That time we moved our bed into the closet.

What. A. Weekend.

 

If you couldn't tell by my Instagram pics Saturday afternoon, we enjoyed ourselves.  But I promise, our weekend wasn't all play. 

 

We've been working on our master bedroom "project" for the past month or so & I'm happy to say, we finally, finally  got 'er finished up.  But not without a few wrenches. Isn't that how all DIY's go?

 

When we bought the house, we knew we wanted to take on this project early on. As some know, Jon built me a dressing room attached to our master bedroom....

 

 

 

....so there was no need for the measly old closet in our actual bedroom. 

 

So, why not move our bed into it? 

 

First we had to remove the shelving & rod.

 

 

Then we had to mud & sand it down.

 

And mind you, in these photos it looks like Jon is doing all the work, but this photo was totally staged.  I promise. I sanded the ENTIRE wall myself.  And then had to scrub every frickin' inch of the bedroom because that crap gets everywhere!  I took a pic of the headboard just to prove it.

 After we got 'er all sanded down, time to bust out the paint.  I wanted to paint the closet to match the darker trim & baseboards surrounding it.  Instead of taking a wood sample with me to select the paint color, I decided to "eyeball" it. 

 

Bad idea.  Very bad idea.

It turned out super red, so we ended up having to paint the entire space.

Twice.

We installed a new light fixture with a dimmer switch. 

 

 

The dimmer allows for a nice ambiance in the room & I just love it.
Who knew a dimmer could be so  romantic? ;)

 

Then off to Etsy I went in search of the perfect monogram to hang above our bed.

 

I swear I must've looked at over 100 different fonts...GOOD LORD.  I had no idea there were that many to frickin' choose from!!

 

I finally found one I fell in love with, ordered that sucker & as soon as we got it up on the wall we realized the sucker didn't stick to the paint we used on the wall.

 

Awesome.  Just awesome.

 

So we beat the system.  We hand painted that sucker.  She ain't goin' nowhere now.

 

 

 

I'm exhausted just thinking about it.  But hey, it was worth it.

 

Hope you all had an amazing  weekend, not involving hand painting a monogram on your wall.

 

 

Linking up with Carly & Molly .  And you should too.

 

And as always, Sami & Leeann.  Thanks ladies for hosting one of my favorite link ups week after week!




Tootles! And please, say a prayer for me to make it thru this Monday.

Ugghh.

 



Well, Hello Weekend.

I'm convinced that there is NO better feeling than a Friday morning.  You roll over & hit snooze on your alarm only to realize that it's the LAST day you'll do that for the week. 

My feet (and my donkey booty) hit the ground dancing with excitement & the rest of the day is spent smiling & being nice to people I'm typically not nice too, well, because it's Friday. 

I know that rest & relaxation (and booze) is waiting for me....just a few hours away.

This Saturday we have a day trip planned to a little nearby town called Weston.  Ya 'all.  It's adorable!

We are hitting up a couple wineries in town...

And then ending with a brewery tour of their local Pub, O'Malley's. 

We've been here before, but just to get intoxicated.

By doing the tour, we'll actually learn some history.....while getting intoxicated.

It just makes us sound better.

They're having their Irish Music Awards show in the afternoon.  You know, kind of like the MTV Music Awards, minus Britney Spears & Madonna making out.

This brewery was first established in 1842 & 2 out of the 5 orignial cellars are still in operation!  The best part....it's entirely underground.

I'm going to have an Instagram hay-day with this one.

Follow along @annexenos.

Have a great weekend ya'all!

About Me.

Thanks to the yoga pants wearing Whitty, I'm going to lay out some confessions today.  I'm not Catholic, so a blog post versus a confessional will just have to do.

 

Number #1:  I think my dog is a child.

And I KNOW many of you can relate.  We even took her to the Christmas Tree Farm this past year to help us pick out a tree. Don't judge me.

 

 

 

Number #2:  I lost my father when I was 11, therefore my Mom & I have always been more like sisters.  And I love that about our relationship.  Last year we took a super spontaneous ski trip together, just us.  It will always be a trip I hold NEAR and DEAR to my heart.

 

 

Number #3:  I have two older brothers that still tease me like I'm 13.  It drives me CRAZY but these two guys would do ANYTHING for me, and for that, I'll take all the teasing in the world.

 

 

 

Number #4:  My boobs were a size G. 

 And then I got them cut off last May.

But not before my husband and I threw them a "(B)Reast in Peace" party.

 

 

 

 

And Number #5:  I work as a Sales & Marketing Manager for a Senior Living Community.

 

My job can be emotionally exhausting because NO ONE wants to ever admit that they just can't take care of themselves any longer.  However, my job is extremely rewarding in that I get to help these families with one of THE HARDEST decisions they'll ever make.  And I love it.

 

 

 

Weekend Update: The Anatomy of a List

 

You know what I love MOST about blogging?

(Outside of the relationships I've built of course)

 

All of the GREAT ideas I get from you gals! 

Everyday, every week, there's always new ideas & a fresh perspective to be found & I just love it.

 

The latest idea I've snagged is compliments of this crazy cat who loves Basset Hounds.

 

 

Make Lists.

 

I'm one of those crazy cats who just CAN'T sit still. I like to pretend like I'm one of those girls who can curl up on the couch with a great book & hot cup of coffee & just read the afternoon away.

Yeah frickin' right.

 

What I call relaxing on a Saturday is running frantically around the house starting 8 different projects & barely finishing one of them at days end.

 

So when Sarah mentioned she & her husband made a list of things they wanted to accomplish over a weekends time, I snatched that idea up like my Chihuahua eats her food.

And for the record, she eats super fast.

 

So with my newfound wisdom I approached this weekend with a different mentality.

A list making mentality. And I loved it.

 

Did my weekend consist of anything exciting to normal people?

  Hell no. 

 

But for my junk drawer, so super exciting.

 Organized.

Check.

 

 We bought a new laptop.

 

Check.

 

Finished plastering hearts all over my entire house in honor of Valentines Day.

 

 

Check.

 

Gave myself a French mani.

 

 

Check.

 

And hey, I managed to squeeze in about five miles on the pavement.

Good for my ass? Yes.  Good for my energy level?  Hell yes.

 

I smell many more lists in my future.

 

 

Now, time to take on another Monday morning.  But hey, at least I have a new mani. 

Makes a Monday morning SO much easier.

 

Linking up with Sami & Leeann...you should too.

 

Marriage.

I promised when I began this journey of blogging that I would strive to always be honest, even when tackling the tough subject matters such as Marriage.

It's such a beautiful journey however sometimes the journey is tough.  Let's get real.  It's not always butterflies & roses.  It's not always hot passionate sex.  It's not always candlelight dinners on a furry rug in front of the fireplace.

Now, I love the fact that I get to share my life with someone, day in and day out. 

However there are some days where I just want to slap the guy in the face.
(Love you babe)

But you know what I love the most? 
I love that he evokes those emotions deep within me.  Those deep passionate emotions. 
Even on the hard days.

But sometimes those tough fights are just unavoidable. Those fights where you argue, walk away, think about it, think you've calmed down so you try & talk again and still end up arguing. 

On those days, I call one of the few people that will always keep it real with me. 
My Mom.

And you know what she said to me when I called her this morning after a tough night in my marriage, "You have to always be willing to fight for your marriage."

And man, that is so true.  SO true. 

You have to ALWAYS communicate, ALWAYS talk it out even when it's tough to find the right words.  And most of all,
(like I vowed on that beautiful spring day a couple years ago)
I promise to ALWAYS love that man even when I don't like 'em very much.

That I vowed then, now & forever.

Especially when he sends me flowers that look like this.  I mean, c'mon. 

How frickin' cute are these?

Our Top 5 Moments of 2012 (And Finally a Home Tour!)

I know, I know.  I'm behind.  It's already Jan 2nd and I'm JUST NOW whipping out an "end of the year, resolution style" post.

I swear things move at supersonic speed here in cyberland.  You girls are ON. IT.

I'm the blogger who is constantly running behind you all...out of breath, trying to keep up!

Now that the new year is upon us, I can't help but wonder where the HELL the past year went? 

Back to that running analogy, I feel as if I'm running after my life and yelling, "Hey life!  Wait for me!"

So in order to feel like I had a chance to really soak in all that the Good Lord brought our family in 2012, I figured a top 5 list would help me do just that.

So grab yourself a glass of vino & enjoy!

Number Five:  My First 5K

I look back at the photos we snapped that day & I get all nostalgic just thinking about it.  What a day that was for me!  No, it's not a dang marathon....but to me, it was.  It's not about the miles ran, it's about the way you feel when you cross that finish line.  I've said it before & I'll say it again ...exhilaration. 

I will forever be thankful to Amber, one of my blog buds who truly has been an inspiration to me.  She got off the couch & got running.  Well hell, I could too. 

Number Four:  Seattle Trip with my Homegirls

There's something to be said about a weekend full of girl time with two ladies who truly complete me.  I tell them all the time, "Thank you for always being a constant in my life."  What I mean by "constant" is that no matter where the waves of life take you, these two are always there when I get done riding the wave.  They're there to either pick me up because I feel like I'm drowning, or there to share a toast about the badass wave I just gone done riding. 

To have two women who will always be a "constant" in my life is something that brings me tremendous peace & for that, I'll always be grateful!

 This particular trip was one I'll treasure forever, hence making the top #5 list!

Tara popped the question to Jen & I...no lady ever forgets that day. ;)

The countdown to July 20th, 2013 has begun!!!!! 

Number #3: 
Celebrating Our FIRST of Many Anniversaries to Come!

Our actual anniversary weekend (pictured above) was spent at a resort in Branson, which was TOTALLY unplanned.  Due to construction at the resort where we wed, we had to go with plan B & celebrate at The Elms in August.  The construction delay was devastating at first, but hey, we got two anniversary trips for the price of one.  Heck to the yes.

I call that making lemonade out of lemons, my friends.

Cheers to that.

(Pictured above, a few photos of our trip to The Elms to celebrate in August)

Number Two:  Breast Reduction Surgery

You rarely come across a woman who had a reduction who says,

"Yeah, I hate my new perky rack.  They are just too small.  I really miss my elephant sized breasts."

Just doesn't happen.

For me, I was scares shitless, but so excited at the same time.  I documented in detail about the emotions you go thru prior to & how my recovery went.  If you or anyone you know is contemplating having this surgery, please tell them about my blog.  Below are a few links to some entires I think would be helpful, ESPECIALLY the how to tutorial on how to create handheld breasts as party favors for a (B)Reast In Peace party.  You're welcome.

 

Pre Surgery

Recovery

Recovery Part Two

Recovery Part Three

Recovery Part Four

Number One:  We Bought Our First Home Sweet Lake Home 

Our Backyard

One of the guest bathrooms

My husband knows just how to take care of his girls.

Dressing room for me.  Pub for Belle.

All in all, what an amazing year it's been for Jon & I.

In closing, I'd like to thank ALL OF YOU for letting me share a little piece of our world with you. 

You words of support & encouragement on my many posts this past year do not go unnoticed!

May your 2013 bring you many, many blessings!