A Welcome Back

I know, it has been a while since I've blogged, and it's not because I've been so busy, or because I haven't been cooking and crafting. In November, I lost my job, and with it I seem to have lost my ability to write. Even e-mails to old friends have been difficult.

With 2010 just a few days away, I think it's time to start thinking about what resolutions I want to make. I've got a few running through my head, and one will be to write something daily. Whether it be on this blog, on a special project I'm developing, or just a private journal entry, it will be important to keep my brain focused and keep reaching toward the goals I set at age 13 or 14.

Here are few holiday pictures. This is Dicey celebrating Christmas. He didn't actually open the present himself, but he did thoroughly enjoy rolling around on the wrapping paper and diving into empty boxes.

These are the most perfect Candy Cane Cookies that I have ever made. Maybe others have perfected the Candy Cane cookie, but my family has always struggled. This year, I got nothing but amazed compliments on my Candy Cane Cookies.

I did a lot of baking this holiday season. Since I spent all of November and December unemployed, and baking is a relatively inexpensive hobby, I got pretty good at it.

This is one of our Christmas trees. This one, I kept pretty well decorated. The kittens enjoyed playing with the ornaments and and lights, but since this tree was on a table, it was a little harder to reach. Our larger tree only had lights and a star. It was sad to look at in the daytime, but much prettier at night. I think we lost 5 or 6 bulbs this year due to the kittens, but they did eventually grow tired of playing with the trees, so hopefully next year will lead to better decorations.

Our kittens also like to steal pen shaped objects. They carry them around in their mouths, like a dog carries a stick. After losing three seam rippers (an unfortunate necessity when I start quilting) and every pen I ever used, I started to go a little crazy.

A few nights ago Alex, saw a twinkle of something under the fridge, and when he pulled it out, this is what we found: 5 mechanical pencils, 10 pens, 3 seam rippers, 3 barrettes, 1 lemon Starburst, a missing piece from one of Alex's headphones, an Emory board, and a variety of broken Christmas bulbs.

They love to play in the kitchen because things slide around better on that floor, but I guess once it's under the fridge, it's gone for good.

I'll be posting more in 2010!

A long week, which really isn't an excuse

This week at work was extremely hectic. We had a huge event yesterday, and the whole week revolved our final preparations. I worked over every night and put in 14 hours on Friday and another 12 yesterday. Everything went well, but it made my blogging less frequent.

This was the most recent Pampered Chef recipe I tried. It was Jalapeno Popper Pizzas. They are a fun finger food for your next tailgating party, and they were a huge hit at my last Pampered Chef Party!

As you can see in the picture to the right, they have bacon, cream cheese, and jalapenos (all the basics for a popper), and then a few more ingredients to add to the fun. Below, you can see the finished mini pizza.

Today has been a pretty lazy day. I was so worn out from the last week that I mainly took it easy. I did start a quilt I'm working on for a Christmas gift. It's going pretty quickly. I cut the squares out one night last week and I put them in order today. I've got two of the longest rows pieced together already and I love the fabric I chose! I will post some pictures soon!

Kittens, Parties, and Birthdays!

A few days ago I was working in our office, which doubles as my craft room, and one of my kittens found the smallest shoe box he could find to cuddle up in. He was so cute all curled up in the box that I carried him down the hall and set him, box and all, on the couch in the living room.

He stayed there long enough for me to take 7 or 8 pictures. Here he is looking at me like a crazy women for snapping my little green camera at him from every angle.

This weekend, we had two parties on Saturday. One was my Pampered Chef grand opening, and the other was an old-fashioned beer fest. We drank beer out of the can, played beer pong and drinking card games and had a good time. It was a small party, which is sometimes better when
alcohol is involved.

I didn't take any pictures that day. I was just too busy to think about it. It's sad, because the spread I made, especially for the day-time party was quite impressive: roast-beef roll ups, antipasto platter, garden veggie pizza, elegant fondue dip, and cran-rasp fizz. We also had iced tea, candy and nuts.

Yesterday night I ran to the grocery and picked up a few peaches. Alex thought he could fit an entire one in his mouth. Luckily I had cut them into slices, which did fit into his mouth. So he snapped this picture to show off his eating abilities.

Tomorrow is his birthday, and today was really stressful for me, so I got to work baking some brownies out of my Nestle Cook Book. They are triple chocolate lovers brownies with caramel and nuts. I can't wait to dig in!

A weekend of cooking and crafting

Over my long weekend I spent time cooking and crafting. I should have spent more time cleaning, but sometimes that doesn't work out.

I finished the quilt for my friend Ashley's baby shower. It is supposed to be a shadow quilt, but I struggles and instead it's just a stripey triangle quilt.

You can't see it in the picture, but the very edge is green. I was going to finish it with the backing, but I'm so happy I added the green. It really makes it look complete.

I did some cooking in preparation for my first Pampered Chef Party this weekend. The first thing I made was a three-cheese garden pizza. It was so good. I ate like half of it for lunch on Saturday. The best part was the three cheese (cheddar, mozzarella, and Parmesan) mixed with a teaspoon of Italian seasoning. It gave it the perfect pizza flavor.

The crust was a refrigerated roll and would have been better if it were homemade, but the rolls are fast and work in a pinch.

The second recipe I tried was mint-chocolate triangles, which turned into mint-chocolate rectangles because the triangles would not cut right.

The looked pretty anyway, and are now stored in the freezer for my party on Saturday. I don't like the combination of mint and chocolate, but I'm assuming that they were pretty good because Alex and Dave finished off all the mess-ups and scraps in a matter of days.

I've got a ton more cleaning to do tomorrow, but my craft room/office is actually put together now and looks like a nice room. After work I'm just going to start in the back of the house and work my way forward or the other way.

I accidentally-on purpose tore the wall paper off the walls in the dining room. It looks better than it did, but there is still a ton of glue on the walls making the paneling look worse than normal. So tomorrow I must clean those walls, and hang a few pictures. Both bathrooms need cleaned. The entire house needs swept and the kitchen needs cleaned after I do some major food prep. Hopefully I can get it all done in 6 or 7 hours. Then I won't have to worry about those silly details Saturday morning.

I'm one Pampered Chef, or at least I feel like one today

Yesterday I decided to get a little adventurous with my new mini-muffin pan and tart press. I tried sugar cookie dough to make mini dessert cups, but learned quickly that sugar cookie dough rises much too fast. Next time I'll try pie crust or the tart shell recipe included with the tart tool.

The cookie shells were pretty good, for store bought cookies anyway. And the experiment wasn't a total loss. I learned that to make good tart shells, you should roll the dough into small balls. The directions said one inch balls. Since I don't have a ruler in the kitchen, I guesstimated. I realized the smaller balls actually did much better than the larger ones. I also discovered that if you flip these cookies over you have a cute little hat shape for Cinco de Mayo, or maybe Thanksgiving. Now I just need icing!

Today I tried a Moroccan Chicken something or other. It was basically a chicken salad with Moroccan seasoning rub, dried fruit and cheese slightly toasted on french bread. They were a pretty appetizer topped with chopped red pepper and green onion.

Dave and I ate them for dinner (Alex was at class). They were a little rich for dinner, but they were mighty filling and something I might make again if I were entertaining a big crowd.

I also had a massage today. I've been really, really tense lately. I haven't been sleeping well because of it, so I decided to let a professional work our of those knots. It was a rare splurge with money we don't really have, but I do feel much better tonight and hopefully will sleep better than I have over the past week.

A long week for a Tuesday.

This week has been incredibly long already. Yesterday I was able to go in to work late, but I also had to work late, so I got up early and hit the gym. I swam. I am not a good swimmer, but it is a good work out, especially when your muscles are a little tight.

Yesterday was very stressful at work. We had a deadline we had to meet and trying to get everyone else to work on your deadline is definitely a challenge. We also had an event at LA Fitness in the evening. It was over about 7:30. By the time I got home, I wasn't motivated to do much. I did work a little on my Pampered Chef stuff, but there is so much information to go over.

Today was just an all around hard day. I was trying to play catch up from all the things I had to put off yesterday, and then we had an event and meeting right in the middle of the day, and then my computer crashed, which luckily my files are backed up, but I may have lost my e-mails which are incredibly important.

After work I went to the gym. I thought it might help me calm down, and it did, at least a little bit. When I got home, Alex had started dinner. He grilled a steak, which we shared. I made farmer's market green beans, and a microwave package of Uncle Ben's Brown and Wild Rice. Overall, it was a yummy and healthy dinner.

After dinner, we played a game of Set. If you've never heard of it, you can check it out here. It's a really fun card game that works your brain. It takes a while to get the hang of it and learn the rules, but it's fun anyway.

So, I'm looking forward to the rest of my week. I hope that it gets a little less stressful. Tomorrow I have my second meeting with my Wellness Coach at the YMCA. I've already planned on making homemade chicken and noodles tomorrow night for dinner, so I will have the chicken in the Crock Pot all day.

Thursday I have an appointment with a masseuse. I'm not sure if it's the stress, or if I actually strained a muscle, but my back has been killing me lately. I figure I better try to work out before it gets too much worse. It's a lot of money, but hopefully it will be worth it.

For now, I'm going to put a heating pad on it and get a good night's sleep.

Unproductive Weekends

Weekends always feel so less productive than planned. Maybe I over anticipate the things I think I will get done, or maybe I really don't get as much done as I should. Either way, I wish that I could say I accomplished a few more things.

Yesterday was a long day. I went to conference in the morning and early afternoon. I had a doctor's appointment at 2:45, which I was late for. I came home and quilted. Really I got a lot done, but my goal was to get finished and that didn't happen.

My friend, Kasey, called and wanted to shop. So we hit the mall and Target. I tried not to buy things, but as usual, I did. It was just a few necessities, like toilet paper and deodorant. She bought scrubs and a wedding shower gift for a friend that she rarely speaks to anymore.

Today should have been more productive, but it started with me oversleeping until 9:00. Then I did a little work. Then my mom came down for a trip to Costco, which I can never turn down because she stocks me up with my favorites like four pounds of strawberries and a pallet of ground beef that we can split. Then Dave wanted to go to Hobby Lobby, and since I had to get batting for the quilt I'm working on I went with him. By the time we got back, and I loaded up the picture frames I had to have, Alex was home and we were making our night plans.

We headed out to see a movie, but then couldn't find the theater and ended up back home drinking homemade mixed drinks, eating air popped popcorn with real butter, and watching a DVD from Netflix.

Now everyone else in the house is asleep, probably passed out from strong rum, while I am wired from vodka, club soda and cranberry flavored sugar water.

I'll probably try to go to bed soon because I feel like I need to get a lot accomplished in the morning. Tomorrow I would like to hit up the gym. Finish the front of my quilt. Head home for Alex's grandma's 90th birthday party. Head to my mom's for dinner after that. Come home and get everything signed up for my new business as a Pampered Chef Consultant and still be in bed by 10:30 or 11:00. Is it possible? I think so.

Quilting, a forgotten piece of magic

I really put some work into the quilt for my friend's baby shower today. I spent about two hours piecing together strips of materials. Tomorrow I will be able to cut out triangles and piece together my squares. It's going rather quickly, which is good because ideally I'd like to finish it this weekend. The shower is on the 19th. I need to RSVP, and I need to find out if anyone around here is going so that I don't have to make the 3 hour drive by myself.


I just signed up to be a Pampered Chef consultant. In addition to my full time job, I thought it might be a nice way to eat up some of my time while Alex is busy with school, plus even if it's just a few hundred dollars a month, the extra money will not hurt.

I've got a few people tentatively signed up to host parties, but I'd like to hit the ground running with this. The faster you get started, the more opportunities you have to earn some fun bonuses, and with Christmas around the corner, bonuses are good!

Sunburn, the out of office way

Today was spent at the Farmers Market at the City Market, which was a whole new experience for me. Unfortunately I was there working, not shopping, but it was so nice to spend a day outside, in the sunshine and on my feet. I'm regretting it tonight though because my face is as red as a cherry. I don't typically burn this badly, but this summer has been one of limited sunshine and base tanning, and while I definitely put on my SPF lotion this morning, I may not have put it on to the degree necessary to block the Indiana August sunshine.

Work seemed to fly by, which is good and bad. It's good because it means I'm staying busy. It's bad because it really means that I am too busy. I like to be fully loaded, but I also like to make sure that I get everything done, and everything done right.

After work I went to the gym. I did 35 minutes of cardio and then planned on coming home and doing a little yoga. When I laid down on the floor, Dicey, my black and white kitten, decided that my sweaty, salty hair would make a lovely plaything and treat and I couldn't really find my inner focus. I gave up the yoga, but did get my pieces cut for my new quit. It has 12 total squares. Tomorrow I would like to get six completed. It shouldn't be a problem. I get off work at 4:30. The cat's have a vet appointment at 5:40 and Alex has night class, so I'll be on my own until nearly bedtime. I'll skip the gym tomorrow because of the vet, so that will give me more time for quilting!

I'll post some pictures then!

Homemade dinner and high blood pressure

Tonight, after my unproductive trip to the gym to meet my Wellness Coach, Greg, I came home and cooked Alex and myself dinner. We had sloppy joes, pasta salad, and acorn squash. Well, I had acorn squash. Alex, who is opposed to most veggies wouldn't touch the stuff. It was incredibly yummy and healthy. Please see below for the recipe.

At the gym today, my Wellness Coach took my blood pressure, which is always exactly 120/68, maybe even 110/60 if I'm feeling a little run down, but the moral is it is never high, and today he took it on my left arm, and then my right arm and it was 132/90. I think he might not have been the best pressure taker, and I had just gotten off work and was a little stressed because I was running late. It might have been high, but I am nervous about it being that high. I have a doctor's appointment on Friday, and I'll wait and see what my pressure is then before I get too nervous.

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Low fat Acorn squash, as I adapted it from the Better Homes and Garden Cook Book
1 medium acorn squash, cut in half and seeded
1 Tbs butter
3 Tbs brown sugar
Juice from half a lemon
Cinnamon to taste

Put the squash in a microwavable baking dish. Microwave on high approximately 10 minutes.

In a small sauce pan combine and melt butter, brown sugar, lemon and cinnamon.

Pour butter/sugar mixture over squash and microwave for an additional 2-3 minutes To better infuse the flavor, poke the squash and baste often.

Mash with a fork or spoon and enjoy!

A bike trip to the grocery

When we went to the store yesterday, I realized how close it really was. I decided that if we could find a cart, it would be close enough to walk. I'm not sure how much a cart costs, but today, since I only needed a few things, I rode my bike to the grocery.

We had homemade pizza for dinner. It wasn't fancy. It was a store bought crust because I cannot make a good homemade crust to save my life, Sauce from a jar, shredded cheese and lunch meat ham. Alex and I love ham on our pizza.

I also made Pillsbury Bread Sticks, and we had watermelon on the rind. It was Alex's first day of school. I went to the gym after work and spent 35 minutes on the treadmill. I did a lot of walking and a little running, but I'm slow and I guess in worse shape than I thought. Tomorrow I meet with my Wellness Coach. We'll see how that goes. I would like to go and swim some laps on Wednesday night, but I have a mini-event at work that day and I might be too tired.

I didn't get to work on my quilt at all today, but the pieces have over taken the craft room/office. Alex and I are going to have a party in September to show off our house, and I have to have the quilt finished and put away before then. Maybe I'll have time this weekend. We have to do some outside work as well.

Sunday's are the hardest

Sundays are always hard for me. Mainly because 10:00 sneaks up on me so quickly and that is when I remember everything I wanted to get done over the weekend and everything that has to been done before my week can start back up. Going back to work on Monday's is also hard. It's not the actual work, it's just the waking up and feeling motivated.

But here we are again and it's Sunday night and i haven't gotten everything accomplished that I wanted to. I did a lot though, and I suppose that counts for something.

We finished painting the kitchen. We have started getting things put back in order. I just did 30 minutes worth of dishes to get caught up from the week we couldn't do them (we've been eating out a lot).

Today we went to an Indianapolis Indians baseball game. It was a lot of fun, but we were gone from noon until after 6. I fixed pancakes and sausage links for dinner. It was kind of a throw together meal because I haven't thawed any meat in a week. Today I got out hamburger, a pork roast and a pizza crust for next week. We are not getting dinner to go again.

When I got home tonight I started a quilt for my friend Ashley's baby. She's due in late October with a little boy. I am attempting my first shadow quilt. I recently found a book called the Weekend Quilter. I figure anything in there ought to be easy enough for me. It make take me longer than a weekend, but I can do it.

Yesterday I washed and dried the material. Today I pressed it all, and started cutting. The shadows and boarder are going to be bright blue. I have got that cut out. The triangles will be composed of the many colored polka dotted fabric, and the back will be the soft blue polka dotted fabric.

I really wanted to make it boyish, but also make it baby neutral. I hate things that are too gender specific, only because it seems everything for little boys is blue and everything for little girls is pink. I'm a huge fan of the green and yellow.

Elbow grease updates kitchen

Our kitchen was terrible. I mean it was plaid wallpaper. Old plaid wallpaper that was originally white, or maybe off-white, but had turned this awful shade of yellow due to years of cooking and probably smoking. It was pealing in some places and curling in others. Alex spent a better part of Wednesday tearing off the wallpaper and the backing.

He primed this morning and we painted the top half. The bottom half is wood paneling/wainscoting. We are painting it this deep blue, along with the back splash. The top is a very light brown/sand color. We're planning on pulling that into our living room and hall way, too. It's pretty neutral, but not white, and that's what I'm really aiming for.

Because we spent so much of the day painting, the poor kittens had to be locked in their room (aka the laundry room). They did get to come out and play for a while before Alex and I left for dinner and a quick trip to JoAnn Fabric.

Laugher... the best medicine

Last night, Alex and I went to a very special showing of Rifftrax live: Plan 9 from Outer Space. If you've never seen Mystery Science Theater 3000 or listened to Rifftrax, it's totally worth checking out.

The live event is a new thing that many theaters are doing. It was the first one we have been to, but as regular movie goers, we have seen many previews for live symphonies, operas, concerts, and even, not live, but classic movies on the big screen. Basically, they create these special one time only showings. Feed the information live to roughly 500 movie theaters across the country and then bring in the money.

We were in a totally packed theater full of Rifftrax-loving geeks. It was great. The show started off with a terrible MC, featured a classic 1950s short, live music, crazy commercials, and finally the feature: Plan 9 from Outer Space.

Anyway, the whole point is that we laughed and laughed. Laughter takes away a lot of your problems and concerns. It was really nice.

Today is my short day at work and Alex and I are going to attempt to paint our kitchen today, and this weekend. He's torn off all the wallpaper, and I scrubbed down the walls. They are taped and my goal is for him to get a coat of primer on while I'm at work. I figure I can work and head to the gym, and then we'll get busy and get at least one coat on the top part of the room. I'm hoping that we can even get a second done tonight!

Some things just can't be made at home

Today, I joined our YMCA and started to workout again. I've worked out regularly in the past, but graduation, the new job, the new house, and the new city have got me out of the rhythm. I'm not one to workout at home. I may do a 20-30 minute relaxing yoga practice once a week or so, but I don't like sweating in my own house. I can't stand aerobic tapes where the video is obviously edited in a way so that the exercisers are never sweaty.

I had an epiphany today. I'm almost 25, which is a monumental age, and I am not in the shape I want to be in. I feel like once I hit 25, changing my lifestyle will not get any easier. So now is the time for change. I have six weeks before that big birthday, and it's time to stop and think about my health and the future.

I'll have access to all the YMCAs in Indianapolis. There is one about 10 minutes from my house, and one walking distance from my work. Really I'll have absolutely no excuse not to go, which is exactly what I need.

Tonight, Alex offered to cook dinner. We're having Jambalaya with smoked sausage. It's homemade from the box, and it's one of our favorite simple, but delicious meals. Dave is out of town at the dentist. We aren't sure when he'll be back, but it's kind of nice to have the house to ourselves this evening. It's just Alex and me, and the kittens.

Sausage-gravy and biscuits

What was homemade today? Sausage-gravy and biscuits. It was turkey sausage, and the biscuits came out of a can. The gravy was homemade and it was perfect tonight. I've finally figured out the trick... The milk and fat must boil together before adding the cornstarch. Perfect gravy every time.

So I need to find a gym. Indianapolis has a million gyms to choose from, but finding one in the right price range with the right amenities is a challenge. Alex doesn't really understand the importance. Today for example, we went to check out a Cardinal Fitness. He didn't want to wear gym clothes. He didn't want to work out. He didn't want, he didn't want. I got mad, but I just kept it to myself. There is no use arguing over something so small. I cooked our dinner and then I took a walk/run. Forty-five minutes later I wasn't angry anymore.

The activity made me feel so much better. My endorphins kicked in, and I was able to forget the attitude. To quote Elle from Legally Blonde, "She wouldn't kill him," she pauses, "Working out gives you endorphins, endorphins make you happy, happy people don't just kill their husbands." And she is right. Before the workout, I was ready to be life Rhianna and throw the first punch, but after the workout, I was able to avoid a petty fight and enjoy a win in the game of Electronic Life with Alex and Dave.

Happy Tuesday.

Homemade Family

This blog will be dedicated to the life that my husband, Alex, and I are starting together. We have been married 164 days. We bought our first house in July and started are family with two kittens, Dicey and Racer, at the same time.

I am a young professional. Alex is a graduate student. We have a roommate, Dave, who inevitable will play a role in the tales I will share.

To begin the story...

Yesterday was Alex's first lesson in paying the bills. Up until now, he's never paid a bill. He's probably never even opened an envelope containing a bill. He's definitely never balanced a checkbook or had to do much more budgeting than deciding if he should order pizza tonight, or eat lunch out tomorrow. But yesterday, I wanted him to understand and see where my small paychecks go every month.

We sat down at the computer and I pulled up the online bill pay. I stacked up the bills, which seem to be coming almost daily and began explaining how to log on, how to compare the online statement to the balance on our MoneyDance. I then proceeded to use online bill pay to pay each bill, carefully recording our new balance after each one. After cable, electric, mortgage, Netflix, insurance, you name it, our account had significantly dropped.

He was astonished, but you know what? I think it's going to help. The next time I say, "We can't really do that, we don't have any money," he might actually believe me.

Putting in offers and...

Alex and I decided to put an offer in on a house on Tuesday. We made the offer on a bank-owned, ranch house on Wednesday night. Thursday morning we got a call that the house had three other offers made in the two days that it was on the market.

We had to make a "highest and best" offer by Thursday at 5:00. We were hopeful that we would hear back on Friday because it shouldn't be too hard to look at all the offers and decide which is the highest and best.

We didn't hear back Friday, so who knows when we will hear back. I hate to be a pessimist and normally I am not, but I don't think we will get it. We gave a relatively high offer compared to the listing price, however, we also incorporated the cost of repairs into our offer.

Basically there is stuff that has to be done before we could even move in, such as siding repairs. While the cost of these repairs isn't outrageous, it's more than we will have left after a down payment, closing costs, and other expenses. We wanted the seller to do the repairs and in turn we would pay a higher price than list price. Basically we are paying for the repairs, but we are making them the seller's responsibility so that we can take out a slightly higher mortgage.

Maybe we didn't hear back because everyone incorporated similar demands into their offers, and it wasn't as simple as saying this buyer made the highest offer.

Anyway, I'm beginning to get a little disheartened by all of it. I want a house. I want to be closer to my job. At this point, it will be the end of July before we are able to move in, and that's still probably being a little optimistic.

On a more upbeat note, I've decided to make a quilt. I went to Hobby Lobby today and picked out some cute fabric. It's my first real attempt at a quilt, but I think I'm ready and it's going to be just fine.

Enough with the rain; Hello, Sunshine.

It's been raining here for days and days. We had flash floods and hail storms Tuesday and yesterday was just downright dreary. It's finally sunny outside, and I'm looking forward to the drive to work this morning. I don't have to avoid raindrops, and I can use my cruise control and not worry about hydroplaning.

I worked over last night a little bit. We had a meeting that lasted longer than scheduled. So I'm going in late today which is a nice trade, except that I didn't sleep in because I'm used to getting up early now.

I wanted to get a few things done, but I got to talking and am not really running early now. Tomorrow Alex and I are going to Holiday World in Santa Claus, Ind. I've never been and even though it is far away, I'm really looking forward to it. It should be fun, and we got super discount tickets. You can't beat that!

A three minute post

I have three minutes until I must start getting ready for work or I will not be ready to leave in time to deal with the ridiculous commute.

It's been rainy here for the past few days. Yesterday during the drive home, we had torrential downpours. There were flash flood warnings all over place and I saw people drive through water where I was sure that there cars were going to float away. The commute usually takes about an hour and 15 minutes. Yesterday it took two entire hours. It took me nearly 80 minutes just to get out of the city. Anyway, I didn't get as much done last night as I had hoped.

I did want to write about a few days ago and something semi-wonderful that I discovered. In celebration of the nice moments we've been getting between the rain showers, I decided to do a little yoga outside. Now, I've been doing yoga a few times a week since January, but to be quite honest, I took the last few weeks off. Yoga outside was great though. The sun was shining and it was hot, but it felt nice to be so warm and stretchy. The big problem, however, was that my yoga mat kept heating up and burning my feat. It was like walking on the concrete beside the swimming pool. I kept pouring my water on the mat, but then it would get slippery and some of my poses lost their integrity. Anyway, I wonder if they make a mat that is designed for outdoor yoga. That gives me something to ponder.

Well my three minutes are up, plus three more, so I have to run.

Welcome.

Well, once upon a time there was a girl named Kallie. She was a girl with big dreams and huge ambitions. She believed that hard work and a life plan would keep her on the right track. Then, life happened.

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These past two years have been huge for me. Twenty-four months ago, I graduated from college with a degree in public relations and an acceptance letter to Texas Tech University. My plan was to complete my MBA in the following two years and then use the vast business knowledge that I knew I would acquire to open my own event planning business and venue.

Now, I'm from Indiana. I was born, raised, and even went to college in a small Hoosier city. My move to Texas was going to be life changing to say the least. After graduation, I had three months to earn money, party down, say my goodbyes, and get ready for the 1,700 mile move. In addition, I got engaged over the summer to my boyfriend who would stay in Indiana while I moved to Lubbock.

So, in the last 21 months, I moved to Texas for a year, moved back and finished graduate school, planned and celebrated my wedding to Alex, and started looking for the dream job that would pay me more than opening my own business.

I finally found a job working for a small start up company. I've only been working for a week, and the commute, which is about and hour and half each way, is already getting old. Alex and I decided to buy a house closer to my job and his grad school.

We started the house hunt about two months ago. With out tiny budget, however, we haven't found any major winners yet. Our apartment lease ended yesterday and for the mean time, we are living with my parents in their old farm house.

While there is plenty of room, and my parents are very supportive, I never thought that at the ripe old age of 24, I would be back in my parents house, and never did I imagine that I would be living there with my husband.

So I'm hoping to use this blog as a way to document the challenges we face as we take our first steps into the real world, whatever that really means.