Sweet Ever After

We woke up early this morning to make the trek back home. We piled into the Mini, and left the SUV back in Michigan. Surprisingly, I didn't feel too cramped in the back of the Mini, even during the 8 hour drive back home.

We all felt like the time went by a little quicker this time since we avoided bad traffic. We got back to Noelle's house around 1:30. After I finally got back home, I took a 3 hour nap. I was so incredibly exhausted.

But I'm really glad I went on this trip! I had a great time, and I'm looking forward to going back for the wedding this August!

I went with Noelle and her mom for her first fitting this morning. I absolutely love her wedding dress. It looks beautiful on her.

Afterward, we went to her cousin's graduation. The graduating class was so small. It looked like there were only about 30-40 people in the entire class. After that, we went to another graduation party, and I enjoyed the food even more at this one.

Later, we went back out to the beach to enjoy the sunset and spend some more time relaxing before we have to leave early tomorrow morning.

Today we woke up a bit early so that we could enjoy some time at the beach before heading out to run some wedding errands. We drove just a few minutes down the road to Noelle's grandmother's house which is right on the beach. The weather was absolutely gorgeous. Clear blue skies and a light breeze with the temperature at about 80 degrees. It was so nice to relax and enjoy the peace and quiet after the long drive yesterday.

I forgot to bring sunscreen though, and ended up getting sunburned. It didn't look so bad at first, but as the day wore on, I got redder and redder. We decided to go home and change and then meet one of Noelle's friends in town for lunch. After that, we caught up with Ben to meet with the florist.

Noelle decided to use tall calla lilies for elegant centerpieces at her reception. Her bouquet will use 3 large calla lilies and 6 minis, along with bells of Ireland. The bridesmaids will carry a white hydrangea with bells of Ireland. I think it will all work beautifully together.


After a very long meeting with her very long-winded photographer, we headed to a graduation party for one of their friends. I recognized two of Noelle's friends and was introduced to many others as we ate fresh seafood at the lodge.

Afterward, we headed to Noelle's grandmother's house for a bonfire. Several people came, including some of Noelle's cousins, her uncle, some friends, and the cutest little dog named Cupcake. Everyone calls her Cupper, and she's such a smart dog! She knows several tricks, including roll over and they can even make her howl. She's precious.


I loved watching the sunset over the water. It was absolutely beautiful.


The weather was perfect, and the fire felt so nice when it started to get chilly after dark.

It was so good to meet so many of Noelle's friends before the wedding in August. It was a very busy day, but I had a lot of fun!

So today around lunchtime, Ben came to pick me up at the house. We swung by Jersey Mike's to pick up some subs to eat before we began the trip. The plan was to take two cars so that they could bring their dog to stay up North for the summer. Noelle and I rode in her new Mini, which was surprisingly comfortable.

Unfortunately, since it was Memorial Day weekend, there was a lot of traffic on the road. We ended up getting stuck in traffic, which made our trip about 2 hours longer. So instead of it being a 7.5 hour trip, it was closer to 9.5 hours.


We finally arrived at Noelle's house around midnight. We were all completely exhausted and went to bed almost immediately. Tomorrow is supposed to be a busy day.

Today I met up with Noelle at the mall on her side of town. We did a little bit of shopping, but I didn't buy anything. We ate lunch at California Pizza Kitchen, and I ate almost the entire pizza.


She and Ben are going out of town this weekend to their hometown in Upper Michigan. I was a little bummed when I found out because Nick has a Bachelor party to go to this weekend in Indiana. She surprised me by asking if I wanted to take the trip home with them to Michigan. She warned me that it was a super long trip and would be a busy weekend full of wedding planning and her cousin's high school graduation. But it sounded a lot better than staying home by myself all weekend.

After I made sure that I could leave the dogs with someone I trusted, I packed my bags and got ready for the trip the very next day.

This morning I got a phone call from the Cardiologist's office. They said that my stress test on the treadmill results were normal. I guess that means the EKG reading. I don't see how such a high heart rate can be normal with such little exercise. My friend who works with echocardiograms says that the hole in my heart should not be what is causing the high heart rate.

The nurse said she would call me when more of my result were available.



Nothing too exciting happened today. It was rainy and cloudy all day today. The dogs seemed a bit bored. Today is also my friend's last day of work. She is busy planning a wedding and will be moving to California soon after we do.

I woke up early this morning, ate a bowl of cereal, got dressed, and headed to my doctor's appointment with the Cardiologist. I knew from the beginning it would be a long day, since I had several tests scheduled.

As soon as I was brought to an exam room, a nurse started an IV and locked it. Then another nurse injected a radioactive dye into the IV. Since it takes some time to circulate through the body, they brought me to another room to get my echocardiogram done. I was a little nervous, but the ultrasound technologist was nice and explained everything she was doing. She got several different views of my heart, and near the end of the test they injected aggitated saline into my IV. They called it the "bubble test." I wasn't very sure what it was used for, but apparently it's used to diagnose if there is a hole in the heart. She asked me to cough, and I was told that the bubbles passed from one side of my heart directly to the other (which obviously shouldn't happen).

After that test was done, I went to a third room where I was told to lie completely still. A machine moved in small increments to take picures of my heart from different angles. This lasted 17 minutes-a very long time to lie completely still.

Finally, I went to take the stress test on the treadmill. It started off at a very slow walking pace, but my heart rate was almost immediately 145 bpm. Every three minutes, the treadmill would speed up and increase the incline. I was told to notify the nurse when I thought I would only be able to continue for 1-2 more minutes, because they would need to inject something into my IV and I would need to continue exercising.

I was scared that I wouldn't be ble to go much farther than the third incline, so I notified the nurse. Although I was pretty out of breath, I feel like I spoke up too soon. But the nurse said they should have what they needed. The goal was to get my heartrate over 160, and it was about 175-180 when I finished.

After that test, I waited a bit longer, and then was taken back to the room with the camera machine. I lied still for another 15 minutes while it took more pictures, and then was told that I was done for the day. They told me that the doctor would notify me when they had all of the results.

At 1:20, I drove across town to pick up an event monitor. I am supposed to wear it at all times for about a month or until my doctor tells me I can turn it back in. I'm only supposed to take it off for showers or when I'm swimming. I'm even supposed to wear it at night while I'm sleeping.


I'm not very thrilled about it. The nurse explained to me how to use it, and how to call the results in when I need to. If I have an episode of chest pain or palpitations, I am supposed to hit the record button. It also has specific settings for when it will take a recording on its own. As soon as I left the office and was walking to my car, the monitor beeped and started recording on its own. I figured it was because my heartrate was up since I was walking, but I hope it doesn't do this all the time.


There are two leads on the monitor. One is marked L for Left, and it goes just below the left breast. The other lead is marked R for Right, and goes below my collar bone. The leads plug into the monitor which is a bit larger than I expected, and is worn by clipping to jeans.


The monitor can record up to three events, but will beep nonstop once it records one event. Very annoying. Also annoying is the fact that to transmit the signal, you have to wait on hold for about 10 minutes, then transmit the signal by holding your phone over the monitor. Unfortunately, my cell phone does not transmit the signal, and we don't have a home phone. So for now, I am trading phones with Nick since the iPhone actually worked to transmit the signal.


Unfortunately, the lead stickers are already irritating my skin. I may have to call to see if there is another option for more sensitive skin. Here's hoping I don't have to wear this thing much longer, and also that nothing too serious is going on!

Today I ran out to Old Navy to pick up some kind of workout appropriate attire for my stress test tomorrow. I found a decent top to pair with some pants I found at Express. So not looking forward to that.


Anyways, today was another hot one, with the temperature climbing to 90 degrees! Craziness. I laid out for a bit, but it was pretty scorching out there. Haven't felt super motivated to get anything else done. Oh well.

I wanted to lay out in the sunshine again today, but the 88 degree weather was a bit much for me to handle without a pool. So Nick and I ran out to Home Depot/Target/Lowe's looking for a nice fan to put out there. We finally found one at Lowe's, and then headed to TGI Friday's for a nice lunch. Plus a yummy cheesecake dessert. I heart cheesecake.


Afterward, I sat outside on the deck and enjoyed the sun. I would so love to be at the beach and swim at the ocean, but at least I have gorgeous new beach towels.



Then I came inside to watch the LOST series finale. Tear. Lost, I will miss you.

Today Nick and I began a hunt for a cheap, but sturdy, lawn chair. I can't bear to not lay out and enjoy this fantastic weather! After we snagged one at Walgreens, I soaked up the beautiful sunshine while he enjoyed some well-earned game time.


After we enjoyed our respective "Me" time, we headed over to our friends' place to enjoy some burgers and shrimp on the grill. De-licious. I also worked on convincing them to get their pool ready for summer. :)

Today was a wonderful day! I went to get my highlights redone and get a haircut. Here is my "Before" picture, right before leaving for my appointment.


And here is me after! I love the cut AND the color. Both feel very summer like...and California-like :)


I got the same color highlights that I got back in January to keep things looking bright, and I let my stylist chop off a bit more than I had originally planned, but I LOVE it!


I always forget how great short hair makes me feel. I feel a teensy bit edgier, like I actually have a "style" to my hair. And quite a bit sexier. It's amazing how great a new cut can make you feel!


Now I'm off to enjoy a fantastic meal at Outback, courtesy of the best husband in the world! (Awww...)

I'm not the type of girl that really enjoys shopping. Sometimes it's about money-not wanting to spend on something I may or may not like after I get it home. Sometimes it's becoming overwhelmed at the amount of selections. Sometimes it's frustration with how things fit on me when they look so GOOD on the hanger. Overall, I usually find shopping to be an extremely exhausting and usually disappointing event. Which is why I was SO happy after having good luck at the mall today.

It definitely helped that I had a few discounts saved up-the type where you save $30 or so when you spend X amount. I had the most luck at New York and Company, and also found a few things at Express. I am so excited for summer. After 7 months of cold/chilly weather, it finally seems as though summer is here to stay.

My inspiration for shopping (I've found it helps me to be focused) was to find some great pieces for summer, and to try to find pieces that can also be dressed up a bit for more versatility. I tend to buy very casual t-shirt type clothing.

Here is a close up of a great T-shirt I grabbed from New York and Company. It has great detailing, and was only $8 on sale! I picked up 2, one in white. I also found a few more tops, slightly dressier basics, and two pairs of shorts!



I don't often shop at Ann Taylor Loft, because in general their prices are a bit high for me. As soon as I walked in, I turned down several options. T-shirts for $36? No thank you. But in the back of the store, where all the sales are, I got this cute embellished tank for $12! Not too shabby.




I tried to pick a variety of colors, since I often gravitate to a certain color and my wardrobe is often a bit predictable. I love this electric blue. It's so complimentary to almost any skin tone.



I love this top from Express. It's loose and flowy and has such a summer feel, especially with the vibrant colors.




So there's just a few of the great pieces I've picked up for summer. Loving this fantastic weather!!!

So I spent quite a bit of time working on my Final project that's due for my Illustrator class today. I sent a picture of my work to Nick so he could critique it. He showed it to a couple of guys at work, one being a graphic designer. And they thought it looked pretty good! I'm pretty proud of it, considering four months ago I had never touched Illustrator.
The object was to take a photograph with reflective surfaces (the pitcher on the left) and recreate it in Illustrator. We are graded on how closely our work resembles the original photograph. I think it came out great! There are still little details that bug me, but only when zoomed in closely.

So I didn't feel like studying for my final tomorrow. Instead I went on an insane cleaning spree which included 4 loads of laundry, and a complete and thorough cleaning of the kitchen. Countertops, backsplash, appliances, floors, dishes, everything. It was exhausting. But I love a clean kitchen. And because I couldn't bear to dirty it up again so quickly, we got Subway for dinner. Score!

This morning I spent some time studying for my Photoshop final. It really wasn't that difficult. I'm sure I'll have an "A" in the class, because I only needed 40% to keep it. I really wanted to spend the time being outside with Bear, but the sun didn't last very long.

Today we went to Houlihan's for lunch, and I worked on my website project which is due early next week. I promised Nick I would cook dinner for him, and we tried a new recipe. It turned out okay, but I don't think we'll be cooking it again. It was a bit bland, and Nick later told me he doesn't think he likes artichokes. Oh well, tried to be adventurous.


During dinner, we watched the finale of Survivor. We were both rooting for Parvati to win, but instead it was Sandra. We thought it was hilarious that Russell didn't get a single vote.

Today we went to Best Buy and Target looking to find a camera case. We found a good one at Target, and I couldn't help looking through the shoe department. I found a pair I loved. But I'll let you in on a secret. My feet aren't the same size. In fact, it often makes it hard to find a pair that DO fit. So today...I bought one 6 1/2 and one 7 shoe. I had to do it! My feet are kind of scrunched when I wear them, but otherwise they slide off in the back! I have very narrow heels.


I was worried the cashier would notice, but here I am at home with my brand new shoes :) Afterward, we went to Blockbuster and rented a couple movies. We watched the Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus. I wanted to see it because Heath Ledger was in the middle of filming it when he passed away. However, it was really strange and didn't make a lot of sense. Neither one of us enjoyed it...Still have Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs to watch later this week though!

Tonight we decided to meet up with a couple of friends for dinner on their side of town. We decided on J. Alexander's, a seafood restaurant that we tried for the first time a few weeks ago. The food is great, and the portions are huge! There was a beautiful sunset before we left.


After dinner, the guys wanted to go to the driving range. I'd never been before and wasn't too sure about it. It was already after 10pm by the time we got there. The place was packed, and they didn't have space for us for 2 hours. Since they closed at midnight, we decided to call it a night and try again another time. I wasn't too disappointed. It's still pretty cold out at night, and I was glad for an excuse to not be out in it.

So this morning I had a doctor's appointment with a cardiologist. I don't expect anything serious, but I've had some irregular chest pain and palpitations and just wanted to make sure that everything's still okay. It's been about 5 years since I was diagnosed with mitral valve prolapse, and this will be the first real follow-up. Nick's been begging me to go get it checked for months now, and I finally decided to stop being stubborn and have it checked.

The doctor was very nice and explained everything to me. My EKG was mostly normal, but they want to run a few tests in a couple weeks. After running to another office to get some lab work done, I came home to work on some projects, and let the dogs relax on the deck. We had some major thunderstorms last night, and it looks like a lake just over our fence where the golfers ride their carts.


But the rain has done wonders for the plants in our yard. Since we moved here in mid-October, most plants were pretty much done for the season, and I had no idea we had these beauties in our backyard until the sprung up out of nowhere a few weeks ago. Oh, how I love spring.

Random, I know...but there's an outdoor heater in our backyard, and it's weather-beaten. And I'm still a little obsessed with the macro setting on my camera, so I had to include this one too.

Oh, and I don't think I've mentioned it yet, but one of the reasons I decided to start this blog was to document what's going on in my life. So many things change so quickly. And as part of my new little project, I've decided to take at least one picture a day to create a virtual snapshot of my life. The goal is to keep this going for at least a year. I think it will be wonderful to look back and see all of these pictures that really do show what is going on in my life, even if it seems dull or routine in the moment.

Wednesdays are always a long day for me. I have two classes that are both about 3 hours each. So I don't get home until around 9:00pm. Tonight Nick had a long meeting at work during which future plans were discussed. As for now, it sounds like we will still be moving to California sometime this summer. It doesn't seem as though they are in a hurry for us to move, so most likely it will be around August.


Nick humored me and let me take a few pictures. He thinks the camera is pretty awesome for being so tiny. It's great in low light. On the right settings, it can take a picture in a dim room and make it look as though its bright daylight. Very cool feature for nighttime photos!

So my beautiful new camera arrived today. Let me just say, the two hours I had to wait while the battery charged just about killed me. I couldn't wait to get my hands on this new camera. I'm still learning all of the controls, but so far I really love the macro feature. It lets me focus right on an object in front of me, and the background becomes a blur. I really enjoyed playing with it!


Eventually, I want to learn all of the manual controls. But for today, I had a lot of fun just taking pictures around the house and of the dogs.


The amount of detail this camera captures is amazing to me, especially in macro mode. I took this picture very close up and then cropped since it was off center.

So far I couldn't be more pleased with my new purchase! I can't wait to try it out in low light situations and on vacations to get great shots of city lights and expansive views!