Life Lately

Geez, it's been so busy lately I just realized I haven't really taken a chance to sit down and blog in a couple of weeks! I swear, the fall/spring get this way every year ... in the fall, it's like we are squeezing in every thinkable activity before winter hits and by the time it's warm in the spring, everyone is ready to get outside.

But I digress...

Work is pretty busy. We are set to complete our new building very soon and I'm really putting the push on for as many donations as possible prior to our big open house/ribbon cutting ceremony in the spring.

When it comes to my work outs and weight loss, I'm sorta in maintenance mode right now. I've been participating in a challenge group on FB that's 12 weeks long and you pay $10. There are some weekly challenges and an overall winner who takes the $ leftover at the end. Well, I ended up taking the prize for this round! Basically you set a goal and if you hit it, you are in a random drawing to become the winner. Mine was to run 84 total miles (an average of 1 per day the duration of the challenge.) Honestly, I didn't think I would hit it as I only ran 9.4 measly miles during the month of August, but we did a lot of running in September and it totally saved me! So I've decided I'm kinda burnt out though and really not loving the treadmill and haven't worked out at all since last Thursday! Pretty sure I'm going to pull out my Les Mills body pump that I bought earlier this year and give it a try beginning next week.

I'm really excited to take Cooper trick-or-treating on Friday! Yes, this is his third Halloween and the first to dress up and go out. I just didn't really see the point in doing it when he was only 11 months old. Last year I was debating it, but I had to be at a work conference in St. Louis that fell over Halloween, so hubs ended up taking the day after off work and the boys met me in St. Louis! I'm sorta glad we waited because he's really eager to go this year and I just love when kids are excited for something they want to do other than just doing it because Mom/Dad want them to do so.

We had some really great weather here over the weekend ... it hit 80 on Saturday and Sunday! Unfortunately there was a big rain/cold front yesterday, which means colds all around now.

We also took advantage of our nice weekend/weekend with no plans. I finally got to do some house cleaning and actually enjoyed it, LOL! Hubby did the final outside work for the season like weed eating, round up, etc.

What's going on in your life?


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Camping with Cooper

It's been at least four years since the hubs and I went camping. We thought Coop was the perfect age to do so now! We wanted to one week this summer but it ended up raining so we pushed it off.

Anyhow, last weekend our sitter took off work Thursday-Friday and the weather looked decent for mid-October, so hubs and I took off work on Friday so we could hang with the little man and take him camping.



Unfortunately we could only stay one night, since I had our family photos booked for Sunday :/ We had fun, but as I told hubs, camping is way too much work for only one night! I looked into cabin rentals but none of the places around here would do that for just one night either. So we loaded up the tent, mattress, pillows, firewood and a bunch of other stuff and away we went on Friday!

We camped at a state park we had never been to before {although we'd been to the area several times} and it was gorgeous. It was about an hour and a half drive, which was just perfect.

Of course, about an hour into the road trip we realized neither of us had grabbed the air pump that was plugged into the wall, sitting on the kitchen counter. Whoops.

And unfortunately it didn't stop there. We borrowed a heater from a friend that hooked up to a propane tank, but the blower needed an electric cord ... which we forgot {thank goodness it didn't get too cold we required it!} Also when we went shopping the night before, I didn't grab hamburger buns or American cheese since we had plenty at home but I forgot to pack them. And we can't forget the fact that I also failed to bring along a spatula or ANY utensil for grilling. Ugh.

Thankfully we got through and can now laugh at it. There weren't many people camping, but we set up next to the sweetest retired couple and they had an air pump. It required pumping with your foot, but was much better than sleeping on the ground or trying to blow up the mattress. As for the food ... well, we can smash a soda can and flatten it to sort of resemble a flipper. Ha!



Once we arrived and got set up Friday night, we mostly just ate and enjoyed the campfire. Coop and I read a little but he started acting tired around 8:45 so we all went to the tent. I figured it would be way too much work and I would risk waking him if I got up so I just stayed in bed, while hubs enjoyed the camp fire a bit longer.

Of course Coop didn't allow us to sleep too late Saturday morning, so after breakfast we decided to let him burn some energy. There was a short wooded trail to get to the river, so we walked down to a gravel bar and he and his daddy skipped/threw rocks in the river.

Since we were stuffed the night before and didn't get to make our smores, we had them for a Saturday morning snack. Cooper was hilarious and didn't want the smore, just marshmallows but "not too hot" and insisted on eating from the stick!

We finally got everything packed up and were on the road by around 2 p.m. Overall, we had a great time and I can't wait to take our little man camping again {but for more than a day. And you better bet I'll make a good list of things to take next time, too!}

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#Blogtober14: A letter to me

Day 8: A letter to myself in 10 years

 

Clearly I'm a little behind with the challenge, but it's all good! It's a busy time in my life, so I'm doing what I can and picking and choosing. I thought this one sounded super fun though.

Dear Michelle:

Relax. You are only one person and it's OK that you can't conquer the world alone. You are a mom and a wife. Focus on taking care of your husband and kid(s). There will always be time to clean the house. You can never go back and make memories.

Have some patience. I know, I know, I've been telling you to do this since the day you became a mom but it's true. The teenage years will probably get the best of you, but remember you are a parent, not a friend. Be supportive and loving but stern. It's your job to raise your kids to be strong, independent and honorable. Stick to your guns on that.

Whatever you are doing in life, make sure you are being gracious and a real, true leader. Every day, strive to bless someone else and be an example to others - your kids and so many others are looking at what you do. Don't let others tear you down, and don't tear anyone down in the process. You know what it's like to be a young professional that others tend to look down on - be a mentor and a friend to people who are in the same shoes you were in 10-15 years ago.

Oh, and you look fabulous! Whatever you are doing is clearly working. But don't forget it's OK to just live life. Have the candy bar. Eat the cheese dip. Just do it in moderation.

Love, Me

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Weekend by the numbers

Festivals/events attended: 2

Miles run: 3.1

Minutes to run 5K: 24:07 (2nd place in my age. Hubs - 22.59 didn't place in his!)

High on Saturday (when we ran/attended said festivals): 57

Date night: 1

Rooms cleaned in house: 1 (ouch)

Boxes of crap hauled to my parents'  for yard sale this week: 7

It was a great weekend, but I'm seriously wondering how it went by so quickly!




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Five on Friday

Two posts in one day ... what what? Ha even though I'm loving having some real thought provoking content, I can't forget my randoms, if not how will I know what I was doing on this day in 20 years, especially if Timehop crashes?

{1} So I've been sick since the middle of September. I finally went to the doctor on Wednesday, only because my ears were clogged and it hurt to chew, swallow, talk, etc. The verdict? Infection in both ears. I didn't know 29 year olds even got those! Thankful for good medicine.

{2} Even more thankful because we have a busy weekend! Saturday morning, bright and early, we have a 5K. My goal is to finish in under 25 minutes and it's gonna be close. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that the medicine really kicks in by then and my body acclimates because last night's run was rough. We are also going to an Oktoberfest event and spending some time with friends that evening.

{3} I got my second Happy Mommy Box in September and it was another hit. My favorite piece is this bauble bracelet. I normally don't wear bracelets, especially something this big, but it actually doesn't get into my way and I really, really love the bling of it.

{4} We are very excited that the Cardinals have moved on to the NL Division League Series. Wahoo!

{5} How is it October? I mean seriously. This year seems to have flown by! We've had some really incredible weather the past month that was above average temps but still. Honestly? I would be OK in a world with only summer.

Have a good weekend!




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#Blogtober14: I Can't Live Without ...

Day Three ... One thing I can't live without

 

This is a rough one! As I sat at my computer ready to type, I tried to decide which way to put this. I mean, obviously I can't live without air, water, food, my family, etc. but that's a given, right?

So I figured I would go with the frivolous, non-essential items. Which would have to be my iPhone.

 
Y'all, I use that thing for EVERYTHING. Anytime I whip it out to look something up or just pass the time because I'm bored, I'm in AWE of the fast that we have these devices that four years ago I didn't. I use it for music, to track my food intake, my mileage, keep up with friends and so much more. It's absolutely insane. And don't get me started on the photos and video - yes, I have the fancy expensive camera but rarely take photos with it because my iPhone is so easy and handy.

With that being said, I definitely do spend too much time on it and I'm working on that. The last thing I want is to waste my kid's life because I'm too busy scrolling through IG or Facebook to keep up with the latest. So I'm working on that. Actually, I've been trying to plug it in to charge once we get home for the night and definitely after bath. That's been a big one.

What about you - what can't you live without?

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#Blogtober14: Dream Job!

Back for Day Two!

Dream job when I was little/what is it now?

Honestly, I don't know that I had a real dream job as a kid. I do have something I did in kindergarten saying I wanted to be a Dallas Cowboys cheerleader. Oh my! I always really liked kids and being in charge though, so I did go through a phase where I wanted to be a teacher as well. For a brief time I wanted to be a nurse as well.

Once I was in high school I realized how much I loved writing and hated math, so I decided to major in journalism. Once I obtained my degree, I went to work for a daily newspaper near my hometown.

After working there for almost 4 years, I was offered a position as a development officer for the community college serving the area where I worked. It included marketing, alumni relations and fund/friend raising. I accepted and am still there today!

I love my job but still don't know if it's my "dream job." Honestly, I still don't know what exactly I want to be when I grow up, lol! I think that I would like to eventually transition into more of the marketing field. I'm also planning to get my masters so I can be an adjunct instructor and teach some of our communications classes. So I guess the dream of being a teacher still does exist.

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#Blogtober: Lottery edition

It's no secret that I've been in a blog rut here lately, so when I saw the #blogtober today with Helene and Taylor I decided to jump in!

 

Today's prompt is what I would do if I won the lottery. So, hubs and I talk about this CONSTANTLY, as he buys Powerball tickets weekly.

First off, we would pay off our house and do all the updates/renovations, etc. that we have planned. That's our only debt. We would also go ahead and buy new vehicles and likely an RV so we can do a lot of traveling!

Ideally, we wouldn't have to work ever again unless we wanted to. I'm sure I would get bored and do some volunteering. But to make sure we were OK and didn't become a curse of the lottery, we would be sure to invest a big chunk of the money and leave it for our kids/grandkids, and hopefully just live off the interest! So we wouldn't live all that extravagantly - just live without debt but have a comfortable income every year.

Here are the prompts for the rest of the month! I'm excited!

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