Saturday, July 30, 2011

A look into the past...

Last night Dovey and I were discussing our family trees, and how we really don't know much past our grandparents. After much deliberation, we decided to start an Ancestry.com family tree. Though it is quite simple to get started, there are already a few issues we have come across.

One... adoptions! How on earth do I show that my mother was adopted by her aunt, and that three of my husbands sibs were adopted. (CONFUSING).

Two... Historical references. For example, how am I to obtain a photograph of a great grandparent for the tree? or know what wars they participated in, and where they resided?

Three... it looks like the only way Ancestry.com can assist is if you have more than JUST a name (meaning a birth city, death city, dates of birth or death) once you have that the little leaf appears and VOILA! you have access to official documents. :( If I barely know their name, how on EARTH am I going to know their birthdate!

UGH. What have we gotten ourselves into!? I have sent out a call for help to all of our family members... perhaps they can shed light into the shadows and we can end up with a substantial family tree, complete and filled with little tidbits of uniqueness.

Filled with hope,

Thursday, July 28, 2011

Becoming a Sawyer: Part One - Second Attempt!

So this morning I paid my second visit to my local Social Security Office to start the process of legally becoming a Sawyer.

When it came to changing my name, I was faced with quite the conundrum. Drop the maiden name? Hyphenate it? Keep it the same? I finally settled on adding my maiden name as a middle name to honor my father's memory. Of course a name change has a few steps - the Social Security office being the first, followed by the DMV and the US Passport service. Then to send off proof of the name change to all of my banks and creditors. Oh the joys of changing your life.

Today ran a lot smoother than the last time, I was the first number called, no waiting! There were no hitches with the paperwork or the documents either!

Thankfully, today I am one step closer to becoming a true Sawyer!


PS. Dovey and I made BBQ Sloppy Joes for dinner this evening. DELICIOUS! We had tried them at Saddle Ranch a few months ago and decided to give it a go. We found a recipe that was capable of a perfect two portion split, substituted ground turkey meat and added green bell pepper and jalepeƱos to the mix... it was scrumptious! ;)

Tuesday, July 26, 2011

A trip to the market...


Dovey and I have been trying to get the whole Cooking at home - Cooking for two - Cooking healthy - Cooking on a budget thing down... and boy has it been a challenge.


On our first attempt, we picked up a random cookbook, bought tons of new ingredients and made WAY too much food. That was when our weekly bill was almost $200!   The food was delicious, but SUPER high in calories. Not for two - not healthy - not on a budget. You know there's a flaw in the system when you can eat out all week long and spend LESS! 

For our next try, we started with a healthier cookbook (the calorie counts were printed clearly at the bottom of the recipe). However, it was still 8 servings! We tried to cut them into two portions, but that didn't work out - the flavors and consistencies were all wrong. The ingredients were costly as well... we were able to get the budget down to $125/week, but we thought it was still too much.

Then we went back to our roots - trying the 'meat and potatoes' diet. It worked pretty well because we were able to make the proper serving size and included lots of veggies - but the meals were heavy and the variety just wasn't there. 

I was ready to throw in the towel, when I decided to ask my boss what her secret was to cooking for two... she smiled and said "Trader Joe's." So after dinner this evening, Dovey and I took a field trip to TJ's.


Seriously folks, how did I not know about TJ's? They have an amazing variety of healthy foods, perfectly portioned for two people and the best part - One weeks’ worth of goodies including Chinese, Mexican, Italian and American menus totaled just over $50!

Did you hear that dinner?! This week, you're mine!


Monday, July 25, 2011

Becoming a Sawyer: Part One

This morning I decided to head over to the Social Security office to start the process of changing my name. I was on a roll - I had worked out, walked the dog and still made it to SS before 9am! I used the self check-in machine, got my number printout and had a seat amongst the 20 or so people that ALSO made it to SS on time. Boo.


While I waited, I couldn't help but notice that the person to my right reeked of cigarette smoke, and the person behind me had one of those very loud oxygen machines. Pleasant. As I slathered on the antibacterial gel, I kept thinking, "Pahleeeeeeeeez... call my number so I can get out of here..."  


9:22am.


A-151! 
FINALLY, that's me! 


I jumped up and walked over to the desk and pulled out my paperwork... SS Card. Check! Application. Check! Passport. Check! Marriage License. UH OH. I had asked Dovey to put the important paperwork from the safe into my purse last night, only to find out that he forgot to give me our marriage license. DOH! Silly husband! 


The grumpy woman said she couldn't complete the name change without the license, but that she would double check my application to make sure that I didn't need anything else. 


She scrolled down the form and stopped midway, and said... "I'm sorry ma'am, but the birth place you have listed is wrong." 


(WTH?! Miss, I am thirty-something years old - I think I KNOW where I was born.) 


I politely assured her that my birth city has been the same since the day that I was born, and that she was quite mistaken. She begins to rifle through her computer only to find that I have TWO birth cities on file... (hmm.) one of which is the city that I had listed on my application. She said that she would delete the other from the system and that I am good to go. Phew. So glad that is settled. 


I then gathered up my documents and moped out of the office - still married to my maiden name. 

Sunday, July 24, 2011

It's just the beginning...

Just five short months ago, my life changed forever... For the Better. I married my best friend, who I will refer to here as "Dovey". The wedding was amazing, a very intimate family gathering at our favorite eatery. There was dinner and merriment, a surprise singing performance by my sister, and the happiest day of my life. (so far!)

Dovey and I FINALLY were able to take a proper honeymoon this past week (to Montego Bay, Jamaica!), where I met some amazing people - one of which had a blog... which got me to thinking, maybe its time for me to revisit my old hobby of writing. :) But what to write about? And then it hit me! I will write about the one thing I know nothing about, but am learning day by day... marriage! So herein you will learn about my day to day lessons of becoming a wife, deciding how to follow our dreams and ... drum roll please... living happily ever after.

Fingers crossed and away we go!