happy monday!

this past weekend was FANTASTIC! derek and i were invited to an 80's themed birthday party on saturday night. keep in mind, i was actually born in the 80's so i had to do quite the research to come up with a good outfit - but thanks to google, i was able to get everything i needed in a matter of 20 minutes all from TARGET! $53 later, i was ready to go (sidenote: i returned a couple of things this morning since i know i will have no use for a size medium girls tutu)

sunday, i was fortunate enough to accompany derek to the waste managment phoenix open in scottsdale! so awesome to be sitting out on deck at the 18th hole, watching the pros while getting a tan at the same time :) derek's company (transgroup) gets invited to the event every year and they get passes to sit in the US Airways tent which is right on the 18th hole. we were lucky enough to watch phil mickelson chip in his shot for birdie to end the tournament for him! (another sidenote: we also watched a crazy person jump in the water on the same hole and swim across.. and then he got escorted out by security)

and for the superbowl, we stayed in. we actually found a boxer last week running around derek's neighborhood and haven't been able to find his owners - so i took him over to a friend's house since a couple of them were interested in adopting him. we tried to take him to the pound on saturday, but we didn't have the hearts to leave him there - we are still attempting to find the owners.. but are also ready to find him a good home ourselves.

and lastly - i died my hair blonde! well, blonde highlights.. but i'm planning on going back in a few weeks and going a few shades lighter :)

weekend recap!

saturday night was awesome! we had a huge bbq over at the guys' (derek, rj and jaas) house and then went out for a little bit afterwards to a bar that originated in WISCONSIN! (http://www.maddogsportsbar.com/) we had so much fun just hanging out and talking and i was really fortunate to make some new, great friends :) sunday was a recovery day, of course, seeing as some of us were up until 4:30 in the morning.. that's right, we still got it! hoping to see these faces again this weekend for the superbowl!

just a thought..

in the last couple of months, some unfortunate events have happened to people that are close to me and it has triggered a reaction in my own life and the way i look at things now.

most of the time, we cannot control life. things happen to each and every one of us every day and it's the choice we make on how to deal with those things that we can control. lately, i have been wondering... if something were to happen to me tomorrow, would i be happy with how i chose to live my life? while that may sound a little morbid, it's also a reality.

as i look around me in my day to day routines, i've noticed that it's easy to fall into gossip, allow stress to negatively affect your mood, find reasons to be angry, come up with reasons to be lazy and to constantly be searching for shortcuts, even in the simplest situations. i'm guilty of all of those things. but along with all of this, i wonder - "what's the point?" which has brought me to new goals for myself...

*tell the people that you love and care about the most just that - that you love them. you never know when your or their last moment here is going to be.
*forget about the drama and the gossip - it's not worth it. not everyone is going to like you but that doesn't have to change who you are.
*break a sweat - the things you want the most are usually the things you have to work hardest for. jillian michaels abs, a degree and a job that i enjoy are all at the top of my list and i am prepared to put the hours in to attain them.
*smile - it's contagious :)
*be yourself - to quote a text from my dad the other night "just be you!"
*accept defeat - sometimes instead of arguing, just allow yourself to be wrong. it happens. (this one is especially high on my list)
*be happy - find the good in things instead of the bad and make the best of everything.

as i reread this, i am amazed at how easy it sounds but in reality, sometimes these things are difficult. which is why they are my goals!

and to end this little soap box rant, i will leave you with one more quote from my awesome dad...

"you are the keeper of your morale"

what a week!

First of all, I thought that I was getting back into shape since I was consistently working out every day. Apparently, my work outs were doing nothing for me because I decided to go to a gym with my friend Wendi (who is a fellow midwesterner!) to take some fitness classes. Um, yea - Body Works kicked my ass! And while I thought taking yoga the next day would stretch me out, I found that Friday morning I could barely walk or bend. Am I really getting that old?! Also, I found out the average life of your windshield in Arizona is 8 months - AND, I don't have glass coverage in my car insurance. Luckily, it only cost me $20 to fix the chip in my windshield. It's kind of funny.. a "glass guy" walks around at the local car wash and kind of inspects cars.. he noticed my chip and asked me if I wanted it fixed. It only took 5 minutes! The car wash/cleaning, on the other hand, took 45 mintues. Note to self: everyone gets their car washed on Saturdays. It does feel good driving a clean corolla with the windows down when it's 75 degrees though :)

School is going good so far - although I haven't gotten any of my books yet and all the assignments for the first week are introductory ones - so we'll see how I feel in a couple of weeks!

Tax time = double state filing fees for me (bummer), however, I am getting a decent return and am thinking about planning a trip home for Summerfest! It will be nice to leave 120 degrees for 85 and humidity! :)

Until next time....

now that i'm addicted to blogging...

i decided to dress up my page a little bit :) i also just uploaded a bunch of pictures from my magic iPhone which reminded me to post some from when I was home for new years!

p.s. it was 70 degrees and sunny today!

where did the time go?!

homerun derby

disneyland

grand canyon

i was so bound and determined to keep a blog of my adventures and managed to only make one posting since i got here! so much has happened that it would take an endless amount of pages to catch you up - although i feel like everyone knows thanks to the wonderful facebook. regardless, i have decided to start this blog up again and to stay true to my word in keeping the world updated!

not exactly sure where i should begin... :)

i am no longer working at the daycare. i realized children and i don't exactly see eye to eye. i jumped back into waitressing at a really awesome sushi restaurant called RA (http://www.rasushi.com/) i am also working as an assistant at Colonial Life Insurance where i am also studying to get my insurance license. once i have that, i will be joining the benefit enrollment team under my current manager. i would post a link, but that website isn't as fun :)

school started again today. i am still going through UWM since i am not officially an arizona resident yet. i decided to go big or go home and am taking five classes online - macroeconomics, microeconomics, business writing, a history class and a theatre class (general ed crap). i spent a total of five hours today on homework - fun.

i have officially been living here for a little over 7 months which is really hard for me to believe! where did the time go? in that amount of time, i have been fortunate enough to travel a little bit and explore the great southwest (thanks to the amazing Derek Horne!) he was born and raised here and has the inside scoop and anything and everything fun to do. needless to say, i'm a lucky girl. so far, i have been to disneyland four times, las vegas, the grand canyon, and huntington beach twice. i was also in chicago back in october and went home to visit the wonderful wisconsin for new years... i have to admit, i DID NOT miss that cold weather!

speaking of weather, it's gorgeous here. between 65 and 70 everyday and rarely a cloud in the sky :) spring training will be starting soon and i am beyond stoked for that! i am really looking forward to friends and family coming to visit me in March and April too! because our trips are quite spontaneous, i can't say when the next adventure will be... but like they say, stay tuned!

and just a side note, in case any of you were wondering - i still represent wisconsin strong out here! still have a wisconsin license plate, still have a wisconsin accent and still wear the proper wisconsin attire :) ask anyone - i'm a midwest homer!

home sweet home!

well, i left for arizona on tuesday and got here in 28 hours. although i now despise being in any car whatsoever, i did it! the trip was long and there was really nothing to look at until i got to new mexico, but it was still a pretty awesome experience. i learned that after a grande, QUAD, skinny, caramel machiatto that my head banging skills are amazing. i also experienced driving throught the smoke of all of the fires that are going on in eastern arizona. when i left albuquerque, i noticed a slight haze. and then i began smelling that camp fire smell. for an hour, i drove through this thick smoke and prayed that i was going to be able to get where i was going. luckily, none of the roads i needed to take were detoured or shut down. when i began driving through the mountains, i was going on my 14th hour of driving. looking back now, it probably wasn't the best idea, even though i had convinced myself that stocking up on three energy drinks would be enough to make it. i actually ended up stopping in payson, az - after winding through the mountains, dodging deer and other animals i have never seen in my life. but i have to admit, what i was able to see the next day made that terrible drive completely worth it. hiking in the mountains, eating at the local "ma and pa" restaurant that only the locals go to on a thursday and getting to see some of the most breathtaking parts of this state made all the pain from gripping the steering wheel the previous night go away. and now it's saturday. i've been here for 3 days and found samantha and i a place to live at ... the monarch at tempe (http://www.monarchattempe.com/). our casita is across from the pool and fitness center :) my plans for the next week are completely blank, which is very odd for me. aside from working, i am hoping to make a trip to ikea to acquire some furniture and explore this new place i can now call my home. but, i already miss everyone in wisconsin. this place is not the same without any of you! i will keep you updated as much as i possibly can - i love you all!