One Year Wedding Anniversary

Where did that year go? Seems like not too long ago I was running around Omaha gathering up supplies for our wedding or calling/texting my sister and mom several times a day to finalize all the details. It was a fun, hectic and amazing time that I sometimes wish I could go back to but then I think of the love that has grown between Alex and I in just one year! I can't wait to see what the next five, ten, and fifty years brings!

We celebrated by relaxing together on the weekend which is something that we actually rarely do with our work schedules or traveling different places to see family or friends. 

After my 5K race  I came home to make homemade "Sweet Swine" pizza and watch the Packers game with Alex.

 Unfortunately the Packers lost but that wasn't spoiling our Anniversary day ;) Alex's mom stopped by to drop off a lovely house plant and a thoughtful card. 

Alex's "I don't know what to do with it" face

Even though the pizza was really simple to make, I was ready to have someone else make us dinner so we headed out west to one of Alex's favorite restaurants Kona Grill. 

Of course I wanted any excuse to wear a dress so Alex was forced to put on some dress clothes too. After ordering their delicious edamame and crab crunch rolls it was time for the main course! The waiter talked Alex into getting the pork loin and I had the house favorite macadamia nut chicken. 

"Lets take a picture in front of the fish!"

Both were delicious and left us very full but not too full to forget about dessert! We took some banana cream pie home for later and I reluctantly "shared" dessert with Alex. We are both bad at keeping surprises so we had exchanged gifts the day before and actually got each other THE SAME THING! So I guess with only one year into marriage we know each other pretty well ;) I checked my email Saturday night (not thinking there would be a gift waiting for me among all the junk mail) and I was excited to see a one hour massage! 

Night at the Theater

Hey everyone! Hope you are having a splendid weekend. Wanted to share about my adventures last night! Alex, Jack, Fidel and I went to World War Z at Aksarben Theater and then went to Ponzu for some sushi. Alex and Fidel have been missing out on their quality time together because school is out so it was great to finally reunite them after a month of not seeing each other! Fidel's mom dropped him off at the theater after we stopped and got some snacks at the gas station to smuggle into the theater (everyone does that right??) I had only seen a brief preview of the movie and was excited to see what all the talk was about (oh and Brad Pitt isn't bad on the big screen either) Since we sat in the handicap area at the front of the theater we were right in the action and I jumped several times! The movie had a lot of great stuff that is interesting like epidemics, zombies and oh yeah Brad Pitt ;)

 I thought the movie was pretty smart and also had some great scenery because part of the movie took place in Jerusalem. I would love to go there some day just to see all the history and be right in the setting of the Bible! I won't give away to much of the movie because I recommend you go check it out for yourself but it was one of those movies where the entire audience clapped at the end! Plus Jack said while we were walking around Aksarben that he felt like people were going to come up and bite him..Haha! 

After the movie we strolled around the area and even were at the front gates of the Gay Pride Celebration that was happening there. The music sounded like a lot of fun and we kept teasing Alex that he should go in there to see if he would get hit on ;) It didn't help matters that he was wearing a colorful tank to show of his muscles! Fidel thought our jokes were hilarious and missed poking fun at Alex like he would everyday in school. We were hungry and the only place open at 10:30 pm was a sushi place so we had some edamame and lobster ragoons to start off with. Fidel had never had edamame before so Alex showed him how to eat it which was pretty cute because Fidel didn't quite understand how to get the bean out of the pod.

Alex and Fidel shared a steak and french fries and Jack ordered the nasty seaweed stuff which turned out to be not that bad ;) I tried a couple of the tuna sushi rolls and Fidel tried sushi for the first time and enjoyed the ones with avocado! 

Best Buds!!

If you remember this post  I shared about Fidel and his back surgery. Fidel recently had a follow-up appointment and the doctors said he was doing great. His mom even shared this photo of the before and after x-rays and it is pretty remarkable to see! Medicine is truly amazing and I'm so glad to hear Fidel say "I feel great" when he talks about life after his surgery. Him and his mom want to go and talk to other kids with muscular dystrophy that are trying to decide whether or not to have surgery so they can tell their story about his great outcome! He is such a thoughtful kid and an inspiration to so many!!

BIG Difference!!

Curing NOtivation

Sometimes after working 3 twelve hour night shifts in a row by my fourth day I just want to veg out on the couch with a frozen pizza and watch some reality tv but I know my waist line wont thank me for that later! Everyday and every meal I'm thinking about my health and even though I sometimes don't always make the right choices I still consider myself a healthy person and strive for that silhouette I have in mind for my body!

 

 

I think that my goal towards a in shape body comes from my many years in dance. Every since I was 4 years old I have been in a studio lined with mirror walls, leotards and tights that leave little to the imagination. My dance teacher always motivated us to be confident and proud of our "ballerina posture" and explained that it is completely normal for a dancer to glass at her reflection in a shop window every time she passes one by because we are always aware of our bodies.  I am so grateful that I have this dancer mentality and dedication to hard work is something that will never go unnoticed.

I ran track for a couple years in high school but always cursed running when I was younger. It wasn't until I wasn't told how far I had to run or how long I had to run that I really started enjoying running. Now I strive for that runner's high and am always looking for the next 5k to sign up for. This summer I'm excited to even do my first 10k and have set up weekly mile goals so that I can finish the race strong. There are a few things that I attribute to "Curing NOtivation"...

 

 

My Husband //  I mean we met at a gym so you know the guy is fit ;) He usually works out about 4 -5 times a week and eats relatively healthy. He is a great motivator to keep the junk food out of the house and go for a run instead of sit on the couch. I also used to despise running in hot weather. If it was warmer than 80 degrees there was no way I was running until the sun went down. But now after he has pushed me to run laps in 90+ degree weather I have come to enjoy the nice sweat I get out of it! And I love doing fun things like Mud Runs or Warrior Dashes with him. He is my own personal trainer and will give me encouragement when I am feeling to tired to go on.

 

Pictures // yes this may seem a little superficial but all women do it, they like to look nice in photos. Us girls pose in certain ways, make sure there is the right lighting or angle just so we don't look half bad in a picture. In photos I take I want to look back on them and remember that moment rather than focusing on how chubby my stomach looked.

 

My Career // I am a nurse so promoting health and wellness is my business card! I see my patients struggle with Diabetes, COPD and congestive heart failure....all of which get worse with added weight gain. Nursing is a stressful occupation but I don't want to use the excuse that I don't have time to workout or eat right because I have a difficult job.

 

 

Healthy Competition // Keeping up with my friends and my sister when they are working out is a big motivator. One of my sister and I's favorite things to do together is run or any type of workout that we find on Pinterest. When she is home on holiday breaks we try and at least one workout together and we are always sharing our daily exercises together so that we can motivate the other to keep hittin up the gym!

 

Chocolate // pretty self explanitory... I workout so I can eat what I want and not feel AS guilty about it. Yes I would probably see more results if I didn't endulge in the occational brownie here and there but what fun would that be!

 

 



I know it's Not {Tuesday Topics}

Hey everyone, I know that I'm a little behind but I found this a few days late so I'm going back in time for a {Tuesday Topics} post on a Thursday night. I found this topic list from a fellow nurse blogger named Lauren also and really liked all the ideas :)

Ten: Things that make you happy

Well I can think of a lot more than ten but I will save you the long list and just tell you a few! 

1 // Jesus! My heart sings for Him and I know the creator of the Heavens has my life in His hands. I really don't know how people go through life without faith and I'm not about to try and find out!! I rely on God for so many things and pray to Him often during times of fear, anxiety, and blessings! If you have any questions about The Man Upstairs..feel free to ask me :)

2 // My Family Another easy one, they make me over filled with Joy! They have shaped me into the woman I am today and have given me the best morals, childhood, and foundation that a girl could ask for! 

Love them to Pieces!

3 // My Husband I brag about my husband often because he does just make me so happy! He is a strong, caring man that does remarkable work with 2 kids that are handicapped and his second job also shows his amazing heart because he works at Omaha Home for Boys which is a place that helps troubled teen boys. He is a wonderful role-model for those kids and I'm so glad that God picked him to be my partner in life! I find the little things he says to me to be the sweetest even if it is just telling me to drive safe to work!

4 // Kobe Ok this lil fur ball just makes me giddy! He is so stinking cute and makes me laugh everyday. I love his split personality between cuddling with me while I sleep and trying to attack my wrist when he wants to play. He is a Siamese cat that has a lot of energy and climbs on the counters far too often but I have a hard time disciplining him when he looks at me with those precious blue eyes. 

5 // Coffee This is a must for a night shift nurse and I really do have an addiction to coffee. I crave it even when I am the slightest bit tired and give other nurses a funny look if they tell me they don't like coffee! My "usual" from Starbucks is a Grande Skinny Hazelnut Latte but if I'm in the area of 114th and Blondo I love to go to Foxhollow Coffee Shop by our old apartment building because I love the atmosphere there!

Of course I had to get a Latte on my Wedding day! Thanks to my Sister!!

6 // Sweating yes this one seems odd but there is nothing better than getting a great sweat going from an intense workout. Whether it be a zumba class or a job outside, I enjoy sweating and don't feel like I have really gotten a decent workout until a sweat through my sports bra. 

7 // Ice Cream me being the chocoholic that I am (my mom ate WAY too many sweets while I was in the womb!) I love a good blizzard from DQ or a big bowl of Blue Bunny Cookies & Cream Ice Cream. Did you know that I grew up 19 miles from the ice cream capital of the world?!? Living that close to the Wells Blue Bunny plant probably has something to do with my love of ice cream!

8 // Country Music Again this one reminds me of home! I love my pandora station of Country Hits and even though I would call myself a true hick (Alex would disagree) I still love a good country concert or listening to country radio whenever I'm traveling back to the farm. 

My Favs - Carrie Underwood, SheDaisy, Lady A.

9 // The King of Queens Probably one of my favorite shows (behind Friends and Boy Meets World) Kevin James is so hilarious and everything about this show makes me laugh out loud! It gets me through my nights of insomnia and is full of funny topics! Alex has a friend that reminds us of "Doug" and we always bring up episodes  to talk about whenever he is around! 

10 // Crafting Yeah I liked it so much I even opened an Etsy Shop because of it! I have enjoyed scrapbooking and creating gifts since as long as I can remember! It comes in handy when I want something with a special meaning to give to a friend or family member and after I finish a Pinterest project I get very very excited and can't wait to show everyone ;) 

Follow me Here

10 + 1 // My Friends I have been blessed with some pretty amazing women in my life that have been through with ups and downs with me! They are always up for a good time, make me laugh, and are there for me when I just need a hug! My favorite ladies (you know who you are) will continue to be my lifelong friends even as we get wrinkles and can no longer find an excuse to wear our 80's costumes!

    

~ Thankful Thursdays ~

Psalm 30:11-12 Thou hast turned for me my mourning into dancing; Thou hast loosed my sackcloth and girded me with gladness; That [my] soul may sing praise to Thee, and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give thanks to Thee forever.

I went to look up bible verses online that have to do with "thankfulness" and this one happened to be the first one that popped up. What a great reminder from God because Psalm 30:11-12 just so happens to be my confirmation verse :) Oh the little things! I can still remember flipping through my bible looking for a verse to have to commemorate my confirmation way back in my 8th grade. I wanted to find something that had to do with dance because it is so dear to me and I always thank God for my talent of being a dancer.

I wanted to write a short post of the things I'm thankful for Today. These are a list of both big and small blessings that make me want to shout to God how truly thankful I am for what He has given me right this moment in my life.

My Husband: As you can tell from my previous post we have a great relationship going on. And even on the hardest days of our marriage I am so very thankful that he is by my side. He is my encourager, protector, and best friend for life! He never lets me leave the house without saying "drive safe" and his hugs mean the world to me :)

Caribou Coffee: Since I have given up Starbucks for the month of June I have relied on brewing my coffee at home and I always choose Caribou. I got hooked on it while in Sioux City for college. I especially like the atmosphere in their coffee shops because it has a rustic cabin feel and am just sad there isn't one in Omaha...Who wants to open one up with me?!?!

My funny Patients: It never fails that I get a good laugh every shift at work. I like how my patients (usually) appreciate my humor and despite being ill they usually give me a few laughs. Sometimes they don't know (dementia patients) just how funny their comments really are. Today one of my patients' friends was talking about how the patient has to have catheters all the time in order to urinate. She said "And she can pee just like the big boys, even write her name in the snow!" Oh the funny image in my head!! Laughter really is the best medicine!

My Family: I know this seems like a given but I can't emphasize how much I adore my family and just how wonderful they are! My family is very close, I grew up on a farm and we always took a big family vacation every year which made for some interesting car rides. Each member of my family adds a perfect piece to the puzzle of my AMAZING family! My sister, who I am extremely proud of, had her first day at her Mayo internship and is also studying to be a nurse. My brother just graduated from high school with "high-achievement" and will go to ISU in the fall but more importantly he is a strong Christian guy that always makes me laugh! My mom is the sweetest person and even though she can have her "blonde moments" she really is one smart cookie! And my Dad is the Rock and Provider of the family. He works his farmer butt off so us kids can go to college but more importantly he has taught us values that you can't learn in any classroom. He raised us in a Christian family and has been my biggest supporter through every aspect of my life! (and even though I know he reads this blog I'm not just saying those things to get brownie points..haha)

Running: Whenever I go on a run I'm reminded that not everyone has the ability to run for miles and miles. There are people who don't have the money for tennis shoes or can't run because they have lost a limb. So I always try to run a few laps for them! God has given me this ability and even though sometimes I have a love-hate relationship with running I always feel great after my workout. I love that in the spring & summer I can multi-task by getting a tan and run in at the same time ;)

AAA CPC: I'm very thankful for my job at the pregnancy center and for the wonderful women I have met there! This job was just what I needed to fill some gaps in what I wanted as a nurse. I love that I can reach out to troubled women and have the best co-workers ever!

Kobe: I'm so thankful for this lil furball! He constantly makes me laugh by the way he plays fetch like a dog or goes spastic over birds outside. When I think about the horrible conditions he was in as a kitten I am so thankful that God crossed our paths and I was able to take him home and call him mine!

M&M's: Tonight at work I really wanted some chocolate so I went with good ol' M&M's and when I had my first taste of the yummy chocolates it instantly reminded me of times at my Great Grandma Marie's house. She always had a container of M&M's in her kitchen that was a go-to anytime we were there. It's funny how something as simple as the taste of that certain type of candy can send me back into the past! I still have memories of playing Chinese Checkers or taking a nap on her cough curled up in her afghan blankets. She was the sweetest most caring woman and you just felt better being in her company. I miss her a lot and like many Great Grandmothers she was the tie between two families that now rarely see eachother. We all adored holidays at Grandma Maries and she got such joy out of watching her grandchildren grow up!

Funny Moments from Our First Year {9 Months} of Marriage {Link Up}

Hello All!
 If your reading this from an area that does not have as beautiful weather as Omaha,NE today then I'm deeply sorry. I'm writing this post from my deck, basking in the spring breeze and watching Kobe Kitty swat at bugs! I've got coffee brewing (because it is morning for me) and my sister on my mind today because it is her first day at her Mayo Nursing Internship. Mayo is an amazing hospital that my sister has the wonderful opportunity of working/learning at this summer for 10 weeks! And even though I miss her very very much, I know this is a great step for her future career as a nurse {she does follow in some great footsteps} This week I will have 2 days off- 2 days on - then 2 days off again and I am kinda liking that schedule. It has given me time to post 5 new items to my shop!

But on to the Link Up! This comes from the new blog I follow Wifessionals and even though we haven't been married for a year yet, I thought I  would document some of our funny moments in our first 9 months. But first I wanted to give you a little background on our relationship if you don't know us that well. Alex and I met about 7 months after I had moved to Omaha. I was busy with my first nursing job at The Nebraska Medical Center on the night shift and pretty much just had time to sleep and go to the gym. Luckily (and I thank God all the time for this) I had chosen to become a member at 24 hour fitness instead of the YMCA. And 24 hour fitness does play a role in our relationship because we met at the gym at 2:00 AM! He was helping his friend Richard train for the marines and I had was just stretching following my workout. {I love telling this part of the story} He came up to me and said "Hey I was watching you workout and just wanted to say I think you are gorgeous" I was pretty dumbfounded and replied with "Even when I'm all sweaty??" Haha! But we struck up a conversation and the rest is history...Not a very long history mind you because that was in December 2010. By June 2011 we were engaged at Yellowstone National Park and Married at Heartland of America park in September 2012  :)

One of our Engagement Pictures in Grand Teton National Park

I think the funny moments in our relationship started right away from ordering pizza late at 1 AM on our wedding night to the crazy start to our Honeymoon. By my fault completely I thought I had reserved an All-Inclusive resort for our honeymoon. (Please use a travel agent folks!) I should have known by the price but I guess I was just so excited to book our honeymoon to Aruba that I brushed past that. Well as you can imagine I was very frustrated and in tears when we got there and found out our specific room was not part of  the all inclusive part of the resort. Alex tried to pick up my spirits and said "It's ok hunny we can just go to the grocery store and make our own meals, plus we don't drink that much to get our money's worth out of all-inclusive anyways" This is the part where I whine and exclaim "I don't want to COOK on my Honeymoon!!" After our first trip to the grocery store in Aruba we found out that things were pretty pricey and I was very frustrated and kicking myself, thinking that we would probably spend all of our wedding gift money just for food in Aruba for a week! But Alex's stomach had another plan. He was very hungry on our first night there and we decided to just go for a walk around our resort and maybe find a restaurant to eat at. His keen nose sniffed out some steak and seafood at a buffet on our resort. We walked in and Alex immediately grabbed a plate and said that we would probably just pay at our table afterwards. I was hesitant but all the food looked so good so we filled our plates and sat down. When we sat down I explained to Alex that I had noticed everyone was wearing green bracelets on their wrist. And I will never forget what he said "Hunny just hide one of your wrists under the table, this won't be very romantic but we are going to eat fast and get out of here!" Folks I don't condone our behavior and I don't want you to think of us as some Midwest cheap moochers but it was our Honeymoon.....and I did think we got the all inclusive.....and we were pretty hungry ;) We of course just ordered water (we didn't want to press our luck) hid our wrist under  the table and walked towards the dark shoreline with our bellies full!
I felt bad about it, and was like, ok we got one free meal now we will just explore restaurants for the rest of the trip but Alex was like "We could do this EVERY night!" with a big grin on his face. And yet again Alex's stomach won and I was a compliant wife. By our fourth night of mooching I was ordering wine and going back for seconds on dessert! Again I feel bad about this but if you tried their chicken nachos you would probably side with me ;)

My Hubby and the Beautiful Aruba Coastline

Shopping Downtown Aruba..Store named after me of course ;)

Squid Suctioned to Alex's Shoulder!! 

On the Snorkeling Catamaran cruise in Aruba 

Aruba was an amazing and exciting trip but that wasn't the end of our funny moments. I lot of our hilarious moments stem from being first time homeowners. Alex is not so handy and I am a DIY-er so I try to make everything "my little project". Which ends in many projects laying around the house, Alex frustrated and making fun of me for all my little messes and a LOT of help from friends and family to get our home in tip top shape. Just last month we were fighting over using the lawn mower! Alex was taking pride in the mower he bought and I was helping him bag the grass. Now I have mowed a lot of grass in my day (being a farm girl and all) and wanted to try my hand at mowing. I was watching Alex and starting to get bored so I motioned for him to hand over the mower and let me drive! He quickly replied "I want to do the first mowing!" Oh Brother!!! After convincing him to let me try I was mowing but not to his standards I guess because he said I looked like a Grandma driving it! I'm use to a riding lawn mower not this dinky lil push mowers!

Our First Home!!

 The second topic that always stirs up some hilarious comments have to do with our cat Kobe. He is always doing something that irritates Alex but those same things I just find are adorable :) From the way Kobe cuddles with us to me telling Alex I was going to start toilet training him...Kobe adds a lot of enjoyment to our (mostly my) lives. 

Snaggle Tooth!

Bring on the many many more funny moments in our marriage! Things that I am more likely to find much more funny than Alex ;) Hope you Enjoyed and Have a blessed rest of the day! I'm off to catch in a quick run before work!