I have struggled with digestion woes and stomach pain for as long as I can remember.  As a kid, I often had to get up mid-meal and rush to the bathroom and would be stuck in there for up to 30 minutes.  My dad thought it was rude, my sister thought it was hilarious, and my mom thought it was just how my tummy was (she has a touchy stomach too, so didn't think it was all that unusual).  I've been to the ER twice in my life for excruciating abdominal pain, both times so bad that I was barely able to stay conscious.  The doctors were afraid that I had appendicitis, but nothing ever came of it.

Then, this fall, I had some old friends over for dinner and they warned me that they were gluten-free.  I figured out what I could cook for them and asked them why they switched.  Both had been diagnosed with Celiac's and as I listened to them describe their pain from before the diagnosis, I started to get a thought that wouldn't go away.  A few weeks later, I had my annual physical at the doctor and asked them to run a blood panel to test for food allergies - specifically gluten.  A couple days later, they called and said that I came up positive on a Celiac's panel.  I've heard stories about people who try for years to get a diagnosis, I feel so lucky to have a doctor who listens to my concerns and puts her faith in how well her patients know their own bodies.

The first couple days after were tough, I was mad and grieving the loss of my beloved breads and pastas.  But once I started to get the hang of things, it became easier.  After one month of cutting out gluten cold-turkey, I decided to test and see if I could eat just a little.  It was really bad.  So now, I hardly even crave it at all.  When I smell bread, I automatically cringe away from it, because I know exactly what will happen to me if I cave.

I know I'm not the only other person here who is gluten-free *pokes Stomper* and I can think of at least two other Celiac members, just off the top of my head.  So come on in!  Share your stories, your struggles, and most importantly... YOUR RECIPES! 

I adore Pinterest and keep many of the recipes I love or ones that I want to try in there.  My food board is 100% gluten-free friendly, with recipes that are already safe and ones that would be easy to convert.  http://pinterest.com/zennabug/food-and-drink/

I work in the Kid's Club at 24-Hour Fitness.  It's actually a pretty sweet job, all things considered.  I made some copies of my G1 coloring book for the kids to color and one little girl took one (ok, a lot of girls did.  But this particular one has relevance to my story lol).  She showed her mom, who said "oh, you have that pony."  I mentioned that it was one of the older, 1980's ponies and she said yep, that was the one.  Apparently this kid had lots of old ones from her dad's sister.  I talked to the mom about them a little and mentioned that I collect those older ponies as a hobby.  The mom laughed and said that the little girl was getting to the age where she was too cool for ponies.  I told her to let me know if they ever were getting rid of them and I'd buy them.

Fast forward to last month.  The mom saw me when she checked her kid in and said that the little girl had recently announced that "ponies are for babies" and that she didn't want them anymore.  Mom asked me if I am still interested and I said that if the little girl was SURE she wanted to get rid of them, then absolutely.  Mom took my email and said that when they get home from their Thanksgiving trip, she'll get in touch with me about the ponies.  Then, she said she didn't want money.  She just wants them out of the house and in a home where they'll be appreciated.



Today, she came back in for the first time since that conversation with a bag of ponies!  22 G1s, 3 G3s, a fakie, and some pony wear!  All of the G1s have mohawks except one, but they're in pretty darn good condition otherwise.

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*edited pic size*

Ponies, left to right:

Back Row: Fakie, Toola-Roola, Dream Drifter, Daffidazey, Pillow Talk, Up Up and Away, Firefly, Tex, Slugger, Salty, Daddy Apple Delight
Middle: BBE Baby Sleepy-Pie, BBE Lickety Split, Baby Glory, Baby Moondancer, Baby Cotton Candy, Baby Nightcap, Baby Tic Tac Toe, Baby Fifi, Pink Dreams, Yum Yum (Flutter)
Front: Puddles and Peeks, Doodles and Noodles, Sleepy Head.

I have made the difficult decision to sell my Pullip girls to help pay for the BJD that I have on layaway.  These two just haven't been getting any attention lately and they're too pretty to just sit on my shelf.  So, I am hoping that someone here can give them a better home.

Ali is moving to South Africa!
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More Lilies by Zenna Bug, on Flickr

She is a Hello Kitty with stock faceup, custom eyes, wig, and an obitsu.  She was my first doll and she really is gorgeous.  I am at least her third owner.

Wig: Crobidoll CRWL-25, Mellow Cream
Body: 27cm small-bust Obitsu in white
Eyes: Custom chips by EvolutionBlythe (Etsy)
Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/zennabug/sets/72157625412864285/

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She does have a couple black marks, but I think they're just dirt (she pretty much lived in pink the whole time she was here and I don't put my dolls in dark clothes).  I never noticed them until I was inspecting her for this sale.  The one that was the most noticeable is the one below her left armpit.

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I am selling her nude for $125 OBO or with her special CrazyKimochi hoodie for $140 OBO. 

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Becca is moving in with the wonderful kCherry!

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Beautiful Becca by Zenna Bug, on Flickr

She is a Latte with her stock faceup, wig (never removed), and body.  I am her second owner (bought her from Loa).

Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/zennabug/sets/72157630003115766/

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She has a black stain on her left foot.  Just like Ali, I didn't notice this for the first time until today when I was taking pictures and inspecting the doll.

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I have most of her stock outfit; just missing the boots, purse, jacket and belt.

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I'm selling her (with her clothes) for $100 OBO.

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Will you give these lovely girls a good home? 

I work in the Kid's Club at 24-Hour Fitness.  It's actually a pretty sweet job, all things considered.  I made some copies of my G1 coloring book for the kids to color and one little girl took a Little Flitter one (ok, a lot of girls did.  But this particular one has relevance to my story lol).  She showed her mom, who said "oh, you have that pony."  I mentioned that it was one of the older, 1980's ponies and she said yep, that was the one.  Apparently this kid has "hundreds" (to quote the mom) of ponies, mostly old ones from the kid's aunt.  I talked to the mom about them a little and mentioned that I collect those older ponies as a hobby.  The mom laughed and said that the little girl was getting to the age where she was too cool for ponies.  I told her to let me know if they ever were getting rid of them and I'd buy them.

Fast forward to today.  The mom sees me when she checks her kid in and says that the little girl has recently announced that "ponies are for babies" and that she doesn't want them anymore.  Mom asks me if I am still interested and I said that if the little girl was SURE she wanted to get rid of them, then yes.  Mom took my email and said that when they get home from their Thanksgiving trip, she'll get in touch with me about the ponies.  Then, she said she didn't want money.  She just wants them out of the house and in a home where they'll be appreciated.



She's warned me that lots of them have mohawks (part of being "too cool" for ponies, apparently... *shudder*), so I may have a big rehair and restore project on my hands soon.  Still, I can't wait!  She described it as "boxes full" of old ponies.  I wonder who is in those boxes?!  And how many?!  I know for sure there is a Little Flitter, who is in an unknown condition.  But any LFs are welcome in my army!

I think I will try to pay her anyway, at least enough for the kid to get a cool new toy.

I am getting ready to send Amber's head off to Texas for a faceup.  But I need a face protector first.  Where on earth does one find something like that?  I looked on eBay, but they don't have any small enough for her (her head is more or less PukiFee sized).  Help?

She's finally here!  After Flaileigh was so sweet to let me join her CherishDoll order, she sent my Limited Unicorn Molly expedited from Canada.  Of course, the post really took their sweet time with her, but after I harassed my PO today, they told me she was already on the truck and just hadn't been scanned on her way out.  I ran to my mailboxes and the mailman was there, just starting to fill them.  I asked him if I had a box and she was there!  She's still not even marked delivered on either the Canada or US post office sites, my post office really dropped the ball with the scanning apparently.

But!

The good news is that she arrived and she arrived safely!  I think I'll be making a trip to DDE this weekend to get her eyes and hair and maybe an outfit if I find one I like.

She is so cute!!!
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I thought I wouldn't have pants for her, but it turns out that the ones I got last year that were too small for my Pullips are almost her size.  I just need to hem them a bit.
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And my poorly photoshopped mockup of how I envision her face.
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She's my first human (mostly human, at least) BJD and I love her already!    Isn't she cute?!

Anyone else who ordered this doll, feel free to share your pics as well!  *eyes Panda and skyrocket*

I have been using the same old mountain bike (a 1993 Trek Antelope) since I started middle school in 1999.  It was my very first "grown-up" bike and came from a yard sale in Indiana while I was visiting my grandma.  It had a men's frame and was way too big, but it was time to move away from my first bike, a little purple Schwinn cruiser with pink streamers, banana seat with pink and purple hearts, and flower-adorned basket.  I was just getting made fun of too much and decided to get a less-girly and more grown up bike.  I stayed pretty small, so that bike was always a little too big for me.  I rode it to school almost daily in middle school and used it for bike rides through high school.  When I went to college, it was my main mode of transportation.  For campus, it was perfect.  Sturdy and decent quality, but so ugly that nobody would ever steal it while I was in class and not nice enough to worry when it was out in the rain and snow.  But over the last 3 years, it's had some problems.  It stopped shifting the way it was supposed to and the breaks weren't responsive (and squealed with even a little humidity, causing people to always think I was about to crash into them).  It served me well, but I have always wanted a nice cruiser instead.  Something cute and practical.

I am applying for jobs like crazy and one that I have an interview for tomorrow (I have a good feeling about it too) is really close to me.  I was thinking how great it would be to have a bike that I could commute to work in and save gas.  One with a basket for my purse or for getting groceries.  A little commuter with smaller tires than my clunky mountain bike.  So I hopped on Craigslist last night and immediately found a beauty.  A bright blue 1985 Schwinn 3-speed Collegiate with a little metal basket.  An older model, but it looked like it was in great shape.  $100.  I called the seller this morning and he still had it, so I called my dad and asked if he was interested in getting me an early Christmas present.  Plus, he's a bike enthusiast (he raced competitively when he was in his 20's and 30's), so I wouldn't want to get a used bike without him inspecting it and making sure it was a good buy.  He agreed and I called the seller to set a time to see it.

When we arrived, I just fell in love.  There are some cosmetic issues, a few scratches and scuffs and a bit of staining, but structurally it was perfect.  The seller was a guy who buys bikes at yard sales and thrift stores and then flips them.  That's 3 years older than I am!  I hopped on and took a little spin and the bike felt great.  After my dad had a chance to ride it too, he fiddled with the parts to be sure it was ok.  The guy offered to sell it to us for $90 instead, since the paint wasn't perfect.  With Dad's blessing, we handed over the money and loaded the bike into his truck!


I am so excited, I haven't had a new bike in 12 years and this one is exactly what I was looking for!

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Isn't she a beauty?!    I need to think of a good name for her.