... the hubs and I had our first date. Well, subtract eighty years from that mark, which leaves us with just seven short years ago. Wow, S-E-V-E-N YEARS!!!!!!!!! That's more than a quarter of my life has been spent with the hubs in some various form.
There were three years and twelve days of dating. An engagement lasting a tad over two and a half years. Finally, that first year and a half of marriage. The funny thing is that if the hubs had it his way, we would have gotten married right after we graduated from college. That would have tacked on another two years to the marriage column. Woah, good thing I politely said, "no!" and told him we were going to have a super long engagement. We're the backwards couple, where the guy is completely ready for marriage and the gal is dragging her feet. I wasn't worried about being married to the hubs, instead it was just a more general freaking out in regards to being married at 22. I still have days where I can't believe I got married before turning 30!
Anyway, last year we ditched our "dating anniversary" since we were now a married couple and had that big "wedding anniversary" to celebrate later in the year. I don't think we would have done anything too far out of the ordinary this year except my super cool brother-in-law gave us a gift card to Fogo de Chão for Christmas. Normally, a gluttony of endless meat is not what I would call a romantic dinner, but since the hubs and I went to Brazil for our honeymoon, a trip to a churrascaria definitely works.
Sunday, February 8, 2009
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Busted!!!!
I committed a cardinal mistake the other day. I accidentally left one of my closet doors open. One of the tenants of our happy marriage is that my hubs should live in a delusional state where he doesn't know the full extent of my shopping indulgences. I fully subscribe to the philosophy of buying something, stuffing it in the closet, waiting a few months and then proudly declaring, "I've had this for months!" Plus, I can buy something cute and cheap at Target and the hubs just thinks we needed new cleaning supplies.
Leaving my closet open is completely inexcusable because it allows my husband to sneak a peak and see if I've done any "unnecessary" shopping. He doesn't go through my closet, but it is in his line of sight as he makes his way to his dresser. Figures, I was guilty and got busted. I haven't purchased anything new in months and then I slip up and get busted once I buy something! Jax and Jewels even helped out and ripped the packaging box to shreds for me. I swear the hubs' senses were heightened by the presence of a new J. Crew catalog. Yes, I'm obsessed, but my closet is a constant reminder of how deep my love for all things J. Crew runs.
My latest guilty addition- a new dress. Which of course the hubs had to ask, "so when are you wearing this new dress?" My reply that I didn't plan on wearing it until August didn't fly too well with the hubs. Of course once he saw the tag and said, "another dress from J.Crew??? How many dresses do you need?"
Gesh, the guy complains that I only wear black dresses and he gives me a hard time when I buy a dress in a different color. Talk about sending mixed messages. I think he just protests at the J. Crew dresses more than the rest because he thinks they are more expensive. In theory, he would be correct, but I hardly ever buy anything at full price.
I tried explaining to the hubs that I could wear said new dress multiple times and that it was on sale. His response, "really... wait, isn't the same rational you've given for every dress purchase you make?" Crap, that line worked for almost seven years, but it seems I need to come up with a new one.
I was almost out of the woods until I was flipping through a catalog and said, "oh, that's a new material." The hubs quickly looked over and said, "no! You're not going to buy a new dress just because it's a different material than the rest of them." That's when it hit me, I do have a J. Crew dress in almost every fabric! Crap.
Silk chiffon- Sophia in bright blue. Purchased last week for $34.99. Yes, extra 30% off of final sale price. Go me!!! Plan to wear to the hubs' best friend's wedding on August 1st. I can see myself wearing this dress again and again and again. Honestly, I've wanted the Sophia dress since I was a senior in college. My plan is buy a navy one in silk tricotine. I'm just buying time now that I've been caught.
Silk tricotine- Rebecca in black. Purchased two weeks ago. This is the bridesmaid dress for my sister's wedding. J. Crew had a 20% off final sale and the rest of the bridesmaids were able to get their dresses for $66 each. Unfortunately, J. Crew didn't have my size, but I was able to buy it on Ebay for $40.
Cotton cady- Audrey in wild rose. Purchased in 2006 as my maid of honor dress for best friend's wedding. Confession, I paid full price. I think it was $225, but I needed the dress and would buy it again in a heartbeat for my girl's wedding. I've worn it twice since then. It looks fantastic with a white cardigan I have, which is also from J. Crew.
Silk faille- Whitney in ivory. Purchased on sale (maybe $60ish, not really sure) as my rehearsal dinner dress in 2007. I love this dress, it has this gorgeous tulle underskirt that creates a great shape. Unfortunately, it's an ivory dress and that's something I don't wear too often. So this poor baby sulks in the back of my closet, begging me to get over my fear of spilling something on it.
Next on my list is the adorable cotton poplin Sydney dress.
It is available in navy, so maybe I'll give up on the Sophia and buy this little gem instead.
Thank goodness I left my dresser shut and the hubs didn't see the new jeans I also purchased with the Sophia dress. Hey, they were on sale!!!
Leaving my closet open is completely inexcusable because it allows my husband to sneak a peak and see if I've done any "unnecessary" shopping. He doesn't go through my closet, but it is in his line of sight as he makes his way to his dresser. Figures, I was guilty and got busted. I haven't purchased anything new in months and then I slip up and get busted once I buy something! Jax and Jewels even helped out and ripped the packaging box to shreds for me. I swear the hubs' senses were heightened by the presence of a new J. Crew catalog. Yes, I'm obsessed, but my closet is a constant reminder of how deep my love for all things J. Crew runs.
My latest guilty addition- a new dress. Which of course the hubs had to ask, "so when are you wearing this new dress?" My reply that I didn't plan on wearing it until August didn't fly too well with the hubs. Of course once he saw the tag and said, "another dress from J.Crew??? How many dresses do you need?"
Gesh, the guy complains that I only wear black dresses and he gives me a hard time when I buy a dress in a different color. Talk about sending mixed messages. I think he just protests at the J. Crew dresses more than the rest because he thinks they are more expensive. In theory, he would be correct, but I hardly ever buy anything at full price.
I tried explaining to the hubs that I could wear said new dress multiple times and that it was on sale. His response, "really... wait, isn't the same rational you've given for every dress purchase you make?" Crap, that line worked for almost seven years, but it seems I need to come up with a new one.
I was almost out of the woods until I was flipping through a catalog and said, "oh, that's a new material." The hubs quickly looked over and said, "no! You're not going to buy a new dress just because it's a different material than the rest of them." That's when it hit me, I do have a J. Crew dress in almost every fabric! Crap.
Silk chiffon- Sophia in bright blue. Purchased last week for $34.99. Yes, extra 30% off of final sale price. Go me!!! Plan to wear to the hubs' best friend's wedding on August 1st. I can see myself wearing this dress again and again and again. Honestly, I've wanted the Sophia dress since I was a senior in college. My plan is buy a navy one in silk tricotine. I'm just buying time now that I've been caught.
Silk tricotine- Rebecca in black. Purchased two weeks ago. This is the bridesmaid dress for my sister's wedding. J. Crew had a 20% off final sale and the rest of the bridesmaids were able to get their dresses for $66 each. Unfortunately, J. Crew didn't have my size, but I was able to buy it on Ebay for $40.
Cotton cady- Audrey in wild rose. Purchased in 2006 as my maid of honor dress for best friend's wedding. Confession, I paid full price. I think it was $225, but I needed the dress and would buy it again in a heartbeat for my girl's wedding. I've worn it twice since then. It looks fantastic with a white cardigan I have, which is also from J. Crew.
Silk faille- Whitney in ivory. Purchased on sale (maybe $60ish, not really sure) as my rehearsal dinner dress in 2007. I love this dress, it has this gorgeous tulle underskirt that creates a great shape. Unfortunately, it's an ivory dress and that's something I don't wear too often. So this poor baby sulks in the back of my closet, begging me to get over my fear of spilling something on it.
Next on my list is the adorable cotton poplin Sydney dress.
It is available in navy, so maybe I'll give up on the Sophia and buy this little gem instead. Thank goodness I left my dresser shut and the hubs didn't see the new jeans I also purchased with the Sophia dress. Hey, they were on sale!!!
Monday, February 2, 2009
For all the animal lovers out there
I grew up with only large dogs. Besides those adorable months when our dogs were puppies, I think the smallest dog I ever had was a 50lb English Springer Spaniel. Back then, you didn't see many large dogs sporting sweaters or at least not in upstate New York. Actually, I think the only dog I knew that routinely wore a sweater was Bart, my grandpa's Wire Fox Terrier. Bart had an extensive clothing collection, he had a different sweater for every day of the week plus multiple wardrobes per state (he migrated between Florida and New York with my grandpa).
It wasn't until Jewels went outside and shivered for the first time that the hubs and I discussed puppy clothes. Now, I have a tendency to ogle over sweaters anytime I can. Over the weekend I made the mistake of searching Etsy for sweaters. What turned into a quick search ended up being an hour of "ohhhing and ahhhing." I think it's a safe bet that next year I'm going to order a bunch of sweaters off of Etsy and skip Pet Co.
Go to Etsy and search for your breed. Cuteness overload. Granted, the majority of dog sweaters can be ordered in any size, but I just like looking at all the cute Bostons. I'm sure your breed will have plenty of eye-candy. I absolutely fell in love with a few items and many of them weren't sweaters!
A few of my personal favorites:
both from seller Beantown Handmade (my new favorite seller!)
from seller Chetart
from seller tedwards52
from seller rubenacker
It wasn't until Jewels went outside and shivered for the first time that the hubs and I discussed puppy clothes. Now, I have a tendency to ogle over sweaters anytime I can. Over the weekend I made the mistake of searching Etsy for sweaters. What turned into a quick search ended up being an hour of "ohhhing and ahhhing." I think it's a safe bet that next year I'm going to order a bunch of sweaters off of Etsy and skip Pet Co.
Go to Etsy and search for your breed. Cuteness overload. Granted, the majority of dog sweaters can be ordered in any size, but I just like looking at all the cute Bostons. I'm sure your breed will have plenty of eye-candy. I absolutely fell in love with a few items and many of them weren't sweaters!
A few of my personal favorites:
both from seller Beantown Handmade (my new favorite seller!)
from seller Chetart
from seller tedwards52
from seller rubenacker
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Winter Wonderland???
Like much of the country, the greater Baltimore region is not having the best of weather today. Yesterday was a nice snowy day and today there's a sheet of ice coming down. Not exactly the best mix of weather.
The ice was just thick enough that Jewels could saunter around and not break the ice. Jax, on the other hand, either walks too heavy or he's just that chubby that he broke through the ice and sunk into the snow. It really didn't bother him at all.
This morning was somewhat odd. The hubs and I went outside to clear off our cars and it seemed our entire street was doing the same thing. Our neighborhood isn't exactly Beaver Cleaver, so it was weird that everyone was outside at the same time. The lady across the street from me had her big Chesapeake Bay Retriever out with her and he came over to say hello. I have a giant sized paw print on my pant leg that can vouch for his enormous size. Jax and Jewels gave me a guilt trip when I came back inside. Yeah, I cheated on them.
My morning was made complete by witnessing the sheer idiocy exhibited by my other neighbors across the street. I call these two guys, "the Abercrombie & Fitch model wannabes." Model wannabe A comes running out of his house in shorts and flip flips. He runs across the street and falls square on his butt. It pained me not to laugh out loud. Then, after he picked himself up, he hopped in his Jeep and tried driving away. I think he figured out that he couldn't see out his windows, so he jumped out and used a CD case to scrap off his windows. The CD case lasted 45 seconds before it snapped into a hundred pieces. Model A muttered a few dozen curse words and then ran back across the street into his house (yes, he left his car running the entire time). Model A returned with Model B's car keys and took the ice scrapper out of Model B's Xterra. Model A finished cleaning off his car and then again tried to drive away. He spun his tires for a minute before Model B emerged from the house and helped push the Jeep away from the curb. I was really afraid that Model A was going to slam his Jeep into someone else's car.
Now, Model B is wearing shorts, a snow hat and sneakers. Seriously, what are these two guys doing that they are always in shorts? Anyway, Model B opens his Xterra and looks for his ice scrapper. He starts screaming at his car when he realizes Model A never returned his scrapper. Hilarious!!! I have to give Model B a bit of credit because he went inside and returned with another scrapper. I'm not sure why he didn't give that one to Model A, but that's another point. Model B asked me why I was shoveling off my neighbor's sidewalk. My response, "She's 79, on oxygen, and has two blood clots. I figure I can spend the five minutes and help her out." He mumbled that my reasoning made sense. Hahaha, victory is mine! Model B then drove his Xterra away without spinning his wheels at all. Maybe Model B is the brains of the operation.
What would I do without these two guys. They've provided quite the entertainment over the past year and a half. When they lit their grill on fire still takes the cake, but watching Model A try to run on an icy street in flip flops was still hilarious.
The ice was just thick enough that Jewels could saunter around and not break the ice. Jax, on the other hand, either walks too heavy or he's just that chubby that he broke through the ice and sunk into the snow. It really didn't bother him at all.
This morning was somewhat odd. The hubs and I went outside to clear off our cars and it seemed our entire street was doing the same thing. Our neighborhood isn't exactly Beaver Cleaver, so it was weird that everyone was outside at the same time. The lady across the street from me had her big Chesapeake Bay Retriever out with her and he came over to say hello. I have a giant sized paw print on my pant leg that can vouch for his enormous size. Jax and Jewels gave me a guilt trip when I came back inside. Yeah, I cheated on them.
My morning was made complete by witnessing the sheer idiocy exhibited by my other neighbors across the street. I call these two guys, "the Abercrombie & Fitch model wannabes." Model wannabe A comes running out of his house in shorts and flip flips. He runs across the street and falls square on his butt. It pained me not to laugh out loud. Then, after he picked himself up, he hopped in his Jeep and tried driving away. I think he figured out that he couldn't see out his windows, so he jumped out and used a CD case to scrap off his windows. The CD case lasted 45 seconds before it snapped into a hundred pieces. Model A muttered a few dozen curse words and then ran back across the street into his house (yes, he left his car running the entire time). Model A returned with Model B's car keys and took the ice scrapper out of Model B's Xterra. Model A finished cleaning off his car and then again tried to drive away. He spun his tires for a minute before Model B emerged from the house and helped push the Jeep away from the curb. I was really afraid that Model A was going to slam his Jeep into someone else's car.
Now, Model B is wearing shorts, a snow hat and sneakers. Seriously, what are these two guys doing that they are always in shorts? Anyway, Model B opens his Xterra and looks for his ice scrapper. He starts screaming at his car when he realizes Model A never returned his scrapper. Hilarious!!! I have to give Model B a bit of credit because he went inside and returned with another scrapper. I'm not sure why he didn't give that one to Model A, but that's another point. Model B asked me why I was shoveling off my neighbor's sidewalk. My response, "She's 79, on oxygen, and has two blood clots. I figure I can spend the five minutes and help her out." He mumbled that my reasoning made sense. Hahaha, victory is mine! Model B then drove his Xterra away without spinning his wheels at all. Maybe Model B is the brains of the operation.
What would I do without these two guys. They've provided quite the entertainment over the past year and a half. When they lit their grill on fire still takes the cake, but watching Model A try to run on an icy street in flip flops was still hilarious.
Monday, January 26, 2009
We survived another ski trip!
For six years the hubs and I always talked about going on a little ski trip. Nothing too lavish, just a simple weekend with a one day spot at the slopes. Last October, my mother-in-law moved out to Arizona and kept dropping hints that we should come visit her. Of course she tried to sweeten the deal by informing us that we could play golf and go skiing while in Arizona. Ski in Arizona??? I was intrigued.
Of course, there was just one little, tiny, detail that needed to be addressed -the hubs had never been skiing before. Hearing horror stories about my sister breaking her ankle while skiing probably helped keep the hubs off the slopes for a few years. But, he knew that if he married me he'd have to learn how to ski sooner or later. Maybe flying across the country to face the Rockies wasn't the best way to learn how to ski. It would have made for a heck of a story, but we decided to try something a little closer to home.
Enter Deep Creek, Maryland. It turns out that the brother of one of my hubs' coworkers owns a house near the Wisp Resort. Fantastic. Said brother had an open weekend last January and let the hubs and I tag along for few days.
I can honestly say that teaching the hubs how to ski was among the most nerve racking minutes we encountered during that first year of marriage. Fortunately, the hubs is quite the natural athlete and picked up skiing rather quickly. There were a few dicey moments when he wasn't too pleased to see his klutz-prone wife gliding on top of the snow like a pro. He kept telling himself, "if she can do it, I can do it." Nice, right?
Anyway, we returned to the slopes this year and the hubs hoped to significantly improve upon his previous outing. He did much, much, much better. Granted, I don't think we'll be jetting off to the Alps for my birthday (a lifelong dream of mine), but we can start discussing a trip to a bigger mountain.
There were intermittent snow showers while we were on the slopes.
RUN!!!! It's a red headed monster!
Our lovely accommodations. Sigh... it really is a life goal of mine to have a little mountain cabin somewhere. Nothing fancy, just a simple place to hide out for the occasional weekend. Something near the slopes would be an additional bonus.
Of course, there was just one little, tiny, detail that needed to be addressed -the hubs had never been skiing before. Hearing horror stories about my sister breaking her ankle while skiing probably helped keep the hubs off the slopes for a few years. But, he knew that if he married me he'd have to learn how to ski sooner or later. Maybe flying across the country to face the Rockies wasn't the best way to learn how to ski. It would have made for a heck of a story, but we decided to try something a little closer to home.
Enter Deep Creek, Maryland. It turns out that the brother of one of my hubs' coworkers owns a house near the Wisp Resort. Fantastic. Said brother had an open weekend last January and let the hubs and I tag along for few days.
I can honestly say that teaching the hubs how to ski was among the most nerve racking minutes we encountered during that first year of marriage. Fortunately, the hubs is quite the natural athlete and picked up skiing rather quickly. There were a few dicey moments when he wasn't too pleased to see his klutz-prone wife gliding on top of the snow like a pro. He kept telling himself, "if she can do it, I can do it." Nice, right?
Anyway, we returned to the slopes this year and the hubs hoped to significantly improve upon his previous outing. He did much, much, much better. Granted, I don't think we'll be jetting off to the Alps for my birthday (a lifelong dream of mine), but we can start discussing a trip to a bigger mountain.
There were intermittent snow showers while we were on the slopes. 
RUN!!!! It's a red headed monster! 
Our lovely accommodations. Sigh... it really is a life goal of mine to have a little mountain cabin somewhere. Nothing fancy, just a simple place to hide out for the occasional weekend. Something near the slopes would be an additional bonus.
Thursday, January 22, 2009
Snow + Jax = crazy shenanigans
It snowed here in the greater Baltimore area on Monday. It's just taken me a few days to upload a few pictures. I really need to become more efficient at taking pictures and then remembering to transfer them from the camera to the computer.
Oh well....
Anyway, there was just enough sunlight on Monday afternoon to take the dogs outside and capture a few moments. It must be stated that Jewels isn't a fan of the snow. She'll normally hobble around on three paws because she subscribes to the belief that all four of her paws can't be wet at the same time. It's rather entertaining.
Jax, on the other hand, loves the snow. He gets hyper just looking at snow. So as soon as I opened the door he was sprinting across the yard and running laps around a frozen Jewels.
And he's out of the gate!!!
See, I told you she rotates on three legs.
This is where the crazy shenanigans began. I started tossing snowballs out into the yard and Jax started fetching and catching them. Rather entertaining.
Seriously, if you don't get your butt over here so I can go inside... I'm going to eat you!
Oh well....
Anyway, there was just enough sunlight on Monday afternoon to take the dogs outside and capture a few moments. It must be stated that Jewels isn't a fan of the snow. She'll normally hobble around on three paws because she subscribes to the belief that all four of her paws can't be wet at the same time. It's rather entertaining.
Jax, on the other hand, loves the snow. He gets hyper just looking at snow. So as soon as I opened the door he was sprinting across the yard and running laps around a frozen Jewels.
And he's out of the gate!!!
See, I told you she rotates on three legs.
This is where the crazy shenanigans began. I started tossing snowballs out into the yard and Jax started fetching and catching them. Rather entertaining. 
Seriously, if you don't get your butt over here so I can go inside... I'm going to eat you!
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
I can't wait...
I can't wait to tell my future children that I saw President Obama speak in person.
I can't wait to tell my future children that I was a part of what will most likely be the most historical election of my lifetime.
I can't wait to tell my future children that I voted in every presidential election where I was old enough to vote.
I can't wait to tell my future children that I got their father to register to vote.
I can't wait to tell my future children that I got their father to vote.
I can't wait to tell my future children that if they work hard enough, then they can achieve anything they can dream.
I can't wait to tell my future daughter, if I am so lucky to have a daughter, that she can grow up and become the president. For that is my greatest dream today, that as these barriers are coming down, the rest will continue to fall.
I can't wait to tell my future children that their world is better than mine. That they live in a world where it doesn't matter what religion you practice, the color of your skin, where you are born, what school you attend, the gender they were born, who they fall in love with, because in their world people are judged only on their merits.
The truth of the mater is this, I don't agree with President Obama on every issue. Actually, I have quite a few differences with his policies, but today isn't about me. Today will be remembered as a day that transcends normal politics. Today will be remembered as the day when America decided it was ready to take the next step. Also, today isn't just about President Obama, it's about the millions of people who voted for him. Those people said, "I trust this man to be the leader of my country." We used to live in a world where it was a common assumption that person with Obama's background couldn't be the President. Thank God we no longer live in that world.
Today is the day where I don't have to wait to tell someone they can do whatever they want. Today is the day when I can tell my nephew he can become the President. That reminds me... I really should call him and tell him that. He can stick with his dance career, but that's totally up to him.
Go Blue Hens!!! It's a Udel thing.
Mr. President
(Don't tell the hubs, but the new tv photographs much better than the old tv )
Jax and Jewels wanted to grab a piece of the political action:
I can't wait to tell my future children that I was a part of what will most likely be the most historical election of my lifetime.
I can't wait to tell my future children that I voted in every presidential election where I was old enough to vote.
I can't wait to tell my future children that I got their father to register to vote.
I can't wait to tell my future children that I got their father to vote.
I can't wait to tell my future children that if they work hard enough, then they can achieve anything they can dream.
I can't wait to tell my future daughter, if I am so lucky to have a daughter, that she can grow up and become the president. For that is my greatest dream today, that as these barriers are coming down, the rest will continue to fall.
I can't wait to tell my future children that their world is better than mine. That they live in a world where it doesn't matter what religion you practice, the color of your skin, where you are born, what school you attend, the gender they were born, who they fall in love with, because in their world people are judged only on their merits.
The truth of the mater is this, I don't agree with President Obama on every issue. Actually, I have quite a few differences with his policies, but today isn't about me. Today will be remembered as a day that transcends normal politics. Today will be remembered as the day when America decided it was ready to take the next step. Also, today isn't just about President Obama, it's about the millions of people who voted for him. Those people said, "I trust this man to be the leader of my country." We used to live in a world where it was a common assumption that person with Obama's background couldn't be the President. Thank God we no longer live in that world.
Today is the day where I don't have to wait to tell someone they can do whatever they want. Today is the day when I can tell my nephew he can become the President. That reminds me... I really should call him and tell him that. He can stick with his dance career, but that's totally up to him.
Go Blue Hens!!! It's a Udel thing.
Mr. President
(Don't tell the hubs, but the new tv photographs much better than the old tv )
Jax and Jewels wanted to grab a piece of the political action:
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