Valentines Day

I hope everyone had a great Valentines Day spending it with loved ones. I did receive a nice card from my parents as well as a gift certificate to a really good restaurant close to us. I know people think that it's a 'Hallmark holiday' but so what. Yes, you should tell the people you love that you love them everyday but it's a nice reminder. I hope everyone was spending the day with loved ones!I of course spent it working. I did have the closing shift so I did have the whole day to myself. It was a nice day in just relaxing. I went to work and knew it was supposed to snow pretty heavily. What I hadn't known was how absolutely horrible it is to drive in a blizzard. By the time my shift was about half way through with the snow had really started and there was already a good 2-3 inches on the ground. Every person who was working, including myself was hoping we would be sent home early because of the blizzard. Unfortunately that was not the case and we all stayed until our regularly scheduled time. When we were let our it took a good half hour for me to clean the snow off my car. I had been out in a snow storm before, the whole snow coming down and wind whipping, but being out in a blizzard is a whole other story. The snow coming down yes, the wind whipping, yes but so much harder and faster. It hurts! Being outside in a blizzard is brutal, and so was my drive home from work that night. Not being able to see the car in front of you is scary. Have you ever been hiking or camping on a mountain and you look around and all you can see is white because your in a cloud? That's what it was like on my drive home, except it was dark and the wind was whipping snow around and I wasn't on a mountain in a cloud. I was in a cloud of snow. It was scary and everyone was driving so slow but close enough so they could see the lights in front of them to make sure they were still on the road. Luckily I made it home safe and sound.

happy valentines day!! <3

catch up con't part 2

The new year started with a trip to one of those indoor trampoline parks with Kaycee. We were having a much needed (for me at least) fun day out. We started with a late morning and then out to the mall and out to lunch at Panera. The night ended at Blitz Air Park. It was some of the most fun I've had in a while.

The rest of January brought a lot of change for me as well as a lot of snow. My dad has been down visiting my mom in Florida a lot recently so that means more time alone for me. I don't mind it too much because I've been so busy with my new position at work. I am now the Men's Department Supervisor. A promotion to a full-time job with a pay raise and benefits. I am very grateful for this opportunity. So, just before I started my new position my friend Jiejie came to visit and we just hung out and spend some time catching up.

So, January got to see friends, got a promotion at work, things were going swimmingly! Then it all came down. Literally, snow came in dump trucks full! First it was a light snow then Nemo came down and buried us! And it's snowing right now as I type this. We've got more than enough snow this winter and everyone is ready for it to stop!

 

after our first snow.

taken only moments ago.

It's February now and like I've said before I really hope to post more often. Valentines day is coming up! I hope everyone has someone to celebrate with be it friends, family or significant others!  

catch up con't

So, September came and went with nothing exciting to report and before I knew it October was knocking at the door. Everyone  else was setting up for Halloween while at work we were stating to set up for Christmas! Crazy, I know. At the end of October I had a procedure done on my toes to correct a problem I had when them. I went through the procedure easily and with very minimal pain.

I healed quickly and then it was time for Halloween! I stayed home and handed out candy, something I've been doing for the past few years now. It's always fun seeing all the different costumes and seeing children light up about the wide array of candies.

our small amount of decoration

I did end up going to a Halloween party with one of my friends and it was a lot of fun. Unfortunately I didn't have a costume planned so I pulled together a very last minute cowgirl outfit. It was still awesome and I had a lot of fun.

 

 

love her! <3

Anna from Frozen and a cowgirl!

October ended with a visit up to see Devyn! She had settled into the college life very nicely and had made a lot of friends. I was very happy to see her and we spent the day roaming around Portland in the rain. We went out to eat at this cool little restaurant and even though it was raining we made the most of the day together!

<3

November was filled with work and a big trip at the end of the month down to Florida to visit my mom for Thanksgiving. My dad and I, along with the dog, piled into the car and drove down.

we're all tired of being in the car!

After two days in the car we made it to Florida! Our time in Florida was spent catching up with my mom and grandfather and cooking. My dad did a lot of cooking. We also took the time to take our picture for our Christmas cards as well as go to one of my all time favorite restaurants down there!

happy puppy!

thanksgiving; puppy wants some turkey too!

our little present!

family<3

reggae shack, yumm!

The trip was over in a flash and it was time to come back home. So dad, DayDreamer and I piled back into the car for another long two days in the car.

early morning; sunrise!

back in the car...

lots of traffic!

south of the border; going north

day two.

The weekend after we came home was spent going to get a Christmas tree! Normally we go the weekend after thanksgiving but we were still in Florida then so when we did go there was slim pickings! But after walking around the lot we finally found one that we decided was acceptable.

liked this one, but it's a bit big! :P

perfect for us!

This whole holiday season flew by for me and before I knew it Christmas was only a couple weeks away and I still had to go Christmas shopping! Luckily I was able to make a couple trips in between work and decorating the house and got my shopping done with a few days to spare! The rest of my time was divided between work and now wrapping presents! My birthday came and I was lucky enough to be working! [sarcasm] I had a low key birthday and after work spent the rest of the day wrapping presents and watching movies. My dad even got me a couple treats!

rose bud cake!

Christmas Eve was busy: working from 7am to 3pm, come home clean the house and put presents under the tree and then wait for mom's flight to land. Work was surprisingly busy, everyone buying last minute presents for family and friends. I had a good time though. My boss bought a bunch of food from various places and everyone who was working got to have a mini feast! I also wore kitty ears made of jingle bells! Mom's flight landed safe and sound and we had a nice night laughing and catching up and even opening a couple presents each! Mom got a new Swiss Army pocket knife, and dad got a little remote control helicopter! Christmas day was a nice quite day with the family opening presents and enjoying each others company.

New Years Eve was also spent working, gratefully it was a short shift so I got to hang out with friends afterward. My friend Kaycee and I went to see our other friend Mallory who had been a way at college. It was great getting to hang out with them. Because we didn't really have any plans we decided to go to the movies. The movie we decided on: The Hunger Games: Mockingjay part one. It was really good! The movie ended with five minutes till midnight and we left the theater shouting out "Happy New Year!!"

Kaycee, Mallory &I <3

catch up!

So, I've been bad again... haven't really had the motivation to blog very much, but I'll get into that some other time. Right now I'm just going to do another 'catch up'. So I posted my instagram diary back in the beginning of August so let's see what happened from August to September.

Back when I was younger the town held an annual fair. It would last the whole weekend and was complete with games, rides, little vendors set up with tents, and fried dough trucks. It was called Old Home Day. Over the years unfortunately the town no longer does this big huge fair. Instead it is a one day event with street vendors lined up all along Main Street and there are little activities for the kids and its a nice. When the first started doing this I was upset. How could they go from this huge event with rides and games and fireworks at the end of the fair? More recently I have learned to enjoy  the smaller affair more. Mainly because it isn't a huge event and you don't have to pay for tickets and it's nice seeing the everyone support small local businesses. So this year my mom was home for a few days and she just happened to be home for this day, so my parents and I went and walked around saw all the vendors and went by the water and it was very nice. Not to mention it was a beautiful day! 

of course I had to take a selfie! <3

the town on a beautiful summer day! <3

So I mentioned my mom was home for a few days. Yes she is still living down in Florida for her job but still manages to make trips home when she can as well as my dad and I making trips down to see her! The main reason she came home was so we could all go to her sister, my aunt's, wedding; more on that in a minute. She was home for five days I believe and it was so nice seeing her! 

My aunt Catherine got married on August 10th and that was the main reason my mom came up. My mom is the older sister of Catherine and so it was really important that my mom was able to get the time off and come up. It was a beautiful outdoor ceremony and a nice small reception afterwards. My aunt lives in Rhode Island so we all piled into the car and drove down. This was the first wedding I've been to where I got my own personal invitation! SO, I decided to bring Devyn as my plus one, mainly because she's met my family before and also because she's my best friend. 

us being goofy in the car! <3

So, we made it down to Rhode Island and met up with my aunt Catherine, my aunt Bet, and both of my cousins. The funny part was that it was only a few hours before the wedding and Catherine wasn't even dressed. She seemed very relaxed, and not like you would think a bride would be on her wedding day. Anyway, let's move to the ceremony. The ceremony was held at a country club and the ceremony was outside. Good thing it was a beautiful day! 

beautiful day for a wedding!<3

beautiful ceremony <3

outside venue <3

my beautiful momma <3

It was an amazing day and I couldn't be any more happy for Catherine and Kim! They both deserve all the happiness in the world and I'm so glad they found that happiness in each other. 

all the siblings with the newly-weds <3

So a few days before the wedding I went to the eye doctors for a very much needed eye exam. At that eye exam I got a new prescription and ordered new frames. I was really hoping the frames came before the wedding but unfortunately they came a few days after the wedding. It took some time to get used to the bigger frames but after a while I learned to love them! 

new glasses<3

So tattoos are a pretty controversial topic, everyone has an opinion on them. I know a lot of people including my parents don't like them, and I also know a lot of people who do like them. I see both sides. Devyn and I have been talking about tattoos since before she turned eighteen. Right before her birthday we actually went out and looked at a few tattoo parlors to get a feel and see if we liked any of them and we found a few that we liked. At that time we didn't have the money and Devyn wasn't old enough. About a month after her birthday we decided to go look at a tattoo place that was literally a minute walk from our homes. Funnily enough the closest tattoo parlor was the last place we looked, but the one we both liked the best. So, we went to get the vibe of the place and Devyn got a tattoo that day. It was kind of a surreal moment. My best friend got a tattoo! Like a real permanent tattoo. It came out great and is exactly what Devyn wanted. Even a couple months later I still sometimes forget she has it. After the tattoo we went out to get Thai food at this little place a few towns over and it was so good! All in all it was a great day. Good friends and good food!

a tattoo, whaaaaat?! <3

beau-ti-ous! <3

thai iced tea. obsessed! <3

spring rolls! yuuumm! <3

 

 

Over the summer Devyn and I had been going to the beach a lot. Not during the daytime but during the evening and into the night. It was a lot of fun. We would just walk up and down the beach and along the board walk, sometimes walking into the shops or going to stick our feet in the ocean. So with Devyn going away to college in a few short weeks we decided to go one last time before summer ended and her school year started.

Devyn and I had become a little infatuated with this band and after trying to make plans to go see them out of state Devyn's mom found out they were coming to a venue very close to us! So obviously we had to go! On August 29th Devyn and I traveled down to Newburyport, MA and saw Delta Rae! We got there early so we were able to walk around the beautiful town before the concert. About a half an hour before we actually went to the venue, as we were walking around, we bumped into some of the band and had our pictures taken with them!

we're here!

Brittany, Devyn, Liz and Grant

Me and Eric

 

So we met 4/5 of the band! They were so nice! After we met them we ended up going up to the venue and to be honest I wasn't sure what to expect. Apparently we had gotten VIP ticket for a very small and intimate concert. I think that just made it better! It was AMAZING! They played all of our favorites and they were even able to do an absolutely phenomenal acoustic song. It was a great night!

AHH!

so excited!

so close!

Devyn and I had an absolute blast, jumping up and dancing and singing along. On the ride home we blared one of their albums and sang our hearts out. It was definitely a night I will never forget!
In early September Devyn left for college and my life got very busy with work.