Deep conversations

After Frank got home from class he heated up some leftover turkey. I told him he needed to eat a vegetable. A few minutes later . . .

F: Are you happy, Em? I'm eating my vegetables.

E: What did you have?

F: A tomato and garula?

E: What?

F: Argola.

E: Arugula?

F: Yeah, arugula.

E: That's lettuce.

Some stuff and things

My husband thinks he's all badass now that he has a Google Reader set up (which I set up for him) and he keeps saying he hasn't noticed my "feed" being updated lately. Ok smart ass. So here are some random updates with my life. I've also added some completely unrelated and random photos from my phone, because no one likes a blog post without pictures:

1. I incorporated my business, hooray! Now there's an Inc. at the end of the name and it's extra special. We  did it because our tax guy said he can save us 15% on taxes this way. I'll take it. Now I have to set up a business checking account, etc. I've been working on rebranding my business cards, web site, etc (and by rebranding, i mean adding the Inc. onto my logo. tada.).

We opened one of the bottles of wine we got in Napa for our 9th year dating anniversary. Is it weird that I place as much/maybe more importance on this date than our actual wedding? Maybe because we've been celebrating it for longer?

2. I just committed to a trip to southern Georgia to visit my dad's family. My grandma and her sister (who are both in their 90's) got into a car accident recently and have been in the hospital and in rehab. Grandma is out but my great aunt is still in rehab, out soon hopefully. They rear-ended someone while they were on their way to a peach orchard to pick peaches. How sad/sweet is that? Not much slows them down but this really threw a wrench in things. Anyway, my dad is planning to go visit in September. I wasn't going to go because I have a wedding to go to that weekend and the sheer boringness of sitting around and "visiting" with relatives that i'm not very close with (other than my grandma and great aunt), not to mention the cost of the flight, arranging my work schedule etc. And did I mention my extreme travel anxiety? Double gulp. But I'm going to go. And I'm also going to try to guilt my sister into going. Muah ha ha. 

My cat doesn't get enough love on this blog. Here ya go.

3. I'm training for an 8k. The Rothman 8k which is part of the Philadelphia Marathon weekend. I'm scared out of my mind to be honest. It took everything I had in me just to complete a 5k and that was a while ago. I've started training and I'm beginning to realize that running is a 90% mental game. My sister is going to do it with me and she's not a runner either, so I'm sure we'll take lots of walking breaks. We will be handsomely rewarded with cheesesteaks to the face.

My city. Did you know Batman is currently filming in Pittsburgh right now? My facebook wall has been crowded with Batmobile sightings and people lamenting the "Batman traffic" backups. We're pretty fancy here.

4. This one kind of goes with number 3. I'm trying to get back onto the diet and exercise wagon. With all the traveling we've been doing this summer, I've definitely fallen off. Pasta and pizza in Italy, cheesesteaks in Philly, ice cream at the beach, deep dish pizza in Chicago . . . I'm not good at eating healthy while traveling. But summer is winding down and I'll be home more often so I've been cooking more and making more of an effort to limit my intake. I've also been slacking in the cardio department, but hopefully I'll keep up with my race training.  I am proud to say though that I stuck with my lifting routine throughout the summer and I seriously love it. I've noticed such a change in my body since i've started seriously weight training. None of the half-assed stuff I used to do with the resistance machines. I'm so much stronger and I have more than doubled the weight i can move on some of my exercises. Even though I've been eating like crap, I've only gained about 4 lbs from my initial 18 lb weight loss. One of the best things about having more muscle is that it burns so much more calories. BUT, I want to take those four pounds back off and then some.

We walked around downtown and played tourists in our own city the other night. 

5. I have baby fever. Again.

9 Years, 10 Photos

Once upon a time (9 years ago) a handsome (sweaty, slightly buzzed) prince met a beautiful princess (me, obviously) at a magical castle (sketchy under-21 dance club). I can't wait to tell my children that story some day. The rest is history. Yes, today is the 9 year anniversary of the day Frank and I met. (I'm just saying, for the record, we weren't club rats or anything. This was the first time that either of us had been to "Rock Jungle".) Here are ten photos, one from each year of our dating/marriage.

I wish I could find an older picture than this! I can't seem to locate the photos from when we had JUST started dating, they are probably in a box somewhere. This is our first Christmas together. 

2003, my sophomore year. We're at a Pitt football game. I actually hate this picture because we had a huge fight that day.

2004, my junior year. I can usually distinguish the years based on two things: apartments and Halloween costumes. Here I am looking like a total sloot.

2005 - Hanging out at our favorite bar. I'm hoping that my teeth weren't that yellow and its the tint of the photo.

2006 - my senior year. Another year, another trashy costume

2007 - We just got engaged a day or two before this photo. Out celebrating with friends!

2008 was a big year, we got married!

2009 - We bought our first house and our first puppy, all within a few days!

2010 - Our road trip down the west coast, take me back

2011 - When I said yes to marrying Frank, I had one stipulation: he had to promise to take me to Italy some day. Mission accomplished.

My Love-y Valentine's Day

Frank and I had our Valentine's Day date on Friday night. I wasn't planning on being around on Monday because I had to go home to my parents' house to take care of my dad following some surgery (I'll get to that part in a bit).

Since we're a) on a budget and b) on a diet, we decided to do something we had never done before, and skip the fancy dinner out. Instead, we cooked up a gourmet meal at home. It looked a little something like this:

A pound and a half of crab legs for me and a new york strip steak for him. We split a baked potato (CARBS!) and I made a spinach salad with blueberries, sliced almonds and vidalia onion dressing. With the mass amount of animal on our plates, we barely had room for the vegetable riff raff. I had a glass of Sparkletini and he had a wine glass full of Vitamin Water. We even got to eat dinner with a kitty on the table. You can't get that kind of service in a restaurant.

Then we settled in on the couch and watched a movie. I let Frank pick and had to put up with a Sean William Scott comedy called "Balls Out". He basically plays Stiffler in every movie since American Pie. I passed the time by making a crafty little banner for above our fireplace.

Then on Saturday, we headed out to my parents' house and Frank and his brother repaired the ceiling in their garage. We had lunch, visited with my sister and her fiance, and then went home for a long nap. That night, my best friend and her boyfriend came over. We made tons of apps, drank some beer, and watched Paranormal Activity 2. Cupcakes happened.

Sunday was gorgeous. We got up early and trucked it to the gym, where Frank submitted me to a lower body workout. Then, after an eye appointment, we went to a trail near our house so that frank could do his half marathon training. The trail was a mix of mud and ice, the limestone and mud mixture was like quicksand. It made for one muddy beagle and nearly destroyed UGGS. But it was so peaceful. It was around 50 degrees and I was almost tricked into believing it was the beginning of spring. I know better than that though. The sun was shining, the creek was rushing and you could hear everything melting. I took a ton of iPhone pics but will be making a separate post of out those.

On Sunday night, I drove out to my parents' house. My dad had just had rotator cuff surgery and is off of work for a few months while he recuperates. My mom works during the day so she wanted someone home with him for the first few days after his surgery. My dad is handicapped: he had polio when he was a baby so he has had braces on his leg and has walked with crutches his whole life.  So not having use of his arm is a bigger deal than it would be for someone who was more able-bodied.

I brought the dog with me and he was a TERROR. He was totally out of his element and just paced the house whining. He begged for attention every second and shit in the house twice! He has NEVER had an accident at home. Then on Sunday night, he got up and barked at every tiny noise in the house, so I slept for about an hour. I was supposed to stay until Tuesday but when Monday night rolled around I couldn't handle him anymore. My mom is NOT a dog person and his antics were causing some major tension in the house. I was completely exhausted, totally frustrated and cranky and I just started crying. 

My mom ended up telling me to go home, spend Valentine's day with my husband and get a good night of sleep in my own bed. We had realized that my dad was doing much better than we thought he would be and he really didn't need me there. I packed up my car and my obnoxious dog and left, relieved to be going home.

It was sleeting and cold. I stopped at Hallmark for a card and then at the gas station for a protein bar, bag of beef jerky and a vitamin water for Frank (this was his budget V-day gift). When I finally got home, it felt so good to be back at my own place. 

On the dining room table was a bouquet of red tulips (he knows I dont' like red roses), a box of chocolate covered strawberry and a bottle of Frambois (my fave). He was also totally stoked about his man gifts. I changed into my pajamas and then we ate the strawberries, drank the beer and vented about our day. 

After learning he had never seen it before, we watched "When Harry Met Sally". I had forgotten what a good movie that was. Then we went to sleep. It was the perfect Valentine's Day. My day went from tear-filled frustration to a perfectly comfy love-fest in a matter of minutes. It was our 9th Valentine's Day together.

Thanks Frank, for my favorite Valentine's Day yet :)

Feel the love!

Happy Valentine's Day! (From a recent ugly pajama party)

The Skinny Jeans Debate

Actual conversation between my husband and I as were trying to leave the house.

Frank: do you have your keys?

Me: No, I thought you were driving?

Frank: I am but you have to carry the keys because I can't fit them in my new skinny jeans.

They are NOT skinny jeans, they are just straight. But ill let him continue to believe he's a hipster. He drives me nuts.