High Five for Friday

Happy Friday!
This is the one time ever that I'm a little disappointed it's Friday. It means my week off is almost over :( I start the new job on Monday and am a little bit nervous but also very excited. Mixed feelings, for sure.

I've had a great week, and as I wrote about yesterday, I'm thankful for many things.

1. To expand on yesterday's comment about the cheetah print pajamas, I've added a new set of pajamas to my collection (as in "collection" I mean one other set). They're the exact same pajamas, just a different pattern. What can I say, I know what I like.

Kohl's, Simply Vera Vera Wang

Yes, a "fashiony" pajama picture. Stylin'.
Speaking of Kohl's... if you missed it the other day, they are sharing an exclusive coupon code with all you lovely people! Use code "TENBLOG" for 10% off your purchase at Kohls.com now through December 29. It can be used stacked with another coupon code. Enjoy!

2. Down time. To watch tv, movies, and relax. Me and relaxing typically don't go together- I'm always running around trying to get something done. I've made a concerted effort this week to try and be lazy. I'm loving it. Clearly, I'm loving not getting out of my pajamas, either. Last night we made an easy dinner (out of a box. gasp.) and watched "The Campaign". Stupid, yes. Funny, definitely. I recommend and so does Chris! I even got to meet up with Chris for lunch today in Annapolis where he works. It was nice to be able to do that...something that probably won't happen again for a while!

3. Family time. I had lunch with my dad the other day and am seeing my mom today. Plus, Thanksgiving is next week which means even more family time. I definitely don't get to see them enough. I really wish my brother Ben could come in from California, but hopefully he'll come back next month during the second round of holidays ;) I miss you Benji!

4. Birchbox came early this month! I was super excited until I realized one of the items was missing :( I emailed them and was given Birchbox points... I've been saving them up to buy something good, so I'll finally be able to do that. Now to decide what I want!

5. Happy Hour with the girls tonight! Can I call it "Happy Hour" if I'm not working? Should it just be called "early drinking"?? Whatever it is, I'll be required to change out of my pajamas. And that's okay.

Happy weekend, lovelies!!!

Linking up with Lauren

High Five for Friday

Oh Hey, Friday!

I'm so glad you're here.. please be nice. I'm just using you to get to the weekend.

What a week this week was!

{1} This is not a "high" but is definitely worth mentioning.

Hurricane Sandy hit and we are lucky it didn't hit us too hard. We kept power and there were some trees/branches down but no major damage.

Not everyone was so lucky, and everyone affected is in my thoughts.

If you want to donate to a great cause, check out Dani's blog. She is offering donation sponsor spots, meaning she's donating all proceeds from her $4 buttons to Save the Children. Save the Children is a wonderful organization with many program areas to protect children, educate, and provide relief to those in need. They're providing emergency relief for families with children who were affected by Hurricane Sandy. Obviously, this organization touches near and dear to my heart. Although I don't yet have children of my own, I'm spending my career serving and protecting children and I feel so passionate about this. Thanks, Dani for this wonderful idea.

{2} We MOVED!!!

I thought I'd never see the day.

We got word last Wednesday that we would be able to pick up the keys on Friday. Yep, that left about two days to pack. We thought we'd be moving but had nothing set in stone so we weren't ready at all. We finally got everything moved in (it was a mess and exhausting) and we're still setting up and unpacking but I'm so happy to be in the new apartment without the nightmare neighbors living above us. 
Thanks to everyone who helped us move- love you all!

Here's our wonderful new view...

And a sneak peek of the mess apartment ;)

{3} Food always gets included in my highlights.

We made this awesome casserole...or something. It was amazing.

I'll be posting that recipe soon!

Peanut butter M&M cookies...

Pineapple pizza while moving! Yum!

{4} Although this isn't from the week, I haven't been around blog land too much so wanted to include Girls Night from last weekend :)

A few friends and I went to dinner at Gordon Biersch for dinner. We didn't know, but the restaurant was brand new and wasn't officially opened. We got to go in, have free dinners and $1 drinks! It was so random and amazing to say the least.

 The pomegranate margarita was insanely good.

We then saw Pitch Perfect. So funny!!!

{5} Last but not least, I have major news!

You might remember me mentioning some "life changes" a couple times over the past several weeks.

I'm changing jobs after almost 4 1/2 years.

I'm so sad to be leaving my wonderful co-workers, many who have turned into good friends. I know we'll still see each other, but still. It's strange to think I won't be seeing their faces every day.

I'll miss the kids I work with so much. That's the hardest part.

I'm nervous, excited, anxious, happy, sad...all of the above! It'll be a huge change but the new job is more along the lines of what I want to do long-term. My last day is next Friday and I get a week off before starting my new job. It's happening so fast...I'm sure you'll be hearing more about this soon.

Maybe soon I'll be able to talk about it without crying???

Since I have the best co-workers ever, they got Charm City Cupcakes for me and another girl who is leaving soon...

Then we went to a goodbye Happy Hour.

{we like to eat sweets and drink, what can I say?}

$5 margaritas, holllaa!

So, as you can tell, it's been an eventful week. Good, bad, and lots of in-between.

I'm so glad we have internet again and I'm back in blog-land. I missed you all!

I hope everyone has a great weekend.

An update...

Happy Monday! 

I hope those of you who had today off had a great day.

I was lucky to have a long weekend but got super sick today and was pretty much out of it all day! Ick.

This weekend was full of productivity! 

Chris and I were both off work on Friday. It was so nice!

We brought both of our cars in to get some needed work done, got my emissions done, and saw Finding Nemo in 3D! I love that movie and it was totally worth it to see the 3D version.

Gotta love those styling glasses.

We also got word that we'll be able to move into a different apartment next weekend (we're been dealing with these nightmare neighbors if you don't remember). So, we started packing. It looked something like this.

Then today, we get word that it's not a final thing. In fact, we might not be able to move at all. Insane. This whole ordeal has been going on since February and we're so tired of it. Hopefully we'll be able to get things straightened out tomorrow but in the meantime the place is a mess!

I also wanted to say thank you for all your supportive comments on Friday! 

It's tough to write about the tough times, especially when you're like me. I tend to act like things are going well, even when they aren't. It's a coping mechanism and one that's worked for a long, long time.

I'm not doing that anymore. I'm not afraid to put things out there, to seek support from loved ones, blog friends, and strangers who may read this if they so choose. 

I'm sick of pretending that everything is always okay when it's not. Although I can't reveal details all the time, I really want to be as transparent as possible.

We're going through several "life transitions" at this point, and although things aren't great I'm certainly thankful for the things that are: our family, friends, and health.

Life isn't perfect, but how boring would it be if it were?

I'm a strong believer that everything happens for a reason.

And no, I'm not just saying that. Even during tough times, I always have believed that.

So if I can help someone by revealing my feelings and how I've dealt with things, it'll be worth it.

We've all got our own struggles, but we also have a lot in common.

The past few months have been trying and a huge learning experience. 

I started to write about it in this post... and mentioning it today certainly won't be the last.

So, the point of today's post really wasn't to talk about my unexciting (but nice) weekend. I'm not linking up anywhere. I just wanted to get that all out there :)

I hope everyone has a GREAT week!

A Relaxing Weekend!

Why does every weekend fly by like crazy?
I'm happy to say that we hardly did anything this weekend! 
After a busy couple weeks, it was nice to relax and just do whatever.

On Friday, Chris made me a super nice dinner. 
He's a great cook and I've recently taken over in the kitchen out of convenience because of our schedules. It was nice to have him jump back in, and I wasn't allowed to know what he was making. It was fun to watch him cook and just sit and enjoy a glass of wine :)

He made risotto with shrimp and asparagus. The yellow is lemon zest. Yum! 

The rest of the weekend was just spent relaxing and running errands but it was nice. I even finished a book and started another which is a miracle!

On the way home last night there was a double rainbow... it was pouring and super sunny at the same time. Gorgeous!

I've also proudly had a solid week of calorie counting. I'm not interested in losing too much weight...more-so watching what I eat and feeling better. No matter what, I am not giving up my wine and cocktails. Or my desserts (in moderation)...Never!! Pizza is also still part of my life.
 I've been using My Fitness Pal to count calories... I've used a few of these apps and this is definitely my favorite. Does anyone else use My Fitness Pal or one like it? You can also log your workouts which I'll hopefully be starting soon. Emphasis on "hopefully" :)


In other news, we watched the second half of Freedom Writers last night (now I actually want to see the whole thing). It was good and all, but was anyone else extremely disappointed with Patrick Dempsey's character being such a jerk? I didn't think it was possible to ruin McDreamy. Plus, I've heard he is nice in real life (or maybe I just made that up, I don't know). 



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Now that I've stalked the heck out of him on google images, he's okay in my book again.
#icanthelpit #sorryimnotsorry


I just used hashtags. I am officially losing it.

Of course, I'm linking up with Leeann, Sami, and Dana for Weekend Update!








How was your weekend?

15 Day Challenge: Day 14

Wow it's the second to last day of the challenge! :(

Linking up with Sar at life of love!

{14} If you were only allowed to watch one movie for the rest of your life, what would it be and why?

Clueless!

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I don't even think this one needs explanation. I just love it and have since I first saw it. It's so 90's which makes me laugh when I watch it now. My favorite scene is the driving test when Cher crashes into every other car on the road.. hilarious! I was also envious of Cher's closet and "dressing system" on the computer (who wasn't?!) Plus, who doesn't love Paul Rudd? And, of course, Brittany Murphy- she was great in this movie!

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 Best movie ever :)

What's your favorite movie?