Tuesday, September 30, 2014

Huntsville Trolley Tour






Saturday, I finally got to do an activity on my Local To Do List for a long time, The Huntsville Trolley Tour. I planned on doing it last Summer and never got around to it. I even put it on my Summer To Do List for this year, but the summer just flew by! Luckily, I finally got around to doing it last weekend.

First of all, just let me say I love a trolley. They are so cute! They always grab my attention. I love everything about them, from the detailing on the seats to the old city feel of them. So if an activity allows me to ride around in a trolly for a little while, I'm so game. 

The Huntsville Trolley Tour is put on by a local museum, and it runs every Saturday from June-September. Which if you are paying attention, means I put this activity off till the last possible weekend (I have a knack for that). I invited my mom along because I knew she would be more into this activity than Adam.

When we got to where we were supposed to meet up with the trolley, they gave us a blueberry muffin and coffee (I had a bite or two of the muffin, it was delicious!). Our tour guide was dressed in historical clothes, and she was knowledgeable & wonderful. 

The trolley took us all around town, telling us all about the local Huntsville characters, such as Talluah Bankhead and Clement Caliborne Clay. But I think my most favorite part of the tour was looking at all those BEAUTIFUL, historic homes. I just wanted to go inside them. 

I'm so glad I finally got to do this. Nothing is better than learning a little bit about the history of the place you love calling home.


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Monday, September 29, 2014

Month in Review: September 2014



Books I've read:

I was a really slow reader this month, mostly because I've spent a good deal of the month reading The Animated Man: The Life of Walt Disney by Michael Barrier. It is pretty lengthy, but I am almost done with it!

1. The Inn at Rose Harbor by Debbie Macomber (book club selection).

Movies I've seen:

1. Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)
2. The Brittany Murphy Story (2014)
3. Dumbo (1941)
4. Mulan (1998)
5. The 100 Foot Journey (2014)
6. As Dreamers Do (2014)
  
Fun Stuff I Did: 

  • Visited the lovely Alice and the Garden of Wonders at the Botanical Gardens
  • I celebrated my 8 month surgiversay with a 170 lbs weight loss
  • We toured the Carnton Plantation and Hosted Adam's Family
  • Ran the Swing Through 5k
  • Went on the Huntsville Historic Trolley Tour


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Saturday, September 27, 2014

The Week that Was-#100 Happy Days


It took almost all week, but I am finally feeling better! I  feel like myself again, thank goodness. Tonight I even managed to go for a run! My first one in over a week. I get so nervous when I go so long between runs like that. I start to think I will lose all my fitness. I will say I felt a little clumsy out there, and I was about 20 seconds slower than usual, but I got that run behind me, so the next one will be much less nerve-wracking.  Which is good, because I start my official half-marathon training on Tuesday. I can't wait. I'm so pumped!

Now onto my 100 Happy Days for the Week:

Day 64-Sunday, I played fantasy football against Adam. I've always loved my fantasy name, The Therapist is In. I came so close to beating Adam, there was only 1 point difference between us in the end. I had it in the bag (I thought ), because my quarterback just needed to make one more completion. But then they pulled him, and put in the back-up quarter back. Grrrr. Had fun trash talking all weekend with Adam though.

Day 65-Monday, I was pleased to head out to Las Trojas Cantina for trivia night. I am even more pleased that we took 2nd place that night!

Day 66-One of my favorite artists, Lori Mckenna, released her new album, Numbered Doors, and I love it! So far, my favorite songs are Stranger in his Kiss and Good Marriage. I think she is probably the best song writer of all time. 

Day 67-I had a doctor appointment for a check-up after my ER visit last weekend. So I was home by the afternoon. I was able to take an afternoon nap on a weekday. Scandalous!

Day 68-I posted a picture of Adam and I from earlier this summer in celebration of our 8 year dateiversary.  Meaning 8 years since Adam asked me to be his girlfriend. We have been going strong ever since.

Day 69-I spent a little time organizing my Project Life stuff in my craft room. Having a craft room makes me so happy, I can't wait to paint it the colors I am envisioning. 

Day 70-My Disney obsession continues to grow strong. I was able to pick up Mulan at a local used movie store. Total score.



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Tuesday, September 23, 2014

Our Nautical Guest Room

I am so excited to post a few picture of our guest room in our new home! I have to say I really love how the room turned out, as I have wanted to do a a nautical themed room for quite a while. I will say however I learned that it is hard to photograph a bedroom! I couldn't get the light in the room to work for me, and I just wish I could do a 360 of the entire room instead. That being said, I think the pictures give a nice taste of the room.




The first thing we did with our guest room was paint it Roadster Blue (the color is somewhat brighter than it is in the pictures). I am pleased with the color, and I think it is perfect for the nautical feel. I was also super proud of us because the paint job turned out awesome! 

I had bought the two prints (We Have This Hope as an Anchor for our Soul & Not All Who Wander are Lost) from Etsy a while back.  One of my favorite pieces in the room is this Old World Vintage Map Canvas from Wayfair.  In the corner, I hung a boat painting that I created a few months ago. I decided to display some of my travel guides on the dresser, along with some of the snow globes I've collected over the years. I also picked up that little vase and fake flowers from hobby lobby.



While decorating the guest room, I learned the difference between a comforter and a duvet cover. When I ordered this old world style duvet cover, I was shocked when what seemed like a thin sheet arrived in the mail. I soon learned that a duvet cover is what you can put your comforter in! I love this cover. It is so beautiful.  

I got the idea to blow up a vintage map and crop it into 6 different prints from this blog. I chose to do a map of Amsterdam because that is the first overseas trip that we took together. That city is so special to us. The other canvas is a photograph that I took on that same trip. On the nightstand, there are some model ships that Adam had bought on Catalina Island, and I got the lighthouse at Hobby Lobby.





The massive painting by the closet is a family heirloom that my Great, Great Aunt had in her home. It is nice that it now belongs to us, and that we have a lovely place to display it. I also really liked this Welcome Friends sign with the lighthouse from hobby lobby.  I added some small touches like this pin-up girl light switch cover and light house fan pull. I also love the cheesiness that is the lighthouse hanging off the cord for the LIGHT, not the fan. Get it? 

We are so happy to have a designated room for guests now. We have never had that before. A few weeks ago, my mother-in-law got to be the first person to stay in the room! I just can't wait to host even more loved ones so we can show off our little room.


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Saturday, September 20, 2014

The Week that Was-#100 Happy Days



I have had a rough few days. I've been very sick and not the type of sick I really feel comfortable with sharing on the blog. It is all very mortifying and personal. But I'll just say this week has involved no sleep, two sick days, and an early morning trip to the E.R. But even with all that, Adam and I can find ways to laugh about it all. As I was sitting in this hospital, Adam was all like, "how are you going to scrapbook this one?" And I said, "somethings just aren't scrapbook worthy." Unless maybe I used these Project Life Cards:


But I tried to find the happy things anyway, so here is the week that was September 14th-September 20th:

Day 57-After my race on Saturday morning, I got to add my new race bib to my bibfolio that I got a few months ago from gone for a run! Always a proud moment.

Day 58-Now that I have lost weight, I am always cold. Monday morning at the office, I felt like I was going to get frostbite. Of course, my space heater is broken. So I temporarily borrowed one from a coworker while she was out of the office. That borrowed heat felt so wonderful!

Day 59-I couldn't sleep Monday night/Tuesday morning, and I woke up super early for no reason at all! So I decided to knock my run out for the day. I actually really enjoyed running the neighborhood at that time. It was so quiet and peaceful with the moon and stars overhead.

Day 60-Yes, I am obsessed with yet another Disney podcast. I can't help it, it is a sickness. But I'm truly loving Inside the Magic right now. 

Day 61-Book club night! I almost didn't make it because I wasn't feeling well, but it wasn't that bad at the time, so I went. I always love meeting up to talk about a book I recently read. 

Day 62-Oh yes, the morning of the ER visit.  I really had to think hard about what I was happy about that day. I decided I was happy because I got to watch a Below Deck marathon on T.V., I was wearing my leopard slipper boots, and my husband works at home, so he could take really great care of me.

Day 63-I took a bath in our whirlpool tub. I also had bought some bubble bath, and the bubbles went crazy when I turned on the jets. They kept growing and growing, and I had to do the bath without the jets due to the total bubble take over. I enjoyed the bath in my ocean of bubbles though!


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Thursday, September 18, 2014

ThrowBack Thursday: February 2011


I count 2011 as the year I really got into Green Bay Packer's football. We were watching a game pre-super bowl where the Packer's played the Atlanta Falcons. The Falcons were a hot team that year, and I just assumed we would lose, but the Packer's blew them away! After that, I was pro-Packer's all the way. So when we went to the Superbowl that year, we threw a little party. Isn't Sarah adorable in her Packer's bows? We miss her so much. We won that year, and we celebrated forever!


Early that February I got to mark off a long awaited item on my bucket list, learn how to make Sushi. I enjoyed taking that class so much, and learning a little more about my favorite food.  Mine didn't turn out too pretty, and I would need a refresher course to do this again, but I was super proud of myself.


That Valentine's Day I put together a little scavenger hunt around the duplex to guide Adam to his gift. I got that little idea from a game that I used to play with my cousins when I was younger. We had so much fun doing it, we ought to do that again!


I was totally obsessed with that show D.C. Cupcakes! And I just had to try them! I couldn't fly to Washington D.C., so I flew Georgetown Cupcakes to me. It was a little pricey, but I have no complaints, they were so delicious! Although I am wondering 3 and a half years later, is the cupcake craze dead?


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Monday, September 15, 2014

Carnton Plantation & Cemetery




 


I don't know why on Earth it has taken me so long to post about the day trip we took with Adam's family to Franklin, Tennessee, to tour the Carnton Plantation and Civil War Battlefield over Labor Day weekend. First of all, I want to say I really love Franklin,Tennessee, and you can read about another visit I took to Franklin to tour the Lotz house here.

When Adam's family was planning their trip to visit us, they requested to see a plantation and a cemetery of some sort. I could see why a plantation would be of some interest to a Midwestern family.  I racked my brain for a while for a good plantation to visit, and finally I remembered a book I read a few years ago, The Widow of the South

The Widow of the South is the historical fiction account of the Battle of Franklin and the McGavok family, whose plantation was turned into a civil war hospital during the battle.  I thought this location would be perfect to take Adam's family to because it also had a Civil War Cemetery on the property.

We started our day by touring the adjacent Slave Quarters and also the beautiful gardens. Before touring our attention to the home, which was gorgeous! I loved the style of it. I can't remember the name of the style, but it is the type of home that all sides are perfect mirrors of each other. If you cut the house straight down the middle, both sides would be identical. Unfortunately, we could not take pictures of the inside, but it was gorgeous. It had some original furniture from the McGavok family and other time period pieces.

Our wonderful tour guide told us about the interesting history of the plantation, the family, and battle. During the battle, when the plantation became a hospital, it was stacked with injured men in every room (even the children's rooms). All the tables they owned were turned into amputation tables, and you could still see the bloodstains on the floor.  They also had an interesting section of the tour where you could see surgical instruments from the 1860's. It made me glad to be born in the 1980's!

After our tour of the house, we took a sobering tour of the nearby cemetery where the men who died in battle were buried. It was astounding how many men lost their lives that day.

I was so happy because Adam's Aunt and Mother enjoyed the tour so much, and I was able to find them a place that fit all their criteria. I pride myself on being a good tour guide.

After the day was over, we had dinner downtown at one of my favorite restaurants, Puckett's groceries. Adam's family was able to partake in some fabulous Southern food, such as Fried Green Tomatoes. We also got to soak up the charming atmosphere in Downtown Franklin.

They said it was the perfect Southern day!


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Sunday, September 14, 2014

The Weekend Report

We have had a wonderfully simple & just perfect weekend for us, so I just wanted to do a little bit of a recap.


Before Adam and I met in person, we were just teens chatting on social media. During one of these chats, I promised Adam I would cook him spaghetti. I'm pretty sure I was just talking out of my butt because I did not know how to make spaghetti at the time. But when we finally met, I made him spaghetti. He loved it, and I used to make us spaghetti almost every Friday night. But since weight loss surgery, I haven't made it much at all because I really don't eat pasta. But this Friday, I decided to cook him some spaghetti just for him as a treat.I got to use our new stove for the first time and he got his favorite meal. That's a real win-win.


After dinner, I watched a movie I had been excited about for a while, As Dreamers Do. It is all about the early life of Walt Disney. It was a little bit of a cheesy movie, probably a little bit too simplistic. But I liked the movie regardless. No different than a lifetime movie or a hallmark movie, and I always stick those out to the bitter end (like the Brittany Murphy Story, so awful!). I enjoyed sticking this one out though.


I signed up for a local 5k on a whim last week. I always wonder why I do this to myself because setting an alarm for 6:30 on a Saturday is so not cool! But I'm always glad I did. It was uber cold on Saturday morning, feeling so much like Fall! Although I was cold pre-race, I knew I would warm up once the race started. This was a smallish race (maybe 70-100). I was nervous as always, worrying my legs would fail me. But they didn't! I finished the race in 44:20! That is 3 whole minutes off my last 5k time!  And can I say that run has me so excited for Fall weather running? Bring it on!


Adam did some yard work around the house on Saturday. I love watching my husband do manly, man things (not that women can't do them too, but I'd just rather not).

 
(BTW, I'm lovin' my fuzzy hair, and Carlee our weekend house guest resting on my lap in this picture). Adam recently remembered that he has an Atari (how he forgot this I will never know). So we went to the Athens-Limestone Flea Market to browse some classic video games. He bought a whole bunch of Atari games. He also picked up his favorite Nintendo game, Duck tales, and my favorite childhood game, M.C. Kids. It is a game that was basically made to advertize McDonalds (yes that McDonalds), but it is so fun and surprisingly difficult. We had fun messing around on those for a bit. 


Of course, no fall weekend would be complete without a little Packer's football. This was our first public outing in our cheeseheads this year, and we checked out a new sports bar that we liked a lot! We got a rough start, and the gamed looked awful during the first half, but we pulled off the win anyway! So that's a good game day!


By the way, this is the face you make after celebrating two Randall Cobb touchdowns, just to be reminded your opponent in your Fantasy league is playing Randall Cobb. The cheesehead of shame!


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Saturday, September 13, 2014

The Week That Was-#100 Happy Days


Another week, another 100 happy days post complete! I am pretty sure I'm going to pull this baby off! So here is the week that was September 7th-September 13th:

Day 50-I worked on some recent Project Life pages. Man, I'm loving my new scrapbookin' medium!

Day 51-It is funny because when I posted this picture of me driving home, I posted the comment, "It has been a long, bad day, so I'm celebrating heading home." I don't even remember what was bad about it, must not have been that big of a deal?

Day 52-I got my run done on my lunch break. Even though I get a little sweaty, I love when I'm done working out before the work day is over. So when I'm home, I can just relax.

Day 53-I almost ALWAYS bring my lunch to work nowadays. It is easier, and it is safer for me nutrition wise. But I decided to treat myself to some broccoli and cheese soup Wednesday from Panera. Yum.

Day 54-I pulled out my WDW Countdown app to see how far away we were from Disney! I got so excited, and then freaked out because I have to run a half marathon by this date!

Day 55-I rocked out my college pride with this t-shirt on Friday! I love my alma mater, Mississippi University for Women, so very much. 

Day 56-Adam bought a whole bunch of Atari games (yes, we have an atari)! He was in video game heaven, it was cute to see.


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Thursday, September 11, 2014

Summer Bucket List Rewind & Fall Bucket List 2014

I'm so happy to report that I managed to mark over half of the items off my Summer Bucket List. So here is a recap:


3. Tubing on the Cahaba River
4. Do The Huntsville Trolly Tour
5. Running with the Goats 10k in Elkmont, Alabama
7. See Mary Poppins Play in Montgomery
9. Deep Sea Fishing
14. Huntsville Lucky Duck Scavenger Hunt 

There are some things I didn't get to do because sometimes there is just not enough time. But there is some things on the list that I still plan to get to soon, and they might just make an appearance on my Fall bucket list.

1. Walk the Richard Martin Trail in Elkmont, Alabama
2. Loretta Lynn Concert
3. The Color Run in Little Rock,  Arkansas
4.Viva La Dive 10k in Franklin, TN (to qualify for Disney Half Marathon)
5. Packers vs. Patriots Game
6. Scarecrow Trail at the Botanical Gardens
7. Book of Mormon Play
8. Put Away Plenty of Money for Disney
9. Rock an Awesome Halloween Costume
10. Pottery Painting
11. Start Half Marathon Training (miss no work-outs)
12.  Carve a Pumpkin
13. Visit Lyon's Family Pumpkin Patch (conquer that corn maze!)
14. Huntsville Trolley Tour 
15. Lucky Duck Scavenger Hunt

Happy Fall Y'all!


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Tuesday, September 9, 2014

8 Month Surgiversary


I'm bringing you this post a day late because I totally forgot about my surgiversary this month! I swear I was looking at the calendar yesterday thinking isn't there something special about the 8th? And then it finally dawned on me that it was my surgiversary! I plan on doing these posts until my 1 year, as long as I can remember to do them!

This month has been a very good one for me, and I have nothing but positive things to share. I am down about 167 pounds, and I am 27 pounds away from entering ONEDERLAND (weighing under 200 lbs). Which is one of my next weight loss goals, as well as weighing less than my husband for the first time ever. I have dropped my body fat percentage by 25 points, placing me in the obese category, rather than the morbidly obese category. It really is the little things you know? I'm really rocking my new label.

I'm so happy with where I am with my fitness level right now. I'm running consistently 3 days a week, and I love it so much! Sometimes I get cranky if I miss it, so I rarely miss it. When I first started running I couldn't do much better than a 20 minute mile, and now my personal record is 13:18. I still want to get faster and little by little I will. I start my official half marathon training on September 30th, and I can't wait.

I wanted to touch on something that has come up pretty frequently during this journey I am on. People often say to me, "I bet your husband is so happy with how you look now!" And I understand why they would say that, I think it is something I would say to someone else. I don't find that offensive at all. 

Adam is definitely complimentary toward how I look now. But he does not often say much about how much better I look now, or is he over the top with his compliments. I really like that about him. He has always loved me for exactly who I am. He does not seem more attracted to me now that I'm 227,  than he was when I was 389. If he complimented me like crazy, I would be wondering, "Wow, was I that ugly back then? Why was he with me?" So I have to give kudos to my husband for always making me feel worthy of his love.

I can't wait to see what the next month holds!


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