Strep throat sucks...

Womp womp!  I don't know what asshole I picked up strep from, but it sucks so hard!  It's the worst it has ever been! The pain in my left leg and the nauseousness were killer.  I am finally starting to feel on the mend, though.  Although I still didn't make it a full day at work before I got incredible body aches and pains, again.  Oh well, such is life.  My diet has been pretty terrible too...consisting of ice cream and watermelon.  At least I haven't gained (see, there IS a silver lining.)  OH, I did watch a really really good movie while laying in bed spilling ice cream all over the sheets...Silver Linings Playbook.  What a good movie and it just made me love Bradley Cooper even more *swoon*

Okay, I'll admit.  This is a pretty lame blog post.

Week(end) recap

This was a good week.  I aced my science exam bringing my grade from a low C to a low B.  I have a few more tests to take so I'm hoping to get my grade up to an A.

Tried a new recipe this week:  http://www.skinnytaste.com/2009/01/spaghetti-squash-with-meat-sauce-46-pts.html .  It was absolutely amazing.  The beau cooked it while I wrote 2 papers which is always a nice change of pace (him cooking, not the paper writing.)  We did add in quite a few more veggies: mushrooms, peppers, zucchini.  He also used hamburger meat instead of the meat it called for.  I can't wait to have it again!

Wednesday I got a wild hair up my ass to go for a walk/jog aka fat girl bounce.  I completed 5.27 miles which felt AMAZING!!  Although my old 30 year old body was definitely feeling the hurt the next few days.  Something has kind of just clicked with me this time.  I want to be healthy, feel good about myself, and treat my body right.  I have learned quite a bit in physical science about the body, cancers, nutrition, etc. and it has really opened my eyes to the abuse I have put my body through.  I am trying very hard to do things differently, although I am still human and will make mistakes along the way.  

I went on my first sales visit and made a sale this week, so that was awesome!

Friday I took a half day to get ready for our out of town trip this weekend.  The mother of Frank's childhood friend passed away so we went to the mass & graveside service.  It was very depressing but also makes you realize that life doesn't go on forever.  And really makes you remember to cherish the ones you have while they're here.  Sometimes I am guilty of getting so caught up in work, school, everyday life that I don't take enough time to look around and be thankful for what I have.

After the service we had Chili's with Frank's parents & brother & nephew.  That was fun.  Also, his mom and I got to have some girl time and really talk about things.  It got a little emotional, but hey, it's usually like that when we're around each other.  That night we just hung around, had a few drinks, and watched a show called "Rake."  I may or may not have fallen asleep on the couch like an 80 year old.

Today we met my parents and sisters at the Brevard Zoo for my sisters 8th birthday.  It was so fun!  The kids had a blast, and even got to feed the lorikeets.  One of the birds flew into Olivia's head and she was absolutely scarred after that.  She wanted NOTHING to do with the birds.  It was pretty damn funny to see though.  I am the mean sister, apparently.  They fed the giraffes, we rode the train, the kids did the zip line.  Afterwards we went to Olive Garden.  Sissy opened up all of her gifts we got her;  I spoiled her, of course.  

All in all, it has been a very busy and successful week.  Not looking forward to a case of the Mondays tomorrow.  Hope your week(end) was a good one!

Lordy lordy, my old man turned 40.

The fiancé recently turned 40.  I am a big time party planner, celebrator of all things life.  Of course we had to have a party. Of course it had to be emotional.  That’s just how I roll.  I got to Pinteresting ideas of things I liked and wanted to recreate but there were actually not very many ideas that I liked, so I started googling ideas.  I found an idea that I just knew I had to do. There was a woman who did “Sixty years of memories” for her Father’s 60^th birthday and I knew I had to do something similar.  (Original idea here: http://nothingbutbonfires.com/2011/06/sixty-years-memories)

I got to sending out emails and facebook messages to everyone he knows.  Word spread and I started receiving letters back. It was a pain in the ass keeping on top of a few people that I knew were an integral part of making this plan successful BUT the majority came through and I can’t even put into words the emotions that this gift evoked. 

He did mention the night before the party if I was planning to do something emotional he’d prefer I do it earlier in the party.  My cousins at the party thought we should sing happy birthday and then give him the letters to read.  We all gathered around to sing, and then I presented him with the present.  He was totally confused and didn’t know what it was, but I did put a letter in with the envelopes that said “on your 40^th birthday, I thought it’d be fun to take a trip down memory lane.”  GAME ON! He sat down on the couch and the majority of the gang gathered around to hear these juicy stories.  I tried to space the sappy letters out so we were laughing more than crying, which I think was an important step.  That way we’d all go from crying, to laughing, it was an emotional rollercoaster!  There were times when he was reading letters that there was not a dry eye in the house.  I think this was the greatest present I’ve ever given, ever.  He is still so very thankful, and anytime he’s having a bad day he can always open up that box and see how much he means to everyone and all of the good times he’s had in life.   He also got lots of wine and restaurant gift cards as gifts, so I hope he’s prepared to take me out to eat. :)

All in all, he had an amazing birthday weekend but I’m sad it’s over!  It was so fun to see everyone and plan surprises for him. 

Until next time,

New and improved

Loving my new and improved blog design!  Thanks to my bff, Dal for all of the help.  Check her out:  http://dallinstokes.blogspot.com/

I'm a big baby.

The beau and I joke about who will cry more during our wedding.  He says he'll keep it together, I call bullshit.  Events in Amsterdam on the night of the engagement predict otherwise.  We were both weepy messes.  Sometimes I am super duper weepy and emotional, other days I'm like "cool, bring it on, I'll be the coolest wife ever."  Right now, I cry my little baby eyes out at Ron Pope's song "Drop in the Ocean."  Holy shit, it makes me so emotional.  Especially the lyrics "Drop in the ocean, a change in the weather.  I was praying that you and me might end up together.  I'm holding you closer than most, cause you are my Heaven."  Legit, this shit is true.  There were times we had a disagreement or something, and I would talk my ass off to God that night while I was laying in bed.  "God, do what is best."  "God show me the way."  "God, what should I do?"  I pray my ass off every night, but sometimes, I pray more than others.  And God has a way of showing you the way, whether you want to believe it or not.  And with this, I say:

You are my Heaven,

"Will you tuck me in?"

I've been around the LO since he was little.  From the time his Dad would give him a bath, have to dry him off, and wipe his tush.  Now he's self sufficient & can do all of that himself.  In those few years, I've not tucked him in.  Wednesday he actually asked me if I'd tuck him in.  My heart leapt through my throat!  Was this something he was actually asking?  It may seem insignificant to some, but this is normally his and his Dad's routine at night.  I got the usual goodnight hug & sweet dreams, but never got to do the tucking in.  His Dad and I tucked him in that night, said his prayers, and said I love you.  It was in that moment that nothing else mattered. This was a sweet little boy who wanted his Dad & Ms. Cole to tuck him in.  I felt special.  I remember as a kid when my StepMom would tuck me in.  She would say my prayers with me, and sometimes sing me a song.  Her voice always made me feel comforted and at ease right before a night of slumber.  I hope that night, the sound of my voice, and us saying his prayers comforted him.  I wonder if it's something he'll remember?  I wonder if my own StepMom remembers tucking me in at night and how much it meant to me?  Or how much it would mean to me as an adult?  Don't take the little things for granted.  Something as simple as tucking your child in at night, a quick hug, an "I love you" can really mean the difference between a good night or day.

And this concludes Friday's sappy post.

Wedding budgets

As the days of our engagement wear on, we are faced with the planning of the wedding. The beau doesn't seem to care about the specifics, he just wants me to be happy.  He keeps saying "team us."  So, I have all of these ideas and grand plans in my head, but do you know how much these things actually cost?  It is crazy.  We have decided to keep the wedding to mostly family and a few really, really, close friends but that's still about 60 people.  I think I have decided on colors, and a theme - nautical them with yellow & blue & white stripes...just not sure what to do next!  So, have you planned a wedding on a budget?  Give me all the details, please!  I feel like people in my "real life" are already getting tired of hearing about the wedding because I won't shut up about it. ;)

xoxo

V. Christmas vacation 2013

This year is our 2nd year having a winter vacation at the house in Robbinsville, NC (the LO promptly renamed it our “Christmas house” last year.)

So, this year we had a few days to come up here and enjoy another Christmas vacation.  We left around 5 a.m. early Thursday morning (the day after Christmas.)  It took about 11.5 hours with a few bathroom breaks along the way (I mean, hello 6 year old little boy and his baby bladder father.)  The ride up was actually very good.  The LO was feeling a little under the weather so that was a bit of a challenge but after we got him some medicine and he started to feel better he did a complete 180.  We came to the house to de-winterize it, then headed to the store for some groceries.  Made some baked chicken for the LO before we tucked him in.

The beau & I had a few glasses of wine and lots of conversation.  It’s times like these that I’m very thankful we are able to come up here and get away.  There is no internet, no cell service, no cable, just us and 4 walls.  (Funny thing is, we turned on the TV the day we were leaving and surprise...there was basic cable!  Glad to have missed it though.)

Day #1

Today we headed over to Gatlinburg.  It’s about a 2 hour drive through the Smoky Mountains.  We had a fabulous day with lots of sight seeing and perfect weather.  Seriously, there was not a cloud in the sky and the temperature was about 48 degrees.  On our way home, we stopped on the side of a road in the mountains and had a small snow ball fight.  There was not much snow on the ground but we scraped together what we could.  I totally won that snow ball fight.  Totally.  We had just gotten through the Smokies when we looked over at the visitors center and saw a herd of ELK.  WHAT?!  I saw the “Elk Xing” sign but didn’t think much of it.  We pulled over to take pictures and it was so surreal.  This kind of stuff is something you don’t see in Florida.  We headed back and passed a bunch of turkeys on the side of the road.  I had a smile from ear to ear as did the LO & beau.  The beau has been coming to this house since he was very little, and has never seen a herd of elk, so it was extra special. It was just a very beautiful day and was one of those days that make you thankful to be alive.  Sometimes I get so caught up in the day to day activities of life that I just forget to look around at my surroundings and thank the good Lord.  Today...today was different though.  I think I talked to God more than I ever have and thanked him for everything.

Once we got home we threw some burgers on the grill, ate, and played a game of Sorry. 

Day #2

The car lag was starting to kick in so we had a low key day.  We all hopped in the car & drove around to the dams.  There are 3 dams near the house so we spent most of the day in the car.  We came home after seeing the dams and threw some steaks on the grill.  We pulled up the picnic table in front of the TV & watched Smurfs 2 while eating dinner.  I hadn't seen the first movie but the 2nd one was quite cute.  

Day #3

We had to pack up and head to SC to see my Dad's side of the family.  It's about a 3 hour drive, so after winterizing the house, we left around 11.  Got to Dad's around 2 and opened presents.  My parents got Frank & I a wine refrigerator which we absolutely love (when we got home from the trip I booked it to Publix and bought 10 bottles of wine to fill the fridge.)  My stepmom cooked an absolutely delicious dinner of roast, mashed potatoes, and lots of good sides.  The LO had "life saver" fights with my brothers.  After the LO went to bed we played an adult game called "Cards Against Humanity."  If you haven't heard of it, seriously, look it up.  You can download a free version or purchase it from Amazon.  It was so funny and we could not stop laughing.  Also, the LO got to feed the horses with my Dad & he was in Heaven.  

Day #4

Got up to head home.  Time with my SC family never seem long enough.  I always feel a pang of guilt when leaving them.  They're too far from me and time only seems to speed up through the years.

So there it is.  Our short, but fun Christmas vacation.  I hope we can go up to the house next year because we always have such an awesome time.

I hope your Christmas was a happy one.  

Much love,