Use your words

This past weekend, I realized just how much I have accomplished and the person I have become. I had the wonderful opportunity to be able to visit with four college friends that I don't see often. Two of them are married (to each other) and have a 5 1/2 week old son that I got to meet. I have another friend who is a teacher and just bought her first house. And the other friend...well, we still wonder how he manages to make it through the day :)

On Saturday, me and two my friends went to campus to visit where we had met. We walked on a trail that follows along a river. There is a large rock that I spent plenty of time sitting on during college. We went back there and sat and talked and listen to the water. We talked about how long we've known each other and where we were in our lives when we met--and now where we are today. We've all graduated and moved, I had a failed engagement and living on my own for the first time, one friend told everyone he is gay, and one has moved to Arizona and back all in the short amount of time we've known each other. As we sat talking, I realized that this is what friendship is. It's being comfortable with how we are that even though we hadn't seen each other in almost a year, that we fell into conversation and being able to share with each other. I had such a great weekend that I did not want to go home. It was one of those weekends that you wish could last longer.

It's nice to have reminders every now and then about what has been accomplished and makes you smile and wonder just what will happen in the future...

Life (really does just) Happen(s)

Celebrating birthdays haven't been the most fun lately. The realization of getting older and life not turning out the way I had planned it makes birthdays not as much fun. This birthday was different. I think I've finally realized that life really does just happen. I received a small note from someone on my birthday that I've gone from 10 to 27 so quickly. I stopped to think of everything I've done in those 17 years. Although life hasn't turned out the way I thought, I have accomplished a lot in my 27 years and it's almost fun to look ahead and think of everything else that I can still accomplish. I still have goals and dreams and I still have a lot of this world to see yet.

I have friends and family who stand beside me through it all. I can be quite a pain at times, and they are still there. It speaks volumes to the types of people I surround myself with. In my 27 years, I have realized who my true friends and realized how important it is to surround yourself with those people and not the people who bring you down. I have also learned what is important in life. It's not about what you have, but who you are sharing it with. I love the laughter of a child and the smile on my parent's face when I've managed to surprise them. I also love the quiet of being by myself, but then hearing the ringer of my best friend calling to say hi.

Overall, I am content. Nope, things differently haven't gone the way I had planned them, but then, who has a life that hasn't thrown curve balls? That's part of life and I am embracing those curve balls...they have gotten me where I am today. And I would say that today isn't too bad.

Easter weekend

I'm not a religious person. I went to Catholic school from middle school through high school. When I went to college, I "experimented" with different religions, but just never felt comfortable or like I fit anywhere. After college, I attended a few different churches, but again never felt right. So as of today, I don't attend church and I feel a lot more at peace then when I did. I never fit in at Catholic churches and also left feeling guilty or as if I would never be able to achieve what the church talked about. That's not a great feeling when you're leaving church. There are also many things I don't agree with within the Catholic religion, but I won't get into those.

Anyway, as it is Easter tomorrow, I am happy. Not because I went to church and prayed, but because this weekend I have been surrounded by family and friends. That is what I believe in. I believe in being happy and surrounding yourself with people who love you. I have a lot of questions about "religion" but I do think I am spiritual. I believe in being a good person and loving with all I have. Not that I get those right every day, but it is still what I strive to accomplish on a daily basis.

So Happy Easter everyone! Whatever you believe in or however you celebrate, I hope it's a great day. Take some time to relax!

Here comes the....cold?

Well, it's turned cold here again. I don't know why I'm not prepared for it. I have lived here all my life and every year...it gets cold. However, I am somehow surprised at the cold every year, like I can't believe it's cold. It's strange really. We were spoiled with some nice weather into October and November has definitely not been kind. It was only 17 degrees when I woke up this morning. Let me just say, I had difficulty getting and staying out of bed knowing that little fact!

A friend and I were discussing PMSing yesterday. It actually turned into quite a funny conversation. She was discussing that things she normally does not get upset or frustrated with can just be the biggest deal while she is PMSing. I said that I have the same thing and that I then become upset with myself for being upset over those things. We both started laughing when we realized how silly that was but that we still continue to do it every month! Does anyone else have that?

Well, I went to look at apartments down near Milwaukee this weekend. I actually found a really nice one that I really like. Now the only problem is figuring out if I can afford it. The economy isn't the hottest and although currently my job is stable, it's scary to look around at other places cutting jobs and people struggling who have always seemed to get by easily. It makes me nervous that perhaps I should reconsider moving knowing that what I have now I can afford and I'm stable. With everything else in my life up in the air, it's difficult to not have something that I can be concrete about. Thankfully this has not kept me from sleeping otherwise I would really be hurting. Normally when I have this much stress or uncertainty, I will not be able to sleep. But I am thanking my lucky stars as every night when I lay down, I am almost always able to go right to sleep. Whew. At least I'm resting!

Dating in the world of single people

I have been the worst blogger lately. I have so much going on and so much I want to share and then I just get busy again. I was off last week on Thursday and Friday (a MUCH needed break from work) and I went to Country USA which is a country festival about 30 min. from my apartment. I had gone before and whether you like country music or not, many people just enjoy the tailgating, camping, and other things about the festival. It was a great time and the best part was I got to spend the weekend with my best friend who came!!!We definitely had some interesting experiences along the way, and we didn't want the weekend to end, but it was a great time! We went to see "Sex and the City" too and I didn't want the movie to end. I've heard some negative things about it, but I was really impressed how smooth of a transition from tv to a movie it was. It was great!

Prior to that weekend, I had gone to another Brewer game and had great seats. I saw my favorite player, Ryan Braun, stretching and warming up below, and went down to get some great shots. That was definitely fun and it was great to see him so close. I swear, we are getting married, he just doesn't know it yet!

So being single has its perks, and I will be the first one to say that, but sometimes it would be nice to have someone. Even just someone to call up and have come over to watch a movie or talk to on the phone for a while. I miss those parts. I miss the going out to dinner or a movie or just sitting around talking. I definitely feel I am ready to date again, I just haven't found anyone that I've felt like dating. I will admit that I am rarely home and when I am, I am too tired to do much of anything. I will also admit that I haven't really "put myself out there" to find anyone. I don't want a guy I meet at a bar. I haven't given up by any means, I'm just discouraged. I was talking with a friend/co-worker today who was talking about having tried internet dating. Now, I have absolutely nothing against anyone who does that, but it's just not for me. I would feel weird about it and just would never have the desire to do that. She gave up after meeting too many weird/creepy guys. So...Mr. Prince Charming I am sure is out there...but like a typical man, he is probably lost and too stubborn to ask for directions to even get to me!

April showers bring...no May postings?

Yep, I'm a slacker. Well, actually....okay just a blogger slacker. I've been busy! Work is hectic as usual. But it's a good hectic. It's a hectic where I know my position isn't in jeporady. YAY! I had some visitors at my apartment for a weekend, celebrated Mother's Day by taking in a Milwaukee Brewer game (they won!) and have had some really late nights.

This picture is of my best friend, Erin, who surprised me by coming to town for my birthday weekend. That was fun!!! I had just had a manicure and pedicure before the picture so we were pretty relaxed (my first mani and pedi by the way!) I believe this was right after the cake too--very good cake I might add!

I wanted nothing with my birthday number on it so my mom thought that little saying would be just fine! The dogs also helped to celebrate.

So, all in all, the past few weeks have been really good. Just very busy. Don't worry, I haven't forgotten about all of you! I hope you enjoyed the pictures!

The pictures

Goodness. If you people knew where I lived I have a feeling you would have been beating down my door for these! Sorry this took me so long. Tomorrow is my birthday and between my parents and my best friend, I had the best birthday weekend ever. I will fill you all in later. First, here are the pictures so I don't get beat up :)

This picture was just taken a few weeks ago when I was in Eau Claire visiting my best friend Erin, and her husband, Mike. That was hair before.
Here is the "after." Don't mind the double chin. It chooses to enter pictures at random. But you get the idea of the hair change. My mom took some pictures of me and Erin this weekend that I'll post later (by later I mean probably before the end of the week, okay?)

And the little one went wii wii wii all the way home!

I want a WII. I can't find a WII. See the problem? I search and search. I swear it has become a new obsession. I can only imagine the people who line up outside stores waiting for them to open just to see if they got a wii in over-night. Okay, I'm not that obsessed, but it's close. If I go past a Wal-Mart, I stop just in case. There hasn't been one there yet, but what if the ONE time I don't stop they have one? Does everyone else have this problem or is it just me? Do other states have tons of them and WI is just slow?

Janet asked if I liked the Melting Pot. I did! I enjoyed being out with friends, and going on Ladies Night (Thursday night) was definitely a treat! The cheese was okay, but the meat, and the CHOCOLATE was amazing! I couldn't believe the dessert trays they brought out! Yummy. I can still imagine all that chocolate. I had a Carmel Apple Martini as well which was good (especially good since it was 2 for 1 martini night!) I would definitely go there again. I think next time I would get a different cheese though. They brought out apples to dip in the cheese. Is it just me or is that weird? I tried it and it was okay, but I seriously wonder who thought, "Let's put some apples with the cheese!" Oh well, we were there for 2 1/2 hours!!! And when I finally looked at the time I could NOT believe it had been that long. Definitely worth it!

Now it's getting ready for AZ on Friday. I can't wait. It's supposed to be 78 degrees the day I fly in. Oh to feel the warm sun again--yes, dramatic but when it hasn't been over 40 in the past 4 months, you would be dramatic too!!!!

Leaving on a Jet Plane..Unfortunately I know when I'll be back

Well, I am getting excited. I'm leaving for Arizona next Friday. WOOHOO!! I know I just went to South Carolina in December, but I am SO excited. After getting this much snow too, I am ready to go somewhere that it isn't all white. I miss the green. I miss the warm. I just miss being able to see if cars are coming down the road before turning.

Work continues to go well. I am just much happier all around. This past weekend a friend from college came to visit and that was a lot of fun. Then last night, my BEST FRIEND, and another old co-worker came into town for a conference so we went to dinner and went shopping for a bit. We went to dinner at Olive Garden (love, love, LOVE it) AND had a very attractive waiter which I have to admit..added to the enjoyment of the conversation, friends, and food!

In other news, the apartment is looking much better thanks to the patience of my mom and dad. Without their help, I would still be living in a pile of boxes, sleeping on my couch. So I am very thankful for that! I've had a bit of a cold which hasn't entirely helped the past week, but I'm just making the most of it.

Tonight, I am going to dinner at The Melting Pot (a fondue restaurant) and I am VERY excited because I've never been to a fondue restaurant before. I'm so excited though. It's also Ladies Night so things are cheaper for ladies (woohoo!!) I have a coupon too so the night will be great!

What's new with all of you? I feel like it's been forever again.

And now....9 months of healing: The Aftermath

It's been a little over 9 months since the break-up. Some people have had babies during this time, some have started businesses, some have started new relationship.....I have learned to be myself again. It's a great feeling to wake up in the morning and to know who you are. It has taken me plenty of time to figure this out (and I'm sure I still have a lot to learn), but at this point in my life, I feel content. That's not to say that I'm not stressed out or I don't get crabby or irritated with things, but overall, when I lay down at night, I can fall asleep knowing that tomorrow is another day.

This is definitely a change from previous posts. I will tell you that I'm not fully healed and that I still hurt some days, but those days are fewer and farther between. I continue to have the wonderful support of my parents and even you guys who read my rants and raves (and even keep checking on a blog that isn't updated!!!) so I appreciate it. I have found out that I have wonderful friends who care very much about me.

So I have picked up most of the pieces and have tried to put them back together, but in the process have realized that maybe those pieces feel for a reason. Maybe there are new pieces that will form in order to make the new me. I can't be the same person I was the day of the break-up and therefore, those new pieces will form and I'll always hang on to the fallen pieces to remember where I came from and how I have reached this new point.

Concert, class, road trip--check!

So this weekend has been pretty fun-filled! On Friday night I went to Summerfest which is a huge music festival in Milwaukee that is held for I think 10 days. I went to see Daughtry and the concert was AWESOME! Chris performed for an hour and played all but one of his songs on his CD. It was well worth the heat!

Then I had class on Saturday and right after class I drove down to visit a friend who recently moved to IL. We went to IKEA (one of my favorite stores) and then went to see the movie Knocked Up! I laughed so hard that I couldn't stop at one point. It was hilarious. The majority of the movie is filled with great one liners and the actors all did a great job of working together. This is a movie that I would definitely buy just so that I could catch more of the jokes!

Today I drove back home and watched Freedom Writers. Another really good movie but for very different reasons from Knocked Up! I thought that Hillary Swank did a great job and the kids did a wonderful job of telling their stories. If you haven't seen it, I really do recommend it. There isn't a ton of bad language either which surprised me. I love movies that are based on true stories too. It gives the movie some meaning.

Anyway, this is a busy week for me. I have been brain storming of coming up with new things to do on the blog and I have some ideas which I am going to try to implement this week. Please leave me feedback and let me know how you like it!

Have a great start to your week. I leave you with a picture from the Daughtry concert!

Fast Cars and Freedom

So, lately I haven't been the perfect friend. I some times feel sorry for myself, cry when I can't find something I need, and tend to be too wrapped up in the "poor me" stage to worry about other friends.

Well, tonight that changes. I've decided that my life can't be spent doing the "poor me" thing. Yes, I am allowed to have bad days and days that I wish I didn't have to get out of bed. BUT (and this is a big but..hahah) I can not and will not allow myself to not be there for my friends when they need me.

I did some grocery shopping tonight and that made me feel better since I got some much needed things in the apartment (like milk, eggs, ice cream--you know, the basics!) Then I had a late dinner and am just winding down for the night. I've had some flu like stuff going on the past two days and am getting pretty sick of that. I can't go to internship when I'm sick since I work in a hospital so it's all a little much.

Anyway, this weekend I start my 5 week Saturday class. I can't say I'm thrilled about this but I'm hoping it goes by fast. And I can tell you now that Sunday I will be doing NOTHING to make up for having to have school on Saturday :)

Happy Thursday everyone!

Friends, Paris, London....

I bet everyone is wondering where I've been? (Just agree here!) Well, I have been busy (stop laughing!)

I had a bad week last week and had a little break down. I felt as though I shouldn't have those any more but was reminded by many people that it's okay to have days where I'm not 100% and that it's expected. Well, after a wonderful weekend I feel much better and ready to take on this week.

Friends are always a topic where you could either complain the whole time and talk about how wonderful they are. Well, I have a friend I've known since I was 5 (yes, that's 20 years now!) We shared a room in college (that didn't work so well) and then another so called "friend" took advantage of our arguing over living together and did a good job of manipulating us into thinking we hated each other. Anyway, so I lost touch with this friend. It didn't help that my ex didn't like this friend from when I was 5 either. I now know that a #1 thing is NEVER let boys tell you who your friends are. I can't believe I was that stupid, but I digress...

So I have been talking and getting together with this friend again and it's like no time ever went by. Those are the friends I love. The ones that you could not talk to for 2 years and the next conversation is as though there was no time in between. Having her back as a friend (I can't believe she forgave me) is something that I really cherish and love the time we have. She has recently moved closer to where I live (only an hour compared to 3 1/2) and I'm hoping that it continues to help our friendship.

Who is your best friend(s) and why have you stayed friends though the years?

In other news, Paris is free! I saw pictures of her walking out of the jail all smiles. Lets hope she actually realizes what an idiot she was and learns from her mistakes. Daddy has lots of money but that didn't save her...let's hope she stays out of trouble.......I, for one, won't hold my breath!

Have a great day everyone!