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Friday, September 18, 2009

Finding Fun in the Ordinary

Sometimes as husband and wife things can fall into a very hum drum in ways. Sometimes you just have to turn some of the most ordinary most normal things in your day and make them fun.

Tuesday, August 11, 2009

lessons learned from a one year old

If we as adults could learn from our children as much as they learn from us we would feel more fulfilled.

Lesson 1 never give up
Have you ever watched a child learning to walk? They will take a few steps and fall get up take a few more and fall and sometimes they fall so hard you are certain they are hurt and the just get right back up and yet again. We as adults give something a try if it doesn't work we quit. If we all tried to do new things in the same way a baby tries to walk there would be no failure.

Lesson 2 do what you want to do

Children at this age are quite defiant for their 20 lb selves and they will do what they want. If little baby want to walk around the living room for an hour straight they will despite how badly you want them to play the expensive educational toy you brought. As grown ups we tend to put other peoples wants befor our own and I think this applies even more so to the women out there. We are constandly doing things for our families but we often forget about our wants. Take some time to do things you truely want to do and you will feel less resentful when you do those other things for your family.


Lesson 3 go to sleep when you are tired

No one likes to be around the baby who is soo sleepy and so crabby and just don't want to go to sleep. You are the same way too but there no one making you go to sleep. Whatever you want to do can wait until you are rested and whatever it is will probally be done better when you are rested!! So go to sleep!

Lesson 4 would you feed that to your kid?

As adults we often do not consider the food we put in our mouths but when it comes to our children we are thinking fruits veggies maybe even organic! But think about this you body is the same as theirs just with a little more experience why should it not be given the same quality food as you child? Next time you go to put that vending machine lunch in your mouth think would I give this to my kid for their lunch? If the answer is no put it down!

Lesson 5 learn someting new everyday
Babies are constandly learning everthing they do teaches them something different. Even as they learn more they become More and more curious and want to learn more and more. But as adults we often feel as if we have learned all we can learn and even though we are given opportunities to learn more we do not take them because we have lost the desire to learn or seem to think we know everything. If we all used a childs curiousity to continue to learn throughout our adult lives we would feel more fulfilled and knowledgable about the world around us and give us all a little more fulfillment.

I encourage you today to learn a little from the children around you they have a lot to teach even as we tell them they have a lot to learn!

Friday, August 7, 2009

thoughts on college

When I was in high school I remember a friend who graduated and went off to colleg only to come back home six months later a totally different person! I used to say "college took the silly out of Jenny" I never thought that would happen to me! Now I look back to four years ago when I started college and realize college sucked the life out of me!!! It has been so long since I relaxed that now that I don't have to stress about things I am stressing because my body feels its forgetting something to stress and about and I stress about that! Now that college is over I am having to relearn how to socialize... Its even more difficult to even explain how to go about these things! I find now that Collee was just a total waste! I look now and are the people I went to high school with who I thought were "stupid" for not going to college and they've been working for over 2 years with no college debt and able to begin adult life where I am here still unable to get a job four years later with more debt than I care to think about because not only did I have to pay 20000 to go to school I also had to incure debt to pay to live because I didn't have time to work! In the future I will not be encouraging my children to follow this path I will educate them that college is not the only way out! Did you know barely any of the rich people we associate with ever went to college? I've learned more about life in the three months I've been graduated then I did in the whole four years I was in college and I hope to pass some of this knowledge along rather than others fall in this same hole!

Tuesday, August 4, 2009

Quote for today

If I wait until I become perfect to love myself, I will waste my whole life. I am already perfect right here and right now

Saturday, July 25, 2009

The Time Will Come



"If You don't have anything nice to say don't say anything at all"



One day I will be back with something less bitter to say until then I'm taking a sabbatical from the blog..

Thursday, July 16, 2009

Tips for Future brides..

Now that most wedding bliss is over and Zach and I have now celebrated our first month being married I thought to give some advice for those brides to be.. And maybe others can learn from this too... 

1) Don't stress( I know so cliche) The day goes by so fast you won't even remember who you talked to.. more less the little details you are worried about.  

2) Don't make your guest wait for you to eat.  MY biggest mistake.. Since the wind destroyed my arch before the ceremony we had to wait and take all pictures after the ceremony forcing our guests to wait an hour in our reception area.. And as soon as we got there most people left because they thought they waited to long for us.. Let them eat and be happy! 

3) Make sure your guests know what you want them to do.. If you want dancing.. TELL THEM.. don't assume music will get them off their butts (I did and it didn't work) 

4) Things will go wrong just know that that will make your day even more special when you can look back and laugh.. Our 1st dance song looped at least three times, we were announced Mr. and Mrs Taylor and I forgot my vows and had to read them...leading me to 5

5) Don't write long sentimental vows. You are standing in front of A LOT of people.  Its an emotional day.  Its hard enough to say a few lines in front of a lot of people(for most people) add crying to the mix.. It's a tough road! 

6) Always have stain remover pen/wipe on hand! You are wearing white you are going to spill something on it! 

7) Before you and your husband move in together define and enforce who will do what (Chores, finances, cooking, etc) Once you get in a routine its hard to change and you don't wanna end up doing everything.  

8) Watch your grooms mother's cooking! He will expect it to be the same... and nothing else will do! 

9) Don't create unreal expectations for the wedding day you will only be disappointed. 

10) and finally Smile! Have fun! You are going to be photographed a lot you wanna look your best in them all so if you're having fun it will show through! 

Friday, July 10, 2009

Reader poll...

Once household chores have been divided up between spouses should one spouse still have to remind other spouse to do their chore?

Wednesday, July 8, 2009

Starting a Business...

I finally officially started my business today.  One may think that it would take quite a bit of money and hassle to start a business.. but today I found out it is way easier than one may think.. but more complicated in ways you wouldn't expect.. Let me explain.

Step 1) Register your business name.  Easy enough. Drive down to the register of deeds (I'm starting to feel like I see those people quite a lot) fill out the form, have it notarized, pay $14 and done.  You can now operate your business under a "fake" name.  

Step 2) Apply for the business permit.  Now this is not required in all cites and  counties but of course in Wilmington it is.  So you drive around the block to the city office.  Go to the business-permit room fill out the application..Then (here's the funny part) you go to zoning for approval.  Now zoning makes a lot of sense for brand new building operating businesses but I'm operating from my home so to me it seemed a little silly. So I go up there and talk to the zoning office.. and they ask "how much space is your business taking up in your apartment?" Well frankly it takes up no more than my normal crafting stuff but I try and explain the space of my craft area.. and he says You may need a  some kinda permit to allowing up to 5 customers a day and 1 employee and no large freight trucks to come to your home.. I'm like woah! this is a small online business, no customers to my home and no employees i don't think i need that! Besides the thing cost $250! So after we worked through that he still said I need a letter from the apartment complex to give me approval for operating a business from my home.  I reply. I work there I"m sure its fine.. But I still need the letter. 

Step 3) go to the apartment office and ask for a letter.. 

Step 4) back to the zoning office they see the letter and give me zoning permission.  

Step 5) Down to the first floor back to the business permit office where I fill in some more information, Pay them $30 and walk out with Chi Fashionista's Business permit! 

WoooHooo! It took about 3 hours total time to legally start my business.. It feels so exciting to know that i am now operating a legit business!  

Now granted the time it took me to create the web page, begin the accounting software and sew the clothing are not included  its still pretty awesome how quickly you can begin a business.. 


Now where's the customers?!?!

Wednesday, July 1, 2009

Crafters Nightmare

So Over the years I'll gathered quite the collection of crafting supplies.  When I first moved to wilmington I brought a sketch book, one paint set, and some makers.  After being in college and the endless supplies needed for art classes gathered and I collected different items for personal use.. Well My collection would be too long to list but lets just say.. when Zach and I moved to our apartment I said we can't have a dining room I need somewhere for my craft stuff!  Well now.. my craft stuff has FILLED our "dining room"As you can see it's a disaster and there is no where to put my craft stuff more less work!  I am tring to start my own doggie clothing line and with no work space I was becoming more and more frustrated.  With Fabric in piles...  My work table covered.. on top and underneath  So I decided Enough Is ENOUGH I had to do something to get more space.. More organized and get more "work" done.  
Well.. as most houses Zach and I had the what i like to call the Avalanche closet.. Where it's so full of stuff when you open it everything just falls out.. Well since most of what is in this closet we don't use because we can't get to it there was no reason it need to be in the house.. So why not move it to the garage.  I cleaned out this closet moved all the stuff to the garage and designed it to be my craft storage.. I went out and brought some storage shelves and organization containters... And now I have the crafters dream! A whole organized closet designated for my craft stuff!! And look how pretty... 
And I didn't even want to show you the before of this closet.. but you couldn't see those pink and orange baskets...and don't even think about the floor..  But now.. You can even walk in the closet.. I ca easily access all my craft supplies.. And its no longer and avalanche closet! Look at my workspace 
Its a work space!!! Not a disaster! 

And the best part.. The whole project was done all while Zach was at work and costed under $50! Super exciting to have an awesome work space and storage! 

Sunday, June 28, 2009

Thank you!

Sometimes in todays society I believe the words "Thank you" are under used although some may say over used.  We always here the words when you are out in public and a nice stranger opens a door or picks something up for you.. Most people would reply "thank you" and go about their way.. but what about the people you see everyday: co workers, friends and spouses, how often do you say thank you to them?  i know I don't hear it very often especially not as often as I would like to and although I don't hear it and i make an effort to show my appreciate but i know that I'm gilty of the same non appreciate no thank you sometimes too.  
During the gift givings of my wedding I tried to make an immediate effort to send out thank you notes to all of those individuals that gave us a  gift.  Each person received a hand written personalized thank you.  Even though after doing 50+ thanks yous it didn't feel as personalized.. And while writing my thank you cards  I realized that thank yous should really be used more often.  Especially after I donated my goods to the domestic violence shelter and only days later I received a hand written thank you for my donation~! I literally just packed up my old stuff and drove in 50 yards up the street and I was appreciated . 

So today and all other days when you see someone (Not just a stranger) do something special, somethings that showed extra effort Don't forget to thank them.. A little kindness can go along way! 

Friday, June 26, 2009

Surfing!

So.. You think this post is about zach... WRONG :)

I rode my first wave in over 3 years yesterday! Zach finally got smart about surfing and decided to ask me to go with him. Of course the waves have to be just perfect for me to go.. Perfectly small! And they were and I was able to spend 2 hours in the waves yesterday. Sadly, I do live within minutes of the beach and this was the first time my body has touched the ocean in probally 2 years! So it took me a few minutes to readapt to waves, current, and generally being in the water. But I find it funny how all your training comes back to you. I was taught the mechanics of surfing my freshman year of college when i joined surf club and once a week they would take you to the ocean and teach you how to surf. Zach I think was a little impressed with my "turtle rolls" and ability to not let the waves bully me around. Although I didn't fully stand up on any of the waves I rode I had a blast! I still don't know how Zach does it everyday my body was so sore when we got home. I look forward to other small surf days when I can go out and attempt to surf some more!

Wednesday, June 24, 2009

Out with the Old....

Funny thing about getting married is.. you get a lot of gifts.. Don't get me wrong Zach and I LOVE gifts but there problem with a lot of gifts and an apartment is NOT a lot of space!! After returning home from the honeymoon our apartment floor was covered.. with STUFF! Literally there was a walking path from the door to our bedroom/bath and that was it! I didn't think I would ever find a place for everything..we were already a little cluttered... I finally had cleared out the living room dining room area  and put most of that stuff away sorta but really just piled most of it in the kitchen.  When I went to put away the kitchen I decided there is absolutely no way everything is going to fit in here so I said Out with the old... And Zach and I decided to get rid of our old "college kid" stuff and use our new "grow-up" stuff.  Although it was a bit hard to get rid of the plastic plates and cups I'd had since I was a freshman in college it was just time. Well by the time we had cleared out everything we no longer wanted we had a huge pile of stuff to get rid of.. I saw no reason to throw these items away.. they still have a lot of life left.. and thus decided we were going to donate the items.  Usually i just load the stuff up and drop it off to good will but this time I really wanted to help someone in need.. So I contacted a friend who volunteers with Open Gate a domestic violence shelter in Wilmington to find out if they needed any donations. And of course they did.  And so today I am taking by our kitchen stuff to the domestic violence shelter.  When someone leaves a domestic violence situation they go to open gate where they help them get back on their feet which includes finding them a new home and assisting them to purchase they need to live in their new home.  So I know our kitchen stuff will help someone in need very soon and I feel much better about giving it away. 

Sunday, June 21, 2009

Back to Life...

Zach and I have arrived back to our apartment in Wilmington despite my resentment to returning back to our day to day life.  After experiencing nothing but wedding bliss for the last two weeks coming back to the chores and work of everyday life is not something I was looking forward too... Especially after our 7 days in Harrisonburg.. Zach and I were able to spend all seven days together without interruptions.. We were able to savor each others company fully and do only things we wanted to do without a worry of schedule, work, taking care of our "children", or any of the boring day to day things that life consists of.. I knew that we are not going to experience that same bliss again so I was not looking forward to coming home.  But after really thinking it through Knowing my four children were patiently waiting for our arrive I knew we had to come back to reality.. back to life.. And despite the fact that we were away for a whole week.. its funny how fast things can just go right back to normal
Look.. Zach's already sleeping on the coach.. and you won't guess what I was doing.. Cleaning :)


Funny how things just fall right back to normal... 


Happy Fathers Day Mike! I'm glad I finally have a father to wish a Happy Fathers day!  

Thursday, June 18, 2009

Just Married!

Wow Has it been a long time since I posted...I Wanted to update and say Zach and I are offically husband and wife.. I am posting from Harrisonburg, VA where we are spending the week for our honeymoon! 
We had an absolutely perfect ceremony and a wonderful reception.  
I will direct you to my sister-in-law's blog for an awesome post of the day http://www.michaelandlindseykaufman.blogspot.com/

 Hopefully upon returning to Wilmington I will be updating more frequently as Zach and I begin our married life! 

Sunday, May 10, 2009

The Graduate

Yesterday I finally graduated college.. A day I've looked forward to since I started school.. It wasn't until yesterday that it really even set in what I achomplished until my grandmother and i were looking at an old photo album and found a newspaper clipping my mom had saved from kindergarden.. it was from one day when were told to dress up like what we wanted to be when we grew up.. and what was I? A scientist... now granted at this moment I am not a "scientist" but I finally did graduate with a BA in a Social Science.. and well the potential to become a social scientist! How cool :) I wanted to share with you all my graduation experience..

10:00 University Graduation- All us theatre kids sat together in the back and made a bit of "Noise"
11:30 Theatre Dept Graduation- Dr. V. forgot me.. Ed called me Sue ( my middle name that I hate) and My candy diploma was broken :(
3:00 Psycholgy Dept. Graduation- I won the Joseph Awkard Service award and Zach missed it!


That Concludes the day long events of graduation in a nice brief summary : )

Saturday, May 2, 2009

42 days!



And the countdown is on! There is only 42 days between now and our wedding! That is a scary thought! I have so much to do before then in order to make that day happen! My dress finally came in and I had an opportunity to take some bridal portraits on Wrightsville Beach which I'd love to share but I know Zach would sneak a peek! The wind gave us quite a bit of trouble and it blew my dress in every direction but down and my veil in my face and off my head more times then I'd like to recall BUT there were some fabulous pictures in there! But for a Zach friendly sneak peak.. Here ya go :)


As the wedding time nears its such a wonderful feeling to have so many things accomplished but the do list keeps growing and growing and gives me a little bit of queasiness sometimes! I am currently taking requests for music at the wedding as I am now beginning the wedding play list so if you have any particular requests Let me know ;)


I am asking asking anyone outthere if they have a projector for a slide show during the reception that we could use/borrow/rent and if anyone has one of those play pins that you can put up that resembles this our ring bearers
would really love to be apart of the reception and would be returned immediatly after the reception! Thank you in advance!
And for the rest of the wedding things are rolling on..

Friday, May 1, 2009

The End is near....


It's hard to believe that I'm about to graduate from college.. It's this scary, amazing step forward in life that leads me to think What NOW? For four years I have been a college student, attending classes, doing homework, going to club meetings, campus activities, using the campus resources, getting student discounts, and NOW in 1 week I will be a College Graduate!! I am going to be the first person in my family to have ever graduated from a four year university!! Throughout the process it felt somewhat mundane... Going to school just like "everyone" else.. but when I think about it.. Statistically not "everyone" goes to college.. But then when I also think about the resume I had to create for my Senior Seminar and all the things I had to put on there... and the fact that I have to create 2 for each of my majors.. I feel like it's been way longer than four years! 

 The hardest things about getting ready to graduate is the scary fact of what am I going to do all day? I am currently HUNTING for work like its a job but after school.. Thats all I have to do! I am so used to 6 classes to attend, 6 classes worth of homework, projects for classes and the theatre, being president of a student organization, working, and just life.. Now In reality i just have work and life! What do you do with all the extra time!?! This one day has been coming for a long time but with the reality of it sinking in as each day passes an one more class is over as one more project is completed, and as the new president of Psi Chi takes over.. I keep finding my self veged out on the couch.. Feeling like i need to be doing something and not knowing what to do... I guess I can finally work on some of those wedding things.. Since thats creeping up too!!

Thursday, April 23, 2009

You ARE what you EAT

I'm sure by my multiple posts about food have noticed I'm a little overly concerned about food and what Zach and I eat as a family.  As a Family I have begun to move us into organic world.. Trying to purchase as much fresh foods organic as possible but as anyone who has shopped for organic foods knows it cost much more than non organic foods. Shopping for organic foods goes against almost everything i've ever know about grocery shopping.. I have always brought the cheapest item possible of the type with no concern for brands but unless you shop at Harris Teeter ( which is already more expensive then other grocery stores) you can not find off brand organic foods and as you sit there and compare the prices you are met with much anamacity of what to by simply because non organic foods are a dollar or more CHEAPER than organic foods!! So while grocery shopping brings such inner turmoil between organics and non organic i have been trying to purchase as much organic as I can for our family as long as its affordable.

 Along with making my family organic I have decided to personally become vegetarian.  It has been 2 weeks since I ate meat and I am loving it.  It has always been something I wanted to do because I love animals and am bit of an animal activist.  After finishing the book Skinny Bitch I decided to make the decision.  After reading that book I almost can't even look at foods from animals in the same way.. Although the book promotes veganism which is my next step I have only given up meat, milk and eggs at this point.. Cheese and butter will have to come later along with any processed foods with milk in them i still eat.  The funny thing about becoming vegetarian is how much resistance I am met with.. I have in no way forced my decision on anyone it is simply that I choose not to eat meat but was actually shocked at how others have reacted to my decision! A decision that I am so proud of has caused so many odd remarks and has definitely infuriated zach for reasons i still don't understand! But I know my reasonings and i know the decision i have made will improve my health and i will feel much better about my food decisions.. If you just need one of the many reasons i have to not eat meat visit goveg.com and watch the videos, read the chapter entitled You are what you eat from Skinny Bitch by Rory Freedman and Kim Barnouinor simply think of what happens to the poor cows, chickens and pigs before we eat them... You Are what you eat and in the words of Kim and Rory: "you are eating high blood pressure stress, and adrenalin.  You are eating fear, grief, and rage.  You are eating suffering, horror, and murder. You are eating cruelty."  You are what you eat
I leave you with that... not to tell you to be vegetarian, vegan but simply to remember you are what you eat and everything you put in your body becomes a part of you and if you really think about what you eat.. it can get a little disgusting! 

Thursday, April 9, 2009

Zach's B-day Cake



When I woke up this morning to decorate Zach's Birthday cakes this is what I found


It looked like a disaster I didn't know what I was going to do! So I whipped up some butter cream to attempt to "glue" the cake back together enough so that I could at least give him some sort of cake As I continued to make the cake I decided to try something new.. I wanted to make a 3-d cake.. So I decided to make Zach a surfing cake.. And about four hours later here is Zach's birthday cake..

I think if the cake hadn't been such a disaster when i first started it would of have a better chance but I really am impressed of how it looks :)

Sunday, April 5, 2009

The Art of Grocery Shopping

One thing that has taken me about 3 years to learn is the art of grocery shopping.. I used to think that it was cheapest and easiest to just go to one store (usually walmart) and buy all the grocery's I could afford to buy all at one store in one trip so that I wouldn't spend useless money on random items each week at the store not to mention the amount of time i saved by only going every month or so (with the exception of milk and bread) and just buying everything all at once.. but there was something I always noticed I was throwing away alot of that food before I could ever use it all! Especially veggies... So I have since learned to shop around.. And I have noticed that it's a real art!

It really dawned on me the other day when Zach and I just happened to be at 2 different grocery stores at the same time (weird i know) and We were discussing the items we needed for our home and even though the money cames from the same account we divided who would buy what based solely on the store we were at! So.. For example: Zach was at Harris Teeter who has milk for about $3 a gallon which is very cheap and I was at Lowes foods where eggs were on sale for $.99 a carton and I purchased the eggs and he got the milk.. and we divided it up like that! I found it very amusing! :)

Another thing I've learned is to buy specific food groups from diff rent stores, yes it is inconvenient when you really only need a few items to shop around different stores but usually you will save so much more money and get much better quality food by doing so. What i've learned Buy Fruits and Veggies at Harris Teeter, Lowes Foods, or Fresh Market based on whats on sale!
Buy meats at Food Lion for the best deals or Lowes Foods (if you live in Wilmington take a friend with you to food lion b/c they are all a little sketchy) Buy your paper products, cleaning products, boxed goods from Wal mart for the cheapest price! But NEVER buy fresh goods (meats or veggies) they go bad MUCH faster than if you purchase your goods from another store!!

Another awesome saver is coupons! I've become a very avid coupon clipper.. Every Sunday I get the paper from my work and clip all the coupons out that I know I will/could use before they expire. I also have them sent to my email using coupons.com. If you are an avid craft store shopper sign up w/ their websites to have them email you their coupons (they email about 2 or more a week!) i've saved tons of money using coupons.. I used to think they were just a waste of time but alot of stores will actually double your coupons so you can turn .50 coupon into a dollar of savings!!

My final grocery tip is a LIST sounds simple.. but really I keep a magentic shopping list on our fridge and each time an item is finished or we decide we need something it goes on the list and then you can just pick it up without having to think while you are at the store OH dID i need.. It's a hard habit to stick to but if you are dedicated you will save time and money on items you think you need at the store but when you get home you realize you don't need it at all.. Also, if you can stick to the list you won't pick up items you don't need at all (this is my biggest weakness...OH thats on sale.. and we didn't even need it!! )

Use these tips and enjoy your grocery shopping.. I've learned to have fun finding the best deals!

Friday, April 3, 2009

Sports



When I was younger I was very involved in different sports. Every season I played a sport there was never a time that I didn't have a practice to attend or a game. Since I started college I was not involved in any sports. SO over the last 4 years I've been struggling to find interesting ways to exercise which usually involve the gym. As most people who have attended the gym know you have to work pretty hard to make that interesting... But when some of the Psi Chi members said they wanted to participate in an intramural team I was pretty resistant in participating.. I encouraged them to sign up for the team if they could find enough members who were interested but that I didn't want to be too involved because I had too much stuff going on. Well the team proceeded to sign up for softball and because we were a team of both guys and girls they required the same number of girls play every game as guys so the team captain would call me begging to sign up and be on the team and I did.. And now I LOVE IT! I've played in two of the games and I've always been the catcher a position I never had the opportunity to play before because I was bat blind and the goal of softball then was to win and for us it's just for fun so if I mess up no one cares!! I am almost sad that we only have one remaining game because I've enjoyed playing so much.. Zach came out to one of the games and took some pictures so you can enjoy them :) Oh, And I thought I should add we've WON 2 of the 3 games and half of our players have never played softball before in their lives!









Wednesday, April 1, 2009

What is that in the Kitchen?!

Last night I got to expeience one of the most unsual things to happen in our houshold...

Zach was cooking!! He can be seen seen here caught in action!

This fabulous meal consisted of fresh shrimp and hushpuppies all prepared by Zach. Although I did have to peel the shrimp it was very worth it! Our wonderfully fried goods were not so great for my diet or my attempts at eating healthy or vegitarian BUT it sure was yummy!!!

Monday, March 30, 2009

The Weekend..


This weekend was one of few where I actually didn't have to work.  This gave me the opportunity to walk in a charity walk called Walk for those Who Can't which is sponsored by Carolina Canines.  Carolina Canines rescues dogs from local shelters, has prisoners train these dogs to be service dogs and then they GIVE them away to those with disabilities.  One of the specific "groups" they target is in Camp Lejune where they give service dogs to wounded soldiers.  These service dogs take up to 3 years to train and are  valued at almost $40,000!!!  This organization is absolutely wonderful! All the dogs are kept in foster homes and trained by volunteers.. I  was so glad that I have the opprotunity to participate in this charity event... The walk was so much fun as well I took my "kids" on the walk and Oliver didn't make it the whole 2.5 miles but Parker did pretty good.. but once we got home they slept the whole rest of the day!!! While the kids and I walked Zach was surfing the monstrous waves that we got over the weekend.
He Really enjoyed being able to have so waves like you see in all the surf magazines.  He surfed these fabulous waves practically the whole weekend so Although I had the weekend off We still did not see each other anymore than if I had worked the whole weekend!! 

surfing big waves


i am so tired after my long weekend of surfing. we have had head high waves for over 3 days now. here is a pic enjoy....

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

The Food War continues..

Just when I think i've found a way of getting healthier foods into our home.. I hit a road block..

Today I am home from school early and make Zach and I lunch.. I decide to go Mexican and make a vegetarian tortilla pie with black beans, corn, salsa and cheese.. SOunds yummy right!?! Zach walks in and goes.. There's a lot of bean on that.. Do you not like beans I say? NO! So continue to persue the issue? Do you not like black beans.. what about this bean and i go through a list.. and its a flat out I DON'T LIKE BEANS issue!  So Now i Have to eliminate all green vegetables and beans!! Which makes a healthy fresh diet seemingly impossible!! 

Someone tell me there's hope out there. that my adult baby will learn to like good food!! 

Monday, March 23, 2009

Living w/ a Gown up baby..

I like most moms have to introduce "new" foods to my "grown up baby" very slowly.. One at a time.. In my effort to make our home more eco friendly and the things we put in our bellies better for us I find myself relating very much to the moms around me with babies(real babies).

When we moved to our new apartment (ALMOST A YEAR AGO) I forced recycling upon our home which at first was meet with much resentment but now is more of habit and no so much work.  Now I am working on food. 
 Last week I filled our home with lots of fresh foods and have been trying to weed out some of the packaged foods that zach and I tend to lean on.  The one thing I noticed.. I WAS THE ONLY ONE WHO ATE THE FOOD!! 
 So now THIS week I have made a menu that I VOW to follow and prepare food everyday this week.. WITH fresh veggies, home cooked food, and only a few meals with packaged foods.. As with this introduction today zach says "What's for dinner" I say "Didn't you look at the menu?" of course you can guess the next response..... So I say we are having pork chops and you know the first thing he asks for.. MAc and cheese!?!? Mac and cheese OVER my home made mash potatoes with homemade gravy and salad!?!?! 

So We'll see how this goes.. MY other food introduction.. shh.. A meatless meal!! I have always been debating between vegetarian and carnivore but found it challenging to give up chicken.. so i have decided at lease once a week we will have a meatless meal.. THis week: bean chili.. I'll update you on how THAT goes.. considering.. that fresh veggies hasn't been a hit!! 


Tuesday, March 17, 2009

Time for a Wedding update!

It's been so long since I posted i had to go back and review my own blog!! Last week was spring break from school for me so it was a week long wedding work  week! My mom came up to visit with me so that we could get as much done on the wedding as possible considering the upcoming months will be packed full of events (other than my wedding) that it would be very challenging for us to squeeze it in.
  So to fill you in on the progress.. We now have less than 3 months until the wedding!!
  • We have now received all of our bridesmaids gowns and all but one have been picked up and all of them fit just as they were order to fit (one will need to be altered but we knew that from the beginning) My wedding dress is scheduled to arrive by the middle of next month and once that arrives we will decide on a veil and or headpiece.  My wedding shoes have been order and will arrive about the same time as my dress.  My bridesmaids shoes are in the process of being purchased(as they will double as gifts).  Our flower girl's dress is order and not sure when it will arrive but when it does the whole top will need to be remade so lets hope it gets here soon! One of the ring bearers has a tux and the other one still has to be purchased.   All hair appointments have been scheduled.  Our groom now has a tux and 2 of the 4 groomsman have been fitted! 
  • We have a confirmed HONEYMOON! Which I was beginning to think would never come through! We will be going to Masunutten VA thank you Uncle Bill and Aunt Linda for you help w/ that!!  
  • We have our reception decor: candles, votive, and the necessities ( table cloths, napkins, forks, plates, & cups).  Our flowers have been order and mostly paid for thus covering centerpieces, boutonnieres, corsages, and bouquets. We have gotten lots of volunteer chefs to help prepare our pot luck food so I believe food is taken care of (this is the one item i personally have not been handling) Items for the reception that are still lacking are: guestbook, music, greeters, toasts, cake cutting knife, toasting glass (bride and groom) 
  • As for the cake, I am still planning on making it.  I am half way through my 2nd Wilton cake decorating course and am now learning about fondant which is what I want to use with the cakes.  While mom was here we made a few to practice and were very please with the results to Cake is till a go! 
  • We have a photographer confirmed and I believe a videographer (Zach's working on this so I'm not sure if its confirmed
  • For the ceremony we now have, benches, arch, vases(for decor) and flowers to run the aisle, we have an officiant, and we are lacking supplies for a sand ceremony and the vows to be said.  My mom is working on putting together the programs which will be handed out at the ceremony.  We are still lacking transportation for the bride and her mother from the dressing location to the ceremony as well as transportation for those who are not able to walk to and from the reception to the ceremony.  
  • Invitations are almost finished! Each one was made by hand with the help of my groom, mom, and a bridesmaid!
  • Our wedding website is up and running with the most up to date information as well as rsvp online! which i love! 
At this point I think that we have everything mostly done for the wedding.  I am still projecting on finishing the invitations to be mailed out by the end of the month, practicing on the cake, finding music. My mom and Zach are working on many of the other task that I have mention as still missing... 

But considering this is my first wedding that I will be attending and planning and my mom's first wedding to be planned WE would love any advice you may have on things we may be forgetting or not thinking about... Or just advice in general!!! 

Sorry for the long winded post but as much as I wanted to update you all it also has helped me map out my to do list!! 


Friday, February 27, 2009

Forgotten Beauty







Some days you really take for grated the beauty that surrounds us.. Yesterday I had the opportunity to go to the beach oand photograph Zach surfing.. While the waves were not consistant there was often a lot of down time where he was just floating in the water and I was left to just look around at the enviroment around me... As I have been so busy lately I had totally forgotten how much I enjoy the beach! I almost forgot what the sand feels like between your toes and how relaxing the sounds of the waves crashing to the shore can be.. I just found our day at the beach to be so calm and soothing.. I can't believe that I don't go there more often!! I alway take for granted how lucky we are to live so close to the beach and we rarely have bad weather.. When I am on the beach and look around at the beauty of the ocean, the sand, and the sea grass I wonder how hard it must be to NOT have ever seen the ocean.. HOW difficult it would be to move away from it.. and I just can't believe that I don't go and enjoy the sights more often! I decided to show you some of the pictures that I took while on the beach.. Enjoy :)

Thursday, February 19, 2009

What I love about the Theatre...

After the countless hours you put in, all the dinners skipped to work on the productions, getting behind on homework assignments you know the production will come and be gone and you can get back to life as you knew it before tech.. But after the cramming stressful days just before a show goes up you wonder why do i put myself through this why do I do this every show.. The 2 wks before a show opens are complete and utter chaos all the time you have goes in to the theatre.. there are lots of frustrations as cues you worked so hard on are suddenly deleted from the show.. You are asked to find various extra cues you weren't planning for and you think.. THIS IS NEVER GOING TO BE READY.. but when the night comes that you finally have an audience you know "THIS IS WHY I DO IT" hearing the audience enjoy all the various aspects of the production as they sit back in their chairs laughing at all the right parts.. following the mood of the production and the show.. And you can see only the backs of their heads but you know they are smiling when they leave.. although no one ever knows how much work actually goes into productions like this but seeing the audience smile and enjoy the show is enough to keep me in the theatre and behind the scenes..

Sunday, February 15, 2009

Skating through Life

Valentines day for me was a day I wan not exactly looking forward too.. Not b/c it's Valentines day but because I knew that I had to spend 12 hours in the theatre for our 1st tech day; which never goes so smoothly! But I woke up to a wonderful breakfast cooked by my wonderful Fiance.  He made me Egg in the heart which is one of his mom's famous breakfast items that he loves to cook.  He always made me YUMMY YUMMY heart shaped toast.  Then the 12 hours in the theatre wasn't so bad and we actually ENDED early... so that I was actually only there 10.5 hours so we had enough time to make it to couples night at the ice skating rink.  While we were there I had a lot of thoughts about our relationship and life together.  

As we were Ice Skating as anyone who has ice skated before knows your skates carve the way in ice to move forward but of course as each person moves forward there are many many paths and each path created by another person can make it more and more difficult for you to move forward on your own path and i thought.. this is so much like life.. there are many many people who have moved forward through life before us and they carved out their own path and as you watched them go through you are often challenged in figuring out how to make your own path.. ... But I also realized that as Zach and I carve a way through life and try to stick together there will be lots of obstacles that will will have to avoid and deal with.  We also will have to learn when to hold each other back and when to let go and let one another try new things(Zach was learning to ice skate backwards while i can barely go forward) and move ourselves forward.  And when one of us falls ( Like i did while skating) know that the other will be there to help them get back to their feet! And just learning to trust each others judgments, learn each others goals and help each other achieve personal and family goals will help make our relationship more successful and our personal growth will make one another happier! 

Friday, February 6, 2009

Today's Baking Fun!

So  I was just so exciting about all my new baking supplies that  I just couldn't wait until class on Tuesday to start so I made a cake last night so that Today when I had a little more free time I could practice decorating.  Well my mom found this really neat site that said how you could make the little cakes that I want for my wedding so i decided to try some of the things it said to do.. 
After creating the initial parts of the cake I didn't start following the dir
ections to frost the little cakes which didn't turn out so well 
After that I went back to the instructions which also didn't work out so well.. b/c the candy stuff they said to put on was just too thick.. 

After that I just decided to have fun with the frosting... 

Then I decided to frost the cake.. Which turned out the best of them all And that was my baking adventure today...

They may not look the greatest but I don't think it was too bad and they TASTE Awesome!! 

Thursday, February 5, 2009

The DIY Wedding!

So I have decided in order to save costs and make our wedding as much US as possible I am creating most aspects of our wedding on my own which for me is fun but also a little stressful.

The Save the Dates went out last week and I created those which was tons of fun and I got lots of compliments on! It was so simple too! I just went to the beach wrote "Save the Date" and i wrote our names in the sand and when I got home i photo shopped them together and added a text box with our wedding date and WOW! an awesome save the date card! I just had to order then in the form of post cards, address them and stamp!

The next aspect of our DIY wedding will the be the invitations. I just received the paper today from the online co. that you can order paper from for fairly cheap and My mom and I will be spending spring break assembling those! Tons of FUN :)

I will also be creating the favors, programs, and many of the decorations. What I won't be DIY is Photography, I have hired Joey Wooton to do that for us! And Flowers, The flower Basket on HI road will be doing that!

I ALSO am going to ATTEMPT to make our wedding cake! I have signed up for the cake decorating class at Micheal's where we are learning how to decorate cake. So far I haven't had a chance to actually decorate yet but I have confidence that I will be good at it and quite capable of making the cake that I want for our wedding without having to pay the $500 everyone is charging!!! Since I am in the cake decorating course I will also be making alot of different cakes over the next few weeks so if anyone has an awesome cake recipie they would like to share I would love to try and make it!!!

I am loving the DIY wedding because it allows for me to input lots of my own creativity into the wedding as well as save a lot of money!! But I don't recommend it for those with little time because it can create quite a bit of stress!!

Saturday, January 31, 2009

Thoughts on Parenthood..



With Zach and I about to get married of course the next step comes into mind..BABIES!! Especially the last few days I have the privilege to watch a former boss of mines little baby Gwenivere! This little baby is just the sweetest little thing and I just adore her.. I can't believe I get paid to play with her! She is such a pleasure!!

While babysitting her and following her moms wishes of how she should be cared for I often thing about What am I going to be like as a mother? Will i be this protective? (at this point I should mention I am the ONLY babysitter that Gwenivere has ever had and this week was the longest her and her mother had been apart which was only 3.5 hours!!) Will I be like other moms i know which are hardly moms at all>. How do you learn such things as this cry means this.. this face means that.. I have the privilege of having Gwenivere's mom telling me she cries when she has to use the bathroom(ie change the diaper) and she puts her hands to her mouth when she is hungry and thirsty.. without this prior knowledge I would be trying to feed her when all she wants is her diaper changed!! I have been around very few moms in the past but those I have come across all have very different styles of parenting and I always just think.. Gosh If I were a Mom I wouldn't do that! or How did you know to do that? LIke baby slobber destroys the nutrients on food!! I am learning each day more about parenthood as I read my sister in laws blog and through my babysitting!

 I have to say that I am glad that I have had the opportunity to babysit Gwenivere and Meet Isabelle without meeting those two babies I don't know if I would have ever wanted to have kids! My god daughter was such a challenging baby compared to these two!  It's quite different being able to watch a calm child!! I always think of these things and all the things I learning in my child psy classes when I am with children and babies and wonder was it the parenting.. was it the genetic predisposition.. Could their behavior have been changed with other methods of discipline? With all my knowledge of these things it make me so nervous to become a parent! What if I have a colic baby?!? I find baby crying to be one of the worst noises ever!! Will I be able to develop a secure attachment with my baby? What kind of father will Zach be? With all these questions and no answers and I defiantly not ready to be a mom!! I am so glad that I have the opportunity to spend time with the babies around me with the guidance of the moms current habits and learn what they do that I find works or doesn't so in the future when I am a parent I will have some hands on experience as well as my knowledge from school about child development!!  

Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Struggles..

I have noticed that you guys got a small glimpse into the life of zach through is last few posts but I thought you should know his OTHER favorite hobby


I say this because I find it rather amusing HOW MUCH HE CAN SLEEP!!

A day in the life of Zach is

Work

Surf

sleep

tv

sleep

Repeat

Sometimes Instead of TV he replaces bowling..

I also find this quite annoying because While he's snoozing away on the coach I have to do homework, wedding plans, clean house, and or cook dinner.. And as we speak I am starving b/c I was supposed to come home to a Zach cooked meal and this is what I found instead of food!! After a late night in the theatre I am not really in the mood to cook especially since I have an exam tomorrow.. So instead I update our blog before beginning the long night of studing..

Sunday, January 25, 2009

surfing with my friends






within the past week we have had our friend from high school and her boyfriend move to Wilmington so i have found a new friend to annoy into going surfing with me. lol.  we went today which probably wasn't too good for someone who has been out of the sport for a while but he went anyway. it gave me some perspective on the progress on my surfing ability. when you first start you always wanna go even if its blown out even if the current pulls you down the beach within a matter of minutes and you don't even get a chance to ride a single wave. when i saw him out there today it reminded myself of me 7 or 8 months ago i was no better than he is now. i have been surfing since i was 15 but i stopped when i moved to Nashville for a year and after not doing it i was no good. since i moved to Wilmington i met alot of awesome friends that love surfing and i go almost every day so i can keep out of trouble. the more i go the better i get. my endurance is so much better i can surf for hours before getting tired. today it was about 50 degrees in the water and the air was about 37. it was cold after 2 and a half hours but definitely  worth it. here is some pics of the other day surfing enjoy.
zach

Thursday, January 22, 2009

Today's lesson to learn

Remember.. after a bad day there is always tomorrow! There is no need to dwell on the past and things you can not change. Vent and move on!!

Today was one of those days for me.. and I finally went over to a friends told her the story, had dinner, a margarita, and played scene it and now today doesn't even feel like the same day!

Always know tomorrow is a new day!

Wednesday, January 21, 2009

Life Lessons

Below is a list of things that I was privileged enough to learn before Zach and I got married and if I continue to remind myself of these things it will inevitable make our relationship stronger..

  1. No one cares if the house is a mess but me!
  2. Just because he has seen me at my worst doesn't mean he wants to see me that way everyday
  3. Actually attempting to look nice boosts your self esteem
  4. NO hes not going to notice the 1lb that I worked so hard to lose
  5. NO hes not going to eat all that healthly stuff you eat EVEN if it is all you buy
  6. Compromise is difficult but required!!
  7. yes he will always choose surfing over helping plan wedding, house cleaning, and cooking
  8. Guys are just not that into cleaning, cooking, decorating and other minor details (unless they have to do w/ surfing, dirt bikes, & cars)
  9. NAGGING DOES NOT WORK! if anyone else has a solution I would love to hear it :)
  10. No he will not take out the recycling and trash w/o me asking or do other household chores
  11. Quality time can consist of sitting on the couch together even if we are focused on two separate tasks

Those are just a few of the things that I have learned since Zach and I have been together and I consider myself very lucky to have learned most of them before we get married.. now if I could only remember those things each and every day!!!

Tuesday, January 20, 2009

Winter Decisions

Today was one of those days where you are laying in bed going.. "Do I really want to get up and go to class today" But Today unlike most I had very good reason to have those thoughts.. We were predicted to get snow today!! Although with the bad weather predictions UNCW unlike all the other schools in the county decided to continue with classes.. I knowing my driving skills, knowing my track record and that I can't afford to have a wreck decided not to attend! The one thing I learned from 2008 is that I can not do everything! Last year I would accept every upcoming task no matter if I already have 10 things to do or nothing.. this year I am working to allow myself to trust my gut to make decisions which tasks to take on on and which not too.. Today i used that judgement to say I am not going to risk my life, my car and take the chances with the weather prediction as it were.. Well I was beginning to rethink my better judgement when I hadn't seen any signs of the winter wonderland that we had been forcasted when I looked out the window and this is what I saw...

We are actually recieving the snow we were predicted and I am glad that I made that decision to stay home.. Although it may mean I did not acquire all the knowledge discussed in class today I know that I am safe in my home and it allows me to relax and catch up on the many assigments that I am behind on.. while watching the winter wonderland pile up on the outside!



Monday, January 19, 2009

surfing


Surfing is just one of those things where you can get away from everything that is going on around you. Some have sports or tv shows they follow and i have my surfing. i have recently been pretty hard core with my surfing almost every day i try to go. It is the way that i get my workout and the way that i clear my head. With amanda staying so busy with planning the wedding and with school i try to stay out of her way so i dont annoy her. surfing to me is the one place that i can go even if it is flatter than a pancake and still enjoy it(even though the water is a whopping 53 degrees).Thanks for checking out my first blog ever ____zach 

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Birthday Wishes


Yesterday I experienced the big 2 2 day which felt.. very unlike a birthday for whatever reason. But coming home from school gave me more of that b-day feeling when I got home and Zach was working on dinner AND drinks!!! It was just the greatest! and then I look in the fridge and the office had brought me a yummy boston cream pie cake which tasted awesome but i can't eat much b/c its not low fat ;) :(





I had earlier in the day went to treat myself to a hair "trim" and dye since i couldn't cut it(tring to grow it for the wedding)




! I really enjoyed the b-day! It's so nice to have that one day of the year when you don't have to worry about dinner. You get greeted with lots of smiling faces and a sweet "happy birthday" I absolutely loved it!

Sunday, January 4, 2009

Wedding Update!!

Things are slowly coming togethor! I think I have found THE dress and I have found my bridesmaids gowns! We should be ordering the gowns on Monday!! So that is very exciting!! I have finalized my color palette and a theme for the wedding. Which is Tangerine orange, deep purple, and yellow colors with a rustic county/garden chic wedding theme. I have lots of great ideas for the wedding which I hopefully will see come togethor!! I have made the Hair appts for the wedding day, and set a "time" for the wedding. I still need to re visit the florist so that we can get a clearing picture of what he will be doing. I need to find a baker and dev. for sure "transportation". I also need rental chairs and a tent in case of .. weather.. I am glad to see some things coming togethor. I think I have developed save the dates that may be going out soon. I have got some ideas for invitations which I need to put in action! I think things are coming along very well!! :)

Thursday, January 1, 2009

Happy New Year!

Today starts the beginning of a very life changing year and so i've decided to start the year with a few resolutions that I wanted to share as a way to commit myself to these things and to keep the resolution throughout the ENTIRE year not just the month of January! 
Goals: 
1) Reduce Debit
* Pay More than the minimum EVERY Month
* Put 50% of each bonus toward debit
* Save the other 50% of each bonus 
* No Excess Shopping!!! 
* Create a budget and stick to it! 
2) Get Healthy and lose 10lbs! 
* Exercise at the gym for 30 mins 3 x a week
* Work out at home for 10 Mins 3 X a week
* Create a menu each week with healthy choices 
(include snacks and each meal) 

With these steps for my goals I think it should be very reasonable to accomplish each goal by 2010 and hopefully at least half way by June 13th!! 



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