J to the third

Its the (almost) final countdown

2012-01-03T11:43:00.000-08:00

As the weeks are getting closer to Alexander's Due Date (Mid-February) my to-do lists are getting longer. While I cross a few things off here and there I add a few on, so it's a never ending list.

I thought this looked like some fun. Mark your predictions for Alexander's appearance! http://bebepool.com/threemarie24

Hospital tour. On the last day of 2011 we toured Woodwinds Maternity department. J and I knew it was amazing there, but it somehow still was beyond our expectations. For J knowing what door to go to was the biggest thing he wanted to get out of the tour. For me it was seeing the rooms and just being in the area where I will get to meet my son for the first time. We saw both a land delivery room and a water-birthing room. Bummer is they only have one water room, but I am praying that I will be able to get my water birth. If you could send a little T&P my way, that would be great. :) While on the tour the guide asked if anyone (out of the 5 couples) had their Due Date within a month. Well that's kind of us!!!! (small freak out as we both looked at each other, we knew it was close but not this close.) She highly suggested for us to pre-register (check!!! ) and to get our car seat in, what?? Car seat already!? Well I suppose, in case he wants to come early and well Thursday I will be 34 weeks. So he can safely come anytime after 37 weeks, so yeah we should get the car seat in. See what I mean....add that to the list.

Hospital bag. Must be done, and soon. We have been meaning to pack this for the last week, but time and other things on our lists keep getting in the way. I have a few lists mashed together of what I want to bring, now I just have to get it all and put it in the bag and keep it by the door. I can NOT believe we are at the point of having a hospital bag by the door!!! On the same lines of the bag, I have to finalize my birth plan....I know, I know it might change, I get that but I still need to have my wishes on paper so we are all on the same page.

Nursery. We have the dresser and crib all set up and ready to go. Santa brought us a crib mattress so we were able to get all of his bedding on and it is all ready for a sunggley baby to nap in. J and I have been SO blessed with hand-me-down clothes, I have been working on the bags for at least two months now. I finally have all of the newborn clothes sorted, cleaned and put in the dresser. I am now working on the 0-3 sizes. I sorted all of the clothes already, but I want to go over them all by sizes again. He really does have too many clothes so I am trying to figure out what he will be using and will tote up the rest. I still need some decor items, a rug and some wall things. Oh and maybe a closet organizer thing, since its a small closet. A changing pad as well. We are doubling the dresser as a changing station.

Cloth Diapers. We have a nice stash of CD's going for us but need more of the accessories. Inserts, wipes, sprayer, some wet bags, a few more covers would be great. While we are going to CD we will be using Seventh Gen disposable diapers while he is a newborn and then moving into CD when he gets big enough for the CD sizes I have.

Food. I am planning on Brest Feeding so hopefully I can have the food part covered on my end. But there is always a chance so I still need to get a few bottles. I actually need to get bottles to freeze so J can feed Alexander and I can take a break, or pump! Speaking of pumping, I still need to clean mine, I got mine from a friend and it needs to be sanitized, or get new tubes or something. I really need to look into that.

Fun things. Doula meeting, Maternity photo shoot and Baby showers!! The next two weekends are full of fun. I remember when I first set the dates for these events. They all seemed like forever ago and as everything else has, they have ran up on us so fast. This will be the first time J will get to meet Jonna. After going to the Hypnobirthing classes and hearing more positive reasons why Doula's ROCK he really is looking forward to meeting her and going through "the big day." I have a few outfits in mind for the photo shoot and the showers, now just trying to figure out what to wear to what event then I'll be able to cross these to-do's of the list!

Midwife appointments/34 weeks! I am to the point in the pregnacy that I have every other week MW appointments, in just a few weeks I will be going every week until he gets here. This was yet another, oh my goodness this is really getting close moments for me. This Thursday I will be 34 weeks along. Making next week milestone SO crazy...35/35!! 35 weeks, 35 days to go. Alexander is now comparable to a Honeydew! Weighing an average of 4.2 to 5.8 lbs and measuring 17.2 to 18.7 inches long.

I'll update you all with a picture and some fun facts on Friday!

Countdown to Alexander

2011-12-03T22:21:00.000-08:00

On the first real snow fall of the winter season I find myself nesting. We have his furniture all set up, it is starting to look like a nursery. I was searching Craigslist the other day and found our bedding, plus a ton of extra Mod Monkey things! It is such a good deal I couldn't pass it up, picking it up soon and cant wait.

Our Theme, Mod Monkey.

Nursery so far (the pink totes hold Newborn/0-3 month clothes)

Love the dresser/hutch....and look at those adorable suits!

I also found some fun idea's for DIY (Do It Yourself) basket's on Pinterest, (follow me here). I made a few of them today.

One of my Basket's (with the yarn I am using for Alex's baby blanket )

J and LOVE the Holiday season and cant wait to decorate our house with lights, swag and tinsel. However, this year has been a bit busy and we know it will somehow only go faster so we mutually agreed that we are skipping 90% of the Christmas decorations this year. We agreed that we would keep it simple and only decorate the mantel.

Ugh I can not turn it...Here is our Christmas-fied Mantel

I just "turned" 29 weeks on Thursday. I cant believe we have (give or take) 11 weeks left!! While doing Alexander's laundry today, as I was folding his teny-tiny onesies, I started to tear up a bit. I was folding laundry for MY son, not one of the many children I babysit for, but mine. I am not going to lie I had a few seconds of not believing it. Am I ready? I get that everyone thinks like this at some point but, time is ticking and things are starting to come together, so that is good. Alex is really keeping busy in my tummy. I smile every time he moves in there, he hasn't been a huge mover but lately he really goes to town. When he moves most of the time you can visibly see it and J has been able to feel him all of the time now.

Here is my Thanksgiving bump:

Still wont rotate, sorry.

I have felt great my whole pregnancy and really love being pregnant. I am quite blessed.

Some countdowns that I am looking forward to:

Christmas: 3 weeks away

Maternity Session: 5 weeks away

Baby shower weekend extravaganza: 6 weeks away

Alexander's estimated due date: 11 weeks away

WOW.

If you want to take a look at our registries, feel free. As you saw, we are so set on clothes, so we did not register for any, since we just do not need any! :) (We have two families that have donated their hand-me-down clothes to us!) We are also Cloth Diapering but will stock up on a few disposable diapers, 7th Gen seems to be a great disposable option.

Babies'r'us:

http://www.toysrus.com/registry/link/index.jsp?overrideStore=TRUS&registryNumber=47290443

Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/registry/baby/146FSMSJI6FVP

Until next time. Love you all!

Hypnobirthing

2011-11-08T15:12:00.000-08:00

**I want to take a second to point out that I am not "better then anyone" or "looking down" on anyone for not having a med-free birth. Everyone is different and has their own beliefs as well as wants. Every birth is different. I know going into labor and delivery (L&D) a mom might have wanted something and got a completely different experience, I get that. But this is what I am planning on, and well, if it works out great. If not I will still have an amazing baby at the end of the day**

"I CAN do it, I AM strong, I WILL surrender" This is the title of a blog that I just read, via blooma. The timing is so wonderful as J and I took our first Hypnobirthing (HB) class last night. Hypnobirthing (click on the link to find more info) is the birthing method we have picked, along with water birth to Labor and Deliver Alex. Well I researched what I wanted and asked J if he felt the same way and went from there. We both agreed that we want a heathy momma and baby at the end of the day and if we can help it a med-free birth, yes I said it MED-FREE birth, that is what we want to do. I understand I haven't gone through L&D so I do not know what I am "in-store" for but I do know my body and I also know this is what I was made to do. I am going to trust my body when I most need it.

Walking into our first class I did not know what to fully expect. I knew that my Doula, Jonna, highly recommend Dawn as our HB instructor and that I would be in wonderful hands. After I introduced myself to Dawn I knew that I did make the right choice.

Empowering. Her first class was just that. Empowering. Reconfirming what I have been feeling my whole life, birthing is what I was made to do. My body knows what to do and when. I took in so many statements from last night I will go over a few that really stuck with me.

#1: When someone tells someone that they are pregnant why do they feel the need to tell the pregnant lady horror stories about birth?? Especially when I tell them I plan on going med-free. Same thing goes for when I tell them I will be Cloth Diapering.

So why is that? Personally I have had a number of women actually laugh at me and say something along the lines of "oh just wait, you'll be begging for meds" or " HA!! Yeah right, good luck with that". I normally shake it off and just go with the flow but I wont anymore. I wont be putting up with that anymore. If they think they can shoot me down, have zero faith in me and feel completely fine to dismiss my opinion I will nicely tell that that is not okay with me. Now I am not a person who deals with confrontation so we will see how the next confrontation goes.

Next someone tells you that they are pregnant tell them the BEST story you can think of, or just congratulate them. Think about it this way...if someone tells you that they are sick you don't think of the worse case story and tell them that. You say "Oh I hope you feel better!!" Or you tell them of a story that you have heard of a HAPPY ending. Remember this for next time you are in this situation.

#2: Turn the negatives into positives/believe in yourself.

Pretty much the same thing here. But I'll go a few steps further. When someone says you cant, follow that up with yes I can!! When I start thinking I cant, I will turn it around and think YES I CAN. The power of positive thinking and positive reinforcement is amazing.

I received a book and print outs last night, both have sections of affirmations. I will be taking some of my fun pens and paper and write some of my favorite ones down. Posting them around the house, in my car, in my purse...wherever I can for reminders.

A few that really stick out to me (and some new ones I found while searching):

I put all fear aside as I prepare for the birth of my baby.
I trust my body, and follow its lead.
I am prepared to meet whatever turn my birthing takes.
I CAN do it, I AM strong, I WILL surrender.
She believed she could, so she did.
She turned her can't into cans. and her dreams into plans.

#3: You CAN DO IT

Also close to the first two points. But this really stuck out to me so I wanted to include it at my top stick out moments.

#4: Practice your breathing.

I will be downloading my CD's with affirmations and Rainbow Relaxation songs onto my computer tonight and then onto my phone so I can listen to them while practicing my breathing all of the time. Especially when I wind down at night. That is the best time to practice my breath. I will also play the songs while doing my prenatal yoga at home.

Our first class was a hit. I came out of it so excited for labor & Delivery. YES I said that. I am excited for my Labor & Delivery. Some might find that funny, others might embrace it. I am just hoping I feel the same way come February!! :)

6 months already!

2011-11-06T15:41:00.000-08:00

How far along? 25 weeks

Maternity clothes? Oh for sure. I have two maternity jeans that I love. Something about being able to wear jeans makes me feel better the wearing yoga pants.

Sleep? For the most part I get plenty of sleep at night, wearing Breathe Rights help. I also love my body pillow!!

Symptoms: Not really. Just aches and pains. I can tell my pelvic bones are moving and grooving, I even have a small wiggle going on.

Best moment this week? Since updating this blog (at 18 weeks) we found out we are having a BOY!! Mr. Alexander John.

Food cravings: Still loving my carbs, nothing has changed there. My appetite has gotten larger, eating more, larger meals...even more then J most meals. Leann Chins have been a crave lately, same with Brueggers bagels. ummmmm.

Gender: BOY!

Belly button in or out? In, but getting closer to a flat button everyday.

Movement: For sure! J felt Alex for the first time on October 23rd!! Tracy was also able to feel him.

What I miss? Being able to have a glass or two of wine. Someday's I am so hormonal I just want drink a nice glass of red wine in my bath.

What I'm looking forward to: My double digit countdown...(November 9th) and 3rd tri (November 16th)

Milestones: I hit and overcome my V-day (Viability Day: Capable of living outside the uterus)

Gender Reveal Party!

2011-11-06T12:48:00.000-08:00

I am not sure why it is so hard for me to find the time to blog, its not like I am a super busy person its just not top on my list. When I first started this I wanted it to be so much more then it is. I feel like I now have to back track to catch up on my life events. So here is my first of not too sure how many catch up blogs!

October 8th we had a Gender Reveal Party. Now for those of you who do not know what that is or already do and think its a crazy idea this is what it is and why we did it.

October 7th J and I had THE big U/S making sure this little on in my belly was healthy and growing at the rate it should be. If we were lucky we could get "the money shot". We told the tech that we would love to know the sex, just not while we where there. We wanted the tech to write down in a envelope with the picture, seal it and give it to us. The tech was very good at her job, telling us everything she was looking at and that is looked great for where we should be (size wise). J and I saw the little legs, feet, arms, profile shot and my favorite was looking at our baby's 4 chamber heart. Beating just how it should be. I never thought looking at a heart would move me to tears but when I was looking at MY baby in m belly I had tears streaming down my cheeks. Smiling ear to ear to J in amazement. After checking everything it was time to look at the goods. J and I did not want to look away! So we agreed not to, we are not educated in looking at ultrasounds so we figured it wouldn't wreck the surprise. We did close our eyes when she wrote on the screen/pic what we were having. As she left to print off the pictures I was so sure we were having a girl, seeing nothing that looked like boy. J was fairly sure he saw boy parts, but he followed that with, but I think it was the umbilical cord. So we were still in the dark.

We walked out of the office staring at our baby's pictures, in amazement. Quickly realizing the next time we see our baby will be when he/she is in our arms in the hospital in February. (That is if we do not need another u/s between then and now) SOOOO we then needed to get to the baker's house to drop the sealed envelope off. But we thought it would be fun to stretch out the torture a little longer by going to Outback.

J really, really, really wanted to open it. For some reason I really didn't feel the need to.

After eating the most amazing meal we have at at Outback in a LONG time we headed to the baker's Marie's cakes. I found her through Wish Upon a Wedding (St Paul Chapter). Marie is hands down the best person I have worked with, if I would have had our wedding here and I would have known about her she would have been my cake person for SURE. .....SO we handed the envelope off and it was in her hands. She would be dying the inside of the cake pink or blue with corresponding icing color. J and I actually were able to get to bed fairly easy knowing the sex of our baby was known, but not by us!

October 8th. J and I headed over to my parents house to start decorations. Marie showed up with the cake and that was the first time I wanted to dig into it, but somehow managed not to. My equally favorite vendor showed up, Kristen Elizabeth Photography to start shooting the detail shots before guests arrive. She is also taking my maternity, newborn, 6 month and 1 year shots...pretty excited to have our photographer all set.

THE cake!!!

When people started showing up was when I was So glad we decided to do this. Everyone came in either Pink or Blue (depending on what they hoped/wished out baby would be) and had huge smiles on their faces. Everyone thanked us for letting them be a part of such a special and quine event in our life. J and I are so blessed for our family and friends, we were blown away by everyone coming to find out with us.

Team Pink!!

Team Blue!!

Our closet family and friends!

Everyone also wrote their names on either the Blue side or Pink side

It was then the moment we have been waiting for. Time to cut the cake and revel who our little baby will be, Madison or Alexander.

It's BLUE, that means we're having Alexander John!!!

I really did have a gut feeling girl, so I was shocked.

SO we are having Mr. Alexander John, who should be arriving sometime this February.

Some wonderful group shots I don't not want to leave out.

Grandpa and Grandma Schindeldecker!!!

GREAT Grandma and Grandpa Schindeldecker

Grandpa and Grandma Menier

The Cha-Cha's!! (my mom and most of her sisters and my sister. I got SO lucky with this group of ladies)

To check out the rest of the pictures here is a link to my shutterfly account: share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=0AauWzhq2bNWLDVA

18 weeks already?!

2011-09-17T21:37:00.000-07:00

(taking my 18 week photo tomorrow)

Wow its crazy how fast this is going. The sad part is once this Little One will get here it will go even faster, not sure how that is possible, but I know s/he will be in school before we know it. :(

How far along? 18 weeks

Maternity clothes? Yup! I was able to barrow a ton of fun tops and jeans from a friend of mine, and boy I'm in heaven! I have been living in my "new" jeans and sporting cute and fun tops. I love the tighter fitting ones, showing off this bump that is growing like a weed.

Sleep? Sleep. Well yes and no. Joint/side/lower back aches have started to creep in at night. It was quite painful the first night, but thankfully I was able to see my Chiropractor. I got an adjustment and a massage and boy did they help! I have also been doing twice daily stretches, they have also helped!

Symptoms: Not really, still a little sassy, no real symptoms thankfully.

Best moment this week? Scheduling our big U/S! We can not wait to find out who this little person is!

Food cravings: I can eat pizza everyday. Pickles have been my top lately.

Gender: not sure yet, Big U/S scheduled for Oct 7th, then Gender reveal party October 8th.

Belly button in or out? In

Movement: Not sure yet. I think I feel little M, but I'm not too sure yet.

What I miss? Not being so tired randomly. I also hate the hunger that comes out of nowhere, that's not fun either.

What I'm looking forward to: getting a bigger bump :)

Milestones: 2 weeks till half baked!

Crash boom bang

2011-08-13T20:11:00.000-07:00

This weekend started off great (MW app on Friday). This afternoon we were on our way to a friends BBQ and BANG the weekend started to suck. I was in a construction zone, so the 4 lanes were down to two and everyone just wanted to get to their final destination. Our light turned green, as I was just getting through the intersection the cars ahead of me slammed on their breaks (there was another light a half a block up, and it turned red) and no one gave the "two car length" in front of the car ahead of you, including me. The car in front of me hit the car in front of him, and I hit him; resulting in me rear ending him. Since we were going so slow no one in either vehicle were hurt but my poor car got the brunt of the damage. :( The first car and second car (me being the third) had zero damage between the two. I wish I would have seen the slow down before it happened, but I didn't. I am just so glad everyone was not hurt, including my little Peep. Being 13 weeks Peep is still very protected and our slow speed helped as well. It just so scary how in a blink of an eye things could have been SO MUCH different. I am thankful today we had our Angels looking out for us.

Ouch!

His damage

:( My poor car

On a side note, it is CRAZY how many people yelled, screamed and swore at us. They said very offending things to and towards us. People, I get that you had to wait a little longer to get through the intersection. But don't you think we would move our cars if we could!? (My car was latched onto his, we moved after we made sure everyone was fine and our hands stopped shaking. He actually had to move forward to un-hook us) As people yelled at us I either yelled back "we would if we could" or "God Bless you too." So next time you have to wait a few minutes for a car crash understand THEY didn't want to get into said crash and hope no one got hurt. Remember we are all people and have low times. Thankfully no one got hurt in this crash. I wish I could say the same about the Truck driver earlier this week in Lowry Tunnel. Story.

2nd Midwife appointment

2011-08-13T19:42:00.000-07:00

We had our second MW appointment on Friday. J had to work OT so my momma came with, Grandma :) was quite excited to hear little Peep with her own ears. Heart Beat !3 weeks music to our ears!!!! Baby Peep was loud and clear with a HB of 157-160, very strong. I am officially in 2 tri, were did the time go?! This pregnancy has been a dream, lets hope it will continue to be one.

How far along? 13 weeks

Maternity clothes? Maternity pants are quite compfy lately (as of 11 weeks), yoga pants have been my BFF. I bought some shirts, but really love sporting my little bump, so I have been wearing my regular clothes for tops.

Sleep? Good really. Some days I am quite exhausted, but not sleepy. I haven't had problems sleeping, hoping that continues.

Symptoms: None really. However J would say I am quite moody! I might have to agree with him on this one.

Best moment this week? Hearing Little Peeps HB!

Food cravings: Mashed potatoes and gravy...I had gravy, just not the potatoes...anyone wanna hook a girl up?

Gender: not sure yet, Big U/S scheduled for Oct 7th, then Gender reveal party October 8th.

Belly button in or out? In

Movement: Not yet, a few more weeks maybe

What I miss? being able to have a glass (or two) of wine

What I'm looking forward to: getting a bigger bump :)

Milestones: 2 TRI!!! whooohooo

Hi from Baby M!

2011-07-30T11:49:00.000-07:00

We had our first MW (Midwife) appointment back on June 22nd and it was everything we hoped it would be! Everything looked great, other then she couldn't find a heartbeat. She was not worried at all since I was only 9 weeks, 7 days. So she sent us to get an U/S (ultra sound)!!

We left the MW appointment and had a few hours to waste so we went to Perkins. I was a nervous wreck the whole time but J was my solid rock the whole time. He is and always has been exactly who and what I need. Excited to experience this with J, he is already an amazing daddy.

After a long two hour wait we finally checked in for our U/S. I laid down, the our tech did her thing...and we saw the most amazing thing ever, our little fishy swimming along! Baby M's heartbeat was 164, and was waving to the camera, wouldn't sit still. It was soooo amazing to see that we really have a baby growing in there! And only ONE! :) (as twins run on both of our sides)

Baby M is measuring perfectly, the tech actually moved the EDD (Estimated Due Date) up two days to Feb 16, 2012. My (dads, dad) Grandfathers birthday, that is very special. Today I am 11 weeks, 3 days and it is flying by!

Ahhhhh! We are so happy! Just 9 more weeks and we'll know what it is.

Fun times at the Cabin

2011-06-15T16:31:00.000-07:00

Last weekend J and I babysat the Schifsky kids. Roman (9), Lily (6) and Simone (4).....I have sat this family since Lily was about one....someone make these kids stop growing!

Saturday we spent a good portion of the day at the Dam on Lake Wapogasset. We all loved it. Since we all love picture posts, here is mine, filled with Schifsky children goodness.

Lovin it!

2011-05-14T10:11:00.000-07:00

I have been a nanny for just about a month and the "new baby love" has yet to wear off, it just keeps getting better! I nanny for a family that has let me become a part of their family. I truly do not feel like I am going to work in the mornings and I dont really want to leave at the end of the day. If you dont know by now I nanny 8 month old twin boys. Nick and Zack--happy birthday today little ones! Adorable to the max, they aren't identical, but they are identically cute! :) On Friday Zack (the one on the left) was able to bounce all by himself on his bouncy chair, and his reaction to that was priceless. He understands that if he braces down and jumps he will go for a little ride. He was in his chair for a good hour on Friday. He got so tired, but he just keep on bouncing! I am such a sap I actually had a tear in my eye, I was so happy for him. I know I will have many, many more light bulb moments for these two. I can not wait to have a little one of my own to enjoy these moments!

Home Project #4 (part 2)

2011-04-25T21:42:00.000-07:00

Turning our house into a HOME

Project #4: The Kitchen! (con'd)

Step 3: Framing
I never realized what it took to frame in that hole they just made. You cant just throw up some wood and go. You have to level everything out, down to the centimeter.

It looks so nice with the framing up

And even better with varnish!

J admiring his work

Painting the temporary nook counter top. One day we want to get a thicker one.

Step 4: Paint and new cabinets!

After J varnished them. You can also see the paint. Same colors from the living/dinning room

Step 5: Granite Counter Tops!!!

New Fridge, new cabinets and mounted microwave.

(You know you are an adult when you are excited about appliances!)

Look the water/ice works :)

We are DONE!!!!

Home Project #4

2011-04-13T21:30:00.000-07:00

Turning our house into a HOME
Project #4: The Kitchen!

Well lets just start with this picture. This is before.

We use our side door for our main entrance and this is what you saw when you walked in. The placement of this kitchen is BAD. It is a small kitchen to begin with and with everything where it was it just made it smaller. We wanted more then just a face lift in here, we wanted to rip everything out and start fresh. We took it step by step, it took a few months of washing dishes in the bathtub eating off of paper plates with plastic silverware. We even had to buy a single burner to cook on. It was not fun. Let me repeat myself, IT WAS NOT FUN, but looking back on it we are so glad we did it. Not only for living in our house now, but for re-sell value.

This is what we wanted the finished look to look like:

Step 1: Demo

J and Uncle Mike cut a nice hole in the kitchen/dinning room wall.

It is amazing just how much it opened the whole area up!

View from the dinning room

Step 2: floors

We had to get everything out of the kitchen to rip up the old nasty floor

proof that I helped!

This floor was nasty and sucked getting up. It went something like this:

laminate, glue, super old tile, glue, glue, tar, and then felt that was nailed down every square inch.

some of the nasty "glue" that did not want to leave

To our amazement there was amazing hardwood planks under all of that. This was such a wonderful find!!

After the sandless guys came back

To be Continued....

Home Project #3

2011-04-12T21:29:00.000-07:00

Turning our house into a HOME

Project #3: The Bathroom!

Living in a home with one bathroom has its cons and only one pro that I can think of, only have to clean one bathroom! This bathroom was pretty much all original to the house. The sink had to go, the mirror had to be replaced, the light fixtures had to go, fresh paint...it really needed more then a face lift.

Our first task was the sink. It was too big for the room and it had separate cold/hot facets and well it was just nasty.

Before

Uncle Mike and J taking the stink down

Its gone!!!

Thankfully Mike was there to help us with the pluming,

two things you do not mess around with when remodeling, pluming and electricity.

new sink looks so much better

We went back and forth about the floor. I LOVED the floor, J on the other hand thought it did not go with the house feel. I am not sure how I won that argument but I did, and with winning I was the one to deep clean the tiles. After the deep clean it was so much better.

We got a new shower curtain, replaced the light fixtures and will be replacing the blinds when we find the right ones.

Final product!!

Creative Memories

2011-03-21T12:21:00.000-07:00

As most of you know I am a Creative Memories consultant. I signed in October 2010, and took a few months off over the Holiday's....Well IM BACK!!!

I went to an all-day Crop/Corporate event on Saturday and it certainly renewed my spirit about Creative Memories and why I am a consultant. I was able to work on my wedding book and completed just over 20 pages, the end is in sight!! I am about half way though and will be done by next week.

On Saturday I learned that Creative Memories will be donating portions of PSP’s (Photo Solution Parties) to the Red Cross and the Japan relief efforts. I want to host 4 parties before March 31, if I get reach that goal, I will MATCH what corporate is donating to the Red Cross.

So here is where you can come in. Can you host a party before March 31?? I KNOW you can! The best part about our newly updated PSP’s is that it is for everyone! Do you know people who take pictures? I am sure you do, invite them! I am trying to get in touch with as many people so I can help them share their stories, let’s get those pictures printed so they can tell the stories!!

If you do not want to host at your house we can have it at a local coffee shop!

So when should we book your party? Let’s get it on the books so we can donate money as well complete stories.

Here is a super cute Thank you card that we (Lily and myself) created with our software, Storybook Creator, for Lily's birthday party. She is a completely sweet little lady I babysit, and lucky enough to share birth-dates with! We cut a slit on the top and bottom of her hand and placed a flower there. To give the effect of her holding it, the party goers and Lily LOVED it!!

Home Project #2

2011-03-18T11:17:00.000-07:00

Turning our house into a HOME Project #2: the Living room/Dinning room!! When picking out wall/trim colors J was all over it. He has an eye for things that like that, I do not! My first apartment was painted the lovely shade of purple, why? because I liked the color, not because it went with the decor, the carpet or the mood I was trying to achieve. I firmly believe some colors should not be available in wall paint. So J is now our labor man and interior designer. I am one lucky gal!!

After about a week of looking at every.single.paint swatch out there we picked our colors!First, we have to take all of the base boards off. Scrap all off 20+ years of paint, cat/dog urine and Lord knows what else off of the base boards and then varnish them the beautiful wood color we picked out. Then we painted, and by we I mean J did the majority of the work. I tried to help him out, but I just wasn't doing it right... something about brush strokes and going with the grain blah blah.

This was a process!

We got SO excited about painting the very next thing we did was put a call into the sandless-hardwood floor guys to come and give our floors a much needed DEEP clean.

Before:

After:

Dinning room

well worth all of the work we put in!!

(do you like J's sweet CD rack he made? I do too but thankfully its in his office now)

We also put in the light fixture over the dinning room table, we wanted the "old world feel"

Living room

turning a house into a HOME (Project #1)

2011-03-16T15:45:00.000-07:00

J has lived in his house for just over 5 years now. It took me moving in about 3 years ago for him to turn his Bachelor pad into a home. He had visions of what his house could be someday but never really wanted to start remodeling. Always hoping the market would turn and he could sell as is. One day he came to the realization that we wouldn't be moving for quite sometime and we better get making this house a home.

Now J works 4- 10 hours shifts 2:00 pm until 1:00 am Monday-Thursday. He wanted to try and do as much of the remodel as he could, I would help from time to time but I'm not the handiest lady out there. I was there for moral support and supervision really.

We live in a 1 1/2 story house that was build in 1933. So when we talk about remodeling it is not fun. This do not go right or on the time frame we think it will go.

Project #1:We started with the upstairs/loft area.
This was what it looked like after our renters moved out. (J moved into my apartment with me and he rented his house out. When my lease was up we moved into his house) They did a great job painting, just not the colors we would have picked out. We did leave it like that until a few months ago. We started with painting the trim/window frames and carpet!!! We pretty much finished there with the upstairs. Knowing that one day we would move downstairs into one of the bedrooms we wanted to focus our attention downstairs.

whats on my mind?

2011-03-15T16:42:00.000-07:00

I haven't been the best blogger as of late. I guess I haven't had a whole bunch to write about. I certainly have had a lot on my plate. I am a CO-coordinator as a wedding planner, a Consultant for Creative Memories, a District Consultant for Plum District. I have a full time job as a recruiter, multiple babysitting jobs. I am also trying my best to be a friend, sister, cousin and wife.

So where do I begin with this post? where would I end? I am sitting at caribou listening to the world go around wondering if things in my life are about to change, hoping and dreaming that everyone in my life will be happy when they wake up tomorrow and still in the back of my head I cant get the images of Japan out of my head. It is mind altering. Like I am watching a movie about the end of the world, but this is real life. not some movie I paid $20 to see. SEE I am all over the place aren't I.

Why did I start this blog? to be able to vent, flame free, to be able to write and get things out of my mind. Yet people read this, okay maybe 4 people, but still people read this so I am holding back on what I am really feeling. Why? this is my blog this is my outlet. I think I am reading into this whole blog thing. My goal for this blog is to document my struggles, joys and nothingnesses of being a wife and some day a mom.

If you have stuck with me so far you should know that this is what I live for. I have known since day one that I was put on this earth to be a mom. To care for, love and watch my children grow. That dream became this much closer when I met J, then even closer when we got married over a year ago now. Since then we have been trying to have a little one of our very own. Well not that long, 6 months really. Some months we really, really tried others not so much but for the main part of those 6 months I have always had it in the back of my mind. This could be the month, this could be MY time to announce that we are finally pregnant. I have had a number of close friends get the great news since we have been trying, all the while hoping we would be close behind. I have had one very low month of "why not us, why not now" I had to take a step back and realize why we are doing this. What the end result will be.

A baby love. That is what it is all about. Having the honor of making J a Father. Watching him read a book to our baby love in my belly, the long nights and early mornings talks. The birth and watching him hold our baby love and then him looking up at me with tears in his eyes and that moment of "we did it, we really did it." Well to get to that moment I/we have to be in a great place with in out hearts. I have heard the "it will happen when it happens" yes I get that is true, just to let you know it gets old hearing that. But I have to remember where that statement comes from. To me a baby is the love between two people. I had to come back to US and the love that we have and how it somehow just keeps growing and getting deeper.

I have also researched a ton already. I have picked the place where we will be birthing, picked out a pretty neat birth plan and have even found my Doula. (all we need now is to get pregnant! :) ) I have come across a book: "Spirit Babies" it is such a great read and has an open mind approach about your baby and how it's soul/spirit can pick you, either the mother, the father or both, sometimes 100's of years before this very moment.

I am taking the holistic approach to TTC (trying to conceive) as well as the pregnancy. Yes I want to go natural.....While some might look at me like I am crazy, I look at them like they dont have a open mind. So if this comes up in a conversation ask me about it. I'd love to see your view points as well.

Yes so my mind is pretty much all over the place lately. I am pretty excited to have something to post about one day soon until that happens you'll be getting blogs like this. This proves that I have to blog more, or does it?

My Psychic Reading.

2010-12-07T09:52:00.000-08:00

Why not right? If you know me you know I am a open book and cant really hide things. You also know while I was planning our wedding I was on theknot.com, moved over to thenest.com and now I am on thebump.com...I tend to get pretty attached to the ladies who post stories about their life and what they are going though. They are someone to vent to, someone to relate to and someone to be excited for.

A few weeks ago while on The Bump everyone was talking about Cheri22.com, and that she is a baby predictor! While I had some reservations of paying $10 to someone on the internet I was also tempted. I went to her website, read up on her and what she had to offer, filled out a few things, went to my paypal account and clicked send. About a week later I got an email telling me when we will get pregnant/conceive/or find out and who our daughter will be. Below is the email. I also commented after a few of the readings thoughts. Enjoy what you read... and remember, just like I am, take it with a grain of salt!

Here is the reading:

I am seeing you guys with a little girl and they relate her to DECEMBER so this is either birth month, conceive month or the month you find out in. {so it could be this month, or next... or March of this year... or next year, really it could be whenever}

I am seeing her as someone who is always going to be so full of joy and fun. I think that you will find her to always have high hopes for those around her and just really cares. Shes always hands on, giving you a hug to show her appreciation. {kind of sounds like a amazing blend of J and me!}

She LOVES dolls and is usually the one thing that you can count on her to play with. I am seeing her having darker colored hair and LOVES to wear it up in pig tails. {okay so I can picture her now.} Right around shoulder length and very straight. She loves wearing dress up clothes and wearing costume jewelery. {again, if you really know me, this WAS me when I was growing up!! I would change clothes multiple times a day.} I think that you will find her to pretty much entertain herself most times. Shes someone who finds the dolls she wants to play with and will often come into the room that your in, and just start to play. You will see how adorable she is, always taking clothes that you no longer want but are dressy and having you tie a rope around the waist so she can have a dress. I think that you will find her to really enjoy this type of dress up clothes rather than the store bought dress up clothes. I think that its because its from you and your husband (she plays with some of his shirts) and relates to something you would actually wear to dress up. She loves wearing long sleeved gloves, wearing hats with feathers, and inviting you over to her "house" for a tea party. {adorable right!?}

There is a little doll that appears to be a collectors type piece that really reminds me of alice in wonderland. Its face appears to be porcelain and does have a bit of wear on it. This is her most favorite doll and the one that she will often drag around with her everywhere. I believe that someone got this for her second hand which is why its not something that you make her put away:) {This reminds me of Sue, my amazing Mother-in-Love, she always scores great deals at second hand stores. So this kind of hits home}

When it comes to your daughter, shes someone who is always going to be respectful. When she has something on her mind that she wants to say that might be unpleasant to hear, will often warn that person that she has something to say and that they might not enjoy hearing it. {hehe, TOTALLY ME.}

When it comes to career paths, they show her working as an insurance agent. {What? this is quite random!}

When it comes to marriage I am seeing her closer to 22. They will have one girl and one boy of their own. {A little young to be getting married, but if she is in love, then great}

End of reading......

So that was a fun maybe, look into what lies ahead of us. Lets hope some of it comes true. We are always thankful for Thoughts and Prayers sent our way for a little bundle of joy to grace us with his/her presence....and hopefully next year!!

I am SO Thankful!!!

2010-11-29T12:07:00.000-08:00

I am SO Thankful this Thanksgiving season. This was my first Thanksgiving as a Menier.....and if you know me I said this about everything before I was married, of course it was "this is my LAST....as a Schindeldecker...." This year we started over at the Cregan's side for Thanksgiving and ended at the McFaggen's. As always we enjoyed our family and how close we all are. I made asparagus wrapped with provolone and prosciutto and topped it off with some Balsamic vinegar and Olive oil....oh boy it was a hit! I will be making that for Christmas that's for sure.

Mine looked WAY better then these, but this will give you an idea!

Every year at the Menier's we do a prayer circle before we eat. Everyone forms a circle hand-in-hand and one by one says what they are thankful for that season. It really ends up to be an emotional time and some that I treasure. All of the kids end up listing off almost everything under the sun, thankful for their cousins the most. With the adults being thankful for health, family and friends. J's sister also got married this year so we were both thankful for becoming wives and husbands. Katie and Tee just gave birth to their second boy {see Welcome to the world Mr. Cashton Broussard} just 6 weeks ago, so they defiantly had a ton to be thankful for! But what happened next I will always cherish!!! They then turned to me and stated that they would be honored for me to be Cashton's Godmother!!! yeah I cried. ;)

What a little chunker! He's looking right at his Godmother!

July of this year I also came across a part of my past that I have been searching for, well for a long time. Thanks to an amazing detective friend, I was re-connected to my long lost family. I am not quite ready to tell the full story, but I wanted to include my love for the Hunters/Carlson's in this Thanksgiving post.

This was at an impromptu Thanksgiving dinner with most of the Hunter's

So THIS Thanksgiving I have so much to be thankful for! My amazing, thoughtful, kind-hearted Husband. My ever loving family, including my newly expanded family {both sides, Menier's and Hunters!} my always-there-for me friends and my Godson Cashton!

LYLY!!! {Like You, Love You}
Jamie

1st annual Chili Cook off!

2010-11-03T12:08:00.000-07:00

In October we went over to the Guanzini's for their 1st annual Chili Cook off! We had 9 contestants with over 20 adults and 5 kids in attendance, it was so much fun.

getting everything ready

the tally sheet

Here are the contenders:

some of them were really spicey!

Adam wanted to sit outside where it was less crowed, and cooler.

And the winner is.......

Scottie!

Thanks again Steve and Mandy, what a great turnout and fabulous time!!

Welcome to the world Mr Cashton Broussard

2010-11-03T11:16:00.000-07:00

Cashton Julius Broussard

My adorable nephew was born October 16th at 11:40 (ish I forgot the time) weighing in at 8 lbs and 21 inches long! Katie (J's younger sister), Tee and Keyon are so proud of their youngest son, and little brother.

What a precious little peanut huh!!

6 month anniversary date

2010-11-03T10:39:00.000-07:00

Wow I cant believe I have been a Bride for 6 months! (okay so our date was actually in September, we are now celebrating our 8 month anniversary tomorrow!!) time sure does fly by. J and I have always celebrated our monthly anniversary's so we knew we had to do something for the 6 month wedding ann! I told him I would plan this date and surprise him. All he knew was that he needed to be ready with a bag packed for a one night stay, other then that he did not know anything else about it.

We left our home about 2:00 and headed West on 494. He thought we were going to our cabin, so he knew he was wrong when I went west. He then started guessing everything we could be going towards. Mall of America, the water park, something in Edina. I finally turned of the highway and into the Hilton hotel's parking lot. So he knew we were staying at the hotel. We checked in and went up the elevators and got off on the executive level. The room was standard, but what counted was WHO was in the room!

We unpacked and relaxed a bit before going down to the bar for some drinks and appetizers. At this point I was looking outside and checking my phone a lot so J was asking questions about everything. I had him thinking I was waiting on a car to come pick us up. About a hour later I told him that I forgot something in the room and to come up with me and we'll come back down for our next adventure. When I opened the door J realized his next surprise was IN the room! I had found this great company: http://aestheticaffair.net/ I hired two massage therapist to come to our hotel room and give us a couples massage! I tipped the masseuses a little more and they had candles lite and soft music playing. It was SO perfect! It was such a relaxing experience. Since we have been in the middle of remodeling the house we needed to get pampered.

After our massages, we had dinner at the hotels' restaurant, Chop house. Thankfully I had a Groupon coupon for it, however even after the discount it was still spendy....so probably wont be going back there, but it was fun and memorable.

The food was really very yummy and it the portions were HUGE, (but not quite worth the money)

Our anniversary cheesecake, OMGoodness so good!

Day 6/7: Cruising and last day

2010-11-03T09:47:00.000-07:00

This was our last official day on the ship, we took full advantage of it!

We took in the view from our private deck and....drank Champagne!

This was a free bottle of wine that we won at a meet and greet on the ship, cant get any better then free Champagne on your honeymoon!

Cheers!!

After drinking the bottle and reading my book, J was taking in the view, we went to the main deck and checked out the pool. Today was the first day that the waves were large enough to make us almost seasick, throw in a bottle of Champagne, and we were good to go!

With the boat a rocking and our added drinks this hallway seemed to go on forever

The pools became wave pools!!

Here is a small video of the "wave" pool!

Eating at Johnny Rockets, fried foods are the best when you are drinking.

We had the two best waiters ever, they were SO much fun!!

during the parade of waiters...

On our last day we didnt do much other then get up, eat breakfast and head out the door.

We had such a fun honeymoon

but sad to be going home so soon.

Day 5: Cruising

2010-11-03T09:07:00.000-07:00

Our first day of just cruising, we did not plan anything. After breakfast in bed we took at look at the day's schedule and decided that we will go lay out by the pool and watch the belly flop contest. It was your classic men in too-small speedo's, quite funny.

After relaxing all day in the sun we had our second formal night.

What a great looking couple! :)

My HOT Husband

again, why pay like $20 for a picture, when you can take a picture of the picture for free!

AND our last towel animal of the trip....a Monkey!!

Day 4: Puerto Vallarta/Excursion: Zip-lining (13 lines) and a two hour ATV tour

2010-04-12T20:31:00.000-07:00

Day 4: hands dawn MOST.FAVORITE.PORT.EVER. J and I were really looking forward to this port. Why you wonder? Because we went zip-lining and ATV riding. The tricky thing about the cruise that we did not know were time zones. At every port the ship's clocks were turned to that port, that we were in that day, so we did not think about thing of it. However when we got into Puerto Vallarta and told the taxi driver where we had to go and what time our excursion was he informed us that they were on the Time-zone line, and where our excursion was it was a hour AHEAD of us! By the time we go to the office we were about a half hour late for Zip-Lining, and the only way to get to the canopy tour on time was to take a taxi and meet everyone there. Well after a 45 minute drive up and down the cliffs of PV, with J and I both thinking this was it and we were going to die, we made it to the location! It was perfect timing, we drove up just as the rest of the group were starting to sit up into their gear.

We found http://www.canopytours-vallarta.com/ to be the hands down coolest vendor down in PV!! Next time you go down to Puerto Vallarta GO THERE you wont regret it!
Here are just some of the pictures of the best experience of our lives.

this is what keep us attached to the line

You actually have to "hop" up to latch one....or get a little "captain in ya"

A little scary when you dont even know where your going to end up. It really was gorgeous there!
Very lunch and tropical

Here's a close up of Jamie

And here's a close up of J

Yup I went upside down on one line!!

the last zip-line, was a double line, so we were able to go side by side, I got some great shots.

breathtaking huh!?

After Zip-lining we had a ATV tour, and it was FUN....we went around the country side, through a few rivers, and stopped by a Tequila tasting, some real actually very yummy.

I repeat....go here!!

After a hands down amazing day we made it back to the boat, went to grab some dinner.

After dinner on Day 2 (Cabo) we attended a Honeymooners Meet and Greet, it was really fun to meet other couple's, about 15 other couple's were there. Free wine and Champagne were flowing and that was a plus! There was a raffle at the end of the night and J and I won the grand prize! A free couples massage...we decided to take advantage of the massage after all of the activity we did today, and it sure was perfect.

AND today's towel, a Rabbit!

Day 3: Mazatlan/Excursion: all inclusive resort (El Cid) (food, drinks, pools and the ocean!)

2010-04-12T19:40:00.000-07:00

Day three: Since I have been to Mazatlan before I had a good idea of what I wanted to do at this port. Relax! J and I got day passes to El Cid all inclusive resort. For $35 a person, it was all we could eat, all we could drink, we could use their pools and beach front. Brilliant idea on my part, we drank our weight in pina colda's and ate hamburgers and shrimp. We even ran into some new friends from the ship, who happen to be from MN too. We also ran into another couple who we befriended at the pool, so it was fun to hang out with some friends on the beach. The waves were so fun, with the wind it was a bit chilly, but once you got used to the water it was SO MUCH FUN. we played with the waves for about a hour, even getting spun around a few times, as well as almost losing my bikini bottoms! Good times for sure.

We had a nice walk up and back on the beach, we were dreaming of one day living on the beach.

J (heart) J

I LOVE this picture of J

a fun video of us on the beach.. you can tell how windy it was, it was still so perfect we didn't care!

After swimming in the ocean, we wound up in the pool at El Cid, with the wind it got a bit chilly, but the pool was so warm, with the swim up bar we didnt want to leave, we even thought about staying but really did not want to miss the ship!

Mazatlan was a very fun and romantic port, this was really were we realized we were on our honeymoon. :)

Some pictures that night, as the boat was leaving port.

After dinner we walked the ship a little bit, here are some pictures we took

This is a picture of the "main drag" of the ship. It has some duty free shops, bars/pubs and a food cafe here

Night time shot of the pool, this night was Caribbean night, so the pools were lively.

And the towel of the day, a sting ray!

Day 2: Cabo San Lucas/Excursion: Booze cruise and snorkeling

2010-04-12T18:39:00.000-07:00

Day two: J and I were SO ready to get our Honeymoon underway. We started the day off by ordering room service, it was two-fold. One: so we could get a nice food base in us. Two: So we would assure each other that we would get up and be the firsts in line to leave the boat.

We got up, had our clothes all laid out for us (just in case we happened to sleep in) and were ready to see what Cabo San Lucas had in store for us. This port we were to be tendered into shore, so we wanted to be the first in line so we didn't miss our excursion. We could start lining up at 8:00 am, so we got down there then and had to wait in line for about a half hour before the lets us start loading up...let me re-phrase that. J had to wait in line, I ran back upstairs not once, not twice but three times to grab things. Since the elevators were packed I ran up and down, to and from, levels 1 to 16 yeah it was fun.

We loved waking up and being able to walk out onto our balcony, reminded us of the cabin....but better!

We decided from day one that we would (try to) take a daily, sometimes a few times a day, photo.

:) sexy legs! (We love our new ref sandals)

Tendering to Cabo:

a nice shot of the ship...our room was one of the balcony's in the back. Looking at this picture, it was top left.

Ahh, we are finally in Cabo. The weather was outstanding, almost hot, just how I like it.

We (meaning me) were able to find a fun Booze cruise. (http://secure.shoretrips.com/common/search4.asp?rcode=MEX&lcode=CAB&tcode=046380) for $65 a person we boarded the open top boat with about 60 other people, where there was liquor flowing and the dance club music blasting.

The cool rocks

Even though we do not have actual proof that we did, both J and I jumped off the side of the boat!! I was able to get a picture of someone else jumping, so you can understand how high up it was. It was really freaky, but super fun, well not fun enough to do it again!

This was the spot where we docked for a bit and snorkeled. J and I loved it, we both want to go snorkeling on the next vacation we go on. (not sure when or when it will be, but somewhere where we can snorkel, but make a full day of it). Since we did not have that much time after getting off of the booze cruise, we walked straight to the long line to get on a tender to go back to the ship. One nice thing was that the port was very beautiful and we had a lot to look at while in line.

Love this picture of my hubby

Since this was our first really big night we were really tired, so we went back to our cabin and took a nap...on our outside bed. :)

It was heaven

night two towel: an elephant! (cutest thing ever)

The drive + boarding + day 1: Cruising (first full day)

2010-03-17T15:06:00.000-07:00

7 day Mexican Rivera Honeymoon cruise, on the Royal Caribbean cruse chip, the Mariner.

Most amazing trip of my lifetime!!

After getting married in Las Vegas J and I drove to San Pedro, California.

Our first road trip ever, not to mention just 2 days after we got married.

Driving to California:

The drive to California was very beautiful:

We only go lost once (dropping off the rental car to the airport) but we made it safely to the Crowne Plaza in San Pedro. -We will never stay there ever again, it was over priced, had less then par customer service and the room smelt so bad we had to be a room deodorizer. We left our hotel about 10:00 am, took a short shuttle over to the dock and saw our amazing boat. There was excited energy in the air, J and I were more then ready to get our honeymoon started!

Walking up the gangway into our cruise!

Check in was very smooth, we were in our cabin within 20 minutes of arriving at the pier.

Ahh drinks in the solarium (adults only pool) We had to wait about two hours to get into our rooms, so we went to the pool's bar to get our first drinks. Loved them. Mine was the "drink of the day" I got that a few times (that day and though out the week)

We also had some lunch at the ship's main buffet, Windjammer Cafe. It was nice for free.

Once we got into the room we realized why this room get sold out all the time. It was a perfect Honeymoon suite.

This was the only pic I had of the whole room.

Nothing special about the bathroom, but it was nice.

The bed was actually quite comfortable

Our amazing (and private) balcony!

Here are just some shoots around the ship

We had our first formal night Monday night. The dinner was amazing. (Looking back on it I wished I would have taken pictures of the food, or at least wrote what we ate down.) I did take a few pictures before we left the room.

So they would have charged us something like $20 for this photo. Well jokes on them....just take a picture of the picture!

we look so regal.

Over all our first day was all about roaming the ship and finding all the good spots. We ate, drank, relaxed and went over the week's timeline, the first day of our honeymoon was perfect.

So I was very much looking forward to the towels that your stateroom attendant folds and puts on your bed, on a nightly basis....here is round one: THE CRAB

I am a Menier!

2010-03-17T13:20:00.000-07:00

J and I got married on a picture perfect day surrounded by 50 of our closest family and friends in the city of lights, Las Vegas! The day went as fast as I knew it would, as some of you know I have the worst memory, but I put every single moment of that day in my mind and I will never forget any of it!

I wasnt as emotional as I thought I would be on my wedding day. It hit me the day after, looking at a video slideshow of our ceremony pictures brought me to tears. I am Married! I have envisioned this day since I was little and now I can move onto another lifelong dream....Kids! :)

It's not everyday that you end up loving everyones expression in a group this big! :)

We had all kind of SASS

I just adore this picture of us

I can see....

2009-11-13T17:26:00.000-08:00

I had my Lasikplus surgery yesterday. I was pretty nervous beforehand, thankfully J was with me, he knows how to calm my nerves and adores me. My appointment was at 1:15, I was at home and in bed by 3:30. I was quite tired and was able to go right to bed, thankfully that was JUST what the doctor ordered. Where I woke up a few hours later and was almost perfect. My eyes felt fine, my vision was like I was under water, but hardly any pain, that was very nice. I woke up this morning and felt empowering, I could see, I could drive for the first time with out the help of contacts or glasses.

J has HIS surgery on the 20th, I am honored to be on the other side of the fence for his surgery. I love being able to take care of him like he does me.

Lasik

2009-10-27T13:31:00.000-07:00

I am finally feeling better. This weekend was a nice relaxing weekend full of babysitting and a baby shower. I babysat almost all Saturday for two families, and I normally get my kid fix after I leave, but this time was different. this time I had a yearning to stay and hold the kids. I have a feeling J and I will start a family as soon as we can. I hate the fact that we have to look at our budget and make sure we can afford it, but I have a good feeling we will make it through any and everything.

I had a Lasik screening today, and I was successfully passed onto the surgery. I made my appointment November 13th, and as I was telling J the date I realized something. I am getting my eyes done on Friday the 13th!!!!!!! now, should I change it? or just go on being excited and know nothing bad will happen. :) I think I will just keep going on and be happy that technology has brought us this far. I was downright fascinated when I saw the unbelievable-detailed photos of my eyes. I even asked the doctor if he could email them to me, I hope he remembers. I'll post them if he does.

Lazy day and random notes

2009-10-22T13:31:00.000-07:00

So I have been kind-of-sort-of sick for the last week, and I am "sick" of being sick so I took the full day off today and tomorrow, but I am hopeful that I will feel better to go in tomorrow.

J and I were able to talk a little bit about wedding last night. We moved back out ceremony start to 4 pm, hopefully that will work better. I adore this man. We are in the process of finalizing our wedding invites, and man I will be one happy camper when they are done or at least at the printer. I am over invites. We are just under 5 months to go and we have quite a bit of planning done, so that nice.

random note: I am watching a Law and Order, I hate when you are a half hour into it and you just now realize that you have seen this episode and you hated the ending...onto flipping channels again

other random note: I think I am going to order papa johns for lunch-dinner, I just got a email coupon, and I cant pass coupons up!

This weekend I am babysitting for two families, on Saturday and two parties to go to on Sunday, a baby shower and J's sister's engagement party. Its going to be a long weekend, but a very eventful one.

Until next time blogger world.

a first for everything.

2009-10-20T12:17:00.000-07:00

Everyone has a blog, so I guess I should start one.

but will people follow me?

will I be interesting enough to follow?

will I update it enough?

whatever shall I write about?

Well about me.

I am a 20-something engaged lady living in Saint Paul, but if you follow me I am sure you will already know this. So something you dont know. hummmm, well that is the hard part, I am a open book I tend to wear my heart on my sleeve and well that can never be a good thing.

I am engaged to an amazing man, with an equaling amazing family. I heart all of them. I met J back in 2002, I was a Roseville Princess then, and well I am still a royal pain in the ass. We broke up but fast forward 5 years and we are back and ready to hit the road of life together.

To read about the proposal: http://www.theknot.com/ourwedding/JamieSchindeldecker&JJMenier

J and I are getting married in 135 days, but really who is counting!? I can not wait for the planning to be over, for us to be on our honeymoon, but really I cant wait to be married to the man of my dreams. We are planning on starting a family fairly soon after we get married, at least we'll try sometime in the later half of 2010. So in between planning the wedding I am also planning the family part of it.

I am trying to start the "wife" duties now, practice makes perfect right? I am planning meals for dinners and lunches. J is busy doing "man" things like remodeling our house.

We finally have a living and dinner room. We painted the walls, re-did all of the base boards as well as sanded the floors. We have also put carpet up in our master bedroom and painted one of the downstairs bedrooms. We still have to paint the other bedroom, re-do both the kitchen and bathroom....and work on the outside of the house. (and THAT is why we are registering at Home Depot, among a few other places for the wedding!!)