feeling a little (okay... a lot...) behind.

everything is going well, just busier than expected.  i shouldn't be that surprised, the 4th of july weekend is coming up, todd's twin sister is getting married next saturday so we have a weekend full of wedding festivities and we leave for south haven next sunday as well.  just a few things going on. not to mention working, etc. ;)  with that said, i just thought i'd pop in to say hello and give you a little peek as to what we've been up to over here. 

i apologize if you follow me on instagram, you'll have already seen these!  but i'm so far behind in editing photos its kind of silly.  i'm trying to make a plan to post daily or at least a few times while we're in south haven. or else there is no.way. i could keep up!

anyway, thanks as always for sticking with me. i'd love to hear what your summer plans are! what fun is going on that we'll be missing out on? ;)

Read More

do you hear those crickets chirping?!

so. i'm alive... actually alive and doing very well.

this pictures has nothing to do with this post. i just like it. because i like him. a little.

as most of you know and completely understand... the summer is so busy for all of us.

little did i know that my job would be more busy than i've ever experienced, smack dab in the middle of the summer.  overtime is encouraged and suggested for those that would like to get paid. that doesn't happen very often so i'm taking advantage.  not only because of the money, but also because i have plenty to do and every little bit of extra time helps to get things crossed off the never-seems-to-be-ending list.

so with work being crazy busy, todd's twin sister's wedding, and a week long vacation coming up... not to mention, the 4th of july, more than a handful of August birthdays (and much more!) i have barely had time to do anything extra.  oh and did i mention todd's away on a business trip for 4+ days?! yes.  when it rains, it pours!  but the time is flying by and jackson and i are keeping ourselves very busy and happy these days.

with all of that said, my blog has been completely neglected and although i could stay up super late to write, i have chosen sleep.  a girls gotta do what a girls gotta do!  however, there are other things that i would love to do... and soon.

so i thought i'd make a list.  because that's what i do.  i hope that one of these days i can cross a few of them off!

//  paint my nails

//  color my hair (seriously, this has to happen soon. hello grey. you are not welcome here. i do not have time for you. thanks.)

//  blog. like a lot. i have so many pictures and fun adventures that we've experience these last couple of weeks.

//  get a pedicure ... preferably before the wedding/vacation weekend starts! p.s. that's less than two weeks from now...

 //  write down my experiences with the 21 day fix.  i've successfully completed 8 days and i love it.  i've been keeping notes so be on the lookout for more info if you are interested! 

//  spend time with family and friends - it is summer time, that is what it is all about!

//  date night.  i believe grandpa may have jackson overnight on friday so this may actually come true sooner than later!

//  put away the mounds of clean laundry, sweep/mop the floors/dust everything. oh and vaccuum. i know those seem like "everyday" things for others but goodness these days have gotten away from me. i'd love to catch up and have a sparkling clean house.  #iwillkeepondreaming

//  catch up on my blog reading... i have cut down on the blogs i've been following this year. and my bloglovin' number has risen... easily passing 350. so. many. to. read. i hope there are a lot of pictures ;)

anyway. there you have it. lots swimming around in my noggin just not the time to write it all down.  hopefully i'll put a good dent in my workload this week so i can relax a little more. that sounds delightful. it is all worth it in the end, right?!

how has everyone been in blog land? i've missed you all...

Read More

21 day fix....let the games begin!

the happiest of monday's to you all! i am currently pretending that i am wide awake and excited to take on the busiest of all days.  why would someone have back-to-back meetings, all day on a monday? no.thanks.

and no coffee this morning.  so that's why i am pretending to be awake ;) 

if you follow me on instragram, you've seen that the package arrived!  my 21 day fix program arrived and gave me a few days to read through the book and do some planning.  i was so excited and scared when i opened the box... lol.  because i'm kind of a wimp and although this plan helps take quite a bit of planning out of the process for you, there is still quite a bit of preparation involved and that was the part that made me the most nervous.  why?  because... fail to plan... plan to fail!

over the weekend was my chance to really sit down and start looking at the lists of foods and colored containers and really get a list going.  i used my planner and the "start here" booklet to write down all of the foods that i'd like to eat during the week this week.  let me just tell you, if you are in need of ideas for this plan, pinterest is your place! i'm amazed by all of the resources out there!

so saturday afternoon consisted of grocery list making and grocery shopping!

then it was off to the store with my little man in tow.  luckily our kroger has those great grocery carts with the cars on the front. i'm not sure how else i would have kept him busy while we walked through the store...for quite a bit..

it was quite a successful shopping afternoon and jackson was the best.  he was so good for me even though we were in the store for a long.time.  i have such a good little helper!

sunday during naptime was time to prep, prep, prep!!  and that's exactly what i (and todd!) did.  i documented my weight and all of my measurements (bleh!!!!)  and with the cooking prep, i browned the ground turkey, grilled all of the my southwestern chicken for the entire week, todd chopped up a few sweet potatoes for me and i roasted them in the oven.  i am now about 99% prepared for the week ahead!  i need to just double-check and re-pack my lunch and snacks in the evenings after dinner and i'll be all set for the next day.  obviously i'm not used to eating this way so i hope i can hack it! ;)  

next week i'll give you an update as to how the first 7 days go.  hopefully we'll already start to see some progress! tonight is my first workout. wish me luck!!

happy monday friends, how are you going to make this week an awesome one?!

Read More

flashback friday: chicago - march 2013

 way, way back in march of 2013 i had to opportunity to travel to chicago for a work trip.  i'm embarrassed to admit that in my (at the time) almost 30 years of life, i'd never truly visited chicago. only the airport ;)  so.  while we had a busy work schedule ahead of us, we left in time to get there early and pack in some sightseeing in a few short hours the afternoon and evening before our work really started.  

we walked around the city and tried to see a few "big" things as quickly as possible.  first we set out to find the bean in millennium park.  i don't if you are allowed to visit this city without stopping at the bean!  next we walked a little inside of the art institute of chicago and shopped in their gift shop.  they have so many amazing things in that little shop, we could have stayed there for hours!  since we were on a time crunch, we had to hurry out of there... up next... the willis tower... you'll see that we made it to the skydeck just before sunset and before the city got darker.  the views really are incredible (and i'm kind of in the tiniest bit afraid of heights!) 

before heading back to the hotel, we stopped for pizza at giordano's.  that is probably the best pizza i.have.ever.had.

it was off to the hotel and to bed.  and then off to work the next day.  at least i got to be a tourist for a few hours!  i'm looking forward to going back with my family and doing a little more exploring... what an amazing city full of things to do!

enjoy the photos and happy friday the 13th my friends... have a wonderful weekend!!

 

Read More

scenes from our last weekend

as we near the start of yet another weekend, why not revisit the fun that was our last weekend?! sunday afternoon after an almost three hour nap (hooooray!) jackson and i took a little drive over to zionsville to spend some time with friends.  it was really fun and almost like a playdate since all of our kids are so close in age!  lucy was about to turn 2 the next day, jackson and noah are just shy of three and actually only a month apart exactly.  

its kind of fun to watch all of their interactions together and they all play pretty well since they are all daycare/preschool goers but at the same time, outside of school, they are all only children. ;)  but they are all the cutest and as parents of these kiddos, we are pretty dang lucky.

after we arrived to meagan's house, we walked to the park.  this is one of the best parks we've ever been to!  two dinosaur-shaped climbing structures?  what more could a little boy ask for?!

i promise this is a "smile".  just a forced one.  when your mom has a camera in your face 24-7 it is bound to happen!

"help! help! i'm in jail!"

at one point, jackson helped me move the wagon.  what a nice boy!

and then it was off to the other dinosaur to climb on! 

and then he turned around to make sure his mommy was still there and still watching.  oh that smile. that is the real deal.  the best thing ever.

thanks again google+ for making these auto awesome. i am obsessed!

after spending a bit at the park, it was time to walk back to the house and start grilling for dinner!  here's all the sweaty littles taking a ride in the wagon.  it really only lasted about two minutes before each of them wanted out so they could keep running... ;)

oh those pigtails!

after we got back to the house (todd arrived too!) and had some delicious dinner (sliders, salad and crock pot mac&cheese..... YUM) it was time to get out the bubble machine!  i think they liked it!

a couple more auto awesome(s) because i seriously cannot help it!

and finally it was down to the backyard to burn off a little more energy.  once they had a few minutes to run their little hearts out, it was time to pack it up and head home.  bedtime for everyone!

i'm so glad i got to spend so much time with friends this weekend and it was even better that we got to have our kids around too.  its a pretty good life we live... and a happy one too!

p.s. since these pictures were taken right before her birthday... 

happy (belated) birthday lucy!!!  we love spending time with you and your family and its pretty cool seeing you grow up into such a smart little girl.  jackson is pretty lucky to have a friend like you!

Read More