My Wisconsin Weekend

Happy Monday. I hope your day wasn't too taxing. I think Mondays are the hardest after a vacation, because I feel like I need a vacation day from my vacation. Plus it didn't help that it was raining and gray this morning. My motivation was almost zero.

My vacation was nice but if you ever been to the Wisconsin Dells, you know it's a "family friendly" town. And by "family friendly" I mean "cheesy" (and not just because it's Wisconsin- lol). However, we had a good time anyway.

When I say "we", there was a group of four of us who went on this trip. Here are players of the adventure.

There was myself (not the best picture of me) and Cathy- who was one of my bridesmaids and the person who planned this trip.

And there was Jenny (Cathy's cousin) and Steve (Cathy's best friend), who both went to high school with Cathy and I.  

For our first day in the Dell we did a lot of shopping (outlet mall = awesome deals!), enjoyed a good dinner, and did some drinking.

One of the most important things we learned while in the Dell's- that they don't sell liquor after 9:00pm. So what is a bunch of 20-somethings to do when the liquor stores are closed? Answer: A bar crawl around the hotel- duh! Drinking + no driving = perfect idea! We only made it to three of the six bars before everything closed for the night, but I'll call it a success anyway.

On Saturday, our group split up so we could do our own thing for a while. Steve and I went to the water parks that were connected to our hotel, while Cathy and Jenny painted pottery. Later, we met up with each other to go to dinner and then we just hung out and played games all night.

I have to say my favorite parts of the trip was on Sunday when we went out for breakfast. We went to this place called "Paul Bunyan's". It was an all you can eat, served family style place.

The food was good, but the donuts... the donuts were amazing!!! They come out warm and fresh, they were so good that I had to have two. (Don't judge me- I was on vacation and you were there you would completely understand.)

Also, on Sunday we made a stop a this very cute independently owned shop called "Cranberry Connection" where I got two different type of cranberry based lotions and dried cranberries.

I had that bag of cranberries opened and started eating them before I even got to the car. The cransberries were really good and the lotion feel really nice on the skin. I'm glad I treated myself to these little extras.

Finally, on our way home we made one last stop per Cathy's request to "Pita Pete's". It on the Northern Illinois University campus, which is where Steve used to go to college. Cathy loves this place so we just had to stop.

At "Pita Pete's" you pick your pita (the main meat you want in it) and then you pick all your fillings. It's kind of like the Subway or Chipotle of pitas. I got the "Fajitas Pita" which was fajita seasoned steak meat with lettuce, corn, black beans, and sour cream. It was pretty tasty, I only wished I would have gotten grilled onions and peppers added to the mix- oh well.

All in all- it was a great weekend. It's nice to get away sometimes, and I think there will be a lot more weekend road trip in store for me this summer.

Our 6 Month Anniversay!

I can't believe that 6 months has past since Sam and I got married. Time has gone by so fast.

 (The cover of our wedding album!)

I had a great weekend (and I'll tell you all about it tomorrow) but it was nice to come home and spend some quality time with the husband. For our anniversary we went to dinner and did some food shopping. It has been a great easy night. 

I hope everyone had a great weekend!

A Much Needed Break

I know I have taken a break from blogging for bit, but that's mostly because my real life has been pretty busy. For a girl who has gotten use to just working Mon-Fri. adding work to both Saturday and Sunday just pooped this girl out. However, I'm taking a long weekend to make up for the lack of weekend I got last week.

For my 3 day weekend, I'm making to most of it and taking a girls trip to the Wisconsin Dells. We are staying at an indoor water park resort, which will be interesting. I only ever been to the Dells once and that was 10 years ago. I all I hope for this week is a chance to get some rest, to relax, and to have a good time. I'll be sure to share some pics.   

I hope everyone has a great weekend!

Happy Blog Anniversary!

I really can't believe I started this little blog a year ago today! However many things have changed since that very first blog.

When I first started this blog I had just moved home a few months earlier for a part-time/ temporary job at the local community college.

 

I'm grateful for the opportunity to work at one of my alma maters and to get a job in my field of study. However, I knew this job wouldn't last because it was funded by grant money and the grant was almost up. So I kept job hunting until I was lucky enough to find my current job at another local university. 

 

 

I have to say finding a full time job with benefits and not having to relocate was a blessing that I'm so grateful for. Being able to still live at home, Sam and I were able to save a lot money to go towards our wedding which wouldn't have been nearly as nice if we were more strapped for cash.

We were able to invite everyone that was on our guest list, host a really fun reception, and even have offer a second reception in Michigan to my family who couldn't make it to Chicago.

The Michigan reception was nice because Sam was able to meet a lot of my family and friends I grew up with. Plus, our Michigan reception was very low-keyed so we actually were able to talk to people and get caught up.

It was nice that I got to reuse my wedding shower dress and any time I get with my grandma and family is a good time.

Now that all the wedding stuff is finally starting to wrap up- I'm starting to move into this next chapter of our lives. Currently, we are still waiting to hear back about the house we put an offer on a few months ago but I really hope we hear some news soon.

I feel like once we are finally moved out of our parents' homes, we'll really start feeling like a married couple and start our own routine. It's hard to feel like a married when you see your parents everyday and don't feel like you have your own space, but that's the trade off to save money.

I want to thank all my readers for following me on this crazy journey that I call "life". There has been a few bumps in the road, but I feel very blessed over all. I have my health, my family, my friends and there not much more a girl could ask for (maybe just a house).

Here's to another great year of "Living, Laughing, and Loving My Life!"