Beautiful Women

I got to spend this weekend with some of the beautiful women in my life.  I really had a great time, nothing beats bonding time with family and old friends.

Saturday, my aunts, mom, cousin, and sister met up at the Ramada Inn in Galena and drank wine out of red solo cups before heading downtown for shopping!  We shopped, drank, and ate our way through Galena!

Galena is such a cute town, I can't believe I've never wandered main street and gone shopping there before!  We ate dinner at Vinny Vanuchi's before heading back to the hotel for hot tub time. :)

On Sunday morning, I parted ways from my family to head up to my high school friend, Alli's, baby shower.  I got to see their new house for the first time, but was even more excited to see the mama-to-be!

She was stunning, but definitely ready for baby to come.  We don't know if it's a boy or a girl, and I can't wait to meet the little guy/girl! :)

Doesn't she look stunning?

Perfectly Imperfect

It's not like this a new revelation, but something I've been thinking about lately is how imperfect my life is.  I'm not a perfect wife, friend, daughter, or sister.  My marriage isn't perfect.  My job isn't perfect.  My house, my finances, my clothes, my body...none of these things are perfect.  But you know what, I can choose to make those things perfect for me.  

The expectations I had for my life may have been unrealistic, or maybe they're still good goals to work towards, just on a different timeline.  I feel like I still have to strive every single day to be happy with myself and where I'm at in my life.  But one thing that I am certain of is that, over the years, I let a little bit of myself go in hopes of becoming a "better" person/wife/friend.  So recently, while jamming to my Katy Perry album, I stumbled upon her song, "Love Me."  I am in love with this song and as cheesy at it sounds, it really is helping me get back in touch with myself and trying to find the woman that Ryan fell in love with and that my friends know from when they first met me.

Love Me - Katy Perry

I lost myself in fear of losing you

I wish I didn't do, but I did

I lost my own, my own identity

Forgot that you picked me, for me

But now, I don't negotiate with insecurities

They always seem to get the best of me

I found I had to love myself, the way I want you to...

Love me, no more second guessing

No, there's no more questioning

I'll be the one defining who I'm gonna be

No concealing feelings, or changing seasonally

I'm gonna love myself, the way I want you to love me

Sometimes I wish my skin was a costume

That I could just unzip, and strip

But who I am is who I'm meant to be

And it's who you are in love, in love with

So now, I don't negotiate with insecurities

You're gonna have to take a back seat

I know I have to love myself, the way I want you to...

Love me, no more second guessing

No, there's no more questioning

I'll be the one defining who I'm gonna be

No concealing feelings, or changing seasonally

I'm gonna love myself, the way I want you to love me

No more standing in my own way

Let's get deeper, let's get closer

No more standing in my own way

(I want you to love me)

No more standing in my own way

Let's get deeper, let's get closer

No more standing in my own way

(I want you to love me)

No more second guessing

No, there's no more questioning

I'll be the one defining who I'm gonna be

No concealing my feelings, or changing seasonally

I'm gonna love myself, the way I want you to love me

Weekend Recap: March 21-23

Friday night was finally time for fish fry!! Ali and I went to St. Alphonsus and apparently got there early enough to beat the lines, though we had a hell of a time finding a place to sit!

 We went back to Ali's for a bit to finish getting ready and hang out with her cool animals.  Then we headed to the Daiquiri Factory for some samplers before going to RIBCO (Rock Island Brewing Company).

 Ali's boyfriend, Zach, is in a band that was playing that night, so I was really excited to hear them for the first time.  The bonus of the night was that Theresa came too and I was really excited to see her since she is moving back to Georgia in a couple weeks. :(

 The Bromigos (the band) had a great show and I had a great time.  Another extra bonus, I had my eye on the Cyclones game the whole time and WE WON!!

Saturday, I spent most of the day at home.  I went to the gym in the morning and hung out and watched basketball most of the day.  Ryan and I went to the Mallards hockey game that night and then grabbed a beer at Bent River.

Peter being weird.

We were ridiculously early to the game.

On Sunday, I went to Church (it's been too long!) and then we hurried to get some grocery shopping done before heading to my parent's house for the Cyclones game.  It was an odd ending to the game, but CYCLONES WIN!  We're heading to the Sweet Sixteen.  Please enjoy this video of Fred Hoiberg (the coach) celebrating the win. :)

Happy Tuesday!

St. Pat's Party

It is becoming an annual tradition to participate in the St. Patrick's Day 5K.  Of course, the first year I did it, it was 70 degrees outside and Brooke and I were in T-Shirts!

Of course, the past two years have NOT brought us the same Irish luck!  BUT, we start the day the same...with a drink!  This year was chilly, so Ali and I got some coffee and topped it off with some Irish Creme.  That warmed us up before the race.

Applying tattoos!

About to finish, with an impressive time of 48:00 after stopping to use the restroom! :)

Cheers to another successful St. Patrick's celebration!  I enjoy traditions, so I think the 5k will be a must for me each year.  I like getting outside, it reminds me spring is around the corner.  And I love spending time with friends doing silly things in the mornings instead of just at night! :)

You Are Mine

For as long as I can remember, "You Are Mine" has always been one of my favorite hymns to sing at Church.  When I was younger, I think I just liked it because it was so beautiful, but now that I'm older and can really appreciate the lyrics, I love it because of the message.  It's based on the bible verse, Isaiah 41:10 that I posted at the bottom of one of my posts a couple weeks back.  

I will come to you in the silence

I will lift you from all your fear

You will hear My voice

I claim you as My choice

Be still, and know I am near

I am hope for all who are hopeless

I am eyes for all who long to see

In the shadows of the night,

I will be your light

Come and rest in Me

Chorus:

Do not be afraid, I am with you

I have called you each by name

Come and follow Me

I will bring you home

I love you and you are mine

I am strength for all the despairing

Healing for the ones who dwell in shame

All the blind will see, the lame will all run free

And all will know My name

Chorus:

Do not be afraid, I am with you

I have called you each by name

Come and follow Me

I will bring you home

I love you and you are mine

I am the Word that leads all to freedom

I am the peace the world cannot give

I will call your name, embracing all your pain

Stand up, now, walk, and live

Chorus:

Do not be afraid, I am with you

I have called you each by name

Come and follow Me

I will bring you home

I love you and you are mine

I was going to add the YouTube video, but there are several versions of it available.  It's really beautiful, you should listen to it sometime! :)

Happy Friday all, have a great weekend!

B & S

Much like Blair and Serena on Gossip Girl, Brooke and Sarah can't spend too much time with shenanigans ensuing.  ;-)  I went to visit Brooke on Saturday, stayed until Sunday, and we filled our 24 hours together with plenty of fun and chatting!

First thing's firt, wine tasting!  We had some wonderful wines at Fox Valley Winery and then on to Taphouse for some beer before dinner.

As we waited for our dinner at Two Brothers Roundhouse, we enjoyed some freshly brewed coffee and self-guided tour around the beautiful building.

On Sunday, we headed to Geneva, IL for shopping in the cute little shops, and of course, more wine tasting!!

Parts of Man of Steel were filmed in Plano, IL where Brooke lives!

It was a wonderful trip and I can't wait to go visit her again when the weather is nicer and we can explore some more! :)

It's A Mystery!

Another fun, local event is in the books!  Friday night, my sis and a couple of friends and I attended a mystery dinner at Skellington Manor in Rock Island.  It was a little cheesy, and a little pricey, but it was actually pretty fun!  Lots of laughs and good food and a great night with friends.

I would probably do one again in the future, but not regularly.  I'm really glad we went though, I love to try new things!

Flashback Friday ((Saturday Edition))

I'm currently in the process of packing for my first trip to visit Brooke, who moved to Plano, IL back in November.  I've decided to take a trip down memory lane over the past five years of our friendship.

Our very first picture together in 2009....hahaha!

Celebrating our first Christmas together.

My wedding day, April 2010

RAGBRAI 2011

St. Paddy's Day, 2012

Brooke's Wedding Day, August 2012

Brooke's Bye-Bye get together, November 2013

Can't wait to see you in a few hours B! :)

Not In Control

Sometimes I just need to remember that there is a plan for me and I need to trust in it.  I subscribe to the blog listed in the graphic above and this came at a perfect time for me this morning.  I have flaws: I'm impatient, I get disappointed easily, and I dwell on things that are out of control.  If I would just allow myself to trust that there is a time for everything, like Ecclesiastes 3 says, then I would be able to let go of some of the anxiety and hurt I'm holding on to.

Like my last post mentioned, I've been working on focusing on the positives.  I'm also creating rewarding distractions for myself.  Some of the projects I have in process right now:

1. Creating a rotating meal plan for every single meal of the day, including snacks.  I am really good at following plans, but never have found one already made that fits my needs.  It's a lot of work to create a meal plan with accompanying shopping lists and that fits my calorie/fat/fiber/carb goals for the day!
2. Reorganizing our three spare bedrooms.  We moved our spare bedroom upstairs to the empty bedroom across the hall.  The room that was the spare bedroom is in process of becoming our office/tutoring and voice lesson space.  The piano is set up, and I know where the desk is going, but now we have to take apart and put back together our giant desk that is in our spare bedroom downstairs.  That spare bedroom that is currently the office will be slowly cleaned out and become the nursery when the time is right for us.
3. De-cluttering. In the process of moving around our three spare rooms, we are discovering a lot of unorganized mess and even some boxes that were never unpacked when we moved.  I guess we've started our spring cleaning early, but we've already made two HUGE trips to Goodwill and there are plenty more to come.
4. Planning my vacation. I'll admit, I've been anxious to plan this for months, and I truly am taking my time because I want to remain flexible while we're in North Carolina.  However, we're just over two months out, and I think that we can start to consider reserving a rental car and reserving nights in hotels.  We already have two nights on Outerbanks taken care of and a night in Richmond, VA on the way down.  I have to plan a little bit since Ryan wants to get home in time on the following Saturday for a bachelor party.  This is my most fun distraction!

#throwbackthursday :)

Some other things I'm looking forward to in the immediate future:

• I get to visit my best friend, Brooke, this weekend!! She moved about two hours away back in October, and outside of just stopping by to get lunch with her, this dumb winter has prevented our ability to visit each other.  I can't wait for some one-on-one time with this girl!
• Friday night, Jess, Emily, Alli, and I are going to a murder mystery dinner!  I've never been to one, but I am so pumped for it!
• At the end of this month, my sister, mom, aunts, and cousin will be spending a night in Galena, IL.  I'm really excited about this weekend getaway and hope to make it a regular thing.  
• The final Sunday of the month, I'll leave Galena to head to Wisconsin to attend my friend Alli's baby shower!  She is due in May, I haven't seen her at all while she's been preggers.  I can't wait to hug her and see her beautiful face and laugh together. 

Life is good.