More House Pictures!

That's right, I finally have another room "photo ready".  My living room has been close - I finally just moved some boxes into one of the "box rooms" so I could feel like it was livable!  This is one of my favorite rooms of the house - I love the splash of color from the red wall, and I really feel like the furniture is comfortable.  I know what I want to put on the walls - I just need helping hands so it gets done right! The clock was a housewarming gift from my grandparents - when it is light, it plays a song every hour :)



The couch is supercomfy, the chair is an amazing reading spot.  I have some collage frames that have pictures from my Europe trip that I want to put on either side of the clock.  I ordered posters for this room, but there is a very good possibility they will end up in my office instead.  I kind of like the unofficial Europe theme - I have some prints and such from my trip as well.  We'll see how it ends up!

Thank you.

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Thank you to all the veterans, active, and families who sacrifice everything to keep us safe and free.  A special thanks to my baby brother, who is starting his career with the Navy at Norfolk this month.  An officer in training, I'm so proud of you.  I'll be there when you are commissioned, no matter what it takes.

The Lighter Side

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I started this post earlier in the week and got distracted.  Not a big surprise - my brain is ready to lie in a field somewhere and watch the clouds go by!  My students are pretty much done too, which makes it even harder to be excited about going to school.

After the last post, I decided I needed to lighten up.  So I have - weeding my flower beds, tossing stuff I don't need, trying to dig out my kitchen table.  I had a weed that was almost as tall as me - it wasn't too hard to get out!  I have some right around the base of a tree that are proving impossible - I'm definitely going to have to get help.  After two hours of working really hard, I have a full garbage bag, sore hands, and only one little mid-sized flower bed weeded.  But there are still weeds around the tree.  And I still have to finish going around the house... and around the other trees.  Baby steps at a time.

My bestest Megan gets married a week from today.  I'm in the wedding.  And I am EXCITED.  I get to take Friday off school to head down for the rehearsal, and I can't WAIT!  It's been almost two years since I last saw Megan, which is far too long.  I'm so excited for her and Patrick - they're ready to start the rest of their lives!

And you haven't seen an exercise log....  because there hasn't been any exercise.  Lost my voice the week of the musical, and walking across the room made me cough.  So running was out of the question due to vocal health.  The following week I ran on Wednesday.... and this past week, I tried to run Tuesday, only to discover it was WAY too painful.  See, my lawnmower attacked me last Saturday.... and the bruises are STILL coming up.  They're that awful.  There is a stump down in a hole, and I didn't know it.... found out the hard way.  And my knee met the dashboard of the lawnmower.  I'm thankful that walking no longer hurts, but running is too much impact.  Hopefully trying again in the morning.... we'll see!

Now that the weeding (for today) is finished, I'm pre-packing for Megan's wedding and unpacking some more of my house.  Do you get so excited for an event that you can't wait to pack?   Or is it worry that you will forget something vitally important?

The Truth

Sometimes, you see something that really hits you.  As in, lightbulb over the head, that's-exactly-what-I-needed, eureka moment.  For me, I found it this week at Much More Than Mommy.  She has been posting a short series this week titled "Never Marry a Man Who Lies."  It has been SO therapeutic for me.  In fact, her last installment (THE END) today had me in tears.  At school.  Something I try really hard not to do.

While my ex-fiance wasn't a liar, he wasn't 100% for me.  I got an email in our "wedding account" yesterday that was my "one month reminder."  It hit me that I was supposed to be getting married in less than a month.  I was supposed to be joining my life to his.

But I'm not.

And I'm ok with it.  Actually, I'm better than ok - I am thankful.  Will I still be sad on June 12?  Probably.  I mean, I was going to get to see friends and family that I get to see once every few years.  I was going to have time with my girls to just relax and get beautiful.  I was going to wear my princess dress.

But I remind myself what I don't have to put up with suffer through.  I don't have to be second best.  I don't have to pretend to be someone I'm not just for someone's approval (and not HIS).  I won't be worrying about dealing with someone else's financial decisions (which were more than a little frightening).  I won't be putting up a facade.

And I GET a lot. 

• I get to be ME.  The real me, not some messed up fake version of me.  
• I got to by myself a house, and decorate it however I want to.  
• I get to be happy again - something I didn't realize I was missing.  I never wanted to be THAT GIRL... you know, the one whose happiness depends on his approval.... but I was.  And now I'm not.  My happiness does not depend on someone who makes me second (or third...). 
• I get to reconnect with an old friend.... and enjoy his company.  
• I get to reconnect with ANOTHER old friend, and follow through on some "what ifs".  And by what if, I mean "what if we hadn't broken up, what if I had never met David, what if things hadn't happened the way they did 5 years ago?"  Getting a second chance with Josh answers a lot of questions for me - in a really good way.  And...
• I get to relax.  And remember what it's like to just have fun.  With no pressure, surrounded by people who like me for me and who wonder when I'm not around.

 And it all brings me back to being thankful.  Thankful that he ended things when he did.  Thankful that I didn't try to make a big show out of it.... and realized so quickly what a blessing it was.  Thankful that there was no abuse involved.  Thankful that I am surrounded by family, friends, and co-workers who would do anything for me, legal or not.  Thankful that I am not the girl dwelling on what could've been (because now I realize it couldn't).

Thankful that I get a shot at truly finding my happily ever after.

Books books books!

I am an avid reader. You might say it's something of an obsession - I almost always have at least one book going. The only time I was ever grounded, I wasn't allowed to read (aside from required school work) for 24 hours - because I got in trouble for reading when I was supposed to be doing something else!

When I really get into a series, it is the only thing I want to read. Take Twilight for example - I read all four books the first time in less than two weeks, during the school year (quite an accomplishment, even for a fast reader like myself!).

 

My problem at the moment?  I am borrowing the Sookie Stackhouse books by Charlaine Harris from Josh's sister, one at a time.  And I keep having to wait in between them to get the next one, as someone else is also reading the series.  I appreciate not having to spend the money to get them... but the waiting is driving me crazy!  I finished the second book and am waiting on the third.  In the mean time, during this wait time, I have re-read all 4 Twilight books (for the third time!).  After finishing them, I have started re-reading the Books of Bayern by Shannon Hale.

 

This is another really good series.  I read the first three books after my principal's daughter recommended them last spring.  As a house warming gift, she got me those three as well as the newest book, Forest Born.  While I really enjoy them, I will definitely put them down when I get the next Sookie book!

How do you read a series?  Do you try to read all of the books at once, or do you spread them out with other books in between?  Sometimes I will read more than one at a time - leave something that I am re-reading or that is really easy in my bedroom, and read the "harder" or new book in the living room, outside, etc.

House Pictures!

Even though I know no one cares about boxes in pictures, I do. When I show my house off, I want it to look nice! So I only have three rooms for you today. Hopefully now that the musical is over I will have more time to straighten up the other rooms.

First: the full bathroom. Notice the Mickeys all over!

There are no linen closets in the house, so bathroom storage is a premium. You'll notice the hanging towel rack for the back of the door. I think it has 5 rungs on it or something - they all have two towels on them, lol. I had bought towels, and then found some really soft ones on clearance... couldn't pass them up! The storage cabinet is FULL. Thank goodness I still have some room under the vanity for things!

Next, the half bathroom, which is connected to the master bedroom. I really like how this room turned out. The light colors make it seem a little bigger. I was initially worried about it feeling a tad claustrophobic, but I really enjoy using it to get ready in the mornings.

I love the details of the room - my mom got me the soap from Basin at WDW. I've been saving it for my own house, and it fits the colors in there so perfectly! The rug makes me really happy too - the coloring is a perfect compliment, and the phrase is one I adore.

The last room for today: the master bedroom. The comforter is from the Disney Resort collection, and I love how it makes the room!

As you can see, I really like blue! In a way, this is totally my beach getaway.... sandy carpet, blue walls.... I love the fact that when you open the blinds, there is a lot of natural light. It's just totally relaxing for me. I found the light at WalMart, and I fell in love with the flower lights. You can see too where Jager sleeps - I need to get him a new bed. I want something that will match better. I would love to get him an actual BED rather than just blankets, lol.

Hopefully the living room and kitchen will be picture ready soon - the living room is close. I just have piles all over, lol.

Boxes, Boxes, Boxes Everywhere!

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Whew! I know I haven't done a lot of updates lately, but I've been busy busy busy! My garage isn't totally full of boxes anymore, but there are still boxes in most of my rooms. It is so frustrating! Even my living room has boxes in it still, even though I use it. I did have my kitchen clear, until I got a giant box of Pampered Chef stuff yesterday!

Originally, I had a goal of a box a day. Then I remembered how much was in every box and realized how unrealistic that was right now! I went through three boxes yesterday, and I sorted a HUGE box out into two smaller boxes today. I am frustrated that I didn't pack as well as I had hoped, and I had all kinds of stuff to toss away. I've been working on being practical - did I use it in the past year? No? It goes away. It's very liberating.

In other news... my junior high students present their musical on Friday. It means I haven't much time for anything which is really frustrating. I did get to hang out with Josh Friday night, which makes me happy. I'm ready for all of my commitments this year to be over so I can enjoy more free time!

Exercise Log 5

As I approach the musical, I find that I'm not motivated to get up early to run. In fact, I'm not motivated to run, period. But I'm still dragging myself up at least three days a week... no matter how much I don't want to! My last log was April 20, so here's what you have missed.

Day 31 (April 21): 2 miles in 27:05
Day 32: 2 miles in 26:30
Day 34: an interrupted run. 1.33 miles in 18:02, when I was interrupted, I realized how much my back was bothering me and stopped for the day.
Monday, Day 36: 2.06 miles in 26:30. This was W4D1 of C25K. I made my time and did better than my best last week.
Day 38: 2.08 miles in 26:30.
Day 40: 2.08 miles in 26:30

Even though I am getting better, I am definitely going to be repeating week 4 this week. It was HARD. I'm afraid to move too quickly through the program, because I don't want to start feeling defeated. Took the weekend off - I have to play piano and sing for two First Communion masses today. I've been having some problems with my voice due to allergies, and running makes me cough, so it's not worth it. Plus, I'm tired!! With the musical being this Friday, I am planning to run Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday. If I feel like it Wednesday, that'd be great, but I'm not going to force anything. Until next time!