We had a pretty busy weekend - to the point that Monday was almost a welcome break today!
A summary -
Praise Project rehearsal, shopping with my mom, Nate and dad worked on electrical stuff in the house, apple orchard, winery, dinner, two Masses on Sunday with Praise Project, Pedal Pub with friends of friends and a birthday celebration for my mother-in-law/Nate's mom.
Sunday was the most packed, we did the two Masses in the morning at St. William's with the Praise Project and then headed to Northeast Minneapolis for the Pedal Pub and finally over to my in-laws for dinner. Crazy. I don't think I really had a chance to breathe on Sunday!
Nate and my dad got some good work done on Saturday with the ongoing electrical work that they need to get done. And I guess the piece they were working on went even better than expected, so that's great!
Next weekend is looking better, but only a little better. We do have a wedding for my cousin so that will take up some time.
And on we go!
10/19/09
10/16/09
Pippin
Pippin - November 2008One year ago I was introduced to this tiny, scrawny, almost cartoony looking cat. She was black and white, not unlike the cat I already had. This little cat they called "Tuxedo" was being fostered by some good friends and was in need of a permanent home.
I thought she was adorable - but was resistant to the idea of taking her in at first. Though after I left her that first day I could not stop thinking about her. I kept pulling up pictures of her online that our friends had posted. I thought, can I really do this? Do we really want to be a two cat household? What is Taylor going to think - does she even want a companion? But, Nate talked me into at least having Tuxedo over for a visit and just "see how it goes." He said it didn't have to be permanent if it didn't work out. So on a Friday night in October last year Tuxedo came for a visit. She never left.
Pippin says "hi!"Now bearing the name "Pippin the Tuxedo Cat" or Pippin or Pip or Monkey-cat (depends on our mood I guess!), we have had her in our home for a year. And I am so glad Nate talked me into bringing her into our life.
Sitting pretty in one of her favorite spotsSure, it was not love at first site with Taylor and there are days I still think she simply tolerates Pippin, but we worked to get them acclimated to each other and I think most days they keep each other company quite well.
Pippin makes me smile every day. She's not a tiny, scrawny thing anymore. She's actually a very large cat. It's hilarious as she thinks she's little and dainty like Taylor and tries to act in such a way, but really, she's large and clumsy. She loves on us as much as we like to love on her. Her purr could practically rattle the walls. She loves to rub up against us or head butt us as a way of saying "hey you with the free hands - pet me!" She likes to cuddle with Taylor when Taylor will let her. She loves her toys and she triple loves her food.
She still is cartoonish in nature, but that is part of her charm. She recieved the nickname of Monkey-cat because of how she loves to hold on to us when we pick her up.
I can't believe we've had her for a year. Time flies. And yet, it feels like she's always been a part of our lives. I couldn't ask for a better cat (besides my Taylor of course).
"Soft kitty, warm kitty, little ball of fur, Happy kitty, sleep kitty, purr, purr, purr" - Taken from the Big Bang Theory
10/15/09
Thursday Top Ten: Halloween Candy
It's cold and damp today, I'm not in the greatest of moods - tired and groggy mostly. But I won't skip my Thursday top ten, I will just do a short and sweet one. And by sweet, I almost mean literally! Here we go, my favorite candy to receive when trick-or-treating as a kid:
10. Snickers (funny, I only liked the fun sized Snickers, I never liked a BIG Snickers when I was a kid)
9. Milky Way (same as the Snickers, only liked the small ones)
8. Fun Sized M&M bags in plain or peanut
7. Hershey's Fun Sized bars
6. Reese's Peanut Butter Cups
5. Smarties
4. Dum Dum Lollipops - but only the red flavors like Cherry
3. Twix Caramel
2. Kit Kat's
1. Nestle Crunch
If you can't tell, I loved chocolate alot as a kid. I still like chocolate, but have found I prefer it in smaller doses as an adult - or even would prefer dark over milk chocolate most days now! I can honestly say, a little chocolate sure would be a nice pick me up on a day like today though!
10. Snickers (funny, I only liked the fun sized Snickers, I never liked a BIG Snickers when I was a kid)
9. Milky Way (same as the Snickers, only liked the small ones)
8. Fun Sized M&M bags in plain or peanut
7. Hershey's Fun Sized bars
6. Reese's Peanut Butter Cups
5. Smarties
4. Dum Dum Lollipops - but only the red flavors like Cherry
3. Twix Caramel
2. Kit Kat's
1. Nestle Crunch
If you can't tell, I loved chocolate alot as a kid. I still like chocolate, but have found I prefer it in smaller doses as an adult - or even would prefer dark over milk chocolate most days now! I can honestly say, a little chocolate sure would be a nice pick me up on a day like today though!
10/14/09
Why I love Wednesdays again
Before I start today's post I just wanted to reference my friend Gina's blog for a few Oktoberfest pictures from the weekend. You can see them here. Thanks for posting them Gina, I'm glad someone got some pictures of the fun!
Now onto our regularly schedule blog post!
As most of my followers know, back in February Nate and I made a tough choice to leave our church. It was very hard and one of the things that I was saddest about was not having choir practice to go to anymore on Wednesday nights. Not only was it a chance to sing and exercise my vocal skills, but there was a fellowship aspect to it, seeing good friends on a weekly basis and all that goes along with that.
The other thing about Wednesdays that used to work great for us was that while I would go to choir, it also happened to also be Nate's night with the "nerd herd" as he calls them - his guy buddies from college who he gets together with and plays nerdy things like Magic cards or Dungeons and Dragons. With both of us gone on Wednesdays, neither had to feel too guilty about leaving the other at home!
When we first left the church, Wednesdays felt a little weird, but Nate wasn't actively hanging with the guys for a bit, so he was home with me and it wasn't so bad. We watched TV alot. I started scheduling meetups with friends so I wouldn't have to think about where I could be at that time. Then we started up with Praise Project, which definitely filled the musical void in my life, but we do that on the weekends, so Wednesdays were still free and clear and at times it started to feel odd.
Towards the summer, Nate started back up with the nerd herd and I was now a "Wednesday Night Widow." For the summer, it wasn't so bad, we never had choir through the summer anyway and again, I scheduled meetups with friends or hung out with my parents to kind of feel less weird. But I found myself not really liking Wednesdays anymore and wondering if Wednesday would ever not feel kind of "weird". As we got closer to Fall and several friends were starting back up with their church choirs, I even found myself a little sad and melancholy on Wednesdays.
Not anymore.
It turns out, Wednesday has suddenly become my favorite day of the week - due to a silly, stupid, guilty pleasure that I've raved about on Facebook for awhile now. You see, Wednesday night is Glee night. Glee, a show on Fox about a high school glee club, is my new favorite show. Nate's watched it with me a couple of times and decided it's not really for him, so now it works out great for me. I watch Glee while he's out having male bonding time. I am happy, he is happy. And let me tell you, Glee makes me super happy. But, it's so stupid! The storylines are SO unrealistic, but I think in a way that's what makes the show work. It's like they know it's kind of a farce so they're poking fun at themselves. I like the music in the show and I think the kids who are on it are actually quite talented.
So I love Wednesdays again. It might be for completely different reasons than in the past, but it works for me. It's nice to unwind and relax at home on my own, get completely sucked into my show and just sort of let everything else go for a bit. I find I'm able to tackle the last two days of the week much easier than in the past as well!
So it may sound cliche or nerdy but Glee fills me with glee! Ok, I know, too much.
Any secret guilty pleasures or not so secret guilty pleasures anyone else wants to share? Happy Wednesday!
Now onto our regularly schedule blog post!
As most of my followers know, back in February Nate and I made a tough choice to leave our church. It was very hard and one of the things that I was saddest about was not having choir practice to go to anymore on Wednesday nights. Not only was it a chance to sing and exercise my vocal skills, but there was a fellowship aspect to it, seeing good friends on a weekly basis and all that goes along with that.
The other thing about Wednesdays that used to work great for us was that while I would go to choir, it also happened to also be Nate's night with the "nerd herd" as he calls them - his guy buddies from college who he gets together with and plays nerdy things like Magic cards or Dungeons and Dragons. With both of us gone on Wednesdays, neither had to feel too guilty about leaving the other at home!
When we first left the church, Wednesdays felt a little weird, but Nate wasn't actively hanging with the guys for a bit, so he was home with me and it wasn't so bad. We watched TV alot. I started scheduling meetups with friends so I wouldn't have to think about where I could be at that time. Then we started up with Praise Project, which definitely filled the musical void in my life, but we do that on the weekends, so Wednesdays were still free and clear and at times it started to feel odd.
Towards the summer, Nate started back up with the nerd herd and I was now a "Wednesday Night Widow." For the summer, it wasn't so bad, we never had choir through the summer anyway and again, I scheduled meetups with friends or hung out with my parents to kind of feel less weird. But I found myself not really liking Wednesdays anymore and wondering if Wednesday would ever not feel kind of "weird". As we got closer to Fall and several friends were starting back up with their church choirs, I even found myself a little sad and melancholy on Wednesdays.
Not anymore.
It turns out, Wednesday has suddenly become my favorite day of the week - due to a silly, stupid, guilty pleasure that I've raved about on Facebook for awhile now. You see, Wednesday night is Glee night. Glee, a show on Fox about a high school glee club, is my new favorite show. Nate's watched it with me a couple of times and decided it's not really for him, so now it works out great for me. I watch Glee while he's out having male bonding time. I am happy, he is happy. And let me tell you, Glee makes me super happy. But, it's so stupid! The storylines are SO unrealistic, but I think in a way that's what makes the show work. It's like they know it's kind of a farce so they're poking fun at themselves. I like the music in the show and I think the kids who are on it are actually quite talented.
So I love Wednesdays again. It might be for completely different reasons than in the past, but it works for me. It's nice to unwind and relax at home on my own, get completely sucked into my show and just sort of let everything else go for a bit. I find I'm able to tackle the last two days of the week much easier than in the past as well!
So it may sound cliche or nerdy but Glee fills me with glee! Ok, I know, too much.
Any secret guilty pleasures or not so secret guilty pleasures anyone else wants to share? Happy Wednesday!
10/12/09
Best Weekend Ever!
Ok, well maybe not the BEST weekend ever, but a pretty darn good one anyway!
Friday night we did our usual music practice for Praise Project and also watched the Twins get crushed by the Yankees.
Saturday we got up, I met my parents for coffee while Nate worked on making the basement a little more acceptable for company. Then, my mom and I went to the grand opening of the Roseville Clothes Mentor. If you've never been to a Clothes Mentor it's a very neat consignment type shop, they sell gently used brand name clothing and I have gotten some amazing deals on clothes for work there. Last spring at the Maple Grove store I actually found two pairs of capris with original tags still on them! Anyway, we found a pair of pants and a skirt for fall and winter, but the more exciting thing is - I am now the proud owner of my very own Coach purse. That's right, it's real and I don't care that it's slightly used, it's in great shape and I got it for $40! What a steal! It's a great everyday kind of purse - black leather, adjustable strap. I'll stop going on and on, but as most of my readers know, I love purses and this was a deal too good to pass up!
After that I headed home to help Nate with cleaning and picking up around the house to prepare for the evening's Oktoberfest activities. We were not happy that it was cold and had snowed outside, but were ready to make the most of it. We still set up for the bonfire just in case.
Evening fell and our friends arrived ready to sample our newest homebrews. We had some German type food - brats and sauerkraut and my awesome sister-in-law brought homemade pretzels! We also enjoyed some homemade ice cream from great friends in fall type flavors - cinnamon and maple pecan. Yum, yum, YUM.
A great time was had by all and we never did get outside to start that fire. But we were warm and cozy inside with wonderful friends and I'd call the event a success.
Sunday morning we slept late as Saturday night ended up as a rather late one. We got up and decided instead of making breakfast at home like we often do on Sundays that we would go out for breakfast for a change. At a suggestion from one of Nate's co-workers, we headed to the Egg and I in St. Paul. Had a nice breakfast there and then laid low most of the rest of Sunday!
So, it was a pretty awesome weekend I must say! Hope you all had good weekends too, in spite of the snow!
Friday night we did our usual music practice for Praise Project and also watched the Twins get crushed by the Yankees.
Saturday we got up, I met my parents for coffee while Nate worked on making the basement a little more acceptable for company. Then, my mom and I went to the grand opening of the Roseville Clothes Mentor. If you've never been to a Clothes Mentor it's a very neat consignment type shop, they sell gently used brand name clothing and I have gotten some amazing deals on clothes for work there. Last spring at the Maple Grove store I actually found two pairs of capris with original tags still on them! Anyway, we found a pair of pants and a skirt for fall and winter, but the more exciting thing is - I am now the proud owner of my very own Coach purse. That's right, it's real and I don't care that it's slightly used, it's in great shape and I got it for $40! What a steal! It's a great everyday kind of purse - black leather, adjustable strap. I'll stop going on and on, but as most of my readers know, I love purses and this was a deal too good to pass up!
After that I headed home to help Nate with cleaning and picking up around the house to prepare for the evening's Oktoberfest activities. We were not happy that it was cold and had snowed outside, but were ready to make the most of it. We still set up for the bonfire just in case.
Evening fell and our friends arrived ready to sample our newest homebrews. We had some German type food - brats and sauerkraut and my awesome sister-in-law brought homemade pretzels! We also enjoyed some homemade ice cream from great friends in fall type flavors - cinnamon and maple pecan. Yum, yum, YUM.
A great time was had by all and we never did get outside to start that fire. But we were warm and cozy inside with wonderful friends and I'd call the event a success.
Sunday morning we slept late as Saturday night ended up as a rather late one. We got up and decided instead of making breakfast at home like we often do on Sundays that we would go out for breakfast for a change. At a suggestion from one of Nate's co-workers, we headed to the Egg and I in St. Paul. Had a nice breakfast there and then laid low most of the rest of Sunday!
So, it was a pretty awesome weekend I must say! Hope you all had good weekends too, in spite of the snow!
10/9/09
Snow?
Well they are predicting snow showers tomorrow. Which seems odd to me, I don't remember getting snow this early before, but I think it's because the last few Falls have been unseasonably warm. I mean yes, I was alive for the famouse Halloween blizzard of 91, but that's three weeks from now, not October 10th!
Oh well, we are having our annual Oktoberfest no matter what, snow or no snow! It'll be nice to still set up a bonfire, but if we can't, we'll be nice and cozy in our house!
In other important things to note - tomorrow is the one year anniversary of the day that changed our lives for the better. A year ago tomorrow Nate was offered his job and the world started turning for us again. I'm so proud of him for all he has accomplished in this last year and continue to be thankful this opportunity came up for him!
Stay warm this weekend everyone!
Oh well, we are having our annual Oktoberfest no matter what, snow or no snow! It'll be nice to still set up a bonfire, but if we can't, we'll be nice and cozy in our house!
In other important things to note - tomorrow is the one year anniversary of the day that changed our lives for the better. A year ago tomorrow Nate was offered his job and the world started turning for us again. I'm so proud of him for all he has accomplished in this last year and continue to be thankful this opportunity came up for him!
Stay warm this weekend everyone!
10/8/09
Thursday Top Ten: Blessings
So I'm just in a very gratitude filled, happy place today. It's my favorite season, it's beautiful outside even if a little cold and the leaves are gorgeous! So in the spirit of that, I started reflecting on the many wonderful things I'm thankful for in my life and decided today's top ten will be my top ten blessings in my life.
10. Fall! Bonfires, apple pie, cool weather, cuddling, sweatshirts, need I say more???
9. Internet technology and social networking. Yes it's true, I am an addict. But I have been able to connect and re-connect with so many people via Facebook that I am rather thankful for it.
8. Having a job to come to each day. I think that says it all in one statement. And I'm excited about some potential changes for me at work too. Mostly, just thankful I have a job and Nate has a job and we have a double income.
7. Coffee. I am even a little bit of a below average coffee drinker I think, but I do need my cup each day and I am thankful to have the ability to make and enjoy coffee. And having a Caribou close to home does not hurt either!
6. Beer. Ok, so it's silly, but hey, having a husband who brews beer is fun, it's really been an interesting adventure over the last year or so of making our own beer, sampling different beer and just all around enjoying beer. No we're not out to get smashed all of the time, we just like to enjoy a good brew.
5. Music. From being able to make music in Praise Project to listening to the unique variety of music stations like the Current offer, I just love music. I love to sing, I love to listen to music. Music=life for me.
4. Our cats. Yes they do not always love each other and can definitely make life just as challenging as raising a child, but they are cuddly, warm little beasts who love us unconditionally and they make our house a home.
3. Friends. I have some of the world's greatest friends and really, such a wide variety of friends. I have friends I've known since kindergarten, 3rd grade, middle school, high school and college in my life. Nate and I have work friends and we have our Praise Project friends. Many different ages and backgrounds, but all unique and wonderful. I cannot say enough about how lucky we are to have all these amazing people in our lives!
2. Family. I am so fortunate to be able to be close to and have a unique relationship with my parents. I am also thankful that my in-laws are such great people who have always welcomed me with open arms. Neither Nate or myself would be here without our families and we love them very much!
1. Nate. I'm sure you're all shocked that Nate is number one (and yes I'm being sarcastic). But seriously he is my everything, the best thing in my life. I couldn't imagine my life not being married to him and I won't even try. I am the person I am because of him and I could not love someone more.
10. Fall! Bonfires, apple pie, cool weather, cuddling, sweatshirts, need I say more???
9. Internet technology and social networking. Yes it's true, I am an addict. But I have been able to connect and re-connect with so many people via Facebook that I am rather thankful for it.
8. Having a job to come to each day. I think that says it all in one statement. And I'm excited about some potential changes for me at work too. Mostly, just thankful I have a job and Nate has a job and we have a double income.
7. Coffee. I am even a little bit of a below average coffee drinker I think, but I do need my cup each day and I am thankful to have the ability to make and enjoy coffee. And having a Caribou close to home does not hurt either!
6. Beer. Ok, so it's silly, but hey, having a husband who brews beer is fun, it's really been an interesting adventure over the last year or so of making our own beer, sampling different beer and just all around enjoying beer. No we're not out to get smashed all of the time, we just like to enjoy a good brew.
5. Music. From being able to make music in Praise Project to listening to the unique variety of music stations like the Current offer, I just love music. I love to sing, I love to listen to music. Music=life for me.
4. Our cats. Yes they do not always love each other and can definitely make life just as challenging as raising a child, but they are cuddly, warm little beasts who love us unconditionally and they make our house a home.
3. Friends. I have some of the world's greatest friends and really, such a wide variety of friends. I have friends I've known since kindergarten, 3rd grade, middle school, high school and college in my life. Nate and I have work friends and we have our Praise Project friends. Many different ages and backgrounds, but all unique and wonderful. I cannot say enough about how lucky we are to have all these amazing people in our lives!
2. Family. I am so fortunate to be able to be close to and have a unique relationship with my parents. I am also thankful that my in-laws are such great people who have always welcomed me with open arms. Neither Nate or myself would be here without our families and we love them very much!
1. Nate. I'm sure you're all shocked that Nate is number one (and yes I'm being sarcastic). But seriously he is my everything, the best thing in my life. I couldn't imagine my life not being married to him and I won't even try. I am the person I am because of him and I could not love someone more.
There you go. Have you counted your blessings/things you are thankful for today?
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