Mon. should be okay!?!? Plus maybe I'll be feeling better by then!)

So anyone want to join me? Just put your blog addy in the comments and I'll follow you too! 

Wednesday, January 19, 2011

My January Project for OLW

We went to Crested Butte this weekend, where Heath sat around the cabin sick as can be! (And now, I'm sitting at home with the same sickness. uuugggg)

While in CB, I worked on my January project assignment for One Little Word with Ali Edwards! Take a look at my picture...to signify the beginning of the year. I took this on Sunday with Fiona...my Mac! (using Photo Booth!) Then, I ran an action or two on it, and added the border Ali supplied us with.


Then, I finished my "create" introduction....I defined it, gave a quote, used a thesaurus to learn more about my word. And, I also did a couple of "creative" boxes!


I'm so excited to CREATE this year!

Sunday, January 16, 2011

Creative

So, I found this quote yesterday on Paint the Moon.

"To be Creative is to be in love with life. You can be creative only if you love life enough that you want to enhance it's beauty, you want to bring a little more music to it, a little more poetry to it, a little more dance to it." -Osho

I wanted to save it for my "One Little Word" book so why not share it with you and save it for me! Have a blessed and creative day!

Thursday, January 13, 2011

One Little Word

I decided to NOT make New Year's Resolutions this year...

What I AM doing is "One Little Word." I learned about this from Ali Edwards. She a scrappin' guru that I adore! I want to be like her. She's such the "Everyday" kinda gal! Very cool...anyway. She offers a "online class" with One Little Word too. Truthfully, I haven't decided if I will take it yet, but am leaning toward doing it.

My OLW is "CREATE."

Create? you ask...don't you create all the time. And, my answer is, sorta. I feel as though my creativity is just touching the surface! I think there is so much more out there for me to reach.


I was telling a group of friends today about it and wrote the following...but am expanding it more for you...or maybe for me!

I always create, but I want to really take it to heart! I want not only to create scrapbook stuff, but really want to create this year!

I want to create a warm home, decorated beautifully, where everyone is comfy and accepted. I want it to be a mirror to Heath and my personality. To really reflect who we are and what we love.

I want to create happiness for myself. I can only worry about my happiness, not
Heath's, not my kids', not my sisters', my parents', etc. I am responsible for mine. I believe happiness comes from within. And, I need to focus on making myself better...and there are many places for me to start!

I want to create a healthier me. I need to lose about 15-20 pounds. Don't we all!?!?! I need to start working out regularly, no matter how much I truly hate it! I am going to start cooking much more healthy for my family, etc.

I want to create memories for my kids that they will treasure always...even if it's teaching H long
division. ya know? I want them to remember the everyday...in fact, I need to focus on the every day more and not so much on the BIG stuff!

I want to create photographs....really good photos. And, I want to look through my camera lens in a
different way. I want to take pictures of everyday happenings around my house, even if the house is a mess!

These are just a few things. I wanted to share with the world I guess!