Enjoy the time we have together ...

My parents came and went this week, there visits are always gone in a flash and I'm left crying on the doorstep with Safin everytime. I'm 25 years old and I can't ever see a day where I won't cry to say bye to my parents as long as they live 10 hours away, I always thought it would get easier but in reality it only gets harder. They drove up on a whim thanks to a mistake by my dads work who gave him the wrong week off (he was supposed to have last week off for my moms Houston trip and instead got this past week off) So they decided what better time than to drive 10 hours to visit and meet the new puppy. The days went by fast and were exhausting but totally fun. We did lots of biking, shopping, playing with the puppy, tennis, cooking, eating, and one trip to the mountains. Most days I can't understand why on earth I live so far away, I keep thinking life is too short to live this far away from my family and especially my mom who is battling cancer. I haven't laughed so hard or felt so good about myself in a long time during the days they were here, and that makes me sad. Maybe its just I always feel this way when they leave or maybe its winter looming in the distance, but when my dad asked me the other day if I was still happy here I hesitated for the first time in years, I responded with a "well I don't hate it here". It's true I don't hate it here or hate my life. I love my husband, my cat, and my puppy (in that order). I love our house and the life we have here, I like my job, but I love that I have my own office and I work 5 minutes from home. For the past two years I've told myself this is just for now, so we can have a good life for the money instead of living in a one bedroom 500 square foot apartment in Florida ... but is it worth it? Somedays (like yesterday) I don't care and I would rather live in closet in Florida and be close to my family then live in a mansion here and see them once a month. So I'm torn between the reality of the life we have now and the life that I can dream we will have some day. That I can be close enough to go to my parents for dinner or actually close enough to go and hug my mom if I'm having a bad day. It makes me cry just to think about it, because I wish I could just pack up and move tomorrow ... but I know I can't. So my dad says for now we just have to Enjoy the time we have together ... and that's just what I keep trying to do.

Just in time ...

Nikon just came out with two brand new Digital SLR Camera's ... just in time for my mom and dad to visit and buy me one ... bwhahahaha... good one Melissa.

And also "just in time" is what I stumbled accross on people.com yesterday ... a Photo of Steve Martin announcing that they have begun filming The Pink Panther 2 ... hurry up and finish ... its about time for another hillllllarious movie ... I can hardly wait!!!

To buy or not to buy ...

I've been debating for months to buy or not to buy a digital SLR camera. First I was just "researching" the idea, but the more and more I look at pictures that have been taken with really nice camera's I think ... that could be me! With our new puppy I've gone back to my "big" Konika Minolta 35 m. film camera. After a few clicks I forgot how much I missed it! And I loved how the first roll of pictures turned out. I did however miss being able to "delete" bad shots like my digital camera lets me do oh so often. I had a few snaps the other day where I know Levi ran away right as I clicked and I'll prob. just get half his butt in the shot! Which leads me to wanting now even more a Digital SLR Camera, everything I love and miss about my camera with everything I love about digital. I think I've narrowed it down to the Nikon D80, just enough mega-pix @ 10.2, unlike the D40 which I think has maybe 6. And also its not as $$expensive or advanced as the Nikon D200. I do love Canon's but they are all very expensive too, unless I go with the "rebel" which doesn't really have super great reviews. I always stumble before big investments, and I have the money, I'm a saver and every Birthday & Christmas for the past few years I take my loot and it goes in my stash to "save up for something good". My intention was to save for Holland, as I did as a kid when I knew we were going, however this time it was to buy my own plane ticket so a little more savings involved. I'm not sure when I will ever get back there, I'm hoping 2008 is full of some oversea's adventures but nothing in life is for certain ... so my stash sits waiting for "something good". Maybe I will just take the plunge, I am a picture taking fanatic ... and they have some awesome packages on ebay which include memory cards, bags, and multiple lens (I'd def. get one with a tele-lens and the wide angle lens) ...

What crazy looks like ...

A new GA Toy ...

Equals One Crazy Puppy!!

Best Friends

I'm not sure what got into these two this morning when they decided to have a stare down ... no fighting, no biting, some tempting but neither wanted to "strike" first. I hope they become Best Friends ... but for now I think they're both still just very curious about each other.

Checks Checks Checks ...

No not the kind you happily deposit at the bank, the kind that you can check of your to do list. Anyone who knows me well knows that I am a list maker! I make them at work too and usually have about 4-5 post its with "running lists", all categorized (personal, animal (safin or Levi), work, people to call) ... wow I'm a nerd. Anyways last night sitting in the bathtub with my mind running rampid with things to do, I sat down and "unloaded". For me it feels so good to have it on paper and be able to cross it off. It was my "to do before August is up" list ... and has everything on it from exercise to eating better to giving Levi a bath Saturday and writing the remainder of my Thank you notes (thank god!). I already felt better knowing it was on my list. I think Phil could tell I was also to my "breaking point", for once work has been stressfull then with the new puppy this week has gotten me majorly off my routine, but like Levi I will adapt to our new life. I'm looking forward to the weekend and getting a lot of things done, especially cleaning the house! With all our Bed Bath and Beyond gift cards I'm tempted to buy myself the ScumBuster, not only for its cool name but I could totally see myself using it all over the house ... if only it came with a tool belt then I could be stylin'! ohhhhhh ... ahhhhhhhh.....

Introducing ... Levi

Phil and I have a new addition to our family ... a puppy. He's a 6 week old blue merle Australian Shepard. He has one blue eye and one brown eye. He was born July 5th (5 days before me) and we named him Levi (after the cyclist for the Discovery Team ... Levi Leipheimer). It was the first name that he actually responded too and we both liked it so boom pup's got a name! Levi enjoys eating, biting safin's tail, waking up at 5 a.m. a wild crazy terror, herding Phil and I, and sleeping next to the AC vents. He's been a very good puppy so far, and has shown a lot of intelligence at only 6 weeks old. Welcome to the family Levi :)

Marriage is ...

I've had a stressful morning to really understate it and I'm so unmotivated to work the rest of the afternoon. I came across this website with some funny jokes about marriage and a few of them made me laugh.

"A successful man is one who makes more money than his wife can spend. A successful woman is one who can find such a man."

"A woman was telling her friend, "It is I who made my husband a millionaire." The friend asked, "And what was he before you married him?" The woman replied, "A multi-millionaire."

"After a quarrel, a wife said to her husband, "You know, I was a fool when I married you." The husband replied, "Yes, dear, but I was in love and didn't notice."

"I had some words with my wife and she had some paragraphs with me."

"I married Miss Right. I just didn't know her first name was Always."

"Marry not a tennis player, for love means nothing to them."

"Some mornings I wake up grouchy... and some mornings I just let her sleep." (hahahaha...)

har har ... I know a lot of people joke about marriage and all the problems it brings, but I believe it also brings happiness and growth in people. I feel I've grown in the past two years of living with my now husband, learned about compromise, not going to bed angry, never backing down for something I believe in, and also learning how to clean the house in an hour ... yep I'm good! But most of all I learned respect. You have to respect the person you're with. Respect the value of there opinions and beliefs. We're not always going to see eye to eye and we're not always going to want to do what the other one wants or feels "we" should do, but its with compromise and respect that you perservere. There's no "I" in team, and thats what a marriage is a team of 2 ... not 3 not 4 ... 2 ... just me and you and all other people and I don't know why I can't take my eyes off-a you .. Okay a little Lifehouse action. You can't please everyone in this life, and trying to make everyone happy isn't worth it (learned that one after planning a wedding!), we'll always have disagreements but in the end you know I'll always love you.

I'm in Love ...

WITH A PUPPY!!!!!!

William is such a handsome blue merle. His white markings are very even and symetrical. And, he is set off with very nice copper points as well. I can't get over how much he looks like his half brother from Julia's litter- Milo. This little fellow is very personable and comes running over to get personal attention as soon as we go to the puppies. His right eye is very blue, and will probably stay blue. The left eye looks to be turning brown for sure. I'd say that this fellow will do well at agility or frisbee. He's very alert and quick with his movements. His 1/2 brother that he looks so much like is doing very well in an agility home, and he looks and acts like he has very similar genes. It's so fun to watch him develop!
One brown eye and one blue!

and he's a little Fatty McFatty ... I love it!

What were you thinking?!?

I came across a really cool home finding website today courtesy my friend Beth, www.realtor.com . It's heads and shoulders above the websites I've been trying to navigate through on my spare time at work, this one has much more pictures for the homes and lots of information without all the advertising. As I said in my previous post a move to Florida is probably not in the near future, but I enjoy looking at houses, I even watch House Hunters on TV every once in a while! The homes in Florida are "blah" compared to the beautiful stone and brick homes they make up here in Georgia, most Florida homes are old ranch styles with wierd layouts and short ceilings, and did I say old. I'm sure there are some new home communities with more modern ammenties being built but are hard to find online when you don't know the area or at least I hope there are because I can't EVER see myself spending $200K for a home built in 1955. I did find a few homes that I could def. live in and for the right price, some even had a pool *gasp* (what I wouldn't give for one of those in this heat) Although a few homes left little to be desired for in the interior decorating end of it, which got me to thinking what were you thinking?

A lime green bedroom maybe ...

Mirrors are a must for the living room right?
Who doesn't want a red fireplace?

This is just tooo much clutter for me ... guess it's not so tacky
I feel like I'm in a hospital when I'm blinded by all the white in this one!

The Future ...

In between drowning in my work trying to complete the stupidest RFP alive I've found time as I always do to surf the web. Everyday I check out new jobs on my dream companys website. Its a publication company based out of Winter Park, Florida and they put together and publish many of my favorite magazines. Two that I'd love to be apart of are Destination Weddings and Islands Magazine. Lately there have been a few jobs that just reading the "description" has me dreaming of working there. I like my job now, its close to home, the people I work with are nice, its a little bit of money in my pocket, but its boring and there is NOTHING creative about it. I know I'd be great at a Publishing company, and I know I have a great eye for photographs and layouts and everything "magazine". I've looked everywhere in Atlanta and there are a few smaller publishing companies downtown (but none that I would actually make the commute for). If I ever get an interview in Florida I know I could impress, but alas my resume is just a piece of paper and no where near as impressive as I am in person :) haha But I'm sure they see a Georgia address and toss me to the curb.

I've also only heard good things about the town : Winter Park. How it's a cute upscale lake town in the Orlando suberbs with a really neat downtown as pictured. Some place I could def. see myself living and raising a family or at least a puppy. Of course moving to Florida is for now only a distant dream. Phil always says if the timing is right we'll move to Florida one day, but until that ever happens I don't know if I truly believe it. I miss my parents and warm winters, but I know he'll miss a lot about GA if we move too, which makes it hard. All of his friends and family are here ... along with his beloved UGA bulldogs. For now I know the reality of the matter, we have a better life for our money here in GA, so unless I get offered some outrageous salary for my dream job in Florida we're camped out here for a little while longer and my dream of a Florida house with a yard and maybe a pool, a cool Publishing job, a puppy, an orange kitten, and my family in driving distance will have to wait ...

Debut: The Ice Cream Maker

We debuted the Ice cream maker tonight to make peach ice cream. It was fun, however we (Phil) thinks it was a little too much heavy whipping cream. I agree ... better luck next time! Needless to say we won't be opening our own ColdStone anytime soon! Thanks to Molly for this awesome wedding gift :)

Kabobs

Yum ... we had kabobs tonight and used our new kabob rack that we bought today at Marshall's for a few dollars. It worked awesome and the kabobs were def. easier to turn and tasty :) I'm so lucky to have a husband who does 98% of the cooking ... maybe one day he will do more than 1% of the cleaning ... hahaha just kidding! Love you baby :)

The road to a better me ...

I've always been self conscious and worried about my weight. I even look back now at my "skinnier self" and I can hardly believe I thought I was "fat" ... I now dream to be that size again. Alas working all day sitting behind a desk is not the perfect formula to lose weight. Then when I get home at 5:30-6 I'm exhausted and do I really feel like going for a run in the scorching heat ... no way! I've been a lot less motivated post wedding but now I've put on those extra few pounds again and its time to just suck it up. I know I'll never be able to motivate myself to play tennis for 3 hours and then run 4 miles, and then I don't have the time to do that either. I usually have enough time and energy for a 2-3 mile run. Phil and I have decided to start going back to the gym so he can ride some bikes and swim for his knee and we can start lifting weights again. I never realized how important it was to have cardio and weights ... mostly since I hate them! hahaha... But it made me feel better to lift and especially awesome the day after when I can't lift my arms (Not!). Tomorrow morning is Day 1 back to the gym and back to a better me. I'm happier when I feel thin and healthy and in shape. I also realized post college I can't do it all just working out ... its gotta be cardio, weights, and eating right. Time to pack in the fruits and salads, give up the chips and chocolate ... and maybe treat myself to a pair of some hot new running shoes :)

Remember When ...

I love it when I can get together with my friends from college and "reminisce" about all our good times. It ALWAYS happens every time we get together! Maybe its because our 9-5 jobs now are just not as exciting as the things we did and got into in college. The times I had in college were some of the best and worst times in my life. I went through my first heartbreaks, my first bad grades (2.1 GPA), my mom first diagnosed with cancer when I was helplessly 12 hours away. Then the best times, I have four years of memories and friends I will never forget. As a Florida girl I survived my first snow and ice storms, countless beatings on the tennis court (and a few good wins that I remember), some crazy partys, and those late night trips to Walmart or just riding around because we had nothing else to do. Gardner-webb university in the middle of nowhere in a dry town (no alcohol) with its strict rules and nothing to do or eat past 8 pm. I know its hard to explain to people that I had the time of my life and I wouldn't of traded my 4 years there for anything. Often at work I find myself missing it, missing walking around campus, even living in the dorms or eating in the nasty cafeteria. I don't miss the long practices or weights or runs, but I do miss the motivation, team-mates, and being in the best shape of my life. I know I can never go back, but I can always remember.
And thanks to Phil for getting me an awesome scanner for Christmas I managed to make some of these "non-digital" memories, digital once again. I'm sure one day I'll get bored and really covert all my college memories onto the computer... but for now a glimpse down memory lane:

I love this picture because you can see the Rav in the window :)

Getting ready to do some grilling ...

Phil and Mike's house ... I was snowed in here a few times too

Ilija cleaning ... the first and only time I ever saw him handle a vacuum

An oldie but a goodie ...

Our first snowman ... he was bad ass with a camo hat, beer, solo cup eyes, and later a burning siggy ...

A typical Saturday night or actually any night ... lots of love at the table

1st ever FL-GA game Trek to Jacksonville

My first spring break we were sent home early and we pooled our "meal money" together to buy some huge packs of chicken and beverages ... cooper fed us chicken for 3 nights straight on his little grill ... Good Times!

Best April Fool's Prank Ever ...

Oh the cashmere ... Lex "Dichi" and Brownie switched clothes one spring break trip night in Florida

August Already!

I can't believe it's August Already! After I tore off July from my desk calendar this morning, I keep checking over my shoulder to make sure this year is truly flying bye. 1 month until football season consumes my life and I "lose" my husband for just about every Saturday until 2008 and even more shocking only 4 months until Christmas! I keep thinking THIS is the year I'm going to be super organized and have ALL of my shopping done by Thanksgiving ... HA! and miss the deals ... no way! Even though I froze my butt off last year waking up at 5 a.m. to drive to the outlets I got some deals I won't soon forget and you better believe I'm going back again this year! But this time I hope it will be to get the finishing touches on my list and not the whole list (like last year). As excited as I am for Christmas I can do the math and Christmas = winter = cold = melissa not happy. I'm dreading it already ... the end of summer ... sniff sniff ... but if I had to make a Christmas List today then here is what would be on my list :)

An orange Maine Coon Kitten

Why I've always wanted an orange kitten and I think Safin would enjoy a friend (how cute is he!)...

An Australian Shepard Puppy

Even though I want a puppy (and I have for the past 2 years) I know I have to wait until we get a house ... so he will remain on my list!

A digital SLR Camera

I found this super duper package on ebay, really expensive and way more than I'll ever need which is why it goes on my unrealistic Christmas List :)

In reality I know I'm going to need some more "working out/tennis" T-shirts since my GWU Tennis Shirts are almost completely full of holes! See I don't have everything like some people may think!