Friday, September 28, 2012

Friday Sunshines/Dark Clouds!

Let's get straight into it!

DARK CLOUDS:

  • My grandfather has been in and out of the hospital lately. He's 91 and was a WWII vet and is a hilarious, sassy old man and if anyone's a fighter, he is. But please keep him in your thoughts or prayers if you think about it.
  • The other day, I decided to make a big tuna salad (to be used for salads/sandwiches, etc.). I used two big cans of tuna. I boiled eggs, chopped a couple of pickles, and scooped the perfect amount of mustard and mayo into the bowl. I mixed and tasted and salted. Then... I left for FIVE MINUTES to go somewhere with Fiance. By the time I got home, the bowl was empty on the floor and my dogs were GUILTY GUILTY GUILTY. They ate 20 oz of tuna in five minutes. The bowl was literally licked clean. I was SO MAD at them. Blah. Not only that, I didn't have any more tuna so I was SOL for lunch the next day :o(
  • Our AC is broken. This is a MAJOR DARK CLOUD. Even though it's already September, the temperatures still get into the 90s during the day and our house, which is adobe and holds onto heat like WHOA (which is awesome during the winter!). And then we all sweat. Like, I wake up very morning with sweat on my forehead/neck. GROSS. Two showers a day it is, then. :o(
  • We spent WAY too much money last weekend. Need to reel that back in!
Wow, those were serious dark clouds this week. Normally they're pretty trivial.

SUNSHINES:
  • We printed out our parents' favorite photos of us from our engagement photos, framed them, and then presented them to our mamas! They were SO HAPPY (and the also liked the same photo!).
  • Fiance's mom (my future MIL) did some recon for us in Phoenix for our rehearsal dinner and we think we found the perfect place! Great Italian food, relaxed atmosphere, the PERFECT PLACE. Pray that  it isn't too expensive!!!
  • I busted out my new Scentsy scents this week... peach for the bathroom and a nice autumn spice for the living room. They make the whole house smell delicious!
  • We found Shadow's duck! He has had this stuffed duck since he was a puppy and he LOVES it and we couldn't find it... until today! This is definitely a sunshine for Shadow. He keeps carrying it around and wagging his tail. :o)
  • I ROCKED a big project at work and my boss is happy with me... which is great because performance reviews are coming up! WOO!
  • Fiance bought me some beautiful orange lilies... so pretty. And what sweetheart! 
  • This weekend, I'm looking forward to relaxing, watching football, and going to Fiance's cousin's birthday party. Ahhhh. I love weekends.
  • Next weekend is a four day weekend for me. WOO!
  • Dani, one of my bridesmaids, found her bridesmaid dress! It's SO PRETTY. (To recap, I let my bridesmaids pick out their own dress, as long as it was black and chiffon and knee-length-ish. My bridesmaids are all spread out [Albuquerque, Chicago, Ft. Worth, Las Cruces], so getting all together to pick out the same dress was not so much an option. Plus, I trust them and don't really care if they match. So there we go!).
What fun sunshines! I guess it has been a pretty volatile week lol. Hope your day is great!

Wednesday, September 26, 2012

Fall is here

I've been sad about summer leaving since summer came. I LOVE SUMMER. I love it. I love the heat, the sun, the warm evenings, the clothes, the shoes, the wonderful fresh food, the cool mornings, the pretty flowers...

But now that fall is about here, I'm starting to remember why I enjoy fall, too. The mornings, while a little cooler that I normally like, are perfect for little cardigans and long-sleeved shirts and long jeans. Plus, pumpkin spice lattes are back and I LOVE THEM!


via


Starbucks knows it, too. That's why they only keep it for oh, a month or so and then take it away from us. I've already had two and I have to say... I'll be back for more soon. (Also, I should note that I tried a nonfat PSL in the hope of saving a few calories... it wasn't as good. The next time, I went with the whole milk and it was a million times better. It's worth the splurge.)

Plus, we get beautiful mornings like these:



No filter or photoshop or anything... those clouds were BEAUTIFUL. This was taken at like, 7:15 in the morning. So pretty.

I also made some BOMB pumpkin muffins. The easiest thing I've ever made. You literally just need a can of pumpkin and a box of cake mix (I used yellow cake mix, but I read that a spice cake mix would be even better and I think that would help... mine were missing a little something in the spice area). Mix them together and pour into a muffin tin. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes.

Done. Delicious, 140 calorie muffins just in time for fall! :o)

Fall is probably my second favorite season. I like spring because it starts getting warm, but I HATE that intense spring wind. I don't like winter (other than the holidays) because of the COLD. I LOVE summer and I'm remember how much I really like fall.

So bring it, autumn, I'm ready for you!

Monday, September 24, 2012

Busy

So.

I've been busy.

Clearly. I mean, I haven't written, so I MUST have been busy all week, right?

HA. Not really. I was just lazy around the house and completely forgot I had a blog in the first place. Although I was pretty busy this weekend. To recap:

Last Sunday (as in, a week ago): Watched football. Cried (not really) because Baltimore lost. Made MASHED POTATOES that didn't suck! Apparently I over-mixed them before. This time, I kept my hand mixer in the cabinet and instead just relied on a good, old-fashioned potato smasher. I also went all out and used roasted garlic, heavy cream and real butter. They were delicious.

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While I toiled away with the potatoes, Fiance grilled some steak and kept my glass filled with some delicious St. Claire winery mimbres red wine.




YUM!

I worked all week and in the midst, watched the Shuttle Endeavor fly over WSMR, the birthplace of America's space program. It. Was. Awesome.



On Friday, Fiance and I headed to El Paso to get our passports in preparation for our honeymoon! YAY! Once that was done, we stopped at Rainbow to get some of the truly delicious tortas that I've been dreaming about since I first had them.



Mine had bistek, green chile, asadero cheese and tomatoes. YUM!

Then we went shopping. MORE SHOPPING. It turns out I actually like shopping (now that I wear a smaller size, which is SO MUCH FUN to grab instead of a larger size!) but I do NOT like how much money it takes. But I got some pants (which means I can throw away the black pants that are literally four sizes too big and never stay up).

Saturday, we ran errands and then had a beer and some nachos with my parents. Yesterday was a day of football... and both of our teams won! YAY!

And now it's Monday again. I had to work late, but then I'm gong to Zumba. YAY!

Only four more days to the weekend. :o)

Monday, September 17, 2012

FRUSTRATED

WHAT the hell is the point of having vacation days if your fiance's stupid company LITERALLY WON'T LET HIM TAKE ANY?!

He put in for a vacation day in November like SIX months ago so we can go to Phoenix for a comedy show and they are JUST NOW telling him he can't take it. And we already bought tickets and everything.

UGH!

Friday, September 14, 2012

Grateful :o)

So in remembrance of the horror and pain of September 11, I'm going to skip Sunshines and Dark Clouds and go into a GRATEFUL FRIDAY theme instead, and list things that I am grateful for!

I am Grateful...

  • To live in a country where I can be free to follow my dreams, regardless of my religion, race, or gender.
  • For the men and women that live their lives to make our country better, from military to police to teachers to unions. We became the strong country we are based on ALL contributions.
  • To have the sweetest dogs in the world... all they want to do is cuddle with me!
  • To be BACK on the healthy eating wagon and down another couple of lbs!
  • That Fiance's new promotion is really, REALLY helping us out for saving for our wedding/honeymoon! So, SO relieved.
  • and EXCITED for my dear friend/bridesmaid Blairre, who is currently in the hospital welcoming her second child, a daughter named Kennedy with her husband John and their first son Carson!
  • To have a hilarious sister, a supportive mother, a strong and stable father, wonderful future in-laws, and the perfect Fiance. Not that he is perfect, but he is perfect for me.
  • To have a relaxing, sports-filled weekend ahead of me!
  • That it is FRIDAY!
I hope you have a wonderful day and a wonderful weekend. Sometimes I forget about all the wonderful things in my life, but there is no reason to focus on the negatives when I clearly have SO many great people and opportunities in front of me! Life is good! :o)

Wednesday, September 12, 2012

Weekend Recap... a few days late!

So this weekend we went up to Albuquerque to watch Nate fight and also to visit my lovely sister!

Jess and Kylie took us to Bobcat Bite, which is AMAZING!

It's a little converted house/restaurant in the hills of beautiful Santa Fe, and it's called "Bobcat Bite" because bobcats used to (and maybe still do) come down from the hills and beg for scraps from local restaurants. They had tons of pictures of little bobcats that have come to beg for delicious meat!


MENU

The menu is simple and very meat-based, because the meat is fresh ground chuck that is locally made, so you can get it as rare as you want without having to worry about the bacteria that typically goes with hamburger meat. We all got ours rare and they were AWESOME.

My only complaint is that the chile wasn't very hot. The cheese was delicious and even the bun was great, but I wanted a little more heat for my green chile cheeseburger. Also, I wish they had french fries. But other than that, one of the best burgers I've ever had!

We checked into our hotel (Hyatt Place Uptown, right by the Coronado Mall and Trader's Joe's! What more could I want?) and then rushed over to watch the fights, where we met...




THE LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPION OF THE WORLD!

If you're a UFC fan (which I never was until I started dating Fiance, who LOVES UFC), you know who this guy is. If you aren't, let me tell you. This is JON BONES JONES, who is one of the best fighters in the world. He has come through and beat some of the best fighters in the world, including Sugar Evans. He fights out of Jackson's camp in Albuquerque, so it wasn't SUPER weird to see him there, but it was definitely exciting!

He was so nice, too. There were a few of us waiting to talk to him and he kept looking over at me and smiling and then asked what I was drinking. I told him a margarita and offered him some. He laughed and said no, that's he's still in training. But he talked to us for a while and was SO nice and courteous. It made me more of a fan than I was before.

We spent the next day shopping a little and then came home. I'm ready to get back to our routine of eating healthy and getting some real sleep... we didn't get a lot of sleep this weekend!

Have a great Wednesday!

Tuesday, September 11, 2012

11 Years

It's been 11 years...

And I can still remember where I was, the worry I felt about my family in New York, the stricken looks on my teachers' faces, the serious voices of the people on the news as we all speculated and worried and cried.

It's been 11 years...

But I don't think I'll ever forget.



Thank you to all those who protected and served us after this horrible day, and who gave the ultimate sacrifice in the War on Terror.

Monday, September 10, 2012

Football!

Does anyone else think...

That sometimes...

Football players jumping to make a fumble recovery...

Kinda looks like a cat pouncing on a toy?






In other news, football is back! GO BALTIMORE!

Sunday, September 9, 2012

Engagement Photos!

Fiance and I are going to be out of town for a bit (with our good friend Thomas staying home and taking care of our puppy!), so to tide you over until we get home tonight, here are some ENGAGEMENT PHOTOS!





Raider and Raven fans!







Fiance's favorite things: Batman and me!



I love this because it was so real and not posed at all!




Look how cuuuute our puppy is!!!!



I love this last one because I think I had just said something sassy because Fiance is giving me a LOOK and I'm smirking! Lol!

Friday, September 7, 2012

Friday!

FRIDAY!

Dark Clouds:

  • I'm SUPER tired. Nap this afternoon? I think yes.
  • I still have to work out.
  • The puppies have chewed TWO pens this week which means... ink stains. SO FUN.
  • I've been slacking with cooking this week... and with eating healthy. I need to get back on the wagon.

Sunshines:
  • I'm off today! Yay!
  • Fiance and I are going to watch a fight this weekend... we're going to have so much fun, I'm so excited!
  • We got our engagement photos back! I'll post some soon, we're just trying to decide which ones we want for our Save the Dates first so they can be a surprise :o)
  • FOOTBALL IS BACK! YAY!

Have a great day!

Wednesday, September 5, 2012

And Then I Almost Passed Out

So here's a little math problem for you:

What does one girl, plus 500 calories, plus one hour-long workout, plus no food for eight hours equal?

A very close call.

Yesterday I was a genius and didn't eat from 11:00 in the morning until 7:45 that night. I was just so busy all day and then as soon as I got home, I hurried to change and then rushed off to Zumba. It was a TOUGH class with one of my favorite instructors: she's a great teacher, but she is super hard and made us do a bunch of jump squats. I was pouring sweat but feeling good.

Then when I got home, I felt sticky and awful, so I decided to shower before making dinner. I showered, washed my hair, then spent some time French braiding my hair to get it off my face. THEN I started making dinner.

I made baked ziti, and I made a double batch of it so I could freeze some for my friend Blairre who is just days away from having her baby girl Kennedy. While I was at it, I made Fiance some lunch for today, which included two peanut butter and honey sandwiches with some new local wildflower honey I bought recently.

Here's the embarrassing part. The honey lid was stuck SO tight that I practically popped my arm out of the socket when I was struggling to open it. When I finally got it, I felt this intense pain on my shoulder. Then my vision went black and when I opened my eyes again, I was clutching the counter and kneeling on the floor and felt AWFUL.

I went to the couch and sat down for a second. Thomas brought me some water and that helped SO much that I was able to get up and finish dinner and Fiance's lunch. I finally ate something around 7:45 (though I did have a small spoonful of peanut butter after the near-fainting.

I think it was a combination of being dehydrated (from all the Zumba and then the hot, hot shower), being hungry, and being tired. I felt 1000% better after getting some water and eating a little something.

So that's my fun story. I'm the coolest person in the world, right? I feel like Pooh-Bear, struggling so hard to open a honey pot that I almost passed out. COOL.

But I'm all better now and that's what counts! :o)

Monday, September 3, 2012

Labor Day!

What a wonderful weekend. We were busy ALL weekend, but now we are getting to relax because it is LABOR DAY and, thanks to thousands of people who fought for safe working conditions, labor laws, and unions, we have this day to appreciate their struggle and rewards.

Also, we get this day off work, which is always nice.

We started off this weekend with our engagement photos! We took them with The Sweet Spot Photography and it was SO much fun. I've known the girl, Melissa, since high school, and her husband Koko came with us for lighting and help with posing/staging.

We had a blast. We went to several different places, like pecan trees (with my little Shadow!), a local theater (for Fiance's love for movies), a local used bookstore (for me!), and a grassy area for photos in our favorite football jerseys! :o)

Here's a sneak peak of our photos:



We LOVE this one, but there are so many others to look at. I can't wait!

Yesterday was a family day. Fiance's mom came into town, and so did my sister, so we tried to split time between breakfast with the mom-in-law, and then a bbq with my family. We had a great time. Then Fiance and I just relaxed and watched Dexter because I was feeling a little sick.

Today, we hung out, napped, and then went to a cookout at Fiance's uncle's house where, again, we had a wonderful, relaxing day. I love that I can hang out with Fiance's family so easily... they'll be my family soon, too, and I just think we are so blessed to get along so well with each others' family!

Although they did joke with me that my future mother-in-law already named our first child SOLOMON.

I was like, "No. That's not happening." lol :o)

Guess we better go to the gym. Hope you had a wonderful long weekend!