Thursday, May 28, 2015

desserts.

The past few weeks have been really stressful.

We closed, we moved, Brandon went to Boston (and I didn't sleep), he came home, we laid sod, tried to deal with some issues with the house and yard and homeowner's insurance, I interviewed for a job, I helped planned a party for all the kids at school, and now I'm training for a new position while simultaneously trying to finish up all the things in the library for the end of the year.

Most of the time, I thrive on stress. It kicks me into high gear and I love the adrenaline rush it gives me. I have the drive to get stuff done so I can relax and do my thing.

And sometimes, I feel like I'm spread too thin. Like no matter what I do with my day or with my life, I will end up disappointing someone, and I hate that. At work, between the growth party, the library and my new position, I barely have time to go to the bathroom. If you know me well at all, you know that I love food and will always make time to eat. Last week I didn't eat lunch twice; that's a big deal. Ha.

On very very very rare occasions, the stress is so overwhelming that I can't handle it and I end up crying in the bathroom at work. Yesterday was one of those days.

I'm sorry that you have to read this not-so-exciting/informative post. But when I'm stressed, I write, and I finally have some time during my day to just breathe, so this is how I'm using it.

The majority of people might say "this is adult life. you are busy and sometimes your head falls off but you just have to deal with it." But I like my head properly secured on my body, and I like having time to live and actually enjoy life, not just going through the daily motions of being an "adult." So here I am, trying to figure out what the heck I'm doing with my life and what is going to make me happiest and most successful (in my own views) as a human. I've gone through like seven different life scenarios in the last ten minutes, so if someone wants to just tell me what to do and provide the means to do it all, please do.

THANKFULLY, there are good things.

First of all, we adore our house. And the fact that it's ours. We laid so much sod a few weeks ago that I wanted to die, but it is so fun looking out the back window window and seeing grass!!! We bought a firepit over the weekend and got to enjoy smores in our own backyard. I really just love it. And the area we live in is so fun too; we are just half a mile away from a fun park with a pond and a playground and pavilions with tables and all the best things. And I just keep thinking about how, if I wanted to, we could have Thanksgiving at our house this year. THIS IS NOT AN INVITATION. I'm just saying it could happen if we wanted it to.

Second of all, our best friends from Utah came to visit us over the long weekend and we had the best time. They got here Friday night, and we spent the whole weekend eating too much food, laughing too much, and talking and just being happy. We never get tired of hanging out with each other and I love that no matter how many days we spend together it just doesn't seem like enough. They found a house down the street from ours that they love, and seriously just thinking about them living so close to us makes me die (in a good way). What a dream that would be!!! We were sad to see them leave on Monday, but we will see them again soon!!

Thirdly, I got offered the registrar position at the school I work at currently. I am very excited to be more involved in the school, and show everyone exactly what I'm made of. I started learning things a few months ago when I first told the current registrar that I was planning to apply, and I will continue training until about two weeks after school ends. There is a lot to learn, but I feel confident that the job and I are a good fit for each other, and I am so dang excited!

A few random, happy things.
--Yesterday we got the movie Paddington for $5. It's cute. If you haven't seen it yet, you should.
--Jurassic World comes out in a few weeks and I am ridiculously excited about it.
--We went to Costa on Friday (because when aren't we at Costa) and my baby bro was there eating with his friends. The look on his face when I started waving excitedly was priceless. I love embarrassing him.
--Football season is coming right up and I can't wait. It's actually embarrassing how much I am looking forward to all the games we plan to attend/watch. I'd rather not talk about it.
--I got to see my best friend on Monday and meet her little baby and I love him. He just kept crying, so he might hate me, but I don't even care. I will love him forever.
--The fact that Paddington is at the top of my list is hilarious. I swear, these are in no specific order.
--I have eight books on hold at the public library and three at home already. Life is good.
--I'm making cookies today. Again.
--Other than the fact that most of my hair has fallen out in the last few weeks, I am very happy.

Monday, May 11, 2015

maximum exhaustion.

If you don't have a lot of time, or don't care to read a bunch of rambling mumbo jumbo, I highly recommend skipping to the very last page of the post. I will not be held accountable for any feelings of resentment you have toward me for wasting your time with words.

Monday last week was Brandon's birthday!!! He turned the big 2-7, and we celebrated the best we could with the limited time we had. I made him sticky buns for breakfast on his birthday, and thankfully they actually turned out well considering I had never made them before. We both had to go to work that day, but I leave a few hours before Brandon, so he took a  nap between when I left and when he had to leave. After work we went to Main Street Burger for dinner. It was our first time there and it was really good! Then we went mini-golfing and Brandon won (he says I let him win, but really I just suck at mini golf). To finish the night off right, we got Coldstone with my family, then went back to the apartment so Brandon could open presents. It was a great day!

The following morning things were a bit hectic. We were supposed to close on our house at 9:00 that morning, but the night before we had gotten an email from our realtor that they hadn't received the documents from the bank yet, so our closing might be pushed back. I went to work for a little bit, then we got an email from her saying that we were still on for 9:00. We went and signed the papers, which was the easiest part of the entire home-buying process. Then it was back to work for a day filled with waiting! We had loaded both of our cars up with boxes on Monday afternoon, so after work on Tuesday I went to pick up our keys, then went straight to the house to unload my car. Then went home, loaded up the car again, went to the house, unloaded, and waited for Brandon to show up. Along with his carload of boxes, he brought Costa Vida so that we could properly celebrate our first night being homeowners. After we unloaded his car and ate dinner, we loaded up his car again and took it out to the house. That night we took our all the boxes that we had packed up already. We felt so good, and like we were getting so much done!!

And then Wednesday came.

After work on Wednesday, I went home and loaded up my car again with all sorts of smallish random things that I could fit. I packed it up in an hour and only fell down the stairs once, so I consider that an accomplishment. Took all those things to the house, then went back home to have dinner ready for Brandon, then we went to my parents' house to borrow their ladder and vehicle. When we got to the house, we realized that we left them our car keys, so we didn't have the key to our house. So we had to drive back to their house, get the keys, and then finally we made it out to the house. We then attempted to install the garage door opener (and by we I mean Brandon). Apparently, the box didn't come with all the things we needed, so we only got so far, but it still was quite the process! While Brandon worked on that, I started unboxing a few things and we stayed for as long as Brandon could work on the garage door opener.

On Thursday, I went home and packed up all of our clothes, and took as many bags/suitcases as I could down the stairs in one trip. Then I went to my parents house to load up a dresser that we were storing there, and to take apart our old bed that they had been using as a guest bed. Highlight of the whole week: my mom had made chocolate chip cookies, and I so desperately needed them amongst all the stress of moving. After that, I went home just in time to meet Brandon. We carried a few more loads down the stairs and filled my car to the brim, stopped at McDonald's, and then went to the house to unload and finish installing the garage door opener. And he did it!! I am so impressed with him. He put in a garage door opener all by himself!! Although, unless you have a Brandon, I don't recommend doing it on your own. It's the worst process.

I took the day off on Friday to move. My mom met me out at the house at 9:00 that morning, and we started unpacking things from the boxes. Around 11:30 we went to meet Brandon to get the moving truck, and my mom was the super best and picked up Jimmy John's for the three of us on the way back to the apartment. After we ate, we started loading things into her expedition. My baby bro was kind enough to dedicate some of his school time and his entire afternoon/evening to help us move, so he showed up right as my mom and I were finishing loading the expedition. Not too long after we got to the house, Lowe's showed up to install the fridge!! It's ridiculous how excited I was about it, but boy was I excited.

We went back to the apartment to load the Uhaul. Adrian helped me carry all the heavy things, and my mom made so many trips up and down the stairs carrying all the random things. I can't even describe enough how thankful I am for those two and all their help. We ended up getting everything packed except the 5 heaviest objects in the apartment. They had to leave for a little bit, but Adrian came back to the apartment right after Brandon got home, and those two carried the last heavy pieces downstairs. We got some Panda Express to take out to the house with us (priorities) and ate our dinner on the kitchen floor. When we started to unload the truck it was 8:00, and around 9:00, Adrian left to go hang out with friends, and all Brandon and I had to carry in were the couches. We killed the unloading part of the day! Brandon put together the bed, we went back and picked up the final cargo (the cats), and spent our first night in our brand new home.

Saturday and Sunday were spent unboxing things and getting things settled. We woke up early and had to take the moving truck back, but then were working steadily on the house until about 4:00. We were gifted with a surprise visit from our best friends, and even though it was short, it was the best part of the whole day! We even showed them the house next door where they could live if they wanted to! (Alyssa, Brandon and I decided we will personally pay for the upgrade to the large tub if you'll just move here already!!) After they left, we went to Lowe's and bought blinds and a lawn mower. Brandon installed the blinds that night while I unpacked more things. It was a very productive day and we were both exhausted by the end of it!

Yesterday was a great Mother's Day! We went on a short hike with my family to a secluded waterfall, then stopped for Dairy Queen on the way home. Once Brandon and I were home, I finished the laundry while he set up the lawn mower and mowed the freaking lawn. This kid is a champion, I tell ya. I am so happy to have him and his dedication. We were able to chat with his youngest brother who is on a mission, and then it was back to Lowe's/Home Depot for home things. We bought more blinds, and also an unfinished cabinet for Brandon's brilliant invention. My dad came over and helped Brandon cut a hole in our wall through to the garage. They then cut a hole in the back of the cabinet and backed it up to the wall, and thus a bathroom for the cats is born. We didn't want the litter box inside the house, but didn't want the cat door to lead into the open garage, so Brandon had the great idea of putting the litter box inside the cabinet. It's going to be pretty stellar actually, and once we get a counter on top of the cabinet, Brandon will have a nice little workspace. He was pretty excited about it, so even if you don't think it's cool, you should pretend to. We both ended the day with killer headaches yesterday, so we were in bed by 8:30 hoping that we needed to just catch up on sleep.

We were up at 5:00 this morning because Brandon had a flight to catch at 7:30. He is headed to Boston for a new employee orientation with his new job. He had a list of things he wanted to get done this weekend before he left (mainly blinds) and he got the whole list and more finished by last night. I really am so grateful for him and also for my family for helping us get it all done!

Moral of this entire post: I am freaking tired. I never thought I could ever feel so tired in my whole life. And I'm never walking up another set of stairs ever again. I must have gone up and down those stairs at like 50 times last week and I never want to do it ever again. But I am so happy that we have a house! And we can live in it for years and call it our own. And eventually, sometime (maybe), all the boxes will finally be unpacked and we will be able to walk through every room in the house without falling over cardboard.