Sometimes life gets busy and that's why I'm so thankful for this challenge. Yes, I know that it's my challenge and I wrote it all up, but I'm thankful that when I had the time, I took the time to do it. It means that no matter what else happens, I have one task that I make sure gets done every week. I intentionally chose tasks that shouldn't take days to get accomplished. Because of that, I can present to you, my finished bathroom drawer:


There it is! All tidied and organized. You might remember that I had those little bins in there before. The problem was that they kept sliding around and then when the kids would slam the drawer shut, as kids do, they'd even fall over sometimes. This week, I took thirty seconds and fixed that problem.


Yep! I velcroed those suckers right to the bottom of the drawer. Now, they're stable but if I ever wanted to remove them or move them, it's no big deal. I'm still on the lookout for the right sized container to stick into the back of the drawer to hold extra vitamins and things that are only used once in a while.

Once I finished that, I scooted into our laundry room to snap my before picture for the new challenge. This week, we'll be going into our laundry rooms, storage centers or hall closets. We're going to tackle one shelf and get it cleaned off, cleared out of junk and spiffied up with only things we need, use and love. For me, this one is going to be a challenge. I haven't even looked at this shelf since we moved in nearly 3 years ago. I think I want to use it to store household tools and extra cleaning products, but I'm not 100% sure yet. Guess it's a good thing I have a week to figure it out, huh?

My shelf is so long that I had to take 2 before shots. Here they are:



Look at the variety of items on those shelves! I see playdough, litter box liners, pieces to my vacuum and who knows what else. Sheesh! I think it was more than time for this challenge to roll around. What do you guys think?



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Wow, it's Monday again. I don't even know where the last week went. It seems I was just sitting down to add this part back into my routine and suddenly..wooosh! The entire week is gone. Well, I have some bad news to report. While I made up that delicious menu, I didn't cook a single thing off of it. Not one thing. I have perfectly reasonable reasons excuses why that is. Let's see...
Monday - No milk
Tuesday - Didn't feel good
Wednesday - Went out for Roger's birthday
Thursday - ???
Friday - Picked up pizza for Roger's actual birthday
Saturday - Kids pushed some buttons and we were busy..before I knew it, it was late & Justin saved my butt by ordering dinner
Sunday - Wasn't feeling super hot so just had some fruit & a sandwich for dinner.

Nice job, huh? Geez. I guess the fact that I made the menu plan is a step in the right direction but I think I need to make a firmer step. Maybe this week I'll manage to cook 2 of the 7 means, huh? Life is slowly coming back together and I have to remind myself that slower is better right now. If I keep it slow, I keep it manageable while I build new routines and habits. Now, since I did nothing off of last week's menu...here it is again! I am making a few changes since I won't have the boys this weekend and we don't have a birthday to celebrate.

Monday - Mac n Cheese (with tuna/peas)
Tuesday - Salt n Pepper Pork Chops w/ salad
Wednesday - White Cheddar Chicken Pasta
Thursday - Easy Peasy Calzones
Friday - Grilled Ham & Cheese
Saturday - Pizza
Sunday - Baked BBQ Chicken w/ Salad & Garlic Smashed Potatoes




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My name is Andrea Emilien.  I am a 37 year old happily married woman with gets to be a stay-at-home-Mom to my two kids.  I am also a best friend, daughter, sister.....and a binge eater. 

Yes, that's right.  I'm a binge eater. 

For years, and I mean like 25+ years, I've kept this hidden.  From my parents, from my best friend of 20 years, from my husband.  No one knew because that was what I wanted.  But I have come out of the closet so that I can be a better person, a healthier person.  And so I can fix me.

Since I've had kids, it has always been about them - what they need.  I think all Moms do the same thing.  We put ourselves on the back burner for our families.  But I can't do that anymore.  Taking care of myself IS taking care of my family.  If I am not healthy, how can I show my kids to be healthy?  How can I be the role model that I should be for them?


My inspiration and motivation is a little selfish too - I don't want my kids to ever be embarrassed by me.  I don't want to be the fat Mom, the Mom that my son or daughter doesn't want to be seen with.  The hardest thing I have ever done was to not cry when my daughter saw a diet pill commercial and turned to me and said "Mommy, you need those pills so you can be skinny too." 

For this reason, I am applying to be a Mamavation Mom.

What the heck is a Mamavation Mom??  It's a 7-week online boot camp where two Mom's lives are put on public display.  They learn basic and essential skills from professionals while sharing their struggles and tribulations with the Mamavation community.  The goal is to start the path to healthy living so they can then in turn pass along the information they learn to their families and stop the obesity trend. 

I've completely changed my lifestyle.  I'm working hard to be a better role model.  My kids and I exercise together.  We are all eating better.  I've gone to a gluten-free, lactose-free and egg-free diet and I feel so much better!!  I've been working hard to make this change for my family and I would love to be able to benefit from the further instruction of the Mamavation leaders and the professionals who give their time for the campaign.  I also want to inspire other Mothers like me who feel trapped in their body with their own secrets.  I want my public fight with obesity to be something others can look to and feel like they have a chance also.

Please, take a minute to consider my story and my intentions.  I would love your vote for Mamavation Mom.  You can watch my video and vote HERE. 

Want to connect?  I am friendly.  :)  You can find me on Facebook or Twitter.  I love new friends!!

--------------------------------
Hi all! Andrea is just one of the incredible women that I've met through Mamavation. I would encourage all of you to jump right in there and vote for her and this life changing process.



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Coming soon to a comic book shop near you! Actually, this new mini series will be released in May, starting with an event at the Phoenix Comic Con (which I will be attending!). Ursa Minor is written by Penny for Your Soul and Legend of Oz: The Wicked West creator Tom Hutchison and is penciled by rising star Ian Snyder.*


*Both of which I hope to interview for an upcoming series entitled Life in Comics.


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It's Wednesday and that means one of my favorite posts of the week! I admit that I'm still not into the habit of taking pictures on a regular basis, but I did happen to snap some this past week.


This is Peter, Megan (his new girlfriend) and Ben at last Friday night's hockey game. Sadly, the Spartans won (they were playing LSSU where I went to school) but a great time was had by all. I have to say that it's nice to do things as a family "group" versus an us and them attitude.



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Can y'all believe that we're already on week 4? I feel like this year is already speeding up and flying by even faster than last year! How did y'all do on Week 3? I admit that I didn't get mine done until Sunday afternoon. I had the boys here for a 4 day weekend and it always feels like chaos ensues. I wouldn't change having them here though. I just have to learn how to fit things in. We did do 6 loads of laundry though! We still have quite a bit more to do but at least we all have clean clothes now! We also have this:


That's right! Open space! I threw out a bunch of things and shifted some of the rest. The only thing left up on that shelf is 2.5 boxes of lasagna noodles. That's the major inspiration for me adding lasagna to my menu list for this week. The boys will be here and they love it, plus I certainly have some of the ingredients on hand! Time to use up some of that.

For this upcoming week, we're headed into our bathrooms. If you're like me, you have at least one drawer in there that starts out organized and yet somehow becomes the bathroom junk drawer. I totally admit to having one. In fact, do you want to see it? Here it is:


Yep, there it is in all its..glory? Pill bottles, kids shower stuff and who knows what else. Time to sort through that and put it back to a condition where I can actually find things. Since I have medications in that drawer and you might too, I'm going to remind us all that there are right and wrong ways to dispose of medications. If you're unsure on what to do with something, check out what the FDA has to say.

Until next week, happy organizing your way to a house full of yay locations!


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Welcome to a new week! It's Monday and that means adding something new to my weekly schedule. This week, I'm adding back in meal planning. Without it, we spend too much having pizza delivered. Now, don't get me wrong, I could order out every single night, but if we want to get anywhere financially or health wise, it's time for me to get my tuckus back into the kitchen. I actually really like to cook and if I keep doing my Tuesday challenges, my kitchen will get back into the order it needs to be in for me to not trip over things while I try to do it!

Monday - Mac n Cheese (possibly adding in tuna/peas)
Tuesday - Salt n Pepper Pork Chops with salad
Wednesday - White Cheddar Chicken Pasta
Thursday -  Easy Peasy Calzones
Friday - Out for Roger's birthday
Saturday - Lasagna
Sunday - Baked BBQ Chicken w/ Salad & Garlic Smashed Potatoes

So there we go...one menu and wow it sounds yummy. I just hope that I can go to the next step and actually cook this delicious food. I guess you'll find out next week. ;)



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I know what you're thinking. What in the heck is Katrina doing? Zombies? The girl is the biggest wuss known to wussdom and suddenly she's doing reviews on books that have the word zombie in the title? Has she lost her mind? Is she smokin' something? Has she finally cracked? Will she ever be the same? Why did it take her months to figure out that CZKWorld probably stood for Corey the Zombie Killer World? Are fruit snacks really a breakfast food?

Ok, or maybe you're just curious but not really having an entire internal dialogue like I just did. Just remember, I have never, in all of my 12+ years of blogging, claimed to be entirely sane or psychologically balanced.

Keep that in mind as I tell you about CZKWorld Studios' Corey the Zombie Killer. I first met the guys behind this book at the Detroit FanFaire back in September and after a couple of months of going back and forth, they sent me a digital copy of their very first book to check out.

Now, don't ask me why but I honestly thought this was going to be a fluff comic. You know, cute little kid goes around killing..wait a minute, how did I even start to think that? There's no logic in that thought process, what so ever. Ok, so I was wrong. This is not cute or fluffy. It's about zombies..and a guy who wants to kill zombies. Not cute. So, let's get started...

As y'all know, I like to start with the cover. Now, since this was a digital copy, I can't attest to the quality of the print. What I can do, is show you the cover. It looks like this:

"The story starts 1 year after the infection has taken place. This is where we find Corey (young human man). He learns his survival depends on finding someone to trust in a corrupt zombie ruled planet. Every turn is a twist....leading to the unforeseen and a rising body count. A rising human and zombie body count..."


The Writing: I would have loved to have gotten a bit more background information on the characters, especially Corey. While we're introduced to him, we really don't learn much about him. Overall, the story is well written with just a few bumps along the way. At one point, I felt like the writer had a bit of block and forced the words out. Then, he was right back at it. Overall, a really good starting point in a story that has a ways to go. I have confidence that the character will be fleshed out more in upcoming issues. (And that we'll see that girl again that he muttered a naughty word about..though I don't know why I think that. Psychic network?)

The Art : This is the first time, in a while, that I've seen an entire comic done in black and white. As it was pointed out to me, not all comics are done in color.* However, I think this one would have benefited from the depth that color could have added. That being said, I thought the art was nicely done. It showed the variety of zombies that are now living in this world. It made clear the conditions that people are now living in. All in all, nice portrayals.

The Problems:  Really, I only have one or two problems with this book that weren't mentioned above. The first one is just one of those things I can be really anal about. I found spelling and grammar errors as I was reading through the book. This is one of those things that an editor (or possibly spell check) would have picked up on nice and quick and was totally preventable.

My only other issue is with the art that comes at the end of the book. In these panels, we see Corey fighting a zombie and his face lacks a certain continuity. For a moment, I actually paused and double checked that another character hadn't entered into the scene. Due to the lack of color, I'm also unsure as to if this zombie was hiding in the shadows or if day suddenly turned to night.

Overall: I think this is a great first book for these guys. It has some rough edges, but that's nothing that can't be fixed with time and some more experience. I've heard rumors that the second printing should be on sale soon and if you'd like to check this out for yourself, just click on the link up above. After all, what's more fun than getting in on something from the start? If you get a chance, catch up with these guys at a con. If memory serves, they were pretty friendly and they had some pretty cool swag (yes, I am a swag addict) in the form of t-shirts and buttons.

Edit: Michael, author of Corey the Zombie Killer, noted that I forgot to mention how handsome he is. I apologize profusely for the leaving out of that. Folks, Michael (seen on their about page wearing an Ireland hoodie..and we know my weakness there!), is very handsome and I swear he didn't pay me in swag to say this (though if he would like to send me some, I won't write Return to Sender on the package. Please note, I am also available for proofing, for a small fee..probably more swag.).


I received a digital copy of this book. The thoughts (random and coherent, alike), opinions (the good, the bad & the insane) and everything else (except company logo and cover graphic) are 100% mine..except what I said wasn't mine. Those are property of  CZKWorld Studios. 


*Can I just point out that just because I don't read super hero comics and yes, companies send me their comics to review (which by the way works out nicely for both sides), it doesn't mean I'm a moron?


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Image from caramdir.at

Today, I woke up exhausted. Today, I feel like the world is closing in on me. Today, I want to be happy. Today, I want to curl up in someone's arms and be protected from the world. Today, I weep. Today, I mourn for the loss of one so small.

Today, through the pain, I am thankful. I am thankful for his brothers. Today, I am thankful for the beautiful souls that surround me when I allow them near. Today, I am not alone. I am never truly alone.

Today, I will cry. Today, I will look towards the heavens and wonder why. I will always wonder why. Today, life stands still and yet, life moves on. Today, I say farewell all over again..



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How did everyone's weeks go? It's hard to believe it, but we're already on week 3 of this year! That means it's time for a new challenge, but before we do that, how about we check in on last week's challenge? Here's my after picture for cleaning off one of the end tables:


I'm so much happier with how it looks! I confess that it's probably the only clear space in my living room (including parts of the floor right now!) but every time I walk into the room, my eye is drawn to that space and it makes me smile. I love creating yay spaces. Having them motivates and inspires me to work on the next area which is....


The top shelf in one of my kitchen cupboards! Yep, this week we'll be creating a yay space in our kitchens. Mine apparantly looks like something the creative folks behind Chopped would use to create one of their baskets. I see Chocolate Cheerios (how long have those been there?!?), hard taco shells, bacon bits, bisquick and who knows what else. Time to throw out the old, expired food, keep what we love (and will eat) and donate any of the rest. If it's unopened, it will go to the local food bank. If it is opened, I'll post it to Freecycle. People around here are in some tough places and even a 2/3 box of bisquick can be a real blessing.



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I don't think I've done one of these in a while and it's one of the topics I've missed the most. Sadly, I haven't taken any super awesome pictures this past week. That's really something I need to change. I've gotten back into the habit of carrying my camera everywhere, but I haven't stopped to take any photos in a while.

So, while I don't have anything super awesome, I do have a picture. I present to you...Butterflies as colored by me. I posted this on Facebook in an "art exchange" between Kate and myself.






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It's Monday night and we're back! I can't wait to see all of your links this week showing me just how you tackled last week's challenge of the top of your dresser. I'm happy to say that mine is looking pretty good and it makes me smile every time I walk in the room and see that one clean space in the chaos surrounding it. I cleared so much junk off of the top and the smell of orange oil made my room smell so good for a couple of days after I wiped it down. I love that small! I promised you I'd show you my spaces if you showed me yours, so here's my dresser after I finished wiping it down:


Ready for this week's challenge? It's another quick and easy one. I want you to go to your living room and look at those end tables. Are they piled high like mine? I have one just inside my front door (actually, it's a small bookshelf) and it becomes an instant dumping ground.


Yuck, right? Before any of you ask, yes that is a jar of mustard. Why is it there? My only guess is that it fell out of one of our camping supply bags and instead of being put in the kitchen, the kids put it on the nearest empty'ish surface. Ugh. We're just going to pretend we went camping last week and not Labor Day weekend, ok? Instead, we're all going to tackle one of our side tables and create another yay spot in our homes!

Now, for those of you who have spic and span side tables..I'm going to challenge you to spend 15 minutes in your garage. This is an area we're not going to spend time in this year so if you don't need to do a challenge, that's where you should head.

One last thing before I leave you to posting your after pictures from last week and this week's before picture. We now have a Facebook group. If you would like to be added or you would like more information, just leave me a comment with your email address and I'll drop you a line.

Until next week...happy organizing!


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Welcome to another comic book review! This one comes to us from Big Dog Ink. I first met these guys at the Detroit Fan Faire back in September and I have to say that they were super nice and friendly. I know what you're thinking.."Of course they were nice and friendly. They were there to promote their product." You would think that'd be the case, right? Sadly, that's wrong. There were a lot of people there who were actually quite rude and others that just weren't great with people. Artist temperaments aside, if you want to sell product, you have to be nice to the people. These guys? Super nice. If you ever get the chance to go to a con that they're at, I highly recommend stopping by and saying hi. Even tell them I sent you..it's become a bit of a running joke to have people name drop my name as if I'm somebody.

Anyway, recently, Tom over at Big Dog Ink agreed to let me review some of their books. While I haven't received anything from their media department yet, I do have a copy of the first issue of The Legend of Oz just waiting for me to read it and since it's a brand new comic, I thought it the perfect place to start! So, let's go!

The first thing I noticed with this book was the heaviness of the cover. As someone who tends to lay things down and then the kids or the cats knocks them somewhere, I really appreciated a more durable cover than you find on some comic books. The colors, done by Kate Finnegan reminded me of the darkness in some of the old western movies. This is rather important as this Oz is just a little different than your Judy Garland Oz. It's not green and lush..it's dark, it's dusty...it's the old west in all it's stereotypical glory. Kate does a wonderful job using just the right coloring to get that feeling across.

I, for one, love this new take on an old classic. Our good friend, Dorothy, is now going strictly by her last name, Gale. Did you know that was her last name? Unless you're a big fan of either the movie or the book series, you may not have. Her faithful friend, Toto? He's now a very handsome horse. Remember the flying monkies? Ok, these ones will scare you far more than the movie ones ever gave me the creeps. Do you remember them? *shudders*  In this series, they're all grown up into shape shifting gorillas! Did I mention their glowing eyes? Some serious bad voodoo going on there, folks.

The story is familiar and yet, totally new. Our heroine is still searching for the Emerald City but this time it's not nearly so easy to find as people..and other things..have been taking the gold bricks from the road. She wanders into one of those classic western towns where the only thing open is the local tavern and that's all I'm going to tell you because I promise you that if you love good comics, good writing, The Wizard of Oz and any combination of the above, this is a series that you're going to want to pick up. The best part? Going strictly by the first issue, this is a series I could let my kids read. Yes, Miss Gale is a hottie, but she's not overtly sexual. Yes, there's some violence but at their ages, my kids have seen far worse in some of the video games they play at their dad's house.

My opinion? You'll want to pick this one up. If you want to order it, you can find it via Amazon, via the Big Dog Ink link above or hunt down these guys at a Comic Con near you. I know they'll be at the one in Mesa, AZ this weekend. Just remember...tell them Katrina sent you. ;)



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I'm so glad that I wrote the other night. It's helped me pull things back into perspective and to focus more on what I can do. Things are still going to be rocky around here and chaotic but as long as I keep going and don't give up, it will be ok. So, in the spirit of just keep swimming..or in my case, just keep organizing...I have our very first challenge. Some of you may recall me doing a similar challenge last year before life swallowed me up.  The rules are really simple.

1. Come here each Tuesday and check out the challenge for that week.
2. Take a before picture of your area.
3. Post that each Tuesday with your post along with an after picture of the previous week's challenge.
4. Stop back here (or do this along with step 1) and in the comments section, leave a link to your post.

If I get enough interest, I'll put up a more official linky. Don't worry if your area doesn't look perfect. We're working on baby stepping our way to clean and tidy spaces. I bet you can finish this phrase just like my kids do...Progress not ...Perfection. They hate when I say that but they understand the concept.

Now that we've covered the rules, let's jump right into our first challenge! This week, I want you to go to your bedroom and look at the top of your dresser. If it's anything like mine, it's piled high and covered in dust. Don't believe me? Here's mine:


I do want to point out that my house isn't on fire. I have a small lamp that sets below where that doll is and I had it on when I snapped this photo. Combine that with the pink walls and you get the illusion of fire. See how messy that is? Eww!

I am so ready to tackle that area! In fact, it might even get tackled tonight. Make sure you come back next week for a new challenge and to see what oddities I found lurking on the top of my dresser!



PS Challenge posts will (hopefully) go up on Monday nights so that everyone has a chance to see the challenge before the day before pictures are "due."

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Hello 2012 and all my incredibly wonderful readers out there! I've been pondering this post all day and what I wanted to say in it. What did I want to say to all of you about 2011? In the end, I decided I didn't want to say much. 2011 was a year of ups and downs and a lot of chaos and anxiety. It brought the failing health of my grandmother and right at the end of the year, surgery for my oldest son. Instead of looking back at the pain, I want to look forward. Hope is an amazing thing and it's something I'm grasping tight to as I look forward to the coming year.

After all, knowing where you came from is one thing but knowing where you're going is an entirely different creature. But, before I get into all of that, I want to share with you a toast that was posted today by Raven on his Facebook page. I could have said this but why re-invent the wheel when someone so darn fantastic already did it for you? So...I offer you Raven's Toast to 2012:



I honestly couldn't have said it better myself and sometimes, even I consider myself fairly gifted with words. Now, on to 2012:

If any of you remember, last year was supposed to be about simplifying my life. I started out the year with a bang and then chaos happened and woah, did I drop the ball! This year, I try again. I try again for me. I try again for my family. I try again because I deserve better than I've allowed myself to have up to this point.

You see, somewhere along the way, I decided that I didn't deserve to have nice things. I didn't deserve to have the kind of friends who would do anything for you. I didn't deserve to have nice furniture or even a clean and organized house. Those of you who really know me have to be shaking your head at the last one. I'm the girl that other people call to come over because they know I'll jump into any organization project with a gleeful smile and more excitement than anyone should ever have. So, why have I not given myself that same gift within my own home?

I don't honestly know. Even to me, the girl with the Psych degree, this doesn't make a whole lot of sense. I can explain the packrat/border line hoarding. I can explain a lot of things, but this total insanity of I don't deserve the nice things other have? Nope..don't get it. Ok, I do get it. For a very long time, I felt really bad about me. Not just for me, but about me. I thought I'd gotten past most of that but every once in a while I have a lightbulb moment where I go ding ding ding (ever hear a light bulb with a bicycle bell? me either..but roll with it, ok?) and realize that woah, I'm having a majorly insecure moment or woah, I guess I'm not as past all that as I thought. This has been one of those times.

So, I'm repeating last year's goal and that's ok. I don't look at it as any kind of failure. I look at it as life got the hell in the way and sometimes that's what happens. Life happens. I didn't do the best I could with it, but I did the best I did and it's a new year and a new chance to make it happen. Over the next week, I'm going to try to make a plan...a simple plan. Nothing complex. Just simple. One day at a time, one project at a time and sometimes, one schedule at a time, I'm going to size down our home. I'm going to get the organization projects tackled. I'm going to do the gross jobs and the fun jobs and teach my boys that it can be done.

Sometimes life knocks you down but what happens afterward is what matters. You do what you have to do and what I have to do is start feeling more in control of things. I've been letting things spiral and it's not healthy for any of us. So, consider me back as much as I can be back. I'm hoping to pick up some of our daily themes. We might not get them every week, but I'm going to try to be here a bit every week. Hopefully it's as good for you as it is for me. Before I head out though, I want to leave you with 2 quotes...

"Simplicity is about subtracting the obvious and adding the meaningful." - John Meade


That's just what I want to do. I want to subtract the obvious..seriously obvious..like the books we never even look at and add in the meaningful. I close my eyes and see a home filled with warmth and love and the space we need to be able to do things as a family. To get that, I need to subtract so I can add in those things.

And finally...





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