April 30, 2012

New Glass Door!!

My friend Amanda noticed our new glass door in my Garden Day pic. I forgot to mention it!!

I guess because it wasn't completely finished. In a sense. When we ordered the door we picked out the one we wanted: white with brushed nickel. The door guy at Lowe's put in white with brass! Yuck!

The installer came when I was at school and Ryan was at home. Ry texted me and said: did you want brass? No!

The installer guy was very kind and completely understood! He came today and changed it to brushed nickel! (I wonder if he needs the old keys back?!)

We love it!! It let's in so much light!! And it's the kind where you can pull down the top and there's a screen.

Puppy loves it too! Next, I need to get an entry rug for puppy to lay on while he looks out the door and protects us!

I'm thinking I need to take my homemade wreath off the door. :( BUT my new thought is to hang in on the wall above our bench. That way you can see it better from the street. :)

Are You Kidding Me?!

That's all we've been able to say the past 2 days...

I guess Garden Day really wore Ryan out as he overslept Sunday and had to work! He made it though. :) but...are you kidding me?! The alarm didn't go off!!

Owgergies turned bad...I went to serve in the HomePointe Center on Sunday. Afterwards I was ready to lay down!! Had a low grade fever and was feeling achy. Are you kidding me?! I can't be sick AGAIN!!

After Husband and Daddy made me go to Rockwall Urgent Care. Ryan works here part time so it's our go-to when we just feel icky! They were SUPER busy and I had to wait uncomfortably for an hour. Are you kidding me?!

Diagnosis? Sinus infection! Treatment? Antibiotics and steroids! Let's hope 5 days of roids doesn't bulk me up or make me super grouch! I'm still coughing. Are you kidding me?!

After a long day (picture day!) I treated myself to a mani/pedi! FABULOUS!! Are you kidding me?! Best massages!

I came home to a sick puppy. Both ends. In his box. And all over the floor. Are you kidding me?! After a super super clean up I'm doing much better. Pew-Wee!! Ryder seems to be better too. You be the judge...

April 28, 2012

Garden Day!!

We were so ready for a day to do NOTHING! And NOTHING to us means not having to be anywhere or do anything, but just be home! We thought this would be the perfect day to plant and do stuff around the house. That is SOMETHING, but we're together & at home so it's PERFECT!!

I bought a flat of White Begonias from the Stingerettes. I thought they'd be perfect to go in the flower bed we have in the front. A while back Ryan planted some Amaryllis bulbs in the bed of one of our trees. We have another tree with a flower bed on the side of the house that I wanted to plant more Amaryllis. Ryan ordered more bulbs from Lowe's last night, and they had them ready for us this morning!

So after sleeping in (since I didn't go to bed until 1 AM)...coming up on 28 people!!..we had breakfast then headed to Lowe's to get all we needed for Garden Day!! This was of course our first trip to Lowe's today...I still consider us new homeowners who are always wanting to improve our home!

If you look closely you can see the flowery garden tools...no, Ryan was not using those...that's proof that I was helping! Not just taking pictures!! The garden tools came from one of my wedding showers hosted by Sharon & Sherri. You can read more about the tools on Life Size House Wife here.

Puppy wanted to be outside with us so we tied him up to the bench while we planted. :) We quickly realized that 1 flat of Begonias wasn't going to be enough so we worked with what we had then made another trip up there! We decided to get red this time to kind of mixed it up. :) ...along with 2 shepherd's hooks & 2 hanging plants. I'm hoping for a bird bath our next trip!!

After the owgergies (as my kids call allergies) took over, and the planting was done...I took a Benny, a shower, and napped! My sweet husband woke me up ready to go to dinner!
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Our evening ended with a nice dinner at our favorite loco (inside joke) restaurant, Cayote Rojo. When we got back I told Ryan to let me in the front door so I could see our new flowers. :) I love it...and our home!!

Rockwall Relay for Life

I've been looking forward to this for a long time, but it really kind of snuck up on me with how busy our schedules have been!

Last year I was a true, dedicated trooper, and stayed until 6 AM!! This year...yeah, not so much. My allergies have been TERRIBLE so I only planned to stay until 10 or so, but made it until MIDNIGHT!! Wooo Hooo!!!

My school creates a team for Relay for Life. It's really fun to all be together at an event outside of school. We have an awesome leader who has great ideas for us to raise money for our team! Last year we sold dress down coupons to the teachers who donated...if you're a teacher you know how valuable a "Jeans Day" is!

This year we did Coins for Cancer in our classroom. It was fun to involve the kids. They were bringing in their piggy banks, and taking change from their mom's purses to give to cancer! ;) The winning class gets a sno-cone party! We have a staff member who runs a sno-cone stand in the summer so this is a perfect reward for us to use! And the kids love it! My class didn't win at this competition, but I have a very kind parent who appreciates the hard work the kids did...and she's still going to pay for a sno-cone party for us. The kids don't know this...I'm still making them work for it with good behavior! ;)

Our theme this year was: Star Light, Star Bright, Wishing for a Cure Tonight...we had glow in dark bracelets that we sold for $1 to staff and students to also help raise funds. We also sold luminaries for $5 that people could decorate for family members in honor or memory of. This was something Ryan and I did in memory of my Uncle Trevor and his Paw-Paw.

I unfortunately never got to meet Paw-Paw, but from what I hear he was a great guy! And to be married to Nanni...he must have been! ;) She's a sweet lady & deserves the best! I wasn't sure how to spell Paw-Paw when I made it so it says PaPa...oh well, he knows it was for him! ;)

Ryan was volunteering for Fate Fire so he was unable to make it. :( Super sad! Oh well...maybe next year! I had a blast with my teacher friends though!

April 26, 2012

Indiana Trip

Alright...so I thought I would wait to blog about this, but as soon as I wait I'll be behind again! I really wish I could blog almost daily! Whether you enjoy reading it or not it's a good outlet for me! :) And if I wait to blog about this...then I'll be behind on blogging about Relay for Life which we're doing tomorrow night! So here it goes!!
I think we figured out I have 20 first cousins on my dad's side? Well...we're at the age now where we're all getting married and having babies! It's crazy how quickly life moves...one of my younger cousins, Jennifer, got married this past weekend! Jennifer's brother, Jason, was my roommate when he moved to Dallas a couple of years ago so Jennifer got to visit a few times! It was about time I made my way to Indiana for her big day!!

Ryan and I originally planned on flying since it is such a LONG drive (about 12 hours)! My dad shared with me that he and my mom planned on driving, and thought it would be fun to all drive together. I was quickly sold on this idea, and shared it with Ryan. I wanted him to experience the drive we always took on summers as kids! He had no idea what he was in for!

I was excited for his excitement though!! He wanted to take pictures of every state sign we went through. We probably spent an hour stopping. Surprisingly enough the rest stops we stopped at were pretty nice! Things have changed a lot since the last time we made this drive...I think I was a junior in high school! (I flew there when I was in college...)

After a long drive of Ryan and Dad alternating we finally made it to Evansville, Indiana! We stayed with my dad's BFF, Rich and his wife Angie. They have 3 children: Kevin, Kelley, and Emily...and apparently Ryan thought we were going to my aunt and uncle's house and staying with my cousins and them! haha! It's not too surprising since the family is so big I know it has to be hard for him to keep up!

I could ramble on for pages and pages on what a good time we had! I could go over EVERY detail, and how the Short's made us feel soooo welcome in their home! I'll try not to bore you too much, and just give you the highlights!

On Friday my dad was excited to take Ryan through the town he grew up in, and show him all the hot spots. :) Mom, Angie, and I ran some errands then went to the Ohio River. I enjoyed seeing all the state seals, and found it interesting that the Indiana and Mississippi seals are right next to each other. :) (They're in the order that they joined the union...)

We had a nice dinner at a pizza place for a birthday party for another friend of my dad's. I mentioned seeing the Casino Aztar while we were down at the river, and Rich said, "you want to go?!" SURE!!

It was...interesting...but fun! The casino is actually on a boat on the river so when you're on the boat you're actually in Kentucky which we thought was pretty cool. The boat used to move, but it now just stands still. We all just walked around and did some slots. It was fun. Mom put $1 in and won $20! It was hard for her to walk away, but we all made her!

Our time went so quickly here...the next day was already Jennifer's wedding day! My cousin, Ashley, picked me up and we went to get our hair done. Thank you to my cousin in-law, Mallory, who set up our appointments for us! It was nice to spend some time with Ashley, and get my hur did for Jenn's big day!

We all just kind of lounged around the house until it was time to get ready for the wedding. The wedding was gorgeous! The church was gorgeous. The colors were gorgeous. The bridesmaids dresses were gorgeous, and of course...the BRIDE was gorgeous! I don't have any pictures though. :( We took some with my parents camera which I can post later...

After a beautiful ceremony (and a little comical one..."I Jennifer..." (said by Jared)haha!) we got lots of family pictures taken! Then my other cousin in-law Alex was so kind to take Ryan and I to the reception hall with her and Serena. :) Jason and Alex's sweet little girl! Ryan was loving being around her! It's a good thing we went with her since Mom, Dad, Uncle Rick, and Aunt Erin decided to stop at a local pub on their way to the reception! Good thing my cousins Maggie, Andrew, and Mollie made it there! ;)
Everything about the reception was so fun. I seriously love being around my family, and had the BEST time with all of them! And Ryan just fit in like he was one of us...it can be tough being a Born! haha! ;) We had a yummy dinner, great cake, and an awesome time dancing!! The night had to come to an end...but not until my Aunt Peggy, Uncle Bill, cousin Nicholas, Aunt Shelley, and Uncle JC came back to Rich and Angie's with us! We stayed up until at least midnight...(the day started at 9!) It was a long day, but sooo worth it and sooo much fun!!

We were up early the next morning for a long drive back to Rockwall, TX! And boy was it a long drive! We were so anxious to get home, and get Puppy. Thank you to Missy & Elly for keeping him happy while we were gone!

So here we are...I don't know how I've made it this far through the week without falling asleep! STAAR testing was this week, and even though I teach 1st grade now I am still pulled for testing. Those days are not only exhausting for the kids, but for the teachers too! Tomorrow is Relay for Life so be looking for a blog again soon!


NIGHT, NIGHT!!

Firsts!

I feel like the weekend with Ethan and Sydney was all about FIRSTS! And I loved that we got to be a part of that!

We got up early Saturday morning (again in March) and geared up in our green! I was trying to be SUPER COUSIN by making sure I had drinks and snacks packed for our outing...
We drove to one of the DART bus stops and waited for a bus to take us to the St. Patty's Day Parade on Greenville Ave. (Thank you, Mark Cuban!!). Last year Ryan and I watched the parade from the patio of a bar...we didn't think this was appropriate for the kids so we just got good standing room on the street! And boy did we have a good spot! We were about 2 hours early so we were right in front!

Of course once the crowds got bigger our space got a lot tighter. It was fun for the kids though. Sydney was loving holding her hands out and arms up hoping for beads! Ethan was picking up anything he could that was thrown at him! Tortillas, coupons, unwrapped candy...LOL! It was their first parade and I believe it was a success!

It was my first time on the DART, and what a day to try it out! We had the same idea as everybody else! Which is somewhat of a relief...thinking hopefully those people made the wise decision to not drive...People can be extremely helpful getting on and off the DART bus or can be extremely rude!! Nonetheless it was a fun experience!

So after I packed all the drinks and snacks...well we didn't think about, when a child drinks...they have to go potty! When the kids noticed that our only options were Porta Potties they didn't want much to drink! And then with all the pushing and shoving it was pretty difficult to pass out snacks! So I'm sorry, Aunt Laura, we sent them back: thirsty, hungry, and tired! But thanks for sharing them with us. :)

Ethan and Sydney

Hopefully you all know our "How We Met" Story...if not, I'll be happy to tell you!

It is thanks to Aunt Laura and Uncle Trevor. Ethan and Syndey are their children. So they are my 1st cousins. They are so young that they feel more like a niece and nephew to me and Ryan. They just adore Ryan, and visiting him at the fire station.

We had the same Spring Break as the kids, Aunt Laura asked if we would like to entertain them for a couple days and we said sure! It was definitely an interesting dynamic for Ryan and I to see how we would handle 2 children...together!

Aunt Laura brought the kids to the fire station on Friday morning (in March) when Ryan was getting off work. They made their way to our house (an hour away) in PJ's and needing breakfast. :) So we gave them some breakfast then got them dressed for our big day!

There's a park just right down the street from our house BUT we decided to walk to the front of the neighborhood so we could go to the bigger park and feed the ducks! Ryan and I make this walk often so we didn't think it was too long, but for kids with little legs it was pretty long. Puppy made it though!


Once we got there Puppy wanted to swing! Ethan was ALL over the playground! He had so much fun with all of it...especially having Ryan carry him across the monkey bars! Sydney really liked the twisty slidy thing once I showed her how to do it. ;) She also liked pushing Puppy in the swing. He's so funny! He LOVES it! All 4 of us got on the swings...it's amazing to me how high kids can go! I remember doing that when I was kid, but now...IT GIVES ME BUTTERFLIES! Ryan thought I was being a baby, but then he got butterflies too when he got really high! haha!

It was a cool, cloudy morning so the ducks that are usually in the pond were out walking around! We were able to feed them. Ryder scared them a little, but then he just wanted to eat the bread the kids were throwing down for the ducks. We then made the long walk back to the house. ;) We were all tired and hungry! It was fun to make lunch for everybody, and make deals with the kids on how much they ate. :) I think Ryan and I both did pretty good with that one!

I was ready for a nap so Ryan put a movie in for the kids, and I fell asleep while I pretended to watch! Ry and I needed to run some errands so while we were out we made up for missing out on ice cream on our Date Night, and took the kids to Coldstone Creamery. It was a nice day to sit at the Harbor water fountain and enjoy our ice cream. :)

When we got back to the house the kids helped me stuff Easter eggs for church in between them playing with sidewalk chalk on our back porch. It was so fun having 2 little kids at our house! I wish we had more for them to do outside...one day!

Believe it or not...it was now time to eat again! I thought it would be fun to have the kids make their own pizzas. I got all the ingredients, layed 'em out, put an apron on Syd and away we went! It was fun...and good! Next was time for bath and bed! Ryan and I were exhausted...

This blog is getting pretty lengthy so I'll post a new one about the next day with the kiddos!


TOODLES!

It's Not Always Rainbows and Butterflies...

...it's compromise that moves us along...

I like to blog about the happy times in our lives: date nights, fun weekends, random ideas...

But I do have to say...not that we're not always happy, but we do miss each other a lot!

I'm often asked, "how do you do it?! Being away from your husband for 24 hours every 3rd night. " I often reply with, "how do you do it?! Being home with your husband every 24 hours!" haha!

I have to admit. It's hard at times. We or I get lonely. But it's all we know. When Ryan is off for 1 shift he's home for 5 days! That's a lot of days together when we're used to a day apart every 3rd day.

I guess it makes us value our time together a lot more. Maybe that's why it's easier for us to do date nights? Because we long for that time together.

It can be conflicting at times. For instance, the other night my sweet husband grocery shopped and cooked dinner for us. (a plus to having your husband home while you're at work!) as we were finishing up I asked, "so what are we doing next??!!"

He was ready to relax! I was ready to play a board game or the wii! This is where compromise comes in. Since I relax when he's at work I'm ready to have fun when he's off! Soooo we relax one of the days he's off and do something fun on another day!

This weeks plan: Concerts on the Lake on Thursday & dinner at home tomorrow night. Maybe laundry too! Woooo!!

Cheers!

Schedule it!

One thing we hear from people a lot about our date nights is: "Just wait until you have kids!" I don't expect our lives to be just the same when we have kids. But I do expect us to still have our date nights. I know they won't be a weekly thing once there's a newborn (this is not a secret message...we are not preggers!). But I do think as long as we schedule it--it will happen! Build it--they will come, right?!

My nights get lonely with Husband gone every 3rd night, and so I don't get all sad and sorry for myself I try to stay busy! Blogging is one way to stay busy, but a girl also loves the company of her girlfriends! My friend Meghan's husband has school twice a week in the evenings so her and I try to get together on those nights if Ryan is working. She told me how impressed she was that we actually scheduled our time together and followed through with it! So many friends (I'm guilty of this too) say, "Yeah! We totally have to get together!" But then we never do...but if you actually schedule it then it will most likely happen!

I understand things happen and life gets in the way, but the whole point is to actually schedule your dates so they actually happen. This kind of goes with a previous post I wrote about inviting your spouse to date night in a creative way...

One thing I like to do (with Ryan or my friends) is to schedule our next date/outing at the end of the one we're on! That way we know it'll happen! And if anything gets in the way...it's easier to reschedule than not schedule at all...

If Nadalee, Krystal, or Leslie are reading this you probably think I'm a total hypocrite! haha! I do need to see all of you ladies!!

XOXO

Date Night

I'm a little...ok...a lot behind on blogging. I love blogging when I do, but sometimes life gets in the way! ;) We have been SO busy lately! And when we're not busy I'm super tired! Anyway...I've been wanting to blog about our last Date Night that was from a Recipe Card from our church.

I have to admit...we've had Date Nights since this one, but we haven't done any using the recipe cards. We need to get back on that!

This last one was a fun one though...it was a Progressive Dinner...the recipe card said to pick 3 places to have an appetizer or salad, dinner, and dessert. There were questions for each place.

We thought it would be easiest to go to 3 places at the Harbor since we can just walk from one place to another. We decided to go to Dodies for our appetizer. We had stuffed mushrooms...YUM!

It has been so long since that date that I don't really remember what the questions were. :( I know...bad blogger! Aaaaaand we left the Date Night Recipe Card at our main course place!

We went to Gloria's for our main course. Ryan had quesedillas and I had soup. We're not used to eating before Gloria's chips, salsa, and bean dip that we got full quick! So full that we decided not to go to our dessert place which was Coldstone Creamery. We made up for that though by taking my little cousins when they came to visit. (I'll blog about that next!)

The day of this date night was not an easy one...we actually considered cancelling it, but thought it'd be best to stay busy. I won't get into why this day was so tough. More particularly for Ryan, but I just wanted to know all I could to be there for him. Our conversations were emotional, but I think it's those kind that bring us closer together.

The Sunday after this date that I served in the HomePointe Center a member was showing his visiting parents our church. He brought them into the Center, and I gave them a brief description of what we're all about. :) I suggested the Date Night Recipe Cards to them, and explained how they have questions on them that you don't normal talk about. Even though they had been married 40 years I don't think it hurts!

Hopefully we'll get back on with the Date Night Recipe Cards & I'll keep you updated!

CHEERS!