Long Time No Blog

And I'm back. Where did I go, you ask? Nowhere! I just fell out of Blog World. I've been trying to get back into my routine of working full time and keeping house and having fun and in the midst I quit writing. I suck at balancing things. In general. I wish life could be as simple as making a list. Like: make breakfast, clean kitchen, go to work, cook dinner, vacuum, do laundry, call friend, answer email, write blog, sew something, do workout, go to bed. Start over. Then there's the general goal list like: Develop portfolio, display photos in gallery, lose weight, become a mom, survive a hike, travel, sell something I sewed, write an amazing song, publish a book. But it never seems to work out that way cause I lack focus. Life is to me what a candy store is to a fat kid. Or chocolate cake. Mmm. Wait! Did I just list goals? I don't do the goal thing... I've never done the goal thing, always dreaded setting goals, have always thought goals were lame. I just did the goal thing. Hmm... how unlike me!

So anyway, not a whole ton of a lot has happened since I wrote last. I think we had some bbq's with friends and went to Vashon Island. We went to JLo's wedding and to Alki. We started Weight Watchers and I got a new office chair (I like to think of it as a desk-couch). And I bough an espresso machine (for home, not the office). Oh I also hung shelves in my pantry and painted the ugly bookshelf in the office so that I can switch it out with the one that is currently in the pantry. Only the painted one is still in the office and the pantry one is still in the pantry. I also got rid of a bunch of towels so I could organize my linen closet only the baskets I bought to help with the organization are still empty. See... no focus. :) AND to top it all off I had intended about blogging all of these things and even took pictures so I could do so but here we are with no pictures to illustrate the mundane.

The espresso machine is the result of Geoff's new work schedule. His position at work was terminated (not horribly surprising because they did create the position for him so of course it has to be the first to go when money gets tight). They did however offer him another position in one of the client's houses. He now works from midnight to 8am. It's been an adjustment. We're lucky that we still have evenings together but neither of us are getting enough sleep. I'm hoping our bodies will get used to the new schedule soon. I hate feeling like a zombie all day. Makes me cranky! Which, and I can't fathom why, Geoff does not appreciate.

Weight Watchers is the result of my boss's ambition to lose weight. Don't get me wrong, I have ambition too (some days) but he started going to the meetings and asked me to go to one with him so I did cause it's no secret I need to drop a few (read: A LOT) of pounds. So I went and it was cheesy but seemed doable. Matt (boss man) bought me the books so I was left with no choice but to try again. I tried WW before online and it never worked for me cause (all together now) I didn't stay focused. SO. I'm doing it. And so is Geoff. I was shocked he volunteered to follow along with me. But extremely grateful! The first week I wasn't expecting much because I had a piece of cheesecake from Cheesecake Factory, burrito from Chipotle, and ice cream from Cold Stone and didn't really exercise. But I lost 3.4 pounds! And Geoff lost 4 I think. Last week I tried harder and ate less. I didn't reach my points any of the days (I'm allowed to eat 34 pts worth of food per day, and have an extra 35 per week), and I actually worked out. Like dripping sweat workout. So I was kinda excited and hopeful on Wednesday when I went to my weigh-in only to find out I had actually gained 0.8 pounds. I honestly wanted to cry. And the feeling didn't leave me the rest of the day. The ladies told me I didn't eat enough, you have to eat all of your points. But the thing is I've been full with fewer so I figured it'd be better to not stuff myself. But I guess not. And I've heard people say it before, if you don't get enough points you won't lose. So my goal (again) this week is to eat my points. Geoff bought me Wii Active and I really like it. It's a pretty intense workout and I burn almost 200 calories in 20 min. I just would like to see some results so that I can convince myself to keep doing it. I'm so easily discouraged. :(

So anyway. I think that's all for now. Off to lunch. Yes. I blogged at work. From my new desk-couch-chair. Maybe 1-5 will be more productive though it's not likely. ;)

Too Tired

Hello Blog World. I'm too tired to blog. I want to get you caught up on my last few days in Chicago and my weekend but I don't have the energy! I went back to work full time on Monday and it's kicking my ass. I got to sleep in til 8 or 8:30 for two months and so now 6 is horrible! I promise to catch you up soon. In the mean time I'm shopping around for an external flash for my camera. Those suckers are expensive! I'm taking pictures at my friend's wedding this weekend and want them to look a little nicer than amateur. So we'll see what I end up with. That's all for now. More later.

Last few days...

True to vacation style I'm not sure what day it is or in what order things have happened lol. Let's think here. Wednesday we ventured to Janesville, Wisconsin. We went to a mall there where I pondered exactly how menopausal women shop in shopping malls. Haha. I got so overheated that I had to buy a new shirt and flip flops to change into. I also bought a souvineer for my hubby at the Badger store. When I say I bought I usually mean my mom funded. :) Anyway. Then we had lunch at Perkin's. Then we headed back toward home. On the way, Fritz got pulled over on the state line! The cop said she couldn't see his seatbelt. Which is silly cause he had it on the whole time. But she gave him a warning and said she was giving him the benefit of the doubt. Silly. I couldn't resist taking a picture of the car behind Fritz's truck.

That night we had a thunder storm! I was less thrilled with the tornado watch also issued with the storm. The storm wasn't nearly as powerful as the news said it would be but it was still impressive. I took a video of it. I stood out in the pouring rain and strong winds to get this!

That brings us to Thursday. We got off to a lazy start. Mom and I sat around and did our nails and did a face peel. Then we had a big breakfast. Then we went shopping some more. We went to the Springhill Mall which is where we shopped when I was little. It's kinda neat to revisit places like that just for the memories. On our way home we stopped at the Polish store to pick up some cabbage rolls and had those for dinner with mashed potatoes. Yum! So good! After dinner we went back out and found this store called Archiver's. It's an amazing scrapbooking store. We dug through the bargain bins and got some cute stuff for cheap. I am definitely going to save up for my next visit! Fritz mowed the lawn while we were gone and I had to take a picture of his red socks. Fritz and his red socks!

We are now waiting for my brother Alex to get home from work so we can go meet him for dinner. I think we're going out to pizza. I am hoping to get together with a friend from when I was little tonight. Her name is Carrie. My mom is good friends with her mom, we used to live in the same apartment buildind when we were little. So anyway, hoping to see Carrie tonight.

Oh, I almost forgot! I finally took a picture of the quilt I made for my mom for Mother's Day. Here it is:

Tomorrow it's on the plane for me. I fly out of here at 2:00 (noon Pacific) but don't get home til 7:30 (Pacific) which means I have a looong day of travel tomorrow. My layover is in Phoenix. Just enough time to pee and grab a bite, then back on the plane. Then my dad and Geoff will be waiting for me at the airport and we'll go to Chipotle for dinner. Yay!

I'm excited to see Geoff. I have really enjoyed my visit with my mom, don't get me wrong, but I'm hopelessly attached to my husband so it'll be good to be in his arms again. And I'm not nearly as sad about leaving my mom this time because Geoff and I will be back in a month and a half. That's like no time at all! Hopefully by then the weather will shape up and the pool will be in place.

Okay... that's all for now. Probably won't blog tomorrow cause I'll be on the plane.

Adios!

What a crazy couple of days. Well, actually, yesterday was crazy, today was chill. Yesterday morning we left the house to go see my Aunt Claudi. She lives about 45 min away in West Chicago. My mom didn't tell her I was in town so that we could surprise her and she was pretty shocked to see me. We played with my cousin's baby, Jayce. He's very cute and very entertaining. He didn't like the food he was fed and he didn't like the water either. My mom kept giving him more and every time his opened his mouth and let it fall out like a fountain. Needless to say we were very entertained by this.

After my cousins came home and Claudi was off babysitting duty we decided to go get pedicures. Claudi was a pedicure virgin. We decided that a beer would calm her nerves but she didn't want to have one before we left the house cause she had to drive there so I joked we should bring some and drink it in the parking lot when we get there. Well I guess you don't joke about beer with Claudi cause next thing I know my purse was weighed down with three beers and we were out the door. Claudi and I downed ours like champs and my mom took a few sips and was done. Claudi was giggling like a little girl when we went in. Can't take that lady anywhere! :) It was so fun and relaxing. And amusing because it was Claudi's first time and she got stuck with a guy to do her feet.

After that we ran around town to find the color I picked for my mom's toes cause she loved it. And of course with two German ladies this is no ordinary feat. It was a crazy, loud, all over the place, fun feat. :)

Today my mom had to work so I stayed home with Fritz. I worked on a video in the morning, I'll post it below. It's really more for Geoff than for anyone. As of today we have been together for 4 years. I can't believe it's been that long but at the same time it feels longer... in a good way! In a comfortable, happy way. So anyway, I worked on that and then Fritz and I went and got some stuff for dinner. We ended up with Bratwurst and my potato salad. After running around we came home and I layed on the lawn chair in the lawn. My mama and Fritz have the best backyard in the world (it'll be better when the pool is up). It's green and lush and perfect for running around without shoes. Love it. I took my book outside to read and ended up taking a two hour nap. Whoops. I didn't think I was burned at first but now my arms are nice and red and I have a funky tan line cause I fell asleep with my arms folded over my book. Nice.

This evening after dinner I went and got my hair trimmed. It was starting to get really tangled. And then after that I made a chocolate pudding pie. Delish. She told me to put cool whip on it but she didn't say what "it" was so I took my liberties and put some on her hand. She's going to kill me for putting this picture on here. Haha.

Well anyway, now you're caught up on my last two days. Here's that video I mentioned earlier:

(Hope you enjoyed the video baby, thank you for 4 amazing years so far)

Mother's Day

Hello from Chicago (Crystal Lake to be more exact). I flew home yesterday to surprise my mom for Mother's Day. This is a picture of her face when she saw me. I am happy to be home and I think she's pretty happy too! I made her a quilt and she loves it. I gave it to her last night though cause I was to excited to wait! I will take pictures of it tomorrow and post.

This morning we went to brunch at a place called Warsaw Inn. The food was ok. Then my mom and I went to an outdoor mall in Barriongton. One of the stores we went to is called Soft Surroundings where everything is, well, soft. They have bedding, clothing, robes, and beatuy products. I bought this delicious smelling lotion (the Ore scent). I can't get over how good it smells. I'm a big fan. :) For dinner Mama, Fritz, and I went to a drive-in in Huntley called the Dairy Market. They have everything you can think of in terms of hot sandwiches, burgers, corn dogs, fish, ice cream, etc. We had burgers and fries and the prices are unbelievably cheap! The three of us got burgers and fries and drinks for $15! I am surprised the McDonalds across the street is still in business. Fritz said when he was 16 he used to drive there on the tractor. This does not surprise me. :)

Tomorrow we are going to my aunt Claudi's. She doesn't know I'm in town. Later this week we'll see my brother Alex too. That's all for tonight, I'm so drained. More tomorrow!

PS
This is my Kuzco before I left for Chicago. He has his little paws crossed and his ears back while laying on my suitcase. He doesn't like when I leave home...

Anniversary at the beach

So we're back from the beach, we actually got back Friday afternoon. We had an amazing time. We have our little traditions which I love and this time we ventured to Astoria. Her are some pictures from our time at the beach:

View from our room

Says: I Love Your Mrs. Brown :)

Astoria Bridge

After only 3 hrs of sleep lol

So my fav parts of our trip is first all of our little traditions. We wrote letters to each other on our wedding day and did so again on our first anniversary and this year and we'll continue to every year and when we're old we'll have our love story on paper. :) We also watch our wedding video and dance to the song we danced to at our wedding. I love these things. And I love the tub. I always watch Big Fish from the tub and we always have country fried steak delivered our first night there.

My second fav part this time was Astoria. It's a pretty little town. I hate the bridge and I hate that the speed limit on the bridge is 55. But I fell in love with this store called Ambiance. This store was made for me! The front half of the store was filled with things that would fit in perfectly with my living and dining room, I wanted it all! And then the second half of the store was filled with things that would fit in perfectly with my bathroom and I wanted to buy all of that too! I want to live in that store!! I wish they had a website so that you could see how beautiful the store is. I can't wait to go back and I hope I have some spending money so I can bring home some treasures!

So anyway, we had an amazing time. :)

Going to the Beach...

I am going to the beach to enjoy this...

And this...

And this...

Happy 2 Years, My Love!