Let's Catch Up

Wow.  A lot has happened in the past month and a half since I last blogged.  And I mean A LOT.  Maybe one day I'll share it with the blog world.  For now, I'll focus on the past week.  Last week Jake and I finally got a little vacation.  It was our overdue, much-needed, relaxing vacation.  It was great.  We went to The Woodlands.  We stayed at my parents house where they spoiled us rotten.  And we also got to enjoy hanging out just the two of us during a few dates to delicious restaurants!

I'll tell you about our trip through pictures, how does that sound?

Our first date out on Thursday night.  We went to get pizza and wine at this place on Waterway. Best pizza place EVER!

Seriously, best pizza we have ever had.  The pizza was really as big as it looks here! Jake ate and impressive 5 1/2 slices!

This was the night we went to Americas. We got dressed up and had a fancy date.  It was delicious!

On Saturday morning, we went on a bike ride, ate breakfast at Brooklyn Cafe and rode back. It was the first time I had been on a real bike since like Jr. High!  It was so much fun; even if my mom made us wear helmets! We look cute huh?

Saturday afternoon we watched the first UT football game of the season.  So glad football season is here! This is Vince enjoying the game in his UT jersey :)  Hook 'em horns!

On Sunday, my parents took us to brunch to Hugo's.  Amazing food!  I love my parents :)

And THEN we got to go visit the brand new Jansen Hurst!  Most precious baby boy! Chelsea was amazing and let me hold the little guy for a long time.  I was in heaven :)  And Jake and Stephen went out and got to have a couple beers.

Look at how CUTE he is! 

On Monday (Labor Day), we went out to lunch with my parents and then were on our way back to Austin.  It was such a great vacation.  And now the 4 day week is over and we have a great weekend planned ahead of us.  I'll leave you with one more pic:

 The latest pic of Vince. He just got his first full haircut.  He looks so handsome!

Have a great weekend y'all!

Not as colorful as I thought

So I've said a few times that I would post pictures of the painted rooms - the kitchen and the bathroom.  Well here they come.  I have a 3 1/2 day weekend, which means I have more time for blogging and more time to just me.  I love it :)

So, here's the kitchen wall color:

Not as dark as we were hoping it would be.  We like it; I was just hoping it would add a little more color to the house though.  Here's another one:

I need some decor to go under that clock.  I've looked at Pier 1 and Marshalls but haven't found anything.  I don't even know what would look good there.  Have any ideas?

And here's the little powder bath downstairs.  This color I actually like.  Looks a little more orange in the pictures that it actually is.  But I like that it's dark and that it contrasts the white really well.  

I think the powder bath is the only room in the house that I'm completely satisfied with (as in I don't think it needs anything else; it's painted, it's fully decorated, it's done).

My next goal is to finish the black and white picture wall upstairs.  I need about 2 more framed pictures and it'll look great.  I'll post pictures of that when it's done.....hopefully next weekend, but that may be high hopes.  

Have a great weekend everyone!

Ten on Tuesday

In hopes that I start blogging more often I think I'm going to start doing fun things like this...  My friend Chelsea posts "Ten on Tuesdays" every week. This is a fun version of the ToT - it's usually just random questions.  So here we go. 

For each of the following 10 categories, tell us which brand/product you use and why.
1. Cell Phone
I have an iPhone.  One of the new ones which is amazing!!  I don't really use my computer much anymore.  Jake and I are always on the go, so having everything at my fingertips is quite handy.  Since I have an iPhone that means I am under AT&T.  

2. Email
Gmail.  I love it; it's easy to use and it looks pretty.  I've been thinking of getting a new e-mail address with somewhere else, but I'm too lazy.  I still even have my e-mail address with my maiden name!  Jake probably wishes I would change it.  Oh well.

3. Toothpaste
I'm not picky with toothpaste.  Right now we have the Pro Health stuff and I don't really love it; it doesn't have a strong minty flavor. 

4. Car
Nissan Murano.  I love my SUV.  It's comfortable and roomy and I'm higher up on the road than I used to be before I got it which I really like. 

5. Writing Utensil 
I like ballpoint pens.  They don't usually smear and most of the time they write smoothly.  Although lately I have loved pencils because I can erase it if needed.  And erasing is better than white-outing.

6. Lotion
Bliss Lemon and Sage body lotion.  Oh it's just wonderful.  Smells delicious and absorbs really well.  I have a bottle my mom gave me for Christmas and I don't use it too often because I want it to last forever.

7. Interior Paint
When we painted the kitchen we used Behr Ultra.  It does the job pretty well.  Which reminds me I need to post pictures of the painted rooms.  I'll do that soon.  I hope.

8. Soda/Drink
Water.  It's what's best for you, and I don't love sodas.  Except for the occasional Cherry Coke.  

9. Laundry Detergent
Tide April Fresh.  It just smells so good; there's no other reason.


10. Medicine
None.  I avoid medicine unless it's absolutely necessary; which it rarely is for me.  Unless the doctor is telling me I HAVE to take something or my body feels like it's going to break down, I don't take medicine.


So there we have it; I completed my first Ten on Tuesday!

Hubby's got a day Off

Happy Birthday to America (belated!).  You know how most of you have the day off for the 4th of July?  I'm not so lucky.  I worked today while Jake had a full day off (for once!).

I was excited for Jake to have a day to himself.  I didn't really mind what he did. The only thing I suggested was that he go to the store for us because we had no lunch items.   So, do you think he went to the store?
No, no he didn't. Which is more than okay; because you want to know what he did?  Even if you don't want to know, I'm going to tell you.  I think you'll be impressed, and maybe a little jealous...

He got up and took care of Vince.
He did a load of laundry.
He worked out and went to a coffee shop to read his Bible.
He played with Vince.
He dropped off his car for service.
He steamed.
And he steamed.
And he steamed....
Until the ENTIRE basket of things that needed ironing/steaming was EMPTY. Yes, empty.  I'm pretty sure this was on our 101 in 1001 (Norman style - meaning we didn't make it to 101).  He probably steamed about 60 items of clothing.  No lie.  I'm pretty sure that my love for Jake multiplied today when I got home and saw what he did.

So maybe you're not so impressed, but I am.  That is one task I have not been able to accomplish in the 2 years that we have been married.  So two thumbs up for the hubby.  Maybe he should be a-stay-at-home-hubby.

Yes, I did.

You know those pathetic Apple fanatics that know every detail about Apple's latest products?  That are willing to camp out by the store a week before a release date? That get all sorts of giddy inside when they hear the name Steve Jobs?  Well I'm not one of those people.  But I did get the new iphone on the release date.  Yes, I did.  And now you get to know about my experience.

First of all, Jake and I weren't even planning on getting the new iphones until later in the year.  But just so happens that God wanted us to get the phones - when I got home on the pre-order date I go to the website and in about 5 minutes we were scheduled to pick up our iphones at the mall on June 24th - I know, not the experience most people had with pre-ordering.  That's why I say God wanted us to have them.

I left work at about 5:15 and got to the mall at around 5:30.  Of course there was a line.  A nice, long, wrap around the mall type line.  It's what I expected, so only like 50 times did the thought cross my mind that I may waste 4 hours of my life standing in line and then be told I have to come back the next day to get it.   But I decided to make the best of the experience and tell myself that I would get my phone that night.

Jake got to the mall at around 5:45.  Awesome. This means I get to go shopping while he stands in line.  And I successfully left the line 3 times and shopped.  The mall has GREAT deals in every store right now, not kidding.  It was fun.  I hadn't shopped in a while.  Now don't think I got myself a new wardrobe; I mainly got baby things since about 73% of the women I know are pregnant.  That may be an exaggeration, but that's close to about right.

So while I'm shopping, Jake calls and tells me he's hungry so I should go and get us some dinner at the food court.  I do. I get us the new Spicy Chicken sandwiches from Chick fil A.  Um, delicious! And their fries, yum!  I forgot how much I like Chick fil A.  So after we eat in line, some nice Apple people come by and tell us we'll be getting free Chick fil A dinner!  That's right, Jake and I had 2 dinners.  Both from Chick fil A.  It was free, how could we resist?

About 2 1/2 hours after I initially got in line we were at the front of the line.  We meet our Apple dude that will help us out and we're in the store. And 15 minutes later we're leaving with our new iphones, holding on to them for dear life.  I still do. I'm so scared to drop it, scratch it, etc.

I'll spare you the details of my dilemmas with my iphone, but basically I have an old computer that's not compatible with the new phone, so I couldn't get all my old data into the new phone.  Left me frustrated, but with a little patience, I spoke to an Apple support dude and he told me how to do it on Jake's computer (his is a newer computer).

So all is well.  I love my iPhone.  I would repeat that experience any day.  Maybe I'll become one of those crazy fanatics after all... As long as I can shop while the hubby waits in line :)

Just some things I want to share

1. This weekend is a 3 day weekend for me.  I plan on sleeping in (anytime past 5:30 will make me happy) tomorrow, I plan on getting a big dent in our laundry basket, I plan on playing with Vince, I plan on getting my hair done (the grays are getting a little out of control), I plan on having a date with the hubby, and I plan on laying by the pool at Haylie's.  It will be glorious.

2. Vince loves to be held like a baby.  Only when he's relaxed or super tired.  I LOVE this about him.  He will lay there and stare back at you with his paws in  resting, cute position.  It melts my heart.  I really never thought I could love a dog.  I LOVE this dog!  If you haven't already, you need to meet him. 

3. We are getting our kitchen/pantry area painted right now.  It's looking good; not as dark as I had hoped, but it looks good.  I'll post pictures of it when it's dry and everything is back in place.  I need to find a couple more things for the walls, so I'll post pics after I do that!

4. Jake and I will be Uncle and Aunt to a baby boy in early December.  We are pretty excited.

5. We pre-ordered our iphones.  We are beyond excited about this. We weren't even planning on getting them until later in the year, but just so happens that it was easy for me to get on the website when I got on and pre-order it.  I had tried a couple of times earlier in the day without success, so I told myself I would try only one more time when I got home, and sure enough it worked right away.  Pretty sure God was in favor of us getting these things.  

6. I'm craving Italian food.  Romeo's specifically.  Haven't been there in years and it just sounds delicious right now.

7. In a 11 days, Jake and I will be at the 2 year mark of marriage.  WOW! It's been 2 years?? Really??  Jake has surprises for me on Sunday, and I honestly have no idea what it could be.  This is a first for me; I ALWAYS know his surprises.  I'm excited.  

8. I need a pedicure. BAD. I may get one tomorrow if I have some time.  My mom would be ashamed of my toes if she saw them; and that's how I know I NEED a pedi.

That's all for now!

Afternoon off :)

I have the rest of this lovely Friday off work.  about 75% of my team was gone, so I decided I should be too.  So what do I do with a little time on my hands?  First, I blog!

Ugh, there's a fly in the house.  Came in while I was taking Vince out...he likes to linger at the door ledge and let the flies in; we gotta work on that.  And on biting; he's still not over that yet.

So this year has been a year of doctors for me.  Today I went to physical therapy for my crazy hip pain, and I'm quite pleased as I think this will once and for all fix my problems. That's just what I think, but your prayers are greatly appreciated on this.  I've been saying lately that I feel like I'm 70 - I only LOOK like I'm 25.  I have hip pain and my head is about 20% grey - those should not be characteristics of someone my age.

Today, the physical therapists kept making comments such as "oh girl!"  "wow! it goes all the way up to your shoulder (from my feet)"...that's how messed up I am.  Amongst other things, I have low mobility in my left foot and I am VERY off balance.  She could tell just by looking at me stand that I keep most of my weight on my heels, which apparently is bad.  And you want to know what she said would definitely fix it?  Having a baby!  Yes, she advised I get pregnant as the 30 pounds of weight in front of me for 9ish months will teach my body to have normal balance.  Maybe we'll take her advise...

Anyhow, I'm ready for this pain to go away so I can get back to my normal, tough, sweat for a whole hour work outs!

And now I'm off to Target. We need some new lamp shades to match our new bed spread - we got this awesome deal at Crate and Barrel on it; it's brown, beige, orange, and some light blue.  We're pretty excited because it's lighter-weight than our old one.  Perfect for summer.  I'll post pics of the room, once it's all put together :)

I love half days.