Thursday, December 29, 2011

ZOMBIES

I am so tired! Two nights of staying up way past my bedtime on a work night equals one sleepy lady.

On Tuesday night, Alex, Kelly, and one of their friends were grounded in Omaha after their flight to NYC was cancelled. Don't feel too bad for them. They got to hang out with us! And we are pretty cool in case you didn't know. A few drinks, some scratch tickets, and strong debate about babies in harnesses consumed most of our night. It was so good to see them! I think a trip to Ames is in order soon.

Last night, Andrew and I were dragging, and there was no way I was cooking dinner. On to Granite City! After we refueled, I convinced Andrew that we needed to go to the mall. He had to get some new jeans, and I just wanted to look. Well looking turned into a shopping spree! Fashion show!


Here, Andrew is sporting his new Calvin Klein jeans and Timberland waffle shirt. He also found a Oscar de la Renta sweater (This was only $20 down from $70! What?! We are good.) and Gap button up. Total: $83

And after many failed attempts at jean hunting, I scored some two pairs of work pants and two long sleeve tees from Gap. Total: $45 Bargain shopping is my fave :)


Then we headed to the Slowdown to see Jenna's concert. Her band, Conduits, is awesome, and I really love their music! I would like their album now, please. Alas, it looks like we will have to wait just a little bit longer... Until then, you can check out a few of their tracks online.

Can I go to bed now? Please?

Monday, December 26, 2011

CHRISTMAS 2011

Despite my lack of Christmas enthusiasm, my holiday weekend was fun and far too short.


After work on Friday, we headed to my hometown for a weekend full of festivities. Well, I guess we didn't go straight to Woodbine. We passed right through to go to a surprise bday party in Dunlap for my good friend Katie's sister. She was surprised and it was great to catch up with everyone.


After the party, we checked in with my sisters at the Buffalo Club and then went back to Katie's for what is quickly turning into a yearly (or bi-yearly with trips to Andrew's parents house) poker tournament. Oh, how I love these tournaments! Maybe it's because I won that past two tournaments. Yeah, I think that might have something to do with it. We didn't get back to my parents place until (drumroll please...) 2:30 am! Good grief! Party animals.


Saturday was spent lounging around, watching football, making cookies, doing puzzles, and eating more food than anyone should every consume in a day.

This is the best pic. We couldn't slow down and waste time with pics.

My sister even brought her roommates dog, Willa! She is quite possibly the cutest bulldog ever. And she loves me. That night, we went to the 11 pm church service that didn't end until 12:30 am. I love you all, but that is far too long. I was tired, yo! And don't they know that Santa is coming? Needless to say, I went to bed ASAP.

And what did I find when I woke up? Santa had come! He is the best. Presents galore!

This is what half of my Santa looks like!

We had to wait for my brother and sister-in-law to arrive before we could start, but it was worth the wait. I'm now the proud owner of:
- Willow Tree Three Wise Men
- Perfume
- Pepper spray (My dad thought this was a very logical gift for all of the girls this year. At least it's pink!)
- Visa gift card (I'm think leather boots are in my near future)


Other than driving Pops home and catching the second half of the Packers game that pretty much ended our night. And after such a long weekend, I got some much needed rest!

What did Santa bring you for Christmas?

Friday, December 23, 2011

CHRISTMAS CHEER

My Christmas cheer is missing, and I don't know where to find it... This year, the holidays came out of nowhere. And now that they are here, they are disappearing faster than they came.

I blame the snow and all of the snow haters. It's no where to be find. (Points finger) And it's all your fault! Haven't you haters heard of a white Christmas? I don't live in California. I want my snow, and I want it now! - - - Tantrum over.

My cures for the Christmas blues include but are not limited to:
  • Listening to my extensive Christmas playlist on Spotify - Five hours on shuffle sounds about right.
  • Gingerbread lattes from Starbucks
  • Donating to the Salvation Army red kettles - This year, the guy who most looked like Santa got my cash.
  • Sledding or snowman building
  • Watching Muppets Christmas - No laughing, please.
  • Going shopping when the mall is packed - I need to feel the panicked energy of everyone else who waited last minute to buy any gifts.
  • Christmas lights tour
I would say wrapping presents, but I was highly disappointed with my paper selection this year. How did I end up with only blue snowman/snowflake Christmas wrapping paper? Blasphemy!

But I guess the holidays aren't over yet. I hope Jenny and Chris are ready for an obnoxious amount of cheesy dollar store party hats and decorations so we can ring in the new year properly.

What are your cures for the holiday blues? And please don't say eggnog. You eggnog people are on your own.

Wednesday, December 21, 2011

WEEKEND RECAP: DEC 16-19

It's Wednesday. I think that means I should have updated my blog by now. Without further adieu...


Friday: Surprise! Andrew took me to Target to buy some beer for our weekend trip, but he lied. He was buying me a new digital camera instead! I can't believe he got away with it. Put a point on the board for Andrew! I hope you guys love it as much as I do :)

Trying on our clothes for tomorrow!

Saturday: We managed to wake up, run errands, AND get on the road on time. With a Starbucks in hand mind you. KC here we come! After meeting up with Nick and Emily and chowing down on some hotel grub (It was just ok...) it was time to go shopping.


The Plaza! This place has everything. We dropped some money at H&M and Forever21 and we did some window shopping at Betsy Johnson and North Face. This area of town is beautiful! Maybe next time we can take a carriage ride?


Next up, dinner at McCoy's and drinks at Kelly's with Emily's sister, her fiance, and his sister. Oh, and another surprise! We saw our friend, Will! He lives in KC and saw us drive by. What are the odds? We headed back to the hotel fairly early to catch some shut eye before our early morning wake up call. But we didn't go to bed right away... Oh, no we didn't! There were a few YouTube videos (1 & 2) and lots of jokes about my leftover buns from dinner.


Sunday: Game day! Packers gear on! Beers in hand and brats in our tummies, we headed for the stadium. Go Pack Go!


Or so we thought... The game was fun, but the stairs to our seats, the Packers losing, and our walk of shame to the hotel were not so fun.


We recovered. KC BBQ at Gates was up next! Too bad I gave it a big thumbs down... The meat wasn't for me and the sauce was just too hot. Sorry, KC. Better luck next time.

This made me smile! Thank you construction man!

Time to go home. I will miss Nick and Emily until next time. But I hope the next time I see KC, it has something better up it's sleeve.

Monday, December 12, 2011

WEEKEND RECAP: DECEMBER 9-11

Friday night Andrew and I went to his work Christmas party. Paypal has the best parties! The food is awesome! And my favorite part of the night... photo booth! Andrew was a little nervous because they would run the photo booth pictures on four giant screens. No big deal. The are awesome! Can I have a photo booth in my apartment?

make a gif at gickr.com


Afterwards, we met up with some of his coworkers for a few drinks at Houstons. They are some fun people, and I hope we hang out with them again soon.

On Saturday, Andrew went to work (gotta love that overtime!) and I hung out at home. My day consisted of a large to-do list to motivate myself to do something other than browse the internet and drink my warm, delicious coffee...mmmm. This means that I addressed our Christmas cards and they should be coming soon!

Andrew rolling and writing down a losing roll. And then my epic Yahtzee!

Saturday night I babysat, Sunday Andrew worked some more overtime, and that means we don't get to see each other all weekend... Until Sunday night! Then we enjoyed some Yahtzee!, Mario Kart, and Packers football. Oh, and some killer risotto that we whipped up together. We are awesome.

How was your weekend?

Monday, December 5, 2011

BABY FEVER

+

 Ever since my friend Mallory has announced her little one, it seems like I have been seeing babies and baby things everywhere. And I love it! I love babysitting. I love seeing all the little ones at church. I love decorating an imaginary nursery in an imaginary house. (And it's super cute by the way!)

This one is cute! +

I expected a lot of baby pressure once the wedding was over, and I'm surprised at the lack of questioning Andrew and I have gotten about starting our own family. And for that, I say thank you! Although, maybe it would curb my desires in a "You can't tell me what to do," sort of way. (I think I have always been a little defiant like that.)

I know that eventually I want kids. And I also know that my mom and dad are really looking forward to being grandparents someday. And I hope to give them that joy very soon with a new puppy (Andrew - Christmas present? Please?) They just love their furry grandchildren!

But lately... I find that I have to remind myself of the reasons I want to wait.

Last night, Andrew and I visited our friend's Justin and Nicole who just had a very sweet little boy. I got to visit with Nicole (and Brecklin) a lot while the boys played with their toys in the basement. Although it sounds like a lot of work, he is just so precious, and tiny, and so cute! Seeing him didn't really reinforce my desired timeline.

I have things to do, places to go, and people to see! And once kids are in the picture, all of that has to slow down a bit. And I am still raring to go!

But can I still do everything I want to do with a baby literally strapped to me? I don't know. And I'm not sure I'm quite ready to find out.

WEEKEND RECAP: DECEMBER 2-4

Another weekend at home! This is fantastic. I get to actually do things. Like sleep in. Craft. Cook/bake. Who knew! I think I could go for a couple more weekends like this one.

Friday:
Workout
Dinner with the hubby

Ohhh, those green beans!

After another disappointing encounter with Brazen Head (a cover to just eat dinner and leave, no thank you!), we went to Cheddars! It was nommy! And cheap. But good cheap.


Saturday:
Starbucks
Errands
Laziness
Drinks with Jill and Steve (from our softball league!)

Oh and it snowed! Beautiful, beautiful snow. I had been waiting for this stuff for awhile now, and it was worth the wait. I'm now onboard the Christmas train. Bring on the holiday tunes.

Ps. Drinks at Fox and Hound are way overpriced. I will not make that mistake again. Oops!

Sunday:
I got Andrew to do a 10 Pound Slimdown Extreme workout with me. He said, "She doesn't mess around." Uhhh, duh. I hope he is sore today!


Then it was time for football, reading, baking, and finally a trip to Bed, Bath, and Beyond where we spent some more of our gift cards and ran into cousin Kyle and Amie!

Crafting is hard work!

A very productive and relaxing weekend to boot! Next weekend: The much anticipated Paypal Christmas party!