15 Things For 2015

Yes. That's right. I'm jumping on the New Year's Resolution bandwagon. Truth be told, I'm not really one for making resolutions (or keeping them for that matter), but it doesn't hurt to have goals, right? I tried to come up with a list of attainable things I want to accomplish for his year, while leaving out (most) of the stereotypical resolutions.

1. Try 6 new recipes that aren't desserts (and post the review/recipe on here). This may sound simple, but while I love baking I loathe cooking.
2. Read 5 new books. I'm currently ready Amy Poehler's Yes Please, but since I'm less than halfway done with it, I'll count it as my first one.
3. Try something that takes me out of my comfort zone.
4. Take pictures for at least 4 family functions.
5. Hang pictures of family/friends on the walls (this sounds simple, but our home has had nearly bare walls...for almost 2 years)
6. Send a birthday card in the mail to 3 friends/family members.
7. Do an act of kindness.
8. Visit 3 places I've never been before. 
9. Follow a clean eating or whole 30 plan for a week (hopefully longer, but baby steps, right?)
10. Work back up to running a 5k again, straight through. Since the half-marathon we did 2 years ago (yeesh, time flies) I took a hiatus from running, and have never quite gotten back in the groove. Better late than never, right?
11. Blog at least 24 times. Truth be told I suck at this, but maybe 2015 will be the year to be more consistent!
12. Clean out/organize all of the closets in our house. 
13. Surprise my husband in some way.
14. Do a house project.
15. Go visit a friend that lives in another state. Settling in a college town means that the majority of our friends over the years have moved, and seeing them is long overdue.  

So there's my list! It's a tall order, but all achievable as well. Here's to 2015 being the best year yet!

-A

Halloween Done Right

So after having our trip cancelled at the last minute, Nathan and I forged ahead on planning a staycation. While we eventually decided to play it by ear and be bums the majority of our time off, we knew one event we wouldn't miss would be my parent's Halloween. 

For those who know my family, know my parents put up the best Halloween display in the town, complete with a full cemetary and moving props. For the past 3 or so years, Nathan's willingly been my dad's partner-in-crime, offering opinions and insights into everything that's scary. This year was no different, and most of Halloween day was spent over at their house putting together last-minute props and ensuring everything was perfect in time for trick-or-treaters.

This picture doesn't do it justice, but my camera died so alas this was the only night shot I got

The night went off without a hitch. Little trick-or-treaters everywhere braved through the cemetery, some going through multiple times, with minimal criers this year (there's always gotta be one, right?). The pigs also got into the Halloween spirit and donned matching cowboy outfits. 

Daisy's grey muzzle in this pic makes her look so old, but she's still my pretty pig!

Overall it was another nostalgic Halloween and a great way to kick off the holiday season. Here's to looking at the next frightening thing to add for next year!

-A

I'm back

Due to computer availability (as in there was none on hand in our household but our awful desktop), I went on a bit of hiatus. I can gladly report I am typing this on my brand new refurbished laptop. Let's get back to these blogging shenanigans.

Leaving sorta where I last left off where I proceeded to write every other post about my love of skiing, this one is no different. In just a few short days Nate and I were meant to be on the slopes, enjoying some mountain air and soaking in the beautiful views. Well, that was the plan, until mother nature decided to get all hot and bothered (literally). With just 72 hours until our trip, Copper Mountain made the call to push back opening day another week due to the seasonably warm weather.

Alas, our trip was cancelled, and there's a good chance I'll miss out going the entire 2014-2015 season now. So while I was being unproductively mopey our after hearing the news, my mood lifted after browsing the interwebs and running across this quote.

And then I remembered: I have it good. This one little trip I was definitely looking forward to, but I really, truly have it good.

-A

Holy Shiz, My Brother Got Married

Where did March go?! I feel like I haven't slept since February, and every weekend has been crazy busy. 

So one tiny big detail I left out from my Colorado trip is that my older brother casually told me mid-car ride that he was proposing to his girlfriend of 5 years. Yea, nbd, I'm just getting a sister-in-law, ya know. Well, actually, I should say I now have a sister-in-law, officially speaking and such. Unfortunately they had to move up their wedding date to say, a week to the day after they got engaged (they picked the wedding date 2 days before the actual wedding) since she's from Hong Kong and doesn't yet have a visa. Crazy, right?! But also super exciting. Nate and I had 2 years to plan a wedding, and here we were, 72 hours before the big day and trying to put together a small but beautiful wedding for them.

My dad and I (being the most A type personalities in the family) immediately started playing wedding planner. I ordered the cake and bouquet, my dad found a beautiful venue, and my brother and his fiance got everything worked out with a photographer and pastor. Nate also stepped up as husband of the year and made some kickass cake pops that the bride had always wanted (since I was knee-deep in wedding projects). Seriously, I think there's nothing that kid can't do. 

 Last Saturday was a blur of us getting pampered for the wedding with appointments for hair, nails and makeup. Finally the time rolled around, and I have to say, it went off beautifully. Her dress was gorgeous, they were surrounded by friends and family, and the food/drink/cake was delicious. It still hasn't sunk in that my brother is now married (I was the first one to take the plunge in our family), but I'm super happy for him and his new wife.

Nate's magnificent cake pops

Ready to go to the wedding!

All of the most important men in my life

The happy couple!

So March 2014 in a nutshell: went on vacation, brother got engaged, brother got married, got a new job, and begun the backyard patio project for our house (more to come on that last one later). 

I'm now going to take a nap for the remainder of April. Wake me up when it's May :)

Colorado recap and photo dump

What a crazy couple of weeks! Between going to Colorado and accepting a new job life has been anything but dull.

The Colorado trip started with a 9+ hour car ride with my 2 brothers, my husband and my 8 year old nephew. If you've never driven across western Kansas, you can safely say you're not missing anything. After miles of tumbleweeds, brown dead grass and the occasional rest stop, we finally reached the mountains. We immediately checked in at the condo and grabbed our lift tickets/rentals at the ski shop before making a little dinner and calling it a night. 

The next 3 days filled with beautiful.scenery, great food, and of course, skiing. We skied all day every day, and even hit up the terrain park the last day to see my brothers go off some jumps (I attempted once, only to chicken out at the last minute). It was our first time at Copper mountain (usually Breck or Winter Park are our regular choices), and after going once I can 150% say we'll be back next year (I may have already bought the lift tickets...). The people that worked there were so friendly, it was an easy mountain to navigate and it's close enough to Breck/Frisco in case you want to check out some other fun ski towns.

First day of skiing and taking a rest break outside one of the mountain lodges.

Top O' the mountain on St. Patrick's Day.

Giant Hamster ball they stuck my nephew in that my older brother (left) and Nate (right) pushed him around in.

Kids in ski gear = I die.

Get it?

S'mores after a long day of skiing!

I can't wait to go back. For now I'll take the spring weather, but I'll still be counting down the months I can see those beautiful mountains again. 

The End of an Era

So last week was absolutely amazing (I could ski every day of my life and never get tired of it), but a post-vacation recap will have to wait. I have some big news.

Because it's work-official, I can now say that I've accepted a job at a different company. Since college graduation I've worked at the same company, have loved my coworkers, and have really grown both personally and professionally. I never thought I'd be taking the next step and moving to another company to get more experience, but it's happened.

I can honestly say it's bittersweet. Don't get me wrong, I am so so so excited to start a new adventure at a new job, but leaving behind what I've known and who I've known is tough. I've made some amazing friends, and telling them this week was hard. I know we'll still keep in touch (it's not like I'm moving), but it'll be weird not seeing their faces everyday. Professionally, this is a great move for me, and I'm so grateful to have the opportunity. Realizing this in my heart helped me make the decision that it was time to move on.

So here's to new adventures, new scenery, and loving the future while not forgetting the past.

Friday Favorites

Happy Friday everyone! I'm super excited this week is almost over, especially since most of next week I'll be on vacation! At the last minute we threw together a ski trip to Colorado with my husband, brothers and nephew. I do have to admit I'll miss the spring weather we've been having recently, but I'm sure as soon as my skis hit the slopes I won't mind the winter weather as much :)

So ending this week on a high note, let's get through some of my favorites from this week!

1. I laughed for at least 5 minutes straight when I saw this. Reddit always knows how to keep me entertained at night while lounging on the couch. How has no one thought of doing this before?!

2. Lunches outside the office. This week I've been enjoying the beautiful weather by getting out of the office at lunch and soaking up some vitamin D. Getting in a needed break while also enjoying some time with friends is a win/win. 

3. Yard projects. I think what makes me feel like actual adult is the fact that I like doing yard work/projects now. Last weekend Nate and I went to the HD to browse some patio stones (we'll be ripping out our decrepit deck next month and replacing it with a patio) as well as grab materials to make some raised garden beds. I'm a big veggie/fruit eater, so I'm pretty excited to have our own garden this year. We're also hosting a good friend's graduation party as well as my sister-in-law's baby shower in our backyard this spring, so that provides even more incentive to get to work on making our yard beautiful!

I've come to the realization that this is verbatim what we said to some friends last weekend. Nice lil' Saturday planned at Home Depot!

4. Forever 21 Jewelry. I'm not a huge fan of their clothing (being 5'9" provides some challenges when you're not a huge fan of mid-drift shirts or bottoms that barely cover your tush), but I love their jewelry. It's so inexpensive that you don't mind if an earring goes MIA, and they basically run the gamete of jewelry styles so you can always find what you're looking for. I picked up some bib necklaces, basic earrings and fun new rings and my total was still less than $30. Score!

5. All of the fun new flowers popping up in our yard. Last year, Nate and I scored some flower bulbs on sale. At first we planted them very strategically, but after awhile we just decided to abandon that route and threw the rest of them in a 5 gallon bucket. We mixed them up, planted them in random spots, and called it good. When it was nice last Sunday we were working in the yard and saw these beauties greeting us. I can hardly wait to see what other fun flowers come up! 

Hello little baby crocuses!

<3