life after the vows

Resolution Plateau?

2012-01-23T16:11:00.000-05:00

So just over three weeks in, is everyone else tired of trying to keep up with resolutions yet?

I'm holding strong, still counting points, still abstaining from alcohol, still working out.

And guess what? It's working. WHAAAAAAAAT?!?!

I know. Who'd have thunk it? I took a couple days off from the gym last week due to the inability to breathe. Thanks to Hubs, I was out of commission for about 4 days with a cold. BUT I showed up yesterday ready to get back on track. And jump on the track I did. Our trainer has been building us up with our running and surprisingly (not so surprising, this guy is GOOD) it's working. Yes, I ran 15k 6 weeks ago, but I didn't run for more than 2 minutes straight and I plodded along at about 14 minute miles. Yesterday, 16 quick laps around the mini track and I had hit one mile in 10:01. Even in high school my quickest mile was about 12:30. I don't know how long I could maintain that, but it felt good to knock it out at least once.

So on top of running a 10 minute mile, the scale keeps creeping lower and lower. Also great news. So although I'm tired of being good, seeing results is definitely motivating. In the past I would have thought that I deserved a week off from the gym or a weekend off from dieting, I would then hit a downward spiral and undo all of the hard work I had put in. Not this time, I think I'll stick with for a while longer and keep going on this positive trend.

How are your resolutions going? Holding strong? Do the positive results motivate you to keep chugging along?

25 Days of Christmas

2012-01-20T20:40:00.001-05:00

One of the projects I did over the holidays was 25 Days of Christmas for hubs. I got the idea from my December issue of Martha Stewart Living and her advent calendar of gifts. On Black Friday when I had the day off but hubs had to work, I hopped out of bed to get this project completed from start to finish.

I headed out to Target to do the shopping. I was worried that I would have to deal with the Black Friday shoppers, but since Target opened at midnight, they were all long gone by 8 am. I picked up a cartful of small gifts that he would open each day. I got him gift cards for breakfasts and lunches when he's at work. I picked up some snacks and treats to open throughout the month and a couple odds and ends gifts that he'd love. To fill in the gaps of days I also included "coupons" for things like date nights at his favorite restaurants and chores like a week of his favorite meals and a weekend without any dog walking responsibilities.

I headed home to start wrapping the gifts. I pulled out my brown craft paper, ribbons, and my Cricut to make the numbers for each day. Most importantly this was my inaugural day of marathon Christmas carols. I couldn't have imagined it turning out any better. I was literally squealing and clapping as it all came together.

Hubs had no idea that I was even planning this surprise and I couldn't wait for the first day of December for him to start unwrapping the gifts. I think I was just as excited as he was each day for him to wake up and see what was in store for him. I kept a list of each day's gifts so I'd know what was coming up.

I think he was pleasantly surprised and enjoyed each day of prizes. I look forward to making this a tradition in our house and getting to enjoy the gift giving and Christmas spirit all month long.

Did you start any new traditions this year??

Happy Holidays!!!!

2012-01-06T20:45:00.001-05:00

I hope everyone had a great holiday season. I have a couple of projects I can't wait to share with you, but I just wanted to check in to see how your first week of 2012 is going.

I'm trying to figure out how to blog on our new iPad (yay!). I downloaded The Blogsy app, but I have no idea how to use it. We'll start with trial and error.

So I set a couple goals for this year, probably the same goals I set every year. Lose weight, save money, buy a house.

The weight loss is always the hardest. Last year I ended up with a grand total loss of 4 pounds. I felt like I had dieted the entire year and only had four measly pounds to show for it.

I do feel better about this year, I feel like I'm going into it this time with a brand new set of tools. The diet part is always the easiest in theory, hardest to maintain. I'm starting out with tried and true Weight Watchers. I've had success in the past with counting points, as long as I count my points. I've even gone as far as pledging no drinks until I meet my monthly mini goals. No wasted points or calories for me.

My new secret weapon this year is.....the gym. Hahahaha big secret. But for reals, I started running last year and loved training for a race. I've already signed up for a 10k with my mom in June and have a half marathon in mind for next December (who else wants to go to Vegas???). Hubs and I have the personal trainer that tortures us twice a week and gives us homework for the other days. I would have seen more progress with him already if we hadn't started in the fall before I decided to eat my way through football season and the holidays.

So let's recap the weight loss plan of action: stick to diet, workout, motivate with races.

Onto saving money, this year is looking a lot better comp wise at work, so that extra cash should be easy to sock away into out downpayment fund and our 5th Anniversary Europe Fund. Plus the diet means less eating out = money saved. Fingers crossed for a good tax return as well....

Then buy a house. Dumb iPad has an amazing RedFin app. We are constantly browsing houses and marking ones we like. This is gonna be realz if we can get goal number two in line.

Did you make resolutions this year? Are they the same ones you make every year, but this will actually be your year??? Can I make it past the one week mark on any of mine??? Only one more day to find out the answer to that one......

I'll be back once I figure out how to upload pics on this thing.

Happy New Year!

Hot Chocolate 15k

2011-12-08T21:34:00.000-05:00

So I know you've been dying to hear how my race was, right?

Last Saturday I headed out to the National Harbor to run 9.3 miles with 19,999 other people. I was SUPER anxious about the crowds, getting there, getting chocolate, pretty much everything but the actual run.

The run itself was HARD. We started going down hill and I hit the first mile marker at 12 mins. Whoa, way too fast for me (I'm usually at about 13:30 - 13:45 miles). It was 5 miles out and back on a highway. It was boring and awful with all of the exhaust from the trucks and cars just one lane over. It was defeating to see the PACKS of people over a mile ahead of me when I was only two miles in. When I turned around however, it was encouraging to see all of the people I was ahead of. I kept my eye on a few people and just made it my goal to keep up with them.

The first five miles ended going uphill the way we came then back down hill for the next 3/4 miles. We ran past the finish line and went along the 5k course that had already happened that morning. Unfortunately, the downhill wouldn't last, at about 6.5 miles (right after I passed hubs cheering me along) we hit another hill, straight up.

Until this point I had stuck to my run 2 minutes walk 1 intervals. This hill was defeating. My attempt at running up it was counter productive. I just walked to the top, totally off of my intervals for the rest of the race. The final two miles were just run as far as I could, walk until I caught my breath. The final 1/4 mile was again, UPHILL. This was the steepest of the three hills too. Once I turned the corner and saw the finish line, I sprinted by hubs and friends cheering me on to finish.

What surprised me here was that I burst into tears. I was NOT expecting that at all. I wasn't dead (thank you training) and I had actually passed a LOT of people in the last mile (again, thank you training). I felt defeated though, that was the hardest run I had ever done. I had purposefully trained on what was one of the hillier parts of the trail I like, but I didn't feel prepared AT ALL for the giant hills in the race. I felt better once two ladies finished behind me saying that this was so much harder than the 10 Miler courses for the big races in DC.

When I signed up for the race, I had set a goal to finish under the slowest allowed pace time, 15 minute miles. As I had completed my longer training runs, I was coming in at closer to 13:45 - 14:00 minute miles. So before the race I had hoped to finish under a 14 minute mile pace. My official time was 2:11:50 which was a 14:09 pace. I was disappointed that just two minutes faster would have gotten me under the 14 minute goal.

This was my first big race and first race over 5k. My personal run was hard but good, the event as a whole? An absolute disaster.

The 15k was supposed to corral up at 7:45 and be off at 8 or shortly after. Our parking pass said to arrive at the National Harbor by 6:30. We were about 1/4 mile from the exit at 6:10 and then hit dead stopped traffic. At 7:35 we still weren't parked, had barely made it off the exit, so my friend and I jumped out of the car to walk to the start line. We had to walk about a mile to get to the start line and saw that the 5k was no where near starting. They were supposed to be off at 7:30.

At about 8:30 the 5k finally started. The 15kers jumped right into the corrals to get going ASAP. 15 mins later, the leaders of the 5k were finishing. At about 45 mins almost the entire 5k had finished and we still hadn't started our race. At this point, it was 9:15 and I had been expecting to be over half way done already. I had eaten breakfast four hours earlier and hadn't brought water with me. I was starving, thirsty, and numb from the cold. We had no information about when we would start and were just standing there hoping it'd be soon. Without any warning, the crowd started moving forward to the start line. The first mile and a half, I couldn't feel my feet because they were so frozen.

At the 5 1/2 mile when we were crossing back by the start and then finish line, the course was crowded with people who had finished the 5k and were now walking back to their cars. I couldn't tell at several points if I was even on the course because I couldn't see any other runners, just people with their families walking to their cars.

The water stations were poorly manned, often having to wait for water to get poured or do it yourself. (Let's blame this for my 2 minute hold up that cost me my goal pace). Once I finished running uphill to complete the race, the post race party was even further up the hill. At this point, I could choose, walk uphill some more to get rationed hot chocolate and fondue, or walk downhill a mile and half to get back to our car. I chose downhill. Prior to the race, I was really looking forward to celebrating my finish with other runners over delicious Ghiradelli hot chocolate, by the time I was finished, I just wanted to go home.

My experience and frustration with the poorly run race was not unique. I checked the Facebook page of the race and there were hundreds of unhappy folks. RAM Racing did not issue a statement until Sunday and it was just full of excuses.

They claimed traffic was bad because of an accident, WTOP and the Washingtonian have both said there was no accident reported. They said the National Harbor had promised parking would be no problem for 5,000 cars, but they never checked passes (Which had cost an additional $10 and required carpooling), so everyone parked there. They said the 15k was so delayed because the 5k went the wrong direction on the course, which is why we had to wait for them to finish. Shouldn't the lead bike have known which way to take the runners?

The whole thing was so poorly run and from what I can tell, it was mostly from them registering at least twice as many racers as the event should have held. Runners who were at a bit of a quicker pace said the course was too narrow and they were elbow to elbow the entire time and bumping and tripping into each other. The jackets provided were too small for everyone, leading to everyone sizing up and them running out of jackets.

I left the race with an awful distaste for RAM racing and am doubtful I would do another race with them. From what I can tell, most of their events have major mishaps.

All in all, I signed up for a 15k, I trained my butt off to prepare, and finished the race pretty much as expected. If it weren't for the poorly run event, I'd be so much more positive about the whole experience. I am looking forward to my next big race. I'm looking for a 10 miler or maybe perhaps even a 1/2 marathon in late April or May...any ideas? I need something to train for and something to work towards. I wanted to do the Cherry Blossom 10 Miler, but we come home from vacation the night before, so I don't want to stress myself out doing a race the next day.

I am looking forward to working on speeding up a bit and knowing what I'm getting into with the big races now.

How was your first race experience? Positive or an absolute disaster?

I just walked 500 miles, and I will walk 500 more...

2011-11-14T16:26:00.000-05:00

So I just got this gem in my inbox this afternoon. 500 Miles since I've had my fitbit. heck yeah. I've had this little guy for 115 days, so I'm averaging about 4 1/3 miles per day. Let's step that up a bit.

I am pledging to get to 1,000 miles by February 22, 2012. This is 100 days from now and puts me at a 5 mile a day average. Very doable seeing as how I still have 19 more days before my race, which means at least 5 more days with runs over 5 miles. Then I just have to keep it up...

I also hit the 1,000,000 step mark yesterday. AMAZING.

Also, down 6 lbs since my post on 11/1.

otherwise known as #kickingassandtakingnames

We Are....

2011-11-08T21:44:00.000-05:00

I don't even know where to start with this, but I feel like I can't stay silent. I'm sad, heartbroken, and distraught over this entire Penn State scandal. I feel betrayed by a man I've never met, but have always respected. My world has been rocked by this.

If you had asked me Saturday morning if Joe Paterno should retire, I would have said "I hope he dies pacing that field, during a game, doing what he loves and all he has ever done"

Today, I think he should step down. This is the end of his career and what his legacy will now be known for, regardless of whether he is morally innocent or guilty.

I desperately want to hear his side of the story. I want to know what he's known for the past 9 1/2 years. I want to know that his conscience is clean. But I just don't think it is. I won't say that he met his legal obligations and could then sleep well at night. If he knew something illegal/immoral happened, he should have done the follow ups and he should have been asking if this had gone to the police. If he didn't know the full extent of the 2002 incident, his era at Penn State is still over and will be tarnished forever.

It is just awful that he is the main target being persecuted in this whole thing. I'm hearing more about Coach Paterno than I have about Jerry Sandusky, and he is the one that raped those boys!

There are now about 20 boys/men that have come forward as victims in the awful and horrific mess. 20 boys whose lives will never be the same because they were exposed to a predator who set up a foundation to supposedly help them. This man preyed on these helpless boys, giving them gifts and opportunities that they would never have gotten without him, but they paid the price of abuse and molestation for it. It is absolutely disgusting that this man put them in these situations. He should be the one persecuted for these crimes. He should be the one under the microscope in all of this.

Where was McQueary in the days/weeks/months/years after he saw what he saw in the locker room? Did he tell JoePa all the details? Why isn't he being called on for moral obligations?

People are calling for the cancellation of the rest of the Penn State season. This would punish players that had no idea and were in elementary school when this happened. This would hurt their chances of having a professional career. Boys that had never met Sandusky, boys that had no idea this man was lurking in their shadows. This would punish the other coaches that knew nothing of the situation, and I believe there were some.

Now is not the time for the Penn State community to turn their backs on their Alma Mater. Now is the time for us to come together and show that Penn State is so much bigger and so much better than this.

As posted on Facebook:

“We are…….sad. We are…….grieving with the families and the victims. We are……broken hearted. We are……trying to make sense of things. We are……confused. We are…..over 94,000 students strong. We are…..ranked among the top 15 public universities. We are…..the largest student-run philanthropy in the world. We are…..over... 8,500 top ranked faculty. We are…..hard working student athletes in many sporting events with NO connection to former events. We are….more than university officials and athletic department members. We are….more than this scandal. We are Penn State, and we have always been more than just a football team.”

I will be wearing my Penn State Football shirt proudly for the rest of this season and as long as I can still scream out "WE ARE"

Bad News Bears

2011-11-01T21:41:00.000-04:00

Just weighed myself.

IT WAS AWFUL.

I've gained. A lot. In a week. WHAT THE HECK

I'm only four pounds down from January 1st. I want to cry.

There are 60 days before 2012. And a goal without a deadline is nothing but a dream, right?

So here it goes.

I'm going to lose 27 pounds in 60 days. This gets me to a nice round number and a respectable 31 lbs in one year.

My race is about half way. So that's 14 lbs down by December 3rd.

And if this was twitter, I'd end with #letsdothis

training to finish, probably won't win

2011-10-27T21:27:00.000-04:00

So I've been following my happy little schedule. Mostly. I get at least the run workouts in and maybe a couple others throughout the week. Training is going well, I'm very happy with my endurance progress. I never set out to be a speedy racer, but just wanted to set out to finish. In this first month of training I've gone from a 15 min pace (which is the minimum to not get kicked off the course on race day) to a comfortable 13:35 pace. This weekend is a 6 mile run, if I maintain my 2:1 run/walk splits, I'll be happy. If I finish at a 13:35 - 13:45 pace, I'll call it a roaring success.

Hubs and I joined the Y so I'd have access to a pool for the cross train days. When we signed up we got a complementary session with a trainer. The poor guy that had to put up with each of us for our free half hour kicked both of our respective butts. We both hurt so good after that first workout with him, we signed up for 12 joint sessions with him. WHAT?!?! So now we're paying someone to hurt us. That just doesn't seem right.

We do one 30 min session of strength training and one 30 min session of cardio. Tonight was our first cardio session. The Arc Trainers he wanted were taken, so to the treadmills we went. He set the incline at an uncomfortable height then set the speed at 6 mph. In case you aren't good at math, 6 mph is a hecka lot faster than my 13:35 pace. It's actually a dead sprint. So off we went, one minute sprint, one minute rest. I eventually whined my way down to 5.7 mph, still a dead sprint in case you were keeping track. It was awful and I hated him. Unfortunately he didn't get the memo that I don't plan on WINNING this race but just looking to finish, bonus points for not being last.

I'll be so happy this weekend when I can go at my slow and steady wins the race pace even though it'll be for 3 times as long as our workout today.

What do you do to prepare for a race?

What the WHAT?!?

2011-09-30T20:05:00.001-04:00

Seriously folks, I've messed up big time. I signed up to run this 15K! That's 9.3 MILES for those non metric folks out there.

The most I've EVER gone (not run, just gone) is 5 miles. How am I going to practically double that?

I blame my sister. I was talking a big game and saying how I was going to run a half marathon next year, blah blah blah. And she sent me a link to this race and said "Why don't you sign up for this 15k?"

I googled "15k training programs" and the first one I saw was 10 weeks. I had 9 1/2 until the race, so kinda fit perfectly. Darn it, looks like I gotta sign up. This is the plan I'll be following: super amazing plan to get me across the finish line.

So I signed up and started running. It starts slow, just two miles at a time. I was already doing 3-4 a couple times a week. So 2? No problem. Now I'm at the end of week 2 of training and have to run three miles tomorrow morning. At race pace, we'll see how this goes. When I think about the race distance, I'm terrified, so I'm sticking to the schedule like it's my job.

We'll see how this goes. I didn't intend for this to become a running (I'm not a runner) or weight loss blog, but that's what's going on in my life right now, so you may be seeing a log about that coming up.

Sorry I've been MIA for so long, hopefully this is my big return!

Come on Irene....

2011-08-26T22:39:00.000-04:00

If you're looking for an example of proper hurricane preparedness, you'll have to look elsewhere.

After watching the new for the past couple days, we made no plans for the weekend and planned to camp out. I think our area is under thunderstorm or tropical storm watch. We are out of the direct path of the hurricane. Apparently this hurricane is the size of Europe, so I am still a bit cautious as to what the weekend will bring.

We hit the grocery store after work tonight just like every other person in town. It was amazing to see the items that are COMPLETELY wiped out. Bananas? Gone. Bottled water? Gone. Milk? Got the last jug. It really was crazy to see the lines and the panic about the impending storm. People had check lists a mile long. I just wanted to make sure we won't get bored or hungry.

We are west of I95, everyone east of us is in trouble, but I think we should be OK. We bought diet coke, some booze, eggs, and milk, along with some other essentials to make some fun new recipes. I started panicking that we were the only cart in the store without bottled water, so we threw one of the last on the emergency pallet at the front of the store.

We are completely fine food wise if we are stranded in the house for about 10-12 days (but how would that happen?). If we lose electricity? We're screwed. I have ice ready to go and a cooler to put some stuff in, but basically all the food we have requires electricity to cook. Pasta, frozen meats, microwave popcorn, all useless without electricity. At least we'll have cold beer and wine.

Once we got home, I started looking around to see if we'd be ok without power. Candles are ready to go. Flashlight out and ready. Back up batteries were purchased. Let's hope we don't need to use any of these.

As long as the lights stay on, we'll be good to go. We have movies from the list queued up on the DVR and ready to be watched with some delicious popcorn. Wii games we haven't played in a while and new recipes for days to try out. If the lights go out, I'll be reading my fully charged Kindle until it dies or cleaning out the stacks of magazines sitting in our house. I finally bought a binder to organize all of the tear sheets that have been collecting from each month's subscriptions.

If you're on the East Coast, are you ready? Do you have better prep plans than we scrapped together? If you're not in the path of the hurricane, do you have better weekend plans?

Quick and Dirty

2011-06-19T16:43:00.001-04:00

Oh, hello there. Do you feel neglected? I'm just stopping in for a quick blog equivalent of a drive by. Here's what's been going on lately....

Look how my tomatoes are growing!!!! It's very exciting to water them every day and see them changing colors and growing bit by bit.

I've also made some progress on my paper goals....remember those? Here's where we started:

Here's where we are now (also compare between real camera and crappy iphone pics):

And here's how many have been torn off:

YAY! PROGRESS!!!!

Also, since January 1st I've lost one of these.....

No, he hasn't gone missing, but I've lost the equivalent of one wiener dog on the scale!!! I wasn't brave enough to weigh myself holding the heavier one, maybe I'll lose her by next week. I look at Wilbur and think, he's a little dog, but not that little. Where was I storing this dog sized mass? Gross. And to think I could stand to lose much bigger dogs than him.

I started the year on Weight Watchers. The program works, when you stick to it. I was good for about 6 weeks, lost about 10 lbs, then was bored. So I stopped counting points. I didn't gain it all back, just a couple of the pounds. I had been gaining and losing the same 5 lbs after that for a while when I was half assing the WW program. I decided something needed to change and I wanted to kick start the losses again.

I started the Paleo diet last week after seeing a couple other girls loving it, here and here. The gist of it is, if a caveman couldn't have picked it or killed it, can't eat it. This means fruits, veggies, nuts, and proteins. This also means no carbs (ouch), no dairy (ouch), and no sugar (boo). I was intimidated, but hit Trader Joes last week ready to do this. I was encouraged that every day the scale showed a loss, it makes it so much easier to stick to it when I can see quick results. I stuck to it Mon-Fri except for a few blips of wine. I'm only human. Saturday, was more of "diet? what diet?". But I woke up this morning, had my almond milk and fruit smoothie and was back on track. Hopefully yesterday didn't do too much damage, but even so, the break was enough to get me motivated again.

I've also been doing the Couch 2 5K running app on my phone. I've tried this 3-4 times before, but give up around week 4 or 5. I'm currently in week 7 where the intervals are over and it's just straight runs with no walk breaks. I'm not so into it anymore. I like my walk breaks, they make me feel like I can run harder/longer during those intervals. I may just keep repeating the week 5 intervals of five and eight minute run intervals. I felt strong doing those runs and felt like I could really push it the entire workout and leave it all on the run.

With vacation coming up next month, I have to stick to both diet and exercise to make sure I'm bathing suit ready.

In the meantime, I have been hopping into my suit for Friday Surreptitious Happy Hours at the Pool. What is better than sneaking out of work an hour early (shh don't tell) and coming home to relax with a book, some friends and wine by the pool? Coincidence that my water bottle holds exactly one bottle of wine? I think not.

Alrighty then, with that, I'm out. I just needed a break from the top to bottom cleaning of the condo that I've been doing today. Back to work for me. I hope everyone is having a fabulous weekend and is looking forward to a great week!!!!

Best Thing I've Ever Made

2011-05-20T15:59:00.000-04:00

Holy moly. Last week I made Broiled Herb Marinated Shrimp from March's Cooking Light. These shrimp were AMAZING. I would have been impressed if I had gotten these in a restaurant. Best part is that the herbs I used were from my little patio garden project I'm trying out this year!!! I just went out side, snipped the needed herbs and was ready to go!!!!

Here is the amazing recipe:

Broiled Herb-Marinated Shrimp Skewers
Ingrdients:
3/4 cup fresh cilantro
3/4 cup fresh parsley
1/2 cup basil
3 tablespoons EVOO
3 tablespoons orange juice
1 tablespoon lime juice
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
2 garlic cloves
24 jumbo shrimp peeled and deveined

1. Combine first 10 ingredients in a food processor, process until smooth. Place in a bowl, add shrimp, toss to coat, and marinate in the refrigerator for 30 mins, stirring occasionally.

2. Preheat broiler to high

3. Remove shrimp from marinade, thread 6 shrimp on wooden skewers. Place skewers on a broiler pan coated with cooking spray. Broil 5 inches from heat for 2 minutes on each side.

We just had the shrimp by themselves with a vegetable. I think next time I would serve them over pasta with a light lemon garlic sauce.

AMAZING.

black thumb?

2011-05-18T17:04:00.002-04:00

This year I decided that I wanted to try and grow some vegetables and herbs on our balcony. I love the idea of just picking fresh vegetables and taking them straight to the kitchen for dinner.

We bought two large pots to start our container garden. We got two different varieties of tomatoes and three types of herbs, cilantro, basil, and parsley. We spent just under $100 to get everything, the bulk of which was the pots. I don't expect to break even this year in savings, but I think next year when all we need is plants and soil we might actually be saving some cash.

The tomatoes said they would take 60-70 days, I'm getting impatient!!! We bought the plants already started, I didn't trust myself to start from seeds. Perhaps we can try seedlings if we have good veggies and herbs this year.

Cilantro

Parsley

Sweet Basil (which smells AMAZING)

I've already used the herbs in several dishes. I love just going out to the balcony, snipping off what I need and using it that night!!! The cilantro seems to be the most resilient, growing back quickly after I use some. The parsley and basil seem to be taking a bit longer to grow back, I hope I can keep everything going to have a fresh supply all summer long.

One of the two tomato plants seems to be thriving while the other doesn't seem like it's doing so well. The taller one has starting sprouting small yellow flowers, which I've learned through some research, will be where the tomatoes will eventually be. This morning I saw a little pea sized bulb from one of the flowers, I think it's the beginning of my first tomato!!! I can't wait to see how everything grows.

Thriving Tomato Plant (with Basil)

Not So Thriving (with cilantro and parsley)

The yellow flowers and first little bud of a tomato!!!!!!

I wish I had taken pictures when we first got started, I can't even remember how small the taller plant was when we brought it home, but I know it's grown leaps and bounds! I'll keep you updated with the progress as we hopefully get a plentiful bounty all summer long!!!

Have you ever tried container gardening? Besides tomatoes and herbs, anything else seem to grow especially well in container gardens?

Happy Birthday Hubs!!!!

2011-05-16T11:04:00.000-04:00

Happy Birthday to my most favoritist person in the world.

You are my best friend and my partner in crime.

I can't imagine life without you in it every single day.

I missed the heck outta you this weekend, but I think the pups missed you more.

Never, EVER stop rocking out exactly like this.

I love you.

Happy Birthday!!!!!!

Feliz Cinco de Mayo (over a week late)

2011-05-14T17:04:00.000-04:00

Hello my lovelies!!!! I hope you are having a fabulous weekend. I'm a bit late in posting my mexican favorites, but better late than never, right?

As I said before, I am love love loving Hungry Girl's recipes. Hubs' favorite is by far the taquitos. Don't worry, they are super east and low in WW points too! #winning

So here is the Hungry Girl Recipe for exploding chicken taquitos:

You will need:
One 9.75 can of fat free chunk white chicken, drained and flaked
1/2 cup salsa
1/2 cup shredded fat free shredded cheddar cheese
1/4 teaspoon of dry taco mix
8 6-inch tortillas

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees
combine chicken and salsa, cover and refrigerate for 15 mins
remove chicken from fridge and drain any excess liquid. add cheese and taco seasoning
spray a baking sheet with nonstick spray
dampen two paper towels and place tortillas between them, microwave for 1 minute
take one tortilla from the stack, spray both sides lightly with nonstick spray. Lay flay and spoon about 2 heaping tablespoons of filling onto the tortilla and spread evenly.
roll tortilla up tightly and secure with a toothpick
repeat with all of the remaining tortillas
bake for 14-16 minutes until crispy
serve as they are or add red enchilada sauce, additional salsa, or sour cream

Makes 4 2-taquito servings. Only 197 calories per serving, 2.5g fat, 594mg sodium, 22.5 carbs, 3g fiber, 20.5g protein (using Hungry Girl's nutritional info, I calculated this to be 5 pts per serving)

Of course to go with taquitos, you need margaritas. My current fav cocktail is the Skinny Girl Margaritas with an extra shot of tequila. Just pour over rocks and serve!!! YUMMMMMMM and guilt free!!!!! I had three of these and it was a total of 9 points, not too shabby for a cocktail!

Royal Perfection

2011-04-29T15:19:00.000-04:00

I was going to do a super wordy post about how much I loved the wedding, her dress, the couple, blah blah blah. If you somehow were under a rock, I'll let the pictures speak for themselves. I'll just say I laughed, I cried, I cheered, and I drank sparkling cider.

Two alarms set to ensure I wouldn't miss a beat.

At the first commercial break I opened the Sparkling cider to enjoy something bubbly during the wedding. (unfortunately I had to be at work as soon as the kiss was over, so no mimosas or Pimms for me)

The Guests... (from aol.com)

The Groom (From Huffington Post)

The Maid of Honor (from aol.com)

The Bride and her GORGEOUS dress (from aol.com)

The Ceremony (from aol.com)

The sly looks from the groom. He loves his new wife. (From Huffington Post)

The Kiss at Buckingham Palace (from aol.com)

The getaway car (from aol.com)

All in all, sheer perfection. I loved every second of it. My next wedding will be exactly like this one (British public and all)

*First two pictures are my own.

He loves my cooking so much he bought me flowers

2011-04-26T21:04:00.000-04:00

True story. I came home from work last Friday and there was a bouquet sitting on the counter. Then I started to look around and he had cleaned the whole condo too!!! What a man. The note with the flowers said he's enjoyed my new found love for cooking so much that he wanted to say Thank You. I'll take that any day!!!

So I have been cooking a lot more recently. I borrowed The Hungry Girl 1-2-3 Cookbook from a friend and starting making up every recipe I could. They are all super low in points, SUPER easy to make, and delicious to boot!!!! I loved them so much that I sprung for her 300 under 300 Cookbook as well. Our three favorite recipes so far have been her Yumbo Gumbo, Exploding Chicken Taquitos, and Slow-Cooking BBQ Chicken. Like the bad little blogger I am, I haven't taken any pictures. As soon as it's done cooking, I'm ready to dig in!

One of my favorite parts of her cookbooks is that once you stock up on some basics, you can make almost anything. You get the spices for a couple recipes and then you can mix and match for most of the others. She has a lot of chicken recipes, so as long as I take a quick look at the beginning of the week, I can grab all of the supplemental ingredients in one stop at the grocery store.

Let's start with the first recipe that made us say "Holy cow, this is amazeballs". We had it just with a salad and a vegetable, but this would be amazing as pulled chicken bbq sandwiches and would be a definite crowd pleaser. I made this one night when my mom came over for dinner and was nervous about serving crock pot bbq chicken, but this blew our socks off. (I have made a much simpler version of just pouring bbq sauce over chicken in the crock pot, but this is SO much better and I'll never go back.)

slow-cookin' bbq chicken (From The Hungry Girl 1-2-3 Cookbook)
1 serving (1/2 Cup) = 3 PointsPlus*

Ingredients: 1 cup canned tomato sauce, 1/2 cup ketchup, 2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons of both brown sugar and cider vinegar, 2 teaspoons garlic powder, 1 1/2 lbs raw boneless skinless lean chicken breasts, halved, optional: crushed red pepper

Directions: Mix all ingredients except chicken in a crock pot. Stir until well mixed. Add chicken and coat well. Cover and cook on high for 3-4 hours or low for 7-8 hours. About 10-15 mins before serving, shred chicken with two forks and stir into sauce.

Next up....Taquitos!!!!!!!

*PointsPlus calculated by me based on nutritional information provided by Hungry Girl.
**This is not a sponsored post, Hungry Girl has no idea who I am, just sharing some amazing recipes that I've enjoyed.

Busy with The List

2011-04-14T15:21:00.000-04:00

We've crossed off three more from my 101 in 1001 list in the past couple of weeks! I've completed 30 goals so far and with a little under a year left, better get working on the rest!!!

#79: We bought a king sized bed a couple weeks ago after a few too many sleepless nights on our old crappy mattress. It was fun trying out all the beds and we were happy to both agree on our favorite. So I hit the interwebs and several brick and mortar stores to outfit our new bed. I got a duvet from overstock.com, the sheets from Home Goods, and a bed skirt from Target. I got two pillows from Etsy and then we were done! We have been LOVING our good night's rest for the past couple of weeks and I can honestly say getting a new mattress really has made a world of difference. I'm sleeping through the night and waking up feeling rested and refreshed. Here is what it looks like when everything gets made up, which is maybe twice a week. The headboard I made for the queen sized bed doesn't even look so out of place. I had made it a little big to begin with, so it's just a teensy bit short for the king size.

#56 We also completed our visits of 5 different states with our trip to Chicago. Like I said in our trip recap post, we have a blast exploring new places and this has been fun to see so many different parts of our country. I know we'll continue to make travel a priority and are already day dreaming about our next trip.

#94 I also blew the Open Table points out of the water. Our anniversary dinner would have been our 20th reservation and put my points at the 2,000 goal, however, that reservation was worth 1,000 points by itself!!! Getting to 10,000 to cash in for the $100 gift card doesn't seem so impossible if we book a couple more 1,000 point reservations!

Are you working on a list of goals? How are you doing on yours?

Adventures in the Windy City

2011-04-08T16:55:00.000-04:00

This year Hubs and I took off to Chicago for our Anniversary. We love exploring new places and love big cities. Last year it was NYC, then on to Chicago, maybe next year I'll find some place warm to go since heading north isn't generally a good idea in March.

We only had 2 1/2 days there, so we had to squeeze as much in as we could. On Saturday after checking in at The Drake

and taking a quick power nap, we headed to the Hancock Building. There is a bar/lounge on the 96th floor. We headed up to grab some cocktails and watch the sunset over the city.

From there we headed out for none other than Chicago Deep Dish. We had seen the Food Network's challenge of Chicago vs. New York pizza. We knew we would probably be squarely on the New York side, but that doesn't mean it wouldn't be delicious! We headed to Giodorno's. Half an hour into our hour wait we had to order so our pizza would be ready shortly after our table was ready.

I thought it was delish. You can't compare it to NY Style pizza. They are so different. Deep dish was more of a pasta dish than pizza to me, I had to use a fork and knife to eat it. They are good at what they do though, good enough for us to decide we needed to try Lou Malnati's later in the trip.

The next day we woke up, enjoyed brunch, booked a tour for the next day, then headed out on foot to explore the city. We walked down the Magnificent Mile but didn't stop to do any shopping. Our first stop was at Millennium Park. It is such a cool place next to the skyscrapers and historical buildings. Of course we had to get some pictures at The Bean:

We then walked up to the top of the Art Museam for some more pictures until my camera died. (Note to self: check that camera is charged before vacations). We hiked from there over to the Navy Pier. It was pretty empty, but it was also in the 30's. Not a ton of people out enjoying the icy wind like we were!

For lunch we went to try out Al's Italian Beef. Hubs had seen something about it on Man Vs. Food, but I didn't know anything. When they asked me if I wanted my sandwich "dipped" I had no idea what the right answer would be. It turns out, even if you say No, it'll still probably get dipped. We were not impressed with Al's, so with that, we headed back to the hotel to nap before dinner.

That night we went to Rosebud for dinner, I had no idea when I was booking the reservations, but it was on the same block as the hotel, that worked out nicely!!!! We had a fantastic steak dinner and then headed down a couple blocks to Jilly's, a piano bar I had found on Yelp.

The description said this place would be a hit for fans of The Rat Pack. It did not disappoint. We had a blast at Jilly's.

On Monday we had booked a tour with The Untouchables to see all the Gangster and Mob historical places around the city. We saw bullet holes left over from one killing at a cathedral (Sorry, I didn't take any notes and lost the handouts they gave us)

They took us through Capone's history along with several others. The guys leading the tour were SUPER cheesy, but it was fun and a good way to see much more of the city. (We also drove by Harpo Studios, too bad we couldn't get in for one of Oprah's final shows)

Then it was back to the hotel for another nap (we love sleeping) and to get ready for our big anniversary dinner! We had brought wine from the vineyard where we got married and stopped at Sprinkles for a red velvet cupcake to share.

Dinner that night was a Cafe Spiaggia, again I managed to book a dinner right across the street from our hotel. Dinner was amazing. We were in our own little world, lingering over each course, just chatting and enjoying our evening. From there we went back to The Drake to have a night cap in their bar.

Tuesday was a relaxing morning of breakfast and packing and then we wandered over to Portillo's for hot dogs. These dogs are LOADED. Hubs got a traditional dog that is served with everything including tomatoes and pickles. I got a chili cheese dog. Both were amazing.

From there it was back to the hotel to collect our bags, hop in a cab, and wave adios to a spectacular city. It was another successful trip and an amazing anniversary. I can't believe it's been two years already! Seems like just yesterday I was running down the aisle to marry my man! And what kind of anniversary post would it be without gratuitous wedding pics??? Here you go!!!!!!

Black Heels to Tractor Wheels: Part Two

2011-03-30T20:36:00.000-04:00

Holy Cow, I'm actually posting past the first section of the book club questions! I usually get too far ahead and can't remember the specifics of what that week's discussion is about, or too far behind and don't want any spoilers.

So this week is Part Two of Pioneer Woman's Black Heels to Tractor Wheel. Questions from the book clubbers and my responses below:

From Samantha:

What did you think of Marlboro Man's proposal? How would you feel if you were proposed to like that? I love that it was so casual and how off guard she was caught. We he called to say he was at her house, I knew it was coming. I thought it was perfect for their relationship. With anyone else, she probably would have known it was coming, suspected it, or saw signs. With Marlboro Man, she was always on her toes, she never knew what to expect.

She wrote a lot about never riding in a pickup truck before and how she used to judge girls who rode in the middle. After being with Marlboro Man she felt differently and actually wanted to ride in the middle. How do you feel about that? Have you ever judged somebody and then after learning more, regret that you had judged them? I think there are a lot of things you can judge until you're in the situation. Not knowing where that couple comes from or their background, you don't understand everything they do. Once you're in the situation yourself, you can form your own opinion. I think there are a lot of people who would judge "country folk" for one thing or another, but then try it themselves. Like Nascar? Who could ever watch cars go in a circle for 4 hours? Go to a race, then you understand. It's super exciting and just plain old FUN.

From mcbracey:

After their first fight, did it make you question if Marlboro man was the one to give up everything for, or was Ree willing to do it because it was easy when everything else seemed hard? I think as Ree said, she didn't know what to do, Marlboro Man had always taken the lead. I think she had to work that out herself, how to respond. I love that by the time she figured out what needed to be done, Marlboro Man had already moved past it. That first fight is always awkward and is never as bad the next day as it seems at the moment.

Do you wonder what Ree is doing all day? How is she financially making it? Is she really just waiting around all day to meet up with Marlboro man at night? I just assumed that her parents were taking care of most of her finances, plus she probably had money saved up for her move to Chicago, once that plan was canceled, she could dip into that fund.

Would you let your now husband duck out of your reception to watch a football game? NO. Never. I also would have planned the wedding around sporting events. My husband is a football and hockey fan. We got married in March where the main sporting event is the NCAA Tournament. I don't even think there were any major games going on the night of our wedding. I still check the Steeler's schedule before I RSVP anytime anyone invites us to an event September - December.

From Erin:

So many embarrassing things have happened to Ree in front of Marlboro Man. What is the most embarrassing story that comes to mind when you think of embarrassing things that have happened to you in front of a significant other? I think my most embarrassing things have happened when inebriated. I have sworn him to never speak of those events again.

How would you have reacted to being around for the prairie fire? I think it would have been exciting, but scary. I would have stayed as far away as possible, while still being able to keep an eye on Marlboro Man. After seeing it, I think I would have reacted the same way she did "You can't go fight fires anymore, they're DANGEROUS!!!!!!" Anyone else read the chapter about the prairie fire the same day there was one in real life on her ranch? She was blogging/tweeting about it and I was thinking "I just read about the first one you saw"

From Rachel:

There have been so many funny little stories along the way in the book. What has been your favorite? Any favorite lines? I just love the way she tells stories altogether. I ate her book up, every single page. I love when she posts more than just recipes on her blog, however, even the way she writes up a recipe post is entertaining as well. I want her to write more!!!! More Pioneer Woman!!!!!

Do dreams have meanings?

2011-03-24T10:18:00.000-04:00

I have some CRAZY intense vivid dreams all the time. I have thought several times of keeping a record of them, some of them are so vivid I feel like I could write screenplays from them. I've never really read into my dreams, thinking they mean anything. I had one last night that seemed pretty symbolic, so I started Googling meanings of certain things, and I don't agree with any of them.

I dreamt that I was driving a car full of friends to a friend's wedding out of town. Right before we got to where the wedding would be, there was a HUGE bridge. It was super tall and super steep to go up and over. My little car barely made it to the top and going back down was like a roller coaster where you couldn't see the bottom of the hill. I tried twice to get to the bottom of the bridge and both times the car didn't make it, it was too steep. We would end up safely on the ground, but off course.

I thought for sure the bridge had some meaning, but when I Googled it, every result said that bridges represent a decision that you are having trouble to make*. I can't think of what the decision could possibly be. I am so at peace with our home situation at the moment and am no longer anxious to move. There aren't any huge decisions to be made at work. I can't think of what it could possibly be.

I also looked up the meaning of cars in dreams, again, can't figure out what it could mean. What I've read** is that the car is representative of what your psyche is experiencing of your waking life. What is going on in the car or what happens to the car is representation of what is going on in your life. Who is driving could show who you feel is in control of your life. If there is a crash, how you crash is apparently symbolic. Were you hit by someone else? Water or ice send the car out of control? In my dream, I was driving, and when the car went off the road, it was my fault, but no one was hurt. So apparently I feel in control of my life, but when my life wrecks, it's my fault? Again, hard to agree with these meanings.

Sometimes my dreams are just vivid stories, nothing symbolic like bridges or car crashes. I don't think anything of them. I'll dream about something going on at work or something that hubs and I saw on TV.

Do you look into the meanings or symbolism of your dreams or do you just take them as entertainment the next morning as you remember everything?

*Bridge interpretations found here.

**Car interpretations found here.

Black Heels to Tractor Wheels

2011-03-22T16:57:00.000-04:00

This month we are reading Black Heels to Tractor Wheels by Ree Drummond, also known as The Pioneer Woman. She is one of my absolute favorite bloggers. I LOVE her sense of humor and her recipes are AMAZING. Every single thing I've made of hers turns out phenomenal. This is her story of how she met and married her husband. I am loving every single page and can't stop myself from reading ahead! I love her voice when she writes and feel like I already know so much about her from her blog. There are several questions submitted from the girls in the book club this week, I'll just pick a couple to respond to.

While reading Part I of Black Heels, did you find yourself comparing your own love life/story to Ree's? I haven't so much been comparing Ree's story to my own, I am just lost in her world and love reading about how her Marlboro Man courted her and how they fell in love. Knowing how happily married she is and how obsessed she is with her husband and kids, it's great getting to see how they got there. It's almost like being able to pull back the curtains of her blog and getting all of the juicy details. Maybe it's just the nosy side of me, but I love reading about the details of their dating.

Have you ever felt an instant connection with someone? How did it turn out? I had met Hubs a couple times before we actually started dating when I was bartending. The first time we hung out away from the bar, I knew there was more to it. We were with a group of people, but I couldn't tell you who was there. We were in our own little world just concerned about getting to know each other. At the end of the night, he put his arms around me and said "we fit". And here we are today, a week away from our two year wedding anniversary and 5 1/2 years after that night.

If you were Ree and started to question your life plan (leaving Cali, moving to Chicago, being independent for a while)...how would you feel when this sudden romance came into your life at the 'wrong' time? I couldn't believe she canceled her move to Chicago for this guy she had been dating for only a couple of weeks. Of course, if she only had an apartment lined up and no job waiting, it wouldn't be as hard to put it off and see where things went with her new flame. However, it was still a HUGE leap of faith for her to cancel her move and see where things went with Marlboro Man. Thank goodness she did or else we wouldn't have The Pioneer Woman!!!!

I love all the details of Ree's cooking for Marlboro Man in the early stages of their relationship. Have you ever made anything for the guy in your life that was just an utter disaster? Did he choke it down anyway? I absolutely love hearing about their early cooking adventures. Just from reading her blog, I knew a couple things, like what the first dish she had made for him. I can't believe she went from vegetarian to eating steak with him. I never in a million years would have guessed she didn't always eat meat from all of her cooking posts. I have definitely had some disasters. Luckily Hubs has been forgiving and I think only one dish I've made went uneaten after the first bites. So far I've taken it pretty easy in the kitchen, trying mainly dishes that would be categorized as easy, but we're moving along and I love making something new that he loves and stashing that recipe away for another day.

How much of Ree's book do you think is truth or fiction? How much did she embellish? Do you think she omitted or added anything? Obviously she couldn't get EVERYTHING that happened during this period of her life in the book, but I kept wondering what was left out and if some of the stuff she was writing was built up just a teensy tiny bit I really REALLY want to believe that it is pretty true to life. There have to be some embellishments, but I want to believe that they really did have this amazing of a romance. I certainly don't think MY life could be made into a book, but I'm glad hers was, I'm enjoying every minute of it. One day I'll have to meet her and find out how much was true and what was embellished.

If you haven't read this book yet, I can't say enough how much I love it. If you aren't following Ree's blog already, go do yourself a favor. Give yourself some time to get lost in the recipes and have your printer ready to go, you'll want them all. I am so happy we picked this book and can't wait to keep reading!!!!

A very Dave Ramsey thing to do

2011-03-16T16:01:00.001-04:00

So we spent a riviting night on Friday having a serious talk about our finances, about selling our house, about what we can realistically afford, and our hopes and dreams for the future. I had recorded Suzy Orman's "The Money Class" that aired on PBS last week. This opened up a lot of discussion about what we have, what we owe, and what we want to do with our money. I'm so glad that we watched this together. We were able to pause it and discuss what she was talking about and for once it was both of us learning together. In the past it went: I read, I try to explain, I don't get the point across, and Hubs doesn't want to get on board.

We decided that since we couldn't sell or rent our place out right now, moving in the next year or so just seemed unrealistic. We wanted to be able to put down more than a minimum down payment and wanted to not have to pay cash to get out of our current house. We've made enough updates in the past year that living there for the next couple years no longer seems like a prison sentence. With a Metro station within walking distance to our condo expected to begin operation in 2016, we have toyed with the idea of sticking around to be able to sell for a profit at that time. It is just 5 short years away and will open up so many more options if we don't have to lose money when we sell.

Dave Ramsey would be proud of this next part. Since we don't need a down payment fund right away, I took money from there and paid off our credit cards. Boom. Done. So now our plan is to spend with no credit cards and put all the money we monthly would have put towards those payments back into out down payment fund. We'll build that up and once we get to a more significant amount, we'll be able to start looking for a house again.

Now Dave would tell us to pay off our car next, but I just can't bring myself to pull another chunk of change out of our down payment/emergency fund. I like having a cushion to fall back on in case anything happened. We'll work to pay the car off early, but don't feel like I need to pay it off immediately.

So credit cards have been removed from wallets, budgets have been outlined, Husband is on board, and we are ready to start saving some cash! Another positive is no credit card debt means another item crossed of the 101 in 1001 list!!!

Have you had to sacrifice any dreams to make the more responsible financial decision?

Dinner of the Month - Salsa Pork Chops

2011-03-10T09:43:00.001-05:00

Lately we've been on a pretty steady rotation of meals. Maybe lack of creativity, or just being lazy, we're stuck on the same 7 or 8 recipes. Our current favorite that is made at least every two weeks is Salsa Pork Chops.

I don't have a link to the recipe, it came from my mom! It was included in a book of recipes put together at my bridal shower of everyone's favorites. She included all of her go to dishes when we were growing up and menus for the holiday dinners that she always followed. (This also gets me points towards my 101 in 1001 goals!!!)

In an effort to move away from eating only chicken and beef, I tried this one with pork chops. It's super easy folks. SUPER easy. It cooks all day in the crockpot, so it's just about 5-10 mins in the morning to throw everything together.

I don't have any pictures because really, it doesn't look super appetizing. It's just a big hot mess, but MAN is it delicious.

Salsa Pork Chops (4-6 servings)
4 boneless pork chops
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 can corn, drained
1 small can of chopped green chilis
1 jar of red medium heat, vegetable salsa
1 chopped onion

Throw it all together in the crockpot and cook on low for 8-9 hours or on high for 6 hours. The pork will shred up really easily and will be perfect.

We either eat it with brown rice or pull out some whole wheat tortillas and cheese and make pork tacos.

There are enough leftovers for at least another dinner, often two. It is even better two days later as leftovers.

Just FYI, I entered everything into Weight Watchers and got a PointsPlus value of 10 per serving.

101 in 1001: Goals Completed So Far

2011-03-09T09:00:00.001-05:00

I am 616 days into my 1001 days to get some goals completed. I thought I’d check in with what I’ve accomplished so far. I have completed 26 of the tasks thus far. I think I’ve knocked out most of the easy ones. With just over a year left, it looks like it will be a busy one! It should give me plenty to blog about along the way. I can’t wait to see how this all ends up.

There are 4 more that will be completed by the end of this month. I’ll share those once I’ve finished them.

Here is what I've accomplished so far:

1. ~~Start a blog~~ lifeafterthevows.blogspot.com

5. ~~Get an iPhone~~ Received on 7/20/09

18. ~~Take a multi vitamin everyday for a month (30/30)~~

19. ~~Go one week without soda~~ November 5-11, 2010

27. ~~Read 10 books of my choosing (10/10)~~ January 2, 2010

29. ~~Attend a comedy show~~ October 2, 2010

34. ~~Donate hair~~ September 21, 2009

37. ~~Visit THON~~ February 2011

53. ~~Go to a fancy Sunday brunch~~ July 11, 2010

54. ~~Create wedding books for parents~~ December 2009

55. ~~Get a new passport~~ February 11, 2010

59. ~~Read 5 Love Languages~~ September 2, 2009

60. ~~Approve Wedding Album~~ August 4, 2009

62. ~~Write review for Chris Wells, wedding coordinator~~ Wrote and mailed review on 12/29/09

64. ~~Finish painting condo (entry, kitchen, living room)~~ (3/3) Painted 12/12/09 - 12/13/09

66. ~~Research and if feasible, new blinds for condo~~ December 13, 2009, put up curtains to replace horrible blinds

67. ~~Prepare fancy five course meal for Tony and I one weekend~~ June 4, 2010

71. ~~Bake cake or cupcakes for 5 birthdays (5/5)~~ 12/15/2009

73. ~~Hang up framed invite and wedding pictures in bedroom~~ (1/18/2010)

77. ~~Buy a new couch~~ Bought a Pottery Barn couch after too many bloody marys!!! Ooops! 7/11/10

80. ~~Drink red wine from fancy carafe~~ Rad Red Wine, James River Cellars 7/27/09

82. ~~See a Pens game outside of Washington~~ November 14, 2009 Pens won!!!!

86. ~~Take Tony to a Nascar race~~ September 12, 2009 (MET BRIAN!!!!)

87. ~~Send Christmas cards to friends and family~~ December 2010

91. ~~Pick fruit from an orchard~~ October 10, 2010, Apples at Marker-Miller Orchards

93. ~~Buy one thing from RueLaLa~~ December 16, 2009, Kate Spade Glassware

Unfortunately I think there are about 6 items that I won’t be able to complete. I should go ahead and put the $10 for each of those into Savings sooner than later.

Do you have a 101 in 1001 list? How far from being done are you?

I didn't know whether to laugh or cry...

2011-03-07T11:16:00.000-05:00

Saturday we had a wedding to go to, we've been looking forward to it for a long time to get to see some friends we haven't seen since our own wedding. Saturday morning we were being lazy around the house, the wedding was all we had scheduled. I decided to take my time getting ready, so I gave myself three hours to get pulled together and out the door. It was supposed to be a relaxing day where we just got to relax and enjoy the big day for our friends.

After a marathon karaoke sing along in the shower I was wandering around starting to pull stuff out of the closet to get ready. I go to get hubs' suit and it's not there. We had cleaned out our closet when we thought our house would be going on the market, so his dress clothes are all being stored at my mom's house. I called her and she had already left for the day, so I'd have to run over myself. No worries, since I started getting ready so early, I'd dash over and only lose about 35 minutes. I jump in my car, hit every single red light on the way over there, and am starting to get anxious. I have her house key on a separate key chain, so I was just going to leave my car on, run in grab the suit and head out.

As soon as I jumped out of the car and slammed the door I realized I had locked it. Keys locked in, engine running, clock ticking. I currently had my spare car keys since we had dropped my regular keys off with friends that morning who would be watching the pups for the night. I called hubs and didn't know whether I would laugh or cry. He talked me off the ledge, gave me our AAA membership information and I got on the phone with them. They told me 45 mins until someone could get out there, so I had nothing to do but wait. Hubs grabbed our stuff for the wedding and came out to my mom's house to get ready there. He showed up the same time the locksmith did.

We got ready in record time, jumped in his car, leaving mine at the house, and were on our way. We were actually one of the first to get to the church, we were relaxed and settled in to see our friends tie the knot. Shortly after the ceremony started I realized I never had him zip my dress all the way up!!! It was a side zipper, so my arm mostly covered it, but the whole time I was super paranoid that I was giving the whole church a show. We got to a point in the ceremony where everyone was standing and got it taken care of.

After that it was back to the house to get our stuff to stay over at the hotel. Once we were checked in and I had a glass of wine in my hand, the drama of the day wore off and we celebrated those nuptials like it was our job!!!

I need another weekend after this weekend. Only have to make it through 5 more days!

How was your weekend? Any surprises throw you for a loop?

For The Kids - Penn State THON 2011

2011-02-28T13:42:00.001-05:00

Last weekend Tony and I made a trek up to Penn State for annual Dance MaraTHON. I wrote about it last year, but for those who are new friends, I'll give you a quick recap.

Dance Marathon, aka THON, is the largest student run philanthropy in the world. They raise money throughout the year for the Four Diamonds Fund for Pediatric Cancer. The money goes towards research as well as supplementing heath care costs for the families being treated at the Hershey Medical Center. The fund raising culminates in a 46 hour Dance Marathon.

This was Tony's first time seeing what THON is all about. (I had included it in my 101 in 1001 list as well to make sure he saw what all the hype was about) We got there Saturday afternoon when the dancers had already been going for 20 hours. Right as we showed up Velveeta was taking the stage. They were one of my favorite local bands in college. They play 80's cover songs and rock it out. It was amazing see all the dancers and spectators rocking out to Journey's Don't Stop Believing.

We stuck around for a couple hours cheering on the dancers and just taking in the scene. At one point a man got on stage and told his story of when and how THON helped him. In 1988 he was diagnosed with cancer and was given 24 hours to live. Thanks to THON, he was able to get the transplants he needed, the treatments he needed, and has been cancer free for almost 20 years. There was not a dry eye in the house.

I wanted to make sure we got to see the line dance being done at least once. They have a new line dance each year that brings in some Penn State history, current events, and motivation for the dancers. Here is this year's line dance:

We went back Sunday morning for another couple hours. We got there at 8am when the dancers still had 8 more hours to go. By the time we left at 10, the place was at capacity. They were counting heads leaving to let folks in at another entrance.

All in all Tony was very impressed. Not only are there over 700 dancers, but there are thousands cheering them on the whole time. The Fraternities and Sororities, organizations and clubs with Dancers are out through the whole time keeping the place rocking. One of the best moments was when the Gary Glitter cheer started and instead of yelling P!!! S!!!!! U!!!! Let's Go P-S-U!!! it was F!!!! T!!!!!! K!!!!! THON ON! FOR THE KIDS!

By the time we got home, I logged online and watched the final hours live. Their total this year was over $9.5 MILLION, over $1.5 Million than last year!!!!

It really makes me proud to be a Penn State Alumni to see such love poured out each and every single year for these kids.

“When they say, ‘We Are Penn State,’ this is what they are talking about.” - Joe Paterno

Giveaway Winner!!!!

2011-02-15T09:37:00.000-05:00

Thank you to everyone that participated. We blew right through the 1,000 visits mark!!!!!

Using Random.org to select a winner at random.....

Our winner is Dana!!!!!

Congrats! I'll contact you to get the gift card sent to you ASAP!

Keep stopping by for visits! We'll get the next 1,000 visit even faster!

Happy Valentine's Day!

2011-02-14T14:05:00.000-05:00

So we're doing Valentine's Day super low key this year. That's just the nice way of saying we're not doing anything. It being a Monday puts the biggest damper on plans and me not wanting to spend any cash doesn't help either.

We did have dinner at my mom's house last night, so I decided to make some yummy Red/Pink/White treats.

I whipped out my KitchenAid, that has been sitting sad and neglected in the corner, to bake Red Velvet Cupcakes.

I saved some of the frosting to dye pink and decorate. I had a lot of fun playing with the decorations and will have to definitely do this in the future to add some pizazz for future events. I made one batch of mini's with our nephew's names on them, they loved them!

What are your plans for Valentine's Day? Are you doing a weekday date night?

P.S. Don't forget that today is your last day to enter my giveaway for a $50 American Express Gift card!!!!!

My New Favorite Things....

2011-02-11T16:21:00.000-05:00

I received a mysterious catalog in the mail yesterday, maybe I'm late to the party, but I had never heard of Boden. I oohed and ahhed over every single page and every item in the catalog.

Then I made the mistake of going to their website, www.bodenusa.com. I want it all. Every single piece of clothing. I took advantage of their free shipping and free returns to buy two dresses in a couple of sizes from the clearance section to see how their sizing runs and to get a look at the quality. Oh and they icing on the cake? It's on eBates. 3% cash back.

and

We have a wedding coming up in a few weeks that I purchased these for. Let's hope they get here in time!!!!

If I love their stuff, I may pick a few pieces to use for motivation in my weight loss goals. The more I lose, the more I can buy!!!!

This long cardigan? I swoon.

Have you ever ordered from Boden? I can't wait to let you know my findings from my order.

Also! Don't forget about my $50 American Express Giftcard Giveaway!!!! Go here to enter for your chance to win!

*All pictures from the BodenUSA website.

**To join eBates and start getting cash back on your online purchases, click here.

1,000 visits Giveaway

2011-02-08T16:03:00.003-05:00

So I've been tracking unique visits to my site using SiteMeter for about 15 months. I've watched those numbers tick up and up and I am SOCLOSE to 1,000 visits. I know 1,000 visits in 15 months is measly for some of the bloggers out there. I'm sure I'm one of thousands that DAILY visit several of my favorite blogs. But 1,000 visits is big to me, so I'm celebrating.(And I've set it to not track my own visits, so no, that's not just me clicking on the site to up my stats) Hopefully this giveaway will push me over the edge.

I wanted to save my first giveaway for a special occasion. I think this warrants it. This also coincides with my first significant check from eBates, guess where that money is going? That's right. To you.

I was trying to think of an amazing prize to giveaway and everything kept pointing back to gift cards. Then I started thinking where I would give away a gift card to. I was worried about localization (does everyone have an Anthropologie or Home Goods?) and was over thinking the whole thing. Since this giveaway is not sponsored (except by my wallet), I'll just do an American Express Gift Card to the lucky winner. That way you can spend it on ANYTHING you want! (As long as they take AmEx). I can also purchase through eBates, to get my next check started off on a good note.

$50 American Express Gift Card to the lucky winner.

How to enter:
The giveaway will be closed at midnight, EST, on February 14, 2011. I'll choose the winner with random.org and announce the winner on February 15. Good luck everybody!!!

1. One entry if you leave a comment below. Say hello. Tell me what you'd do with 50 bucks.Don't forget to include your email address if it's not included in your comment profile.

2. One additional entry if you Follow my blog. Not on your Reader, but on the actual blog. If you are already a follower, leave a comment saying that.

3. One additional entry if you Tweet about this giveaway. Make sure you include @kimrally in your tweet or it doesn't count. Come back and leave a comment that you tweeted.

4. Another additional entry if you blog about the giveaway. Come back, leave a comment with a link to your blog.

Let's get the traffic moving my way and the next 1,000 visits will hopefully be quicker than the first!

Thanks for stopping by and reading so often!!!! I can't wait to hear from everyone!

Ape House - Chapters 1-12

2011-02-07T13:57:00.001-05:00

Our online, blogger bookclub, is reading Ape House by Sara Gruen, the author of Water For Elephants. I'm only 12 chapters in and I LOVE it. So good. Below are my answers to the questions for the first 12 chapters. SPOILER ALERT. If you plan to read this book, which you should, stop reading here!!!!!

Alright, now that we got that out of the way....

I immediately fell into love with this book. I can't wait to see where it goes. I had to make myself stop reading last night so that I could finish weekend chores and so I didn't finish the book in one sitting.

1. What was your initial reaction to the idea of a language lab with bonobos who are capable of having conversations with humans? I didn't see this concept as too far fetched. I think that they are probably closer to us genetically that we think they are. I know ASL has been taught to some primates, probably the extent of their language skills was the most surprising. The fact that they could be asked to accept or reject visitors, order food, etc was a little far out there, but it's fiction, we'll just roll with it. I have no doubt that animals can express emotions and the fact that they can actually vocalize (by signing) their feelings would create a unique bond between the bonobos and their caretakers.

2. Isabel said early in the book that the apes know they're apes and know that the humans are humans, but they don't see any superiority with either... What do you think the major difference is between the two? I think that she meant that the apes don't think that being human is better than being ape. They are living a pretty sweet life, getting taken care of in a controlled environment with humans that genuinely love and care for them more than just a science project. I don't think that they are envious of the people around them for BEING human. This could maybe be similar to boys know they are boys and that girls are girls, but one is not better than the other.

3. What are your thoughts on John and his feelings toward Isabel? How do you think their relationship will play out? I was guessing from the beginning, based on how John described his day with Isabel, that he was into it more than just platonically. And then we found out he has a wife. A wife that he cares for. But he can't get Isabel off his mind. I think that they will have a romantic relationship, I would be surprised if they didn't at least slip up and share a kiss.

4. How do you think Isabel will respond to the apes being taken? I think she will track them down and try to rescue them from their new owners. It was heartbreaking that the University would just sell them off at the first sign of trouble, especially after having put so much time, money, effort, and personnel into the project.

5. Do you think Celia is part of the team that ambushed the learning center? No, I think it would be too obvious if she is. Although, it would only be one step deeper to show alternative motives. I like Isabel a lot, I think that if she believes that Celia is innocent, she may be right. I will be sad if she turns out to be involved.

6. What are your thoughts on John and his relationship with Amanda? I think John is having a rough go of it right now. At a time where his wife seems to be in a depression, he meets this new girl, Isabel. By the time he gets home, Amanda has a turn of events that may be her key to getting her life back on track. Now that he's already let his thoughts and emotions consider Isablel, he's torn between getting his wife back and the new girl. I hope he sticks with his wife, supports her, and they turn out OK.

What are your initial impressions of the book? Love it? Hate it? Think it's ridiculous and over the top? I can't wait to hear what everyone thinks!

A new month, new goals

2011-02-01T14:01:00.005-05:00

So starting in February I'm trying a new tactic at achieving some of my annual goals. I decided to make a visual reminder, paper chain links to be torn down as steps are made to making the certain goal.

I've made four chains. Three for monetary goals and one for my weight loss goal. I'm hoping to have a HUGE dent in these chains by the end of the year, with at least two of them GONE.

I took some pics of me with the chains so you can see what I'll be chipping away at all year. I really got dressed up for ya'll. Wet hair, PJs, just for you guys.

Since one of these is a weight loss goal, lets consider these before pics, cause I look TERRIBLE.

Up first, the weight I want to lose. Each link represents 3 pounds. My starting weight will be what I weighed in on January 1. I've already gotten to take down two links, almost three. Well on my way!!!!

This one is our credit card debt. I plan to reduce this one by at LEAST 3 links per month. I figured if I could take links off for smaller amounts, I could see the progress quicker and stay motivated. This one will be GONE by the end of the year.

Up next, our down payment fund. This just represents the difference between what we have and what we'd LIKE to have to put a much more sizeable amount down. Again, hopefully we can knock a couple out a month. Who knows.....

And here is the final chain. It's taller than I am! This one represents the difference between what we own and what we can sell the condo for without bringing any money to the table. This will be the toughest one to get down, but again, wanted to make the links in small enough increments that we'll see results.

Here are where the links will live. On the bedroom closet door. I'll see them several times a day and be reminded of what we're working towards. As I see the chains disappearing, I'll get more and more motivated to keep it up. When they are all gone, that's when we can get back on track to buy a house.

Here's the kicker. I also made some black links. These will be ADDED to the chains if we start going the wrong direction. If I gain the weight back, if credit card balances go up instead of down.

I'll take some pics as the year goes on to see what progress is being made.

How do you track your goals and stay motivated throughout the year?

the new addition

2011-01-30T14:42:00.002-05:00

So after the Sofa Debacle of 2010 (where we got a little tipsy at brunch and bought a new sofa that we didn't need) and all the old furniture was gone, there was quite a bit of time with just the new couch, nothing else in the living room. I had sold the coffee table since it was too big for our space, sold the arm chair that had matched the old sofa and we were left with just a sofa with nothing else.

I started scouring the interwebs looking for just the chair and coffee table or ottoman to put in the room. Lo and behold, I found just the perfect chair at Target of all places. All of the furniture I had seen in stores has seemed to be very college dorm room. When I was looking online, I was a little weary of what the quality would be like. The chair I wanted happened to be 15%, plus free shipping, and I got 6% cash back from ebates. With a deal like that I pulled the trigger and ordered. Hubs unpacked and assembled it before I even got home.

I walked into the house to find my new love.

The color is fantastic with our green walls, but isn't so bold that it over powers the room. The added seating was also a bonus. Now the sofa doesn't look so lonely.

We also got a couple other items from Target that I am absolutely smitten with.

A little blurry, but this is the Chesapeake Dining Buffet

And the Falls Village Nightstand, I can't get a picture of it, but check out the link.

These two items were a little time consuming to put together, but totally worth it. I love them, and I love that they are from Target even more.

Next up on the search list, the perfect coffee table or ottoman. I'd really like an over sized storage ottoman, we'll see what I can find.

Do you have any go to places for online furniture shopping?

because it's been a while

2011-01-26T20:05:00.001-05:00

It won't be anywhere near snowmageddon 2010, but we're in the midst of what will probably be our biggest snowfall of the year. Hubs called me at about 2:45 to say "leave work now, it's BAD out there" I got home a little after 4. I work three miles away. Everything is a disaster here, haven't seen a plow yet and we have about 6 inches on the ground already. So for your viewing pleasure.....

my first video on YouTube!!!!

2011 won't be the year ....

2011-01-10T14:45:00.000-05:00

we buy a house.

There I've said it. As eager as we were to move, I doubt that it'll be happening anytime soon. After meeting with our agent in December and going over the comps in our neighborhood, there is no way we can sell our condo without taking a HUGE loss. We don't have money to be losing. So we'll stick it out until we can get a little closer to the selling price. I don't think that means a couple months, I think that means a year or more. Sad.

We would need about 3 times what we had in cash reserves to be able to sell, paying sellers agent fees, and buy with a meager down payment and closing costs.

I'll still be looking at houses on the market and I'm sure we'll still be doing open houses, but unless there is a ridiculous deal out there, we won't be buying.

I was just too stressed with paying down the house, credit cards, while also saving cash to take to closing. Trying to be so frugal and cheap was really stressing me out and stressing hubs out. We want to be able to live our lives, and staying in the condo isn't the end of the world. It's just not preferable.

Yes, rates will go up. Home prices will go up. But we just can't buy right now, unless we win the lottery.

In the meantime, we'll be paying down the mortgage to try to bridge the gap of where we are and what we can sell for. We'll continue to increase the cash reserves so when the time comes, we are ready with down payment and closing costs to buy. But really, the stress level is lifted and we can relax and just enjoy whatever 2011 brings us.

and maybe i'll be wrong and we do win the lottery.

Happy 2011!!!!

2011-01-01T10:55:00.028-05:00

Source

I hope everyone had a fun New Year's Eve! We have really taken it easy the past couple of years. This year we did dinner out with friends and then headed home to play Just Dance 2 until Snookie dropped in the ball.

Source

I'm not usually one to make resolutions, but I really need to get some things done this year! What a better motivator than tell everyone online what I intend to accomplish this year.

Source

First up, I'd like to get all of my CDs uploaded to my itunes. I can then start selling some at yardsales or just donating. Get that clutter out of my house!

Along the same lines, I'd like to purchase an external hard drive to back up all of those uploaded songs. I have so much music and so many pictures that only exist on one computer that I would hate to lose should a crash occur. Eventually I'd like to purchase a new computer as well, but that may be more than 2011 can handle already.

The next goal is to get rid of our credit card debt. I've gotten down to zero several times, and as soon as we get there, EMERGENCY! and we have to rack up the debt. The slippery slope is then started and once a big purchase is made on the credit cards, a tank of gas, a lunch out, or a new sweater just doesn't seem like a big deal, but that stuff adds up quick. Since we are trying to get approved for a home loan, we have to get that debt to credit ratio down. I've been slowly chipping away at it in 2010, but I think we can knock it out once and for all this year.

Finally, as cliche` as it is, I need to get on the Fit Train this year and get serious about losing some lbs. I'm starting Weight Watchers again and making hubs do it with me for a while. I think with both of us on board, we'll be able to get the momentum rolling quickly. We did the official weigh in this morning (YIKES) and started the year with a sensible breakfast. It'll also be back to the gym and maybe finding some dough to do personal training again. I'll be one of those resolution folks that all of the avid gym goers hate. Too bad for them.

There are a number of other things I'd like to do over the year, but these are the biggies. Hopefully this will give me plenty to blog about and get back online!!!

What are you resolving to do this year?

Holiday cards? Already?

2010-11-10T15:00:00.001-05:00

Yes! It's that time of year and it looks like thanks to Shutterfly I'll be able to cross off another item on my list! #87 was to send out Christmas cards to friends and family.

With so many amazing photo cards, I could spend hours browsing and choosing. I have had amazing success with Shutterfly in the past. I have made several calendars with pics of my adorable pups and I made a photo book for the in-laws of our wedding. The site is so easy to work with and the service is great! I have ordered all of the photos I have framed in our house from Shutterfly. So affordable and the prints usually arrive within a couple of days!

This year I'm looking to get Photo Cards to send for our holiday greetings. Some of my favorites include:

Holiday Window

Warm Wishes

and

Sweet and Retro

There are so many to pick from. You can get folded or flat cards and have no pictures, or several. Everyone should be able to find something to tickle their fancy!

I can't wait to shock everyone when I actually send out holiday cards!!!!!

****Bloggers get 50 free holiday cards from Shutterfly… sign up: http://bit.ly/sfly2010 ****

the awful B word

2010-10-27T21:30:00.000-04:00

Gosh, I was on such a roll posting and then all of a sudden life got in the way. Since my last post we've spent our weekends on two separate wine tours. Virginia has an amazing wine country and I intend to check out each and every vineyard. Out of the six vineyards we visited in the past two weekends, five of them were new to me. We've had an the normal warm October, it's been in the 60's and 70's everyday so far, it might have even hit 80 today.

Since September I've been so excited thinking about a blog post about the amazing budget I created and how we were going to stick to it and beat not only our credit card debt, but also pay down our condo enough to sell it and save enough to put a downpayment on a house. As all budgets go, we had some emergencies come up, but I felt better prepared this time.

In the past my mindset was always "Pay bills first and then put every single extra dollar toward paying off debt." While this is a very sound way to tackle finances, it didn't work for us. Something would always come up or I would forget about a major expense for the month. My new mindset in creating this last budget was more along the lines of slow and steady wins the race. I tried to think of everything that throws us off course. It was usually car repairs, vet or our own health bills, or impulse purchases. These unexpected expenses would end up on a credit card since all of our extra cash had already been spent, towards paying credit cards off. The cycle was never ending and VERY frustrating. When I built this budget I put a percentage towards car repairs, medical, and clothes. I put a more modest amount towards credit cards and even upped our monthly savings.

I chose October to start our budgeting because Hubs got three paychecks this month. While I get paid bi monthly, he gets paid every other week, so about twice a year, three paychecks in one month. We had a couple planned expenses that we knew were coming that we would put that extra paycheck towards: car taxes and a couple various expenses we had put on the credit cards in September that we wanted to pay off.

So I put together a spreadsheet of expenses and percentages of our total budget. I did this in early September and would check it out and tweak it almost daily. I was honestly giddy on October 1st, ready to track every penny and see how much we would end up saving!!!!

Unfortunately I didn't plan for one of the dogs to get a strange bump on her stomach that would require a biopsy and rack up over $300 in vet bills. (She's ok, it was just an infection that ended disappearing in about two weeks, I was fine just letting it run it's course until it started bleeding, then I broke down and got it checked out). I also didn't plan for my car to start sounding like we were newlywed's again and dragging tin cans behind it. I checked for diet coke cans to be stuck under it before I took it in. $1,100 I finally got that 90k mile tune up as parts of that were the culprit of the noises.

BUT guess what? Neither of these went on the credit cards. Somehow we had enough cash to cover these unexpected expenses. I had budgeted 2% to go toward medical, so that helped us start the dent on the vet bill. The amount for car maintenance I budgeted fell FAR short of the car repairs, but it helped and that extra check covered the rest.

So here is what I started with:
Housing would be 30% - This included our mortgage, storage unit, home insurance, and a small sum for home decor items.
Food is the next 20% - This is divided by groceries, dinners out, and happy hours
Transportation came in at 15% - We fit in gas, a car payment, car insurance, our parking costs, tolls, and maintenance.
Utilities are 10% of the budget - Cell phones, electricity, cable, gas, and water. I also included our condo fees in this category.
Medical came in at 2%
Clothing is 3%
Debt - 10% - Includes credit cards and putting a little extra towards the mortgage to get the condo selling price down
Entertainment - 5%
Savings - 5%

I figured we may not need the 2% in medical or the specified car maintenance every month. The alloted money would be put in an ingDirect sub account specified for it's own purpose. That way when a larger bill showed up, we would have the cash to cover it. I guess that will start next month since we were wiped clean in October.

Going into November we'll start fresh. We have one birthday to shop for and we'll have to start thinking about Christmas gifts for our families. We'll have one quick weekend trip, but we can drive and will keep costs down. I'm looking forward to reporting how well we did in November. I do feel so much more at ease knowing that the unexpected doesn't need to set us back on our debt goals and that we can take care of that without dipping into downpayment money or credit cards.

Have you had any success with budgeting?

Sunday Funday

2010-10-11T16:42:00.001-04:00

I had included Pick Fruit from an Orchard on my list of 101 in 1001. This weekend was BEAUTIFUL and somehow I convinced my dear husband that we needed to go apple picking. It turned out to be one of those perfect days that you hope you can repeat again and again. I think we have a new fall tradition!

I did a quick search online and found Marker Miller Orchards in Winchester, VA. It would be a bit of a drive, but on such a gorgeous day, it was nice to take a leisurely tour of RT 50. (On the way we also discovered some vineyards we have never been to, we'll be back to visit those next weekend!)

Once we got to the orchard we paid for our two bags, one big and one little. They handed us a map of what we could pick and we were off.

We picked Red Delicious, Golden Delicious, Fuji, Nittany, Granny Smith, and a couple other varieties. I had never heard of a Nittany apple, but I was sure it would be delish to share a namesake with my beloved Nittany Lion.

The fruit was plentiful and we has such a great time traipsing up and down the rows looking for the perfect pick. Once we returned to the Market we pleasantly discovered they were having a festival that day, complete with a blue grass band! We bought some BBQ and sat down to enjoy the music. After lunch we did some shopping in their market for some cider, a pie, and some jars of goodies.

Once we got home we started thinking of what we could make with all of these apples!

First up was apple sauce. This was a quick one to try:
Peel 4 apples, chop them up, throw them in a pot with 3/4 cup water, 1/4 sugar, and 2 tsp of cinnamon. Let cook on medium heat for about 20 mins. Once they cooled I ran them through the food processor to get them good and mushy.
The result was a little runny and a little sweet for me, the next batch may have less sugar and I might try substituting 1/2 cup cider for the water.

Tonight is apple butter, I'll let you know how that one turns out after we try it.

We'll also be snacking on apple and brie quesadillas tonight.

Do you have any suggestions of what else we should try with our apples? I'll try out a pie, but I'd also love a muffin or bread recipe as well. Let me know if you have any good ideas for me to try!!!!

Book Club: Commencement, Part One

2010-10-05T22:41:00.001-04:00

When this book was selected for our next read at http://bookendbloggers.blogspot.com/ I thought it would be a puff piece. From the description I thought it would be just a quick and easy read without to much depth. After finishing Part One I was convinced that there was a lot more to these girls and so much in their lives I could identify with.

Here are this week's questions:

1. Which girl do you identify the most with?
I think I identify with Celia the most. She ended up at Smith almost by default. I kinda chose Penn State for what it wasn't more than what it was. It wasn't too close to home, it wasn't where half my graduating class was going, and it wasn't anywhere anyone in my family had already been. I was excited to be going to college, but sad to leave my high school years behind. I had a great group of friends that was scattering across the East Coast. I was shy, but eager to meet the girls would I would be living with for the next four years.

2. If you're a college student or graduate, what similarities or differences do you see between this story to your own college experience?
I feel like my freshman year college experience was very similar to this. I bonded with the girls on my floor and made friends that would last my whole college career. We ate together, we studied together, we worked out together, and we partied together. Penn State is a HUGE school, so immediately bonding with these girls helped create our small niche and made it a little bit smaller and a little bit more like home.

3. Which girl do you think has changed the most since her time in college? In what ways has she changed?
I think that Sally has changed the most. She was so bent and determined to be a doctor and is now a lab assistant at Harvard with her priority now being her fiance'. I think a lot of people have hopes and dreams of what their life will be and where they believe they will end up. I think a lot of that is naive to think you can plan your entire life at 18. So often with a little world experience, your values change and your priorities shift.

When I was in high school and starting college I thought I would be working in politics, working on Capital Hill or for a lobbyist. Once I graduated and entered the real world I realized that a staffer job on Capital Hill probably wouldn't pay my bills, Law School wasn't happening and there needed to be a change in plans. I jumped right into Corporate America to bide my time. Now I'm married with two dogs and my family is my priority. I now dream about what to make for dinner and keeping a neat and tidy house instead of a career that would take over my entire life.

I Made It! Headboard Edition

2010-10-02T16:36:00.001-04:00

So for my proudest project thus far I tackled making a headboard for our queen sized bed. Our bed is just a mattress set sitting on a metal bed frame. It is so plain and I thought it could be dressed up so easily. As I had posted here, I wanted to tackle some DIY projects when we have a bigger house. I wanted to make a headboard for a king sized bed once we move, so I thought, why not do a trial run for our current bed? I got the inspiration from a reader's post on Young House Love. Armed with the instructions on my iPhone, we went off to buy the needed supplies and tackle the project.

We chose a fabric that would be neutral, a white muslin type with flowers stitched on in black, brown, and gray. We got the 2" foam, batting, button covers, and upholstry needle and thread from JoAnn fabric. I purchased their monthly magazine for $3 for the coupons that were on the back cover. It saved me well over $30, so well worth the purchase.

We went to Home Depot to purchase the plywood, washers, and hanger. Home Depot made the cut for us, so one less thing for us to worry about. We had it cut 30" x 64" so it would hang a little longer than the width of the bed.

We started out by measuring to have two rows of three buttons each and drilled the holes in the plywood.

We then used spray adhesive to adhere the foam padding to the plywood.

Used a staple gun to wrap the batting over the foam and plywood. And then repeated with the selected fabric. (Note, we hemmed the fabric so that if it pulled at all over the years, it wouldn't fray and pull off of the headboard. We put staples on both sides and right along the hemmed sides.)

Next came the tufting part. We had bought a button set that allowed us to cover each button with the fabric we had selected. So armed with a set of three upholstry needles we thought it would be simple to shoot the needle through, thread the button and shoot it right back. It was impossible to find the hole in the plywood on the way back through the layers of fabric, batting, and foam. We ended up taking two needles, one threaded and another facing the opposite way, and shooting both through together. We left the unthreaded needle sticking through the layers. This way we pulled the first needle through, threaded the button, then switched the thread from the original needle to the one waiting to go back through. We tied both ends of the thread to a washer and pulled it tight so it would get the tufted look and then stapled the washer in place.

Once done, we were left with this:

We screwed one side of the French Cleat into the plywood and then took the headboard inside to hang on the wall. The french cleat has a level in the piece that hangs on the wall, so it's pretty simple to get that part right. (FYI, a French Cleat is considered a picture hanger when you are looking for it at the home improvement store)

The finished product:

I absolutely love it against our chocolate brown wall. It took about 3 hours, but was pretty simple to do. I couldn't be happier with the finished result. Hubs' first reaction was that it made our bedroom look so grown up. I can't stop looking at it.

Price Breakdown:
Plywood: $19.97
French Cleat: $14.97
Washers: $0.98
Fabric: $12.99 (after 50% off coupon)
Buttons: $6.06 (After 40% off coupon)
Batting: $5.99 (on sale)
Spray Adhesive: $3.99 (after 50% off coupon)
Needles: $2.99 (after 40% off coupon)
Thread: $1.49 (after 40% off coupon)
Foam: $35.19 (on sale)
Magazine with coupons: $2.99

Total: $107.61

Not too shabby! Gotta love the coupons. Got a whole lotta bang for your buck on this project. All in all, I'm excited to try this again. I think I would do a cut out pattern with a nail head border on the next.

What projects have you been working on?

5 Years Ago...

2010-09-28T07:00:00.006-04:00

This handsome man and I decided we would date!!!

It was all set in motion a week or so before that fateful day. He came in to visit his friend, Leslie, at work. Lucky for me Leslie was a mutual friend that I also happened to be working with that night. I was complaining that I needed a new love interest as the boy that currently had my attention was not as interested in me as I was in him. So he invited me out with his friends to see a comedy show the next week. He said "There are some great guys in the group, you'll find someone".

Cue one week later, I'm out for a birthday dinner with my college bestie and had to leave early cause "some guy from Glory Days said I'd like his friends". I showed up to the comedy show and there he was offering me a chair and a drink immediately. Everyone was heading across the street to another bar with the comedians from the show, so I went with them. My gracious host and I ended up at a table by ourselves chatting it up for hours. When we were heading out for the night, we ended the night with a hug and he made the comment "we fit".

The next day, I went into work thinking about my new crush. I gave Leslie a call to let her know we had hit it off, and asked if it would be weird if I pursued this crush (they had a brief stint dating but decided they would be better off as friends). She gave me the go ahead, phew.

I never did get to meet any of his friends. We ended up talking on the phone that night for about 7 hours. We'll call that Day One.

Exactly three and a half years after that we would marry.

Photo Credits:

First picture from our Engagement shoot with The Blonde Photographer

Wedding picture courtesy of James Berglie

I Made It! Birthday Banner

2010-09-25T16:58:00.000-04:00

So enough daydreaming about a house I don't have and wishing for things to just happen. It's time to actually do something! I'm starting a weekly series called I Made It! It will feature the current projects I'm working on around the house. I'm trying to ignite my creativity and try my hand at DIY projects.

My first project was a fairly simple one. My nephew is turning one in about two weeks. I wanted to make a birthday banner for him. It had to be something that can be stored easily and used for both of the boys. The older brother has his birthday out of town every year since it falls the week our family is in Barbados each year, so I wanted something that could be packed up small.

I've been loving the circle and flag paper banners that I've been seeing since wedding planning. Something like this is what I had in mind for my inspiration:

(From Martha Stewart Weddings)

I headed over to Michael's to pick up letter stencils and some blue and green cardstock. I used an Exacto Knife to cut out the letters. I then used a soup can and a margarita glass to trace the circles. After a lot of cutting, here's what I ended up with:

I was pretty pleased with the result!!! After trial and error, I realized it was better to have the ribbon run along the top of the letters rather than the middle. I can't wait to show my sister what I made for her boys!!!

Stay tuned for other projects coming up in the future!!! I'll try to post on Fridays or Saturdays so you still have time to try your own project over the weekend.

Happy Crafting!

30 Day FAIL

2010-09-21T19:28:00.000-04:00

So I naively tried to do the 30 Items in 30 Days challenge. After 21 days, I'm calling it quits.

I had so excitedly picked out my items, snapped the pictures and proudly posted my challenge. I was excited about spicing up outfits that had become common repeats in my work wardrobe and hoped to dress up my weekend wear at the same time. I neglected to account for the fact that I don't own a single belt, it's not cool enough to rotate in some fun tights, and I generally stink at accessorizing. So all this has turned into is my wearing the same outfits again and again. Oh, and I forgot to account for lazy football weekends spent on the couch. I never felt like actually getting dressed just to sit at home with the dogs. All this along with the fact I forgot to take pictures most days.

Here are a couple of my outfits:

All black the first day, dressed it up with a glass necklace my mom snagged for me in Italy

Then purple silk top with a black shrug

Fun dress for my birthday and sitting in the car for our 7 1/2 hour drive up to New York

Dress I wore to Jil's wedding

Favorite cardigan with white top underneath

And photo proof that I'm a cheater. Today's outfit, brand new cardigan from Land's End Canvas. It's not my fault. They are selling LEC at my Sear's now. I had been able to resist for so long, but when I finally saw all of the lovely goods, I had to make a purchase...

So some things I can take away from this, I can't ever complain about having NOTHING to wear anymore. This past week I've been eyeing all of my non 30 in 30 items and counting down the days until October when I can wear them. Since I've called it quits, I'm wearing them tomorrow. I need to invest in some accessories. I need to find some good belts, some chunky jewelry, and just over all fun items to dress up my wardrobe when I'm feeling blah. And third, I especially learned that I seriously can't stick to anything...

Next challenge: Hubs and I try to stick to a budget. That one starts Oct 1, so I have plenty of time to figure out how to fudge that one too.

Are you as bad as I am to sticking to anything for more than a week?

Exciting Saturday Night

2010-09-18T22:36:00.000-04:00

What are you guys up to tonight??? We're having a SUPER exciting Saturday.

We started out at 6AM waking up to head out to my sister's house for a yard sale. After making some money and unloading some goods, we packed up and headed out to watch Penn State shut out Kent State!

After returning home for nap time, I woke up and finally finished:

The whole series was so good. I had a hard time getting into the first book, but about half way through that one I was hooked. I need to definitely check out the movie now!

Once I finished the book we headed to Harris Teeter for my favorite day of the month, Super Double Coupon week. We have to prepare for Super Double Coupons. You want to use up all your $1 and up coupons since they will double up to $1.98. We learned last time that there is a 20 coupon limit per VIC card, so we came prepared with my mom's number as well. There was a grand total of over $80 in savings. Amazing. (Proof for Mary below)

Then it was home to make some brownies. Really I just wanted to use the paddle attachment for my KitchenAid and test out some of my new baking goodies I got for my birthday (Thanks Bunnies!!!). Don't tell Martha or Ree, but I used a box mix.

While those are baking I'm cranking through some laundry.

Not the most exciting Saturday night, but being this productive definitely makes me smile! What are you up to this weekend????

30 items for 30 days

2010-08-31T16:09:00.000-04:00

I've been trying to pare down the clutter in our house and one of the biggest offenders is the closet. I have clothes that I haven't worn in years. Clothes that I bought and have only worn once. I have about 10-12 things I wear pretty regularly and the rest gets passed over. I ran across six items or less a couple weeks ago and started thinking, could I live with only 6 items of clothing for 30 days? I started sifting through my clothes and trying to think what I could do with only 6 items. Yesterday I stumbled across the 30 for 30 challenge. 30 items, much more realistic. So I immediately crashed my closet in search of what my coveted 30 items would be.

I starting tomorrow (September 1) I will be wearing only the below 30 items*. It'll be a challenge to wear and re-wear these items in new and interesting ways. I've never felt very courageous in my fashion choices, so maybe this will force me out of my comfort zone and to come up with something new and original.

*Accessories (belts, jewelry, hats, etc.) not included in item count. Also not included, gym clothes and pajamas (which are often one in the same...).

So that's what I'll have to work with for the month of September.

A couple notes:
- The Jimmy Choo bag is in place of the black pumps I keep at my desk.
- Yes, you counted correctly, there are a total for 4 black pants included. Lamesauce for me, but those are all the work pants I currently fit in. We'll also be working to remedy that problem this month as well.
- Attending a wedding this month, so dress, sweater, and shoes are included. Could be taking up space for valuable other items in the future....
- Might need to make a shoe change already. Might need to replace the Chucks with another pair of sandals, we're not quite out of summer yet and sneakers might not make it. I'll keep you updated.

I'm already thinking about what future month challenges will be. Fewer items for the month? Mandatory switching out of all items for new?

I'll try to take daily pictures and post on a weekly basis.

****this is my first attempt at editing photos and adding from Pictage...please bear with me as I learn...

I need some Bootie(s)!!!

2010-08-26T14:45:00.000-04:00

With cooler temperatures right around the corner, I'm starting to think boots over flip flops will soon be necessary. I have been on a shoe buying hiatus recently with only maybe two or three purchases over the past 12 months, I think I deserve a new pair this year. I'm thinking I need a pair of ankle boots...

Madden Girl Women's Raleigh Ankle Boot

The ruffles! The color! I need (want)!!!!!

Madden Girl Women's Rhiana Ankle Boot

And because I need Black with ruffles as well....

Kelsi Dagger Women's Rosabella Platform Side Zip Bootie

I've been eyeing these beauts since last fall. By the time I was ready to pull the trigger, no more 6 1/2 or 7s. Looks like they haven't restocked since last year either. Someone needs to get these though so I can live vicariously through your stylin' feet.

Jessica Simpson Women's Troppo Platform Bootie

And because I need Cherry Red booties as well. I am totally loving the ankle boots this year.

Banana Republic Pretty Ruffle Bootie

And one final pair, a little pricier than the previous, even with Banana reward cards and discounts. Still love the simple ruffle.

What is on the top of your Fall shopping list?

The Secret Life of CeeCee Wilkes - Bookclub Week 2

2010-08-23T12:53:00.001-04:00

Another week of book club questions! I love the format last week, it was so fun popping from blog to blog seeing what everyone said and meeting new, fun people!

This week's reading was Chapter's 11 - 20:

1. Where do you think Tim and Marty are at this point in the story?
I think Tim and Marty hadn't really planned out what they would do at this point. They dropped of the Governor's wife with CeeCee and then just expected him to give in to their demands. I don't think they had any alternative plans and really thought it would be quick and easy.

2. What were your thoughts as CeeCee was helping Genevieve deliver her baby?

I was scared for Genevieve and the baby. Genevieve seemed so confident that they could do this, but without someone with experience there, things would go terribly wrong.

3. After Genevieve died, what would you have done with her baby if you had been in CeeCee's shoes?

I would like to think I would turn the baby in. I would realize that making things right would get me in trouble immediately, but would be less harmful if continuing on with the charade.

4. Why do you think CeeCee/Eve is still holding onto hope that Tim will come for her?

I think that CeeCee trusted Tim that he wouldn't have gotten her into this if it meant never seeing each other again. She believed that Tim was her true love and she was his, he wouldn't be able to live without her either. I think she believed that they would be on the run together and that he would find her eventually.

5. How do you think Eve will establish her new identity in Virginia?

Eve has to pull herself together and move forward with her life. She has to assume that she will not be found and live her life now as Eve wholeheartedly. She won't be able to move on if she's always looking back.

6. What do you think of CeeCee/Eve now after she has gone through with the kidnapping, the delivery of the baby, the escape, and the relocation?

I think these events forced CeeCee to grow up and quick. Her new identity put her one year ahead already, but now she is on the run from the law and a mother. I'm sad for her that she got caught up in all of this and it has changed the course of her entire life. I want to like her and cheer her on, but that is so hard when she has made such bad decisions!

Since I've already finished the book I'm so looking forward to the next couple of weeks and seeing everyone's reactions! I really loved this book and am enjoying sharing it with everyone!

Happy Monday!

Olive To Sew - Giveaway!

2010-08-19T16:46:00.000-04:00

Head on over to Olive To Sew to enter Kere's giveaway! You can stop by her shop to pick your own prize if you win! I personally could do with several of the items, but the Wine Tote was calling my name. I'm sure I'd get something super classy on it like "Drinks Well With others" or "How Merlot Can You Go?"

Of course there are other super cute things I would choose if I could win multiple times, how about a seersucker tote or a black with damask tote? Yes please!!!!

Check out the giveaway here!

***Images from Olive To Sew shop

Who doesn't love free money?

2010-08-17T15:44:00.000-04:00

I recently received my 4th BIG FAT CHECK in the mail. I signed up for Ebates a little over a year ago and basically get paid to shop!

Once you sign up you can navigate to see all of the online stores that they are affiliated with. You get anywhere from 1% - 6% back from stores based on your purchases.

They have over 1000 stores including Nordstrom, DSW, Gap, Banana Republic, Old Navy, Victoria's Secret and Overstock.com. There are travel sites such as Expedia, Hotwire, and Cheap Caribbean.

You simply click on the link to the store and it will open up a new window at the selected website and you shop like normal. When you've done this a ticket has been opened with Ebates and you will receive credit towards your account.

You then receive quarterly checks for whatever the balance in your account is. There are no strings attached. I've been paid out $38 dollars so far. Not a ton of cash, but it's better than nothing! They also have coupon codes for each store, so you save money right up front as well!

I was skeptical at first, but after seeing articles on CNN and the BBB, I felt like it was a legit deal. I've had no problems cashing the checks and really get minimal emails from them.

The biggest problem I've had with them is forgetting to simply navigate to websites via Ebates. I could have probably earned bigger checks by now!

Are you ready to Ebates? Sign up here! Let me know if you have any questions about it!

****I have not been paid or contact by Ebates what so ever for this review. I just want to share a good thing!

The Secret Life of CeeCee Wilkes - Bookclub Discussion

2010-08-16T11:31:00.000-04:00

I've recently joined an online/blogger book club. I've always wanted to find a fun book club to join and in the midst of my reading frenzy that has started once I got my Kindle, one of the bloggers I follow (Blue-Eyed Bride) announced that she was starting an online book club at Book Beginnings and Bookends. The first book we are reading is The Secret Life of CeeCee Wilkes.

The assignment this week was the first ten chapters, but the book was so good I could not put it down!

Our discussion questions for this week:

1. What was your first impression of Tim?

I really wanted Tim to be a good guy. I was weary of why a graduate student would be interested in a 16 year old waitress. Him studying Social Work made me want to like him, but I had such a hard time getting past the age difference and creapiness factor.

2. If you were in CeeCee’s position, would you be willing to help your boyfriend in the way that she is willing to help Tim?

No, absolutely not. I hope that at 16 I wasn't that impressionable to be swept up into a plan as dangerous as that.

3. Why do you think CeeCee is so eager to please Tim?

Tim is an older man who she has been eyeing for a while. Once her crush is no longer one sided, she is ecstatic about her new flame and ready to do whatever he wants/needs. Not to mention he is her first and all of the baggage that goes along with that. She is starry eyed and in lust.

4. Who do you think has it harder? Tim or CeeCee?

I think CeeCee has it hardest. She has been through some tough times, losing her mom at 12, foster care until 16 and then is out on her own. I can't imagine having to provide for myself at 16, living away from home and holding down a job. That is enough to deal with and on top of that she has Tim in her life influencing her to follow him down a dangerous path.

5. What character trait(s) about CeeCee stuck out the most to you in these first ten chapters?

I thought she was awfully naive. She fell head over heals for this older guy, blindly thinking that he is the one for her and that she is the one for him. She will follow him wherever he asks, even against her better judgement. She is so eager to keep him in her life, she trusts that he also has her best interests in mind.

6. Do you think CeeCee is as mature as she seems?

I was disappointed in the very childish decision she made to follow Tim. She seemed very young and small when she went against her better judgment. However, I think once she is embedded in the plan with Tim, she steps up to the plate. She is only 16 but has put herself in a very adult situation. It's either sink or swim and she is determined to survive although she doesn't know how that will be possible.

If you haven't read this book, check it out!!! Join the discussion at http://bookendbloggers.blogspot.com/

The Woes of Craigslist

2010-08-12T10:14:00.000-04:00

We bought a gorgeous new couch 1/2 off at Pottery Barn after a few too many bloody mary's at brunch last month. This has left us with our old oversized couch and chair plus the new couch all stuffed into our teeny tiny condo.

We've been trying to sell the old stuff on Craigslist, but that has been such a hassle. I can't fathom taking it to the dump as both pieces are in pretty good condition. For now, I'm trying not to give them away since they should be worth at least SOMETHING.

I've had some real characters contact me regarding the furniture. The majority of the emails I get are actually just one line "is this still available?" and I respond yes. They then reply with some sad story of why they cannot come in person to get the furniture. The stories have been anywhere from blindness to a death in the family that has called them out of town. They all lead to them asking for my address and bank information to send a certified check to cover the cost of the furniture and additional for moving costs. After a quick Google search I found what these scammers are doing. They send you a check, you cash it, you have to pay their movers with the extra they've included, and several days later, the check never clears their bank. You are now on the hook to your bank for the amount of the check AND are out your furniture.

These guys will usually reply to your ad from a gmail or AOL address, once you reply that the piece is still available, their sob story and offer for certified check come back from a totally different address.

Always insist that the person come IN PERSON with CASH ONLY. Also, never invite someone to your home if you're alone! I hate that a couple people have come to our house to see the furniture, any other type of sale I would meet them in a crowded public location. I don't give my address to potential buyers, I give them a general area and then meet them to bring them back to my house. My husband is always home with our two attack dogs present. If anything, folks would leave with bitten ankles if they try anything funny.

As of last night, we finally sold the chair to a super nice woman who seems like she has found a lot of gems on Craigslist. I continue to list the couch 2-3 times a day hoping for someone to bite. I even listed it for $50 less than I've been asking if they can get it this weekend. Fingers crossed!!!

Have you had any luck selling/buying on Craigslist?

Missing Vacation

2010-08-10T16:49:00.000-04:00

I just realized that today is my 7th day in at work so far in August. That is more time than I spent at work the ENTIRE month of July.

Can I go back to July and vacation? It's uber hot in Northern Virginia right now and I could really use a ride around the most amazing lazy river ever. Except it's in the Bahamas. Booo.

The Atlantis Resort

I'm out of room for my hobbies

2010-08-06T17:00:00.000-04:00

At least for the hobbies that I think I'd take up, if only I had the room to work in and a house to decorate. I hope that I can become super DIYer once we move. I imagine creating my own headboard using some of these tricks, inspired by this guy at Urban Outfitters:

When I can't find that perfect chair, I can just turn some oldies into goodies, inspired by these before and afters on Design*Sponge.

Some favs that just take my breath away:

and...

I can figure out ways to create the perfect oversized ottoman that just doesn't seem to exist anywhere but in my head by again using DIY tricks from Young House Love to get something like this:

Le sigh. I can't wait to try my hand at these beauties.

Remember when I said neither hubs or I are handy? Looks like we're going to have to learn how to use some power tools after all....

Do you have any hobbies or projects that you are just itching to get started on?

Movin' on up (one day)

2010-08-05T14:41:00.000-04:00

It's no secret that husband and I are desperately trying to get out of our one bedroom condo. I bought the condo when I was 22 and in all of my wisdom, I thought 731 sq feet would be adequate living space. At the time I had just started dating this great guy, but it had only been four months, so probably not the real deal, right? well almost 4 1/2 years later we're married and have two dogs. In 731 sq feet (that includes the balcony).

Now that I'm at the ripe age of 26 (and 11 months) I've learned that this may not have been the best purchase. We bought at the height of the real estate market and have lost about 1/3 of the value. Who seriously thought $270k was a bargain for 731 sq feet?

So now we're looking at townhouses for our next home purchase. There is a new development popping up in the absolute BEST location that we've been eyeing for a while. The homes are a little pricey, but they come fully loaded with whatever we've picked out. We've been hitting the open houses every weekend looking to see what else is on the market, but each house we found either leaves us making concessions, or having to do work to improve it right away. We're not exactly weekend warriors, so home improvement projects are not ideal. Giving up things like location or garages are also not high on our list.

We keep going back to the new construction houses and will hopefully end up there. Our only challenge is dumping the condo somehow. If we sold right now we'd be out about 30k which is not so appealing. We're saving and waiting and crossing our fingers that as soon as the lot is available that we want, we can simultaneously sell the condo to break even.

So in the meantime I've been daydreaming about how I'll decorate each room when the time comes. I'm going to work on some mood boards to share with everyone.

Do you have a future home you mentally decorate? Are you ready to move to a bigger space?

Do you have an easy way to create mood boards?

back to reality

2010-08-02T16:04:00.000-04:00

So I'm back from my month of vacations. I'm having a hard time coping with a full month of work and no more trips until Labor Day.

Since the end of June I've spent 12 days in Barbados, 4 days in Indianapolis, and 6 days in the Bahamas. I have literally eaten/drank my way through the month of July. Time to get my butt back in gear and back on the straight and narrow.

Hubs and I had an official weigh in this morning and it was not pretty. Since the wedding we have put on some serious lbs. Time to get back to our wedding shape!!!

We are going to really cut back on the eating out and find healthy options at home. Hopefully we can find some delicious dishes to add to our usual meals. Just eating at home will cut back on the portion sizes and save tons of cash as well! I think we'll also be trying to cut out the booze. Empty calories going in and not enough exercise to even the scales.

In addition to ramping up our healthy eating, I would like to try taking some evening walks with the pups after dinner and ease back into running. I started the Couch 2 5K training this summer but got off course when it was topping 100+ degrees outside. I see a week of 80's coming up next week, so maybe time to strap on the sneaks and hit the pavement. Depending on how good we do with regular exercise, it might be time to bite the bullet and sign up for a gym membership where we can benefit for legit equipment, trainers, and even a pool. Right now we have access to our Condo gym and work gym, both with equipment as old as I am that does more harm than good.

Anyone else trying to get back on track before the end of summer? How do you get back into the healthy habits and kick the bad ones? Any good (easy) recipes I need to be making?

Summer Reading - Kindle Edition

2010-07-19T12:13:00.002-04:00

I had been trying to convince my mom that she needed a Kindle for a while, even offered to get it for her birthday. She turned down all of my offers saying how much she loved "holding a real book". She finally caved when she sat next to someone with the Kindle and got to see it in action. She immediately bought hers, love at first sight, and then said I "Have to have one too before vacation, early birthday present". So I jumped on Amazon before she had finished her sentence and bought my very own.

I had resisted getting one for myself as I didn't want to front the money and I had been doing so well with getting books from the library, but as a gift, I would jump at the chance! So once it showed up I started downloading books for my vacation.

from Amazon

This book was so good. I have seen it everywhere and finally decided to read it. I was immediately drawn into the story, but wouldn't have raved about it until about the last third. Then I could not put it down. It was SO good. My mom was reading it on her Kindle at the same time and was struggling to get through it and I was just cheering her on, Keep going! You'll get to the amazing part soon!!! I am currently reading the second of the three, The Girl Who Played with Fire.

Amazon

Next up was The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. I can't remember who blogged about this book, but THANK YOU. It was amazing. It was basically a story of a distopian future in North America. The Capital had shut down uprisings by the Districts in the country and wanted to remind them each year who controlled their lives. Each year two teens, a boy and girl, are selected by lottery to participate in The Hunger Games. In these games they will face against all of the other Tributes from each district to fight to the death. The winning Tribute brings back food and fortune to their district for the coming year. That is all I will say so I don't ruin anything for you, but go get this book immediately!

Catching Fire is the second book in the series. It picks up right where book one left off and is equally as good. I read this book in one day because I could not put it down. I am eagerly anticipating the release of Mockingjay, the final book of the series, at the end of this summer.

From Amazon

Finally I read Club Dead: A Sookie Stackhouse Novel. I enjoy the series and LOVE the HBO show True Blood which is based on these books. Unfortunately Club Dead is pretty much what this season is based on, so I've ruined a lot of the show's plot for myself. Now I can't decide whether I keep reading or just drop the books so that the show will remain shocking each week. There are tons of differences, but the general storyline is pretty much the same, so I always know where they will be going with it.

What are you reading this summer? Any must reads that I need to download before I head out on vacation #2???

So it's been a year....

2010-07-17T12:42:00.001-04:00

Since this little blog got her start!!!!! 50 some posts later, here we are. It's actually a year and a week, this summer is flying by before my very eyes!

I'm not sure what I was expecting from this blog, immediate online friends? Posting everyday? Becoming an eloquent writer?

None of these have happened. A few people have stumbled their way over here (hello out there!!!), a few people have commented, and I've found a few of their blogs too! Having a blog is a lot tougher than I thought it would be. I think about my blog on a pretty regular occassion, but actually logging on an putting up a post is a lot more work than I thought it would be! I have a regular 4 or 5 post ideas floating around my head, but putting them in writing hasn't quite happened. Maybe I just need to start a bunch of posts when I think about them and then finish them up and post when I have time?

I think goals for this coming year with the blog include posting more, and preparing for posts much more. So often I cook an awesome meal or husband and I do something super fun, but I forget to take pictures, and who wants to read post after post with no pictures?

So, how did you find your way into blogging? And do you have any secrets for regular posting quality stuff?

And here are some gratuitous pictures of the pups enjoying a day at the pool

Summer Lovin'

2010-06-11T11:27:00.001-04:00

The official start of summer is still 10 days away, but in my mind, Memorial Day kicks off the vacation season! Vacations are planned, pools are open, and it is HOT in the DMV (District, Maryland, Virginia). This summer is actually jam packed with vacations for me. I've saved up time off and I'm heading to the islands!

First up, Barbados for 12 days with my mom and Husband. Mom and I relaxing with my Aunt for the first few days and then trading an Aunt for a husband the last week. My mom has a timeshare for two weeks there, so this is the 6th year I've gone down there. I love the resort and the island. This year we're planning to try out some new adventures like zip lining!

The Crane, photo from their website

We then are taking a long weekend with one of my Besties to go to NASCAR. Brian Vickers may be out for the season, but you can't keep me away from those rednecks!

The surprise addition to all of this was winning the annual Club trip from work. 5 days in the Bahamas with another Bestie (hubs can't go to vacation limits at work, sad)

I was accepting of my less than stellar post wedding bod because the only bathing suit wearing was with mom and hubs. No big deal. Now all of a sudden I have to put on a suit in front of co workers! Luckily the two other girls from my group going are awesome and totally non judgmental, but I should put in some effort, right?

This week I started watching what I'm eating and drinking, logging those WW points, and working out. I'm taking it super slow with the workouts since I have done absolutely nothing for about a year. I downloaded the Couch 2 5k app for my iPhone. Trying to make it out three days a week for a run and the other days basking in the AC of the gym and doing a little elliptical work. I'm not expecting miracles but I have over a month to make progress.

What are your summer plans? Has the thought of a swim suit gotten you to start busting your behind into workout mode???

#67 - aka What? I can cook?

2010-06-07T16:54:00.001-04:00

When creating my 101 in 1001 I threw on Prepare a fancy five course meal. Why? I don't know. I was hoping I would become a culinary genius. I just started obsessively watching The Food Network a month or so ago. When watching a Barefoot Contessa Back to Basics, Steak Edition I was determined that even I could cook a steak. With a few extra moments this week I started contemplating what 5 courses I could plan around trying out cooking a filet. I started putting together a menu and a shopping list.

I had Friday afternoon off, so I started prepping food right away. First item of business, dessert of course! I would be baking Caramel-Apple Bread Pudding.

Up next was prep for the salad course. I made a Waldorf Salad, so I had lots of fruits and veggies to chop up. The dressing was super easy, so I just saved that until we got to the salad course to whip that up and add in.

and Wilbur figured out where to stand to catch the falling fruit from the counter...

Once Tony got home it was time to get him cleaned up and start putting out some food!!!

First course: Appetizers - Made a quick Spinach and Herb dip from Tastefully Simple and served on toasted french bread. Also put out some shrimp cocktail cause I love it so much!!!

Second course: Soup - Tomato and Basil. Used Progresso Chunky Tomato and added fresh basil on top. Definitely my easy out, but I love that soup and the basil was delish!(Sorry no pic)

Third course: Salad - Waldorf Salad. This could have been an awesome salad, if I had read the instructions for the dressing correctly. In my haste to whip it up mid meal I put in an entire teaspoon of Ginger instead of a 1/4 teaspoon. HUGE mistake and after a couple bites we threw the whole thing out. Sad, but I will try again next time!

Fourth course - Entree` - Filet Mignon with Sweet Potato Fries. Let me say, this was amazing! I managed to mess this one up too though, but will try to redeem myself tonight. I used EVOO instead of vegetable oil and when using a cast iron skillet, it gets WAY too hot for the EVOO. Vegetable oil can take much higher temps and will probably set off the smoke alarm fewer times. Despite the smoke filled house, the steaks were AMAZING, better than some I've had in restaurants. The sweet potato fries were amazing despite not quite being as crisp as I had wanted, but I rushed those out of the oven to make room for filets. I could have REALLY used a double oven for this meal and will certainly value that feature in our future home!

Fifth course - Dessert!!! Caramel-Apple Bread Pudding. YUM YUM YUM. It smelled like apple pie and was amazing. We had to let our big dinner settle for a while, but once we got to dessert it was well worth the wait!!!

Overall, it was really fun planning the menu and making everything. It was a fun stay in date night for hubs and I. I definitely would feel comfortable cooking for more people in the future and having a fancy dinner party at our house. Now if only we had a big enough house....

It's the little things

2010-05-12T10:57:00.000-04:00

Hello there! Bet you thought I forgot about you. I've had tons of stuff I've wanted to blog about and just so darn busy to get on here and post anything. Here's a quicky for you...

Maybe it's because Spring is in there air, but I'm on an organizing kick. We do not have any cabinets in our bathroom, just drawers, so these get pretty out of control. It was time that we wrangle in all of that mess and get it all straightened out once and for all. So I hopped on over to Bed Bath & Beyond and picked up some drawer organizers. I wanted something with slanted sections so that each item would be easy to find and grab. We ended up with this:

Much better than everything just being thrown in there. Now the test is to see how long it will last.

Do you have any organizing secrets or tough spots to get put together in an orderly fashion?

Happy Birthday Sidney!!!

2010-04-14T10:33:00.001-04:00

To my little girl:

Sidney,
The day we brought you home, our family was complete. You were so little, just three little pounds. Yesterday you weighed in at 14.6 lbs. Such a big girl!!!! You are such a good sister, always standing up for your brother. You took over the barking duties in the house to give Wilbur a break, I know he appreciates that. All of your little quirks make you the best little girl doxie in the world!!! You random roll overs, your dancing, and of course when you Sit Pretty we know you are the smartest baby. I can't wait to see what adventures your next year brings!!! Happy Second Birthday Baby Girl!!!!
xoxo,
your adoring mama

p.s. and good luck to your namesake, Sidney Crosby in the first playoff game tonight!!!! I know you're his good luck charm!

We head off to the big city!!!!

2010-04-12T16:55:00.002-04:00

We spent our Anniversary with a week long trip to Manhattan. It was an overdue trip to visit a couple of very close friends and for Tony to see the city for the first time. Here is a whirlwind recap of our trip (It's a long one, so settle in):

Friday: Took the train up after work. Train hit a deer on the way! We were delayed and got to our friends house well after midnight.

Saturday: Had amazing brunch with M and her husband. New favorite omelet? Spinach and goat cheese. YUM. Hubs was off for a boys day for a fantasy baseball draft. M and I went to scope our Carrie's SATC house and cupcakes from Magnolias. We had a long lunch at Commerce where we enjoyed a bottle of wine and split one of the most amazing grilled cheese sandwiches ever. We then trekked over to Magnolia's for dessert to take home. We met up with the boys for the best dinner of our trip at La Mela's in Little Italy. We had a family style dinner and left stuffed and happy. If you are in Manhattan and want a great italian dinner, grab some friends and head to La Mela's. You'll thank me later.

Sunday: Another great brunch at Fred's on the Upper West Side by M's apartment. M and her husband then bid us a Happy One Year and sent us off to our uber posh digs for that night. I booked one night at The Pierre. A hotel right by Central Park and super close to 5th Ave. Once we checked in we were absolutely floored by how swanky this place was. I took FOUR baths in the amazing tub in the 23 hours we were there. We only left the room when we ran out of wine and had to head out for dinner.

Once we were out of vino, we headed down to the hotel lounge for a couple drinks before our reservations at Peter Lugar's. We had one of many many cheese plates to be enjoyed in NYC. After running up quite a tab, we grabbed a cab and headed to Brooklyn for the world renowned steak of Peter Lugar's.

We had the bacon appetizer and the steak for two along with a couple of sides to share. It was a great way to celebrate our One Year Anniversary!!! We both decided that we would take Morton's or Ruth's Chris over Peter Lugar's any day and don't even have to travel to NYC to get those!

Monday: We slept in and had roomservice breakfast (note to self, check to see if they automatically add gratuity on room service bills so you don't end up tipping the guy 35%, even if he was very nice). Then headed back to M's apartment to drop off our stuff. We then headed out in the rain to check out the shopping on 5th Ave. We got two of the rainiest days in the Northeast that led to flooding all over, including putting RI in a state of emergency! Between dodging raindrops I showed Tony the anniversary bands he could get me from Cartier, Harry Winston, and Tiffany. All of a sudden the once seemingly pricey pieces I used to eye don't seem so bad! ;) We made one final stop at Manolo Blahnik before heading back to M's to meet them for happy hour and dinner.

Tuesday: More rain!!! We headed down to the lower east side in search of famous diners and delis to get a good sandwich. We ended up at Katz's Deli which was SO GOOD. Tony got a corned beef sandwich to definitely write home about!!! From there we headed in search of The Doughnut Plant to pick up yummy treats for breakfast the next day. After finding the place, then having to search for an ATM since they only take cash, then going back, we were sufficiently soaked to the bone. My feet were drenched and blisters were on their way. I suggested maybe we go check out Macy's in Herald Square to maybe find some rain boots. Our mission was a success! We then went to the NHL Store to check out some new Penguin's gear for the mister. He found a hat and a shirt that he loved and as a bonus their current promotional bag is of Sidney Crosby!!! We immediately emptied the bag and folded it up for safe keeping from the rain. We then went to Tony's DiNapoli for some HH drinks before heading back to M's.

Wednesday: Woke up super early to head to Rockefeller Plaza to the TODAY Show. We got there at about 6:35 just in time to snag one of the last spots right on the rail. We had our cute sign that said "We are celebrating our first anniversary TODAY" (With their logo). There was a girl walking around telling people they were having a segment with their financial experts and does anyone have any questions? We threw out a couple questions about mortgages and second mortgages with little hope of getting picked. About 45 minutes into the broadcast Al Roker's fill in weather guy came out and did a quick weather update right in front of us. I got on TV with our sign, but hubs was blocked. : ( Shortly after we were debating whether that would be our best shot and should we leave when the girl from the beginning came back out with a producer. They came over to us and said they wanted to use one of our questions!!! Our segment was to be shot an hour later, so we hung out at the coffee shot where it would be until then. Here is the link to our segment: Today Show Segment. Fast forward to the 4:45 point. That was amazing to do!!!! We then went to Times Square to try and snag some discounted matinee tickets. We got tickets to a show called A Behanding in Spokane with Christopher Walken. Since we had a couple of hours, we headed downtown to Southern Hospitality, Justin Timberlake's restaurant. It was excellent southern BBQ but the best part of the meal was the cheesy, chili, tots.

We showed up for the play with high expectations, we (I) was supremely disappointed. It was supposed to be a "dark comedy". I did not laugh once. I was trying to keep myself awake and half way through looked at hubs and told him he owed me several musicals to make up for this one. From there we headed back to M's neighborhood for HH with her.

Thursday: This was actually our busiest day. We left M's apt for Battery Park. Unfortunately my trusty phone/Google Maps let us down for the first time of the trip. The subway stop it told us to get off at was about 1.5 - 2 miles away. Once we got there the line to go to Ellis Island to see the Statue of Liberty was well over two hours long. We ditched that idea and headed for our next stop, Grimaldi's Pizza in Brooklyn. We took the Subway and waited in the short line outside. Once in we went with a friend's recommendation of a pepperoni pie and were not disappointed (no pic, sorry!). From there we walked the Brooklyn Bridge (we've now probably racked up close to 4 miles for the day) and headed to China Town to look for bags. We got whisked away by a sneaky little Chinese lady who took us pretty deep into China Town where we were able to negotiate for a new bag and wallets for our dog sitters. With a couple of hours left to kill until our hosts returned home, we headed to the Empire State Building. The wait was about 2 hours but the line seemed to be moving pretty quick, so we jumped in to head to the top. I've never waited in a worse line. It kept moving the whole time, but still took just over 2 hours. They would move you from one room to another where there was just one after another super long queue to make your way through. By about the one hour mark I was DYING. I was ready to be done, but we had already paid $40 for tickets. We made it to the top where I made it about 5 minutes before I was pulling Tony back to another LINE to return to the ground floor. It was PAINFUL folks. Don't ever do it. We headed back to M's to pick up our luggage and head out to Hoboken where we would see one of my best friends from high school.

Friday: Hoboken: We were so exhausted from the day before that we didn't want to even attempt going back to Manhattan. We went to Frank Sinatra Park and sat to read for a little bit. From there we hit up lunch and beer. On such a beautiful day we sat outside. Once the sun had moved from our side of the street to the other, we paid our tab and went to search for a suitable place on the other side of the street. We settled on a place specializing in sangria. We got a pitcher and a cheese plate and just lounged until our friends got home from work.

We enjoyed some pizza with our friends and then crashed for the night.

Saturday: It was breakfast at Stack's for some amazing pancakes and then off to Penn Station to head home. It was an amazing trip and we were so thankful that we were able to spend an entire week there to just poke around the city at our own pace.

Things we missed/would do next time in town: I would definitely drag husband to a musical. We didn't make it to Serendipity 3 for hot chocolate. Husband would love to see a hockey game at Madison Square Garden. We would 100% go back to La Mela's for dinner.

Hope you enjoyed the recap and start planning your own city adventures!!!!!

Are we still newlyweds?

2010-03-28T13:30:00.002-04:00

Can we extend that Newlywed phase a little bit longer?

We eased into marriage pretty easily. After already living together for a couple years, we just now shared a last name, bank accounts, and had a little extra bling. This past year has been incredible. Something about being married just made everything a little bit better. I'm not trying to gloat or say we have the perfect life, but just the little things...Saturday mornings clearing off our weekly shows from the DVR, dressing up and going out for no reason, getting comfortable and staying in more often than not. Everything just had a new glow to it. Is that the newlywed glow? If so, I don't want to ever lose that!!!

Now for some gratuitous wedding pictures to reminisce what we were doing 365 days ago...

Getting ready...

Walking down the aisle to my man...

Saying our vows....

Seal it with a kiss...

Pose for some pictures...

And dancing the night away....

Happy Anniversary Hubs!!!!! I love you and can't wait to spend a million more years with you.

Dancing With The Stars Premier - Live Blog (On a delay)

2010-03-22T21:10:00.003-04:00

So husband just went to bed and I can finally start DWTS. I'm just going to do my best to discuss each performance. I am in no way a dancing expert, but I know what I like. Also interested to see how Brooke Burke does. Here we go....

Oooooh did you just see Gia from The Bachelor in the audience???

First up, my clear favorite, Ocho Cinco and Cheryl Burke, a strong couple. Good footwork, it doesn't look like Cheryl is doing ALL the work, but I think he definitely needs a bit more confidence and he will be cheesin' it up and shakin his booty. I can see him really turning up the heat in a couple of weeks. The judges were kind with their critique but a little low on the scores, we'll see how that works out. (Judges score - 18)

Shannen Doherty and Mark Ballas - He is going to be a good teacher for her, I like him. Good first dance for them. She looked SO nervous. There were some awkward moments, but I think those will smooth out over time. Pretty much agree with Carrie Ann and Bruno, she has potential. (Judges score - 18)

Erin Andrews and Maxsim Chmerkovskiy - He is a strong partner, he will bring some edge to their routines. Their routine seemed a bit simple, but it being week 1, understandable. I think they could be the SEXY couple, work it!!!! I'm expecting a lot out of these two. She is going to be able to work the charisma, but is really going to have to work on technique when we get deeper into the season. (Judges score - 21)

Jake Pavelka and Chelsie Hightower - Chelsea is good with those awkward guys (Ty and Louie anyone???) she is gonna make him look good. (He brought a rose? cheese ball) Not exactly graceful or elegant, but he can loosen up. At times he looked like he was flinging his arm across the room. He can be in the running for Most Improved. (Judges score - 20)

Niecy Nash and Louis Van Amstel - I think she is going to get by on her showmanship and personality. She's got rhythm and once she gets her feet under her, she'll be really fun to watch. (Judges score - 18)

Evan Lysacek and Anna Trebunskaya - Olympians always do well, he's got that advantage already. He looked great. Graceful and elegant. But looked like he was trying too hard to incorporate skating. His feet did seem to get mixed up a couple of times. Regardless, I think I will really enjoy watching him, he's gonna be good. Bruno said exactly what I was thinking, this guy is TALL! (Judges score - 23, well deserved I think)

Buzz Aldrin and Ashly Costa - She's got her work cut out for her. She looks very nervous to be working with him. I like his astronaut t-shirt though. Ashly has done a good job working with what she's got. Didn't make it too difficult for him to remember. He'll be around longer than he should because of his charm (age), much like Tom Delay. He's cute, congrats to him for taking a stab at the show! (Judges score - 14)

Nicole Scherzinger and Derek Hough - I think these two are going to be a strong couple. She's got he music and at least stage presence to her advantage. She'll work her sex appeal and will get by at least on that until her dancing catches up. I think she is this season's Mya. She looked great. She and Derek really seemed to be in sync with each other. Best Viennese waltz so far. (Judges score - 25)

Aiden Turner and Edyta Sliwinska - I hope he goes far for pure eye candy! He looks a little stiff, maybe with a couple weeks experience he'll be comfortable and able to move a bit more smoothly. I thought he might be this season's Giles, but he is going to have to work it a bit more to keep the ladies' votes. (Judges score - 15)

Kate Gosselin and Tony Dovolani – I don’t suspect that she’ll be around for too long. A pretty safe routine, looked pretty nervous. Agree with Len, if she can’t get over that, she is going to fall flat on her face. It’s almost like she is trying too hard to fit in with Hollywood. (Judges score – 16)

Pam Anderson and Damian Whitewood – I’m looking forward to this new guy. I think he has a lot of potential and will be good for her. She has the confidence, but not the skill quite yet. I think she is going to try and wear as little clothes as possible and see how far they get. She is taking the seducing the judges a little far during their comments. (Judges score – 21)

Overall, this is going to be a tough season. There is a lot of potential out there. We’ll see if the judges continue to favor the same stars next week. There were some awfully generous scores. Ocho Cinco was robbed.

What did you think of the show tonight?

Dancing With The Stars

2010-03-22T11:30:00.001-04:00

STARTS TONIGHT!!!! Can't wait. I'm going to try to live blog the premier tonight, we'll see how it goes. If you'll be watching on your DVR, don't read my spoilers!!!

update (8:15PM): no LIVE blogging. Husband won't change the channel. He is watching "one more period" of the Penguins/Red Wings game. DWTS is recording, I will be on a delay. Ugh. Something about compromise and having to share one tv...blah blah blah OCHO CINCO IS ON(!!!!) why are we still watching HOCKEY? The man has to wake up at like 4AM and usually I can convince him to go to bed by 7:59. Not tonight. The stupid red light on the DVR is taunting me.

One Week Out

2010-03-21T13:34:00.001-04:00

I can't believe our one year anniversary is next week. Wow. This year has FLOWN by. So much fun, love, and laughter. I hope every year is as good as this one. I have no doubt that they will be.

So funny that last year looking at the weather 10 days prior to the wedding, it was beautiful the week before, turned cold the week of and was scheduled to rain Wed - Sun (same exact thing this year). I was horrified. Please don't rain. The rain slowly got pushed out. I was cheering for it to get moved to Sunday. Nope. Didn't happen. We had a beautiful day on Friday and then a rainy, drizzly wedding day. Oh well, we got some AMAZING umbrella pictures.

I guess it's time to take that cake out of the freezer to start defrosting. Can't wait to celebrate our first year of marriage next Sunday!!!!

What's so bad about being a homebody?

2010-03-17T14:05:00.000-04:00

Happy St. Patty's Day!

To say my husband is a social butterfly would be an understatement. He is the extrovert of all extroverts. He can talk to anyone about anything at anytime. He could go out every single night of the week to socialize, I am worn out after a couple hours. I honestly can only schedule one big social outing in a weekend, I feel completely drained after one big night out. I am what you would probably classify as a homebody. I like to be in my house, in my comfy clothes, curled up with a good book and the dogs. With packed weekends filling the calendar, I cherish quiet week nights at home. When husband suggests a week night outing, I resist.

With tonight being St. Patty's Day he wants to go out and celebrate our non Irish heritage. I don't mind him going out without me, I encourage it so I can have some peace and quiet at home watching trashy television guilt free, but unfortunately all of his friends like me and give me grief when I don't come out too. When the suggestion came up today I offered a compromise, can we promise to be home by 7 (geez, just writing that I'm seeing exactly how lame I am)? He's the one with the 3AM alarm, but would sacrifice sleep for socializing. We'll see what tonight brings.

Do you and your significant other have different opinions on what a rockin weeknight entails?

Brain Dump

2010-03-16T15:05:00.000-04:00

We have a lot going on right now, so busy. We have had a couple of weekends free (or only lightly scheduled) and they have been FABULOUS. It looks like our spring/summer calendar is already filling up at a rapid pace, we have more booked weekends through August than open already. This means my lazy Sunday mornings in bed and a weekly deep cleaning of every corner of the house is over. On a brighter note, there is so much coming up in the next couple of weeks to make up for this!!! So here goes my brain dump...

First, Dancing With The Stars starts next week. I'm a recent convert to the show, I just started watching 2 seasons ago. With the line up this season, I know I'm going to be hooked and up well past my bedtime each night to watch. I can't wait to see Chad Ocho Cinco, he is hilarious. I became an 85 lover when we watched the Bengals Training Camp on HBO last summer. I follow him on twitter and he is always good for a laugh each and every day. Kate Gosslin, kinda watching just to see how bad she is going to be. I think she'll be able to get by for 4-5 weeks but when the truly better dancers start rising to the top, she'll get the boot. I'm interested to see Pam Anderson, Niecy Nash, Shannen Doherty and Erin Andrews do. There is usually one who you think will be real good get eliminated weeks 1 or 2 and then one who you had doubts about make it to the end, Kelly Osbourne anyone???? Bachelor Jake? Not enough charisma to last, but Evan Lysacek will be on until the end. I will probably try to Live Blog for this show. So stay tuned if you are a DWTS fan.

Second, we are going to New York for a week at the end of the month. Our one year anniversary is rapidly approaching and we will spend it sightseeing, eating out, and hanging out with our friends in Manhattan. We are taking the train up and then staying with one of my bridesmaids for a couple nights. We'll be staying at The Pierre for our actual anniversary and a dinner at Peter Luger, supposedly the best steak in the world. The rest we're just playing by ear. Where ever Bridesmaid M and her husband want to go by night to show us around and all of the cheesy touristy stuff while they work by day. We will finish the week staying with one of my high school besties and her boyfriend in Hoboken. It's going to be a fun and super relaxing trip. Any suggestions for while we're there?

Third, in preparation for this trip (and to jump start the effort for the 12 days I'll be in Barbados this summer) I'm attempting yet another quick fix diet. Somehow before the wedding I could lose weight with no effort. I stopped working out a month prior and kinda watched what I ate, but the anxiety for the upcoming day took off any additional weight. Apparently AFTER the wedding no such luck. I ate the same as I did before, exercised more, actually putting effort into losing weight and only managed to gain, and I gained a LOT. So now I'm loading up on the fruits and veggies as my main staples to any meal and all of my snacks. Getting my protein and dairy with main meals. This cuts out most of the carbs (I know fruit has some, but oh well) and munching on grapes or apple slices is much better than even granola bars. I was STARVING yesterday, but I'm adjusting already. We'll see if I can keep this up for the 10 more days until we hit the Big Apple.

Fourth, have you heard of Formspring yet? You can ask any question to people on there. Several of the bloggers I follow answer questions every couple of days. You can create an account and label your questions, or just ask anonymously. I'm addicted. Since hubs has been the only one to ask me any questions, I just ask others whatever I can think of and read all of their wacky answers. You can ask me anything here.

I think that about wraps it up for today! I hope everyone is having a good week so far and is looking forward to the SPRING weather that is on it's way!!!

this negativity is really bringing me down

2010-03-11T12:42:00.000-05:00

I'm a pretty positive person. I'm usually the optimistic, easy going one. Not too much ruffles my feathers, so why have I been so negative recently? There are times that I lash out and it is so uncharacteristically me that I dwell on it for days or weeks. I have a couple cringe worthy times where I said something so uncalled for that it haunts me.

Sports. I don't even really care about sports. Honestly. It gives me something to do on the weekends and something to check out at work. It's a filler. I really wouldn't mind if I never saw another NFL, NHL, or Nascar game again. (This does not apply to Penn State Football, Penn State is different, that's not sports, that's religion). I pick teams, just so I have a side to stand on. I root against that teams rivals and anyone else that I decide I just won't like. For example, I'm from Washington, I should like the Capitals, but I married a Penguins fan, so I root against the Caps. I stayed up the other night watching (alone) the Caps/Stars game rooting for the Dallas Stars just to see the Caps lose. I don't even really care about the Caps! I just need ammo for the trash talking at the office. This also goes for whoever is playing the Redskins, I always root against the Redskins, why? I have no idea. Football season is my least favorite time of year. I have to separate Steelers Husband from The Man I Married, I can't stand to be around Steelers Husband, he's loud, rude, obnoxious, and downright MEAN. And he's rubbing off on me. Yikes.

Politics. Another one I don't really care about. Yes, I have a degree in Political Science. This just means I actually studied how broken our government is. I don't know what Congress is voting on this week, I can't argue one way or the other in most policy debates. I have the issues I care about and I'll argue those till I'm blue in the face. But for some reason whenever politics comes up, I feel like I have to participate. Things get loud, heated, and uncomfortable. I say things I don't mean and I attack people for no good reason. I hate waking up the next morning and thinking about what was said.

Then there is the petty gossip. I hate that I do this. Hate it. I just get sucked into office gossip and don't hold back my opinions of people. I should. I don't like very many people in my office, so I don't say the nicest things. There are positions available that would mean a promotion for any of my peers that get it. I have absolutely no desire to take this position, but I find myself every day talking to someone about everyone else that would be HORRIBLE for the job. Why? The job doesn't even effect me, why do I care? I go home thinking about conversations that I've had and regret anything I chimed in with.

I'm trying to break the cycle. Last night the Caps game was turned on and I tuned it out, I don't care who wins, I'm not going to watch it just to be spiteful. This morning a coworker was driving me batty and I kept my mouth shut instead of running to my normal confidant to complain for 10 minutes. It's going to be hard. But I'm working on it.

Do you have any bad habits or characteristics that you're trying to break?

note: this has been a really hard one for me to write. Normally I just type and hit "Publish", I've been sitting on this and mulling it over for days trying to pinpoint what's going on.

A Very Merry Unbirthday to Me!

2010-03-03T14:49:00.000-05:00

Yes, I still celebrate my Half Birthday.

To myself, I don't really bring anyone else into my ridiculousness.

BUT if it were my birthday and I had that beloved Anthropologie discount there are several things I would LOVE to get....why Anthro, why must you be so wonderful?

I'm ready for summer.

For some margaritas at happy hour, sitting outside of course.

Ready for outdoor events.

Ready for no jackets....

So much to get done in the next 6 months that I had set out to do before officially entering my LATE 20s.

Yikes. Better get to work.

THON 2010 - Love Belongs Here

2010-02-19T15:49:00.001-05:00

Penn State Dance Marathon, aka THON, begins tonight. THON is near and dear to my heart. I was a dancer in 2004. It is a 46 hour (48 when I was a dancer) event with hundreds of college students raising money for kids with cancer, No Sitting No Sleeping, No Kidding. I know I won't do it justice, so here is an exerpt from the THON website:

In 1973, a small group of dedicated Penn State students held our first Dance Marathon. That year, 34 dancers participated and raised $2,000. Since then, THON’s presence in the Penn State community has grown exponentially. THON now has 15,000 student volunteers, 700 dancers, and has raised more than $61 million, benefiting The Four Diamonds Fund at Penn State Children’s Hospital.

THON is now a year-long effort that raises funds and awareness for the fight against pediatric cancer. With the support of students from all across the commonwealth of Pennsylvania, and THON Alumni all around the world, we continue to make great strides towards finding a cure for all childhood cancers!

The amount of money raised and effort put in by the students at Penn State is truly amazing. There are probably close to 400 organizations and individuals on campus COMPETING for the honor to dance in THON. So for every dancer, there are probably 25 people they represent that are behind them and supporting them. It is the largest student run philanthropy in the WORLD. Other universities, colleges, and high schools try to replicate THON on smaller versions for other causes across the country.

The kids that THON supports are the toughest little warriors I've ever met. These kids are diagnosed with whatever form of cancer and are immediately wisked off to meet with a social worker. The social worker tells them, "Your family has enough to deal with to get your kid healthy, the one thing you should not worry about is money. Your treatment is paid for." PAID for. By college kids, a demographic that often gets labeled as self centered and selfish. Their motto all weekend and really all year is FTK, For The Kids. These students spend a whole year prepping for THON weekend to make it bigger and better than last year. You cannot walk into THON and walk out the same person, even just as a spectator. There are dancers, families, and kids all there for the same reason. It is one weekend a year when the kids do not worry or feel different for having cancer. They are loved, embraced, and lifted up to celebrate their childhood by strangers.

My quick and dirty personal THON story. When touring college campuses, the weekend we went to check out PSU, it was THON weekend. We stopped by and watched for maybe 10 minutes. I walked out knowing it was something special. When finally deciding on schools I knew Penn State was the one for me, but never listed THON as one of the reasons. My junior year I became the THON Chair for my On Campus Area Government. I spent all year organizing fund raising events and talking it up to our group. I danced that year and during the weekend realized this was WHY I was at Penn State. It was the most powerful weekend and the most important thing I have ever done.

Check out their website, donate if you can.

“When they say, ‘We Are Penn State,’ this is what they are talking about.” - Joe Paterno

Mardi Gras!!!

2010-02-16T16:00:00.000-05:00

I hope you have your beads out and your hurricane cups ready to go! It's Fat Tuesday!!! I went down to Mardi Gras 2005 two months after my December college graduation. I went with one other girlfriend and man, good times. New Orleans knows how to throw a good party!

I guess the origination of the partying and debauchery is to get everything out of your system before Lent. Growing up as a non-Catholic, I never observed Lent. Starting in High School I was noticing my Catholic friends giving something up for the 40 days before Easter. Every year I make a half hearted attempt to give something up and to test my self control. I don't think I've ever made it through the first weekend.

I've been thinking for a couple days what I would give up this year and I can rationalize my way out of anything. Alcohol? We're taking a vaca to Manhattan in March and I would hate to not be able to enjoy a glass of wine or a cocktail with the amazing food I'm sure we'll stumble upon. Sweets? French Fries? I don't partake in these things too often, so it wouldn't be too much of a challenge. I could ADD something to my daily routine or diet that would be beneficial. Ensure I drink my 8 glasses of water everyday? Eat my veggies? Exercise daily?

I need ideas, what are you giving up for Lent?

one of our best days ever

2010-02-15T21:26:00.000-05:00

Today wasn't as good as yesterday. Valentine's Day 2010 wasn't some extravagant, surprising day, but it was amazing. We originally were not planning on doing anything. Not ignoring the commercialized holiday, but not spending any money. We have our one year anniversary coming up when we would celebrate our love and our relationship. It was going to be just a regular Sunday, and it practically was, but it was super special.

What made the day so special? It was probably my ideal Sunday. Wake up a little hung over, grab breakfast burritos from Anitas and grub on those while we watch an episode of Mad Men. Once that was over, just a short wait until Nascar starts. Lots of chores to get done with the race on in the background. I know I'm crazy, but I love making a To Do list and just working my way down it. The laundry got done, the closet got cleaned, the dresser that has been accumulating stuff since Christmas was cleaned off. Lamp shades got vacuumed, I put a serious dent in my book, the grocery list was made. I was grinning every time I crossed something off. We got it ALL done. Usually there are one or two (or ten) nagging things that don't get done and I stress about it all week. Not this time.

We got dressed to do the grocery shopping and headed out to check another item off the list. We had no big plans for dinner and just ended up eating at the Chinese place we usually have delivered. We were able to talk about our hopes and dreams and fears about trying to buy a house. We talked about our families. We just spent time together in that empty restaurant and focused on each other. I went to bed that night having received no card, no flowers, no gifts, and I couldn't have been happier.

Then I had to go back to work....boo.

How was your Valentine's Day? Was it one to remember?

Happy Valentine's Day!

2010-02-14T12:49:00.002-05:00

To My Sweetie:
Happy Valentine's Day! I love you so much more every year. This is our very first V day as Husband and Wife and I can't wait to celebrate a million more with you. You are my love and my best friend, I'm so lucky to have you.
XOXO,
Wifey

Seriously Mother Nature?!?!

2010-02-09T10:19:00.001-05:00

We got over two feet of snow last weekend. We're expecting AT LEAST another foot tonight. The roads are terrible, the grocery stores are wiped out, and I'm practically alone in my office today. People from the Northeast think we Washingtonians over react, we don't get snow like this, ever. Thank you Accuweather for this warning....

In case you're wondering, we're under the bubble.

Crossing off #73

2010-02-05T13:29:00.000-05:00

Hang up framed wedding invitation and wedding pictures in the bedroom

I finally got around to buying frames for our wedding pictures and the Wordle that I had created using our vows. We created a little corner of our room devoted to our wedding and I love it.I had received the framed invitation as a wedding shower gift and it had been leaning against the wall where it would go up ever since, one year ago....

I created the wordle at http://www.wordle.net/. I just put in our vows and out came the Word Cloud! You can play around with the shape, font, and colors until you get one you like. I love looking at it and remembering the words we shared and the promises made on that day. Go play around and create your own word cloud.

Burnt is expected for the first year, right?

2010-02-04T14:50:00.000-05:00

Crock-Pot - 1
Kim - 0

Dinner is supposed to be burnt for newlyweds, right? Never have been much of a cook. Due to budget restraints, we can't eat out every meal like we used to. Plain grilled chicken and broccoli can get boring after a while. In an effort to change things up a bit I decided to pull out cookbooks we've collected over the past year or two. I pulled out the recipe suggestions that came with our Crock-Pot and decided the Swiss Chicken Casserole seemed easy enough. Quick prep in the morning, set the Crock-Pot and 8 hours later, ding! Dinner, right? Not so fast.

Somehow I manage to burn every meal attempted in the Crock-Pot. We had an old hand-me-down crockpot for several years. The on/off switch was plugging it into the wall. When it was time to register we immediately wanted to upgrade the Crock-Pot. Apparently I can't handle the fancy version. Everything burns. Hubs is a champ though, he manages to choke down whatever I put in front of him and claim to be "dinner".

Time to pull out the cookbooks and try another recipe! I will win this battle. Any good slow cooker recipes that even I can't screw up????? Must involve minimal prep, I'm lazy.

Is it possible to fall in love with a chair?

2010-02-03T18:15:00.000-05:00

While out and about and trying to waste 30 minutes today we made a stop by Pier 1. I have no idea why I don't go in there more often. I could have EASILY walked out with enough stuff to fill our pretend new house. While we were there I found a chair I could build an entire room around. Meet Sigourney. I love her. And a steal at only $400.

Then there were the pillows. Oh how I wish I had a neutral couch to throw these beauties on....

Can someone please remind me when we do actually buy a house to stop by Pier 1 first? Thanks!!!!!

all photos courtesy of Pier1.com

in case you didn't see my twitter or facebook...

2010-01-27T21:06:00.000-05:00

I met Khloe Kardashian yesterday!!!!!

I am so incredibly star struck. I live for celeb gossip and LOVE all of their reality tv shows. This totally made my week, maybe the year, all 25 days of it so far.

We had a team dinner at Maggiano's last night at the Tyson's Corner Galleria. I carpooled with a coworker that lives near me and we parked outside of Neiman Marcus so she could return something before dinner.

After an AMAZING dinner, we were walking back out through Neiman's and I couldn't bear to leave without just LOOKING at the shoes. (The only thing I've ever bought at Neiman's were my wedding shoes, the most gorgeous Manolo Blahniks you will ever see.) So as I'm drooling over my dream pair of Louboutin's a girl is sitting nearby trying ona pair that the sales guy had just brought out. She tries them on and with such nonchalance says "Yeah, I'll take them". In SHOCK that someone would buy Louboutin's as such an afterthought I glanced over to see who this woman could possibly be. There was the adorable brunette surrounded by shopping bags. I made a double take and whispered to Kelly "That is so Khloe".

We browsed around the shoes, stealing glances, for a few more minutes then walked out.On our way out I stopped Kelly and said "Why the heck is she in DC? We can't just walk away like that! We have to go find out" So we turned back around and walked back in. As we approached her she is telling the sales guy that Lamar is playing the Wizards so she is in town as a Roadie Wife. I apologized profusely for interrupting her night, but that we are huge fans and asked as nice as I could for a picture. She was SO sweet. So nice. And adorable. She is SO much prettier in person than on TV and TEENY. Seriously, she is teeny. She's tall but so skinny!!! I love the Kardashians, but never really had a favorite, she shot to the top of that list!!!!

I couldn't sleep last night because I was thinking of all of the things I wish I had asked her. I seriously have a problem, I honestly believe I could be besties with all celebrities. Maybe one day I will....

the one where the library helped me cross #26 off

2010-01-20T16:39:00.000-05:00

I recently rediscovered the library. I dragged Hubs there to get Library cards in mid-November. I started out with cookbooks. I loved being able to browse through them for three weeks and only make the recipes that grabbed my attention. I wrote down the ones we liked and returned the bulky book. Good food, no clutter. Can't beat it.

I then moved onto pleasure reading books. I always walk out with a smile and never spend more than 2 minutes actually IN the library. I keep a running list of books I have heard good things about from friends, blogs, magazines, anywhere. I log on whenever I think about it and put those books on my Hold Queue. I get an email when my books are ready and waiting and breeze on in, grab them from the Hold Shelf and Self Checkout in minutes. I can even renew my books online when I am too optimistic on how many books I can read in 3 weeks. I love it. I have inadvertently turned myself back into a reader. I blew my 101 in 1001 reading goal out of the water and now aiming to read at least 40 books this year. Today I picked up the new Nicolas Sparks book. Usually I drop the cash to get these as soon as they come out. Today I walked out with the Hardback, FREE.

Quick, convenient, and did I mention FREE. Doesn't get any better. Get yourself a library card STAT!!!!

Domestic Goddess Giveaway

2010-01-12T14:08:00.000-05:00

This one has topped them all. I haven't blogged about giveaways before, but I REALLY want to win this one! Go visit The Life Accounts to see her Domestic Goddess Giveaway. It includes the Pioneer Woman Cookbook, Custom Set of Spices, an adorable apron, and Le Creuset ramekins and stoneware.

YES PLEASE!!!!

Head on over to enter for your chance to win.

Happy New Year!!!! (12 days late)

2010-01-12T13:49:00.000-05:00

Holy cow, can't believe we're almost 2 weeks into the New Year! I hope everyone had safe and happy celebrations.

We laid low with the pups at our favorite couple's house. We woke up to Sidney getting a little sick (someone had too many puppy treats the night before) about 7am. Once we realized we were awake for the day and no hope of going back to sleep we went home to tackle our To Do list. By 10 we had undecorated and packed up the Christmas tree and were on our way to my Mom's house to store it for the year. We helped her get her tree down and were back to our house for more work! We touched up some spots with paint we had noticed over the week and finished just in time for the Penn State Bowl Game!!! It was a stressful 2nd half and I was so happy to see them pull out the win!

After the game there was still more work to do. With the new paint colors husband started seeing our little apartment as being a bit more grown up. This meant no more kegerator in the middle of the living room (THANK GOODNESS). We borrowed a neighbors car and got that sucker loaded up and took it to the storage unit to swap for the oversized chair that matches our couch. Now we have even more incentive to get that new house! Hubs wants his man cave complete with his kegerator!

Hopefully the year will continue to be as productive as that first day was! We love making lists and crossing chores off, it's a great sense of accomplishment.

2009 Christmas Letter - Part Three

2009-12-31T18:00:00.000-05:00

We really closed this year out with a bang. These past couple months have been busy busy. Let's jump right in, shall we?

September - We celebrated my 26th birthday, nothing fancy, just a dinner out and then a night out with friends. I took Tony to his first NASCAR race. We drove down to Richmond for the day to see the last race before the Chase started. I met Brian for the first time and had a blast.

October - We went to yet another wedding. This one was friends we had made in our condo building. These two are hilarious and good times ALWAYS ensue with them. A couple weeks later we went out with them and a few more couples for a wine tour for the bride's bithday the next weekend would be a surprise dinner out for her new husband's b-day. Those newly weds, so cute. We also welcomed a new nephew into the family. He was born on the 13th and so far is a pretty easy baby. I was in the room for the birth and added Labor to the reasons why we do NOT want any children. My sister did great, I was the one that almost passed out.

November - We started the month celebrating Wilbur's 3rd birthday, I can't even remember life before him. We made a trip to Pittsburgh for a weedend with our favorite Manhattan couple. He got her Steelers tickets for a Christmas present and asked if we would like to join them. We jumped at the chance and bought tickets to see the Penguins play the Bruins on Saturday night and Steelers play the Bengels on Sunday. The Pens won, Steelers lost, but the whole weekend was a blast. We also bucked our Holiday routine from year's past where we would split Thanksgiving and Christmas half and half with our respective families. We spent all day with Husband's parents on Thanksgiving and had a relaxing day and a great meal!

December - We picked the only weekend of football season where neither the Steelers or Cardinals played on Sunday. Penn State football was over, so this gave us the whole weekend to PAINT! We repainted the whole place (minus the bedroom) and it looks AH. MAH. ZING. The next weekend was a girls' night out on the town. We went out on Friday night and the Blizzard of 2009 started while we were out. It snowed Friday night and ALL day on Saturday. We got 2 solid feet of snow, which made for a couple interesting days of walking the dogs. We then had a White Christmas at my Mom's house and enjoyed relaxing with her and my sister's family.

Tonight we ring in the year with some friends. It'll be a low key night at the October Newlyweds' house, wearing our pajamas and taking the dogs for a sleepover. I hope you all have had as great of a 2009 as we did and are celebrating the New Year with your loved ones. Have a safe and happy New Year!!!!

2009 Christmas Letter - Part Deux

2009-12-30T17:57:00.003-05:00

Welcome back! What a whirlwind 2009 started off as. It was just the beginning of what we've dubbed "The Best Year. Ever."

So that brings us to....

May - We travelled to Philly once again, this time for the main event. Laura was getting Married!!!! This was actually the first friend wedding I had ever been in. After being the bride in March, it was easy to make sure Laura had everything she needed. The wedding was a blast. We had so much fun and got to see a ton of people I had known at Penn State. It was a class act. We also rang in husband's 31st birthday...man, he's getting old.

June - Boy was this a busy month. I had my other bestie to get married off. We had her bridal shower and bachelorette party all in one day. We watched the Penguins sail through the playoffs and win the Stanley Cup (a Super Bowl and Stanley Cup in the same year? And all this time I thought I was the reason for Hubs' "Best Year Ever"). We decided to repaint the bedroom, this made such a huge difference that I decided we would have to repaint the entire house to match the new standard we had set. At the end of the month we attended the 3rd wedding for the year, but just as guests, so we got to sit back and enjoy the festivities.

July - Hubs made his first trek to Barbados. My mom bought a timeshare at the resort where my sister got married about 5 years ago. When we got engaged she realized that the week we went every year would never work for Husband as the week before the 4th of July is the busiest in the Beer business. She purchased a second week to ensure our presence there each year. We joined my mom, sister, and nephew on the island for their second week of vacation. We enjoyed a romantic night out at one of the premier restaraunts on the island, The Cliff. It was AMAZING. We did the Chef's tasting menu and loved every single bite they put in front of us. I look forward to going for almost two full weeks this coming summer!

August - 2nd Bestie wedding of the year. This was also an absolute blast. Almost all of our favorites have joined us as Old Married Couples now!!! This was another classy affair starting at the couples' Alma Mater, Georgetown. The scenery was gorgeous and made for some amazing photo opportunities!

Tune in next time to see how we finish out the year!!!!!

2009 Christmas Letter - Part 1

2009-12-29T14:23:00.000-05:00

Happy Holidays friends!!!

I wanted to do a Christmas card this year, but ran out of time. Darn, was going to milk those wedding photos one more time. So in lieu of a Christmas letter mailed out to friends and family, we'll do a little recap here to ensure we commemorate what Hubs calls "The Best Year Ever".

2009 was a BUSY year for us. It was filled with friends and family and celebrations. Lets just start from the beginning...

January - We rang in 2009 3 times on an airplane heading out to the West coast. Every time zone, another new year. We began our trip in Dulles Airport having drinks with Lavar Arrington, who was making the same trek to the Rose Bowl as we were. Almost everyone on the flight was Penn Staters, I was actually surprised when We Are...Penn State didn't get started. We went to the game on New Year's Day (Penn State lost :( ) then spent a couple more days in Los Angeles exploring the city. We can't wait to go back when it'll be a bit warmer next time.

February - Kicked off this month with our teams going head-to-head in the Super Bowl. The Cardinals should have won, just sayin'. Husband traveled to Pittsburgh with his buddies for his Bachelor party, it would be the first Penguins game he would see in the Burgh this yeah. I kept it local with my besties all coming in from out of town for a bridal shower and Bachelorette party.

March - We spent the month running around prepping for the wedding and then on the 28th we became Man and Wife. All of our hard work paid off. Best. Day. Ever.

April - We returned from our Honeymoon to Puerto Vallarta and immediately I jumped into wedding activities for my bestie from Penn State. Traveled to Philadelphia 4 weekends in a row. The first two were Bachelorette party and bridal shower. The third weekend was an impromptu trip to compare Pat's vs. Geno's Cheese steaks. The debate started at about 11PM after a full day of watching the NFL Draft with some friends. With Philly only about 2 1/2 hours away we walked the dogs and piled 5 people into a car and hit the road. We got there about 2:30 AM and were in line at Geno's. After waiting in line at both places, and the votes split for best cheese steak, we hopped back in the car and were home by 7:30AM. We also celebrated Sidney's first birthday on the 14th.

Stay tuned for what other adventures we got into this past year!!!!