Home Cookin'
Steaks and Lipton Tomato Basil noodles...YUM!
Social Butterflies
Peoria (Monica)
On Sunday morning I was still in Peoria and Lisa took Liz & I to the shooting range. So I shot a rifle for the first time! I didn't do too bad either - 7 disks out of 25!!!
Milwaukee (Tim)
Tim had spent the night in Milwaukee at Josh & Tina's with Billy, so they got up and hit the road back to Chicago!
Saturday - Pat & Lorie's house
We went over to Pat & Lorie's to see Bianca again and my mom who came down for the day after just getting back from her 10-day trip to Italy! She had souvenirs for all of us and told us of her trip. Most of our 2hr visit over there was comprised of me in Bella's room playing Barbies (including the bride barbie I gave her at the wedding that she calls "Auntie Monica" - and the part of "Tim" was played by their Woody-Toy Story-doll ;)
Tim was also tied up with Nicolas playing Nerf ball in his room where "no girls were allowed" and then burgling Tim on a walk down the block that ALSO no one else was allowed to join. So Bella & Nicolas were really having a Monica & Tim lovefest that day!!!
We also got to see my cousins Paula, AnneMarie and Jenny as they were in town shopping!
Afterwards we went to Houlihan's with my mom.
Saturday Night - Jenn's 30th Bday @ Cobra Lounge
We drove into the city around 8pm to go to the Cobra Lounge for Jenn's *surprise* 30th bday. It was a good time! We tried to name TV shows and movies set in Chicago and later, creative names for gay bars!
They had a special on Kilo Kai rum so I had that with Ginger Ale! Never had that before and it's a keeper!!!
Humor
I gotta say the gay bar naming! It was really random and seriously went on for like 30min!!!
Aww...That's Nice
The above mentioned afternoon with Bella & Nicolas! I hope our own kids love us this much :)
20 Second T.O.
With our job situations ( I know, we're all sick of hearing about this!), we were talking about Tim's options for a job search. He doesn't have that *dream job* so it seems that whatever his next job is, it may just be to get out of this one. It's very frustrating b/c of course I've always known what I've wanted to do for the most part so it's hard for me to understand - but also because I want him to be on a career path for his sanity and for our success!
I said something along these lines one night last week and Tim got very defensive as if I were attacking him! So we got extremely frustrated with each other before it came to the point of him finally understanding I wasn't attacking him, that I'm concerned for his happiness and that yes, he understands why I'm frustrated about the situation.
Monday, April 28, 2008
Continued...MONTH #5: March 18, 2008 - April 17, 2008
Marriage Epiphany
This will probably end up sounding more like a personal or friendship (Katie) epiphany than a marriage one. But it's what's been on my mind lately - so I'm giving it a go!
The 'grass is greener' phenomenom...We've all heard of it and undoubtedly we've all experienced it from time to time.
Well, I've got it going on strong these days. My newly single friend, Katie, has had a very successful first few weeks as a single gal. She is confident that her break-up was a good decision and for the best. She's even found herself dating a new guy that is CRAZY about her!
This got me thinking of a few things...How she is stronger than I ever was when Tim & my relationship would get rough and I would consider ending it, but never could partly for the fear of being alone and having to start over after all the work I/we had put into it. Now, in reality, it was more the faith I had in us getting through pretty much anything together that would keep us together.
All's well that ends well, and I keep telling myself that as my mind has been drifting in the "what would have been" thinking. Sometimes I just can't help but think that I rolled over and took the beating for some of the hard times Tim & I had. (Metaphorical beating of course!) I do realize that is not the case, since I certainly always spoke my mind and didn't make anything easier on Tim.
But I don't feel that Tim ever suffered as much as I did. I am a power hungry and equality driven person so that is a tough pill for me to swallow.
The grass seems greener in Katie's yard because she's got this new guy who is crazy about her. Of course, she sees my "green grass" in that I have a man who loves me and will be spending his life with me, but let's face it - after nearly five years together, Tim is not at all *crazy* for me!
So I can't help but envy Katie in that I wonder if there'd be a guy out there who'd be crazy for me. Or wonder why Tim never WAS *crazy* for me. It took him a long time to have strong feelings for me...
Now of course, let's flip the table. I know Katie is at times envious that I am married and settled down making life plans. I'm sure if I were single right now, all I'd be thinking of is wanting to be in a serious relationship and settle down.
I guess you could say I'm experiencing the post-wedding jitters - not in the matter of marrying Tim, but just in *being* married. I've been having such strong flashbacks to high school, college, drum corps and the beginning months of Tim & my relationship.
What this has all made me think about is that while I may sometimes want what I am past being able to have anymore, I will always stand by my decision to be where I am today - married to Tim. I wanted it for a long time before it happened, and even way back 5 years ago I was "done" with the single life and looking forward to a real relationship, and it just so happened!
Just as I'm sure once we have children - we'll be sick with envy of our childless friends, even though *now I am envious of our friends/family with children!
This will probably end up sounding more like a personal or friendship (Katie) epiphany than a marriage one. But it's what's been on my mind lately - so I'm giving it a go!
The 'grass is greener' phenomenom...We've all heard of it and undoubtedly we've all experienced it from time to time.
Well, I've got it going on strong these days. My newly single friend, Katie, has had a very successful first few weeks as a single gal. She is confident that her break-up was a good decision and for the best. She's even found herself dating a new guy that is CRAZY about her!
This got me thinking of a few things...How she is stronger than I ever was when Tim & my relationship would get rough and I would consider ending it, but never could partly for the fear of being alone and having to start over after all the work I/we had put into it. Now, in reality, it was more the faith I had in us getting through pretty much anything together that would keep us together.
All's well that ends well, and I keep telling myself that as my mind has been drifting in the "what would have been" thinking. Sometimes I just can't help but think that I rolled over and took the beating for some of the hard times Tim & I had. (Metaphorical beating of course!) I do realize that is not the case, since I certainly always spoke my mind and didn't make anything easier on Tim.
But I don't feel that Tim ever suffered as much as I did. I am a power hungry and equality driven person so that is a tough pill for me to swallow.
The grass seems greener in Katie's yard because she's got this new guy who is crazy about her. Of course, she sees my "green grass" in that I have a man who loves me and will be spending his life with me, but let's face it - after nearly five years together, Tim is not at all *crazy* for me!
So I can't help but envy Katie in that I wonder if there'd be a guy out there who'd be crazy for me. Or wonder why Tim never WAS *crazy* for me. It took him a long time to have strong feelings for me...
Now of course, let's flip the table. I know Katie is at times envious that I am married and settled down making life plans. I'm sure if I were single right now, all I'd be thinking of is wanting to be in a serious relationship and settle down.
I guess you could say I'm experiencing the post-wedding jitters - not in the matter of marrying Tim, but just in *being* married. I've been having such strong flashbacks to high school, college, drum corps and the beginning months of Tim & my relationship.
What this has all made me think about is that while I may sometimes want what I am past being able to have anymore, I will always stand by my decision to be where I am today - married to Tim. I wanted it for a long time before it happened, and even way back 5 years ago I was "done" with the single life and looking forward to a real relationship, and it just so happened!
Just as I'm sure once we have children - we'll be sick with envy of our childless friends, even though *now I am envious of our friends/family with children!
Saturday, April 26, 2008
MONTH #5: March 18, 2008 - April 17, 2008
MoniKitchen
Pat's Favorite Sweet & Sour Meatloaf - from Lorie
Ingredients:
-1lb ground turkey
-1 egg
-1/2 C bread crumbs
-2 tblsp parsley
-1 teasp basil
-1/2 teasp oregano
-pinch salt & pepper
-1 C Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ Sauce
-3/4 C grape jelly
Directions:
-In a saucepan, heat the jelly and bbq sauce on low until bubbling
-Meanwhile, in a bowl, mix together all other ingredients (use hands to mix)
-Pour about 1/4 of the jelly/bbq mixture into the meat (again, mix with hands)
-Form meat into a meatloaf pan and pour remaining sauce over the meatloaf
-Bake at 350 for 35-40 minutes, uncovered
*Makes four generous servings. Very good as a leftover!!
Will You Go Out With Me?
We went to see the movie Juno! We ate some random leftovers at home and then went to Jersey's http://www.jerseyspizzaandgrill.com/ for a drink and potato skins, to keep it a cheaper night. Then off to the movie!
That's Hilaaarious
SAUSAGE still kept us laughing as well as my new found obsession with the APPLEBOTTOM jeans song ;)
Good Talk
We are being very open and talking about unfortunate job situations. What needs to happen before we can sell our condo and buy a townhouse/house, what type of place we're looking for and what our "dream jobs" are, and lastly if Milwaukee is an option for us and how that could work. No decisions yet, but I think when it comes time to make decisions, we'll be ready.
The Good Life
Hmm...This is a let down! Nothing "good" has happened to us this month! We did get a new niece - Bianca Elle Simon and a new cousin on Tim's side - Robert Clemente (yes, that's the 3rd 'Bob' in our family - my uncle, Tim's 1/2 brother and now his cousin) Sheesh!
Recap
While Tim was always a little 'eh' about his job, he got slapped with a big change a couple weeks ago. The way he'd be making sales changed and while they 'say' the bonuses will be better and quicker in this new set-up, as of June 1 Tim's salary is being slashed by $10K. He's also not very confident in the success of this company as a whole, as it is relatively new and the management doesn't really seem to have a grasp on what they are doing.
For me, I should consider myself lucky that I wasn't laid off when the Qwest Retail business was lost. But now I've been moved over to Direct Mail for AT&T. The pay is good and so is the commute. But the job I signed up for - Retail Events & Promotions - I was very excited as it was what I had decided I wanted to do with my career (event promotions, management). But now I'm doing DM which isn't going to help launch me into the event world as I planned my initial job would after a few years. So now this is just another "filler" job I must endure before I can get into what I really want. And that is making it harder also because it's been nearly 3yrs of work that I don't necessarily want to be slotted in or continue in in anyway (yellow pages & DM) so I'm afraid I'm getting more and more pigeon-holed and it will be harder for me to break out.
Our predicaments sparked several more serious conversations about moving to Milwaukee. So again, many stars would need to align to make the move possible. With these current let-downs, Milwaukee holds the promise of a "fresh start"...but we realize it may not be all that easy!
Pat's Favorite Sweet & Sour Meatloaf - from Lorie
Ingredients:
-1lb ground turkey
-1 egg
-1/2 C bread crumbs
-2 tblsp parsley
-1 teasp basil
-1/2 teasp oregano
-pinch salt & pepper
-1 C Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ Sauce
-3/4 C grape jelly
Directions:
-In a saucepan, heat the jelly and bbq sauce on low until bubbling
-Meanwhile, in a bowl, mix together all other ingredients (use hands to mix)
-Pour about 1/4 of the jelly/bbq mixture into the meat (again, mix with hands)
-Form meat into a meatloaf pan and pour remaining sauce over the meatloaf
-Bake at 350 for 35-40 minutes, uncovered
*Makes four generous servings. Very good as a leftover!!
Will You Go Out With Me?
We went to see the movie Juno! We ate some random leftovers at home and then went to Jersey's http://www.jerseyspizzaandgrill.com/ for a drink and potato skins, to keep it a cheaper night. Then off to the movie!
That's Hilaaarious
SAUSAGE still kept us laughing as well as my new found obsession with the APPLEBOTTOM jeans song ;)
Good Talk
We are being very open and talking about unfortunate job situations. What needs to happen before we can sell our condo and buy a townhouse/house, what type of place we're looking for and what our "dream jobs" are, and lastly if Milwaukee is an option for us and how that could work. No decisions yet, but I think when it comes time to make decisions, we'll be ready.
The Good Life
Hmm...This is a let down! Nothing "good" has happened to us this month! We did get a new niece - Bianca Elle Simon and a new cousin on Tim's side - Robert Clemente (yes, that's the 3rd 'Bob' in our family - my uncle, Tim's 1/2 brother and now his cousin) Sheesh!
Recap
While Tim was always a little 'eh' about his job, he got slapped with a big change a couple weeks ago. The way he'd be making sales changed and while they 'say' the bonuses will be better and quicker in this new set-up, as of June 1 Tim's salary is being slashed by $10K. He's also not very confident in the success of this company as a whole, as it is relatively new and the management doesn't really seem to have a grasp on what they are doing.
For me, I should consider myself lucky that I wasn't laid off when the Qwest Retail business was lost. But now I've been moved over to Direct Mail for AT&T. The pay is good and so is the commute. But the job I signed up for - Retail Events & Promotions - I was very excited as it was what I had decided I wanted to do with my career (event promotions, management). But now I'm doing DM which isn't going to help launch me into the event world as I planned my initial job would after a few years. So now this is just another "filler" job I must endure before I can get into what I really want. And that is making it harder also because it's been nearly 3yrs of work that I don't necessarily want to be slotted in or continue in in anyway (yellow pages & DM) so I'm afraid I'm getting more and more pigeon-holed and it will be harder for me to break out.
Our predicaments sparked several more serious conversations about moving to Milwaukee. So again, many stars would need to align to make the move possible. With these current let-downs, Milwaukee holds the promise of a "fresh start"...but we realize it may not be all that easy!
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
WEEK #22: April 13 - 19, 2008
Home Cookin'
I didn't cook for us, but rather prepared Lorie's meatloaf again on Wednesday night to bring with me on Thursday night when I went over to Pat & Lorie's while he was on a business trip to help Lorie out with the kids as she is still recovering from her C-Section!
Social Butterflies
Thursday (Monica)
I went over to Pat & Lorie's after work as mentioned above to help Lorie with the kids. I made the meatloaf, did a little cleaning for her and of course ran around the house with Nicolas & Isabella. We played hide-n-seek for a little while and they did their trademark running around in circles and Isabella instructing me to "try and get her and then give her a hug"
Weekend
I headed to Peoria after work on Friday to visit Lisa and Liz came too! Here's the highlights:
-Old Chicago for pomojito's, Italian Nachos and Pepperoni Rolls. I attempted the "Eat 6 Saltines in One Minute" dare...I got 5 in my mouth, but ended with a pingpong ball sized wad in my mouth I couldn't swallow when the minute was up!
-Lisa read us a "bed time story" which was really just several of her journal entries from the years we marched in drum corps
-making the fattiest breakfast ever with lots of coffee and just chatting with the girls
-tooling around random knick knack stores in Peoria
-having ginormous wings at random bar outside of Peoria
-going to the tiniest bar ever which was orginally some sort of WWII building?
-playing beer pong, but drinking wine instead, in lisa's basement
-playing on Lisa's baritone and trumpet like dorky band nerds
-watching the 2001 & 2002 videos I recorded while marching to catch all our antics. The best memories EVER!
-sunday morning going to the shooting range - holding and shooting a real rifle for the first time in my life! I got 8 clay discs out of 25! not bad!
MEANWHILE...
Tim had Ellen, Billy & Anthony over on Friday night to play Guitar Hero and watch 'Superbad'. Billy slept over, they went to Old Bridge the next morning then hit the road to Milwaukee where they played darts, "VAG", and video games with Josh til all hours of the night!
Humor
The "Brown Chicken Brown Cow" joke from work that I got a kick out of. Ask me to tell it in person!!!
Oh, and see my myspace page www.myspace.com/mellomonic for Tim's "Applebottom" comment. HILARIO!
Aww...That's Nice!
Before falling asleep on Tuesday night, we got real curly b/c we had the window open and it was getting cold! We had our "legs in each other's butts" like we always used to. It's never cold enough in our room to be ultra curly anymore :(
20-Second T.O.
We were in bed Thursday night just watching TV and Tim was doing something with his contacts since he had just gone to the eye Dr. So I asked about his "eye issues" b/c a few yrs ago he had calcium deposits that caused him issues and he had to use drops, etc. But he was all "what eye issue" like I was talking crazy or something. And I know my memory - and it's good!!! So I got annoyed b/c I KNEW what I was talking about, etc. but then he got annoyed b/c he didn't mean it to sound like he thought I was crazy, etc. But many times I take it that way so it's just a constant miscommunication issue!
I didn't cook for us, but rather prepared Lorie's meatloaf again on Wednesday night to bring with me on Thursday night when I went over to Pat & Lorie's while he was on a business trip to help Lorie out with the kids as she is still recovering from her C-Section!
Social Butterflies
Thursday (Monica)
I went over to Pat & Lorie's after work as mentioned above to help Lorie with the kids. I made the meatloaf, did a little cleaning for her and of course ran around the house with Nicolas & Isabella. We played hide-n-seek for a little while and they did their trademark running around in circles and Isabella instructing me to "try and get her and then give her a hug"
Weekend
I headed to Peoria after work on Friday to visit Lisa and Liz came too! Here's the highlights:
-Old Chicago for pomojito's, Italian Nachos and Pepperoni Rolls. I attempted the "Eat 6 Saltines in One Minute" dare...I got 5 in my mouth, but ended with a pingpong ball sized wad in my mouth I couldn't swallow when the minute was up!
-Lisa read us a "bed time story" which was really just several of her journal entries from the years we marched in drum corps
-making the fattiest breakfast ever with lots of coffee and just chatting with the girls
-tooling around random knick knack stores in Peoria
-having ginormous wings at random bar outside of Peoria
-going to the tiniest bar ever which was orginally some sort of WWII building?
-playing beer pong, but drinking wine instead, in lisa's basement
-playing on Lisa's baritone and trumpet like dorky band nerds
-watching the 2001 & 2002 videos I recorded while marching to catch all our antics. The best memories EVER!
-sunday morning going to the shooting range - holding and shooting a real rifle for the first time in my life! I got 8 clay discs out of 25! not bad!
MEANWHILE...
Tim had Ellen, Billy & Anthony over on Friday night to play Guitar Hero and watch 'Superbad'. Billy slept over, they went to Old Bridge the next morning then hit the road to Milwaukee where they played darts, "VAG", and video games with Josh til all hours of the night!
Humor
The "Brown Chicken Brown Cow" joke from work that I got a kick out of. Ask me to tell it in person!!!
Oh, and see my myspace page www.myspace.com/mellomonic for Tim's "Applebottom" comment. HILARIO!
Aww...That's Nice!
Before falling asleep on Tuesday night, we got real curly b/c we had the window open and it was getting cold! We had our "legs in each other's butts" like we always used to. It's never cold enough in our room to be ultra curly anymore :(
20-Second T.O.
We were in bed Thursday night just watching TV and Tim was doing something with his contacts since he had just gone to the eye Dr. So I asked about his "eye issues" b/c a few yrs ago he had calcium deposits that caused him issues and he had to use drops, etc. But he was all "what eye issue" like I was talking crazy or something. And I know my memory - and it's good!!! So I got annoyed b/c I KNEW what I was talking about, etc. but then he got annoyed b/c he didn't mean it to sound like he thought I was crazy, etc. But many times I take it that way so it's just a constant miscommunication issue!
Friday, April 18, 2008
WEEK #21: April 6 - 12, 2008
Home Cookin'
Lorie's Sweet & Sour Meatloaf
I made this on curly day! I've never made meatloaf before - it's fun! And this is verrrry delicious and makes 2 dinners for us! It is of course from our Family Recipe Scrapbook! Stay tuned for this recipe posting in the monthly blog!
Social Butterflies
Sunday
Katie was still here on Sunday too! We made very veggie omelets, potato pancakes and sausages! Then we went to an Open House in Streamwood and then off to my band concert!
Afterwards, we went to BW3's in Elmhurst to meet Billy, Jenn, Guido and Colin (their bandmate)
Saturday
We met up with Garry/Jacqui & Anthony in Addison at Dave & Buster's. It was one of their friend's 30th Birthday celebrations so we just tagged along! They had a back pool table area rented out which was very nice as it was crowwwded! And apparantely before we got there, the reserved area next to it had some Chicago Bears there! Including Devin Hester?!?! WHA?
Humor
We put all out TiVo'd SNL's on a DVD so it was like a trip down Humor Lane with the different skits that were obsessions at one time or another!
Aww...That's Nice!
We took a Curly Day on Friday! Nothing special, just did a bunch of laundry and watched TiVo stuff! It's fun that we still enjoy each other's company and can entertain each other in our little condo all day!
20-Second T.O.
YIPPIE!
Imagine that...there was no alcohol involved...therefore no fights! Sheesh...
Lorie's Sweet & Sour Meatloaf
I made this on curly day! I've never made meatloaf before - it's fun! And this is verrrry delicious and makes 2 dinners for us! It is of course from our Family Recipe Scrapbook! Stay tuned for this recipe posting in the monthly blog!
Social Butterflies
Sunday
Katie was still here on Sunday too! We made very veggie omelets, potato pancakes and sausages! Then we went to an Open House in Streamwood and then off to my band concert!
Afterwards, we went to BW3's in Elmhurst to meet Billy, Jenn, Guido and Colin (their bandmate)
Saturday
We met up with Garry/Jacqui & Anthony in Addison at Dave & Buster's. It was one of their friend's 30th Birthday celebrations so we just tagged along! They had a back pool table area rented out which was very nice as it was crowwwded! And apparantely before we got there, the reserved area next to it had some Chicago Bears there! Including Devin Hester?!?! WHA?
Humor
We put all out TiVo'd SNL's on a DVD so it was like a trip down Humor Lane with the different skits that were obsessions at one time or another!
Aww...That's Nice!
We took a Curly Day on Friday! Nothing special, just did a bunch of laundry and watched TiVo stuff! It's fun that we still enjoy each other's company and can entertain each other in our little condo all day!
20-Second T.O.
YIPPIE!
Imagine that...there was no alcohol involved...therefore no fights! Sheesh...
WEEK #20: March 30 - April 5, 2008
Home Cookin'
Dominick's Fish Fillets - Pacific Cod & Tilapia w/Uncle Ben's 90-second rice & corn
This was for Katie's visit! While this is not hard to make - it's actually very quick and easy - but it does serve like a real meal :)
Social Butterflies
Friday Night
Katie visited! We had the aforementioned dinner then played some Guitar Hero and hung out. I randomly got drunk off of a bottle of wine and an overly strong Mai Tai I drunkenly made :( so the details are a little blurry!
Saturday
We stopped at Starbucks for COFFEE TALK which was really just me slumped over on the chair trying not to vom and taking 2 trips to the bathroom while Katie was on the phone with Firestone trying to get her car fixed!
Humor
In my drunken state on Friday night, I read an email binder I had put together for Tim a few years ago. It was a collection of Tim's email sentences where he said "and stuff" at the end. It's a HOOT!
Aww...That's Nice!
Katie gets included in this too! We waited in the hospital for 5 hours awaiting baby Bianca Elle Simon's arrival! Tim AND Katie were so sweet and patient :) Tim was very buddy-buddy as usual with Nicolas!
20-Second T.O.
Katie was witness to this one! WOW Katie, you're all over this blog!
I drank too much wine on Friday as mentioned, and in the process I got really hyper and overly ADD and chatty. So it made the usual annoyance of me interrupting Tim in conversations (seriously, i don't mean to but my mind races all fast and I'm constantly thinking of more things to say or being distracted that I just can't control it sometimes!)
So Tim was extremely annoyed and left the room! So then *I* was annoyed that he had to take it to that level with Katie there and we ended up whisper-fighting in the hallway while Katie sat in the living room trying NOT to overhear ;)
Dominick's Fish Fillets - Pacific Cod & Tilapia w/Uncle Ben's 90-second rice & corn
This was for Katie's visit! While this is not hard to make - it's actually very quick and easy - but it does serve like a real meal :)
Social Butterflies
Friday Night
Katie visited! We had the aforementioned dinner then played some Guitar Hero and hung out. I randomly got drunk off of a bottle of wine and an overly strong Mai Tai I drunkenly made :( so the details are a little blurry!
Saturday
We stopped at Starbucks for COFFEE TALK which was really just me slumped over on the chair trying not to vom and taking 2 trips to the bathroom while Katie was on the phone with Firestone trying to get her car fixed!
Humor
In my drunken state on Friday night, I read an email binder I had put together for Tim a few years ago. It was a collection of Tim's email sentences where he said "and stuff" at the end. It's a HOOT!
Aww...That's Nice!
Katie gets included in this too! We waited in the hospital for 5 hours awaiting baby Bianca Elle Simon's arrival! Tim AND Katie were so sweet and patient :) Tim was very buddy-buddy as usual with Nicolas!
20-Second T.O.
Katie was witness to this one! WOW Katie, you're all over this blog!
I drank too much wine on Friday as mentioned, and in the process I got really hyper and overly ADD and chatty. So it made the usual annoyance of me interrupting Tim in conversations (seriously, i don't mean to but my mind races all fast and I'm constantly thinking of more things to say or being distracted that I just can't control it sometimes!)
So Tim was extremely annoyed and left the room! So then *I* was annoyed that he had to take it to that level with Katie there and we ended up whisper-fighting in the hallway while Katie sat in the living room trying NOT to overhear ;)
WEEK #19: March 23 - 29, 2008 continued...
Awww...That's Nice!
On our way into the city on Saturday, we had a very extensive conversation about Katie & John's now-defunct relationship. (which was great b/c we barely realized we were stuck in traffice barely moving for nearly 20 minutes!)
It's so nice that Tim cares this much about my friends, and that my friends are his friends. And that he's a guy who is ok to discuss relationships and is able to take the "girls" side since a lot of Katie & John's major issues were commitment/marriage, etc. So I think there's a lot of guys when the topic of marriage is brought up might roll their eyes and think of the girl as just greedy for a diamond!
So it made me happy that Tim was cool in this conversation b/c we too butted heads several times in the months leading up to OUR engagement where I would always worry Tim was thinking I was just one of "those girls" who just wants a big rock and a fancy wedding, instead of the true meaning BEHIND the big rock and fancy wedding :)
20-Second T.O.
Alright. We've got a trend going on. The drive back from Ellen's is just far too long and boring and we are too tired b/c I think EVERY time we've gotten into some sort of argument!
This time we were discussing the night and I said something about how Tim was like one drink shy of being drunk where it bothers me - but he took it as me SAYING I thought he was drunk so he got all defensive and then we just didn't talk for like 10min on the rest of the drive home. And I was so frustrated that I even slept on the futon that night! Tim didn't even know b/c he had gone straight to bed when we got home and passed out immediately. So the next morning he came in and we made up and were curly.
This needs to stop happening!!!
On our way into the city on Saturday, we had a very extensive conversation about Katie & John's now-defunct relationship. (which was great b/c we barely realized we were stuck in traffice barely moving for nearly 20 minutes!)
It's so nice that Tim cares this much about my friends, and that my friends are his friends. And that he's a guy who is ok to discuss relationships and is able to take the "girls" side since a lot of Katie & John's major issues were commitment/marriage, etc. So I think there's a lot of guys when the topic of marriage is brought up might roll their eyes and think of the girl as just greedy for a diamond!
So it made me happy that Tim was cool in this conversation b/c we too butted heads several times in the months leading up to OUR engagement where I would always worry Tim was thinking I was just one of "those girls" who just wants a big rock and a fancy wedding, instead of the true meaning BEHIND the big rock and fancy wedding :)
20-Second T.O.
Alright. We've got a trend going on. The drive back from Ellen's is just far too long and boring and we are too tired b/c I think EVERY time we've gotten into some sort of argument!
This time we were discussing the night and I said something about how Tim was like one drink shy of being drunk where it bothers me - but he took it as me SAYING I thought he was drunk so he got all defensive and then we just didn't talk for like 10min on the rest of the drive home. And I was so frustrated that I even slept on the futon that night! Tim didn't even know b/c he had gone straight to bed when we got home and passed out immediately. So the next morning he came in and we made up and were curly.
This needs to stop happening!!!
Thursday, April 17, 2008
Week #19: March 23 - 29, 2008
Home Cookin
SAUSAGE! and veggies! This is a very basic meal, but something neither of us have had since we were kids! Specifically we had smoked turkey sausage :)
Social Butterflies
Easter Sunday
My mom spent the night, so in the morning we got ready and went to 11am Mass. After that we went to Entourage in Schaumburg www.entourageventures.com for Easter Brunch! OMG so good, I love brunch! We all had a few mimosas and 2 full plates of food. We were sad we couldn't eat more!
After that we went to Pat & Lorie's to visit, since Lorie wasn't going ANYWHERE being uber pregnant...so we just visited with the kids. Bella's new favorite movie was Bee Movie they had just gotten that week so she kept *yelling* at me to watch it and pointing out various things!
THEN we headed into Elmwood Park to Tim's Grandparents O'Neill's house. His one aunt's family had already left and the other set were getting ready to leave, which is normally the case b/c they are usually our last stop on holidays. But then it's nice b/c we sit and visit with his grandparents!
Saturday - Szymon's baby
The following Saturday, we headed to the South Side to see Szymon (groomsman) & his wife Ewa's new baby girl Isabela! We saw her for a little bit, but most of the time was Tim & Szymon playing some video game while I read a Parenting magazine?!?! But we did get to walk around in the house he's building next door to his and can I just say....I wish Tim was a rich Polish guy working for his parents' real estate company!!!
Saturday - Brad's 30th Birthday @ Mickey's
After Szymon's we headed to Bucktown for Brad's 30th Birthday celebration at the bar, Mickey's, two doors down from his and Ellen's place! We played a lot of video game bowling and there were like 5 crock pots full of yummy stuff!
SAUSAGE! and veggies! This is a very basic meal, but something neither of us have had since we were kids! Specifically we had smoked turkey sausage :)
Social Butterflies
Easter Sunday
My mom spent the night, so in the morning we got ready and went to 11am Mass. After that we went to Entourage in Schaumburg www.entourageventures.com for Easter Brunch! OMG so good, I love brunch! We all had a few mimosas and 2 full plates of food. We were sad we couldn't eat more!
After that we went to Pat & Lorie's to visit, since Lorie wasn't going ANYWHERE being uber pregnant...so we just visited with the kids. Bella's new favorite movie was Bee Movie they had just gotten that week so she kept *yelling* at me to watch it and pointing out various things!
THEN we headed into Elmwood Park to Tim's Grandparents O'Neill's house. His one aunt's family had already left and the other set were getting ready to leave, which is normally the case b/c they are usually our last stop on holidays. But then it's nice b/c we sit and visit with his grandparents!
Saturday - Szymon's baby
The following Saturday, we headed to the South Side to see Szymon (groomsman) & his wife Ewa's new baby girl Isabela! We saw her for a little bit, but most of the time was Tim & Szymon playing some video game while I read a Parenting magazine?!?! But we did get to walk around in the house he's building next door to his and can I just say....I wish Tim was a rich Polish guy working for his parents' real estate company!!!
Saturday - Brad's 30th Birthday @ Mickey's
After Szymon's we headed to Bucktown for Brad's 30th Birthday celebration at the bar, Mickey's, two doors down from his and Ellen's place! We played a lot of video game bowling and there were like 5 crock pots full of yummy stuff!
Friday, April 11, 2008
WEEK #17: March 16 - 22, 2008
Home Cookin'
We made tacos again! yum!
Social Butterflies
Easter Festivities
We went over to Tim's mom's in the afternoon/early evening for "Easter", even though it was Holy Saturday because our Easter Sunday was too packed. John's kids - Emily, Joe & Tony were there along with John's ex-wife Karen and her adopted Russian daughter Rory (talk about "modern-day family tree", huh?)...Uncle Ed was there of course. We played video games with Bob & Nick (tim's 1/2 brothers - our ring bearers) and hid Easter eggs for the kids to find. Then had yummy ham, pineapple casserole that is uber yum and som various other dishes.
We left about 6pm to meet my mom at our condo, as she had been hanging out at Pat & Lorie's for the day. So she came over and we watched the Marquette NCAA playoff game and then made her play Guitar Hero. She wasn't too good and it took a few rounds to even do it right, and then she got really close to finishing 'Slow Ride' on Easy :)
After playing that for a reaaaally long time we played The 80's Game, and my mom & Tim were neck and neck until we decided to call it a night at 1am after like 2-3hrs of playing! Whoa!
Humor
I emailed Tim an Evite for our scheduled "Curly Day" on Friday, April 11! Not sure if you can see this link - there's some TMI, but it's funny. And yes, those are our cats also on the guest list :) http://www.evite.com/pages/invite/viewInvite.jsp?inviteId=UETOTZGFXYRMTYOTWIXQ
Aww...That's Nice
It was really adorable when we were trying to teach my mom Guitar Hero. B/c she can be clueless with stuff like that, it's almost like we were teaching a 6yr old! And we were both speaking in like *soothing, encouraging tones?? It was a cozy night :)
20-Second T.O.
NONE!
We made tacos again! yum!
Social Butterflies
Easter Festivities
We went over to Tim's mom's in the afternoon/early evening for "Easter", even though it was Holy Saturday because our Easter Sunday was too packed. John's kids - Emily, Joe & Tony were there along with John's ex-wife Karen and her adopted Russian daughter Rory (talk about "modern-day family tree", huh?)...Uncle Ed was there of course. We played video games with Bob & Nick (tim's 1/2 brothers - our ring bearers) and hid Easter eggs for the kids to find. Then had yummy ham, pineapple casserole that is uber yum and som various other dishes.
We left about 6pm to meet my mom at our condo, as she had been hanging out at Pat & Lorie's for the day. So she came over and we watched the Marquette NCAA playoff game and then made her play Guitar Hero. She wasn't too good and it took a few rounds to even do it right, and then she got really close to finishing 'Slow Ride' on Easy :)
After playing that for a reaaaally long time we played The 80's Game, and my mom & Tim were neck and neck until we decided to call it a night at 1am after like 2-3hrs of playing! Whoa!
Humor
I emailed Tim an Evite for our scheduled "Curly Day" on Friday, April 11! Not sure if you can see this link - there's some TMI, but it's funny. And yes, those are our cats also on the guest list :) http://www.evite.com/pages/invite/viewInvite.jsp?inviteId=UETOTZGFXYRMTYOTWIXQ
Aww...That's Nice
It was really adorable when we were trying to teach my mom Guitar Hero. B/c she can be clueless with stuff like that, it's almost like we were teaching a 6yr old! And we were both speaking in like *soothing, encouraging tones?? It was a cozy night :)
20-Second T.O.
NONE!
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
MONTH #4 continued again
Recap
Month #4 was much more tame than month #3 as we wrapped up all of our party hosting with our Friends Game Night.
We started with what coule be our next "step" - a new home! And had a money-high, then a financial low. But we're still on a good track. I'm looking forward to the improvements we will have made by summer.
Marriage Epiphany
The life plan.
Everyone ends up on one somehow. It may be planned way ahead or day-by-day. Some people stay on the path they chose from high school on, and life allows it. Some people in their 30s wake up and wonder "how the hell did I get here?" - and others spend their life carefully planning every step in their life and waiting until all the stars align to make that step.
Which is the right way? Which is the best way?
Like so many things in life, my guess is somewhere in the middle!
The next stop in our life is a bigger home and children. Now, it would be smart to pay off our thousands of dollars in debt, save up thousands of dollars for a big down-payment...but in my calculations that would probably take us 3-5yrs at least! Putting us at age 32-33 and being in our little 2bdrm condo for up to 7yrs and no children! So does that mean we shouldn't take this step until then?
Take a step back adn we shouldn't have gotten married then until we could have paid cash upfront for it. If we did that, our wedding would have been a ceremony followed by a pot-luck and catered Subway in the church basement with my iPod as the DJ!
One step further back and we shouldn't have bought the condo until we had 20% down. But if we lived our life as option 3, we wouldn't be engaged for another 2years, we wouldn't have the condo for another 5yrs, we wouldn't have children for 5yrs after that! Doing the math, that's us at age 40! And chances are, it would be too late for us!
We didn't have an extravagant wedding by any means, but we did more than we could afford cash-upfront, hence our CC debt! If we woulda just had the potluck mentioned above, I/we would have regretted that for the rest of our lives -not having "our" wedding, much more than we regret the debt we are in now (it's a bummer, but no regret!).
My point is - we are born before we are ready to be out of the womb, we walk befroe we know how to break our fall, we talk before we have anything important to say. I fell in love before I knew love could fail, I had sex before I was mature enough to handle the consequences and I drank before I had control of myself.
So I'm saying that sometimes life happens and you get everything you hoped, prayed and dreamed for right when you want it! sometimes life just happens and it takes you along for the ride. And sometimes you have to make life happen. Take the step when you know down that path, you'll be able to make that path stronger and cleaner as you go. If you want something bad enough, you make it happen and that just ushers in all that life that is just waiting to happen down the road.
And it's just waiting for you to get through that intersection...
Month #4 was much more tame than month #3 as we wrapped up all of our party hosting with our Friends Game Night.
We started with what coule be our next "step" - a new home! And had a money-high, then a financial low. But we're still on a good track. I'm looking forward to the improvements we will have made by summer.
Marriage Epiphany
The life plan.
Everyone ends up on one somehow. It may be planned way ahead or day-by-day. Some people stay on the path they chose from high school on, and life allows it. Some people in their 30s wake up and wonder "how the hell did I get here?" - and others spend their life carefully planning every step in their life and waiting until all the stars align to make that step.
Which is the right way? Which is the best way?
Like so many things in life, my guess is somewhere in the middle!
The next stop in our life is a bigger home and children. Now, it would be smart to pay off our thousands of dollars in debt, save up thousands of dollars for a big down-payment...but in my calculations that would probably take us 3-5yrs at least! Putting us at age 32-33 and being in our little 2bdrm condo for up to 7yrs and no children! So does that mean we shouldn't take this step until then?
Take a step back adn we shouldn't have gotten married then until we could have paid cash upfront for it. If we did that, our wedding would have been a ceremony followed by a pot-luck and catered Subway in the church basement with my iPod as the DJ!
One step further back and we shouldn't have bought the condo until we had 20% down. But if we lived our life as option 3, we wouldn't be engaged for another 2years, we wouldn't have the condo for another 5yrs, we wouldn't have children for 5yrs after that! Doing the math, that's us at age 40! And chances are, it would be too late for us!
We didn't have an extravagant wedding by any means, but we did more than we could afford cash-upfront, hence our CC debt! If we woulda just had the potluck mentioned above, I/we would have regretted that for the rest of our lives -not having "our" wedding, much more than we regret the debt we are in now (it's a bummer, but no regret!).
My point is - we are born before we are ready to be out of the womb, we walk befroe we know how to break our fall, we talk before we have anything important to say. I fell in love before I knew love could fail, I had sex before I was mature enough to handle the consequences and I drank before I had control of myself.
So I'm saying that sometimes life happens and you get everything you hoped, prayed and dreamed for right when you want it! sometimes life just happens and it takes you along for the ride. And sometimes you have to make life happen. Take the step when you know down that path, you'll be able to make that path stronger and cleaner as you go. If you want something bad enough, you make it happen and that just ushers in all that life that is just waiting to happen down the road.
And it's just waiting for you to get through that intersection...
MONTH #4 continued...
That's Hilaaarious!
Fucking Matt Damon and Ben Affleck videos and references...calling potholes "Vampires"...and our cat Pebbles, being called Pebbles J. Moose resurfaced as hilarious!
To top it all off was the SAUSAGE exclamations at random times, shouting it throughout our condo!
Good Talk
Well, a few weeks ago I started wanting to check out Open Houses - as noted in my Week #15 entry. After a few non-existent Open Houses we attempted to go to, we finally saw two -one was "just a condo" - a larger version of what we have, 3 bdms, but still that condo feel so we weren't that excited. Then we saw one in Addison that was everything we are looking for - 2 stories, plus full finished basement, 3 bdms, 2 1/2 bath, backyard w/deck, but only a one-car garage (it's pretty much impossible it seems to find all this with 2-car garage in our price range!). It would be $500 more a month. So while possibly do-able, if we can do some damage to our debt in the coming months. But since we liked it so much and it is somewhat in reach, it got us talking seriously about finances (not joking that someone will just give us $10K or we'll win it, or just bitching about how poor we are). So it made me feel good that we will be very responsible when it comes time to sell and buy!
The Good Life
Retraction!!!
I got my tax return right away, but Tim's was delayed. so he called to check and we had done our taxes wrong! It WAS only one return to file jointly like we had originally thought, but we hadn't noticed a place to enter both of our information - so we both filed. Well, we did NOT get $7K total. Instead, we got MY tax return amount, minus $400. So while it's great that I paid my car off, I now owe Tim $1600 which is half. AND I had to pay $400 in taxes back. So instead of being all excited to put my extra $230/month from my car payment to pay down our Wedding CC, that is now delayed a couple months as I need to pay $2K total back to taxes and to Tim :(
Band
I joined a community band again! It is the Spring Valley Concert Band in Schaumburg www.scvb.net . So while this isn't really "good" for Tim...he gets a night a week at home to have the place to himself sort of. And it's just one more *thing for us to do. I have a concert this weekend, and I like having *activities in my life, especially back to music, which is the core of my creativeness and pretty much has shaped my entire life!
Daily Cat Care for P.A.C.T.
In February, after starting my new job, I wanted to do something with all my extra time from my shorter commute. So I joined the band and also googled around to volunteer at an animal shelter! I found PACT which is a non-profit, all-volunteer no-kill animal shelter. They partner with PetSmart who gives them a room in the store for the cat cages and let's us use supplies - food, litter, etc. So my "job" is either weekday evenings or weekend mornings, I go into the store and clean out each kitty cage! This involves dumping and washing their litter boxes, rinsing out food dishes and giving them food, shaking out the towels/bed/blankets that are in their cage and replacing dirty ones as needed - and spending as much time playing with the kitties, petting them, brushing them, etc. It really warms my heart! Some of them are so timid, they won't come out of their cage, but if I take a few minutes and let them sniff my hand, etc they really warm up - and it warms my heart!
No, I will not be bringing any kitties home...2 is enough! But I can at least do this. I know it's not helping society, and I'm not necessarily helping people - but this is the type of volunteering I want to do b/c kitties are God's little helpless creatures (as my dad used to say!) and so I want to protect them. It's even more heartbreaking - the older kitties that aren't all cute and playful that have been there for awhile. The general public isn't going to want them. So that's why I've decided that every other cat Tim & I have in our life will be an older one from a shelter! B/c even right now, we have Pebbles - a cat pretty much the general public and even most cat lovers would NOT want with her attacking your hand all the time, etc...and then we have Colby Jack who would be adopted in like 2 seconds. So yea!! My cats always live forever, and Pebs is *only* 15 yrs old...so we've got like 5yrs til we can save a kitty :)
Fucking Matt Damon and Ben Affleck videos and references...calling potholes "Vampires"...and our cat Pebbles, being called Pebbles J. Moose resurfaced as hilarious!
To top it all off was the SAUSAGE exclamations at random times, shouting it throughout our condo!
Good Talk
Well, a few weeks ago I started wanting to check out Open Houses - as noted in my Week #15 entry. After a few non-existent Open Houses we attempted to go to, we finally saw two -one was "just a condo" - a larger version of what we have, 3 bdms, but still that condo feel so we weren't that excited. Then we saw one in Addison that was everything we are looking for - 2 stories, plus full finished basement, 3 bdms, 2 1/2 bath, backyard w/deck, but only a one-car garage (it's pretty much impossible it seems to find all this with 2-car garage in our price range!). It would be $500 more a month. So while possibly do-able, if we can do some damage to our debt in the coming months. But since we liked it so much and it is somewhat in reach, it got us talking seriously about finances (not joking that someone will just give us $10K or we'll win it, or just bitching about how poor we are). So it made me feel good that we will be very responsible when it comes time to sell and buy!
The Good Life
Retraction!!!
I got my tax return right away, but Tim's was delayed. so he called to check and we had done our taxes wrong! It WAS only one return to file jointly like we had originally thought, but we hadn't noticed a place to enter both of our information - so we both filed. Well, we did NOT get $7K total. Instead, we got MY tax return amount, minus $400. So while it's great that I paid my car off, I now owe Tim $1600 which is half. AND I had to pay $400 in taxes back. So instead of being all excited to put my extra $230/month from my car payment to pay down our Wedding CC, that is now delayed a couple months as I need to pay $2K total back to taxes and to Tim :(
Band
I joined a community band again! It is the Spring Valley Concert Band in Schaumburg www.scvb.net . So while this isn't really "good" for Tim...he gets a night a week at home to have the place to himself sort of. And it's just one more *thing for us to do. I have a concert this weekend, and I like having *activities in my life, especially back to music, which is the core of my creativeness and pretty much has shaped my entire life!
Daily Cat Care for P.A.C.T.
In February, after starting my new job, I wanted to do something with all my extra time from my shorter commute. So I joined the band and also googled around to volunteer at an animal shelter! I found PACT which is a non-profit, all-volunteer no-kill animal shelter. They partner with PetSmart who gives them a room in the store for the cat cages and let's us use supplies - food, litter, etc. So my "job" is either weekday evenings or weekend mornings, I go into the store and clean out each kitty cage! This involves dumping and washing their litter boxes, rinsing out food dishes and giving them food, shaking out the towels/bed/blankets that are in their cage and replacing dirty ones as needed - and spending as much time playing with the kitties, petting them, brushing them, etc. It really warms my heart! Some of them are so timid, they won't come out of their cage, but if I take a few minutes and let them sniff my hand, etc they really warm up - and it warms my heart!
No, I will not be bringing any kitties home...2 is enough! But I can at least do this. I know it's not helping society, and I'm not necessarily helping people - but this is the type of volunteering I want to do b/c kitties are God's little helpless creatures (as my dad used to say!) and so I want to protect them. It's even more heartbreaking - the older kitties that aren't all cute and playful that have been there for awhile. The general public isn't going to want them. So that's why I've decided that every other cat Tim & I have in our life will be an older one from a shelter! B/c even right now, we have Pebbles - a cat pretty much the general public and even most cat lovers would NOT want with her attacking your hand all the time, etc...and then we have Colby Jack who would be adopted in like 2 seconds. So yea!! My cats always live forever, and Pebs is *only* 15 yrs old...so we've got like 5yrs til we can save a kitty :)
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