There have been so many situations going on in my life this week, I figured the best way to deal with them all (new and revisited) would be to start a weekly wrap up of “stuff.”

So here it is – Our first ever wrap-up.

Made it this far. Yay!

The Neighbors:

The recliner, sadly, was COMING, not GOING. 😦 BOOO!

Did they move out? Awww, HELL, no.

They moved another one IN! Are you freaking kidding me????  As if one wasn’t enough, the second one moved in.  Then the U-Haul truck showed up, with the recliner that I thought was going rather than coming…and recliner makes three! They had a whole driveway full of cars on Monday night. I suspect they were all drinking for the occasion.  I guess it took 8 car/truck-loads full of people to get that recliner up the stairs and into the house, huh?

I got first hand experience and a great view because I was out walking that night and thought I was going to be run over not once, but twice. I was wearing a bright shirt and walking a white dog.  How do you not see me, jerk?  Really?  This is how you’re going to make a first impression in our neighborhood?  (Don’t blame me if you get a flaming bag of dog poo on your porch as a welcome gift. I’m just sayin’.) Way to drink and drive, asshole!

The Boobs:

As you know, I’ve recently delved into the realm of breast reduction surgery.

My Incision Type.

I know, I know, I promised a before picture, but I am going to wait and take one when I am wearing something other than scrubs, you know, so you’ll get the full impact of why I am doing this. (And we have already determined that this girl is taking the before and after pictures with her shirt on – while I AM unfiltered, I am not porn. 😉 ) However, I am going to be as open and honest as I can about this ginormous step in the right direction to feeling comfortable in my own skin.  I know I’ve said this before, but it bears repeating: I am more than the sum of my breasts, and if you can tell me what color my eyes are? You’re doing better than 95% of the people I that I know.

I talked to my doctor in depth about what I hope to accomplish with this surgery and why I am doing it, and we have decided, as previously indicated, that the anchor-type of incision is the way for me to go, given the amount of tissue that needs to be gone.

Before he can submit my paperwork to my insurance company, however…

NO SMOKING…Dammit!:

I can totally do this!

As you know, I must be 30 days nicotine-free before the Doc will submit my paperwork. Not just SMOKE-free, mind you. Totally and completely nicotine-free. No patch, no nicotine gum, no cutting back further (I did cut back a lot during the two weeks between when I made the appointment and the actual appointment, which helped), etc. This was no holds barred cold turkey; the stuff nightmares are made of! My last real cigarette was at 9:30 p.m. (EST) on Monday, March 19, 2012. (All I can say is thank goodness for nicotine free e-cigs…)

So far, so good. I think tonight has been the worst night so far, because it’s Friday, and I like my wine on Friday nights, and I really enjoy smoking while I enjoy my wine on Friday nights.  It’s ok, though, really. I haven’t been homicidal or anything. In fact, this isn’t as bad as I thought it was going to be. It’s not been a walk in the park, especially since the hubs is still smoking away, but screw it. I can so totally do this. 🙂 And I have had the added bonus of the support from several of my favorite bloggers (thank you, ODNT, Bad Luck Detective, & Been There Claire! Y’all rock and I appreciate you more than you will know!), and my wonderfully supportive network of really great girlfriends!  I love you guys… 🙂 ❤

Miscellaneous Stuff:

I am excited to be taking a short Suarez into Charlotte for the Mary Kay Career Conference this weekend. It’s always fun to get some time away with the girls, even if we are all wearing pink. I have only been to Charlotte once, and that was to go to Carrowinds with my sister back in ’02 to celebrate my soon-to-be-final divorce.

I hear the downtown area is beautiful in the spring, so I suspect I will be smuggling my camera into my suitcase, because we are arriving early, and are not committed to anything until 7:00 p.m. so I am hoping to take some sweet pictures while there. (You can take the girl out of the studio, but not the studio out of the girl!)  I’ll update you as I can!

Until Next Time…