Jenn's Baby Shower

This past weekend my sister cam home with her husband and three dogs for the baby shower. Two months and one day until the little guy arrives (hopefully sooner), and I can't wait. I have spoiled him already, and I don't see myself stopping anytime soon.

Jennifer got lots of goodies for Duke. That will be one well dressed baby! Mom and I both got crafty. She has been crocheting for awhile, and made Duke a very cute baby blanket complete with baby booties and a cap. She has become very talented. During her experimental/learning days, Mom made me two blankets for my apartment. I love them, and they are warmer than any other blanket I have.

I have been doing cross-stitch since I was younger. Mom taught me how to do it. She used to cross-stitch all the time until her eyes got bad. Just something that I have to look forward to, since I already can't see half the time. Anyway, I was out at JoAnn Fabrics one day, and I came across a pattern book that was filled with cute little baby patterns. I took one of the patterns and made a bib for Duke. It was so cute, and I had to fight back the urge to make ten more of them!
Along with the bib, I got Duke a pack of diapers and his high chair. I also have more fun things for him, but I will have to wait until he arrives. We are all very excited. Jenn's blog has more pictures of the shower (I wasn't on camera duty, so I don't have any.)

I also had an experience that took ten years off me life, or at least it felt like it. Friday night was the first night that everyone was home. Mom, Jenn, and I headed up to bed just as Dad and Jack got home from the Elks. They were taking the dogs out for their last potty break of the evening. Jenn's 70 lbs. bulldog was sleeping in his bed downstairs. Sometime around 12:30AM, he decided that he was lonely. Bubba knocked over the baby gate, and wandered to the upstairs of my parents house. I could hear him breathing (which is kind of creepy) outside my bedroom door. I was just thinking that Jack was taking him outside.

I totally thought wrong. The next thing I know, Bubba head-butt my bedroom door. It came off the latch and I can see shadows moving in the mirror that is behind my door. I realize my door is opening, but no one is standing there. Bubba got into my room and propped up his two fronts paws on my bed. He scared me silly. He was trying to climb in bed with me, so I got up and delivered him into Jenn and Jack's bedroom. This caused Jennifer not to get much sleep, and I was still on edge from seeing my door magically open.

It was a great weekend, and we are all blessed that this baby is coming. He will be welcomed into a wonderful family full of love.

Tony and Erin's Wedding

Last weekend my cousin Tony got married. The wedding was on the St. Vincent College Campus in Latrobe, and the reception was at a hotel in Greensburg. It was a very nice day outside for the event. The wedding ceremony was very nice. It was a lot shorter than expected.

It was a Catholic wedding, but not the full mass. However, when thirteen bridesmaids have to walk down the isle, it seemed as long. All together, including the bride and groom, the wedding party totaled 28 people. That is just crazy!

Erin's best friend from college was her maid-of-honor, while Tony had his two brothers stand up beside him as the best men. The girls wore aqua colored dresses that came to just below the knee. The bridesmaids each had different dresses, but they were all the same color. (I didn't even notice that fact until my mother pointed it out to me)

There was a long gap of time between the ceremony and the reception. Since my entire family was practically starving, we headed to Wendy's for a little pre-dinner snack. The reception doors opened at 5. Inside the ballroom, there were many round tables for the guests, and two head tables for the wedding party. Tony and Erin had a three tiered wedding cake that sat off to the side.

The reception was a good time. There was lots of talking, picture taking, dancing, and family bonding. Below are a few snapshots from the wedding. I don't have any pictures of Tony and Erin right now, but I will add some later.

August

Where did the time go? I feel like I blinked and the whole month of August went by. I guess I have been pretty busy.

The first full week of August, I spent all my time at the office. Of course this was the week before our family vacation, and I busted my bum to get all my work done. It was very stressful, and I don't deal with stress very well. However, I'm learning. My overtime hours keep adding up, and hopefully, by the end of the year, I will meet the quota of 225 hours for the year. I don't mind working overtime, but preferably not in the middle of summer where I feel like I have no life.

The second week of August was spent at Ocean City, Maryland with my parent, Aunt Vonda, Uncle Bob, Joyce, Pete, and Steph at the beach. We rented the same condo that we have stayed at the past few years. It was a good time, and very relaxing. I wish my full time job could be laying on the beach and reading books. We did many of the normal activities like Mini Golf, going to the Boardwalk, getting ice cream, the all-you-can-eat seafood buffet at the Bonfire, and shopping of course.


My best friend, Jordan (Jay) came down for the last two days. I needed to see my best friend. It is unfortunate that we haven't talked much lately, but our conflicting work schedules are to blame. She works in a lab during the night shift, so she gets up when I go to bed. It makes it hard to catch up sometimes. Hence the reason why we are both looking for different jobs. She doesn't like hers, and I just want to see what else is out there.


After vacation, I came back to another crazy week where I spent my life at the office (again). I guess it will be that way until October. I can't say that I like it, but I can't do anything about it. That was also the week of my birthday. It was nice to have a quiet birthday. I was so worn out at this point that I just didn't want to do anything. Marc made me dinner, and that was nice. He got me the Twilight DVD, so we settled in to watch that. I get sucked into it, and I can't wait for New Moon to come out in November!


The day after my birthday, I was in the office for half the day. Then I judged a cheerleading competition in Carmichaels, PA. It is south of Pittsburgh, almost into West Virginia. It didn't last long, but it was extra money. I enjoy judging, since I can't do much anymore. I feel old (especially since the arthritis kicks in every now and again).


The last week of August seemed pretty easy. I worked my regular hours (give or take a day or two), and Sunday, August 30th, Marc and I went into town and rode the incline. I have done this once before, but he never has. It was good to spend quality time with him. We went out on the observation decks, and took lots of pictures of the city. We also stopped for frozen yogurt. It was a good activity for a Sunday afternoon. We got back to his apartment around 5, and I cooked dinner. Since he doesn't have any place for a kitchen table, we ate in the living room on the coffee table and watched a movie.

The Duquesne Incline in downtown Pittsburgh.

A view of PNC Park from the top of the incline.

My office building, the Grant Building. If you can believe it, it was once the tallest building in Pittsburgh. I live of the 22nd floor.

September should be packed full, so I'm hoping to keep up with more frequent posts.

Two Weeks and Counting

Two weeks from today I will be at the beach! I can't wait because after the past week at work, I really need a vacation. I worked a good 60+ hours, and I'm glad it is over. It completely wore me out. This weekend, I have escaped into my Kindle, and I am trying to finish the Twilight series. I have half-way through the final book. I can't seem to put it down.

I was planning on reading the series down at the beach. However, I caved a little too early. I have two weeks to come up with something to read. Any suggestions??

I will be sure to post pictures and stories from the beach this year. It will feel good to feel the sand between my toes again!

So Much Going On

So it has been a good month since my last post. I figured it was time for an update. I have been very busy the last month or so.

1. I was at home for Memorial Day Weekend. The whole family was together, under one roof, for a good two days. That doesn't happen very often. We played with the dogs, sat outside, and had a BBQ in the driveway. We also celebrated Jennifer's news, and I'm SOOOOOOOO excited that I am going to be an aunt. This child may be spoiled!

2. I broke down and bought a new computer at the beginning of June. My old one is almost 6 years old, and I can't get past the Windows screen anymore. It was about time for a new one. I got a brand new Dell Inspiron Laptop, and I LOVE IT!. It is so much smaller than the other one, so it is nice to just stick it in a bag and carry it from location to location. I have been saving for one, and I decided that June was as good a time as ever.

3. Mom and Dad cancelled their trip to Vegas around Mom's birthday. Grandpa has had his ups and downs, so Marc and I decided to take a random trip to Clearfield. We spent a good hour or so with Grandpa, and it just makes me sad. That weekend we went to Denny's for dinner, and Marc was amazed at the gigantic burgers!

4. Last weekend was very interesting! I had the scariest plane ride in my life. (Keep in mind that I don't fly very much, and I'm terrified of it.) Marc and I flew to Philadelphia because his brother was getting married. We left on Wednesday, June 17th. Our flight was planned for 5:25 that day. Because of "the worst storm that Pittsburgh has seen in years," out flight was delayed 3.5 hours. We sat in the airport, and I tried to relax. The whole airport shut down for a good 45 minutes because of the lightning. We also had a tornado warning. There ended up being a 25 minute break in the storm. The airport shoved everyone on their planes, and they took off one right after the other.

The wedding was Friday, June 19th. It was a gorgeous day! It was a very busy day, but everyone had fun. Below is a picture of Ed and Whitney cutting their wedding cake. I met some of Marc's family for the first time. They are very nice people. For the first time (I think ever), I didn't have anxiety from being in a large group of people I didn't know!

I'll try to keep things updated more frequently. My brother-in-law is singing in downtown Pittsburgh this Friday. I'm hoping to capture some images and post them!

Bowl-A-Thon

This past weekend Marc and I participated in the Junior Achievement Bowl-A-Thon at the FunFest in Harmar. The Bank of New York Mellon (where Marc works) was holding the event. Our team was comprised on Marc and myself, and our three friends Ang, Kevin, and Brian. We got to bowl three games for free and we were treated to soda, beer, and pizza.

We had such a good time! I think my bowling skills are improving. It has been awhile, but in the three games I bowled, I had 10 strikes and 9 spares. Don't ask me how I did it. I think the 10 strike was a freak accident, and it will be awhile before I see that again! Marc still beat me in all three games, though. This didn't bother me much because Kevin knocked him off of his high horse. Kevin won all three of our games. His scores were around 200 (usually over that).

After the bowling, we went to Smokey Bones at the Pittsburgh Mills Mall for some drinks. This was a cheap evening because Marc and Brian collected as many coupons as they could from their outing to the Flyers/Pens playoff game. However, what started out as a very good time became a little frustrating towards the end. We all ordered our food at the same time, but Marc's came about 15 minutes after the rest of ours. We all ordered appetizers because we just wanted to munch. We soon realized that the waitress waiting on us at the bar were consuming a little alcohol of their own. I don't think this should be done "on the job."

It took this girl about 45 minutes to figure out our bills, and they weren't even right. I was so frustrated that all I wanted to do at this point was go home. I paid my bill, and Marc and I waited outside for everyone else because the weather was so nice. It was 11:00 at night, and no coat was needed. I love that kind of weather.

It turned out to be a pretty decent night (minus the stupidity of the bartender at Smokey Bones). I don't think we will be going to that restaurant anytime soon, but we foresee another fun bowling night in the future!

IT IS OVER

Tax season is officially over, and I could not be in a better mood! I don't have to look at another 1120S or 1040 for a good month or two! Although it was my first ever "busy" season, it was not what I was expecting. I was only putting in about 45-50 hours a week, and I was expecting more along the lines of 55-60 hours. I can't complain though. I did not have much of a social life, but that is expected.

Now, that I am back to normal, I can spend more time with my friends. No longer to I need to plan things based on whether or not I need to make an appearance at the office on the weekend. Last night, my roommate and I went to Max and Erma's to celebrate. It was good to spend some quality time with Laura because we don't see each other that much.

I also decided that I am going to purchase a membership to LA Fitness. It may be a little more expensive than some of the other gyms that are around me, but they have a pool. That was a major concern. Because I still have problems with my knee and lot of impact (probably because it never got fixed...) swimming is my outlet to relax and get in a good workout. Swimming 1,000 yards in a session is the minimum!

I can also catch up reading more often. My list of things to read has grown immensely. I decided to start by reading the first book in the Stephanie Plum series. The series is by Janet Evanovich. I have heard some mixed reviews, so if anyone wants to leave his/her opinion, please do!

I have some upcoming events planned, so I am hoping that my posts become more frequent! Keep checking for updates!