A new project of sorts...

Yeah, yeah yeah. I've been gone. I won't make any excuses buuuuuut... I'm working on a new project.

I'll fill in the details and update on everything else we have been up to soon. :)

So, I hear it's May now?

Life is such a beautiful, wonderful, crazy thing. Like the old adage, 'April showers bring May flowers', one day you're plugging along, kinda bored but hanging in there with the day-to-day of it all, and then you realize that so many plans you've been working on really ARE coming together. Here's what we've got going this month:

1. We have had four different groups over this week. Barbecuing and croquet for the win!
2. We have installed 2 new pathways in the backyard (no more walking through dirt between the deck and patio!) and planted a dozen new perennials and herbs.
3. This Saturday we are running the Detroit Color Me Rad color run.
4. Sunday is Mothers Day and our annual family pictures.
5. My boss quit and moved across the country (sad face)
6. We saw Iron Man 3 at an advanced screening - before it came out in theaters!
7. Motor City Comic Con in 2 weeks.
8. The opening of lake season and getting the water toys in over Memorial Day.
9. We're headed to a Star Trek Convention in Chicago at the end of the month.

Oh, and I am taking the next step in my career and starting a new job on Monday.

I hope you've got as many flowers blooming as I do!

Ps - I have also been making steady progress on the costumes, and will post an update on those soon.

Life and Kitties

So costuming isn't the only thing we've been up to lately. We've been INCREDIBLY busy. And  I know what you're thinking - so what else is new, right?

I know, but here's a little update on just details in general.

Since I'm done with school I kind of have my evenings back again. So I've been costuming like a crazy person, but I also often end up working some in the evenings too. I know I shouldn't (work-life balance and all of that) so I'm trying to change that. I've also been up to my parent's a few times, and we've had some friends over for a few different things which has been a lot of fun. But really the busy one right now is Brian.

He's student teaching right now, getting ready to graduate from school (FINALLY). And it's going incredibly well, but he's completely exhausted. He also is taking 1 last class that he needed AND still working at Lowe's part time. So his school/work days are usually 12-14 hours long and he almost never gets a full day off. It has been rough for him, but also for both of us because we spend almost no time together right now. The good news is that if all goes to plan he'll be done in 2 months! Then hopefully he can find a job before too long and we can stop all this 'working nights' nonsense.

So I spend a lot of my evenings at home with the kitties right now. Ah yes, the kitties. I mentioned we added to our little family in the form of a new kitten. And he's a pill. Seriously.

Odin is very sweet, and loving and snuggly - but he does his best to drive us and Goji up the wall. When he's not wrestling with Goji he's trying to get up on the table and other places he's not supposed to go. We tried putting tape on the table, but he's too smart and just waited for us to remove the tape a few days later and then he was right back up there. Goji's taking the disturbance like a champ (a really noisy, growly champ). He's getting more relaxed around the little fuzzball and slowly returning to his normal behaviors, so he'll only get better as Odin grows out of kittenhood I think.

They definitely are extremely entertaining, and seem to enjoy eachother's company. Sometimes.

What? We weren't doing anything...

Whew!

I wonder how many posts like this I'll have in the next 18 months?

The final is complete. I have no idea how we did, but I'm checking for my grade about every 12 minutes.  I'm really excited for this week off! I didn't do a darn thing tonight. We had cheese filled pretzels for dinner, but I seriously don't care. It has been absolute heaven to just be a bum for the evening!

(Sorry Brian, I'll be a better wife tomorrow)

There's fun on the horizon!

To break the unintentional post hiatus, I just want to say I have a new project brewing! It involves the following things:

1. Going through people's garbage.
2. Hideously gaudy stuff.
3. Paint fumes.

Should be a good time! I'll post about that, and the seasonal decor and other fun stuff I've been up to as soon as I'm done with my beast-of-a-final for this class!

We're baaaack!

So we're back from the most amazing trip! We had a blast, and it's taken us a while to pick up the reigns again of regular life. I think in prepping for this I let some things slip through the cracks... I'm going to post a recap soon, but I'm just not ready yet.

Last weekend we went up north for an impromptu family reunion. It was great! I got to see my Aunt Laurie and Cousins Ciara and Christian for the first time in YEARS. Christian had no idea who I was... the last time I saw him he was about 2! We had a fabulous day out by the fire, it was so wonderful getting to see family and catch up in the most beautiful place on earth.

(We're the two on the far left)

I love you guys!

We Have to What?

So, there are only 9 DAYS until we head off on our amazing-belated-honeymoon-of-bliss and leave our home and kittycat in the loving care of Lord Bob (also known as the amazing Sanjeev). 9 days, we can get all packed and ready by then right? I was thinking about it this morning and I'm not so sure...

I've been dealing with a LOT at work getting ready to go (bad timing for a software conversion!), and home has not exactly been the chillaxed 'palace of prep' I was hoping for. Along with me working late, and Brian working every night/all weekend, we have been social butterflies! Seeing friends and family like there's no tomorrow, and it continues right up until go-time.

Between now and next Saturday we have to:

1. Dinner with Brian's Aunt tonight.
2. I have a hair appointment Friday night.
3. Brian works all weekend.
4. I have to finish 2 weeks of work and a full software conversion by Wednesday.
5. Next Thursday night we're driving to Okemos for my sister's birthday.
6. Next Friday night is our weekly double date with some friends.
7. Also next Friday night, some other friends are coming into town to spend the night with us.

So sometime, within that, we have to pack, get the house nice and clean for all this company, get all the travel-bank-stuff straightened out, pull our boarding passes, etc.

Hopefully we'll get through it all so we can relax in style for a whole entire week! Well, at least Goji's ready to go...

Too bad he's not allowed to come.

Also... pray that we don't get any hurricanes in the next week!

And the Awesomest Person Award Goes To....

I would like to take this opportunity to thank someone for impressing the hell out of me. My dear hubby, has begun a glorious transformation from apartment-dwelling gamer nerd, to functioning homeowner handyman gamer nerd! In the last couple weeks he has:

1. Fixed the broken Garbage Disposal
2. Identified the problem with our dryer (a dryer is supposed to DRY right?) located a replacement part and fixed it HIMSELF.
3. Found us a massive deal for our car insurance (I'll take that 50 extra dollars a month back THANK YOU!) saving us a boatload of money.

Wow. I'm so amazed, I've gotta step-up my grown-up game next to this guy!

Am I the only brat?

Here follows a confession followed by overly mushy crap. You have been warned.

So, I woke up this morning toooootally on the wrong side of the bed. Just a bland mass of simmering rage. After my shower (where I forgot to unwrap my new all-natural soap that smells like breakfast) I had to pick out something to wear, and that's where it just got bad.

I gained some weight about 1-2 years ago. About 30 pounds of weight actually. Well I lost it again (and then some!) pretty quickly last summer and have had no trouble keeping it off. BUT most of my clothes just don't fit right. Sometimes this makes for a cranky Bre in the morning. I have bought some new clothes, but I still can't find jeans that fit, and old favorites now look like poo. So this took my simmering rage, and turned it up to full boil. I was being a major, huffy, BRAT. So I was grumping around this morning, left in a huff, proceeded to insult at my car who's windshield wipers broke again (mechanic guy who apparently didn't fix them right, you'll be hearing from me!), etc. It was not a mood I would recommend for any young lady with a shred of dignity.

Well, all the time that I'm in this funk and behaving like I'm 4, Brian is just being sweet as ever. And when I got to work, he had posted this video on my facebook:

I had to run to the bathroom because the sweetness of it all made me tear up. Even when I'm undeserving of it, he's the best. Yes I called him to let him know that.

My mood being in much better shape, I've been thinking about how lucky I am. We haven't gotten to spend any time together lately because of work schedules, and that has been draining. But he's still as wonderful as ever, no matter what I do, which I don't deserve.

Taking a Break from a Break

So DSIFQ has been fairly busy this past month! We're both finishing up a spring semester of higher education, in 2 weeks we get the whole summer off! We also have been planning our first REAL vacation for later this summer, I've been sewing a lot, we've had a slew of house guests, I got older, and we've spent a plethora of time in the backyard grilling and just enjoying it!

Sometimes life does just fly right by, but when it's not always a bad thing!

Whew! That was.... 'fun'

So my second class of grad school is finally completed. I have no idea how I did, but it's over and I get my life back for a whole week!

I've spent every free moment of the last couple weeks working on my final (don't you love it when those are 50% of your final grade?) and I finally turned it in at 11pm last night.

So now that I can, I'll be returning to our regular scheduled programming. I've got some fun projects to talk about, including the nightstands I mentioned eons ago!

Grumblegrumblegrumble

This just in, I am grumpy. I cannot find my camera cable. ANYWHERE. And I have pictures to share! Grrrr.

Also, dozing off on the couch really is not good for your neck, I don't recommend it.

Wooo! Stuff!

So I got so much done this past weekend I think I should get a medal. It was kind of like spring cleaning, really refreshing. Until we got over a foot of snow on Sunday night, but that's beside the point! Here's the breakdown:


Friday Night:
Nada, a friend came over and we had pizza. I went to bed at like 9:30

Saturday:
Up at 8. Hang 5 picture frames
Pull down wonky curtain rods
Patch drywall from wonky curtain rods, let dry.
Touch up paint around the house (new switchplate that was smaller then the old one, big scratch from a suitcase, etc)
Paint over now-dry drywall patches
Re-hang curtain rods
Bask in self satisfaction
Start to pull apart and organize studio (It still looks like something exploded in there, but it's actually better then it was when it was all hidden and shoved into the closet. I'll take a picture of the during/after)
Cleaning and laundry
Organize dresser drawers
Discover the show "An Idiot Abroad" and die of laughter


Sunday:
Church
Ikea with the Husband. Lunch and misc purchases ensue like:
   -Another DVD tower
   -New front door mat (was promptly covered in over a foot of snow that night)
Assemble DVD tower while watching a movie with the Husband
Clean and Pick up some more
Sink into the timesuck that is grad school for the next 10 hours (repeat until Tuesday night when Final is due)

It's amazing how a super productive weekend can completely change your mood... only to have it brought right back down by the crap that just comes up. Bah!

But hey, at least my curtains are straight and I'm done with my first grad class! Sort of... I don't have my grade yet.

Thinking thinking thinking...

So there's most definitely been a mini posting hiatus around here again, I forgot how many obligations we have this time of year! So many birthdays and events, and dinners this month... but there has been progress!

It's mostly been of the 'talking and decision making' variety. And it mostly involves a short wall designed to encompass a plot of land behind a domestic domicile.

But there has also been speculation as to what orbital sander I want... I've gotta redo those darn nightstands *grumble*.

I'm hoping to go pick one out tomorrow night, I can't go to the HD tonight because
MY SUPER-AWESOME DAD TURNS 50 TODAY!!!

Happy Birthday Dad! I <3 you!

The Wedding: Wrap-up

So I know these have owned this page lately, but I have one last wedding post for you. We got our super amazing professional photos back from the best wedding photographer ever, Amanda Williams. I want to share some of our favorites with you, because she did a great job of capturing the day.

Beware.... there are a lot of them...

 I see you are gangster... I'm pretty gangster myself.

 Here's a little "Abbey Road" reference.

 Album cover time!

 Wind courtesy of one of the bridesmaids.

 We also don't look at explosions.

 Nature cooperated and displayed the wedding colors.

 Gotcha!

 

   

Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers 'aint got nuthin' on us!

 

What a wonderful day. And these last 3 months since have been some of the best ever! Thank you sweetheart, I less then three you.

The End of a BIG Year

Well, it's New Years Eve. And man, so much happened this year! I got a new job... then left that job for another job. And we bought a house. And Brian started down a path for school that he's actually EXCITED about! And then we got married (wow). And I'm getting ready to start grad school. What a massively huge year! We're excited to continue on with another one. And I'm looking forward to documenting all our little adventures here!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

An Exercise in Terror

Ok so I've been loosely planning something for a few months and I am TERRIFIED of actually doing it. But I guess it looks like I'm plunging in. I am going to attempt to get a Masters degree.

Pardon me while I go look in the mirror and ask myself why I'm doing this...

Ok, I'm back.

I'm not sure if I can answer that question, but I might as well tell you about the decision a little bit. I have a bachelors in Art and Design and for the past 3 years have worked as a graphic designer. I love my work, but I've kind of been kicking around words like 'betterment of self' and 'growth potential' and 'badass guru of awesome'.  And I determined that more school might help give me an edge in my future, so I started researching masters programs. I finally settled on one for Integrated Marketing Communications which happens to be at a large university right by our house. And luckily it can be done online so I can do it in the evenings after work.

I applied. Then I got in. Then I got loans. Well crap, now what? Am I actually going through with this? Looks like it. Why am I so terrified? Is it the massive student loan debt I'll accumulate? Is it the extra work when I'm tired already? Is it that I'm scared this will slow down plans like having kids? Is it the concern that this path might take my future in the wrong direction? Yes, to all of the above.

But here we go I guess. As scared as I am, not doing it just doesn't seem to be an option.

OMGWTFBBQ

We interrupt your blog-post-hiatus to bring you the following:

1. I have a new job

2. I got into grad school

3. We are getting married in 3 DAYS!!!!!

Deep breaths.... I'll elaborate soon hopefully.

Wedding Prep Weekend Extravaganza!

So this weekend was crammed full of wedding prep! On Friday night my maid of honor came out and took me for mani-pedis! It was super super nice, even if we did almost get 'shanked' on our way out! It wasn't in the nicest part of town...

The next morning I had my second dress fitting, it went really well. The bustle is awesome and she's taking it in just a smidge more, so I'll have 1 more fitting before I'm all done.

After lunch my mom and I went to the salon for hair and makeup tests. They totally NAILED the look I was going for, I was thrilled. My mom still isn't satisfied with hers, so we're still figuring that out. Before we left they took my hair down and styled it down so that it would look fab and not ruin the surprise for my bachelorette party!

We had an absolute ball. We had a limo and went to dinner, a chocolate party, wine tasting and VIP'd at a club! I will never forget how awesome that was, I seriously have some of the best friends on the planet! The next day we went to breakfast, and then I went home to celebrate some family birthdays with surf 'n turf!

What a weekend, now it's back to regular life!

We interrupt your regular blog schedule...

I just wanted to take a moment to apologise for our rather sporadic updates the last couple weeks. We are now 1 month out from our wedding! Eeeek! Needless to say that means we've had a million demands on our time, so posting has become a little tricky to keep up with.

Rest assured single reader,  I have a new post in the works and I'm sure we'll be back to a more predictable schedule once the madness ends.

By the way, I'm always on the fence about this, would anyone actually be interested in reading posts about our wedding plans? I tend to keep them away from here because I know some people get sick of hearing about weddings, etc. Let me know in the comments!