Wednesday, January 12, 2011

Snow

We've been snowed in for 3 days and for some reason Im JUST now thinking to blog.

The snow storm came on Sunday night and dropped about 6" here. It was very pretty on Monday and we were able to get a few pics. But now that the temperature has dropped, we've pretty much just got a whole lot of ice. We attempted to leave today and had to turn around and head right back. There are A LOT of people in Atlanta.. and LOTS of roads and neighborhoods. Therefore- clean up crews werent really ready to deal with this kind of storm and its taking forever to clear everything.
Luckily we had a few items stocked in the freezer because I certainly did not think we'd be stuck in for this many days in a row. I mean its Georgia, not Boone... who would of thought this might happen?!

Overall, life has been good for us. I havent written in FOREVER simply because I just havent thought to do so! I guess we've just been pretty busy.

Around the end of September, my brother found out that he had a brain tumor. The tumor was so large (the size of a tennis ball) that they decided it needed to be removed immediately. So surgery was scheduled for the following week. Long story short, he's doing great. They were able to remove the whole tumor and with close watch, they are telling us that it isnt currently growing back which is great! But they have decided to start him on chemo to be on the safer side. It was a grade 2 ogliodendroglioma so it was slightly cancerous.
So I guess around this time was when I stopped blogging. I certainly wasnt ready to talk about it much, nor did I have the time! I spent about a week in Charlotte for the surgery.

Along with this, we traveled a lot over the holidays.  We went to Salisbury for Thanksgiving and my birthday, Asheboro for a Christmas Party, and Hillsborough for New Years. We actually stayed here for Christmas weekend. And it turned out to be really nice just to relax. And now that we've made it through the holidays, we're rather spent and have decided we are going to stay put for awhile.

The Tucks are actually coming to visit us this weekend and we're very excited to have them! We're still trying to figure out some fun things to do. And then Meredith (thomas' sister) and her boyfriend, Ben, are coming the NEXT weekend to visit as well. We're excited their coming too! Im having a Premier Jewelry party that weekend so Meredith is coming because of that (and because we're awesome.. but thats a given)

Let's see.. what else is new.. oh! I've really gotten into running lately and Im really enjoying it. I feel so accomplished when I have a good run. I did my first 5k in October and then an 8k over Thanksgiving. Im hoping to do a 10k in February.. and maybe a half marathon in October. I think that would give me plenty of time to train for it and Im really motivated to do it.. so we'll see!

I think thats it for now. I just baked some cookies and they are patiently waiting for me :) I'll try and not have 4 months in between my next post this time!

BYE!

Monday, September 6, 2010

Good Start

So my first week with the new family went pretty well. I was feeling a little apprehensive because my last day with Chase's family was very emotional and really tough. But my nerves have definitely calmed after getting through this week. Both boys are so sweet. I know Im gonna have a lot of fun with them.

Thomas and I just got back from a great weekend in Carolina Beach/Wilmington. Thomas' cousin David got married in Wilmington this weekend so we went for that. And seeing as we have great friends, we had a free place to stay for the weekend in Carolina Beach! So we left Friday night and actually flew into Myrtle Beach, rented a car, and drove to Carolina Beach.
We almost missed our flight on Friday, which was unsettling to say the least. We were stuck in so much traffic trying to get to the airport.. and then had to park and sprint through the airport. The parking deck was so muggy, we could hardly breath by the time we made it to security. BUT, we made it. Thank god. The flight was quick and painless and we arrived in Myrtle around 8. We headed straight to the car rental desk where we were handed the keys to a Dodge Mini-van :) Its all they had available at the moment so we embraced it and rocked the mini ALL weekend.

Saturday- we went out on the beach for a few hours before the wedding. And then headed into downtown Wilmington for the wedding and reception. The wedding was beautiful and it was great getting to see all the family. I'd say the only misfortune for this day was the loss of my sunglasses. My FAVORITE sunglasses. Ugh. I dont even like writing about it. Long story short- I got plastered by a big wave (while holding a beer) and was trying my hardest not to lose the beer. Therefore I wasn't really focused on the fact that my glasses were gone. I was cussing because my beer was gone. So ten minutes later, it all clicked and by then it was too late. I reckon its dollar store glasses from here on out.

Sunday- we stayed out on the beach allll day. Luckily, I did pretty good with the sunscreen and came home with no burns. That night, Thomas and I walked to the local mexican restaurant and proceeded to get sloshed off one jumbo margarita. We then walked and met up with some friends who were also staying in Carolina Beach for the weekend (Derek and Amanda Johnson). Luckily, the walk sobered us up a little bit.. but then we proceeded to go to 2 different bars. Needless to say, its 9pm on Monday (the day after) and we're both still struggling a little bit. My body certainly doesn't recover like it used to.

Today we drove back towards Myrtle Beach and stopped to have lunch with some other friends (Erin and Ross Grall..and baby Owen). They recently moved to Myrtle for a new position that Ross took at NMB High School.  So it was great seeing them!

We're home now and resting. We've got a big week ahead of us. On Wednesday, my mom and a few of her friends/coworkers are driving down for a nursing conference.
And then Friday, I've got the day off so Im going to go spend the day with Chase and his new baby brothers (they arrived on Thursday, the 2nd). And THEN on Friday night, Thomas and I are headed to Anaheim, CA for the weekend. Crazy, I know. Thomas has a benefit dinner to go to for a program he's involved with called Woodlinks. So we're going for that.. and to get some In and Out Burger of course :)

Everyone have a good week! More to come after we get back from CA :)

Saturday, August 21, 2010

Change

Things have been pretty normal since we've been back from our trip. It took awhile to get back into the swing of things, but we've managed.
Thomas' parents actually came for a surprise visit the weekend after we got back from our trip. They wanted to surprise him for his birthday and it worked out perfectly. We had a pretty low key weekend, but it was great seeing them both.

This past week, we played volleyball for the first time with a group of friends. It was a lot of fun! We're hoping to continue and do it as often as we can.

Thomas is actually gone this weekend. He has gotten involved with the boy scouts at our church and went on a camping trip with the group this weekend. Sounds like their having lots of fun.
I took the opportunity to go on a girls night out last night and had a great time with some friends. We went to Taco Mac in Suwanee. Today has been a lazy day.. lots of reading and catching up on laundry/cleaning. We had a wicked storm come through last night so I didnt sleep great. Nor did Harley.. he was practically sharing a pillow with me :)

So Im a little panicked about this upcoming week. Its my last week with Chase and his family. Im looking forward to a change and working closer to home, but Im also dreading it. Change is always tricky. Im sure I'll fall into a routine with the new family and things will work out great. There's just a lot of unknown.
Chase's twin brothers have yet to arrive, so its gonna be tough for them after I leave, but Jen does have a C-section scheduled for the following week (9/2). And I know their family will help out a lot until she's fully recovered.

That's it for now. Back to being lazy :) Will keep everyone posted on my last week with Chase and my first week with Leo and Luke! Oh! And we're finally having friends over this coming weekend for dinner and drinks.. a very belated house warming party.


Upcoming trips for Thomas and I-
9/4 - Wilmington for Thomas cousins wedding and our Anniversary
9/11 - Anaheim, CA.. yea, we're going to California for the weekend. Crazy, we know :)

Wednesday, August 4, 2010

ALASKA :)

Overall Alaska Summary:

Wednesday (July 21st) - Flew into Anchorage, Alaska and stayed there for the night. We got in around 1am eastern time, but went out to dinner anyway at a local brewery. Finally made it in bed around 3am (or 11pm Alaska time).

Thursday and Friday- Stayed at two different lodges owned by Princess Cruises. First was at Mt. McKinley. And second was around Denali National Park. Here, a few of us went into the park and watched a sled dog demonstration.. and got to hang out with all the pups and pet them for a bit. Very neat.

Saturday- boarded a train that took us from Denail National Park to Whittier where we boarded the cruise ship. It was about 8 hours long.. but wasn't too bad. Had restaurants, a outside viewing platform, and lots of alcohol :) The scenery was amazing.. and most of us saw a few moose!

Sunday and Monday - These two days we were just at sea.. and headed towards Skagway, Alaska. We saw several different glaciers on these two days.. along with some wildlife (bears and whales).

Tuesday - Skagway, Alaska (first port day off the ship). Everyone did different excursions this day. Seth, Dad, and Thomas all went on a very scenic but unsuccessful fishing trip on Chilkoot Lake. Mary, Mom, and I went into town and did glass blowing.. along with lunch and a garden tour. Most everyone else went ziplining for the day. The glass blowing was a lot of fun though! Bought home a few pieces.. one that I helped make and a bowl that I bought.

Wednesday- Juneau, Alaska. We did a group excursion this day (all 13 of us). Whale watching. We saw several whales.. all Humpbacks. And then we saw a couple sets of dolls porpoises. They kind of look like mini killer whales.. same coloring just 1/16 of the size.

Thursday- Ketchikan, Alaska. Jeff and Patty were the only ones that did an excursion this day (Plane tour). The rest of us took this day to just walk around town.. have lunch at a local pub.. and buy souvenirs.

Friday - At Sea. Not much going on this day. Just hung out on the boat. Played lots of games. And played Bingo of course. I'd say the highlight of this day was my husband volunteering himself to go on stage to participate in the hypnotist act. Quite possibly one of the funniest things I've seen in awhile.

Saturday (July 31st) - Vancouver, Canada. We were off the boat by about 9:30am. From here, we went to the airport to store our luggage for the day. We decided to go explore Vancouver.. considering we had about 12 hours before our flights left. So we took the local metro into downtown.. went out to lunch at a yummy restaurant called Speakeasy. And then went and walked around a local park for the rest of the day.

Thomas and I finally got home around 6 on Sunday night. We flew into Charlotte but made a quick stop to see Miss Emma Joy for lunch :) Needless to say, its been a rough week so far for both of us. We're a little jet lagged and haven't had much energy to unpack yet. Not to mention that yesterday was Thomas' birthday so that definitely took precedent over unpacking! But we'll find the time to do it eventually, I guess :)

That's it for now! Hoping to have some pictures posted on facebook soon. Of course, none of our pictures will compare to the 2000 that dad took :) But we did get a few good ones so we'll get them up asap!

Monday, July 12, 2010

A case of the Monday's..

Normally, I would be watching The Bachelorette, but Im waiting for Thomas to get home because he likes to watch it with me (probably best that we don't share that part with him). So, what better distraction than to write?
This past weekend was pretty low key. We did a little trim painting around the house and grilled out on Saturday night. On Sunday, we finished the painting.. I went to a Mary Kay Party, and then ended the weekend by picking up our friend Lyndsay from the airport last night.
I did get some good news over the weekend.. I got a new job! It doesn't start until August 30th but Im pretty excited. Its another Nanny Job and its a little closer to home. Its 2 boys (Leo and Luke.. ages 1 and 4). The timing is a little tricky because I'll literally be going from one job straight to the next. But Im going to try and make it work the best I can. I couldn't pass it up.. I think its gonna be a really good opportunity for me. And Im actually going to their home to meet the boys this weekend. I have only met the parents thus far.

The countdown for our trip continues.. 9 more days!! I've known for months that I needed a vacation.. but after this week, I know I'll REALLY need a vacation. We head out on Tuesday night and we're going to stay with our friends Hank and Jordan that night before we fly out on Wednesday morning. Ahhhh.. so excited!

That's it for now. I've got a little last minute cleaning to do before I sit down for 2 hours of trashy reality TV :) Hope everyone has a great week!

Wednesday, July 7, 2010

Long Overdue

So.. its been about a month since my last posting. I sort of forgot that I was even doing this whole thing.. isnt that sad?! I guess there has just been lots of other things on my mind. Not only have we been traveling over the past month, but we've also had company here. AND I've been interviewing for new jobs.

So where do I start? Hog Day, I guess. It was a lot of fun! Really really hot.. but fun. Was definitely nice to have all of the family together. And then Sunday, before heading back to GA, we stopped in Salisbury for a couple hours and swam in the pool for a bit. We didnt get back until late Sunday night, but getting to swim and see my family for a few made it worth while!

The next weekend (end of June), we just stayed in town. And Thomas and I actually planted a garden in our backyard :) I have a flower bed next to the house that I wasnt quite sure what to do with so I decided it would be a good spot for some veggies. Not to mention that my crazy hanging tomato plant is right above the same area. We ended up with a few sweet potato plants, bell peppers, okra, and cucumbers. And so far so good.. everything seems to be coming up nicely. And the bunnies havent managed to ruin it (we've got a serious case of bunnies in our neighborhood). We fenced it in right away to avoid any issues :)

This past week, Mary came to visit me during the week. I had a few extra days off before the 4th, so she came into town while I had some time off. It was a good couple of days! We went out to dinner with a friend of mine. And we went to see Eclipse on Thursday morning. Yes.. I said morning. A 10:10am showing. AND we were wearing our matching twilight t-shirts. I know.. we're awesome :) Later in the afternoon, I had a second interview with a family, so Mary went with me to that and just kind of shopped around until I was finished (the family and I met at an outdoor shopping area).
Mary left Friday morning.. so I spent most of Friday cleaning because Meredith and Ben came into town on Friday night for the weekend. It was a quick turnaround! We had a good long weekend. A couple trips to the pool.. drinking.. grilling out.. and then we went to the Braves game on Sunday for fireworks. And they were awesome!

Other than that, we've just kind of been re-cooperating and getting back into the swing of things. Takes a few days to readjust to a work schedule.. especially myself since I had 5 days off.

We're getting very excited about Alaska!! We actually leave TWO WEEKS from today which is crazy. I think its gonna be a really good trip. I cant wait to see all the relatives. And we've worked out a plan with some friends of ours to keep the dogs. They are going to come house sit for the 10 days.. so I am much more relaxed and know I wont have to worry about poor Harley boy while we're gone. He has been doing much better though. Hardly any accidents and its been weeks. Thank GOD.

I guess that's it for now. Time to go relax a little.. its been a bit of a stressful day. Chase managed to tip his high chair over today.. while he was still attached. So it was pretty traumatic for both of us to say the least. Just now regaining my composure.

Hopefully everyone had a good 4th! More to come soon-

Cate

Sunday, June 13, 2010

Hi Ho Hi Ho.. it's off to Hog Day we Go..

Still not keeping up with this posting thing very well.. my apologies! It'd be a lot easier if we had our internet hooked up. We've been putting it off, but we've both reached the point where we cant take it anymore. How am I on now you might ask? Stealing from the neighbor's wireless :) I know.. I feel a little guilty. But it's their fault that they've chosen to have an unsecured network!!

We just got back from the pool.. it was almost too hot out to even be at the pool! 94 here today. I guess pretty typical for a Georgia summer.

This past week was pretty uneventful. Thomas was traveling all week so it was just the dogs and I until Friday night. And I'll have you know.. Harley did GREAT this week. Almost a week and a half now of no tummy troubles. Thanks GOD.

Yesterday (Saturday), got A LOT done. We had our monthly massages, did some yard work, washed our cars, got Thomas' work car serviced, did a little antique shopping, grilled out, and then Thomas went with a few other men in the neighborhood last night to watch  the UFC fight. I went to bed early :)

We skipped out on church today to get to the pool before it got too crowded.. I know, only sinners would plan that strategically. Turns out- other people were smart enough not to get out in the heat so it was hardly crowded at all.

This week will be pretty normal. I might be interviewing with a family for another nanny position. So we'll see how that goes! And I've got a girls night dinner on Thursday that Im excited about (Margarita night).
This coming weekend, we're headed to Hillsborough to see Thomas family and go to the town's annual Hog Day. Should be a good weekend. We havent been home to Hillsborough in almost 6 months! And it'll be the first time we've seen Carly in about 7 months. It'll be nice to have everyone home :) And Thomas and his dad will get to play a little golf.

That's it for now.. I feel a nap coming on :) That what Sunday's are for, right?