Anniversary, visitors, shopping, big girl beds, & Memorial Day!

Since I last wrote....

• Tony & I celebrated 3 years of marriage!  How did we celebrate?  Mexican take-out (because that's what I was "craving" and my husband is my best friend) along with my favorite flowers - carnations - from my husband along with several scratch-off tickets (what a fun idea)! 
• I still haven't written about my sisters coming in town or our housewarming party.  I failed big time when it came to documenting the party - I was too busy having fun and seriously didn't take a single picture!  Not of our friends, family, or the food.  Bummer.  But it's definitely a good thing that we were too busy enjoying ourselves.
• Did some shopping at Old Navy.  I flipping love that store and shopping their online deals, too.
• Finally got a humungous area rug for our living room, thanks to recommendations from my favorite twin-cousin, Breanne!
• Presley now sleeps in a big girl (toddler) bed rather than her crib.  I am so proud of her but my mommy heart breaks a little bit that the crib is officially not her bed anymore.  I now completely understand the way in which it is hard for parents to let go of these little things as our kids get older.

It's crazy to think that our wedding was already three years ago.  I can't believe how jam-packed the last three years have been.  To recap, three years ago we lived in our first apartment in Silvis, Illinois.  Since then, we found out I was pregnant with Presley, moved into a small slab rental house in Moline, brought Presley home, Tony lost his job, I worked at a zoo, I found out I was pregnant, Tony got a job in Memphis, and we bought a home.  So we've lived in three different houses (four if you include the months spent living with Chris & Kristen!) and have been almost all the way through two pregnancies.  I can't believe I actually thought life was going to slow down after the wedding... big HA-HA on me.

I'm seriously lucky to be married to Tony and to be going through all the crazies with him.  I can hardly believe the two people we are today are the two people holding hands up on that altar 3 years ago; we've changed as individuals and our relationship has changed, too.  I love our life and where we are headed as a family and cannot wait to make even more memories with my husband and kid(s).

Alright, alright... enough with the mushy mushy.

As I mentioned, my sisters were in town last weekend and we have a blast.  My nephew, Matthew, was born back in April (April Fools Day to be exact!) so everybody was in town to celebrate his baptism.  It was the first time that we were all able to get together - siblings, significant others, kids - since maybe Anne Marie's baptism?  (I might be making that up... but I really can't think of a time since then!)

This one is from Anne Marie's baptism - fall 2012

This one is from Matthew's baptism - summer 2014

I love getting all of us together - the more is seriously the merrier with them.  It makes everybody separating and going back to our regular lives that much more sucky!  I still hope to live in the same town someday and if we could wrangle Breanne & Dustin, too, that would just be perfect.  In the time frame that we had family in town, we also threw a housewarming party so that our friends and family could come see the new place and help break it in.  We also celebrated Bobby's birthday!  (The only pictures I took during the party happened while we sang him happy birthday.)

My mother-in-law took this one of Tony feeding Presley some dirt cake!

It was really nice having everybody over and since it was a potluck, we got to taste some pretty FANTASTIC food.  I had my first Oreo ball and holy moly... am I addicted!!!  We had a taco bar and I decided to do tacos in a bag to make clean up easier!

While my sisters were in town we spent all day Sunday together for the baptism and party afterwards and just got some time to hang out - which was nice and very much appreciated.  Jonathan and Ashley (my little sister & her fiance) left Sunday afternoon around the time Anne Marie was getting up from her nap.  Amanda and Tony blew bubbles for those two for such a long time and they acted like it was the most fun they ever had!

 

We had dinner over at our house with Amanda & John (my big sister & brother-in-law), Caroline & Greg (John's brother & his wife who live in the Memphis area), Pamela (John's sister who lives in Chicago), & the newly baptized baby boys (Matthew & his cousin, Noah) and that was a lot of fun!

Then we woke up Monday morning and headed to the Memphis Zoo.  Man oh man, did we have a good time there.  I feel like that was the smoothest trip to the zoo I maybe have ever had, which is crazy considering there were 5 adults + 1 pregnant lady (yes... I consider myself somewhat of a subspecies at this point), 2 newborns, & 2 toddlers in tow.  The weather was great, the kids cooperated, the food was good (but overpriced), and thank goodness there was water to play in!  We came home for a quick nap time and then had dinner together at Huey's before the Nashville folks took off to head back home.

Tony's first time holding Matthew & Matthew started crying!

 

Me & the girlies after dinner :)

You're probably wondering why in the world I am mentioning a shopping trip to Old Navy.  Well, I am so excited because it's another summer which means another set of flag shirts!  And this time around we bought four for the first time... which is very sweet and surreal.  I can't wait to get a family photo in them.  Tony also got some khakis & pants for work that were over $10 off each plus shopping was free, we had 20% off, and had $50 in gift cards to spend.  (We bought the Old Navy gift cards from Kroger, got $10 off, and 4x the gas rewards!)  All in all, it was a fun purchase for me because I love great deals.  And shopping.

Speaking of shopping and good deals?  We got an area rug for our living room.  The floor is wood laminate and I desperately missed having carpeted floors.  It's a big 8' x 12' area rug we got from Lowes - thanks to Breanne for the recommendation - and even best?  It's a commercial cut so it was CHEAP!  I believe it was $79 (unheard of!) and we had 10% off on top of it, so it came out to $71 or so.  It's black, white, and gray so it gives the room a bit of personality & depth, too!

And finally... there is the fact that my baby girl is in her big girl bed now.  One random day after she woke up from naptime in her crib, it struck me how big she looked in her crib.  It's not that she didn't fit in there anymore and she wasn't being rowdy in there whatsoever... it just looked like she deserved to give her big girl bed a try already.  So I put the mattress on the toddler bed from her crib and she was FLOORED!!!!  As I said, she had just gotten up from a 2 hour nap, and she went and immediately laid on her new bed and played there for a long time!  I asked her if she wanted to sleep there later that night and she said yes... I made sure to ask if she wanted to sleep in her crib and she gave an enthusiastic no!  So we took apart the crib and moved it to Molly's room.  Phew.  I have been on pins and needles about it for the last few naptimes and bedtimes, but we have one awesome girl who is seemingly unfazed by the new change!  Presley used to go right to sleep at bedtime and naptime, but for the past few weeks (even when she slept in her crib), she has taken a while to wind down.  In her big girl bed, that is still true, but it seems to take less time for her to fall asleep lately! Which I am nothing but happy about.  To our knowledge, she's been staying in her bed really well too.  I think she was way more ready for this than I thought she was!

Now we'll just need to buy a new crib mattress for Miss Molly.  Since we plan on having her in our room in her bassinet for a while, there is no real rush.  Though, I know myself fairly well, and I'm sure we'll be purchasing it sooner rather than later just for peace of mind!

To top it all off, we had a great Memorial Day Weekend with our friends.  We went swimming, played out in the sun, ate some delicious food, and laughed a whole lot.  Of course it wouldn't be complete without a little drama (like our A/C going out for 24 hours) but all ended well!

Hope everybody had an awesome weekend!

House hunting!

As some of you know, my husband and I are in the process of first time home buying.  We're finally at the point where our loan has been approved and are starting to look at homes.  We look at four gorgeous houses today and it made me realize how excited I really am to move forward.  It's been a little tough trying to find the area we want to settle down in but that'll eventually fall into place.  I wanted to write about all four houses that we saw today and get some feedback!

House #1:  Built in 2003, single story home, 3BD 2BA.  This one is bank-owned and will need some TLC.  The previous owners smoked inside the house so the vents were in need of a deep clean.  It'll need new paint to get the smell out, new carpet, and just needs to be deep cleaned everywhere.  Because they are selling this "as is" the price is pretty low.  Oh, and there is a really weird, huge shed in the back yard.  But the yard is fenced in.  I honestly don't remember much else from this property.

House #2:  Built in 1996, single story home, 4BD 2BA.  My mother-in-law & I really loved this one and is move-in ready.  The house isn't very big - and therefore neither are the rooms - but it is enough for us. I fell in love with the open concept den and kitchen area complete with a real fireplace!  BEAUTIFUL.  The rooms spill into one another so when you are cooking or doing dishes, you don't feel closed off from everyone else.  The garage is a big, spacious one.  New roof, new carpet, new neutral paint, new hardwood flooring.  Washer/dryer fits hooks up in a hall closet, which wasn't that big of a deal.  The master bathroom was lackluster.  (I really want a jacuzzi tub and this had a tiny tiny shower/tub combo.  I know... spoiled.  Just a pipe dream!)  Other downside?  There is no back door.  In order to get to the backyard, you have to open up the garage door & go out from there.  Which I honestly didn't even notice until our realtor pointed it out.  WEIRD.  We got to talking about it... in case of emergency, that leaves you ONE exit through the front door - if you couldn't use the garage door.  I mean, you could always go through a window, but still.  Weird.  Also, very big yard that is not fenced in.  My question is, does anyone else find the no back door thing odd?  The bedrooms also felt like they were one right on top of the other since there are 4 in a relatively small house.  (Just thinking about life with a crying baby...)  Otherwise, this place hit it out of the PARK with me.

House #3:  Built in 2005, two story home, 4BD 2BA.  This one was Tony's favorite.  It was also bank-owned and somewhat of a fixer-upper.  It would require a deep clean, new paint, and new carpets.  It also comes with an in ground pool - which adolescent me would find as a HUGE bonus, but adult me finds it as somewhat of a small bother.  3 bedrooms were downstairs and the 4th was above the garage and would be used as a playroom because it's huge.  It's a split bedroom floor plan so our bedroom is on the opposite side of the house from the kids' rooms... which is pretty nice.  The master bathroom was beautiful with a big jacuzzi tub and a separate shower.  The living room was huge and opened up into the kitchen as well, which was nice.  Separate laundry room right off of the kitchen.  Decent garage but not much attic storage.  Also has a gas fireplace.  Would require a lot of work/money before moving in which we could probably talk down the asking price as a result.  I liked the potential... but all the work it would require might stress me out because at this point I am so ready to be in our own place.

House #4:  Built in 2006, single story home, 3BD 2BA.  Move-in ready.  It had a nice size garage that opened up into the laundry room.  From there you walk into the kitchen which felt somewhat closed off from the living room (and had great cabinets).  The living room was spacious and included a gas fireplace.  It's a split bedroom floor plan so our bedroom is on the opposite side of the house from the kids' rooms... which is pretty nice.  The master bedroom was a nice size and the master bath had a jacuzzi tub and separate shower.  The bedrooms were both pretty big and the guest bathroom was beautiful.  The backyard was a pretty perfect size, was fenced in, and had a covered patio area.  I loved the laundry room and felt that it was very convenient. 

Overall, I really like the move-in ready houses because they truly feel homey.  I do like the layout of the 3rd house but all the work makes me nervous not knowing how long it would take.  These houses are all in the same town and it's somewhat on the outskirts of the city - which would require a longer commute to nearly anywhere we go.  We now have to make the decision whether that commute is okay with us or not.  The taxes are much lower and therefore we are able to get a lot more home for our money, which I love.

Big decisions coming up!  Very excited to get going and start making things happen!!!

Happies & Crappies {link up}

Every time I think I will be permanently back into blogging something throws a wrench into my little plan!  What is it this time?  Well, we are in the middle of packing up our house!  Yes, that's right... time to move on to the next place.  In this case, we are making a move from the Midwest to the Midsouth.  It's a fairly involved process at this point since we don't have everything mapped out yet... so we may end up with our stuff in storage for a while before figuring out WHERE we are going {exactly}.  But for now, Tony and I are separated by nearly 600 miles.  So, for the time-being, Presley and I are trying to keep ourselves busy!


Just wanted to bring everybody up to speed on what's going on before I declare my weekly happies & crappies!

• Reading articles about Walt Disney World make me so happy!  I just recently read one about the 5 must have Disney snacks you can score without even purchasing a park ticket.  I love getting the inside scoop about all things WDW-related!  And that article really reminded me of our last "Disney" trip that we took in July.  I put it in quotation marks because we didn't buy any park tickets or visit the parks... just downtown Disney & the pier and we had a blast.  I imagine trying to have the full Disney experience with a youngster would be overwhelming right now anyways.  Back to the list... I can't believe we haven't experienced Dole Whip... that is definitely on the Disney "bucket list" I've got going.
• It's finally December!  Presley and I are going to have our first Santa visit this week when we head to Chick-Fil-A to visit Santa Cow like we did last year.  I can't wait to see how she reacts this time around.
• Scandal (my favorite show) is new this week!
• Saw Catching Fire with my sisters last week and it was INCREDIBLE... even better than I could have imagined.  I want to see it again so bad but I may just have to settle for rereading the series.  Again.
• We got to do a lot of cool things over the last two weeks.  We stayed with my sister, brother-in-law, and niece in Nashville for a week and spent a lot of time together!  After that we headed to Memphis to spend time with Tony & some friends and family and it was wonderful.  We visited the Nashville Zoo, had two family Thanksgivings, and got to be there for our godson's 5th birthday party (I think the first birthday we've been able to be there for!). 
• Lots of uninterrupted Presley and Mommy time.

Presley and Mommy :)

Presley and her cousins Lexi & Bobby at Gus's Fried Chicken in Southaven

Presley and her cool aunts

Got to see some family we love so much

They loved their joint bathtime each night

Excited to go see the animals

Uncle John, Presley, and Anne Marie at the Nashville Zoo

• Packing is a lot more fun when your husband is there to suffer through it with you.
• Lots of uninterrupted Presley and Mommy time.  (yes... this is both a happy and crappy!)
• Presley having diarrhea on top of everything else going on.  She's currently on the BRAT (bananas, rice, applesauce, toast) diet in order to help things along but after nearly a week of this... it is getting tough around here.  I've talked to her nurses at the pediatricians office and they say it's just something to overcome at home.  So hopefully it'll clear up ASAP.  In the meantime, lots of fluids and bathtimes!
• I'm still breastfeeding and therefore, what Presley has, I have.  Thus, I haven't been feeling too great lately.  I am hoping this will pass for me very quickly as well.
• I miss having my partner here for all kinds of things.  So many props to military families, long distance families, widows, divorcees, and single parents.

Trying to stick to positive thinking... so I am not going to hunt down too many "crappy" thoughts.  Plus, it's naptime here so I'm gonna go get a few things packed before she wakes up!  Thanks for sticking around and I appreciate everybody who has been keeping us in their thoughts and prayers and for those of you who keep checking in on me.  It's at these times when you feel a little bit weak that you realize who cares for you.  And it really means the world to me.

Women Connect: Time to grow up..?

I'm joining in on a "Women Connect" link up from Becky's blog "From Mrs. to Mama"  - and thank GOD for this because I have been in dire need to get something off my chest!

I just don't understand how I got to where I am.  I mean, I completely understand the concept of aging, but I've honestly never given much thought to how it applies to me.  And don't fret, this isn't the beginning of a "quarter life crisis" rant... just realizing, perhaps for the first time, what it's like to be a 25-year-old mother and wife who is partially responsible for the best interest of our off-the-wall, little family and our every-changing needs.

I mean, is it really time for Tony and I to grow up?  Are we truly the ones who make the decisions around here?  And does the decision-making EVER slow down?

There are a few extra-large decisions on our horizon that loom over my head on a constant basis.  But the number one item is...

1. WHERE are we going to raise our family?

For starters, Tony has a great job here in the town we currently live.  We've lived here going on 5 years and despite our best efforts against it, we have put down roots here in the form of things such as a wonderful church family and having made some truly spectacular friends whom we love and cherish.  Not to mention, we have family here.  We don't really see my family very often but we know that they are there if and when we should ever need them.

BUT, we have never really felt like this is home for us.  It could be home if we committed to it, I suppose, but I don't think we could ever stop missing Tennessee and our southern family members.  Having both grown up in Memphis, ideally, that would be a fantastic place to move considering there is a lot of family support there.  However, I don't always feel safe there (or even in neighboring communities) and therefore, Memphis is off the table.

We've pretty much got it into our heads that we'd like to move to Nashville; it's closer to my sisters and Tony's family are still within a relatively quick drive.  Yet, making that huge of a move now with a little one is incredibly daunting.  The biggest issue for us is HOW on earth (in this economy, especially) do you leave a great, steady job that offers enough to support a family?  It is more than terrifying to put ourselves out there and to be vulnerable while looking for a job.  Not to mention, logistically speaking, how in the world would job hunting work if we are 10 hours away?  I've been looking online for jobs for either of us, but how would interviewing work?  I realize we live in an incredibly virtual world these days, but would employers really conduct an interview via Skype?  (That would be a dream, if they did.)  Not to mention, house hunting... *sigh*

As you can likely tell, this has been weighing very heavy on my heart and mind.  I know that we could find ways to make this work - but I am looking for that nudge in the right direction or possibly insight from someone who has done this successfully before.  Because moving is difficult and moving from Illinois to Tennessee wouldn't be cheap, either, and we don't want to naively jump into this before methodically making things work beforehand.  At the same time, we don't want to wake up several years from now wishing we had taken more chances in order to move towards our overall happiness.

Like I said before, making these decisions are only for grown-ups, right?  They are tough and they can be painful throughout... but with it comes great rewards!

So if you have any insights/advice/encouragement/thoughts/prayers - my husband and I could certainly use them and would appreciate them greatly.

Observations...

• When you want life to speed up, it crawls by; likewise, when you'd appreciate life to slow down for a bit, it flies by.  Anybody else feeling this?  This is especially true around this time of year when there is so much to celebrate and look forward to:  Thanksgiving, family, food, Christmas, presents, joy, Jesus, New Years, friends, etc... This is made even more true when there are big life events looming.  Last year around this time, it was our impending wedding in May.  This year, it is a baby this February.  It is just crazy how quickly life and your priorities can change....
• I feel like we are behind on a zillion things and find myself constantly thinking, "Well... better late than never, right?"  Do you find that statement to be true?  I sure hope so.  It reminds me to be more forgiving when things involving other people's schedules don't always go along on the schedule of my choosing.
• At the mall tonight, I swear, store employees were giving me the stink eye tonight because it seriously looked like I was smuggling goods out of the store underneath my hoodie.  My stomach is starting to look so funny with how much it's sticking out!  I look back to pictures when I was 12 and 15 weeks along when I started to show and I thought how crazy it looked and compare it to now and can't help but laugh.  I can't imagine what I will look and feel like at 35 weeks pregnant!
• Football season is just fabulous -- such a great time of year if you are a fan.  Even better?  Taking part in fantasy football.  Now I can finally understand (to a point) in Tony's interest in the many football teams out there throughout the season.  It's so great to have similar interests with your spouse to take part in; definitely a bonding experience.
• Best Pandora radio stations:  Hootie & the Blowfish radio,  Dave Matthews Band radio, & "Mary Jane's Last Dance" by Tom Petty radio.  DMB is my current obsession -- that radio station is so mellow with the intermittent rock song to jam out to.  Fabulous.
• I love planning trips!  Currently, we are planning a quick trip to Chicago (it's been just about two-and-a-half years since Tony and I were there together) while Amanda is here visiting mid-December... can't wait for her to be here.  Then, we're planning a trip to Nashville, Chattanooga, and Memphis for the end of December.  I like picking out specific details beforehand as well as leaving other decisions to make while we're in the middle of the trip.  It gives you a balance of spontaneity in addition to feeling secure in making the most of your time away!  
• Speaking of trips.... I'm contemplating planning a weekend getaway (aka "babymoon") sometime before my due date.  For those of you who are parents or soon-to-be parents, did you take a babymoon or do you see the practicality in it?  Would you suggest taking one last trip "just the two of us?"
• If you have not tried Famous Dave's spicy pickles and have them at your local grocery store, I completely recommend trying them.  They are DELICIOUS.  (Thanks Aunt Jill for getting Tony & I hooked!!!)

That's all the brain-emptying I will do tonight!

 Good weather & blessings,

Beauty from Pain.

I sure cannot wait for winter to be over. I know right now is the time of the year that everything dies off and this is what makes the growing process in Spring so beautiful, but it sure has been tough this year. 

I took a course that focused on the literature of the bible and we looked at the bible through a very critical, educated lens. At first, it was fun and interesting, but for me it soon became a huge struggle. I didn't realize at first, but to some degree I was entering into a state of depression because I honestly didn't know what I believed in anymore. I am still not fully healed from this blow, but I am getting there. I really do feel like this is a process for me; my own paschal mystery that goes right along with the seasons of our life. (Dying and moving towards new life.)

 In other news, Tony and I went "home" to Tennessee for nearly two weeks this winter. It was so nice to get out of our normal and get out of town for a bit, especially to see family and friends. However, coming home to lengthy "to-do" lists and Tony's crazy work schedule, not so much fun. Another terrible thing to come back to is a funeral. Becky Anderson, a friend from the TEC community, passed away from us just before the new year. She was 20 years old and had fought against the cancer that was plaguing her for years. Although I wasn't a close personal friend, her death still hit me extremely hard and is still hard for me to deal with. But like I said, I am really moving towards a better place to be in my life. I am searching for the peace I felt from the top of my head to my toes and through my core when I was on my last Wheat Team on our weekend in November of 2009. I spoke on the topic of peace that weekend and I have never felt more at peace in my life. I am chasing after that.

Here are some snapshots of life over the past month or so. Per usual, never a dull moment.

 Tony and I in Nashville trying to take one of those pretty "jump" pictures. Didn't work out. :)

My LOVELY sisters: Amanda & Ashley

 Tony & I celebrating life with a group of Memphis friends at Chili's.

 I got my first tattoo with my awesome friend, Betsy! It was awesome.

 My fiance, my little sister, and myself at the Chattanooga Zoo!

 Dinner at Chili's in Collierville: December 27

 Tony's parents: Selena & Mike

 My nephew, Sammy, and I taking a "dog" nap!

 "Batman" building in Nashville

 Ashley, Sebastian, & Me at the Chattanooga Aquarium

So, that's what's new. School is starting back next week! I'm scared AND excited. When this semester is all said and done, I will be graduating! And will be officially done after a few summer courses. I just need to hold onto that motivation.

Four more months 'til the wedding! Amazing. Hope life is good, everybody.

Wishing everybody peace in their new year,