bring on the week

This is the start of a busy but yet awesome week! First off, in baby news, I am officially in the second trimester, crazy! And at this time next weekend, I will be hanging out with my whole family....yay!! My parents are starting their drive up to Iowa/the midwest tomorrow and are making quite the rounds to see old friends and family. On Friday, Jordan and I are heading up to Madison to my brother's to spend the weekend with everyone. Ahhh I can't wait! This is a busy week with two papers due and a tough quiz but all of the studying and school work will make the week go fast hopefully! I seriously can't wait to be reunited with my family in less than a week! Hope everyone enjoyed their weekend and has a wonderful start to their week!

Well one week later....

After indulging in an ungodly amount of calories over the past five days, enduring too many belly laughs to count, and working the cramps out of my face from smiling....we are in fact, alive and survived Thanksgiving and Christmas with the Cross Family. And I am so sad that it is all over. The time definitely went by way, way too fast. My parents got to Iowa last Monday night and we all enjoyed some pizza and beers along with some laughs and good conversations. They headed up to Wisconsin on Tuesday while Jordan and I had one last day of work/school for the week. We packed up all of our stuff and hit the road first thing Wednesday morning and didn't stop going until we made it back home yesterday afternoon!!

Thursday was Thanksgiving obviously but more importantly, it was Teagan's 5th birthday! Holy smokes, where does the time go?! I can't believe that she is five now.... She is growing up into such a smart and sassy, hilarious and beautiful little girl! It is so fun watching her grow up and I'm lucky that I have gotten to play such an active role in her life. It would make me sad being so far away from her and Kemper that they don't know me when I come around! Anyway, we celebrated T's birthday after Thanksgiving dinner. She was spoiled with gifts, had a blast beating up on a pinata and then topped it off with cake....which I made! Yummm homemade chocolate cake with peanut butter icing! We capped the night off by having a bon fire once the kids went to bed....

We then quickly shifted gears and went right into Christmas mode on Friday! We watched the Hawks lose, again, first thing which was a total bummer. Not only did they lose to Nebraska which gives them a share at the Big 10 title but it also confirmed they are for sure not going to a bowl game.  Extra sucky. We got over it quickly with a few drinks that we had during the game at least. Then after successfully stuffing our faces again with the Thanksgiving leftovers, we let the Christmas festivities begin! My mom had planned a "fashion show" for all of us...she made all of us tons of awesome projects and crafts! It included some crochet infinity scarves and gloves, fleece hats and jackets and lots of new Iowa gear. Score! My mom just keeps blowing all of our minds with how crafty she is and it rocks! Presents were a big hit with the kids and watching their eye light up with each gift they opened was enough to keep all of us happy. They are so cute and were so thrilled with everything they got...very heart warming to watch! After the kiddos went to bed and so did our parents, things got real crazy. Us adult "kids" played a new game that Scott and Kat got that is called "Cards Against Humanity." Basically, it is like a very very inappropriate version of Apples To Apples. But ridiculously hilarious and awesome. I'm not sure if we have ever laughed that hard before while playing a game before.....it will definitely be played again at our next reunion!

Saturday morning however, came way toooo early! We all hit the road to Charles City and made it to Grandma's! Just when I was thinking I couldn't possibly eat any more food, I managed to stuff myself completely. Again. There's just something about Grandma's home cooking that is irresistible. We all played several rounds of cards together and Jordan finally won two games! Third year of being at the Cross Christmas was the charm and he hit the jackpot twice! Which made me happy because then I didn't have to pay in anything, mwahahaha! 

And just like that, our four days together came to an end once we all woke up on Sunday morning. We were all avoiding saying good-bye to one another because we knew what it meant. That our parents would be driving back to Texas and that meant that none of us know the next time we will see them. And that sucks. Just leaves a giant pit in my stomach. As if I wasn't trying hard enough to fight back the tears, hugging my Dad goodbye after he just said goodbye to his own mom and sister with tears in his eyes and his noticeably choked up voice, was really tough. My dad can always put on a smile though and gave one last bear hug before getting in the car. Let's just say I was a hot mess of emotions on the first thirty minutes of our drive back home....

I'm thankful beyond thankful for the family I have in my life and these past four days just weren't enough. But I am so grateful for the time we did get to have together, the laughs we shared, the hugs and love we exchanged and the memories with each other that we made. I love how much Jordan fits in with my family and how we can all have so much fun with each other without having to do much. I can't wait until we are all together again and am already looking forward to that. I hope the day comes when we all live within a few hours of each other again because this whole living in Texas thing sucks for all of us! Wahh real life! Well I hope everyone enjoyed Thanksgiving and the time spent with family and some delicious food! I know we definitely did and now I'm dreading the pile-up of school and work stuff that I have been ignoring...well, happy Monday!

Cabin Party Round 2

Minus the Hawks blowing the game and losing it at the end, the weekend was still amazing and a huge success. I'm not sure how it couldn't be given the circumstances....all three Cross kids, Jordan, Kat, Suz and good friends of Scott and Kat's, Nate and Amber then add in the cabin in the woods, bon fire, lots of beer, good food and snacks...and like I said, the best people I know to spend a weekend partying with at a cabin. And well, that all adds up to one awesome time. Even Paisley had a fantastic time running around wherever she pleased while not hooked up to a leash or rope and she got to dig in real dirt (as opposed to our bed or the carpet). And holy shit can she dig! I am now fearful of our future yard that we have because I think she'll tear it up like it's her job....hopefully we can get that under control or if anything, maybe I can train her to just till up the yard in places I want to plant a garden?! I can dream at least. Anyway, she was a filthy dirt and burr covered, stinky (from rolling around and laying on anything and everything that smelled "good" to her...like dead birds and deer poop), exhausted pup by the end of the night! 

bros and their mexican sweatshirts

cabin chicks

what goons

fun weekend getaway together!

So many insides jokes and so many good chats with everyone. Great group of people and I couldn't have asked for a better weekend trip to Wisconsin! After making the drive home, Jordan and I both took a nap to recover and then I gave Paisley a bath...she definitely wasn't happy but there was so way I was letting her up on the furniture or in our bed looking the way she looked! Now she's all fluffy again, smelling good and free of burrs! And it's bedtime for all of us because Cabin Party Round 2 officially wore us out! Already looking forward to next year because I think we're getting t-shirts!!! CABIN TEAM, ASSEMBLE!!!!

first (of many!) refashion project: frumpy sweater into fun cardigan

What is a "refashion project" you might ask? Well, it is taking something old, used, recycled, worn out, too big or too small for you clothing or whatever it might be....and refashioning it into something fun, fabulous, new and totally usable again! It reminds me of the concept of an old book that my mom used to have that I was obsessed with and it was called "From Trash To Treasure". I loved looking at all of the projects and pictures wondering how they took something as simple as empty pop cans and turned them into a Halloween wreath! And after all of the pinning and Pinteresting I've been doing, I needed to take my turn at refashioning and I think I found a new favorite hobby!

What sparked this project was a trip to the consignment store that Kat and I made over the weekend when they were here. Which by the way, the weekend was an absolute blast. The Hawks won and we had a great time with Scott, Kat, the kids and our friends! Lots of laughs, good chats and talks with one another and an overall, fun time! So like I was saying, Kat and I made a trip to Stuff and we hit the jackpot! We each got a ton of awesome items, some still with tags, and some looked barely used! And as always, we got it all for one hell of a price! Several things we bought were only a quarter...yes, only $0.25!!!! And the rest of it was pretty much all $2.00 and under with a few exceptions! Kat had originally pulled this sweater off the rack but then saw the size and said it'd be way too big or could be paired with leggings, boots and a chunky sweater. But then I had a lightbulb go off in my head.....my first refashion project! I snagged it up and said, "I'm going to attempt to make this into a cardigan..." And that is exactly what I did!

I successfully turned this size XL sweater from H&M, which was originally priced at $38.00 and I got for $1.75, to a size M cute and cozy cardigan! The project only took me about an hour total! And that's because I added 8 buttons and button holes....some of the holes aren't 100% perfect by any means, but since it will be buttoned up anyway, I wasn't too worried! And I had thread that perfectly matched the sweater so it helps to disguise some of the crooked stitches around the button holes! I can't wait to find the next sweater at Stuff or Goodwill that is waiting to be refashioned!

Welcome to 25

Whoever said turning 25 is a bad thing? And why do people always say, "wow now you're closer to 30 than 20!" like it's such a bad thing! I am gladly welcoming turning 25 with open arms and if this past weekend was any indicator as to how the rest of the year is going to go, then I know it will be a good one! Janelle got to town late Friday night and right from her bus, we went downtown for some early birthday celebrating. What started out as "just a few drinks," turned into staying out until bar close, going to aftie's with some friends, a trip to Wal-Mart at 4am for wings and fries...and of course, The Hunger Games on blu-ray!!!! Needless to say, it was a fantastic start to the weekend! Saturday we got to Des Moines and hit up the State Fair for some drinks, people watching and fried food before the concert. Fried pickles and beer were a huge hit. So soooo good!!! Then we headed into the concert... It. Was. Awesome. Loverboy went on first then Pat Benatar came on stage and totally rocked it. Jordan and Scott got a kick out of how many of her songs that Janelle and I knew! I mean, who doesn't know "Heartbreaker" and "Hit Me With Your Best Shot!" Throw back 80s jams are the best! And then the real entertainment of the night hit the stage....JOURNEY!!! They were amazing! I am not sure if any of us stopped singing and dancing and rocking out right with them and everyone else there! The best songs were definitely "Faithfully" and of course, "Don't Stop Believing"....they ended the song with confetti and streamers blasting everywhere! Epic concert and we all loved every minute of it. Big shoutout to my parents for the tickets for all of us! It was a blast for the 5 pack to be together so thank you for the fun outing!!!!

early birthday celebration!

Sisters at Brothers!

State Fair Fun!

Awesome electric guitar solo playing
The National Anthem!

Don't Stop Believing!!!

The Fab Five!

About that baby bandwagon....

Lazy Sunday loungefest with T & K

So. I know I've said it several times how bad I want a baby and kids sooner than later. After having my niece and nephew stay with us the past three days, I still stand by that thought, mostly, and I'm not sure about Jordan. Shortly after the kids left, we both just passed out on the couch and recliner. For about a solid 3ish hours. We had the kids for 3 DAYS and were 100% exhausted and worn out! Not that I would trade it for anything because we had an absolute blast, but still!!!! It all started out Friday night with the electricity going out. Scott got here with Kat and the kids so we got a movie going for them and just sat down to eat dinner and every light went out. And then I quickly realized I don't have a single real candle anymore because all I have and use are Scentsy plug-ins!!! Damn it!!!!! We found about 8 tea light candle and used those hoping they would hold us over.....thankfully as Scott and Kat were walking out the door, an hour later, the power kicked back on and we had lights!! Ahh crisis averted!

Saturday morning rolled around and Teagan came into our bedroom wanting milk and to watch cartoons. Naturally, because the sun was up, she determined it was time for all of us to wake up. Until I realized it was 5:45AM so I convinced her that it was so early cartoons weren't even up yet, hung a blanket up in the extra bedroom window to darken the room and convinced her to sleep until 8:00. Now that's what I'm talking about! Once the kids woke up, we lounged all morning and watched cartoons then we got cleaned up to make a trip to the mall to see the movie Brave and to play at the playground. The movie was pretty good but kind of disappointing for a Disney/Pixar movie. It didn't have the classic "adult humor" in it like the Shrek movies and it actually had some pretty intense and scary parts that freaked out Teagan...Kemper was too busy chowing down on his popcorn to be scared! After the movie, we played at the mall playground then stopped at Target quick before coming home to pick up some new bath toys because my plastic cups just weren't cool enough or fun enough they said! On the way home each of the kids passed out for an afternoon nap and slept for about an hour once we got them inside.....looks like we do know how to watch, entertain and take care of two kids for a full day! We got them to eat an entire dinner and take a bath and they were asleep again by 9:30! Oh yeah, go us!!!

Sunday was our typical Lazy Sunday only with the kids this time....we had cinnamon rolls and watched How To Train Your Dragon and UP. Teagan and I played dress-up with all of my jewelry and some dresses and tank tops I let her play with. She is such a little diva! We did that while Kemper climbed up on and jumped off of everything in the living room with Jordan just laughing and encouraging it all.....boys will be boys I guess! It was the perfect lazy sunday just hanging out until Scott came back to pick them up! All in all, it was a fun and amazing weekend with the kiddos and I'm so lucky they live so close to us! Can't wait til our next fun weekend and sleepover in the future!

On the highway and across the state, to Aunt Kate's we go!

Tomorrow my niece and nephew, Teagan and Kemper, are coming to stay with me and Jordan for the whole weekend!!! Yipeeee!!!! We're all stocked up on fruit snacks, M&M's, chicken strips, milk, nesquik, chocolate chip waffles and doritos and lots of Disney movies so I think we're ready!!! My brother and his wife are getting ready to put their house on the market so we get the kids for the weekend so they can finish up some house projects and get it market ready--win win for all of us! Can't wait to spoil my two favorite kiddos all weekend long!! Hurry up 6pm Friday and get here!