Fill In The Blank Friday!

I am participating in Fill in the blank Friday hosted by Lauren @ The Little Things We Do. If you would like to participate too click on the link to her blog. 

1.   My favorite color is  I don't really have one favorite. All I know is I don't like purple.

2.  My travel destination of choice is  I love Hawaii. It is the most relaxing place in the world to me. 

3.  My favorite  food is   I love sushi and tacos. 

4.  My happy place is My Cabin or anywhere my family is.

5.  My favorite saying is    Let Go and Let God

6.  My dirty little secret is I'm a horrible procrastinator. It gets out of control sometimes. I've learned to live by lists. It helps me stay on top of things.

7.  Something friends might say about me is that I  I tend to speak first and think second. I sometimes come off a little harsh. I'm learning to tone it down a little. 

Tomorrow I have plans with one of my oldest and dearest friends. She is hosting an all girls get together. She is the person that introduced B and me 16 years ago. I feel blessed that I still have her in my life  even after all these years. 

I hope everyone has a wonderful relaxing weekend. 

Wordless Wednesday-Jake

Jake has this thing that he does when he is going #2. He usually goes in a corner and doesn't want anyone talking to him. He gets this funny look on his face. He will probably be mad when he gets older that I share these photos but he is just so darn cute.

ALL DONE!! AHHH!

10 Post You Challenge- 4 Books

This one is hard for me because I haven't been reading much lately. 

4. The Twilight Series- I loved it. I read the whole series in the matter of a few months

3. Don't Laugh but I loved Lauren Conrad's first two books. LA Candy and Sweet Little Lies. 

2. Handle with Care- Jodi Picoult

1. The Bible

There is my boring book list. I am in the searching for some good reads. I'm looking for suggestions and anyone knows of some can't put down type of books. 

Taco Night

I wanted to share this photo of Jake eating one of his new favorite foods, TACOS! This is a milestone for Jake. He is picking up the taco and eating it the way he should. Like a big boy. I can't believe how fast he is growing up. He is saying so many words too. Tonight Mama was bad and said SH*T and guess who started running around saying SH*T?? I guess I need to watch my words.

Date Night

B's Sister Shannon asked if she could take Jake for the night so B and I decided to have a date night. B made all the plans and didn't tell me what we were going to do. The entire time we've been together B has never planned a date night for us. He's not really the romantic type but he does try. He took me to a place in Stillwater for dinner called Phil's Tara Hideaway. We had the most amazing dinner. Of course I had to take pictures.

Brent ordered a steak sandwich and I ordered greek chicken. We both thought our meals were AMAZING!!

My dinner

B's Dinner


After dinner B and I took a stroll down memory lane. B and I have known each other since I was 17 years old. He lived across the street from my best friend from Tamie. We spent a lot of time together and dated for a while. He was my first love. We used to spend a lot of time at a park down the street from his house called Tablyn Park. We decided to stop there after dinner. It brought back so many great memories of all the late night talks and beers on the tailgate. 

We then drove past B's old house that he grew up in and decided to stop by Tamie's old house. Her Mom still lives there and I couldn't just drive by without saying hi. We visited with Tam's Mom Deb for a bit before heading back out on our trip down memory lane. After our visit we stopped by a bar that we used to go to.

We talked a lot about old times and how amazing it is that we met so long ago and how much we loved each other then and how amazing it is that we found each other again 4 years ago and now are engaged and have a beautiful son together. 

B and I have been through a lot in the past few years with Jake being visually impaired and then B getting diagnosed with cancer. It has all brought us so much closer. I thank God everyday for B and for our son. 

B asked me to marry him last fall and we had a date set for this fall to get married and then we found out that he had cancer. Needless to say our wedding date was put off. We didn't want to try to plan a wedding while Brent was going through all this treatments. Now with his chemo nearing it's end and with me back to work we finally feel comfortable putting the wedding plans back into gear. Tonight we set a date. B and I will be married October 6th 2012. Let the wedding planning begin. 

Thank you B for a great night. I love you

 

Me

Michelle and Nicole put together a new photo challenge blog called ISO. This weeks challenge is self portrait. I attempted to use the tripod but none of the photos I took were good enough for me to feel comfortable sharing. I just haven't mastered the self portrait thing yet. So I decided to not use the tripod and just take a photo of myself.. I actually like this picture and I hate taking pictures of myself. Sorry girls for not using my tripod I hope it wasn't a rule for this challenge. : (

ABC's of Me

Thanks for the idea Ang. 


Age: 33 but I still feel about 25
Bed Size: King but we are looking at going down to a queen because our room is so small
Chore You Hate: Emptying the dishwasher so we don't use it. I just wash the dishes as I use them
Dogs: We have one little shit named Gizmo. He is a Frenchton. Boston Terrier/French Bulldog
Essential start of your day: Going into my son's room in the morning to see his beautiful face. 
Favorite color: Hmm I don't know. I like all colors. 
Gold or silver: Silver
Height: 5'7"
Instruments I play (or have played):  Flute in 6th grade
Job title: Human Resources Director 
Kids: Jake he is 2.5
Live: Brooklyn Center Minnesota
Mom's name: Linda
Nickname: Cooter, Mimi, Berly
Overnight hospital stays: 3
Pet peeve: Snoring, loud chewing, people that don't recycle
Quote from a movie: "I'm right on top of that Rose". "There's no crying in baseball"
Right or left handed: Right
Siblings: Older Sister Tracy and two older Brothers, Jason and Doug Jr
Time you wake up: 7 am during the week and 8:30 on the weekends
Underwear: I used to wear a thong until I had a baby now I like bikini kind.
Vegetables you dislike: I love all veggies except lima beans.
What makes you run late: My child
X-rays you've had done: Lots
Yummy food you make: I love my enchiladas.
Zoo animal: I love monkeys at the zoo but my favorite animal is a pig

Wordless Wednesday

Jake hasn't been feeling the greatest lately. Add in the heat and you have a VERY cranky little boy. Normally we do not allow NUKS except for at night but it was the only way we could get him to stop whining. Last night I snapped this photo of B and Jake reading. This was right before Jake fell asleep in B's arms. All I want is for a break in the heat wave and for my little man to feel better.

10 Post You Challenge- 5 Foods

5. Sushi- I love it. I can't get enough. One of my most favorite things to do is get together with a group of girlfriends and go out for sushi happy hour. 

4. Salads- I could eat salads everyday. It's one of my most favorite foods. 

3. Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Frosting- It's one of my guilty pleasures. I don't eat it very often but when I do I can't have a more than a piece in my house or I will eat too much. If I have a whole cake I will eat the whole thing. I would have to throw it in the garbage and pour soap on it in order to not dig it out of the garbage. I know it's sick but I just love it so much. 

2. Homemade Salsa- I love making it. It's so fresh and yummy.

1. Chicken Wings- I'm sorry but I love me some wings. I know that they are bad for me so I don't eat them very often and when I do I pick the skin off. I end up making a huge mess and it take me longer to pick them apart then it does to actually eat them. 

So there is my list. I could go on and on but since I can only list 5, these are my favs. 

We're Having A Heat Way!!

Holy heat wave!! I can't believe how hot it's been. It's sweltering. This past weekend we didn't leave the house once. Not only was it too hot to go outside but Jake was so sick all weekend. He had a temp and all he wanted to do was cuddle up with MAMA.
Our central air hasn't been shut off in about a week. We are thinking that is what is causing a mysterious flood in our basement. We can't find the source. Such a bummer. From looking at the weather it doesn't seem like we are going to get much relief until next week. UGH!! For those of you that are experiencing this heat wave. Stay inside and stay cool.

Before I sign off I wanted to share a picture of Jake with his favorite toy. When Jake was about 5 months old my Sister Tracy bought him a rocking horse. It  took a long time for him to be able to sit on it because his legs weren't long enough. Now that he is a big boy it's his favorite toy. He drags this horse all over the house and all over the yard. If you press it's ear it sings. I can't believe how big my little boy is getting.

Happy Saturday!

My list of the 10 things that made me happy this week. 

1. Finishing up my last week of training at work. I am officially the Director of Human Resources. Friday was the last day for the person I am replacing. I'm on my own. I'm a little nervous but happy for this great opportunity. 

2. Jake had a great week at Daycare. 

3. Spending the weekend with one of my bff's while B is out of town fishing.

4. I had all my work pants tailored to my new size. They had to be taken in 4 inches. Sweet!

5. Big Brother. I love summer time because Big Brother starts and I love it!

6. Diet Cherry Pepsi

7. Homemade chow mein.

8. Central air conditioning

9. Funny pictures of Gizmo

10. Jake 

10 Post You Challenge- 6 places

6. Hawaii. I love it there. The smell of flowers the minute you walk of the plane is one of my favorite parts. 

5. NYC. I love the fast pace and the culture. Oh and I think I'm Carrie Bradshaw

4. Cross Lake, MN. B and I go there every year for our anniversary. If we could afford it we could get a cabin there.Everyone that we have met there is so nice. It's just a great place to vacation. They have an annual winter fest every year. We have so much fun that we look forward to it all year. 

3. White Bear Lake. I know it sounds lame to have my home town as one of my favorite places but I love it. When ever I drive through or I'm in WBL I feel my childhood come back to me. I get this nostalgic feeling that I really can't explain. 

2. My backyard. B and I were blessed to find a home with an amazing back yard and deck. Whether we are hosting a backyard get together or just lounging as a family we love every minute of it and thank God everyday for all that he has given us. 

1. Our family cabin. This is a place that we go to be together as a family and relax. There are so many generations that go to the cabin( many different cabins on one lake). I wrote about it before how amazing it is to be able to hang out with 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th cousins. I grew up there, my Mom grew up there and my Moms Mom grew up there. I feel blessed to have such a close knit family. Although lack of free time has made it so B and I haven't been able to visit the cabin as much as we would like this year the cabin still made it to #1 on my list favorite places list.

Balancing Act

Since I am new to this working Mom thing trying to find a balance between my home life and work life has been a bit of a challenge for me. I didn't realize how hard it would be to be a working Mom. Don't get me wrong I am really liking it (so far). But I am still trying to figure out how to manage my time wisely. I used to get upset with a friend of mine because I always wanted to hang out with her and she would always say that she didn't have much time outside of work and her family. I really didn't get it until now. Her and I actually did something the other night and I told her that I finally get it. I really want to figure out a way to manage my time effectively so that I still have time to do all the things I love and be with all the people that I love. Here is a list of things I really need to work on.

• Playing more with Jake after I get home from work.I want to start taking him to the park, play in the back yard, etc. 
• Have a night once or twice a month where I get together with a girlfriend for dinner or coffee. 
• Have a date night with B.
• Work on my jewelry more. I have been out of supplies for a while and haven't been making anything. I am starting to go through withdraws. 
• Plan a menu for the week and start making dinner every night again. Lately we have been whipping up dinner every night. 
• Spend more time with family.
• Plan some camping trips in our new camper.
• I want to continue to make time for blogging and also make time to read the blogs that I like. 
• Get back to the gym. Now that I am sitting all day long I need to start working out more so I don't gain the weight back.
• Last but not least I do not want to stop selling Avon. I love their products and enjoy selling. I want to try and promote my Online Avon store more. 

So that is my list of stuff that I am going to try and work on. Any suggestions or tips on how to manage my time would be great. 

I also wanted to share some cute photos of Jake.

Jake loves his pool and loves being naked. 

I eventually put his clothes back on him. He put all his riding toys in his little pool.

• I finished my second week of work. I really like it there. There is a lot to learn and at times I feel a tad overwhelmed but everyday it gets easier. I have more responsibility at this job then I ever had but I love it. This is my first director position and I am so lucky that I found this opportunity.
• This was Jake's first week in daycare and he did awesome. I think that I worked myself up thinking that I was the only person that could take care of him. I was so sad to go back to work but it seems daycare is doing wonders for him. My Sister has been picking him up and bringing him to therapy and will continue to do so twice a week until we can find a PCA. Thank God for her. Jake loves playing with all the kids and is even napping good over there.
• Today my discount at work started. Tomorrow B and I are going to stop by my store and go shopping for the house and yard. 
• I feel really happy today and lately. Almost like things are finally starting to work out for us. I guess all that praying is paying off. 
• Tomorrow Brent and I are going out on a date and I am super excited. We haven't gone out together in so long. I think maybe even before we found out he had the big C.

I hope everyone has a great weekend. : )

Wordless Wednesday-Stud!

This past weekend we had a 4th of July get together with some family and friends. We had a bean bag toss game going and B being the silly guy he is had to dress the part. He said that he needed his lucky shorts. I thought he looked so cute so I wanted to share.

What a Stud!

10 Post You Challenge-7 Wants

7. I want to succeed at my new job. 

6. I want Jake to be happy in his new day care

5. I want B to be healthy and to feel good again. 

4. I want to go on a vacation with B out of this state. We've never done that.

3. Not to get materialistic but I want a new car. 

2. I want to get myself back in the groove of working out again.

1. And last but not least I want health and happiness for all my family and friends.