From the camera's "eye"

1. we made a trip to Trader Joe's the other day. Gianna loved the apple juice samples!

2. Daddy coloring with Gi, Gemima wanted to join in too

3. & 4. All dressed up and ready to go see the Smurfs with her aunt.

Ready for our anniversary date. I was going to wear heels but decided to break out the Toms and be comfy instead!

Our date night at Bonefish Grill. It was amazing! And we had such a great time together.

1. Beej had the Rainbow Trout with Mango salsa and whipped potatoes

2. I had the Atlantic Salmon with Lemon Butter sauce and whipped potatoes. (I think I may be drooling as I look at that picture, it was SO yummy!)

1. Bug at the movies

2. I painted my nails while we watched Season of the Witch because I can't just sit there and do nothing while I watch a movie.

3. Gemima takes over Beej's pillow after he gets up.

4. Me. New FB profile pic

1. Hanging out at the in -laws. Beej spends his time showing his dad new music videos, various golf videos and funny stuff, thanks to Youtube.

2. I take random photos of myself!

3. Gianna entertains the cats!

I named this little chocolate beauty, Godiva! She was laying in my lap playing with toys!

1. Riding in the car to Grandma's

2. She said she was cold!

3. Pita chips and garlic hummus. YUM!

4. Gianna and her new baby, Rosey.

1. More random photos while hanging out at my in-laws.

2. Gi took this of me!

3. My face is funny.....

4. This poor kitty has a gimpy eye. Poor thing.

1. Sometimes she still wants to be a baby!

2. Spaghetti casserole someone made for my mother in law after her surgery.

3. My little helper buttering toast for dinner!

I see....

I finally ordered my new glasses! I'm totally, over the moon excited! I haven't had new glasses in like uh, several years. My old ones are, well, old! I wanted some totally nerdy ones since I don't wear them very often except around the house. But if I really like them then maybe I'll wear them more and give my poor eyes a break from contacts. I hope it doesn't take too long to get them.....I'm already anxious to get them!

Oh and yeah, totally random but I love this whole casual "slouchy" look! I saw this girl in the background of a Kim Kardashian shot and loved her look. Hoping come Fall I can pull of something like this!

Anywho, I have a lot of Instagram photos to share with you from the weekend but I'm feeling totally lazy tonight and I'm just going to do it tomorrow.

I'm also going tomorrow to talk to someone at the school board about Gianna's pre-school situation. I still haven't heard back from them. School starts on the 25th and I kinda need to know if she's going to be able to go or not. It's going to be such a HUGE change for us, not being able to just up and go whenever we want. I was planning a week long trip to Bama to see my family in September when I suddenly realized I couldn't just take her out of school for a whole week anymore! Yikes. It's gonna take some getting used to for sure but I know she's going to l-o-v-e it!

I'm also going to put in another job application - keep your fingers crossed that they can work with the hours I'll have available and be able to get me a job. I really would love to have a part time job soon and be able to bring in some extra income.

I'm also nervous because I haven't worked in 5 years outside the home and it kinda makes me nervous to have to jump back into the whole "working world" thing! But exciting too!

Tummy Trouble

Um. yeah. I haven't been eating well this weekend. I know. Same ole story every weekend but it's true and I think it's starting to catch up with me. I'm feeling horrible.

Yesterday the hubby and I went out and celebrated our anniversary at Bonefish Grill and the food was incredible! We had shrimp, bread, salads and I had salmon and potatoes. We left extremely full! But about an hour or two afterwards I started feeling sick. Not full on sick

but just queasy. It lasted a few hours and went away and I just figured I ate too much.

Today after lunch I started feeling queasy again, just enough to be annoying. But it's lasted all

afternoon and now into the evening. I feel so bloated and yucky. And no, it's not that

"time" either, ladies!

So like any good person I went to WebMD to see what they had to say. With my symptoms

they said I was either pregnant or constipated! Haha! Well, I'm not preggers so maybe it's

the other. I think tomorrow I need to do nothing but drink water and eat bran cereal!

I know, TMI! But I just feel crappy so that's why I'm not doing a real blog.

Oh and I also discovered on WebMD that one of the side effects of PMS is

"fits of rage". Good to know.

Our Story

(I apologize for the poor quality of most of these pictures. I didn't have a chance to go have them scanned so it's pictures of pictures. Cheesy I know but you get the idea!)

Back in 2001 I was a "typical" teenager. Hanging out at my youth group, being home schooled,

singing on my praise and worship team at church (ok, maybe not so typical but whatev!).

My best friend at the time got all the guys it seemed. If I thought he was cute, she got him. It sucked but I just kinda left it alone and went with it!

One Sunday morning, during praise and worship, while I'm up on the stage. I see the back middle doors of the church open up and in walks this stunning boy! My heart flip flopped

and sped up and all that good stuff. My best friend saw him too and she gave me that look like "he's mine!" He was tall, handsome, and had confidence written all over that gorgeous mug of his! I was smitten! Of course, that morning I had a solo and I remember being SO nervous, which wasn't like me at all, because he was sitting in the second row watching me!

(Beej right before I met him in 2001)

(Me right after I met Beej!)

We met not long after that at our youth group meeting. He walked up and introduced himself and I was completely floored that he had any interest in me. I think he was a little surprised to find out I was 14 (almost 15!), he was 17 at the time and had already graduated high school because he's smart like that!

After that we started seeing each other at church and youth and various youth activities....occasionally he was allowed to do stuff with my family and come over dinner. But we fell hard and fast for each other and even though I wasn't allowed to say I was "dating" him we considered each other boyfriend and girlfriend. I knew I wanted to marry him, it was just a matter of time - I doodled his name and my name with his last name on everything!

After less then a year my parents decided we were way to serious with each other for our age and decided I couldn't see him anymore. I was heartbroken, he was heartbroken.

After a year or so, even though we hadn't forgotten each other, I guess we both decided we had to move on since my parents had decided he wasn't the one for me and I wasn't allowed to see him anymore. BUT I was allowed to start "dating" at 16 with strict rules. Over the next couple of years I dated two guys - one kinda serious and one a very casual relationship.

Beej also "moved on" and started dating someone else........

Both of us were pretty bummed to find out the other one was dating someone else!

Right after I graduated high school and planned to move to AL to live with my grandparents while I went to Cosmetology school, I ran into him.

I was so thrilled! Now that I was almost 18 and moving out on "my own" I could make the decision to date who I wanted and I wanted to be back with him.

But he was still dating that same girl and very politely told me so when I mentioned us "getting back in touch". Even though I was bummed by his response I thought he was so great that he was so respectful of his girlfriend and didn't flirt with me or say things to give me hope when he was with someone.

So I moved......dated someone else for awhile in AL......then about a month after I quit seeing that guy Beej sent me a text! I was so shocked I almost had a heart attack. All he said was "I've missed you." Jesus! We started having LONG phone conversation and in Nov. 2004 I went back to NC to visit for Thanksgiving and we met up and decided right then and there we were a couple again and we would get married.

His mom was thrilled.....my parents weren't. But I was on cloud 9!

April 29, 2005 he asked me to marry him in the parking lot of the mall! He got down on one knee and people leaving the mall clapped and cheered as his put my ring on my finger!

We started planning a wedding, I picked out (and put a down payment) on a dress but after a lot of resistance from my family we knew it just wasn't going to happen but we still wanted to be married.

He moved down to AL in July 2005 and moved into the apartment that would be our first home together!

August 5, 2005 we went down to courthouse and said I do at 4:30pm

A friend of mine and her daughter came down to see the ceremony which lasted all of 2 minutes because the guy was in a hurry because it was closing time and he had other couples to marry before the day ended!

We spent the next year in AL - living and learning how to be married! In June 2006 we moved back to NC to be near family.

August 2006, right after our 1 year anniversary we found out I was pregnant with Gianna!

And here we are today, still very much in love, celebrating our 6 year wedding anniversary!

I love him dearly - he has taught me so much and has patiently loved me through good and bad. I can't imagine being with anyone else. He was my first love and my always love!

Happy anniversary, babe!

What I did today....

Today Gianna and I cleaned and organized her room

and we rearranged it!!! It's been the same since we moved in almost a year

ago and I thought it was time to switch it up. It took a little work since I had

to move all the furniture myself but I think it looks great now!

Before:

....and then Gianna took a break to get all prettied up! Lol!

After:

Oh, and I worked out, did laundry, cleaned up after the cats, and read some.....

don't think it took me ALL day to rearrange her room! Lol!

The cure for resentment.

Definition : [n] a feeling of deep and bitter anger and ill-will...

A friend of mine/blog I follow put up a post today about feeling resentful toward things in life, people, etc.

I was going to comment on the post but I kinda had a lot of thoughts an ideas about the whole idea

since it's something I've dealt with and something I think all of us deal with.

The title of this post is a bit misleading because honestly I don't believe there is a true cure for

resentment. There are things we can do to obviously avoid it or steer ourselves out of it but at some point

our human nature will lead us towards being resentful.

I have struggled/struggle with this very thing. I feel like this year I've have taken big steps in being a much

more positive person and trying to see my way out of negative feelings but they still creep up.

I went through a really rough few months at the end of 2009 and the beginning of 2010.

Without going into too much detail I had a couple of girls I was really close with - I thought I had two wonderful

best friends. They both ended up deciding they'd rather not be friends with me and that's putting

it nicely! Lol! But I went through SO much resentment not just towards them but towards their

spouses, their families, the things they did or go to do......none of it seemed fair.

Being a young family we are still "up and coming" - we aren't rich but we do our best to handle our

finances wisely. Yet I see so many other couples and families our age that seem to be getting

new things all the time, traveling ALL the time, and constantly boasting about how perfect their lives,

spouses, kids, pets, etc. are. And I find myself starting to harbor resentment in my heart towards

these people because it doesn't seem "fair." I feel like we work so hard, try so hard and yet we don't

seem to be "rewarded" like these people seem to be.

For about a year I was miserable wallowing in my resentment and hatred towards these people.

Then I realize that they were ruining my life all because I was choosing to let them.

I know someone that has allowed resentment and bitterness to rule their entire life and I see how

miserable and angry and impossible they are. No one wants to be around them, even their own kids.

They are lonely and angry and blame everyone else for how crappy their life has turned out.

I keep this as a constant reminder of why I don't want to let this happen to myself.

It's not easy to let it go.....it takes actual strength it seems. But you have to take a deep breath,

and literally make yourself go through a mental check list of all the positive things in your life.

It makes me laugh when people say they are envious of me or jealous or whatever because I have

NO idea why they would be! But I also know I have so many things to grateful for and I have to

choose to focus on that instead of the negative things.

Because I don't want to end up a dried up, angry, bitter, hateful person later in life simply because

I wouldn't allow myself to let go of resentment and focus on the good in my life.

I still struggle with it....don't think I've got this down by any means.

It seems simple doesn't it? It's not as simple as it sounds but it can be done!

Tuesday stuff

(Warning. I take way too many pictures of cats. I love cats and my mother in law has a butt load of

them and when I'm at her house I get bored and take WAY too many photos!)

We've spent the past two days over at my mother in law's "helping" her and her friend out

while she's recovering from foot surgery. This little cutie above is one of my new favorites over

at her house. I even let him have my favorite pet name - Gershwin. I know, I'm nice.

Look how he was sleeping on the bed?!!! Love it!

Gianna loves her Grandma's new walker, it rolls and has a seat and Gianna gets to ride on it!

The kitty in the middle? He's my other favorite, I named him CoalMiner! He's adorable.

And there's Gianna again, looking cute.

SlimFast is my go to meal when I'm on the go....I've drank several in the past two days!

Also, anyone know a guy that wears a size 13 and would like to have a pair of red Toms

that have been worn like twice at most?! If so let me know. I'm selling my hubby's - $25 including shipping. I do Paypal!

Gianna puts her baby in her stroller and gets her diaper bag and put it on the couch and

they "drive" to the beach. Super great imagination.

I want to get her a Bitty Baby - I had one growing up and loved it and Gianna only has

her one doll and she's really getting into dolls lately. So I went to the website and

who-wee! They are pricey! I think it'll wait till Christmas now.....

That's Gemima taking a picture of herself on my web cam! Ha. She was sitting next to me this

morning and I turned my computer around and snapped that!

Me and CoalMiner.

Gianna in her adorable (kinda too big) hippie dress my mom got her from Maine.

Gi loves our fur babies....

She did so good with her veggies at dinner tonight. Oh and that white blob? It's my new favorite.....

I've been using Light Ranch because it's lower calorie and I'll be honest I'm not a huge

fan of veggies so I have to have something to eat them with even if it's just a little

something. Today I realized that if I got the ranch dip packets and made it

with fat free sour cream I could have 2 tablespoons for like 30 calories vs. 2 Tablespoons

of Light Ranch for 80 calories. Score! And it's yummier.

I also discovered that if I make my protein shake with almond milk instead of regular

1% milk it shaves off 50 calories and tastes exactly the same!

Other then that this week has been uneventful so far!

I'm looking forward to Friday evening - the Hubs and I are going out to Bonefish Grille

to celebrate our 6 year anniversary. Yuppers. I'm excited.