Friday Favorites!

Again, this is a little late, but we had family in town this weekend! I'll save that stuff for next week though :-)


1) Snow - We got some snow on Saturday. It wasn't a lot, but it was enough to take Bailey out to play in. She LOVES it! We had so much fun with her

.

2) St. Michael's - We visited St. Michael's Winery on Saturday since we had a Living Social voucher that was expiring soon. We also went to a brewery while we were there. We had a really great time at both places. It was nice to get out and do something other than dinner for a date. We had dinner too, but it wasn't JUST dinner :-).

3) Shooting Range - For our second date of the week, Josh took me to the shooting range after work on Tuesday. I've never shot anything except a beebee gun, and that was when I was like 12...if that, so shooting a 9 ml was a huge difference! Honestly, I was a bit nervous at first, but once I got used to the kick and the loud noise, I really enjoyed it. We're planning on getting a gun in the near future, so this is how we'll decide exactly which kind to get. We found a 9 ml that we both like (it's not Josh's favorite, but his favorite jammed on me a few times...that's not good).

4) Surprise Dinner - I usually cook, and Josh helps me clean the kitchen. Well, he surprised me not once, but twice this week by cooking dinner for me! This gave me some extra time to catch up on some things I've been putting off around the house. He made pasta one night and salmon cakes the other. YUM!

5) Catching Fire and Mockingjay - I finished The Hunger Games books this week. Again, SO good! They were all very good books and they went SO fast! They're not what I would typically read. I actually had no clue at all what they were about until I started reading them. I just kept hearing people talk about how good they were, so I thought I would give them a chance. SO glad I did. I can't say I would have read them if I would have known what they were about. Haha. I'm a little sad they're over, but I'm satisfied with the ending  :-) I can't wait for the movie to come out now.

Weekend Love!

This past Saturday was amazing! We woke up to a little bit of snow on the ground. Not a lot, but enough to have fun in. Josh and I were planning on taking Bailey for a short walk, so we got all wrapped up and put her shoes and hoodie on. She was SO excited, we decided to stay out for a while and play with her. We ran and threw snow with her. She absolutely LOVED it! We didn't have the heart to just go on a quick walk and we had a lot of fun with her. We ended up playing for at least an hour. On our way back home we saw a little girl and her dad. She was really excited and wanted to pet Bailey. Bailey LOVES kids. Well, this kid had a fluffy panda hat on. Apparently, Bailey doesn't like fluffy panda hats. She barked at the kid. Needless to say, she didn't get to play with the little girl any. :-/ On the bright side, I actually took the camera with us this time so I have some pictures! YAY!

 Running with Daddy. She loves putting her leash in her mouth when she's running. Sometimes it's cute. Most of the time it's just annoying.

 She kept sticking her nose in the snow and rooting around like a pig.

 I was trying to get her to sit still...she wanted to wave.

 Hubby!

Such a pretty girl!

We were planning on going to St. Michael's because we had a Living Social voucher to a winery we've been wanting to visit. We almost put it off again, but it expires this weekend and we were worried we wouldn't make it since we have visitors coming. I'm really glad we decided to go! The roads were completely fine even though it snowed through the night. We went to the winery first. This one was different than some of the other wineries we've been to up here. They have a couple vineyards, but they're not at the same place they do tastings. It didn't bother me though, this time of year, you wouldn't see anything but a bunch of dormant vines anyway. A super sweet older man helped Josh and I. He was very knowledgeable about the wines and told us little stories about how they got their names and everything. I like that so much better than when they just let you taste them and they don't know anything about them. Anyway, our voucher covered 10 samples each and a free bottle of wine. We were strategic and made sure between the two of us, we would be able to taste all the wines. Well, the man just let us both taste them all anyway. Haha. Josh's favorite wine wasn't included on the list that we could choose from, so he bought that bottle and I chose my favorite from the list. 

The last time we were in St. Michael's (for our anniversary last year, when we locked the keys in the house along with Josh's ID and weren't able to do the tasting), we noticed that there was also a microbrewery. We decided to stop in after the winery. It's also a very small business and their beers are sold mostly in restaurants in St. Michael's. They had 3 different beers. An amber (which I typically like), a porter and an IPA (I usually don't like either of these). I liked them all! The guy who was working talked to us about the beers and homebrewing, then he gave us a tour. We ended up staying for a while and just talking to him. He reminded me a lot of a good friend from home :-). There were a group of people in there from Norway. They were in town for business and we talked to them for a little bit. We were starting to get hungry and the guy at the microbrewery told us about a really good brick oven pizza restaurant in town. It sounded really good, but we had a Groupon to use for Harris Crab House which is on the way home. We decided to go to the crab house. Josh got crab stuffed flounder and I just got a broiled flounder. All our food was SO good. The hushpuppies and potato salad were amazing! 

I'm really glad we decided to go last weekend instead of putting it off! We both had a really great time and it was a nice change of pace. It was probably one of the best dates we've had in a while. We try to go on at least 2 dates a month, but a lot of times it's just dinner or something quick. It was really nice to get away together for more than just a couple hours. Also, I am in love with St. Michael's. It's the kind of place I can see myself retiring in. It's a little town on the bay. It's just so cute! Definitely not a place we could live now. It's expensive and not a great place for work...but when I'm retired and work doesn't matter, it would be great! 

Friday Favorites!

TGIF! This has been a long one and I'm SO glad to finally see Friday! I just have to get through 1 more day of work. Whew!


1) Basketball - NC State had a really great game against Wake Forest on Saturday and last night against BC! I'm impressed with our new coach so far :-) On top of that, FSU had a pretty big win too! Only the biggest win against a top 10 team since the AP Poll has been in existence. ;-) 

2) Ravens - TJ Yates just wasn't able to pull out a win against the Ravens on Sunday! If they don't step it up this week, I fear what Tom Brady might do to them though :-/

3) Annapolis - Josh's dad visited this weekend and he wanted to visit Annapolis. Even though it was in the 30s and windy, we still had a good time. I really love Annapolis. It's fun to just walk around and look at shops and boats. It's known to be a really dog friendly place too, so we'll most likely be taking Bailey when it warms up a bit. We walked along the water to look at the boats (I always have fun picking out my favorite one) and we checked out the Naval Academy. We saw TONS of jellyfish in the water (they were really small though). It's a beautiful historic area.

4) New camera - As I've mentioned on here before, my camera had to be sent off to be repaired after Thanksgiving. Well, it came back and worked mostly fine for a few weeks. Then, suddenly, it started doing weird things like zooming in on its own and not recording video. I called the warranty company again. It turned out that it would be cheaper to get a new camera. They credited the remaining value of the camera after the first repair and we only had to spend about $30 extra for the new one! We have such horrible luck with cameras and phones! I obviously got the extended warranty again since it paid off so well this time. haha. We would have been out of a few hundred dollars otherwise because I starting having issues a couple months after the manufacturers warranty expired.

5) The Girl who Kicked the Hornets Nest and The Hunger Games - I finished the last book in the Dragon Tattoo series. I really liked all the books, but the second one was my favorite. The third one was probably the slowest, but it was still good. I also started and finished The Hunger Games! It's a great book and I can't wait to read the next two! 

Changing Minds

When we first moved up here, we were planning to stay for about 2 years, then move to Florida. Josh was planning to stay with his company with hopes of transferring to Melbourne. I guess this was just supposed to be a stepping stone of sorts for us. If we had stuck to that plan, we would be planning on the move now and we would have less than 6 months left up here! At that point I think we also didn't really plan on moving back to NC. 

Last week,  Josh had a work function and he met a co-worker who is also from NC. He moved up here with intentions of moving his family back to NC, just like us. He was just starting his career up here. He's in his 40s now. He's still here. This kind of worries me...I think? I don't even know. Haha. The money is just a lot better up here. Sure, the cost of living is lower in NC. No, it won't make up for the salary difference. He said he just got comfortable with his salary up here and he just never thought he could re-adjust. He told Josh if we really do want to move back, don't up our lifestyle as we make raises, etc. Start saving for when we do move back. Of course, we haven't planned on increasing our lifestyle, we've planned to increase the amount of money we're paying on debt. Our student loans are higher than we originally thought they would be at this point. The house kind of interfered with those plans. When Josh got his raise, the only thing we really increased is our vacation budget (only by $25 a month though, and this is the beginning of our savings for a big trip before we have kids, not regular vacations), Bailey's budget (for daycare twice a month), and our gift budget by a little bit (it was REALLY tough to stick with our Christmas budget this year). All in all, that's still less than $100 a month. Everything else has gone to savings and debt, so I guess we're on the right track. We just have to be careful that we keep putting that money back in retirement and other savings once all the debt is paid off, rather than spending it on things we want. We already have a rough savings plan, including when and how much we'll save for kids, when and how much we'll put back for a down payment for our second home, etc. 

A lot of times, I think buying the house wasn't the best choice for us. We spend SO much more time on it than I thought...and more money too. It's definitely not cheaper than renting, but it's at least an investment. I think if we would have bought our house after Josh has the job he has now, we would have bought a nicer and maybe even bigger house than we did. We almost did that anyway, then we sat down and talked about it. It was hard for me, because I think I was attached to the house, but Josh reminded me that we were buying the house for an investment and it would be better if we bought one that just needed a little work that we could do ourselves. We would have had to cut what we were putting in savings or paying on debt. At that time, that thought didn't bother me. Now it bothers me a lot. I'm SO glad my husband is more practical than I am! 

I guess in a few years...more than a few years really, we'll be faced with a very difficult decision. Do we stay in MD or move back home? I think no matter what we decide, we'll have many of those "what if" moments. Right now, the decision seems so simple. We'll move back home before the kids go to school. When the time comes, I don't know if it will be that easy. But at the same time, the possibility that we'll change our minds doesn't seem that unlikely since we've already done it once. We could move to a more rural area up here (there are some really gorgeous areas) and get the same kind of home we hope to have in NC. Of course, we still won't be close to family and friends. But what if family and friends aren't around that area anymore anyway? Why did we move there then? Of course I would love my kids to be raised in the South. Josh says he doesn't notice the lack of southern hospitality until he's been to NC then back up here. I guess when I think of it I don't either. People aren't rude up here. They just don't go out of their way to speak or make nice gestures like they will in NC. 

Why do we have to change our minds so much? And why do decisions have to be so difficult?

Friday Favorites!

1) I'm going to be a bridesmaid! - This should have actually been in last weeks post, but I was lazy and wrote it ahead of time. I forgot to add this in before I posted...so here it is now. One of my really good friends, Brittany, is getting married in July. She was one of my bridesmaids and one of the few friends I've REALLY kept in touch with since we moved. I'm so excited to be a part of her special day :-)

2) Drive to work - If you know anything about Baltimore, you know it's not a beautiful city. Fun, yes. Pretty...umm...no. Well, I had to work Saturday and I had to come in pretty early. It was still dark when I was driving in. I've driven past the city in the dark before, but I've never really paid any attention to it. It was actually really pretty. There was no one on the road that early, so it was actually a very peaceful ride in. 

3) House progress -  We've been taking a break on house projects lately. We were just so burned out on it! We made some serious progress this weekend. We fixed the tiled area behind our toilet. I don't think I ever posted about this, so you probably have no clue what I'm talking about. Basically, when we put our tile down, we mis-guessed (for lack of a better word) how close we needed to get to the toiled hole. We weren't close enough, and you could tell when we put the toilet back in. Josh fixed that area while I was working Saturday. We repaired the areas of the carpet that Bailey had chewed up too! We got a few other things done and we started on some seasonal deep cleaning! YAY us! Haha.

4) Vacation! - I can't get too excited yet, because it's still several months away, but we bought our plane tickets to Miami! We'll be going around Memorial Day and I can't wait to get away for a while! We've already started planning some of the activities we'll do while we're visiting Anna and John, so we're both getting really excited!

5) Snow - One day this week, I think Monday or Tuesday, we got a little snow! Our weather has been ridiculous. It was 64 on Saturday, and it snowed a few days later. Crazy. Anyway, it was just enough to cover the ground a little. We got to take Bailey out in it. She wore her shoes so snow wouldn't get stuck all between her toes. She was SO curious and she loved it. I kicked it around a little bit for her and she enjoyed chasing it...and eating it. Haha. She LOVED running in it. It was so funny because she's clumsy anyway...she's even more clumsy with her shoes on. She slipped a few times but she's getting the hang of them. It did take her a while to go to the bathroom, but hopefully that will get better as she sees snow more. It was all gone by morning, but it stuck around longer than I thought! It was enough to be pretty, but there was no mess the next day :-)

6) One Tree Hill - The season FINALLY started. I've been pretty bummed that the final season isn't even a whole season :-/ Oh well. I'll enjoy what's left. I've been watching this show since season 1 (way back in the high school days), so I've definitely been looking forward to it, and I'm a little more than slightly bummed that this is the last season.

Friday Favorites!

This week is definitely one of those weeks I'm glad I do this. Without consciously looking for the positives, it would have definitely been a not so good week.


1) Raleigh - We traveled to Raleigh to spend New Years with our friends. We got in Friday night and stayed until Sunday evening. We had a great time! Bailey had lots of time to play with her doggy friends, Abby and Carter. We got to go to our first NC State basketball game since we've graduated, so that was really nice. We had a great New Years Eve party and had so much fun catching up with old friends. AND...not traffic again!

2) The Girl who Played with Fire - I finished the second book of the series near the beginning of our trip to Raleigh Friday. It was SO good, even better than the first one maybe :-)

3) Day OFF - Josh and I both had Monday off. We made sure we took advantage of that extra day :-) We got a couple things done around the house and went out for a little lunch date. The restaurant we were planning on going to ended up being closed on Mondays, so we just rode around Canton until we found a nice area. We got out and walked around for like 45 seconds before we decided on a nice little Irish Pub for lunch. (It was SO cold and windy, so I wasn't being picky). This marked the 10th new restaurant we tried, so I got to cross that off my 101 in 1001 list! I should have picked more than 10 restaurants, but I didn't realize how much we ate out! After lunch, we went to the new Harris Teeter in Baltimore. I know it seems silly, but I was so excited! We only have a few HTs up here and we're not close to any of them. This one is REALLY nice. We can't buy beer and wine at grocery stores here like we can back home, but this Harris Teeter has an attached store and bar. You have to pay for your grocery and alcohol items at their respective locations, but it's still much more convenient than most places around here :-).

4) Shredding - I started the 30 day Shred! I tried this a couple years ago and wasn't able to stick with it, but I'm determined to finish it now. I'll most likely be starting over since we're having 2 sets of visitors this month, but that's OK, as long as I'm trying! Bailey hasn't ever seen me do much other than running or push ups, so she was super confused. She kept trying to bring me toys. I guess since I was jumping around like an idiot, she thought it was play time. I was doing crunches and she came and sat on my stomach with a toy in her mouth. Haha. It was really cute, but also a little annoying. I guess she really is good practice for kids.

5) Bailey - Today was one of those not so good days. I was already in a much better time by the time Josh and I got home, but Bailey made it even better. She just gets so happy when we come home, it's hard not to get in a good mood. She howled several times for us, probably more than she ever has at one time, so of course I was super excited about that! GO WOLFPACK!

2011 Review

January 
 We traveled to Raleigh and celebrated our first New Years as a married couple!

February 
 I think this is when we got serious about the house search. We knew we still had a few months before we would be moving, but we decided on what type of house we would get and how much we would spend.

March 
 We went to Disney World for vacation with my family. That was our first family vacation in WAY too long. 

Then, Josh and I went to Miami to visit Anna and John.

We also celebrated our 10 year dating anniversary

April 
We hosted our first Easter with my family, and decided to make it a tradition.

Bailey came to live with us.

We went to NC for Traci's wedding.

AND...we signed on our house. The rest of the month was filled with preparing to move :-)

May 
We closed on our house!

June 
 We celebrated our first anniversary.

Dinner cruise!

July 
 We traveled to Raleigh to visit friends for a long weekend. Bailey and Carter got to meet for the first time!

They met...


...and they loved each other!

 
We went to Delaware for a day

August 
 We went to Raleigh for Andrew and Kristian's wedding! 

Josh turned 25!

September 
 We brewed our first batch of beer!

We went to the Baltimore Grand Prix when Josh's mom, brother and step-dad came to visit. 

October 
 We went home for Johnathan and Jamie's wedding.

Anna, John, Chris and Kallie came to visit.

We visited a winery

  ...and went to a football game. GO PACK!!!

I turned 25!

November

We went home for Thanksgiving.

And to Raleigh for the NC State vs MD football game. GO PACK!

My camera broke...which is why I don't have pictures :-/

December 
 Our first Christmas in our house...and with Bailey!

We went to our first NC State basketball game since we graduated!