Update on Life....

Well, I haven't posted since March! What the heck????? I do actually think about it and want to document events and happenings so I can look back on it, but I am a distractable and busy soul. I feel like the last few months have been full! Notably, my last post was about my roommate of 6 months Lindsay moving out. It seems like forever ago! Linds and I still see a lot of each other and I'm so glad that she's only about 5 minutes away. Linds LOVES being back under the same roof as her baby (my niece) Kya. She has made her little house SO cute and she has been very busy training for an upcoming marathon in October. So very proud of her. I have done quite a bit of work around my house, including staining my deck, painting my metal outdoor chairs, fixed my tile in my upstairs bathroom after a leak, had my kitchen ceiling fixed from said leak, painted my kitchen and got new lights in my kitchen and little breakfast nook. Also, last weekend I FINALLY set up a recycling center in my house. I know, seriously, about time. Besides that, I went to Arizona with two of my best friends in May to celebrate all of us turning 30 this year. We had a lot of fun enjoying sun and fun together. In June, my parents and I flew to Dallas for Fathers Day weekend and saw my sis. In July, my parents and I few to Chicago and met my sis to celebrate my mom's 61st birthday. We had an awesome few days of sightseeing, good foods and time togehter. Just last weekend, Linds and I drove to the Lake of the Ozarks and met up with our college roommates Julie and Kylie and spent time with their families. Very nice. Loved the relaxing setting and all the cute kids running around. Outside of house updates and traveling, I have spent quite a bit of time with my boyfriend of 6 months and his sweet puppy dog, Stella. I have also had her stay at my house when he's been out of town. Know that I do still LOVE reading all of your blog posts and hearing what is going on in your lives. Cute kids, lots of pictures from traveling and just daily stories...can't go wrong there. Even though I haven't posted recently I have had some new tech happenings....I got a gmail account to replace my AOL account that I've had since I was 14. Who would have ever guessed?! Also, I set up a google calendar which I'm loving. :) Yep, I know, exciting stuff. Hope to post again sooner than later. I'm looking into a new laptop as mine is end of life. Fingers crossed. :)

All by myseeeeeelf.....

After having a roomie for 6 months, I am back on my own again.....

This is a picture of Linds in her new bedroom this week after cleaning the floors. We have spent a TON of time working on getting her little house fixed up and it looks so good. I can't wait to see how Lindsay makes it her own. I know one thing for sure, is that she is SO excited to be reunited with her pup, Kya. Thankfully, her new house is about 4.5 minutes away from mine, so I'm betting I'll still get to see her! :)

Happy Moving Day, Lindsay!!!

#5...

I settled for a Diet Pepsi....but had to count it. SO NOT WORTH IT! :(

Babies and Wine.....not combined.

Quick update.....as Linds was reading my last post, she said, "I don't think I've had any water since it broke." Silly girl! :)

This weekend has been a good one.....minus the K-State loss. I have gotten to spend lots of time with some people I really enjoy, including lunch with one of my BFFs, Lacey, today.

There has been a little baby boom lately from my bunko group. Lisa had baby Liam on Thursday and I went to meet him Friday after work (she delivered in the hospital where I work). I didn't get to hold him cause he was having a little procedure, but saw him through a wind0w- super cute! Friday night Linds and I stopped by my friend Andrea's and met baby Harper. She is such a sweet baby....long and lanky and SO alert! We felt like she was really trying to talk to us! Harper's big brother was there and pretty excited to show his mom stuff from school.

After meeting Harper, we went to our friend Lindsey's apartment for a little wine tasting with Lindsey and Sarah. We each brought a bottle, she had some snacks put together and we just hung out and talked. Aren't those nights some of the best ones?! Hope your weekend has been a good one too. I'm looking forward to the Oscars tonight! Love all the fancy outfits and seeing who wins.

There's Been An Accident! :(

This is what happened at my house this week:


Linds was devastated. This is the glass she used pretty much every day....yes, it's a Grumpy Care Bears glass my mom gave me a couple years ago. She gave it to me as a joke (kind of) since I loved Care Bears when I was little and since I can sometimes be grumpy. Well, Linds has become pretty attached and the other night when I was loading the dishes, it just fell apart! Not sure what Linds will drink out of now, but it was a pretty sad scene. Guess I'm not allowed to load the dishwasher anymore, huh Linds?

Happy Ash Wednesday!

.....which according to facebook is apparently also National Margarita Day. Seems like that would have been more appropriate on Mardi Gras. Anyway, I have been struggling with what to give up during Lent (no, I'm not Catholic, but I think it's a great practice). Two years ago I gave up Diet Coke. At the time, I thought I was going to die....but I didn't. Turns out, I am pretty much off of it as is, thanks to my New Years resolution this year. Last year, I gave up sweets, which was good for me. My friend Sharee and I (and whoever else) have decided that we're going to volunteer once a week at Harvesters (a local food pantry that gives backpacks of food to kids that need it for the weekend). I'm looking forward to it and it's something I've been wanting to do anyway. I also decided that I'm going to STOP BITING MY NAILS! Like, for real. I NEED to. It's SO gross and something that I really want to stop....so hopefully not doing it for 40 days will help me to quit the habit. Hopefully your Lent is a time of reflection and thanks....and less nail biting. ;)

Crafternoon, Trader Joe's Pizza and Game Night

My aunt and uncle were in town this weekend visiting and we had a good time keeping busy. Yesterday, I had a crafternoon with my aunt and cousin. Jenn got inspired by Pinterest and made some cute stuff.

She painted the inside of these vases....turned out great!

She made these coasters out of tile from Home Depot, scrapbook paper and homemade modge podge (Elmer's glue and water).....

I made this fabric garland for a yet-to-happen party at my house....

Last night, Jenn and her boyfriend made us homemade pizzas with Trader Joe's crust. SO good! Seriously. There were three kinds; white, wheat and herb. I tasted a snip of each of them and they were all fantastic.

From there, we brought out the Blockus. A boardgame that NO ONE will play with me, except my uncle (thank you!) because he likes a challenge and is competitive like me AND because he actually won one of the two games last night. From there, he brought out a card game that is similar to Skipbo, but I didn't play so too tough to explain. Anyway, a lot of fun!

Mom and I looked at Pinterest on her phone while the card game was in full swing!

Privileged

I hear that word most of the time and think of someone who is entitled and spoiled and lucky. Today I had a sense of feeling privileged in a whole other way....I had a moment today realizing how incredibly blessed I am to work in the career that I do. How privileged am I to be able to help people when they need it and be a part of their life. A patient I have seen over the course of the last few months as he has been in and out of ICU, went on hospice today. I saw his wife going into the ICU and knowing what had happened, I told her I was sorry to hear things had gotten rougher and I would be thinking of them. She is one of the most loyal, devoted spouses I have ever seen...she has literally been by his side every day....for months. Knowing that her husband isn't probably going to live much longer and she will most likely leave the hospital without him, she gracefully said to me, "Thank you for all you have done. How great is our God?" How she is able to find some peace in the midst of the sadness she is going through is so inspiring. The faith she must have in the higher power that she is able to see outside of it and say thank you. I just don't want to forget the privilege I am allowed to be included in people's lives at some of their toughest times and every day I am thankful. If I can make that a little less tough and scary for one person, then it's a good day. So very privileged.

K-State vs. KU Party

Well, the basketball game turned out to be a disappointment (IMHO) but my parents were kind to have me and a couple friends, plus my cousin and her boyfriend over to watch the game. We had a good time, and lots of good food, despite the loss. Until the next game....




Per the TV, Bill Self appears to have a mullet...

Linds after a things took a turn for the worse....

Sad Peachy....

Payoff I suppose....

Since I haven't been drinking Diet Coke (pretty much) this calendar year, I have hundreds of extra dollars! Well, maybe not, but I figure I'm saving at least a few bucks a week.....so today on the way home, I splurged on some Friday Five Dollar Flowers at the flower store down the street from my house.

Hope you have something brightening up your corner of the world this TGIF!

P.S.- Diet Coke update, I'm up to four Diet Coke experiences for the year....only 26 more to go in 2012. :)

Progress!

Linds and I are nearing completion on painting the little house she's gonna rent from my mom's friend. It's really starting to look awesome.....as they say, what a difference a coat of paint makes! :)

Happy Hearts

I hope your Valentine's Day has been a good one. Mine was. I didn't think it would be, but it was.

My friend died in a car accident a year ago this date....what a day for a friend to die. I think about Tisharria frequently. Sometimes it makes me so sad and sometimes such good memories pop into my head and I'm glad to have them. It definitely seems surreal and I have spent a lot of the day thinking about T's husband and her family. Lots of prayers to my friend on this date. Miss you.

My day included some sweet cards from my Hetero-Life Partner, Linds, and from my parents too. My cousin baked up an AMAZING storm with the Reese's Peanut Butter Cup Rice Krispie Treats and heart-shaped Red Velvet Cheesecake Brownies (seriously SO good!). Thanks Jenn!!

So, how else did I spend my day? This is my Valentine for 2012:

My Mom. I wanted to take a picture of her in the cafeteria at the hospital but she nervously said, "No!!". :) So I caught her in the elevator!! This was her initial surprised face:

My mom brought me lunch to work. Goodcents. :) Thanks Mom! It was a really nice treat to see you and have some time together!

Mom,

I cannot tell you how glad I am to have you in my life today. I know that Valentine's is typically for the romance, but I think it's also for any love and I have so much for you. You taught us how to love, always told us you loved us and I don't think I realized that some people don't grow up hearing that. We never had to doubt that you and Dad had so much love for me and Meg. I am so glad the last year is over for you (us). I mean, I knew I loved ya' and that you were awesome before 2011, but I don't think I really knew how much or what it would mean to not have you around. You plowed through the last year with such strength and courage and humor. I don't know that I would be able to handle it as gracefully. I am thankful that we're not back at Valentine's 2011 with so much unknown and scary stuff ahead of us. It seems like forever ago and just yesterday, all at the same time.

I am SO happy for you that you can stay up as late as you want and sleep in (who would have ever guessed?!) as you begin your retired life with Dad. I'm jealous that you can wear sweatpants all day and not leave the house if the weather is crummy. I'm glad you two haven't killed each other (yet) and even seem pretty happy in your little world. I love living close by, getting to see you often and how welcoming you are to my friends. It's really nice. You are such a good host and always wanting to teach me something and help make me better. I don't think I say thank you enough. I think it's great that you get so excited about Pinterest and I love how when we're together, people always say, "That's your Mom, isn't it?" cause we look so much alike (even though you don't think so). There's something comforting with the world being able to tell who you belong to.

See, we even wore the same outfit today. :)

I look forward to many more holidays, celebrations, debates, laughs, discussions and most importantly, time, together. You are such a good Mom and worked so hard to give Meg and me everything. Hopefully some day we'll be able to return the favor and maybe even have kids we can teach all of those lessons to. We love you, and Bob too! :) Happy Valentine's Day!

Love,
Shell

My view....

This is my latest "thing" I've been doing. And by latest, I mean, since yesterday.

It started because when my family came over for dinner last night, I really wanted to play Whitney Houston music while we ate (yes, I'm serious). I happen to have "The Bodyguard" CD so I decided to upload it to my computer. (Sidenote: I not only happen to have it, but it was the first CD I ever owned.) Can you believe Whitney is gone? Linds commented that it seems unreal, much like Michael Jackson. Couldn't agree more. Yes, they both had some issues, but, such talent! Mom recalled at dinner last night that I spent my birthday slumber party in 5th grade belting out, "I Will Always Love you", a treat, I'm sure.

Anyway.......while I was looking for that CD, I found a whole bunch of other CDs that I felt like would be good to get on my computer and possibly Ipod. I (like many of you) discovered burning music my freshman year of college....the dates on the CDs are from like a month into my freshman year. Hmm, perhaps I should have been studying?? So, now I am going through these CDs and uploading them.

Was I going to go the gym after work today? Yes. Did I? No. But this is the view from my front door:

What is that white stuff?! It's been so long since it has snowed (not complaining!!) that I forgot what it was like. Tough to complain though...we have been so spoiled with great weather this year. Let's hope it doesn't change!

So instead of the gym, I'm doing this:

I forgot how much I love this electric blanket! Haven't used it this winter!

With big plans to read some more of this:

This book is SO funny! Tina Fey CRACKS ME UP!

Also started sorting through some fabric scraps for an upcoming little project (of course)....

It's been nice to have a couple hours of downtime. I was kinda cranky and feeling a teensy bit sorry for myself as I worked all weekend, but I am grateful for the work and the flexibility that comes with it. I'm feeling better now....just needed to relax for a few. I'm definitely not the best at unwinding. Gearing up though, as I'm looking forward to cheering on the Cats tonight against KU! Go State!!!!

Loving....

In this week of love and Valentine's week, I wanted to share some things I'm loving lately. Lots it seems like making me happy.

Including, a trip with my friend Sarah to visit our friend Amanda in Denver. We thought we weren't gonna make it because of a blizzard there, but we did and we we had the best time! This is a picture of Sarah when we got back to KC and it made me laugh because somehow she ended up with 3 purses.....from here we went to Mi Ranchito- Sarah's first time there! Love it!



This is a really crummy picture but I couldn't get a good one...it's of the bracelet Sarah gave me (she got a 3-pack from our friend at work, Jenny). You keep one in the pack and give two others away.....it's from www.positivity.org and it says positivity on it. A reminder to be positive and have a good attitude! Sometimes I need it....I wear it to work a lot!

This is the new canvas art I got last week for my bathroom on my main floor. It makes me happy. The woman who makes them is a KU grad that works in Boston, but I bought it at a local store here. If you can't read it, in the lower left it says, "We must take every opportunity to make the most of this very remarkable life." Love it.

My mom tried a new recipe from Pinterest last night- a taco casserole bake. The picture doesn't do it justice but it was really good.

Peanut Butter Cheerios. I am LOVING them! I am pretty much told everyone I know. If you haven't already tried them and you're a peanut butter fan, do it!

Rearranging my furniture! Not sure why I love this so much, but here are a few new little spots in my house. :)

Thanks to Pinterest, I did quite a bit of Valentines crafting this year...here is the wreath for my parents house.

This is the wreath on my front door....couldn't do red since the door is red!

Mini wreaths leaning up on my mantle....

And, tonight, we had family dinner with my parents, cousin and her boyfriend.....nothing fancy but tasty and entertaining.

How my dad arrived....he didn't know if the dress code was casual or dressy, so he did both....scarf and black sweats. Looks like he is carrying a purse. :)

The baked zuichinni chips and ravioli....so good!

Linds with the Trader Joe drink my cousin brought...

The heart shaped pizza (courtesy of Papa Murphy's)...

Linds trying to get in the trifle....

A really random game we invented after dinner.....see who can blow the candle out at the furthest distance. Things got pretty wild!

Happy Valentine's Week, friends! Hope you are having lots of things you're loving too. xo