Already April?

I woke up and April is tomorrow? When did that happen? I feel like we just had Christmas and new years. I guess time flies when you're crazy busy. It's been a heck of a new year. J is still working such crazy hours and I have 2 jobs now. 

January and Feb flew by so quick, and we didn't do too much. J finished building his rifle and we've been a few times to go shooting. It's so much fun and I really enjoy cleaning it too. I like it much more than shooting pistols. So, for a few weeks, all of the gun parts were taking over the kitchen table. Thankfully, that all has a place now and it's everywhere. 

We also attended the Space X holiday party (late due to launches over the holidays). It was a blast! So many fun things and we tried Moscow Mules for the first time. Delish! We also got to celebrate Valentine's with an awesome date night to Mastro's Steakhouse. The month of February ended with a trip home to Travis AFB and Sacramento to see some friends and my brother. It was so needed and so much fun!

March went right by, too! Not too much happened though, that I can remember. I was sick for almost half of it, we celebrated mom's birthday and Easter at Great Wolf Lodge with the fam. And we started getting Blue Apron boxes. They are so yummy! And easy! Our sweet Oli has bladder stones, so she gets kitty morphine and a special diet. Poor thing. I've also cut my hair! Oh goodness, does it feel better. Over 12 inches, gone. I'll be donating it to Children with Hair Loss. 

I've put my Etsy shop on hold for the moment as we try and get our home and plan for the fall in order. I wish I had more time for it, but with 2 jobs, being sick, having a sick kitty, and just trying to enjoy our time by the beach, I don't. And I don't want to compromise quality to keep it open. I'll open again soon, but for now, it's on hold. 

I should probably get up and get moving... there's laundry to do, dinner to prep, and a house to clean before I head out to work. Until next time.

Well, it's 2016

I can't believe it's already almost February. I'm not sure where the time keeps going.. But there are big things happening this year!

My new logo for my Etsy shop is finished, and I'm just about ready to reopen :) I have some different things in the works, and some I'm bringing back. I had so many projects and gifts to finish over the holidays, and having a break over the last 2 weeks has been nice, but I am ready to get going again.

Our holidays were great! We spent some much needed time off with family and friends, traveled a little, and had a little staycation! We received some fantastic gifts, including a getaway to Catalina! I can't wait! My husband is pretty awesome, too! He had a book made of his favorite photographs that I've taken. It was the sweetest thing!  I go through it almost every day.

Now as I'm sitting in my chair with my tea, typing this out, I'm trying to get together a list for my White Walls DIY blog so I can start in the next couple weeks. I should probably get moving with my very long list of chores as well...

Happy FriYay Y'all!

Since the accident a few weeks ago, it's been crazy. The mustang is being repaired and we should have it back in a week or so! We can't wait. Thankfully, I have my mom so close and willing to loan me her car for the whole process. We appreciate it so much, but I'm ready for us to have our cars back... and I'm sure mom is too.

We had a last minute trip to TN to say our farewell to his grandfather who passed away. It was a tough and emotional trip, but I'm so glad we were able to go. It was great to see family and visit with everyone. We also had a great time in Atlanta. We got to explore and we ate at a great little place called Mary Mac's Tea Room. Oh my goodness, was it good?! We tried potlikkers... omg. I just can't even. Seriously best food ever. I can't wait to go back and eat more.

One of my best girlfriends sent me some samples of Posh facewash, masks, and creams. Have y'all heard of it? It's FANTASTIC!! I'm in love with it. I mean, I love my Younique facewash and moisturizer, but this stuff is just as awesome, but with more options! My fave product so far was the BFF facewash! Seriously. Bomb dot com. I forgot to take a picture, but once I narrow down what I want to order and get it home, I'll take a mask picture! But, seriously, I can't wait to get more. Y'all should check her out and order your own spa day for yourself! Visit her   -----> HERE!

I'm learning to live in the present, to enjoy the moment, and to just be. Having PCOS makes that difficult. It makes me frustrated, and stressed, and anxious. It also makes me appreciate the little things. These past couple months have been super difficult for me. Learning to let go, changing medications, negative pregnancy tests, weight gain. Hopefully this new medication will really help and turn things around. I'm definitely trying to stay positive and hopeful. Thankfully, I have great friends and family that are here to help me stay positive and listen when I need to cry or vent.

I'm giving the new meds a few months to work.. or not work... then we'll head to a specialist. I'm hoping it doesn't get that far. I'm keeping my fingers (and toes) crossed.

It's been a tough and stressful few months, but we're looking forward. Time to get moving to enjoy our weekend!

M

Accidents

Well, I meant to post last week, but it was a bit of a crazy one. More so than usual. Tuesday morning we had a surprising amount of rain... and we all know that people in CA don't know how to drive in it. J's car hydroplaned and he was hit on the driver's side. Not a phone call anyone wanted to make or receive at all, especially at 445 am while it's still raining. We aren't sure if the mustang is totaled or not yet, but we will hear back this week. That just put me off my game all week. I'm now getting back into things and trying to catch up from last week.

Everything else is great. We had our last day at Disneyland on Saturday as our annual passes expired. I wanted to renew them, but it's so expensive. Hopefully we will be able to get them again soon. We always had so much fun.

That really is all that happened last week... Hard to believe... Now for some coffee..

Until next time.

Fat Free Vacation

Last weekend the hubs and I took a little mini vacation to Seattle to visit my Dad and his wife Jeri. We had such a wonderful time. It was calm and relaxed and full of delicious food and drinks.

That view!

Our first night in Seattle

The weather was perfect and so was our company. I even got to see my best friend from high school and her new baby girl (I call her squishy!). It was honestly exactly what we needed.

We enjoyed waking up to rain and chilly sweater weather as well as the perfect 75 and sunny holiday Pikes Market day.

The Original Starbucks.. a must see

Our flight home... Mt. Rainier

Mom and Me! How cute are we?!

My mom got married 2 weeks ago in the most stunning little beach wedding! I was lucky enough to be the maid of Honor!!

I can't help but smile at this picture. This is us.

My brothers walked her down the aisle. Her dress was gorgeous. It was at sunset. It really was perfect. I'm so excited for her and Alan.

 My date is a hottie.

They make the sweetest couple and I hope they'll be just as happy for years to come!

It's been almost 1 years since we moved away from our life at Travis AFB and into a civilian life. The life we knew was gone and we were beginning our next adventure. Here we are, just 2 days shy of 1 year. I'm sad and happy, anxious and calm, and very hopeful for our next chapter. It's bittersweet and I truly miss our life before. We had a great life and great friends. We have those here too, but it's just different.

Life is good. I have a new job, I have decided to wait on school until I can really narrow down what I want to do, and Justin is working on going back to school. I am interested in too many things for me to figure out what to continue with first. There are some big changes in our future (again).

Fertility update: I've been having a hard time staying positive and hopeful. I know it will happen, I know we will have our family, and I know we will be great parents when it does happen. I don't enjoy hearing it all the time, nor do I want to hear it. I just want a hug and a "want some wine/chocolate?" That sounds mean when I read it back to myself, and I know people mean well, but it just makes me more frustrated. If you have any other tips, I'm open to them :)

On a side note, I quickly ran over to Penelope Lane Boutique today to try and get my hands on a Jelly Bird Sign. Thankfully I did! There were only a few left, and I almost grabbed another design. Then I read this one. It spoke to me. It hit my heart and I needed it. It was something that I needed to hear and is something that I will continue to tell myself. With all of the frustration over the last few months, and the stress of figuring out what's to come, this helps me calm and just be. I hope it helps you, too.

I've been doing some research and I am thinking of changing up my medications, I'm not going to acupuncture anymore, and I'm really focused on other things like getting mine and hubs health back to where we were when we moved her last year. I'll be working on our meal plans and trying to add in some workouts. I'll be able to work out most days, but I want to add in some simple and easy workout on weekends for me to do with Hubs.

I've taken a break from Younique (if you want to place an order or a sample, let me know and we can get it done). I've also taken a break from my etsy shop, but that is back up and will be loaded with Fall/Winter/Holiday stuff here soon. I'm excited to add some new designs and new goodies!

So, even though this turned into a novel, it felt good to get it all out. It's been busy and crazy, but I'm happy. I should get to bed.

Until next time....

It's Tuesday!

Good Morning! I know I'm a day late (and probably a dollar short, lol, jk), but yesterday just was an off day. I woke up to the fire alarms going off in buildings 2 and 3 of our 3 building complex. They are so stinkin loud. I didn't have a problem with it because it was Monday and I wanted to kick some Monday tushy, but still, loud start to the day. The thing that got me was that it took the firemen a while to get here (the fire house is about 1 mile, maybe less) down the road. I had time to roll around pretending the fire alarms weren't going off, brush my teeth and hair, start the coffee maker, and then go out to the patio and wait for about 3 minutes before the 1 firetruck pulled up. 2 guys got out and turned a key to make the alarms stop. They then chatted with the residences downstairs before going to actually check to see if there was in fact a fire. I'm not a fireman, so I have no idea if there is something that tells them if there is a fire, but it was just a little casual for me. Thankfully our building's alarm didn't go off and there was no fire.

Today is starting off much differently, and much smoother. I am sitting in bed, applying for more jobs, drinking some delish coffee, watching/listening to movies, and planning out my day. Yesterday got away from me a little as I was finishing up my DIY for White Walls and trying to get my phone to not hate me. I will be switching back to an iPhone asap. I'm so excited to upload all the pictures and post the new DIY, but I have a couple finishing touches to put on it. It should be up in a couple hours.

I will also be finishing up some things around the house and heading to my mom's after lunch to make macaroons!! I've never made them before, but I am so excited to try. All my stuff is ready and in the car, including my super awesome KitchenAid and piping stuff. Can I just point out also that it's Tuesday and it is a 4 day workweek for most people (I think)! J gets a 3 day weekend this week! YAY! There will be no acupuncture this week as we've changed my treatment plan, but I kind of miss those little needles..

Have you ever made a delish summer salad? I made this amazing salad (that didn't last long) last week. I think it will be a staple in this summer heat. I cut fresh corn off the cobb, avocado, tomatoes, cucumber, onion, and feta cheese. You could add a dressing or some lemon juice, but it's perfect as is!!

 I also made these fatty loaves of yumm! Pepperoni Pretzel Strombolis!

Here is the recipe:

I used this pretzel mix. Follow directions according to the box until it's time to twist.. I rolled mine out on the silpat and added pepperoni and string cheese. Fold both short ends over and then the long ends, just like you would a burrito. Then finish the rest of the directions including the time to bake. ** I used string cheese tonight and will probably not use it again. It didn't melt... like I would have liked. The flavor was good, but it stayed in a log form. I would suggest shredded cheese or slices.

I normally make my pretzels from scratch (see below for pretzel recipe)

Ingredients:
4 tbsp butter, melted
1 tbsp sugar
2 tsp salt, more for topping
1 1/2 c water (115-125*)
1 package instant yeast
4.5 c flour
Non stick spray... Or silpat
Pepperoni
1 1/2-2 c shredded cheese
10 c water (boil)
2/3 c baking soda
1 egg, beaten

In a bowl, combine butter, sugar, salt, and 1 1/2 c warm water. Sprinkle yeast on top. Add flour with dough hook on slow speed. Mix until combined. Cover with a towel or plastic wrap and allow to rise for 45-50 minutes
Preheat oven to 450* and adjust rack to lower 1/3 of oven. Line baking sheet with parchment paper or silpat.
Turn the dough out on a clean oiled surface (I use my silpats for everything) divide the dough into desired shapes and set aside.
Let rest for about 10 minutes covered with a towel. Bring the 10 c of water to a boil. Add baking soda.
Place pretzel shapes in the boiling water for 12-25 SECONDS each. Remove from water and place on baking sheet. Brush with beaten egg and splash some salt on top. Bake for 10 ish minutes until medium brown.
You can also freeze this recipe ask soon as the bread comes to room temp up to 1 month.

The husband loved these and has requested them almost every day since. I'll be making them again soon, and they are totally worth it. 

I'll post the recipe for the macaroons if they turn out.. I hope you all have a fantastic and safe 4th week/end!!! Until Next Time....

Short and Sweet

Happy Monday, y'all! Today has gotten off to a slow start (not that that is different from any other Monday). I turned down a day trip to Catalina today so that I could be responsible and apply for more jobs, clean my house, and ready all of our crap for our upcoming move. I also got to spend a little bit of time this morning with my neighbor's sweet baby girl! Totally worth it. She's such a doll!

I'm not sitting back in bed, with a cup of juice and pandora playing, trying to finish adjusting my resume for the zillionth time, but I keep stalling. I still don't know what I really want to do, and I don't want to do something I'll end up quitting in a few weeks. So, I'll just keep looking. I am enjoying being unemployed for the most part. Some days I get bored, but there is always stuff to do around the house and I live in OC! If all else fails, go to the beach!

I'm also working on some new sign designs for my little Etsy shop Cammies & Cupcakes. I've had so much inspiration in the last couple weeks, I just don't have enough space or wood for all of my ideas! I've even started trying to learn calligraphy! So cool! And intricate! I love it!

This past weekend we met some new people at our community summer Pool Party & BBQ, and then Sunday we ate at our fave pastrami shop The Hat in Pasadena with the family for Father's Day! I love being so close to everyone and our fave eating spots!

I went to Acupuncture this past week and it was so nice being back! I've changed my treatment plan to go every 3 weeks and have begun adding herbs as well. I feel so much better; more energy, more motivation, happier all over. I missed it. I can honestly tell the difference when I go and when I don't. I'm just hoping it's doing as much to help with the PCOS as it is with everything else. Any tips for the lady with PCOS? Share them with me, please!

Do you have any quick tips for packing/organizing/moving? Let me know! Any favorite Pandora stations? Job leads? I'm open!

Anyway, I need to get back to my "TO DO" list... Until Next time....

Purging

Happy Monday folks! As always, it was a weekend that I didn't want to end. The hubs celebrated his birthday yesterday. I can't believe he's 31, and I'll be 30 next year! haha! It's insane! Our anniversary was last weekend and his birthday was yesterday. Thankfully that wraps up our celebrations this month. I don't know if I can eat anymore cake. Well, that isn't true. I can ALWAYS eat cake. I just probably shouldn't. How was y'all's weekend? Did you enjoy the sunshine? We did!

This past week was full of sunshine and happiness! J worked all week, but I had my sweet cousin, my mini me, come stay with us for a few days. It was so much fun! I just love her. I got her Thursday, we had lunch with my mom, and then headed back to my house to work on my White Walls blog post project. We both ended up covered in blue paint! It was so fun! We cooked together and ended the day in the hot tub. Friday was Disney day! We were there when the gates opened and stayed until almost 6pm that evening. Mom and Alan joined us for lunch, and J came and met us when he got home from work. It was a party! So nice and warm, not too hot. We went on so many rides and ate yummy stuff! Taylor and I both got ice cream, and we both dropped them shortly after getting them. Party foul!

Saturday we celebrated J's birthday at a family bbq at my mom's. It was great! We were only missing my brothers but everything was great. Paul Jr is traveling around Europe and Chris couldn't get off work for the weekend to come down from Sacramento. Hopefully they'll both be here soon and we can all just celebrate being together.But, I really do have the best family! They are all so wonderful and love J so much! Taylor even showed us how to do the Nae Nae at the end of the party. We had so much fun! I don't remember the last time I laughed that hard!


Yesterday was super lazy and we just enjoyed the cool breeze and some Netflix. The perfect way to end the weekend. Hopefully this week will go by quickly so that we can enjoy next weekend as fully as we did this past week.

I haven't been to acupuncture in a couple weeks, but I will be there this Thursday. Hopefully I don't get into too much trouble for my diet and not being there. I've been a little busy. I've really enjoyed not working and being able to just drop everything and go to family functions, but I miss working. Anyone hiring in OC? Hopefully we'll get out of this house in a timely manner and find a place that works for us and our budget in the fall. I've also actually decided to go back to school. Maybe not in the fall, but definitely in the spring. I am going to concentrate on getting my BA in Education.

This post has been a little crazy and off the wall, but that's how I've been working today. I feel a little hair brained today. I still need to do the dishes, laundry, shower, workout, and finish our budget. The day is getting away from me. Hopefully the rest of the week will fly as well.

Have a great week, and until next time....

4 Years

4 years ago yesterday, I married my best friend. He really is the love of my life and I'm so lucky to have found him so early in life. I'm seriously wondering where the last 4 years have gone, though. We met shortly after he PCS'd to Travis AFB in July of 2006 and have been together ever since. We dated for 1.5 years before we moved in together, lived together for almost 3.5 more years before he proposed. We were engaged for 4 days. We got engaged on a Saturday, and got married Tuesday morning at the courthouse. It was a whirlwind and honestly, so wonderful! Someday we will have a big reception for all of our family to come and celebrate, but J was getting ready to deploy (again) and we only had a short time to get it done if we wanted our moms to be there and not wait until he was home again. We have moved on base about 6 months after we got married and then J separated from the Air Force this past November which led us here, to OC.

Our life isn't perfect, but I love it. This past week has brought some realizations and inner peace. Last week I went to my cousin's 5th grade graduation. I'm so glad I got to go. Had I still been working, I wouldn't have been able to be there. I wouldn't have picked how I left my job, but this is where it's led me. It happened for a reason. I have found peace with not being pregnant yet. It sucks, and I wish I didn't have such a difficult time with it, but I'm honestly ok with it. It isn't meant to be right now. I have more time to focus on my health and getting my body in better shape to carry a healthy baby. It's taken 8 months for me to get here. It's been super frustrating and disappointing, but I think I wouldn't be as healthy and happy as I am now, if I had gotten pregnant so easily. I think I wouldn't be as grateful for the gift that it is. Not that I wouldn't be grateful, I just don't think I would understand it, or those women who genuinely have to work hard and TRY to get pregnant. I may just be rambling now...

I didn't make it to acupuncture last week for various reasons, but it was a nice break. This week I won't be there either as I will be at Disneyland with my sweet Mini Me!

It is celebration month here... Anniversary yesterday and J's birthday this weekend! We had dinner at Morton's Steakhouse Saturday to celebrate. It was incredible! We had the leftovers for lunch yesterday, to continue the celebration! We also had donuts from Krispy Kreme left over from National Donut Day on Friday. We will be celebrating J's birthday this weekend with my family. Although, I think I'll be celebrating all week with treats and special meals for J. Starting today with egg salad on Hawaiian rolls for dinner.

My mom and Alan dropped off a gift yesterday that included cake pops and a travel tote for us!! It came in handy today when I went grocery shopping. It has wheels and a handle to pull it! Living on the 4th floor is awesome until you have to get groceries to the house... Plus it's super cute! I will definitely be using it for so much! Mom also came through today with some sandals... Mine ripped as I got out of the car at Target. I am on a strict budget and don't want to get new sandals, plus mom's are super cute and she has them in every color, so I just shopped out of her closet!

Now to get dinner prepped... Until next time...

The Best Is Yet To Come

That is the quote on the front of my planner. It is so true! Every day we work towards something. Sometimes we reach our goals, and sometimes our goals just keep evolving. This week I'm working on my goals, figuring out what they are, and evaluating the ones I've already got. I'm also really trying to just relax and go with the flow. I love to have things planned out and "on track" but it makes things unnecessarily stressful.

Last week was a whirlwind week. J was home Monday for Labor day and then I went on a last minute trip to Sacramento to visit my brother with my Mom and her fiance. It was great to see him, but it went so quickly. The next thing I knew it was Thursday, I hadn't gotten anything done for the week, I was exhausted, and I was visiting with Aunt Flow. Just crazy. I didn't mean to skip a week with my posts here, but sometimes it just needs to happen.

I got home Wednesday night from Sacramento, and then I had to play catch up with laundry and house stuff. Thankfully I don't have a job at the moment so I was able to just go and visit. It wasn't how I wanted to leave my job, but sometimes things happen for a reason. Maybe I just needed to get away and visit my brother. Who really knows, but I'm glad I had the opportunity to do so. Saturday we ended up meeting one of my Aunts and her kids for lunch at one of our fave spots in Pasadena, and Grandma's fave, the Hat! Then Lowes, and grocery shopping.

Sunday we slept in and then I headed out to the valley to hang out with H & T while my aunt and mom went to the Lady Gaga & Tony Bennet concert at the Hollywood Bowl. I had a great time with them and stayed up past my bedtime. I didn't end up getting home and in bed until almost 1:30 this morning. That's 4 hours past my bed time, ladies and gentlemen! I think the last time I stayed up that late was New Years.

I got J off to work this morning and went back to sleep. Even though I slept in, it has been a pretty productive day. I ran to target for coffee, finished my White Walls project, and am finishing up a custom block order that will be sent off to Canada later today. How darling is this shelf ^^^^ I'm in love with it and will be making quite a few more in the next week or 2. Those countdown blocks are pretty stinkin cute too!!

This week will be just as busy but with less days missing. I'm also hoping I can steal my mini me for a couple days before I get a job and we can have a couple Disneyland days soon.

Should I start posting the tutorials for my White Walls projects here as well? I've been thinking about it, but I don't want to have super long posts every week. What do y'all think?

I need to finish getting my daily goals accomplished so I can take time to enjoy today's beautiful weather... Also my little brother headed out on a 6 week journey across Europe today! Keep him in your thoughts that he has an incredible and safe trip!

Until Next Time....