I'm an auntie again! =)

Babies, babies, everywhere! Apparently this is the year for babies! My sister Michelle had a beautiful baby girl, Rylee Paige, on September 6th. She is super sweet and very mellow. I couldnt get over how much she looked like Michelle! We went to the hospital to meet her the day she was born, and when she was a week old, we stopped over to see the family at home since Derek hadnt met his new niece yet. She is perfect, and I'm so excited to have another niece! - And I'm also excited that my sister Katie is pregnant with her second child! =) I love the fact that the three cousins will be close in age.

Along with becoming an Auntie again, two of my friends also had little ones recently! My friend Kayla had baby boy, Tyson Blake, on August 17th. Since I've been sick, I didnt get to meet him until a little over a week ago. He is pretty cute as well!

And on September 11th, my friend Jenni had a baby girl! Olivia Dale. She was just a peanut at 6lbs 2oz...and although she thought she was 2 weeks "overdue," found out later that the doctors were wrong about her due date, and she actually delivered her at 39 weeks!

Needless to say, this means lots of baby time for me! =)

Kevin & Danielle's Wedding!

What a fun weekend! One of my good friends Danielle got married on Saturday, so the weekend was filled with wedding festivities! I was Danielle's personal attendant/photographer (at least until the professional photographer arrived!) and I had a blast! I have known Danielle for many years and was so excited to be part of her special day.

I couldnt believe the amount of detail she put into everything. She made everything by hand...centerpieces, decorations, programs, you name it! She cut down tree branches for her centerpieces to go with the outdoor theme, and used baby food jars as candle holders hanging from the branches. It was such a neat, inexpensive idea. I loved it. Everything was perfect, and the weather couldnt have been better for an outdoor wedding! It almost made me want to get married again...almost! =)

Its been a while!

Hmm...its been a while since I've posted anything.

Not much new with us...getting closer to school starting and I'm not very thrilled about it. Where did summer go? We still have a lot of things we'd like to do before summer is over. Hopefully we still get a chance to.

Our puppy is the cutest ever! She is finally brave enough to go down our stairs, so she just sits by the door waiting for Derek to get home. Its so cute. Or she'll watch the neighbor kids playing outside. Having a puppy around has definitely been work at times, but its so worth it. Shes so playful and cuddly, I couldnt imagine not having her around.

One of my best friends, Kayla, went into labor this afternoon and I was really bummed that I had to work tonight so I couldnt be around to hear how everything went. I'm pretty impatient to hear the news! Blake promised everyone he would post something on facebook, so I've randomly checked throughout the night, but still nothing. Im pretty sure telling everyone isnt his number one priority, but I'm super excited for them and hope everything is going well.

Speaking of babies, my sister Michelle is due to have her baby in a few short weeks! I cant wait. Being an aunt is seriously the greatest thing ever. I cant imagine what our family is going to be like with another little one running around :) Derek is also loving it. Now that he can actually say hes an uncle now that we're married! He loves kids and its so cute to see him play with Mara. Oh the baby fever has already started! He is just as excited as I am to get to that stage in our lives.

The joy of working weekends

I guess its been a while since I've updated. Not too many interesting things going on in my life. I dont have cute belly pictures to post, or pictures of adorable little kids, so I'll just ramble until I come up with something clever :)

Married life is great so far. Cant believe its almost been a month already. Wow. Its pretty crazy. When I see how close Michelle is getting to her due date, and how fast my niece Mara is growing, I really see that time goes super fast. I'm trying to enjoy every day and get the most out of the summer as I can...since its the middle of June already! EEK! We have camping trips, valleyfair, and lots of bonfires planned. Oh, and we hope to start building our deck soon! Never a dull moment at our house! It has been great lately now that Derek and I are finally on the same shifts. It is quite difficult to get big projects done when we are never home at the same time. Now as long as the weather cooperates the next time we both have 2 days off together, we'll be able to go camping for the first time this summer! :)

I'm a bit bummed that I have to work all weekend. There is so much going on, and it always seems to work out that way. Now I'll have the next two weekends off, and there wont be much going on. Im not usually all that excited about cheese fest. I usually go and get some cheese curds, talk to a few people, and go to the parade with my parents.. nothing too exciting. But this year, a ton of my high school classmates were going...who I havent seen, well, since graduation I suppose.. and it wouldve been nice to catch up. We didnt have a 5 year reunion...but I guess thats what facebook is for! haha. I still hang out with a small group of friends from high school, but lately I've been talking to more. Its just fun to catch up and see how different peoples lives are.. some are married, have kids...others havent done a thing since high school...others are finishing up grad school, and some live halfway across the country. Its pretty crazy.

Along with that, 2 of my friends got married on Saturday...and I really wouldve liked to go. And my cousin Nicole had her graduation party this weekend too. Not to mention, could've gone to Chicago to watch the Twins! ...although, that wasnt really a necessity, it would've been fun!

Oh well...there's always next weekend! ;) Derek was able to pick up overtime though, which was nice! Since he knew he wouldnt get to see me at all anyway...might as well make some money I guess! At least one of us can still get overtime!

I suppose..my break will be over soon. Better get back to work.

I'm MARRIED! =)

After 11 months of wedding planning, on May 16th, I finally married my best friend :)

The wedding was everything I dreamed it would be, and more! It was such a fun day. Even though our flowers were the wrong color, I realized that if that was the worst that could happen, I was okay with it! Everything else was perfect. 200+ friends and family came to celebrate with us! Now that the wedding is over, it seems very strange to sit at home with nothing to do :) The wedding planning, moving, working, and homework had taken over my life..and now that I still have a few more days off of work, we are completely moved into our house, I've spent a lot of time relaxing and enjoying the beginning of married life :)

Our honeymoon was great! We went on a Caribbean cruise and it was awesome. It was also pretty cheap compared to other options we looked into, which is always a plus! I got A LOT of sun, and ended up peeling pretty bad when I got home, but it was totally worth it. The weather was great, and the views were even better! And not to mention the meals that were all included...24/7 all you can eat buffets, room service, and the most elegant dinners I have ever had! I dont think I have ever eaten so much! I'm pretty sure I gained back a few of the 17 pounds I had lost before the wedding, but it was totally worth it!

So far married life is good! Our house definitely feels like home now that we have everything unpacked and decorated. (thanks to having 2 1/2 weeks off of work!) I'm glad we moved when we did, because it was great to come home to OUR home :)

I'll post pictures later. I'm getting really anxious to see our professional wedding photos! :) :)

Less than a week to go!!

I cant believe it...in less than a week, I will be MARRIED!! How crazy is that?! We will have a new house, wedding, and honeymoon, all in less than a month! Crazy. Of course I'm on a break at work right now (1:41 am) planning out my next few days of craziness before the big day. All of the last minute wedding stuff with papers for school and boxes to unpack is enough to make my head spin! I'm surprisingly calm though, concidering. Everyone keeps asking me if I'm freaking out yet, and prior to that, I honestly dont think it had really set in yet! Derek is excited, which is enough to keep a smile on my face. Although at the beginning he wasnt always the most helpful ;) He is now asking what he can do to help, and constantly reminding me how excited he is to finally say I'm his wife :) He is such a sweetheart.

Anyway...this will probably be my last post until we get back from our honeymoon! I just hope the weather shapes up a bit by then! Pray for no rain!!! So far its looking like rain most of the week but there is still plenty of time for that to change!

We've moved!!! =)

I realize it's been a very long time since I've had a chance to update this...

The biggest news is that Derek and I are officially first time homeowners! We closed on our house on Thursday and did most of the moving on Friday. It has been so exciting! ...and exhausting! I was just bummed that on top of all of the moving, I have to work 12 hour night shifts all weekend. Boo. I'm so anxious to get everything unpacked and decorated!!! I will finally be able to have color on my walls, and can actually hang things and decorate however I want! :) Its still so crazy to think that this is OUR home. I never thought I'd own a house this nice! Especially not as my first home. All of the years of renting and saving money sure has paid off! Derek of course is already planning what kind of deck to build, and what accessories to put in the bathroom and laundry room downstairs. He is so thrilled to be able to do this for us...and even though he has big dreams, its great to see things falling in place for us :) I cant wait to get married now!!!!

The wedding is 2 weeks away from yesterday!!! Holy cow! Once we get all settled in, I'll feel much better. Then I can just focus on all of the last minute wedding stuff. I have a bunch of little things to do..and I cant wait to start crossing everything off my list! I keep looking at my calendar and seeing that the wedding really isnt far away...and then a much needed vacation! Derek and I have never been on a vacation just the two of us, so we are SO excited for the honeymoon! At this point it really doesnt matter where we go...just as long as we can get away for awhile...and a little sun wouldnt hurt! :)

Everything is falling into place...I couldnt ask for anything more! :)