The end of an era.

Good Morning Friends,

Today is my last day at my job.  Wowzers.  It's a little weird.  Like so weird that I don't even believe it's true yet.  I have worked at this job for almost six years now, and it's strange to think I won't be coming back to sit at this desk again.  But I'm not even leaving the school I work for, I am just going to a new, completely different job in the same place.  So I think that helps make it seem not so real.

The best things about your last day at a job is 1) Everyone is nice to you, 2) You kind of don't really have anything to do, and 3) People buy you lunch.  So I am going to soak up this last day and enjoy all the perks.

One thing I am NOT going to do today is turn on the TV, look at Facebook or Twitter or pretty much any page on the Internet at all, because I refuse to find out how the women's gymnastics team does in their competition tonight.  I keep accidentally finding out about all the Olympic events before I watch them in the evenings, but NOT TONIGHT!  Mum's the word people.

Back!

We’re back from the beach!  And rocking our tans.

Mark is working late tonight, so I may or may not be planning an evening with me, the cat and some Gilmore Girls.  We shall see....

Our trip was quick and fun.  I’m wrapping up my last few days at work and then I’ll be on my first real summer vacation (as an adult).. until school training starts on August 7.  Whoa!  Where did the summer go?!

Beach Days

We are packing our bags and heading to the beach this weekend, for a short trip with my family.  I grew up going to Galveston each summer, spending a week in a rented beach house on the gulf coast with grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins galore.

We stay out on a part of the island that doesn’t have a road or bridge going to it, so we get to take the ferry out across.  I’ve rode this ferry dozens of times.  It’s always fun to guess what color we’ll end up on, as they have many boats and all are painted different colors.  When I was younger, it was major bragging points if you guessed the color right.

{that’s me in the pink, with the wind blown hair}

In honor of our last summer trip, Mark and I went to Old Navy last night and bought some new beach duds for our trip.  You bet I’ll be rocking American flag PJ pants all weekend.

See you soon, beach.  See you soon.

Cheers to Chairs!

Yesterday I noticed that there was an estate sale going on a few houses down from us.  I really wanted to check it out, not only to see what was for sale, but also to look at the house.  I love looking inside people's houses.  When I drive/walk/run around neighborhoods in the evening, I am always looking for one that has the windows open and the lights on, so I can see inside.  I like to see how people decorate and set up their rooms.  I am not alone in this, yes?

So anyways, I recruited Mark to go check out the sale with me.  It was definitely an original owner that lived or was living in there, cause it was O.L.D.  Old.  Old appliances, old carpet, old wooden built ins and paneling.  Old.  And all kinds of old stuff for sale, including an Atari that was $90.  We passed on that, but did not pass on this gem of a chair, that cost me a whopping $5.  Mark helped me carry it down the street to its new home.

I was so jazzed to do a real Pintrest-y inspired re-do on this chair.  So excited that I immediately went to Home Depot AND Lowe's to get some supplies.  I came home and sanded it down, which immensely improved its appearance.  

Today I took it back outside and gave it several coats of a spray paint primer.

I would have kept going with the re-do, but it started to super rain.  And I had a paper to write, so I called it a day for the chair, for now.

But, my chair adventures did not stop there.  This week is bulk trash pickup in the neighborhood, so Mark and I did a lap around the block just now.  We were wanting to pick up some pallets that we saw out on a curb last night, because hello, Pinterest is full of pallet projects!  And this was apparently the week to get rid of your pallets, because they are all over the curbs around here.  So we hopped in the 4Runner and hit the streets.  Before we even made it to the pallets, we saw an even better find: a pair of wooden adirondak chairs.  We have been wanting some of these chairs since we moved in, so we wasted no time loading ‘em up.  I don’t have a picture because it was too dark outside, but let’s just say these will need a little sprucing up as well.

Are you tired of talking about chairs yet?  No?  OK, here’s a picture of my anniversary chair, in action in its new spot in our bedroom.  Please ignore all the laundry scattered around it.

And finally, Gus wants it to be known that he has already claimed this spot as his own.

Dear Friday

Adventures of Newlyweds [a fun, cute blog] started Friday's Letters way back in the day {i think}.  This week, I'm joining in the fun for the first time ever. I think you should too.

Dear Friday,

Oh how I love you, Friday. Because I do not have to go to work when you come around, at least for a few more weeks.

Dear Neighborhood Pool,

You, my friend, are the best thing ever.  I've got a date with you in just a few hours.

Dear Grad School Summer Session,

Honestly, I'm not really friends with you right now.  Mainly because you are making me write a paper with five scholarly, peer reviewed sources. BLEH to you.  At least you're leaving [for good] in just 2.5 shorts weeks.

Dear Gus {my cat},

Your official birthday portrait came out quite well this year.

Dear Tiff's Treats cookies that Hubs sent me on the anniversary,

I hope you don't mind, but I kind of keep eating you for dinner.  Three nights in a row now.

Dear Couch to 5K app,

In case you haven't noticed, I have sort of been rocking you here lately.  Week 4, I have a date with you this weekend.

Dear Vampire Diaries,

I have been avoiding watching your season finale for months.  I just wasn't ready to let you go.  I needed you there, in my DVR, since March.  But then I went and watched you yesterday.  Holy cannoli. I am not ashamed that I watch you.

Dear Pilates,

I can finally walk normally again. But thanks for the tough workout.

Over and out.  Happy Weekend!

2 years + 1 day

Yesterday was our anniversary.

We went out to eat at [our standard] On The Border. Not that exciting, but we love it and I had a gift card from work so it basically only cost us the $7 tip we left on the table.  Not too shabby.

For year number 2, Hubs surprised me with this chair from Target.  I have [not subtly at all] been hinting for awhile that I wanted it.  As in, every time we go to Target I point it out and sit in it and say 'Gee I wish I had this chair.'

Then when I got up yesterday morning, there it was in my kitchen.  Mark leaves for work before I even get up so, as he confessed at dinner, he woke up at 4 a.m. and got it out of the car trunk and built it.  Straight up Santa Claus style.

I'll have to post later with my gift to Mark.  It's something for the yard/outside of the house.  So once we get it set up, I'll post pictures.

After dinner and a nice rainstorm, we came home and watched New Year's Eve [aka Valentine's Day, the Sequel Remake].  I liked it all right.

Two years down.  Much more to come.

that one time when I almost died at a pilates class

Yesterday, I tried something new - I went to my first ever Pilates [on the machine] class.  I saw a post on Facebook about a studio that was offering a free pilates/barre/bootcamp class yesterday evening, and I thought 'hey, that sounds kind of fun.'  So I went to their website to reserve a spot in the class. But it was full. So I joined the wait list instead.  I was number one on the list, so I figured I would end up getting in sometime before the class started.  Instead, the studio called me and offered for me to attend a regular pilates class that afternoon for free instead.  I was a little intimidated and almost didn't accept, but the girl on the phone told me that, even though I'd never used one of the machines before, I could come a few minutes early and she'd show me the ropes.  I did Bar Method classes for a few months earlier this year and had taken some mat pilates classes at my old gym, so I honestly thought I could totally handle this. 

I showed up at the studio a little early and got a quick run down of the machine. Within 20 seconds of her telling me all about it, I forgot everything she said.  Everything has a name and a color and moves and sometimes you face the front and sometimes you face the back and there's handles and bars everywhere.  The girl told me to just watch what everyone else was doing and I'd be okay.  Sure, sounds simple enough.

The class started and there were only four of us in there.  Out of 16 possible machines, just four.  So this is what she meant when she said they had "a few open spots in the afternoon class," I thought to myself.  Then we got started.  The instructor talked really fast and the music was really loud, so I pretty much relied on watching the girl next to me to figure it all out.  And this girl next to me, she was like a gazelle.  Tall, lean, slender, flexible, moving along the machine with such ease and never breaking a sweat.  Which, by the way, I was completely unprepared for - how much I sweat. And how thirsty I got. And how out of breath I was within oh... ten minutes of class starting.  During what I am pretty sure was a warm up?  But Gazelle never even flinched.  At one point we did lunges on the moving "carriage" of the machine and let me just tell you, it was pretty much physically impossible for me to a) lunge on a moving ground without falling over and b) lunge at all.  I was so dead.  My legs couldn't even more.  I seriously considered bailing about fifteen minutes in, but sheer embarrassment forced me to stay and at least pretend to do the moves (ie. stand in the general position and move my legs/arms/hips about .005 inches each rep). I just kept thinking during the class, no wonder Miley Cyrus looks so good!  She ain't kidding when she says she's lost all this weight and gotten in shape from Pilates!

It wasn't all bad though.  I did really like some leg lift stuff we did and it was hurting in a way that I knew I was doing it correctly and that it was good for my thighs/legs.  And after awhile, the class started to really fly by.  I would even probably go again, if I had the opportunity.  But it definitely takes some time and practice to work up to the skill level of Gazelle.  But hey, if Miley can do, so can I.  Right?

Is today Saturday?

This week has been a whirlwind of days, mostly meaning that I can never remember what day of the week it actually is at any given time.  I only worked Monday and Tuesday, so the string of holidays and days off is really confusing me and my calendar.  For example, my cat's birthday is today, July 7, but all day yesterday I thought it was the seventh, so I texted/called/Instagramed all day that it was his birthday yesterday.  But now it's today.  So he's been celebrating/being confused for two days straight.  And let's not even acknowledge that it's a little bit strange that I even know when my cat's birthday is, much less that I tell my entire extended family about the occasion.  In case you were wondering, he turned five :)

Now let's just move past all the cat birthday shenanigans and look at some Vegas pics, shall we?

Here are two of my friends, who I have known since elementary school, Stephanie and Mary Beth.

Here's the Hubs and I, in the Balligio.  The cool part about Vegas is that you can carry your drinks with you everywhere, from casino to casino, in the cabs, on the streets, etc.  You can even lay your glass down anywhere you want!  It's a magical place.

Some of the girls, conveniently arranged in a height line.

When you're Catholic and you see nuns in a Vegas casino, you have to stop and take some photos.

A nice shot of my new Vegas dress, with a bit of our view in the background.

MB and Steph again.

And, Mary Beth and her boy du jour, Norman.

So when we were in Vegas, I had this awesome idea to make a music video with everyone while we were there.  I wasn't sure how the others would feel about this idea, but on the first night I mentioned it to some of the girls and they were just as excited as I was.  So we, of course, decided to make our video to Call Me Maybe, because hello, it never gets old.

So all weekend I filmed clips of us on my phone singing various lines of the song.  Which means while we were out at the hip clubs, we were trying to listen to the song on my phone, learn the lyrics, and then sing them.  I haven't put together the video yet, but I did make this little trailer to get the hype out about it.

Coming soon to a computer near you: Call Me Maybe.