A Frest Start

Well, it's been awhile, huh? So much has happened and changed since I last posted, so with the new year and a fresh start I decided to give blogging another go. I hope for this blog to be record of this time in my life, these new chapters and adventures, so that someday I can look back and remember how wonderfully blessed my little life was and is.

I decided to do this quiz, that I've seen so many of my favorite bloggers do all over the Internet to recap briefly my 2011 and bring you up to speed.

1. What did you do in 2011 that you’d never done before?

Oh boy! Let's see...took a positive pregnancy test, gained 50 pounds, birthed a 9.5 human, lost (most) of said 50 pounds and learned to live on an average of 4 to 5 hours of sleep per night.

2. Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year?

Pretty sure last years resolution was to get pregnant, which I accomplished very early in 2011. What can I say, I'm an overachiever. This year, I would like to work on being a little more observant, being present in the moment and making sure that I breath in all these little experiences.

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?

Yes! Along with so many friends, my oldest friend Amanda gave birth to her sweet boy just 2 days after me. It was a lot of fun to go through my pregnancy with her!

4. Did anyone close to you die?



No, thank God!

5. What countries did you visit?



For the first time in several years, we stayed right here in the good old USA, forgoing our annual Mexico trip for having our Rosalie. We did take a trip to San Diego in February with Jeff's family.

6. What would you like to have in 2012 that you lacked in 2011?

MORE SLEEP!!! And more time with just our little family of three.

7. What dates from 2011 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?

January 22, we found we were having a baby

April 29, found out baby was a HEALTHY girl! (and, let's be real honest here, it was the royal wedding too)

September 17, we brought our sweet girl into this crazy world

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?



I'm starting to realize, some of my answers may start to seem slightly redundant...of course, my biggest achievement this year was watching my body do what it was absolutely made to do--carry and grow a freaking human being. The amazement, that somehow my body just knew what to do, and did it, reaffirmed my faith in God's sovereignty and made me realize how small and not in control I really am.

9. What was your biggest failure?

Probably the fear and doubt that I let consume me throughout most of my pregnancy. I realize now, how it robbed me of simply just being thankful and happy and "in the moment".

12. Whose behavior merited celebration?

I have to give it up to Jeff on this one. That man took really good care of me while I was pregnant. He cooked dinners and did most all of the cleaning. He also put up with my (at times) ridiculos hormones. In addition, the two weeks that he took off work when Rosalie was born, were the happiest days of my life thus far.

13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?


Can't really think of much to put here.

14. Where did most of your money go?

Baby furniture and our new house

15. What did you get really excited about?

Obvs, the baby, but also the house and living in Edmond. But on a much smaller scale, I got very excited about ordering my frye boots tat i lusted over since 2006, the final Harry potter movie, my new iPad and fitting into my pre-pregnancy jeans in December.

16. What song will always remind you of 2011?

Moves like Jagger--maroon 5

You make me feel--cobra starship

Chicken fried--zac brown band

River deep, mountain high--Celine dion

17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
(a) happier or sadder?(b) thinner or fatter?(c) richer or poorer?

A. Happier

B. Fatter (still got some baby weight to go)

C. Richer

18. What do you wish you’d done more of?



Spend more time in the Bible, more time excersizing, more time keeping up with friends

19. What do you wish you’d done less of?



WORRY! Obsess over all the pregnancy weight I was gaining.

20. How did you spend Christmas?

With both of our families.

21. Did you fall in love in 2011?

Oh boy, did I ever. I don't think I ever knew it was possible to love someone so selflessly. I love my daughter with a non-human love.

22. What was your favorite TV program?

American idol, X Factor, Revenge and Once Upon a Time

23. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year?


No

24. What was your greatest musical discovery?


I wouldn't say that i really had one

26. What did you want and get?

A baby! A new house! My Frye boots!! My iPad!





27. What did you want and not get?

A push gift :-)




28. What was your favorite film of this year?

Harry Potter

29. How did you celebrate your birthday? And how old did you turn?

Since my birthday fell shortly after Rose's birth, we kept it pretty low key with a nice dinner at home. 31.

30. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?



I honestly can't think of one thing. This was pretty much the bet year of my life thus far.

31. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2011?



Ha. Hahaha. Ha. Ha. See gaining and losing 50 pounds above. I believe I stated my "personal fashion concept" this summer when I said everyone should just be happy I had all my major body part areas covered with some article of clothing.

.

32. What kept you sane?



This sounds crazy, but being able to listen to my favorite radio show in the morning (Kidd Kraddick) via I heart radio made my mornings so much easier (and more fun). And my iPhone.

33. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?

I loved seeing what Duchess Kate wore, she has such elegant classic style.

34. What political issue stirred you the most?


I have always had strong views against abortion, however going through my pregnancy really brought the reality of the topic home and made me so upset that I couldn't even THINK about the issue without tears.

35. Who did you miss?



My mom. Amanda.

36. Who was the best new person you met?



Rosalie Suzanne!!

37. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2011.



Hmm... I'm not sure. Probably just how magnificent the human body was created to be. And how I definitely don't need as much sleep as I used to think I did.

EXCITING NEWS!!!!

I know that it's been forever since I've written an entry here, but honestly, I've felt a little uninspired. Nothing new, nothing exciting going on at all. Which, isn't bad...just not post-worthy. Well friends, that all changed very recently. Jeff and I have some very exciting news to share with everyone! We're going to be parents!! PUPPY PARENTS!!!!

Meet our new puppy! We don't have a name yet, but that's okay because it'll still be a few weeks until she's old enough to come home with us! She is a Morkie-poo, a mix of Maltese, Yorkie and poodle, and she's about the cutest thing I've ever seen!! She is so little, you can almost fit her in your pocket. Or eat her, which is tempting because she IS SO CUTE!!!! I know I might be a little biased, but come on! Look at that sweet face!

So, here's where I need your input. I have some names I'm tossing around, Violet (because I really want to name a child that, but there's no way Jeff will allow it), Ruby, and Pearl. I like the idea of naming her a "people name" but not necessarily a name that a lot of people have. You know, not like Kathy or Linda or Phyllis, because seriously? Can you imagine calling that out loud? What do you all think? I'm open to ideas! You know what else I'm open to? ANY and ALL advise about puppies. What I should buy, how to house-train, anything! This is literally my very first puppy! I never eve had one as a kid, so I'm pretty clueless, but I know that a lot of you have great advise to give, so don't hold back!!

Greatest Husband EVUH!!!

See this handsome man??



He is the best husband I've ever had. He's the only one I've ever had, but still. I've loved Jeff for several years now, but this week my love grew to a new level. Let me share the story.



Let me preface by explaining that although my favorite activities do not include cleaning house, I do it anyway, and our home is a fairly clean place. However, due to the changing season we have been noticing more bugs in our house lately. Earlier this week, I was getting ready for the day. I had just got out of the shower and was walking over to our bed where I had laid my clothes for the day out. As I walked closer I saw something so horrific I couldn't believe my eyes. I saw a ROACH*. A ROACH. Which really is bad enough, but this was no ordinary roach. No, no. It was HUGE, people, HUGE!!! I kid you not when I tell you it was as long as my index finger and as thick as my index finger and middle finger together! Oh, it gives me the hebbie gebbies just thinking about it. By this time, Jeff was already at work, so after I screamed like I've never screamed before and taking a second look just to make sure i hadn't hallucinated, I called my sweet husband. Unfortunately, not only was Jeff busy in a meeting and couldn't talk, but in the time I had taken to go and get my phone, my new friend had moved to an undisclosed location. Well, undisclosed to me anyway. So, I did what any woman would do, I got out of the house!!!



This is where my knight in shining armour comes into the story! As soon as Jeff was done with his meeting, he called me so I could explain what was going on. He was equally as grossed out and promised me he would be home as soon as he could that day. A few minutes after we hung up, he sent me this text message "Terminex tomorrow between 9 and 11." He immediately called Terminex, friends!!! Be still my heart, a man that takes (pest) control!!! The day flew by, and soon he was at home. With his presence in the house, I felt like it was okay for me to be there too, at least downstairs. While I waited, he went upstairs and took apart our ENTIRE bedroom to find the bug. Now, I'm not just talking he took the sheets off the bed, no no no. The man took the box springs and mattress off the bed!! He ripped apart everything until he found that stupid bug! Oh man, and he did find it and then it killed and then he flushed it down the toilet. My hero!!



Maybe to some, this may not seem like a big deal, but to me it was huge! It reminded me of something my dad would have done for me, and to have Jeff show that level of concern for my comfort and happiness, it just made me feel so loved! What can I say, flowers and candy do it for some people, pest control does it for me!



*According to the exterminator, it was an "American Roach", or a water bug. It differs from the "German Cockroach" that people associate with dirtiness and infestation. I thought it was kinda cool that we kept it real and just had the good old USA bug in our house. We are so patriotic, no?

Channeling my inner chef!

Even as recently as a year ago, not only was I completely disinterested in cooking, but I would go so far as to say I hated it. Well, I don't know if it was my new role as a wife or if aliens invaded my brain, but I have really taken a lot of joy in preparing meals and finding interesting recipes in the last 8 or 9 months! Who new cooking was so much fun! For Christmas last year my sister-in-law, and good friend, Jamie, made Jeff and I a cookbook of some of her favorite recipes. It really was an awesome gift as it gave me some good, easy recipes to start with! Lately, I've been making this salad in it that she labeled "Brett's Salad". Now, I don't know who Brett is, but I do know that this recipe (specifically the dressing) is seriously rocking my face off! It is so easy, and I've been eating it for the last two weeks, so I thought I would share it with all of you guys! Here you go...

Brett's Salad

Mixed greens 1 onion, sliced and diced
Blue Cheese or Feta crumbles Plain Walnuts
6-8 pieces of bacon, crumbled Raisins

Combine the above and prepare the following dressing

1/2 cup balsamic vinegar 1 clove of garlic, minced
1/4 cup Real maple syrup (must be real, it's kind of pricey, but totally worth it. I promise.)
1 cup oil 1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup olive oil 1/2 tsp. pepper

Toss with dressing just before serving.

Bon appetite...If you try it, let me know how you like it!!

Weekend Wrapup...

Well, I've decided to start a blog. I think this will be a fun way to share what's going on in my life and to hopefully keep somewhat of an online record of what I've been up to! So here I go!


So this weekend was Regan and Joe's wedding and it was so much fun!!! The action all started with the personal shower where Regan got some really cute things to take on her honeymoon to Antigua! After the shower we headed downtown to have some drinks at the Colcord Lounge and from there we headed upstairs to a "Super Deluxe King Room", which in case you were wondering, does not translate into a suite! However, we all crammed in and had an awesome time. My friend Natalie entertained us all night long with many of her talents, which included dramatic skits and being the ringmaster of the name game. It was such a fun evening! The next day included brunch at Nonna's (which was awesome!) mani/pedi action and a delicious rehearsal dinner at The Greens.

This is Jeff and I right before we went into the dinner. Saturday evening was the wedding and it was totally beautiful. I have to say, of all the people I've been around about to get married (including myself) Regan was, by a landslide, the most laid back bride I've ever seen. She made the day feel very relaxed and comfortable and exciting! Here are some pictures of the wedding...

Regan and I in the bridal suite before the wedding

Natalie, Melanie, me and Ashley


Our GORGEOUS bouquets, Regan's was the same only larger

Regan and Joe's first dance. Sorry this is blurry, but either my camera is retarded or I don't know how to take a picture in low lighting. Stupid Camera.

So, that was most of the last part of the week and most of the weekend. Sunday Jeff and I tried out Crossings again (which we really enjoyed) and had a yummy lunch at the Panda Express. That place is so good and fresh, you should try it out! Sunday night my awesome father-in-law got us tickets to see Third Day, Jars of Clay and Switchfoot! It totally rocked (literally and figuratively) and was a great way to end a fantastic weekend!