3 months in review

After 3 months.

Halloween night. No work. No kids ringing the doorbell. No husband.

No Excuse for not catching you up:

September:

All I know is all August I was looking forward to September. Why? Well, my friends, because we went on another blessed cruise! We had so much fun and had worked our pants off trying to make time up around the week we took off. It was worth every second. I ended up with a very busy 2 weeks, first flying out to UT to be a bridesmaid in a wedding. Jarom's younger sister Brandie was married and it was so wonderful to be in the sealing room and reminded of everything I love about my own marriage. I got to stay with and see old friends and during the whole trip I only got a couple random pictures. Sorry. That's the best I got. I was not a fan of short hair that day and ended up pinning it all back because I couldn't do much with it. I am officially growing it out now. 

I flew home on Sunday and arrived in time to get to see our friends who had driven from TX to go on the cruise with us. We were so excited to be going together. I had big plans for our evening that involved lots of food, music, games, TONS of catching up, and fun. We definitely achieved fun. We all drove down to Charleston the next morning in time to meet up with Chris for lunch and then he drove us to the port. It was so much fun! We got to chat for a bit and then we were off to the boat! I really don't have thousands of pictures because to be honest, we just tried to enjoy ourselves and relax. I laid by the pool on the top back deck of the boat and Alan went down the waterslides over and over again. So funny. He really is just a big kid at heart. The cruise went to the Bahamas where we snorkeled for the first time. That was... interesting. A little scary for me as I always imagined we would just walk off the shore and swim around, but we went out on a boat in the middle of the ocean and jumped in where the guides knew of some good reef. It ended up being a lot of fun after I got over the panic of not being able to breathe normally. Alan basically took all of his gear off because he wanted to free dive and get close and personal with the fish:) 

Besides snorkeling, we watched tons of stage performances, comedy, bands, and a really funny drunk girl one night... (Aubrey, Kyle, Alan, and I will never forget you, wonderful drunken dancing woman!hahaha)

Here are some fun pics from the rest of the cruise. Meal times were our favorites, of course!:)

formal night

The "Mitt"

doing some bahama shopping

I love how their traffic guide stands in his little post!

perfect find for our future sailing!

fun times before dinner

 I know you probably can't tell, but we brought TONS of glow sticks and played glow in the dark mini golf one night! soo fun! And I made a hole in one!

kind of an awkard gangsta pic

OCTOBER

This month was so special. First of all, without going into too much detail, let me tell you about this amazing family. The Marietta family is very dear to our hearts. Mike works with Alan and long story short--became very interested in the gospel through their association with each other. We had the family over one night for a big fun dinner, made cookies, and had the first missionary lesson for FHE. I can not describe to you how strongly we felt the Spirit, and what an incredible family this is. They came to church and loved all 3 hrs. ANd they just kept coming back. Their children are so sweet and bright, and at one point their 11 year old asked the missionaries "How can I know about all this for me?" HAHA... Who says that?! I was like, Uhh...careful, the last 14 year old boy that asked that.... hahaha.

ANYhow--we feel so lucky to be a part of their lives and to have been able to be one of the means of introducing their family to the Gospel and the blessings it brings into our lives. I spoke at their baptism Oct 19th, and Alan baptized the sweet family. Their youngest was so sad he wasn't old enough yet. It was cute. The ward has been so good and has helped each of the members of their family find their place in our big family. It really is a reminder of the Lord being very much aware of each of us and where we are and the people we can meet/influence/love. 

Marietta family Baptism Oct 19, 2013

Not much else to share except for we are finally into my very favorite time of year.... October to December where the weather turns cool, my runs are filled with colorful trees and brisk air, and I can sometimes find time to make some delicious treats... 

First of the season--pumpkin spice bread and salted caramel hot chocolate.. yum!

(I look pretty tired. I know. Working on it!)

 AND FINALLY...

We bought a piano! I love watching him practice! And we Love getting to play again!

We are so excited for the months to come and can't wait to see what memories we have yet to make! 

Closer to Complete

Our kitchen has been "nearly completed" for 6+ months! I kept talking about making the curtains for it, but never did. Finally, I sat myself down and did it! I really like the way they complement the kitchen and all I need now is to get some frames on the big open wall. We even have stools to sit on at the island, and we Love them! I really love dinner time at the table, but when neither of us get home in time for a real dinner, the stools are nice to have a light snack and talk about our days. It is so nice! Alan has been into drinking almond milk (I am not a fan of milk of any kind!) with cereal or peanut butter toast, and I usually get some fruit or something. Anyhow--it is amazing the difference the curtains make in the room.

They may not look like much, but I did it!!! 

(applaud now:) 

The color is a little more blue than it shows, but it's pretty close

Haircut...

Umm. I also should add a few months ago I chopped off 12 inches of hair. I mean, when food starts getting stuck in your ponytail, or when you try to roll over at night and can't because it's stuck in your armpit--it's time:) It has actually grown a bit since this pic, but it's the only one I have from the chop... I have liked it so far. Less of a hassle for sure! Please excuse my face! hehe

OH! and I almost forgot... This is our last scrabble game. We used every letter and every word is legit! Impressed?

Spring to Summer

I have been cutting back in hours at the hospital, and this is one of the perks! I can find time to blog. We have been working so hard that it seems we have missed our shot at summer, but never fear--I have plenty of old pics to keep this post somewhat entertaining! haha. At least for me... I realized I never posted anything about our anniversary (6 months ago, ahem...), and I can't believe that because it was the sweetest! We both worked, and had decided we would celebrate on our next day off together. However, Alan totally surprised me with flowers that were so beautiful and unexpected at work, that I teared up. He treats me so well.

Of course we went to the fabulous Brazilian steakhouse to celebrate... Oh sweet mercy, I can never get enough of that rice, beans, salad bar, and LAMB with MINT JELLY! YUM! 

(Sounding a little food crazy, I know.)

After our Anniversary, not too much excitement happened. I worked 60+ hr weeks and Alan and I welcomed Becky into our home. It was fun having her around and getting to know her as an adult, rather than "pesky annoying little sister." She was transitioning from school, trying to get to NYC, and stayed with us while she did. She worked at Chic-fil-a, which worked rather well for us:)  

I don't have any pictures of my birthday, but Alan and I both took the day off, and committed to the beach! I worked until late the night before, and we made it to the hotel in Charleston around 2am. It, of course, was raining pretty much all day, but it was nice to get up and go with Alan for a couple hrs, just relaxing on the cool sand. We met up for dinner with Chris and Becca and went back home. Some of the girls I have gotten to know through Alan's job shocked me with a package delivered to the ER that was filled with incredible cookies and huge chocolate covered strawberries! I could not believe their thoughtfulness! It meant the world. 

Alan's birthday was fun. We didn't do too much again because of work, but he got lots of love and attention. We went to Red Robin, gift from mom and dad, and it was scrumptious! I gave him money for a helicopter flying session. I know he has been dying to fly a helicopter! Of course, he still hasn't used it... Let's be honest, he really just wants to fly his OWN helicopter:) But, we are a little ways away from that! He got a lovely package from his dad that was pretty fun! It was filled with Whataburger mustard, ketchup, and french fry chips. So fun. 

The fixin's went well with all the grilling we were doing for dinners this summer. Alan is THE MAN at the grill. I seriously love his "creations." We got this beauty for a steal, and Love it!

I even had my moments this summer when I made a few treats... I am pretty sure these were almost as good as mom's!

Amidst all the food, can you believe I have lost weight?! I mean... I feel like I could eat that whole pan all over again! I guess we have been fairly busy. I even went to YW camp!!! What a fun experience. I was called as the Laurels advisor a few months ago, and this was where I really got a chance to see my girls, as well as so many others, really in their element. It was busy but so fun. I think I gained so much more than anybody else! I was "camp nurse" so I wasn't assigned to anyone, and got to certify the girls in all sorts of medical training. I got to know many struggling girls, and kept being so impressed by the thoughts of "just because we are members, does not mean we are less affected by the worries/corruption of the world." It broke my heart to hear of many girls backgrounds, and yet uplifted me to know that while they were at camp, they seemed to have those burdens lifted, and they had a chance to just feel peace. I loved being a part of that. So much of my job was more counseling that medicine (though there was still plenty of that.) I made dear friends with the stake leaders, and one special lady, who I adore, even went running with me at 6am! Ok, I won't lie, I went running with Her, because otherwise, I wouldn't have gotten up at 6am. She is a machine! And I loved the time we had together. But good grief--the camp is on a side of a mountain! Almost all of our run was uphill! It hurt soo good! 

The last bit of our summer fun happened with a last minute weekend trip with our friends to their beach house. It was beautiful, and Alan and I had so much fun walking the beach, getting beat up by the ocean, and just flat out relaxing! I have never really burned, so I wasn't thinking much about sunscreen, except on my face, but oh my goodness, did I regret that! I don't have many pics, but these:

It was such a good chance for us to reconnect, and it was then that we decided I absolutely needed to cut down on hrs because we were missing out on our life together. Our priorities have shifted and I am just so grateful for a husband who is wise and good and kind. He understands the importance of balance and encourages us to do what it takes for us to have a happy marriage and home. I mean, I have basically just slept while at home, and I know I am probably burned out, but I do feel my eyes have been opened to new insights through such a rough schedule for the past 6 months. This is what I have learned: Work will never be as fulfilling as the work you do in your home. I miss making dinners for Alan. I miss cleaning my house. I miss being there to talk with him about his days. I miss being the person he looks forward to coming home to. The YW lessons these last couple months have also really impacted me, reminding me of my innate and God given gifts. Obviously, I CAN work, but the most fulfilling roles I will ever have in this life will be that of wife and mother because those are instilled in my heart. So-- that's our life now. Attempting to find balance, and me striving to live a more fulfilling life.

I think I am pretty well caught up with the Summer now. I am sorry for the crazy long post, and probably a lot of jumbles at the end. I promise it all makes sense in my head! We booked a cruise to go on in September and I can not wait!!! We do live such a blessed life, and I am so grateful for all that I learn daily with that man by my side. I just feel... Grateful today.  The Lord always takes care of us as we do what we know is right, and I am completely confident now that our little course correction is definitely for the better! So--I hope you have a very fulfilling day today!

Just Wishin'

 I am sitting here trying with everything I have not to fall asleep. I have been awake for the past 48 hrs with only a 3 hr nap and I am STRUGGLING! Right now, when people ask how life is going, I generally give the blanket "good," because I know no one really wants to know the details of my boringness, but this is My blog, and since it's mine, I am going to bore anyone I want with the details:)First,  I found all these old pics I never put in my blog from where I WISH I was hanging out right now! Man, I can't wait to go on our next adventure... Wherever/whenever that may be. I need a trip!

And then I found these pics from the marathon I totally forgot to mention on my blog as well! Alan and I ran the marathon at Disneyworld this last January, and although we definitely could have trained harder, I am so happy we did it. We signed up with Alan's brother, Scott, as one of his new year's resolutions from 2012, and as we got out to run, it was so fun being there together. I run fairly regularly, or I did, and have done a few races before so I wasn't too stressed about it. My first mistake was getting too antsy being behind so many slow people that I began weaving in and out of everyone trying to break away from the group. I know better, but I have never run a race that was sooo congested! That was a good idea until around mile 14 when my right knee began to make me feel things I had never felt before! Ouch. Ouch to my body and ego. I was so mad because by the time I had to start listening to my knee, I was too many miles ahead of the boys to wait for them, and at that point feeling frustrated because I had the energy to keep running, but couldn't. SO--lesson learned. I still finished pretty far ahead of the boys (yeah!) but knew I could've done so much better. I also know who was having fun out there! See for yourselves:

Honestly, It was soo much fun. I can't wait to do it again this year! I actually might run the Charlotte marathon and then run the Disney half with one of my besties. Halves are awesome. Much easier to run. Although, the Disney marathon is so packed with fun all along the path, I don't know who could have a hard time finishing! You basically are whisked to the finish line by magical whimsy.... Anyhow, I can't wait for the next race.

On the way home from FL, (we drove down the day before, ran the race, and drove back...) I got a phone call. I was starting my first shift the very next morning.... AND basically that has been my life ever since. I wish I had more exciting things to talk about, but really, I just work a lot. I mean, I  really love my work, but I know it's still "just work" to a lot of people. I get that. But if you ever want a gross ER story as a conversation starter; I've got plenty. And we are so blessed to both have great jobs. And that brings me to today. I have basically been working 55- 60 hr work weeks, plotting my life around my scattered days off and planning fun things to do together on those special days, if Alan has time. This month is especially awful because one of the hospitals I work at transitioned to electronic records/charting two days ago. Since I already use EMR at the main hospital, I have been recruited to be at both places every day  for 12-14 hrs seeing pts, helping docs learn to use the system, and staying on as they change shifts. I am glad I can help, but what I have learned is this: I'm done. I am so ready to cut back on hrs now, and just lead a more balanced life overall. It comes down to priorities. As if on cue, I was given a new calling as well. One that I am so excited about! I am the Laurel's advisor now! I LOVE working with the youth, and I especially love that age group. It is exactly what I needed to remind me of the other important things in my life. It forces me, in a good way, to bring balance into my life, and do more than just work. I love it. So, pretty soon I will be more actively LIVING instead of just working. I even took 3 days off in a couple weeks to be the camp "nurse" at Girl's Camp. Should be a blast! I will plan on a new post soon, but for now, I'm just gonna sit here, wishin' the next couple weeks were already behind me. I am gonna need a massage! Thursday is my birthday, and I took that day off amidst all the craziness. We are going to spend the day at the beach. I can't wait. Wishin' I was there right now...

Ham n Cheese Delights

Not much has been happening around here.

Alan is working hard.

I am also working very hard.

And because my hubster is amazing,

He will sometimes make my favorite foods for when I get home...

Even if it Is after midnight...

I am one very happy lady.

(pictured above is a monster ham and cheese pancake...Yummy!)