Day OFF

Yesterday afternoon at work I took this deep breath to let some pressure off my shoulders. I’m not sure what is wrong with me lately. I feel anxious. Days and weeks have been going much faster than they usually do. This year feels weird not having a summer vacation or time to relax in between school years. I didn’t feel this way last summer because I started my ‘big girl job’ toward the end of August which felt the same as heading back to school. I think I just realized how much life has snuck up on me. I am going to be 23 in about a month. I used to think that sounded old, not so much anymore. How does life go so fast!!!?

I miss the days of scraped up knees, tangled hair, one can of pop a day and endless hours of playing outside in the summertime. Life isn’t about being carefree anymore. The constant thoughts on my mind lately include: am I able to get a workout in today, what do I need to plan next for the wedding, do I need to contact our mortgage officer or realtor for our townhouse closing, how can I advance at work, how can I improve in my relationships, when can I have a moment of peace to myself. 

I’m not trying to complain or anything. I love all the positive things happening in my life right now. It’s just weird how you learn to appreciate different things as you get older. No longer am I counting down the days until my birthday or Christmas vacation, but rather the days until Corey and I move in together or the days until we get married. Believe me these things are just as exciting as what I used to get excited about, but it’s a different kind of excited. When you’re a kid everything just works out and you don’t have to put any of the work in. Being an adult is just so different. I can get excited for things like our wedding and our townhouse, but it takes a lot of work to get to those things. I guess I’m just feeling like life isn’t always easy… but it is well worth it.

Among the many things I am appreciative of, today I have the day off!!! While Daina is home and Chad and Jamie's days left in Minnesota are getting fewer, a day off to spend time with Daina and Jamie is very necessary and exciting! The weather didn't quite cooperate for us to have our planned day at the pool, but we will make the best of it. It is so nice to sleep in some this morning, get some laundry done, get a good workout in and have a fun day ahead!! 

Happy Thursday!!! 

A Perfect Evening

Today was a fast drive home- it only took me 40 minutes to get from work to Lifetime in Maple Grove. I quickly changed into my workout clothes and whipped through my ten minute ab routine before hopping back in my car to park near Rice Lake for a walk/ run. I have to get to the gym 12 times/ month in order to receive the $20 off each month, so I like to swipe my card and do something fast in the gym but leave my cardio routine for the outdoors. I can't get enough of being outside when it is SO beautiful like today. 

Rice Lake is about 3.2 miles around (a 5k) and I ran about one mile of that tonight. It felt good to get my heart pumping and work up a good sweat. There were so many people on the trails tonight. I love seeing everyone in great moods- walking their dogs, biking with their kids, running to some tunes, walking hand in hand with their S.O. (significant other)- it all just makes me happy too! 

After my walk/ run I went to Target. Oh how I love/ hate Target. There is something to say about a store that has everything (I love) and a store that I can never walk out of without spending about $40 - $50 (I hate). It was a quick trip and I got everything I went for, and of course my total was $43.20. 

I had a workout done and my errands finished by 6:30 tonight! Corey was waiting for me to finish everything so we could get together for a bite to eat. After a brief moment of thinking we might make something ourselves, we decided to go out to eat. I am feeling like we are going to be in trouble when we live together if we can never think of what the eat. We will have to get better at planning meals. Anyway, we decided to have Solo's Pizza for dinner. If you haven't eaten there, you need to try it! Corey gets The Big Tony- red sauce, meat and other goodness. I usually select a red sauce pizza as well, but tonight I decided to go with Chad's favorite and recommendation-- The White Hen. This is made with Solo's white garlic sauce instead of red sauce and has great flavor. 

I suggested we eat on the patio, but Corey had a better idea. We took the pizzas to go and ate on the patio at his house. Corey's parents live on Fish Lake. It was a perfect night for dinner outside. We turned on K102, grabbed something to drink (me an Arnie Palmer, Corey a beer) and sat down to enjoy our pizzas! The weather was perfect so we refilled our beverages and sat for about an hour outside just enjoying the night and talking. 

Now it is almost 10:30 and I am in bed ready for a good night sleep. I just can't say it enough- tonight was PERFECT and I am so happy. That's pretty good for a Wednesday. Tomorrow it is supposed to rain, so Corey and I are going to a movie. It is still a toss up as to what movie we'll see- Bridesmaids or Transformers. We are still debating on who got to pick the last movie we saw in theaters which will determine what movie we see this time. 

Goodnight!!! 

Life is Good

There is so much going on recently- and it is all good things. This coming weekend we have a wedding to attend in Northfield- that's where St. Olaf College is where Corey attended college and met Matt Nelson and Jess Levin- the bride and groom at the wedding this weekend! Matt and Jess also met at St. Olaf. I remember their sophomore year, we joked about us four being/ becoming The Nelson's. Now it is actually happening! Matt and Jess will be married at Boe Chapel on St. Olaf's campus and their wedding reception will be held at The Grand- an old theater in Northfield where some infamous dance parties went down throughout their four years at STO. Corey is an usher in the wedding- can't wait to see him all spiffy in a new suit!!

We are excited to spend a couple nights in Northfield and then get up early on Sunday to head to my grandparent's cabin for the 4th of July with my family! I LOVE 4th of July at the cabin and am excited for another year up there.

On the list of amazing things happening right now in our lives:
Corey was accepted at St. Thomas to receive his MBA. He starts this fall and the program is part time for three years. It is going to be busy, but I am SO proud of Corey for not only being accepted, but for being so motivated and determined to be successful. I love that about him and am so happy he decided to get his MBA.

Corey and I made an offer on a townhouse in Plymouth and it was accepted by the builder. Yes builder- the townhouse is brand new and hasn't been lived in, so the builder is the seller. We are signing a purchase agreement on Thursday!!! I can't believe after the year of living at home post college, (two years for Corey) we are FINALLY moving in together! We will be closing at the end of August. I can't wait to begin this chapter of our life together. We have been together for six years, so living together for the first time is going to be a major adjustment. I am sure we will have our share of arguments, but I am just SO excited for it!

My wedding dress has arrived!!! I am so excited to go back into the Wedding Shoppe to try it on again and take it home with me. I  am especially excited for the timing of it all because I think my step-sister, Daina, will be able to come with to see it. We need to make an appointment for her to be measured for her bridesmaid dress, which is also from Wedding Shoppe, so I plan to make it an appointment for both of those things!

Lots of family in town in the next couple months and I am just so excited for everything happening right now!!!

Catch Up

I am just so happy these days. It's amazing how much your mood can be altered based solely on the weather being nicer. I like the warm breeze. I like not wearing socks. I like working out outside. I like that my freckles have popped out all over my face. I like that my hair and skin isn't dry anymore. I like the bright colors and flowers everywhere. I just like it all!

Every day (or almost every day) at work, Jackie, Ashley and I walk a couple laps around the building. There are quite a few people who have always done this at my work, but we just started this spring. Corey walks around Prudential every day too with his friend, Cameron. I think it is good that people do this. Get the blood flowing! I can't believe we all sit at a desk for 8 hours every day. I wonder what damage all this sitting is going to do to my body one day? I mean I sit 45 minutes in the car on the way to work, 8 hours at my desk, another 45 minutes to an hour in the car on the way home and then when I get home I sit some more. How disgusting. That's a lot of sitting. I have to say, I really wouldn't mind if I had a standing work station. I know some offices do that these days because it has been proven that too much sitting is not good for the body. Anyway, I like the walks around the building.

I'm pretty excited for this weekend. While Corey is away in Las Vegas for a friend's bachelor party, I am going to catch up on 'me' time again! Weekends can get so jam packed with plans that it is nice to have a weekend with not as many plans. Friday I can just come home from work and put sweats on and relax all night. Saturday will be a girl's night! I am going bridesmaid dress shopping with three of my six bridesmaids and then going out in Uptown with Jamie and her sisters and some friends. I haven't had an all girl's night out in a LONG time! I am hoping for the weather to cooperate on Sunday as I want to lay out by the pool at my dad's house before I pick the boys up from the airport that afternoon. Now if only it was 4:30 tomorrow afternoon.

Happy Friday tomorrow! Woo Hoo!!!

Bring on the Sun

My face got sunburnt on the way home from Siren, WI today- have I mentioned how much I love that Corey's new car has a sunroof??? The entire hour on I35 I had my seat reclined and my head positioned so every angle of my face was getting the sun. It felt SO good.

Now that my freckles have popped out I have this overwhelmingly happy feeling about summer officially being on its way! I am sitting in my room, the sun is pouring in through the blinds, I hear a neighbor's lawn mower and I can hear little kids playing outside. I LOVE this time of year. Everybody is just so happy and it's kind of unbelievable how fast you can forget how miserable we all were just two months ago thinking this season would never arrive. Minnesota has dreadful winters but the most amazing summers!

Time for a run (okay walk) around Rice Lake! Then burgers on the grill with the fam for dinner.

time can move faster now

I went wedding dress shopping this weekend for the first time. This was so exciting. We went to Angelique's in Blaine and Glenrose Bridal in Plymouth. The ladies we worked with at the two places were named Deb and Debbie. Funny that they had the same name!

I had my mom, Corey's mom, Jamie and Shannon there with me. It was the perfect size group to have for my first time dress shopping. I loved trying on dress after dress! It definitely did not get boring for me. In fact, I think I found the dress I want, but I still want to go look at The Wedding Shoppe in Saint Paul to be absolutely sure I have picked the right dress.

I am loving being a bride. I feel ready to do more planning now!!! I wish it was June already. That is when my timeline that I planned out shortly after the engagement tells me to start doing more planning. Next on my list is choosing the florist. I am almost 100% positive I am going to use Penny, Hollie's mom, for our florist. She is doing Sarah's wedding in October and I couldn't be happier to have our florist be someone we already know and can trust will do an amazing job. I bought my mom yellow Calla Lily's for Mother's Day and I think I want to use them as one of our wedding flowers.

Corey and I had decided a long time ago to move in together in September. I begged him today to push it up a month to August. I think he said yes. I don't know for sure, but I think I am just going to start talking like it is going to be August and hopefully he will just jump on board completely with my new plan. I started getting in contact with realtors and people selling townhouses to see if they would be willing to rent it out instead of selling. I CAN NOT WAIT to live with Corey. Some days are better than others, but at times when we are both super busy it would be nice to live together so we could at least see each other in passing rather than not at all.

Corey is studying for the GMAT exam to get into the MBA program at St. Thomas. His test is scheduled for May 24th and I am so excited for him to have this done so we can really start enjoying this beautiful weather together. We have planned to go to the Twin's game that night after his exam, and I can't wait for it! Not only will we be enjoying an evening at the ball park celebrating our six year anniversary (which is May 23rd but close enough), but his exam will be over and he can finally relax.

Here's to this week flying by and another great weekend ahead- Shannon's birthday and a wedding!

Happy May Day

Well Spring hasn't fully arrived yet, but it seems like we will be having better weather soon. I am so excited to go on a walk with Sarah tomorrow around her new neighborhood and then go on a walk with Jamie on Tuesday around Lake Calhoun. Walks are my favorite part of spring and summer. I love to be outside and feel fresh air! Especially now that I am bottled up inside all day for 8 hours at work. 

This coming weekend I am SO excited to go wedding dress shopping for the first time!!! I can't wait to finally start the most exciting part of wedding planning. 

Kyle, Kristine and Mia are coming home this coming weekend too. I can't wait to see little Mia- she is 10 months old already. We haven't seen her since she was 6 months old at Christmas. 

Five days of work and then a very exciting weekend! Happy Spring :)