Love, love, love, love....crazy love...

Yesterday, was an absolutely gorgeous day! I decided to take advantage of the gorgeous day, my parents' gorgeous house, and my gorgeous hubby! I got out my camera and used some of the new skills I've learned through my photography course and I must say, I'm pretty happy with the results! Here are some of my favorites:







He's pretty handsome, isn't he?!

Happy Fat Tuesday!

No Mardi Gras activities going on here, we're planning a pretty low key day. Sunday we came home to my parents' house. Yesterday, I posted my first "Not me!" Monday, but I was feeling pretty sick most of the day, so I spent the majority of it on the couch! This week we're busy helping my sister pack to move to Maryland with her new husband. We get the moving truck on Thursday to load it up and we're leaving bright and early Friday morning.

We'll be down there with them for about a week, so blogging may be sporatic. We do love the D.C. area though, so I'm hoping we'll do some of the touresty stuff! I'm planning on practicing some of my new photography skills and working on my first photo project for school, so keep an eye out for some photos while we're there.

That's about it for now. But we (of course!) went to see our niece as soon as we got home on Sunday, so I'll end this post with a couple photos of her! :)

She has the cutest little feet!

Sleepy during bath time!

"Not me!" Monday

Welcome to "Not Me!" Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

My Charming Kids is one of my new favorite blogs! Every Monday, MckMama posts some somewhat embarrassing things that she did in the last week, but she pretends not to have done them to lessen the blow! She then invites all her readers to do it as well, as a little therapy session. I've been reading her blog for weeks now, but this is the first week I decided to participate! So here we go...

Last Monday, I did not give in to my hubby and bake a sour cream coffee cake for breakfast because we're trying so hard to eat healthy and I wouldn't want to screw that up. If I had, there's no way I would give my hubby a hard time for asking for a second HUGE piece, and I certainly wouldn't actually give it to him. And, if I had given him a hard time about it because we're trying to eat healthy, I definitely wouldn't proceed to have a piece for breakfast, lunch, and dessert after dinner! Three pieces in one day, Not me!

And since there are only two of us, said coffee cake certainly would not be half gone by Tuesday morning!

After buying my hubby a new leather recliner that I knew he would love, I most definitely wasn't jealous of a chair because he wasn't cuddling with me on the couch at night anymore. And I would never, in a moment of weakness and sensitivity, pout about it and tell him that he loved a chair more than me. Not me! I am much more secure in our relationship than that!

The rest of the week, I did not sneak Sweet 'N Low into my hubby's tea instead of sugar, in an attempt to curb his sugar consumption after all that hypothetical coffee cake he ate. I would never be that deceptive to my own husband!

Also, being the perfect housewife that I am, I absolutely did not let the dirty laundry pile up for 2 weeks knowing that we were coming home to my parents' house yesterday and we could do it all here, for free.


Not me!! I would never do these things!

Everything Little Miss

I've talked a lot about my best friend, little miss spy, in my posts. We met in 6th grade and I'd say I've considered her my best friend since about 8th grade. That's about 13 years!! We've been through so much together and I am extremely grateful that she is a part of my life. She has been an especially important part of the recent events in my life, as she truly understands like no one else can, and she inspires me to be creative and enjoy every second of my life!

Anyway, she is starting her own business and I am so proud of her and so happy for her!!! Not only is she a great friend, but she is amazingly creative and as sweet as can be. She designed our wedding invitations, she does business cards and website design, and has the cutest note cards. Plus, she's posting new stuff all the time! So go visit her new website and support her new business!! I promise you'll love her as much as I do!

Golf, golf and more golf...ugh!

I'm sorry I didn't write yesterday, but I have thrown myself into my photography lessons, and I'm REALLY enjoying them!! I've learned so much already and I am so glad that I decided to do this for myself. Anyway, I have a little story for you.

As a Christmas gift to my hubby, my parents decided to pay for HDTV for him, for a whole year! It was a really nice gift for him because there was no way I was giving in to his pleas for something so unnecessary, even if it was only going to be $5-$10 more a month. So after Christmas, I called to get it all set up. It turns out there was a new bundle feature available, and to upgrade to HD (keeping the rest of our services the same) it was going to be cheaper than what we were paying before!! I was pretty excited about that, and my hubby was excited to rub it in my face and tell me that I should have switched it earlier!

So anyway, when I was on the phone with the company, the representative told me that in addition to the channels we were already getting, we would get a few additional channels in HD. She began naming these channels and named The Golf Channel. I sighed silently inside. For those of you that don't know, my husband is an assistant golf professional. He lives and breathes golf.

I kept the fact that we would be getting this channel to myself. I know this seems selfish and cruel, but I knew that if I told my husband, he would never change the channel again. And honestly, I thought he'd find it on his own pretty quickly, so I thought I was only buying a few days! Weeks passed and I forgot all about this channel. He found most of the other new channels, but never seemed to notice The Golf Channel.

The hubby actually went golfing with his buddies yesterday. Winter in New England is tough for him. All he thinks about is when he can get back out on the course, and he starts to go a little crazy. He'll talk and talk and talk about golf to anyone and everyone who will pretend to listen. The first day that is somewhat nice, and a course on the cape is open, they're there! (Even if they have to wear Under Armor to stay warm while they're out there!)

So I was home by myself all day. When he got home, we ate dinner and sat down to relax. And then, he found it.

He was so excited and all I could do was laugh. He looked at me so seriously and said, "You knew we got The Golf Channel in HD, and you didn't tell me?!" I looked at him just as serious and said, "Grey's is on, turn it back." I must say, the whole scene was pretty hilarious! But this, combined with his new recliner, causes a situation where he REALLY won't ever leave our living room again! And he will never let me live this down...

Who doesn't love getting packages in the mail?!

Last night, around dinner time, we had a knock at our door. I walked outside to see the UPS man driving away and there were 3 boxes on our porch!! WOOOOOOOOOHOOOOOOOOOO!! I've been driving my hubby crazy patiently waiting for these packages to arrive!

The top box was all 400 of the prints I ordered of our wedding and honeymoon! I was so excited!! As soon as we were done with dinner, I had all 400 of the photos spread out on our living room floor! I organized them chronologically (yes, I'm a little obsessive-compulsive) and filled 3 albums!!

It was really fun to look through them with my hubby and think back on our wedding day and honeymoon. And now I can cross something off my list that's been on there for almost 2 years!!

The other 2 boxes were my photography course materials that I've been waiting for!! By the time I finished all the albums, it was pretty late, so I saved those boxes for today! I did open the boxes and look at all my cool new stuff (of course!) but I didn't read through anything very closely. Today, I am really looking forward to looking through everything and maybe starting my first lesson!!

Another taste of spring

Well, it certainly doesn't feel like spring outside anymore. But, the sun is shining and, from the inside looking out, you would think it's as nice out as it was last week. Our indoor plants think it's spring too. We have this one plant that has the the tiniest little orange flowers and it's in full bloom! (The plants are my hubby's thing so I don't know what it's called, but if you know the name of this plant, please let me know!) It looked so pretty with the sunshine coming in the window that I just had to take some photos.

Spring may be a few weeks (or months!) away still, but I'm enjoying the effects of all the sunshine inside our little apartment.

Accepting defeat...

...well sort of. As you can see, my blog has undergone some major changes!! I started off designing everything myself. Though I am proud of how much HTML I learned in the process, I wasn't thrilled with the design results. So, I compromised! I used a background from the folks over at The Cutest Blog on the Block, and made my own custom header to match the background!

I'm quite pleased with the result, even though it wasn't how I set out to do it, and I hope you like the changes too!

My hubby is never leaving the living room again

My hubby's birthday was in September and I promised him a leather recliner as a birthday gift. Well, he couldn't find one that he liked and then we both found out we were going to be losing our jobs. So the recliner got put on hold.

Yesterday, after updating our finances, I realized that we had enough money to get him the recliner if he could find one that he liked. So we headed to a furniture store that we hadn't been to yet, and HE FOUND ONE! It's chocolate brown leather and SUPER COMFY!


Our small living room is extremely cramped now, but he's happy so that's all that matters. The smell of new leather doesn't hurt much either. ;) Hopefully sometime in the near future we'll have a bigger living room to fit all of our furniture in more comfortably!

Change is coming...

I'm not usually a person who likes change. I fall into routines easily, and I like my routines. However, change has been really good for me lately and I'm learning to embrace it! So this morning, I decided that I'm going to design a completely new layout for my blog, from scratch!!

Hang in there with me - it may take me a while to figure it all out, get it the way I want it, and get it up. But change is coming and I think this is a nice creative project for me. :)

Stay tuned...

♥ Happy Valentine's Day ♥

I know, I know, some of you dread Valentine's Day! YOU SHOULDN'T! Don't think of it as a commercialized holiday, or a holiday just for people "in love." Think of today as a day to celebrate ALL the people you love! Life is far too short and we should tell the people we love how much we love them every day. Make a special effort to tell them today, and celebrate all that love!!

♥ I love you all!! ♥

A childhood favorite

With this strange February warm streak, the hubby and I have been walking almost everyday. It's amazing what a little fresh air and exercise can do for you! I feel great! In addition, for the past month or so, we have been trying to eat healthier. I'm a pretty healthy eater for the most part anyway, but since I've been trying to get the hubby to give up soda, I decided to try to cut back on some of my unhealthy habits as well.

My guilty pleasures tend to include fatty deliciousness such as butter and cheese. My hubby on the other hand is a sugar head and falls victim to soda, candy and ice cream. Despite our different downfalls, we've both been doing really well! I'm quite proud of our progress as a matter of fact.

However, today I cheated a little bit on the healthy eating kick. I had a craving for a childhood favorite and I couldn't resist. That's right folks, I made myself a fluffernutter sandwich and it was ooey gooey goodness!

I used to think that everyone had experienced the fluffernutter sandwich in their childhood. However, when I lived in South Carolina, I was shocked to learn that my co-workers had never even heard of Fluff, never mind a fluffernutter. I was on a mission to make them all fluffernutters, but it turns out Fluff is pretty difficult to find in the south! I checked about 4 different grocery stores before I ended up finding a dusty bottle hidden on a shelf in CVS. I proceeded to make fluffernutters for all my co-workers. Some thought it was just weird, some wouldn't even try it and some thought I made this "crazy" sandwich up!

I was pleased to show them that I was not crazy, and that the "recipe" is, in fact, on the container!

For those of you poor, deprived blog readers that have never experienced the ooey gooey deliciousness of a fluffernutter sandwich, this is what one looks like:

Please keep in mind that in an attempt to be somewhat healthy,
I only made myself half a sandwich today.
In addition, I used whole wheat bread but, traditionally,
this delicacy is made on good ole white bread.

Anyway, if you've never made a fluffernutter sandwich before, relax, it's easy! There are some general rules however.

1) Traditionally, and for the most authentic experience,
you need 2 slices of good ole white bread.

2) As you can see from my photograph, you must never, and I
mean NEVER, layer the peanut butter and fluff on top of one
another. The peanut butter must go on one piece of bread and
the fluff goes on the other. No exceptions! (If you decide to go
for a half sandwich like I did today, the PB goes on one side
and the fluff on the other.)

3) Please, for the sake of my slightly obsessive compulsive
personality, do not stick the knife with peanut butter on it into
the fluff jar or vice versa! Get a new knife or clean it off in between!

4) Put your two pieces of bread together
( or fold your single piece of bread)
and the ooey gooey goodness is created!

5) Enjoy! But before biting into it, there is a technique....
Make sure the slice of bread that has the fluff on it is on top.
This prevents the dreaded PB stuck to the
roof of your mouth situation!

So there you have it! I hope you all go make (and enjoy!) a fluffernutter sandwich now! I know I certainly enjoyed mine! :)

Spring Fever!

Yes, I am aware that it is only the beginning of February. And no, I did not forget that I live in New England. But it is almost 60 degrees out today and I've got spring feeeevaaaa!

The hubby and I went for a nice long walk today!! It is just gorgeous outside and it's nice to get some exercise and fresh air. I know that come Saturday it is supposed to be back down in the 30s, so I'm milking the next few days for all they're worth!

I also cleaned out my freezer today, another thing crossed off my list! I'm still working on picking out wedding pictures to print for my albums. There are a lot more pictures than I remember so I think it may take a few more days. I want to work on it some more today, but it's just too nice out to sit inside. Maybe I'll take the laptop out on the porch and sit out there to do it...

Projects

I don't know about you, but I always have a list of projects I want to do, but rarely have the time to actually make them a reality or other projects take priority because of time restraints. As a result, the list always seems to get longer and longer.

When I was laid off, I thought that maybe I'd be able to tackle that list of mine!! My list of projects for my sister's wedding took priority though. Now that the wedding is over, and I've had some time to relax from all the excitement, I've decided to tackle the list!

First on my list is having all the photos from my wedding (almost 2 years ago!) printed and getting them in albums. We had the disposable cameras on the tables from the wedding developed onto CDs and a bunch of CDs of photos from family and friends. But CDs aren't all that fun to pull out and look at. So today, I am sorting through all the CDs, picking out the good shots, and uploading them to a website to have them printed and mailed to me. I thought about going to WalMart, but there are just so many of them that I would be standing there for hours.

It's a good project for me today because the hubby went into work to fill out some paperwork and help his new boss move some furniture around. (Have I mentioned how excited we both are about his new job!) Once, they mail the prints to me, I plan on putting them into these beautiful leather photo albums that my hubby bought for me a few years ago.

So that's what's on the docket for me today! (little miss spy, are you laughing hysterically??)

25 Random Things About Me

I posted this on Facebook but I thought it was a pretty good reflection of me, so I decided to post it here too. Sorry to those of you who have now seen it twice!

1) I do not believe in romantic love at first sight, but when I saw my cousins’ children and my niece for the first time I instantly fell in love. It makes me want children of my own.
2) The smell of chimney smoke makes me feel at home.
3) I HATE owing anyone money, including credit card and utility companies. I pay my bills the same day they come in the mail.
4) I love the fact that as a woman I can be just about anything I want to be, but I would be more than happy just being a wife and mother.
5) I rarely drink or take any kind of medications because I hate feeling even the tiniest bit out of complete control of my body.
6) It drives me crazy when people say that they accept “civil unions” as long as it’s not called “marriage.” Love is love people. What it’s called makes no difference!
7) My hair is NATURALLY this blond!
8) I enjoy knitting and think it is relaxing and I don’t care what anyone else thinks about it.
9) I LOVE weddings, especially when they clearly represent the bride and groom’s personalities.
10) I am a color coding fanatic.
11) I hate soda and beer because of the carbonation.
12) I love that my husband knows when there’s something wrong with me even if I lie really well and tell him there isn’t.
13) I have a compulsive need to take care of other people – even if it means not taking care of myself. I have been trying to be more selfish.
14) My family is crazy and I still wouldn’t trade them for anything in the world.
15) I’m terrified that I won’t be as good a parent as my parents have been to me and my sister.
16) I’m addicted to Google Reader and my favorite blogs.
17) When people ask me when I’m going to have kids IT REALLY PISSES ME OFF. I’m often rude in my response because it’s none of their business and because I’m scared that when we do decide to have kids, that I won’t be able to get pregnant.
18) My little sister’s determination and motivation to always get what she wants, in love and in life, is a constant inspiration to me.
19) My husband and I couldn’t be more opposite and he couldn’t be more perfect for me.
20) Writing in my blog is better than therapy.
21) I hate deciding what to make for dinner but love cooking.
22) I have worked with my best friend at 3 different jobs.
23) I have a Bachelors degree in Marine Biology and I only consider it an expensive piece of paper that is framed on my living room wall.
24) I easily get stuck in routines. I like my routines. I get anxiety if people mess with my routines.
25) My husband dances with me in the kitchen almost every night. Sometimes I think about us still doing this when we’re 70 and I can’t stop smiling for hours.

Adjusting priorities

Last night, I was reading through some of my old posts. The last paragraph of this post, in particular, jumped out at me. It is amazing to me how true that turned out to be. When I was first laid off, I was exhausted mentally and physically. I slept a lot and spent a lot of time with my family. And now I feel renewed.

Times are tough for a lot of people, and at first, I felt bad for being so happy to be laid off. But the truth is that this was absolutely the BEST thing for me! Is money a little tight? Sure. Is job hunting frustrating? Absolutely. But, the time I have had to rediscover myself has been an opportunity that I wouldn't trade for anything.

In our lives, we take on many roles. Wife, daughter, sister, friend, employee, citizen, just to name a few. Personally, I tend to give a lot of myself. In the process, it is easy for me to lose myself. At my previous job, I lost myself. It was an environment where I constantly felt looked down upon, yet I continued to try and give my absolute best.

Since leaving, I have had time to focus on me and regain confidence in myself. Yesterday, I signed up for some courses in photography. Is taking photographs a natural talent for me? No, I don't think so. Could I really make taking photographs into a business? I'm not sure about that either. What I do know is that taking pictures makes me happy. It is something I enjoy. And I need more things in my life that make me happy. I can give and give to the other people in my life, but if I don't take time for myself, I am not giving my best to them. To take care of them and give them my best, I have to take care of myself and give myself the best.

So, that's what I'm trying to do. Will these courses make me a better photographer? Maybe. But more importantly, I think they will encourage me to be more confident in myself and to not be afraid to be creative and express myself. I think that that will not only make me happier, but will make me a better wife, daughter, sister and friend to the people I love.

Birthday love

The last few weeks have been crazy and wonderful all at the same time. Yesterday, the hubby and I finally drove back to our apartment and we are trying to get back to some sense of normalcy. If you remember, back on the day our 44th president was inaugurated, I had my 26th birthday! We didn't really do anything all that exciting on my birthday, but when I got to my parents' house the week before my sister's wedding, my family took me out for dinner and had gifts for me!

My parents and sister went in together on some camera equipment for me and I was so excited! Little miss spy got me some colored pens that I had always used at work and wrote me a cute little note that went along with them. (*Side Note* Colored pens may not seem exciting to you, but I happen to be a color coding fanatic, so this was very exciting to me!)

With all the excitement of the wedding, I had kind of forgotten about my gifts and was just as excited to come across them as I was unpacking yesterday as I was originally, so I snapped a picture of them!

Cool, hey!?

Oh, and did I forget to mention that I finally got to see little miss spy at my sister's wedding?!?! I cannot tell you how excited I was to see her! I think I was starting to go through withdrawal! Here she is with The Schwarz, looking oh so beautiful!

In love

We went to see our niece again today and I am so completely in love. Just look at this precious angel:

As promised...

Good times

Well, my little sister is now a married woman!! Everything went so well. Friday was the rehearsal and rehearsal dinner. We had about 4 inches of snow in about an hour and a half and drove home from the rehearsal dinner in a complete white out. But Saturday morning we woke up and the sky was so blue and everything else was covered in white. It was beautiful!

My sister and I headed to the hair dresser for 8 am and both had our hair done.


After that, all the girls got ready at my parents' house and the photographer took a bunch of pictures. About 12:30 the limo came and took us to the church!

The ceremony was just beautiful and I was so proud to stand by my sister's side. After the ceremony, we got in the limo and went to take some pictures before we headed to the reception at Berkshire Hills Country Club.

We absolutely had a blast at the reception!! It was like a high school reunion for us and we had so much fun dancing the night away with all our family and friends. The newlyweds are in Jamaica now enjoying their honeymoon and I must admit I'm a little jealous ;)

Now, I'll just shut up and post some more pictures, since that's what you really want to see!


Yesterday, I spent the whole day sorting through and editing photos, cooking and eating A LOT of food and watching the Super Bowl! I tried to have a relaxing day after all the festivities, but I was exhausted from staring at the computer all day. That's why I'm a day late posting! (sorry!)

Today, we went to visit our niece who's now at home with her mama and papa. She's so darn cute I can't stand it. I'll post some more photos of her tomorrow :)