Chicago

This past weekend My mom and I traveled to Chicago for my dear friend Loretta's baby shower. She is due May 9th, and many of her good friends and family came from all over to share in her and her husband Chris' joy and excitement!

After the shower, my Mom and I decided we better see if there was some shopping that we just might possibly have any energy left to do. Despite the random wind/rain/snow storm that was just starting, we braved the weather and hit some fun stores and had a great time. We stopped for dinner at The Cheesecake Factory (YUM) and then headed back to our hotel. We then decided that the pool and hot tub were calling our names, so we swam and soaked for awhile and thoroughly enjoyed some well needed Mom/Daughter time. It was so much fun and such a relaxing,nice weekend. I even learned some new things about my mom, like for instance the fact that they didn't have a bathroom in their home until they moved when my Mom was 10 years old. Yes, they did the outhouse thing.....unbelievable. I think I will now stop complaining about my one bathroom in addition to the functional toilet in the corner of the basement.

So, as I digress, I just wanted to share in what fun we had and include a few pictures

Mom-to-be Loretta!Loretta, her husband Chris and her cool-as-heck sister Sonia!

(p.s. No....we're not on a tropical island...it's just the backdrop)!

Loretta and her "lil helper"

Snow everywhere!!!

Beautiful flowers that my Mom bought me at my favorite store, Trader Joe's

One of my favorite purchases......now I can seperate my fruit and veggies!

In Lieu of Going to Florida this year............

I decided to make these yummy buggers full of nothing but goodness yesterday!

Key Lime Cupcakes!

I found this on one of my favorite cooking blogs, The Noble Pig. Check out the link, it's worth it!

http://noblepig.com/2009/03/01/retro-funk.aspx

Looks like she got the recipe from the Bon Appetit magazine. All I have to say is....whoever came up with this one deserves a prize. They are very tasty and according to my co-workers (the regular basis guinea pigs) with my recipes, they are a hit! So grab yourself some limes and get to work!

Looking forward to......

I have Spring and Summer on the brain and it's all I can think about. It feels so close, I can smell it. The birds chirping, the dewey smell in the morning, the warm air coming our way....oooh oooh oooh, I am having a hard time being patient. Here are a few pictures of things that I'm looking forward to.

Flowers blooming and baby birds chirping

Thick plush grass growing in my yard (BTW...I actually like to mow the yard)!

Lilac Tree in the backyard....LOVE THE SMELL of these flowers!

Grilling.......mmmm burgers!

Gardening (I wish this was my yard)

Farmer's Market (support your local farmers)!

Camping!

Family vacation in June to the Outer Banks, NC!

Eyesore......

After I got home from work today, I did my usual routine that involves picking up the kitchen, cleaning out the coffee pot from the morning drip, and whatever else I feel the need to tidy up. Yep, I admit it, I'm a bit OCD...but hey, we all have our issues.

So, I go to the bathroom and something caught my eye out the window. I look outside and much to my surprise the neighbor who lives behind me has so eloquently placed a big ole' Coca Cola metal sign behind his garage. In his eyes, it's outta the way. In mine, it's all I see when I look in the back yard! What an eyesore!

Guess it beats metal on cement blocks, right?

Yes.....winter is boring!

I love taking pictures of my two cute cats. Their expressions and personalities are so much fun to watch each day and Jamey and I get a kick out of these two furballs just being cats. They have a rough life that involves napping, playing, eating, going to the bathroom (all the way downstairs), napping again and snacking. Here are some recent shots of them.

Cat toys (Christmas presents from my in-laws)!

Ernie and Farlie kicking the toys around

Ernie playing/resting

Farlie watching from the side lines

Isn't he a handsome fella?!?! SO CUTE!

Time for a break...gotta re-fuel (note how Ernie lays down to eat...no shame in his game)

QUIT taking my picture!

Yeah.....enough already.......
I surrender

This and That

I know....I'm terrible at updating the blog. I feel as though every post is an apology to my few followers about my lack of recent postings! Well believe me, there hasn't been too much going on, so please don't hold it much against me. Here are a few shots (completely random) of the past month or so. Everyone likes pictures so here you go!

The recently painted bathroom!

We decorated the Christmas Tree!!

We celebrated Jamey's birthday on 12.19.08 (in the heated garage due to being snowed in) Here are a couple neighbors Krista, Beth and Anna

Our source of heat.....we love spending time outdoors as long as we have some warm gear and a Mr. Heater........what else could you ask for?!?!

Another of the neighbor ladies Krista and Anna

The birthday boy...my handsome husband Jamey!

Jeff, Steve and Jamey........something really funny must have been going on!

Beth and Anna

The Married Life

OK, sorry for the delay in posting....we've been trying to come off the wedding high and it's just so hard! For starters let me just say that I LOVE married life so far. Being Jamey's wife and having him for a husband is amazing, I couldn't be happier. We're eagerly awaiting pictures, so hang tight as I'll be posting some as soon as they are in.

After the wedding we went up north and stayed at The Homestead Resort in Glen Arbor, it was the best. We went into Traverse City one day and did some shopping (Jamey even tried on clothes at the Gap outlet)! Another day we drove to Leelanau, Northport and Sutton's Bay. We even hit the casino and Jamey won us some $$$ (what's yours is mine I told him)! We also did some wine tasting at a winery and just enjoyed ourselves and had a fabulous time. The color tour was gorgeous, I don't think the trees get as bright as they do up north, it was breathtaking!

To everyone who supported us through the engagement and wedding, thank you so very much. We are very lucky to have so many wonderful friends and such an amazing family, it puts smiles on our faces everyday.

Jamey observing the salmon at the Carp River Dam

Me at the dam

Good ole Al's Tavern

Where I spent the majority of my time!