Catching Up...AKA.. where does the time go?

Life is a whirlwind... and I'm learning that when there are kiddos in the house that is about 100 times more the case than when Margo was my only roomie... but that's not a bad thing really.  Life is fun, an adventure, and each day a new learning experience (both for Margo and I!).

 

While I haven't been posting much on this blog - I have been working on some of the things on my Enjoying 2015 list.

• I completed the Warrior Dash!  It was a struggle in some spots, often times more mental than physical... it was great fun though!  I truly had no concept of exactly how muddy I would get or how relieved I would be to swim through that last pool of mud under the barbed wire. I couldn't have done it without my awesome friend Kelly (and the rest of the team that she brought to us!).  
• I've been reading more... sometimes when I get in one of those non-reading ruts I forget exactly how much I love getting lost in a book.  I've read several great books lately:
• Roller Girl by Victoria Jamieson - This was a quick, fun, and true to life story of those tough tween years.  
  
• The Package Deal: My No So Glamorous Transition from Single Gal to Instant Mom by Izzy Rose  - I can't say enough about this book.  I felt like I knew the author right from the beginning and we were great pals.  Sure, there are lots of "how-to" and "self help" books about being a Step-Mom, but this book did one better... it showed me that all of the thoughts, feelings, and apprehensions constantly swirling around in my head were NORMAL.  Plus it made me laugh out loud a lot! 
  
• Spending more time disconnected - this is a really tough one for me.  I can easily fall into the trap of being a smart phone junkie... checking my personal email, work email, facebook, goodreads etc on a seemingly constant basis but I've been making a concerted effort to tune all of that out for periods of time.  Being part of such an active family helps that - we are often playing in the park, taking a walk or just enjoying being silly with each other.  Henry also just got a guitar for Father's Day and it inspired me to break out my Dulcimer and do a little tinkering with a few songs.

All in all life is good - sometimes super stressful and overwhelming - but good :-) 

I think in the next few weeks I'll focus on continuing finding a good balance and staying disconnected sometimes and also get back on the exercise bandwagon...who knows - I might want to run the Warrior Dash again next year :-)

Happy Photos 94-100! The project is complete :-)

Happy Photo #94 - We took a picture by this exact butterfly on our first trip to Busch Gardens just about a year before our honeymoon :-)

 Happy Photo #95 - Virginia is for lovers<3  A very nice older gentleman took our picture and then we took one for him and his wife.

 Happy Photo #96 - it was a beautiful day in Yorktown... people were sunbathing on the beach.. we weren't that brave but we did break out the shorts.

 Happy Photo #97 - Winery kitty!  I saw a sign after petting (and getting what I like to think of as a love bite) this cutie that advised against socializing with her :-) She reminded me of Margo with her love hate relationship with people though so I was glad to share a "hi pet me while I nip at you" moment with her!

 Happy Photo #98 - The famous new triplets in Williamsburg: Willie, Yorkie, and Jamie.  I think I might have been the only tourist obsessed with finding them.... I expected some fanfare after seeing the announcement of their names on the Williamsburg facebook page, however we really had to ask around and search for these sweeties.

 Happy Photo #99 - Our first carriage ride.  Our driver said that as we were on our honeymoon I had to leap out of the carriage into his arms when the ride was over.  I think she was surprised when I followed her orders.  Luckily Henry knew me well enough to be prepared and he didn't drop me :-)

Happy Photo #100 - I love this photo from the wedding... lots of my favorite people are dancing and you can't really see it but Ashlynne and I are doing some pretty fancy moves in front of Henry :-)

More Happy! A Random Assortment/Catching Up (82-93)

Quickly catching up on posting happy photos :-) You can tell this spans two seasons... Yay for spring finally!! Included is general family fun, wedding prep, books, and spring time.  Some of my favorite things with some of my favorite people.  

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Happy Photos 73 - 81

Catching up on some happy photos!  There's a lot of them so it's all about the quick captions today :-) But it's been a pretty good start to 2015, and I'm looking forward to many more happy photo moments!

Happy Photo #81: Margo is the queen of this castle

 Happy Photo #80: Fancy shoe shopping... always a fun time...probably for me and the girls more than for dad.

 Happy Photo#79: sweet note :-)

 Happy Photo #78: CUPCAKES!  Who doesn't love eating cupcakes.

Happy Photo #77: Winter fun at Patapsco

 Happy Photo #76: Boom Boom Balloon!

 Happy Photo #75: Playtime!

Happy Photo #74: Margo likes her new digs.

 Happy Photo #73:Tyler and Shelby, fast friends!

New Year...New List

So it's 2015 (What? How did that happen?)... and here I am finding myself looking back at my 2014 list of goals and wondering how it didn't all get done (haha - I have never had one of my yearly lists get finished) but it's always fun to think about what I'd like to do, how I'd like to better myself, things I'd like to learn and overall how I'd like to live.  So here is a quick look back at the 2014 list and the unveiling of the 2015 list.  I do love lists, have I mentioned that? Maybe I should make a list of ways to achieve each goal that is on the list.. no no.. that would take up too much time when I could be enjoying life :-)

2014- There were plenty of things I didn't do. I never managed to ride a mechanical bull, or run a 5k, or crochet those afghan squares together... but that's OK.  I did do lots of fun things as well that I talked about in my last blog post.  Some of those "not dones" will get carried over to the 2105 list... some of them won't... that's OK... I'm allowed to change my mind :-)

2015 - Here is a link to the new list: Enjoying 2015.  If any of you have goals for this year I'd love to hear about them as well.  No matter what your plan for 2015 is I hope you all enjoy it along with me.

Hiking and moving and getting engaged- OH MY! My 2014 Wrap Up

As my mother  would say "a day late and a dollar short" but it's only the 2nd of January so it's not like I'm wrapping up 2014 in April or anything :-)

It has been an eventful, adventurous, and wonderful year.  Sure - every year has it's ups and downs but as I look back over 2014 I have to smile.

I spent much of the first half of the year training for the Inca Trail - hiking most Sundays with my hiking partner Stephanie, exploring parts of the area around where we lived that we never knew existed.  Perri, Stephanie and I even had an adventurous snowy, icy, hike where we did lots of gingerly stepping until we would get to the next tree to grab a hold of... luckily we didn't encounter any snow or ice on the Inca Trail!  Then in April I set off on the great adventure of spending two weeks in Peru exploring: staying in hostels, unknowingly hitchhiking, seeing so many beautiful sights and pushing my body to what felt like its absolute limit while putting one foot in front of the other (or above the other in the case of the gazillion stairs!) for what felt like an eternity on the Inca Trail and then was rewarded with the beautiful site of Machu Picchu at the end of the journey (and a hot shower and internet after sleeping in a cold tent for 4 days).

It was on this trip that I realized exactly how much I like having Henry in my life.  I missed him pretty terribly, and his "I know you can do it" email messages days before the hike helped me keep climbing even when I would turn the corner to see more stairs and want to cry.  It was also the first time I ever bought anything for the two little girls (who I hadn't met yet) who would become such an integral part of my life over the coming months.  It was fun picking out those pens with llamas on top and hoping they would like them... I should have realized it was only a matter of time before I was completely in love with the whole family... and I can say I'm a pretty lucky girl that Thanksgiving brought me the blessing of being able to say "yes" to spending the rest of my life with them.

December brought a hectic and hurried move (which I'm still unpacking -- and still discombobulated from) and here we are at the new year.

Along the way of the whole twelve months I also had the best of times with the most awesome group of friends and family a person could ask for: more concerts, a painting class, ocean city adventures, zip-lining, horseback riding, and cookouts with epic water balloon battles...I can't really complain about 2014 (though I know many of you heard me do that on many a day!  so thank you awesome friends) and my goal for 2015 will be to appreciate all of the happy moments that come along and have them carry me through any of the bumps along the road.   Happy New Year Everyone!

COMING SOON: a quick look back at the 2014 goals and a new 2015 list! I know you all are super excited :-)