1 The New Normal

We moved into our new apartment April 1st. It was exciting and stressful all at the same time. There were lots of tears shed, mostly mine. Ok all mine. But we did it. Our little family lived together alone once before while I was in school at West Virginia but this was like our first real place together. 5 days after moving in Mikey and I left for our honey moon in St. Thomas. It was a very much needed vacation especially after the move from hell, but it also meant that we would be coming home from paradise to a cockroach infested, unpacked, home. Yes I said cockroach. Apparently the people who lived here before us didnt know the meaning of clean. And apparently the rental agency doesnt think it necessary to abide by the contact, you know the one that says all pests must be taken care of PRIOR to tenants moving in. Yeah. But here we are 2 months later and we are *mostly* roach free and almost settled in. We hope to be here for at least two years so Im excited to actually take them time to decorate this place like I really want to. Our apartment is big, it's in a great location (and only two streets down from my sisters!!!) we have a pool (which we have been to almost daily since it opened) a play ground, and the best part? So many kids! The family that lives below us has 4 kiddos and after weeks of Peyton looking on them playing from our balcony yelling 'hey fwends!!) Mikey and I decided to let her go down and play with them. We went with her the first few times, met the parents, got to know he kids, and now she ventures down there on her own and we keep watch from our balcony. It's pretty great. It gives her some independence, gives us some kid free time, and she's so happy. She loves it here. Which is all that really matters. 

moving blows... as if you didnt already know that

also since being here Peyton has been sleeping so.much.better. like waking up at 10 is not a rarity

she's an independent swimmer.

unpacking our wedding things was one of the most exciting parts of the move!

Iv been slowly adding my own touches and doing DIYs that iv been day dreaming about for years. 

Peyton's room is HUGE and it fits all of her toys. awesome. 

we've even had friends over for dinner quite a bit so far! I love using all of our wedding gifts. and I love hostessing.

I think we are all significantly happier here and I hope it only keeps getting better!

0 Life as we know it

Yesterday Mikey P and I went to Disney on Ice 100 years of Magic. It was, well, magic. 

We had a bit of a metro dilemma getting there and I had my first (and hopefully last) experience with public buses but when we did finally arrive (30 min late) it was well worth it to see the look on this kids face. 

She was in awe

and there were mom tears. it happened. dont judge me. 

I really want to go see another Disney ice show, they do such a great job and put a lot of effort into it.

Also there was no Tinkerbell but luckily we brought out very own

other things ...

Craft trips to Michales for wedding DIY thangs

my newest addiction. If you like olives this is a MUST. It is nothing short of uhmazing. Also some might call it crack. IDK thats just what I hear.

it's fun getting into trouble...

Bolster redo DIY coming soon to a blog near you. 

Also a room tour is in the works. Air date, probably circa 2097.

3 Zoo Trip // Part 1

I mentioned that Peyton and I went to the zoo recently with Pam and Declan. It was such a pretty day and we saw so many animals! (obvious statement?) Here are a few of the pictures from our day. I took a lot.

this little prairie dog look like dexykins. short and round :) so cute!

Ill keep you in suspense as to what other animals we spotted in a later post! Try to contain yourself.

Hope you are all having a great weekend! 

2 February Goals

I mentioned in my New Years post that I was going to try to keep up with my many goals for the year by making check lists every month. I feel like this is a better way to keep up with everything I want to do. It seems a bit more organized as well as opposed to listing off a ton of resolutions on January 1st that I will have been sure to broken by the 5th. So here we are February 1st. A new month and the start of my New Years check list

Health and Weight Loss (in 3's)

*Run 3 miles - slowly working my way back up to 5, and hopefully even more!

*Work out 3 days a week 

-week 1

-week 2

-week 3

-week 4

*Loose 3 lbs - My weight can shift up and down by 5 lbs in a day but thats just water weight. Id like to loose 3 lbs and actually keep it off. I know it doesnt seem like a lot in a month but baby steeps people. Id rather surpass my goals then not meet them at all!

*Do a 3 days juice cleanse

Family 

* Do at least 2 new and fun family activities

* Go on a real life date night (what is that even?)

* Have a special mommy daughter bonding day

Friends

*Have lunch with a friend that I haven't spent much time with lately 

* call A friend that lives too far for lunch

Blog

* Try to blog at least 3 times a week - I know it seems small but this momma be busy

* Give it a makeover 

Crafting

* Try 3 new DIYs (3 just seems like a good number for this month not too big not too small)

Explore

*Go on an adventure - Discover a place Iv never been before. There are so many I know this one won't be too hard!

Wedding

* Book the Photographer (almost done i'll share soon!)

* Work on the invitations 

* Do one DIY

*********************************************************

February is mighty short. I may be biting off more than I can chew but I'm going to do my best to check everything off this list in the next 28/(9?) (is this a leap year?) days. I'll be referring back to this list every time I accomplish a goal and marking it off so be sure to check in and follow along with me! Also if you feel inspired to make a monthly check list let me know so I can check it out and follow along your goals with you! 

3 Lookin' Good Twenty Twelve

I realize that it's already the 12th day of the year but the way my life is going this is pretty good for me. I don't normally make resolutions. And when I do I typically fail. But this year I have a lot to look forward to, and a lot to check off my to do list. In order to make sure that I make progress I need to make myself a list of goals or resolutions if you will.

Get fit:
       ~ Eat better
       ~ Run, run, run - I was up to 5 miles beginning of december but I took a hiatus to eat my weight in cookies, mashed potatoes, and other such holiday treats.
       ~ lose 10 lbs (roughly) before W-Day
       ~ Go on more hikes with the babe  and other out doorsy things

Plan a wedding - As many of you may already know 2012 is the year of my wedding. I don't know, it's kinda a big deal. So far I have a dress, a date, and a venue. That's it. I officially have 8 months and 3 days. People plan a wedding in way less time than that but for me that's not a lot of time. Especially because this past year has gone by so fast for me so i can only imagine how fast this one will go. Good golly this is a mighty ambitious task.

Make more time for crafting

BLOG - Iv been having trouble balancing my life, job, kid, and blog. This little spot means a lot to me. I have family and friends who look forward to reading it and I havent been keeping up with my end of the deal. Sorry peeps, Im going to work on it.

Spend more time with my family - I want to do more things together. Mikey P and I. Take Peyton all over the place. Do out of the ordinary stuff with her. We live so close to so many great things and we never venture far from our comfort zone. That needs to change.

Spend more time with the people I love - I need to spend more couple time with Mikey. Actually go on dates. I need to spend more time with my friends. Weather it be in real life or over the phone I need to keep in touch better with my closest friends. Its hard when you have totally different schedules and lives but with this new fangled thing called interwebz I have no excuses.

I think the best way for me to make sure I keep up with my goals/resolutions/whatever is to make monthly check lists for each category. Im taking January to get my life in order but come February I'm taking my life on full force. I hope to be able to share it with you every step of the way and I hope that you will be here to share it with me.
2012 I have some pretty high expectations for you, don't let me down!