Instaweekend.

I've been doing a lot of this:

And this...

And my Mama came from out of town to help me pack.  Oh, and we snuck in a lot of fun while she was here too!

And I will always love you...  Mama got a standing ovation at Thursday night karaoke.  :)

Spending precious time with precious friends...

Live music and a cold glass of my favorite beer...  

Sushi. 

And PROGRESS!!!!!  I'm getting closer.  I can't wait to be reunited with Caleb!  Its been over three weeks and I miss him.

Happy Monday!

Happy Anniversary.

Three years ago, at my childhood home, my grandfather and mother walked me down the aisle.

They kissed me and gave me away into the arms of a loving man.

We said our handwritten vows.

We slipped rings on each other's fingers and said, "I Do."

We shoved cake in each other's faces...

And I smiled, and smiled, and smiled like a crazy person.  Crazy in love.  I remember my face hurting the next day I had smiled so much.

I tossed my bouquet...

I danced...

And danced...

It was the happiest day of my life.

I married the best man there is.

Happy 3rd Anniversary, Caleb.

A Quick Hello.

Its been a busy week with a lot of work and little play.  I've picked up the speed with packing and I've also been preparing for a visit with my Mama.  

I wanted to drop in, say hello, and share a link from BuzzFeed.  I saw this on my friend Betsy's Facebook and it was too good not to share:

21 Picture That Will Restore Your Faith in Humanity
From BuzzFeed, by Jack Shepherd

http://www.buzzfeed.com/expresident/pictures-that-will-restore-your-faith-in-humanity

Enjoy!

The Cure for What Ails You.

Packing has been moving along nicely.  My pile of boxes is steadily growing and I have faith that when moving day arrives I WILL NOT be rushing to randomly throw all remaining junk in a box 20 minutes before the movers arrive.  On Friday I was told that if I spent half the time packing that I spent blogging about packing I would probably already be done.  True.

Blogging about it is just so much more fun!

Splinter helping with organizing my photos :)

Last week was full of wonderful and valuable moments with friends.  Pedicures, sunshine on a patio with friends, holding a beautiful baby...

2 1/2 hour mani-pedi!

But Friday was a rough day.  A variety of factors compounded by missing Caleb all came to a peak by the end of the day, and Saturday morning I just felt drained and melancholy.  I had a couple of choices.  My first thought was to lay on the couch all day, read trashy Fifty Shades of Grey, and eat nothing but junk.  I thought it sounded like a pretty good option.  But then I remembered something that I heard during my Skype session with Kelle Hampton from Enjoying the Small Things.  She said that whenever she is sad she does anything she can to make herself feel better.  Of course actually doing this meant getting up off the couch, but I was so glad that I did.  After all, it has been scientifically proven that purposefully making yourself smile can trick you into feeling better.

I went to the Farmer's Market and bought myself two bunches of flowers, some fresh veggies, and a gift for a friend.

I went to said friend's Birthday celebration and ate cake.  Oh, and had corn dogs and cheese fries for dinner.

And on Sunday I kept it up by going for my first run of the summer.  I saw baby ducks.

You know, I think its true that even when you feel sad, forcing yourself to smile does makes you feel better.  There are so many wonderful opportunities out there from eating corn dogs for dinner to holding a new friend's baby.  I have too much to be thankful for to waste all those precious moments.  I don't want to miss out on anything.

Don't worry... I still did plenty of trashy novel reading...  

 But now its Monday morning, I'm drinking my coffee, preparing for work, and I feel much better.  

These Are a Few of My Favorite Things.

Spending time with my grandparents.

Catching up with friends.

Beautiful beaches.

Swinging with kids on the playground at work.

Getting a packages in the mail.

Going to the movies, corndogs, the farmer's market, reading a book in bed, takeout, looking through old pictures, napping on the couch in the afternoon sun, and Teen Mom.

What are your favorite things?

Sometimes the simple things are the best things.

Making it Through the Workweek.

Monday was Monday.  And today was a brutally long day at work, but I had a wonderful weekend that is helping carry me through until Friday.  There is something about an amazingly relaxing weekend that  helps make the workweek more bearable.  

Saturday evening I attended Symphony on the Green on the Ball State campus with a group of friends. Any event involving a picnic basket, cheese and apples, blankets spread on thick grass, and sharing a bottle of wine with friends is sure to be wonderful.  The icing on the cake was when the orchestra played a compilation of songs from the Harry Potter movies.  Yes, I'm a nerd.

Things I'm looking forward to this week?  Teen Mom and takeout, karaoke, organizing and packing my bedroom, snuggling a friend's baby and dinner with friends in Richmond on Friday.

Whats carrying you through the workweek?