family

Christmas Recap (Pictures)

31 December 2008 / adam, aidan, birthday, christianity, family, ohio, pictures

Adam and I exchanged gifts on Christmas Eve, because we knew we’d probably be rushing the next day. He got me lots of cool stuff; a bed desk (WOOHOO), THE PATRON SAINT OF BUTTERFLIES, candy just to name a few things. Santa and Hanukkah Harry brought us The Dark Knight and Mario Kart. It was a nice Christmas Eve.

On Christmas Day, Adam and I flew to Ohio to see Aidan and family. See, Aidan’s Christmas list consisted of only four things:

– a Spiderman puzzle
– a Wii
– a bike
– his Mommy

They pulled up at the airport and Aidan, who’d been excited at the prospect of seeing me (all he knew was that Santa was working very hard and picking us up and etc., and we tried to keep it a secret as best as we could), was fast asleep. He woke up while we were putting the luggage in the truck, and the smile that was on his little face was just… wow. Best gift EVER.

We spent Christmas evening with Chris, Aidan, and Matty. It was great! They loved their presents, especially the toffee we got them from Terry’s Toffee.

Aidan playing with stocking stuffers!

This picture cracks me up:

Adam looks like the innocent child and Aidan looks like a little gangsta.

The next day we headed to my mom’s where of course, I got a food picture:

Mmmm.

YAY. I also took random shots of anything and everything:

My mommy got me lots of cute pajamas, a soft cuddly robe that I am wearing now, and she and Greg got me a $50 American Express gift card meant to spend on books! Woohoo. She got me a Mickey Mouse fleece hoodie for my birthday. Adam cleaned up on clothes and pajamas this year. My hubby is styling!

After Mommy’s, we spent some time at Andy’s, and thank goodness. It was dark and rainy and I HATE driving at night when it’s raining. I can’t see a thing on the roads. I can’t imagine trying to drive all the way back to Columbus when the weather is like that. So we stayed at Andy’s, and ended up staying another day because that’s when I started feeling icky. I got randomly sick and achy. Boo. A lot of rest and medicines helped me push through, though. And Aidan got to watch Wall-E twice. It was nice and relaxing. Andy has a nice house. He also got me cool gifts, including an adorable Domo tee-shirt.

We got back to Columbus on Sunday. A package from Ivy came Monday, full of Disney goodies and COOKIES!!!!!!

Here, Aidan is enjoying one of Ivy’s icicle cookies. Yum.

Then……

Yesterday was Aidan’s 6th birthday!!!!

We had a nice little celebration for him, and he once again, cleaned up with the presents! He’s so excited to be 6. I just can’t believe he’s no longer 5! He got Mario Kart, too, so we’ll be able to play with him online once Chris or Matty gets it all set up over on their end. YAY! I got him Wall-E, which he watched right away.

In case you’re wondering, Aidan DID get everything on his list above, AND THEN SOME. And when I say “and then some…” well, basically, you have no idea how much stuff the kid got. It’s really, truly overwhelming. I doubt he even realizes the magnitude of love that was poured out to him in the form of gifts. But you know, you’re only five on Christmas once, and I’m pretty sure his was more than magical. I’m so grateful I was able to share it with him, and be part of what made it so good for him.

I didn’t get to see nearly as many people as I wanted when I was in town, but maybe next time. I got to see the most important person–Little Aidan, and that’s what matters most.

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Wedding Weekend 2008! (Long, Pictures)

28 July 2008 / adam, family, friends, ivy, life, living in chicago, pictures, reflection, ronni, wedding, yay

The Wedding Weekend officially started Friday morning, when I got up to get my hair done at Eshe Day Spa & Salon. Here’s my new hairstyle!

Ivy got into town Friday afternoon. Here we are, being cute.

Saturday night, Aidan, Ivy, and I met Kelly and Garth at their hotel, then we all went up to Jen K’s place to eat and hang out. Here we are, waiting at the bus stop. The #65 bus takes FOREVER to show up, so we had to find ways to amuse ourselves.

After dinner at a great cafe (where I had a waffle with strawberries and whipped cream and bacon!), we headed back to Jen’s to hang out. It was a bachelorette party, of sorts, but not really. Aidan wore a tiara, though.

Woke up early Sunday morning. It was my wedding day! 🙂 So of course, I had to play “Happy Wedding Day” by The Andrews Sisters and Bing Crosby. I think it set the tone for an awesome day. Adam had gotten donuts, and I took a nice, long bath. Kelly and Garth showed up while Aidan was in the bath, and then Chris showed up with the beautiful bouquet that he’d made for me, and daisies for the girls and moms and grandmas. Pretty soon, the Weird Chicago bus showed up! And off we went.

Adam and me on the Weird Chicago bus. We’re going to get married!

When we showed up, it was like the paparazzi. It was a bit crazy! All the camera snapping at me. I loved every moment of it!

We all walked to the beach for the ceremony. There were people looking surprised sitting on benches, and one random biker said “Congratulations or whatever.” HA.

The beach was very pretty. There was a Song of Solomon verse on the block we jumped from. Dragonflies swarmed all around, and waves lapped the shore. The sand was hot, but I quickly got used to it.

Newlyweds!

After the ceremony and lots of pictures, a bunch of us hopped back on the Weird Chicago bus and headed to Eleven City Diner to get some eats. Good times ensued. A vase flew off the bus and scared some people standing on the street. We simply yelled “Ooompa!” or whatever it is that Greek people yell in celebration. 🙂 (Hmm, I kind of have the urge to watch My Big Fat Greek Wedding right now!) Aidan wasn’t too happy with all the noise. He was tired and trying to sleep.

Poor little guy. He had been up late the night before and had gotten up a lot earlier than normal, he was afraid of the dragonflies, and the sand was hot on his feet. Oh well, he cheered up once we got to the diner. The food at Eleven City was amazing as always (I had corned beef on rye and a pickle, mmm!), and after that, we came home and hung out a bit with friends and family before Adam and I took off for downtown. We rode in a horse drawn carriage along Lake Shore Drive, and checked into the Allerton for the night. ♥

I’m very happy. 🙂

As more and more pictures trickle in, I will make posts featuring some of my favorites. In addition, you can go here to see some of the pictures Jen H. took, or here to see pictures from my camera and other people who have shared their pix with me so far. 🙂

YAY Adam just came home with My Big Fat Greek Wedding. We’re gonna totally watch it! Woohoo!

‘Til next time!

(Originally published at Anywhere Is…)

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Doing it the Semi-Easy Medium Hard Way (Pictures, Long)

24 July 2008 / family, friends, living in chicago, pictures, Uncategorized, wedding

Wow, what a week it’s been. Three meetings downtown, having my soon-to-be sister-in-law Cassidy in town (which has been awesome!), Aidan’s growing pains, a trip to the vet for Helena, a trip to the library for me…. whew. And it’s not over yet. I mean, I’m getting MARRIED in a few days!

Plus, more visitors are coming! Tomorrow, Adam’s family makes it into town, Ivy gets in. Saturday, my friends and photographers Kelly and Garth get into town, and Sunday morning, Chris flies in just for the day. 🙂 It’s going to be a crazy next few days! On top of all that, I have a hair appointment at noon, so I will be looking fabu for the ceremony.

Yesterday, Helena had to go to the vet for a dental cleaning. They told us not to feed her after 8pm Tuesday night. Cassidy and I were out with Deborah getting our nails done (thanks for the mani/pedi, Deborah!). We got home really late because the Grand Ave. bus sucks, and when I dumped out the last of the food (it was after 8 by then), Helena just looked at the bowl so sadly. At about midnight, we heard her crunching. That little booger had gotten into the big bag of food! She was so pissed at me, she actually turned her little back on me. :O

When we went to pick her up at the end of the day yesterday, she was a feisty little something. I thought she’d be loopy and out of it. No way. She was ready to kick SOMEONE’S butt for leaving her there all day! But once I held her close, she stopped fighting and became still, her little heart pounding. She was glad to be home, but upset that there was no food in the dish. They’d told us to go light on the food that night, to give her half of what she normally eats. Then I realized that she eats a LOT, so half is a lot more than what we were giving her! She was happy after that.

Isn’t she pretty? She totally matches our floors:

Saw Batman last night with Jeff and Deborah. We made the date last year during our “spying on the movie set” phase. I have two words for you regarding that movie.

Holy Crap!

The coolest part (besides the freaking awesome movie) was recognizing Chicago is almost all of the Gotham City shots. That parking garage scene at the beginning with all the Batman impersonators? I totally spied on them when they were filming that scene. I remember we were like “Dude, why are there so many Batmans running around?” It all made sense once we saw the movie. 🙂 The Batmobile is totally in these pictures; you can click on the link to get to bigger versions on my Flickr site. Lookee:

It is VERY cool living in a city where they film movies. It’s kind of surreal to go “Hey, that’s the bank I sometimes go to!” and “That’s the building where the law firm I temped at is located!” The movie was great. VERY intense, not sure if I can handle seeing it in the theatre again. My body’s in so much pain from being so tensed up, but I promise, you will NOT be bored watching it. Now, I am ready for Twilight, and Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. I have several months for those, though. I’d like to see Get Smart and Wall-E too. We’ll see.

People have been so generous with our Disney Honeymoon Registry! We are so excited about the trip, and it’s fewer than sixty days away. Wheee!

I’m getting excited about the wedding, too. I’m excited about the people who will be there, the picture taking, the good times. I’m mostly excited about finally being married to Adam. ♥ Again, if any of you locals want to tag along, everyone’s meeting about 10:30 at the Edgewater Beach Cafe, then we’re going to walk over to the beach. It’s going to be short and simple and awesome. I got Adam’s ring today, and after I get my hair done, I think that will be everything! No fuss, no craziness, just goodness. 🙂

I think that’s all for now. My brain is tired, and I’m ready to go to bed and read. ‘Til next time!

P.S. Do you say “I have to scratch my arm, it’s itching” or “I have to itch my arm, it’s itching”?

(Originally published at Anywhere Is…)

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Our Newest Family Member (Picture)

12 July 2008 / family, living in chicago, pictures

Meet Helena!

We adopted her today from Paws Chicago. She’s a beautiful orange tabby (the pics don’t do her justice), just over a year old, and she is affectionate, friendly, and completely adorable. She immediately flopped and showed Aidan her belly at the shelter, purred when I pet her. She and Crookshanks bumped noses right away and not one hiss or growl out of either of them.

We made sure to find a cat who was youngish, good with children, and good with other animals. She comes from a hoarder situation–basically a crazy cat lady who had 40 cats. She’s used to other animals, which is evident. When we got her home, she hid under the bed until we cautiously let Crookshanks in to meet her. That’s when they bumped noses, and that’s when she finally came out and about. The people at Paws told us that she’d probably warm up to him more quickly than to us, which is what I’m seeing–although every time I get the chance to pet her, she purrs like crazy!

Next week, our family is going to be on the Paws Web site!

We first stopped by the Anti-Cruelty Society, but even though it’s more expensive, I definitely recommend PAWS for your adoption. The cat’s completely checked out, spayed/neutered, shots up to date, monitored, and microchipped. It’s a no-cage area, so when you’re ready to meet cats, you can sit with them and play with them. The adoption process actually takes hours; we were there a long time today. You talk to a counselor and everything. At the end, you get a huge coupon book from PetCo and a free bag of food! We get a free wellness exam in the next week, and if something crazy happens in the next 14 days and we can’t keep her, we can return her and get a refund. I can’t imagine giving her back, though. 🙂

I’m very happy to have Helena live with us. ♥

(Originally published at Anywhere Is…)

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Up & Down (Pictures)

10 June 2008 / adam, family, ivy, mommyhood, pictures, sad, work

A week after I quit that job, I am now starting to feel the depression of not having full-time work. I know I did the right thing in leaving, but right now, that “You’re worthless, no one wants you on their staff unless they’re going to mistreat/underpay you, why can’t you just suck it up and deal with working in miserable conditions just like everyone else” voice is beating heavily into me.

This week started off so great, too.

Adam’s family, Aidan, and I went down to Millennium Park and to Cloud Gate, which never gets old for me. It was Aidan’s first time there, and he LOVED it. He’d been talking about seeing “the big bean” for ages now.

Aidan lifting the “bean”.

I realized that there were no pictures of me without a camera in front of my face, like this one:

So I had Adam take one of me:

Aidan got wet in the giant fountains. I mean SOAKING!

But he didn’t care much for the train ride home. He was scared to death to go underground (he thought it would be very dark) and the train was very loud. He cried at first.

Yesterday was a good day.

Today started off nicely, too. It was a beautiful day. Perfect temps, sunny, blue skies and fluffy clouds. My most favorite kind of day. I got to meet Adam’s business partner Troy, and I took pictures of the Weird Chicago guys down on the lake shore. Cassidy treated me to a manicure (hadn’t had one since prom) and a pedicure (hadn’t had one since 2006) and my toes look adorable:

We ate lunch at an adorable Italian place in Niles, IL. and acted silly when we were stuffed to the hilt.

After popping into Target where I found out the gift card Ivy gave me was $40, not $25 like I’d thought, the Selzer’s dropped Aidan and me off and are now heading back toward Georgia.

I’m letting the little disappointments get to me. I got a little carsick today on the way to Target. Didn’t puke, thank God. The new pillow I got reeks and I have to return it. I feel like I’m letting everyone down for various reasons, and I honestly feel like crawling into a hole for a while. Everything’s eating away at my heart and soul and I know it’s a matter of time before I break down (again). But I have my little guy here and he loves me no matter what, so I’m going to hang on to that.

The job hunting blogs keep bleating the same thing. “YOU WILL NOT FIND A JOB SCOURING THE JOB BOARDS AND THE WANT ADS. THE ONLY WAY TO GET JOBS IS THROUGH CONTACTS AND NETWORKING.” Well, that’s nice and all, IF YOU FREAKIN’ HAVE CONTACTS. Guess who pretty much has ZERO contacts in Chicago. The agencies have been somewhat helpful. There is one here that I’ve had really great luck with, one that I’ve had OK luck with, and one that I’ve had a bit of luck with. But none of the full-time stuff I was up for panned out. That’s about as far as having contacts goes for me. It just seems like that “dream job” is always going to be out of reach. I want to do what I’m good at and what I love, and I want to be compensated well (or at least paid a living wage for goodness sakes) and treated with respect while I do so. I don’t want to feel like I’m wasting away while someone gets rich off of me while I’m away from my adorable little boy. But that won’t happen as long as I seek work for others… but I’m too scared to try to do this on my own on the self-employment route. I feel trapped and stuck and scared. Like I’ve gone backwards instead of forward or even lateral, and that’s the way it’s always going to be for someone like me, whose talents are a dime a dozen in one of the most competitive fields out there.

And folks, that’s how I feel now. Sad and tired (haven’t had a lot of sleep the past several days) and like the world’s biggest failure except when it comes to Aidan. And sometimes, I have my doubts about that too.

Bye.

(Originally published at Anywhere Is…)

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