Today is...

my 26th birthday. 

remember this post about how i'm making this year awesome?

well, it's going to be spectacular. i can't wait. 

hooray! 

change

It’s my birthday week. I was planning on doing something exciting everyday.  But besides conquering my humongous fear of getting my blood drawn, you can call that exciting, right? I have done nothing… I have actually been feeling a little down in the dumps.  This is not how I envisioned this week going. So I am going to postpone my week full of fun until next week. I will ring in the first week of my 26^th year in style. 

For the past little while I have been reflecting about my life. Things that I hope for, things that I want to change, and a list of things I want to do in my upcoming year.  My 25^th year was always one that I looked forward to. I thought it was going to be the year that all my amazing plans, that I wrote down on a piece of lined school paper when I was 16, were going to happen. But guess what, they didn’t… and my  25^th year has not been tremendously exciting. In all honestly, it has drained me of my energy and creativity. Something needs to change. But most of the time I can’t pin point what changes need to be made.

Recently I have been listening to Oprah’s life lessons while I work. It’s an incredibly humbling and rewarding talk show.  One thing she said that stuck out to me is if you don’t know where to start, in whatever you are doing, begin with the simple question, who am I?

Don’t think about it, just write the first things that come to your mind. So today, that is where I’m starting.

Here. i. go.

I am a woman, a lover, a friend, a photographer. I love the color kelly green and fresh flowers on my dinner table. I am a wife to a student who is always busy. And I often forget that he is busy creating our life, a life that will soon bring stability (hopefully).  I love to be daring and trying new things is exciting to me. One of my favorite things in the entire world is sitting and talking with my best friends. It always makes me feel better, and some of my best memories have been created that way. I love ice cream, cup cakes, and Swedish fish. I am creative, and I know what I’m talking about when it comes to marketing. One of my happy places is the ocean. Listening to the waves crash against the rocks and the smell of salt air… to me that is happiness. I love Washington, D.C and learning about all the history. I secretively love politics. I am a hopeless romantic. I am sensitive. At times I wish I would of gone into a career that involved counseling/people.  I am over the moon exciting to be a Mom and share that adventure with Bear. Coming home to a puppy that is super excited to see me makes my heart tremendously happy.  I am a lover of nature.  I am strong but not fearless.  I am scared of tragedy and the unknown. I get obsessive over certain TV shows. I am blessed. I am me, a person that is constantly learning, changing, and growing. So for now, this is who I am.  

Digging deep into your soul and finding out who you are, what you stand for, and how you want to be living your life can open up a whole new perspective to your life. Except it, learn from it, and change what is necessary.

This experiment has made me realize small things that I could easily change to make my life happier. To make me feel more content in the life that I am living. This was the first step to my changing process. 

It's her birthday

Hey Mom, it's your birthday and you're probably relaxing by the pool. This year is the big year... but you look fabulous! don't you feel fabulous (you have to learn to love your age). Remember with age comes wisdom. And that wisdom can be passed down to me. Thank you for always being there for me and for loving me no matter what. It has been such a special last couple months being able to live so close to you. I love our lunch dates and the over night weekend activities. It's just great being able to be around you. Have an awesome day and be fabulous!! I love you and we will celebrate when you get home.

Birthday

Today is my Dad's BIRTHDAY! 

I hope he is having a wonderful time celebrating his big day 

by golfing and soaking in the sun.

Happy Birthday Dad. Thanks for being so awesome. 

I love you . 

happy birthday my love

thank you for being my best friend.

 i love you. 

Love, me 

we had a birthday

Bear's Mom had a birthday and we celebrated in style.

We ate like kings and queens.. lobster and steak! 

It was a great night. filled with friends and family. 

even the doggies got in on the action. How cute is her face? 

Happy, Happy Birthday Susan. 

We were thrilled to (finally) be in Utah to celebrate with you! 

a little bit of this and a little bit of that

it seems as if this past month was played out in fast motion. 

it was a whirlwind of events. 

we failed to really document our trip out west, besides some measly phone pictures. 

but being that it was our 4th time driving across country; we knew the scenery, had already gotten souvenir post cards from each state, and the excitement factor faded after the 2nd across country trip.

here are those measly phone pictures documenting our life this past month. 

 

 

here we are, driving across the plains of Kansas

Entering Colorado and the beautiful mountains. 

Shento enjoying a little fresh air before getting back into the cramped u-haul

we spent a couple days with Bear's Aunt and Uncle in Ridgway Co. 

we enjoyed the small town festivals for the 4th of July.

and watched the traditional fire hose fights (above). 

i was also lucky enough to celebrate my birthday 3 different time. 

thanks to everyone who made me feel very loved and special. 

and lastly, while house searching in salt lake, bear and i tried the new smash burger. 

the selection of buns are impressive and it was nice to be able to sit outside. 

one thing that we have really loved about being in Utah is all the outdoor

 activities, scenery, and fresh air. 

waking up to the beautiful mountains 

and crisp lake every morning 

is a refreshing change from New Jersey. 

A Birthday Celebration

26 years ago the most wonderful person entered the world. As you can guess, that person is my hubby. We celebrated in style. As much style as you can get with the both of us couching non-stop and snot running down our noses. We still had fun, and that is all that matters.
The weather has been beautiful this weekend so we took full advantage of it. We went to one of our favorite places and walked along the river path.  The top photos are a couple snapshots from our walk. In the evening we went out to eat at Chutney Mary. A wonderful Indian food restaurant. We splurges and ate way too much. We waddled out of the restaurant laughing at how much we actually were able to eat. When we got home it was time for singing, presents, and a little pin the tail on the donkey.  Needless to say we ate no cake but it looked pretty and Bear got to make a wish and blow out his candles. Here's to another year of wonderful celebrations, parties, romance, and laughter. I love you hubby.

4

Our wonderful, amazing, cute, obedient, sweet, loving puppy turned 4 years old yesterday. 

We celebrated puppy style. 

Beehive Adventures in a Birthday Hat and Tea Pot

I am just know getting the rest of our Utah pictures up here. I know it has taken me too long. However, we got back into town and have been trying to get back into the swing of real life. Plus my computer has been having some issues that have made it really difficult to do anything. Anyways, we are back up and running. As promised, the rest of our exciting, wonderful trip. 

First up, a Birthday Party. While my Papa was in town it happen to be his exciting day. Of course we had to celebrated with hats and all!!

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The Beehive Tea Room

This day, in my memory was a happy day. For no apparent reason, Bear and I had smiles on our faces the whole day. We woke in the morning not sure what we would do. Since it was one of the last days before we packed up we were trying to figure out something that we could do that we would miss while back in New Jersey. We both agreed on Salt Lake. A book store and walking around temple square would satisfy us.
After walking around the temple and the bookstore we started to get hungry. Since I was in high school I have heard all about a place called the Beehive Tea Room. Every time we went to Utah i've wanted to go. I mentioned it to Bear and we walked the couple of blocks to the Beehive Tea Room. The minute I walked in I fell in love. It was so cute and antiquie. We ate delicious sandwiches and enjoyed the old traditional victorianesque decorations. I can not wait to go there in the winter and escape away from the bitter cold with a hot pot of tea. After lunch we walked around downtown a little bit longer and enjoyed the scenery that downtown salt lake has to offer.