where ya been?

lots going on the past few weeks - sorry for the lack of updates - hopefully I will get back into the swing of regular posts now that school is out, we are adjusting to Steven's new shift and our vacation is over...

The kids and I just got back from a family vacation to Traverse City, Michigan.  My Grammie was born and raised there - and is now buried there - so myself and 12 of my family members went back for some fun family history exploring and to enjoy the beautiful lake, funky downtown shops and endless cherry orchards.   [and they went to their first drive-in movie!!!]

I had a wonderful time on the trip.  Our drive was about 16 hours and the kids did really really well.  There were a few moments when I wanted to pull my hair out, but overall, they were rockstars!!!  [thank you Up!, Despicable Me, Mary Poppins & Cars for saving me]

I am working on a post with some of my photos - I only took 1,032 - hehe!!!

For now, I will just post this photo of my mom and me, sharing a very heartfelt moment at my Grammie's spot... (despite the emotions and grief here, I think this was one of my most favorite photos from the entire week...)

I  miss my Grammie so much but I know she's with me constantly.  And I have her (and God) to thank for blessing me with such an incredible mother who has continuously given so selflessly to her children and her family.  She is a wonderful listener, encourager, friend, grandmother and mother and I am so very thankful for her!!! :)

love you muchermostestmore ma - thank you for an amazing trip!!!

so long twenty-something...

helloooooooo   ... nope... can't say it... won't say it... no way it's even possible...

blah.

30.

waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa... [that's my temper tantrum!!!] ;)

Well, on a positive note, I got more stuff done on my 30 before 30 list :)

#29 - I shot a gun, which was freaking AWESOME!!!  A huge thank you to my big bro (but not my biggest bro - I have 2 older bros!!!) Andy for letting his little sister tag along with him to the range.  He even bought me my membership for an entire year - word!!!  I shot a .22 revolver and I really enjoyed it.  I'm really hoping he and I can go back again soon :) :) :) 

#27 - I've finally organized the thousands of toys we have in the basement.  I put out a lot for our yard sale on Saturday (and hardly sold any b/c there weren't many people - darn heat!!!) and rest of the toys we have downstairs I will donate.  Oh my goodness, it sure feels good to have those toys organized and on their way out the door!!!  We could have opened a toy shop with the amount of toys we had.

#11 - I wrote a will.  I haven't gotten it notarized yet (nor have I had an attorney review it) but it's written!!!  That's definitely a step in the right direction!!!

#1 - pay off my car... DONE!!!  I wrote the final check this morning, using my birthday money :) :) :)  Sweet Blair is ALLLLLLLL mine - she no longer belongs to M&T Bank... word ;)  too bad she goes to the garage tomorrow and is gonna cost me a fortune... boo.

#2 - do something fun with my blog pertaining to fitness and/or fashion - - I think I've accomplished this through all my half marathon training posts, my monthly 'favorite thing' posts and my pinterest find posts!!! (never did one for April though - oopss!)  Here are some of the 'pins' I've been obsessing over lately :) :) :)

#30 - Have a kick butt birthday party - - when I put this on the list it was kind of a joke between Steven and my oldest son - - they always joked about throwing me a 'Justin Bieber' party when I turned 30.  WELL, boy was I SHOCKED when what I thought was a 'girls lunch' yesterday turned out being a WONDERFUL surprise 30th birthday party!!!  WOW WOW WOW - - it was beautiful and we all had a really nice time.  I am SO grateful to my family and friends - you all are SO incredible!!!  No worries... we took lots of photos... I will post some soon!!!

okay - so let's recap - there are still some things I haven't done - most of them cost money, too much money and will need to be postponed for a little while! (a tattoo, painting, landscaping and redecorating my office).  I'm bummed I didn't go skiing or snow tubing but the winter just sort of went too fast :/  I do have plans to take Gavin ice skating very soon - I wanted to take him on Sunday but they were closed because of Memorial Day.  We can definitely scratch the bikini on my birthday thing.  I have lost weight - I'm 3 lbs shy of what I weighed in 5th grade, which feels pretty darn good to say on my 30th birthday - but still going to pass on the bikini!!!  In regards to chaperoning a field trip, I really didn't put much thought into that when I put it on the list; given the ages of my nieces and nephews, they don't take many field trips. I didn't conquer my fear and ride a horse - I had a couple friends offer for me to come over to their farms and ride - but I never found the courage to get it arranged.  It's a pretty serious fear - I think they are beautiful animals but they scare the begeebers out of me. :(  Baby books... oh my goodness... Gavin's baby book is basically done.  Gabby's baby book is a little emptier than Gavin's but still have a decent amount done.  Gage's book is barely complete at all... poor 3rd child. :(  Gage's will be the first one I work on when I find the time to sit and focus and get photos organized!!!

  
Maybe I will take my friend Jody's advice and give myself a 15 day grace period - like you get with your mortgage.  Check back in 15 days - maybe by then I will have a few more things crossed off!!!  And check back for party photos :) :) :)