Fireworks!

Way behind here, but I took some fun pictures of fireworks on my phone over the 4th of July and wanted to share them with you! I was lucky enough to spend the evening on a boat with my former roommate and a few other people. It was a gorgeous night, and I even got to spend a little time IN the water. A lot of fun to get outside for a bit and to see some fun people. While I'm not a master photographer by any means, I thought my phone did a pretty good job of capturing a few neat photos of fireworks from the boat. Hope you enjoy! :)

P.S. After I published this, I realized how small these photos are and how NOT awesome they look in this post compared to normal size. Hopefully you can still get the idea!

 

 

 

 

How cool is this last one?!

I Miss You

Those of you that know me well know that I love my sleep and that I'm typically not overly happy when that sleep is interrupted. Last night, in our usual "routine," L and I were texting back and forth and we eventually said goodnight. About an hour later, around 12:30am, and after I'd already been asleep, I woke up to a text and felt a little perturbed. That is, until I read it. It was from none other than L himself (who obviously knew I was sleeping), and all it said was:

imissyouimissyouimissyouimissyouimissyouimissyou

I'll happily wake up to that anytime. :)

Productive Day!

Today has to go down in history as one of my most productive days. I slept until about 9:30, then got up, got dressed, and went for a 1.5 mile walk. (So many people in the neighborhood waved to me as I walked. I felt kinda like I was "home" or something!) After my walk, I decided to clean out my freezer, which I've been wanting to do for awhile. It wasn't cleaning out in the sense that I was getting rid of a bunch of stuff, but it was more just taking an inventory and organizing what was in there. I should have done the refrigerator right away too, but that was more than I wanted to tackle. ;) After that project, I had some lunch and went outside to clean out and organize the trunk of my car. Every time I open my trunk, I'm horrified by how messy and full it is. And then I have flashbacks to last year when I had to get to my spare tire and had SO much stuff in my trunk that it took me foreverrrrr to get to the tire. Yeah. I still have a fair amount of things to keep in my trunk (a cooler, a blanket, reusable grocery bags, a folding chair, etc.), but after sorting through all the unnecessary stuff, I was at least able to get it somewhat organized! Whew, one step closer. The inside of my car was also disastrous. The main culprit was a few bags of clothes I had in the backseat to go to Goodwill. They've been in there a long time because there isn't a Goodwill right in my backyard, so they haunted me every time I looked in my car. Today, I decided to remedy that. I plugged a Goodwill address into my GPS and took my butt there to get rid of the stuff. After that, I thought, "Hmmm. I wonder if there's a Wal-mart around here," because I had to return a few things. Sure shit, there was one literally a block in the other direction! So, I returned my items and then got a few groceries to complete my dinner list. Once I got home, I relaxed a bit and then cooked myself a nice dinner. And now I'm just chillin'. Maybe I'll clean out my fridge tomorrow. Or... maybe not... ;) Are you understanding why I feel like it was such a productive day today?! Seriously, I could get used to this. LOVE IT.

I should back up for just a second and say that this week, I started a bit of an exercise regimen that L helped me develop. I know I'm not needing to lose weight or anything, but I just feel so inactive all the time, and I can kinda feel the effects of that on my body. Thought it made sense to get his advice because he works out so often. I won't lie, the workouts have been far from easy, but I can proudly say that I've done them all, and that's the important part! (On a related note, have you ever tried plank exercises? A small part of one of my workouts calls for 4 planks, 45-60 seconds each. Sounds easy, but holy s*@t! Nope. That's all I'm gonna say;). Point being.... I did a few workouts this week, with an especially long one after work last night, and then went for my walk this morning. I must say, I think I can credit all this energy and productivity to that! I feel like people always say that you'll just overall feel better if you lead a more active lifestyle, and while I'm only a week in, I'm feeling pretty good and refreshed. This is good!! :) Anyway, see some photos from my productive day below!

BEFORE

(Freezer - Yikes.)

 AFTER

(Freezer)

Up: Inventory of meat. ;)

Down: BEFORE (Trunk - Yikes)

 AFTER

(Trunk)

My meal!

Hot Outside?

Well, it appears we're all suffering from a MASSIVE heat wave these days. Although, it's rather chilly here today compared to what we experienced earlier this week. Kidding. It's not chilly by any stretch of the imagination. But, at "only" 97 degrees today with a heat index of 102, we are cooler than yesterday if you can believe it! I spend most of my time indoors at work, so I haven't suffered too much. I must say, I do find it a little bit funny when people complain in the winter about how much they want it to be summer, yet when it gets hot, they're the first to complain about how miserable they are... I kinda like the heat. In small doses...ha! Thought this picture was fitting (and hilarious) given what we've all been experiencing! :) Do your best to be safe and stay cool, folks! Happy Summer!

Long Weekend!

Last week, I was lucky enough to be able to take Thursday and Friday off. I had a work event on Wednesday evening, and L was in town for the event as well. He stayed with me through the weekend, so we had lots of time to just hang and relax. Wonderful! We had a busy day on Thursday that involved almost five, yes FIVE hours at the Milwaukee County Zoo (love that place!), followed by an evening of food and drinks with some friends at Barnacle Buds. I tell ya, those little buckets of Coronitas (7 oz bottles) are dangerous. ;) I know I've mentioned Barnacle Buds a couple of times, and I think I love it so much because it reminds me very much of one of my favorite hidden gems in La Crosse called Huck Finns (no website). A cool little place right on the water. If you come to visit me in MKE, remind me to take you there. Really neat! Anyway, Friday was spent grocery shopping...and cooking...and relaxing. It was really nice! As many of you have already told me, I'm definitely spoiled when it comes to the meals I eat when L is in the kitchen. No complaints here! ;) My Aunt Becky was in town on Saturday, so we (mostly L) cooked again and made a wonderful lunch for her. That was a lot of fun. And it was delicious! The meal was a new one for him, and he did great. I loved it! The rest of the day and Sunday were both very lowkey. Just what we both wanted and needed. Anyway, one would think that having Thursday-Sunday off would feel like a long time, but man, did it fly! :( I most certainly enjoyed it and only wish that's what every day could be like! Someday...when I win the lottery and no longer have to work anymore... Until then, enjoy some fun zoo pictures and a few randoms from the weekend.

 Flamingo!

 Orangutan!

 Mandrill!

 Silverback Gorilla!

 Poison Dart Frogs!

 Big 'ol Turtle!

 Snakes!

(Not sure what kind they were.)

 Pretty view in the zoo!

 Trying to capture some of that prettiness in a pic with L.

 Peacock!

 Rhino!

 Giraffe! (I love this one!)

 Hippo!

 Tiger!

 Lion! (He looks badass.)

 Elephants!

 Another picture in the zoo!

 These views (above and below) are gorgeous!

Barnacle Buds!

 Homemade bruschetta as part of our Saturday meal!

 The whole meal!
Homemade Bruschetta
Linguine tossed in spinach and a homemade basil pistachio pesto
Seared scallops
YUM!!

Hey Ladies!

Last weekend, I had the pleasure of having two of my besties (Erin and Subera) visit me for the weekend. Since we all live a decent distance away from each other (Milwaukee, Wausau, and the Twin Cities), it is sadly getting more rare with each passing year that we can all get together for any extended period of time. Fortunately for us, Subera is a planner, so she got the ball rolling, and before I knew it, they were here for a visit! We didn't make too many plans knowing that we'd primarily just want to catch up, so that was good. Erin drove in last Friday evening, and then almost immediately, we went to pick up Subs from the airport. Most people might think it's weird to fly from the Cities to Milwaukee, but let me tell ya, that drive is NOT fun. (I did it last year for the NKOTBSB concert.) Once we were back at my place, we put in some pizza fries, which happens to be a bit of a tradition for us, and then just spent the evening catching up on each other's lives. Never a shortage to talk about, that's for sure! The next day, we got up at our own pace and had brunch at Honeypie. We also went to Lakefront Brewery for a tour and were lucky enough to be able to hop on a tour just as we walked in the door. A great time (my second tour there), and once the tour was over, we were graced with much nicer weather because it'd previously been raining. As part of the tour, they give you a coupon to get a free beer at any of the bars listed on the coupon. Wasn't too familiar with any of them, but we chose Bar Louie and sat outside there for some drinks and apps. Then we proceeded to go to Coyote Ugly since it was right across the road. That's where things got interesting... ;) Anyone who knows Subs knows she's not afraid to get wild and crazy, and that she did. Fun, I tell ya! We took a breather at my apartment after Coyote Ugly, and then spent a good chunk of the night at a local townie bar called Back Draught that's just down the street from me. Quite the crew in there that evening, but I'd say we had a good time! Heck, they even let Subera behind the bar to serve a few shots at one point. Yeah... We got brunch again on Sunday morning, Erin headed out, and then an hour or two later, I took Subs back to the airport. With as much as we did, the weekend seemed to go WAY too fast. I had a blast, but I miss them already and can't wait until I see them again! Take a look at a few photos from our weekend!

Inside the Lakefront Brewery!

Goofing around after the tour. Typical. ;)

Me and Subs at Coyote Ugly!

They danced on the bar. I opted out. :)

 An older gentleman taking a body shot off Subera. Told ya she got crazy. ;)

Hanging out at Back Draught!

 A man at the bar bought each of us a rose! :)

Subera as a bartender.  Yep.

(This was a fitting last picture...)

Randoms...

Did you think I died? I wouldn't be surprised if you did. I don't think I've ever gone this long without a blog entry! Yikes. Sorry folks. Anyway, here are some random tidbits to keep you updated on my life. :)

• I officially got rid of cable a couple weeks ago. Those of you who know me know this is a B.I.G. deal. I now have no TV, unless I hook my computer up to my TV and watch it that way. I've done that a few times, but it's kind of a pain in the butt. Plus, some of the shows I like are tough to find online. I did just re-watch Season 1 of Suits in preparation for the new season to start this week, so that was fun. The show came out last year, and if you haven't heard of it or watched it, I highly recommend it!

• I broke down and bought a vacuum. Mine has been broken for a LONG time, and my apartment was finally to the point that I couldn't wait any longer. As of tonight, all my floors are clean! :) 

• I gave up pop for the time being. I'm not like a crazzzzzy pop drinker by any stretch of the imagination, especially compared to a lot of people I know. However, I realized I was buying it a lot lately, both at the grocery store to stock my fridge and in the vending machines at work. I love to drink one now and then, it definitely quenches the thirst from time to time. Problem is, I started to feel like it was taking a toll on me a little bit (mostly physically, but a tiny bit financially as well). After randomly speaking with L about it, who recently stopped drinking it a couple weeks ago, I realized it was something I could and should do. Well folks, here I am. 12 days in, and no pop. Doesn't sound like much, but it's kind of fun to keep track. (Wow, do I sound like an addict or what?;)

• On May 28, I was in my "new" job for 6 months! Seriously?! Think about it. I've been at UW-Milwaukee over half as long I was at MIAD. Total mind blow.

• I've gotten to spend a pretty solid amount of time with people I enjoy lately! Not sure how we've managed to swing it, but I've seen L soooooo much more than you would expect for living 3+ hours apart from each other. He's been down here a lot, and I've made a couple treks up to La Crosse as well. I must say, having him here certainly helps lessen the impact on my bank account in terms of travel money. Can't complain! Speaking of having him here, he's coming to visit tomorrow evening through Friday morning, and then again next week Wednesday night through Sunday. I feel so lucky! :) I also got to see Erin and her boyfriend Ross a couple weeks ago for a Nickelback concert down here; I saw Jacob, Casey, and Homer (as well as my old roommate Lauren) in La Crosse not this past weekend but the weekend before; this past weekend I got to see a good chunk of the fam (mom, dad, Dave, Court, Tayt, and Peyton) for a Brewer game; and then this weekend, Erin and Subera are coming to visit. Seriously. I just got exhausted typing that... Now do you understand where I've been lately?! ;)

Since there's really no rhyme or reason to to this post, I thought I'd add a few random pictures from the past couple weeks while I'm at it. Thanks for reading and bearing with me through this post. I swear I'll try to most more often! :)

Lobster dinner that L and I made at my apartment a few weeks ago.

(Well, he made most of it, but I made the biscuits!:)

Me and Erin before the Nickelback concert!

Nickelback! :)

Venturing out into the (windy) Third Ward!

 Enjoying the beautiful sunset at Barnacle Buds in Milwaukee!

The cute, adorable, happy little fam! :)

Me and L at Bodega!

Me and my old roommate Lauren at her bachelorette party last weekend!

AMAZING seats at the Brewer game this past weekend!

(What a scorcher! And they won!:)