Dates.

I recently realized that I can best remember things that have happened in my life but recalling their dates. So I am using this as an opportunity to try and remember some stuff. Here goes!

November 15th, 1984 - I was born.
August 18th, 1989 - My Mom & Dad got married.
January 9th, 1990 - My sister, Lauren, was born.
May, 1990 - Officially "adopted" by my Dad.
July(?), 1992 - Lost my "Papa" to a heart attack.
June 2nd, 1993 - My brother, Joey, was born.
November, 1994 - Switched from the Harwich to Dennis school system.
June, 1998 - Graduated from Wixon Middle School.
September, 1998 - Entered Cape Cod Tech Regional Technical High School.
September 25th, 1999 - Lost my "Pa" to a heart attack.
April, 2000 - Lost my virginity to my first REAL boyfriend (of over 13 months).
November 15th, 2000 - I turned 16 and got my permit.
December 13th, 2000 - Took a limo to see Offspring for the first time with Bam, Nikki, Davey, Kelcey, and Jon (as my birthday present). First unsupervised concert.
Early 2001 - Started smoking cigarettes.
June, 2001 - Started smoking pot.
July 27th, 2001 - Got my license.
June, 2002 - Graduated from Cape Cod Tech.
August, 2002 - Entered Franklin Pierce College with Kelcey & Jen.
December 27th, 2002 - Got arrested for "driving without a license", and lost my license for 6 months.
May, 2003 - Left Franklin Pierce College, with nothing to show for it - and moved back in with my parents.
June 20th, 2003 - Got my license back.
July, 2003 - Moved in with Nan... and invited Briana to come with.
September, 2003 - Entered Cape Cod Community College.
November, 2003 - Started working at the Ebay Drop Off Store.
May, 2004 - Left Cape Cod Community College, with nothing to show for it.
July 1st, 2004 - Moved out of Nan's into a 4 bedroom house in Marstons Mills with Erin, Briana, and Lauren Ober.
July 1st, 2004 - Met Ryan Callahan. Knew he'd be a lifelong friend after complimenting my Offspring necklace.
July 4th, 2004 - Met Keegan. Didn't think he was all THAT great, but def thought he was cute.
November 15th, 2004 - My 20th birthday (celebrated in RI at Ryan Doyle and Heather's house). I wished for Keegan to fall in love with me.
February 14th, 2004 - I had the best Valentine's Day EVER with Ryan & Keegan.
March 30th, 2005 - Moved out of the Marstons Mills house (better known as Blueberry) and moved into my bosses' vacant apartment (attached to his house).
April 10th, 2005 - Started officially dating Keegan.
May 15th, 2005 - DID IT with Keegan for the first time, after being celebate for 3 years!
June 15th, 2005 - Keegan and I moved into our first apartment together in Dennisport.
October 22, 2005 - We adopted a bunny and named her Emmjay.
November 15th, 2005 - I turned 21.
December 22, 2005 - Got engaged.
November 17th, 2006 - Erin pays for me, Keegan, Zoe, and herself to fly to Amsterdam for 10 days. Kelcey also joins us.
July 21st, 2007 - Nan dies.
August, 2007 - The Ebay store finally closes after a series of different owners.
November 15th, 2007 - 23rd birthday party bus extravaganza. A total amazing mess.
December 3rd, 2007 - Our first niece, Lorelai, was born.
February 23rd, 2008 - I had my last cigarette... ever.
May 5th, 2008 - Got hired as the administrative assistant for the Cape Cod Mall.
September 12th, 2008 - Got married.
September 17th, 2008 - Left for our Honeymoon and had the most epic vacation of my life (thus far).
March 10th, 2009 - Found out I was pregnant.
May 1st, 2009 - Moved out of our apartment in Dennisport into a house in Harwichport.
September 22nd, 2009 - Had an awesome baby shower.
October 23rd, 2009 - My last day of work (so far).
November 4th, 2009 - Lexi was born.
November 17th, 2009 - We had to put Emmjay (bunny) to sleep.
January 19th, 2010 - Our second niece, Melody, was born.
January, 2010 - Found out Erin was pregnant.
October 5th, 2010 - Erin had Marty.
November 4th, 2010 - Lexi turned 1.
November 12th, 2010 - Found out that we just won $25,000 in a "second chance drawing" on a scratch ticket. We split it with Keegan's dad.
April, 2011 - Kelcey goes to a drug rehab facility in Delray Beach, FL following a severe drug addiction, brought on by the sudden passing of her father months earlier.

strike while the iron is hot... no?

i am so into florence and the machine right now.
they just keep getting better and better with everything i hear.
but i still find myself a bit embarassed to be blasting it when i am in my car.
i wonder if that's because it's a chick lead singer - and i have always been pretty heavily into the dudes?

let me explain why i am here.
i used to love blogging, as you know.
like, back in the day though.
and i want to get that back.
and i have been trying to devise a plan for years now on how i would get back into it.
and then i realized that i just need to do it when i am thinking about it.
but i don't get a lot of opportunity, you know, due to lexi and all.
and then keegan took lexi to franklin today to visit his parents... and they just got there... so i know i am on my own for the next 4 hours, and therefore i feel... stress free?
i mean, obviously keegan doesn't stress me out.
but lexi obviously does.
and while i miss them both, it's a really neat feeling to not have to worry about anyone for a few hours.
i certainly miss this.

i also realized to get the type of blog desired, i need to write while stoned, and constant.
no stopping.
because then i lose my train of thought.
even though this isn't much of a train of thought.
but i think it's sort of awesome to write stuff as it comes into your mind, and then read it later (hours, days, months, years) and laught about it.

i spent the morning at the big house preparing and dealing with a yard sale.
this is the last sale before the big house goes on the market.
i can't believe i am going to lose it.
i think when it actually sells i am going to seriously mourn.
it's the last part of my grandparents i have.
the shack doesn't count because it came into my life much later, it has a lot less to offer, and nan friggin died in it.

i literally keep stopping (even though i said i wouldn't) because i can't sing and type at the same time apparently.

ideally i would like to be eating lunch right now, because i really should get back to the big house.
and if i don't stop soon, i am going to get into some ongoing rant about how i can't believe how old we are and that we were teenagers like 10 years ago and how fucked up i think it all is.
did i mention i have a 1 year old?
geezus.

TGIF.

I really suck at updating, it's true.


Lately I have been reading all my old LiveJournal entries. I do this about once a year, starting about 3 years ago. It's a complete mixture of emotions. Mainly digust. Every other entry mentions me wanting to die, or sucking at life. But then several entries after that, I will be shitting on people for feeling bad about themselves, and claiming that if your life is so bad - do something about it. I was truly hypocritical and obviously overlooked the fact that I was the biggest whiner of them all. It was all about being lonely because I was fat. 9 out of 10 entries  (maybe even 10 out of 10) mentions me needing to go out a diet - or something to that affect. Years later, here I am - still fat. Apparently none of what I tried seemed to work. I noticed that the complaining seemed to die down quite a bit once Keegan and I became official. Which basically tells me that my feeling bad about myself truly came from not having any boys interested in me. Even when Ryan and Keegan were devoting every moment of their lives hanging out with me - I wasn't sold on the fact that one of them was going to fall in love with me. I grew increasingly uncomfortable with the fact that I would be forever stuck in the "friend zone". The great thing about it is that I found a soulmate in Keegan, and a life long friend in Ryan. All in all, it worked out exactly the way it was supposed to!


I also realized how hateful I was to not only myself, but anyone that pissed me off. I guess I could just say it was all my teenage/early 20's angst... but I think it was more an intense jealousy that manifested itself in anger. And the more I think about it, that's exactly what it was. I was hating on Briana for getting with Eddie, I was hating on Katie for getting with Justin, and I was hating on everyone who wasn't on my side everytime I was mad. At the time it felt completely justified in every way. It's amazing how someone can mature in just a matter of a few years... Although I do realize that I still expect things that are not so realistic from my friends. For instance, I expected to remain just as much a part of everyone's lives as I did before I got pregnant. Unfortunately that just doesn't happen. Things change, and it's a very hard thing to accept. Even as I say that I still feel upset about it - but I recognize that it's just the way it is, and going to be.


On a completely different note... we had a 3D/4D ultrasound for Lexi yesterday! Keegan and I decided to drop $120 on that endeavor as our one year anniversary present to each other. It's not like we can take a trip or go out and get drunk... so why not go for a sneak peak of our offspring? I think she looks just like him. The cheeks on this kid are unreal! I hope they are that big when she comes out! But on the same note, I hope they don't get any bigger or they may take over her whole head, haha. She also has quite the nose, or so it appears in photos. No one on either side of our family really have big noses... except for Steven, my biological father. He's 100% Armenian, and that could have skipped right over me and his other kids and gone right to mine! Wouldn't that be some shit! Anyway, I am hoping it's not actually as big as it looks, or that it's at least round and cute and not pointy! haha.


My mother still hasn't RSVP'd to my baby shower. She has until September 9th, but my dad thinks that she'll probably wait until the 11th, if she RSVP's at all. If she doesn't plan on attending, then I will make sure she knows she isn't welcome to be at the hospital when Lexi is born. I'd be surprised if she shows up then anyway.


I can't believe we've been married (almost) a year. Time flies! I feel like the pregnancy has put things in slow-mo... but somehow it's almost September 12? Geez. A year ago I was flipping out about having a wedding... planning, exercising, tanning. Man, it was like I was a different person last year. Well, I guess I was. I was an unmarried 23 year old that was the thinnest (and tannest) she'd been since high school. I was feeling good. Fast forward to this year... I am 7.5 months pregnant, gained like 50 pounds since the wedding - and while I am not pasty white, I am certainly not as evenly tanned as I was last year!


Amidst all this sadness about weight gain, friend disconnect, and overall life change... I have to stop and realize how lucky I am. Not only was I lucky enough to get pregnant AFTER marriage (haha), but look who I am married to! I am truly convinced that there is not a better man out there. At least not for me. He is an incredible friend, and the best husband a girl could ask for. There is no doubt in my mind that he is going to be a freakin fantastic father! I may be unhappy with the way I look, or the place we are in our lives financially - but all that it really comes down to is love. And I have more love in my life than I could have even dreamed about. It's love you see in the movies and didn't know actually existed.


If I could give any of my single friends advice it would be not to settle. Everyone is so worried about getting older and all their friends getting engaged/married, having kids, etc... But stop and look at these scenarios. Are all of them truly happy? Many people just rush into relationships because they think their time is running out, and if they break up with a boyfriend that they've had for years or something, by the time they find someone else - they'll be too far along in life. Or if they're single and our grabbing at every man that shows them any interest, and decides to settle on the one that shows the most interest.... does that mean he is the best one? Granted, Keegan and I were only together 6 months before we were engaged - but we were engaged nearly 3 years before we were married! It's a lot easier (and more acceptable) to break off an engagement than a marriage. I never had any doubt that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with him, and I honestly haven't had a doubt since. We didn't get cold feet at our wedding, we never had second thoughts. And when I got pregnant, never once did I feel "stuck" or scared that we wouldn't be together forever. I mean, sure - we fight when it's necessary, because fights are inevitable. But it has never gotten to the point where either of us had ever wanted to walk away from the relationship, or even threaten that. Our relationship is one of those where you just KNOW that it is the real deal, and it's going to be forever.... and the relationship takes no effort because the love is always there.


I don't know how I got all Dr. Phil - I think it's the hormones. Regardless, I just want everyone to understand that even if you don't believe in soulmates... there is no denying the feeling that you feel when you are in love with the right person. It's an incessant feeling too - not just an occasional butterflies-in-your-stomach feeling. You'll know it. I promise. Just... wait for it. 

Let's Play Catch Up!

And again, it's been awhile since I have updated. Sometimes I forget that I have a blog.

I am officially 26 weeks pregnant (which breaks down to roughly 6 and a half months). If I wear the right outfit, you can definitely tell. Otherwise, I still think I just look fat. I have easily already gained the amount that I should have gained... and I still have 3 and a half months to go! This should get even more and more uncomfortable as the days progress.

I've had two exciting adventures lately. One of which took place on Friday, July 10th. Erin O, Ryan Higgins, and I went to the Offspring and Sum 41 concert at the Tsongas Arena in Lowell. It's the first time I have ever been pregnant at a concert, and I had my doubts that it was going to be as fun.

Erin drove, therefore I knew she wouldn't get wasted - which was nice. Not like I've had to deal with her being wasted around me in a very longtime anyway. When we got there, we went down on the main floor. You see, it was general admission - so you could hang out on all the floor space in front of the stage, or you could sit in any seat in the entire place that you wanted. We opted for the floor for Sum 41 - but we stayed way in the back to be sure I didn't get knocked around. They put on a good show. I hadn't seen them since Warped Tour in 2000 (or 2001, I can't remember which) - and at that point I was heavily "in" the crowd. They were a plus, but I wasn't necessarily there to see them, so I was okay with standing in the back. I got a couple okay pictures, and I took a whole video of them doing "Fat Lip".

Right before Offspring came on, I was getting nervous. I knew I wasn't going to be able to get anywhere near the stage if we stayed on the floor... and there was no way I was staying as far back as I did for Sum 41. Why even go at that point?! I knew we needed to get some good seats, but the close seats were packed with people. Luckily, most of the people went down to the floor for the show, and we managed to find 3 excellent seats right up on the farthest left side of the stage. I was close enough to get GREAT pics and videos. I knew every song they sang, and felt totally fulfilled with their set list - I don't think they missed a song.

The most special moment of the concert was when the stage went black, and then Dexter was there - alone, with a piano! I don't think I even realized he could play piano. Just another reason to love him. Anyway - he sang the most beautiful version of "Gone Away" that I have ever heard. I was literally so stuck in the moment that I couldn't lift my hand off my chest long enough to grab my camera and take any pictures or video. Not only that, one of the stage support beams was pretty much right in my way of seeing his face. Luckily, Ryan got the majority of the song (audio only) on his iPhone, and he e-mailed it to me, so now I have it in iTunes!


It was a fantastic show and a great time overall. The only complaint I had about the whole thing was that Lowell is soooo fucking far away! I mean, granted, it was a Friday night so I didn't have to be up in the morning... but it was a very serious struggle to stay awake on the ride home. I don't think I'll be visiting Lowell again without plans to stay in the area - or at least in Boston.


The following Monday, Keegan and I were lucky enough to catch dinner at Red Robin in Plymouth with Renee (Russo/Sandquist). She was in the Plymouth area hosting an event with work, and we always take any opportunity in which she is even *close* to the Cape to meet up. We had a delightful dinner that pretty much revolved around babies. As I assumed it would. And it was great because, since she has just been through it, she was able to give me some great pointers.


As we were leaving Red Robin, I get a text from Tara asking if she were to give me 3 free tickets to the Lisa Lampanelli comedy show at The Melody Tent, would I go? Of course the answer was YES since she knew I was dying to go but couldn't afford it. At that point, I got Erin and Jen A to committ to joining me, and it was a done deal!


Lisa's show was Thursday, July 16th at 8pm. It was wonderful because we didn't have to go off Cape, and wouldn't be home so late that we would be too tired to get up for work in the morning. The guy that opened for her was funnier than we thought. When Lisa came out, she looked great. I think she had lost some weight, and she had a cute outfit on. You would simply never expect the things she was saying to come out of her mouth. The racial stuff was just too much. I mean, funny - but almost uncomfortable to hear. I knew what to expect going into it and I was still blown away! How she can get away with saying what she does and doesn't get her ass kicked, or worse, is beyond me.


Lisa is an insult comic. Therefore she goes after her audience. I figured we were safe since we were 7 rows back... and she was mainly sticking to the first 3 rows. Well, I was wrong. You see - there was a guy in a wheelchair at the end of our row. The easiest way for her to get to him would be to walk through our row. In order for her to do that, we needed to vacate the row completely. At this point, there is a couple at the end of our row, then Jen, me, and Erin. Previously there were about 5 girls next to Erin... but they had either relocated or left completely. So, Lisa saunters over our row, completely dismissing the couple at the end, and says to the three of us "OK leszbos - move it!". As we let her pass, she stops and says to the audience, "look at this fucking softball team!" As mortifying as it was, it was quite an honor and a delight to be made fun of by the "Queen of Mean"... even if we had to stand up in front of 2,000 people with a spot light on us while she did it.

That pretty much sums it up for my fun activities as of late.

Something very wonderful that happened to me lately that is not something you may consider "exciting", is that I had an Italian Hot Oven Grinder from Laurino's the other night. See, I'm not allowed to eat deli meats (unless they are the special kind made without nitrates), so I have been unable to eat an Italian sub (my fave sandwich EVER) since March when I found out I was pregnant. However, last Friday, I went out to dinner with Ryan and Keegan (Chelsea was visiting her friend in PA), and we went to Laurino's for dinner. They happened to have a "hot oven grinder" section of the menu. I know I can eat deli meats if they are heated up... so I opted to suck it up and get one. It was the best food decision I have ever made. That being said, now I can't stop thinking about or wanting one.

Speaking of food... my consumption is completely and totally out of control. You think I was a bad eater before... I am the worst now. It's terrifying because I know that it's not safe to gain too much weight when you're pregnant when you were "obese" to begin with. I simply cannot help myself. I cannot say no to my cravings, and more often than not, people tell me that it's okay because I'm pregnant. Yes, it's okay to gain weight when you're pregnant... but it's not okay to be a fucking hog! The sad part is that I am obviously aware of this being a bad situation and am still unable to turn myself around.

However...

Heather called me on Sunday night and asked me to be a bridesmaid in her and Ryan's wedding next June! I couldn't be more excited because not only do I absolutely love the both of them and am more than thrilled with their union - but also because I have never been a bridesmaid before! Well, I guess I am a little more nervous than excited about BEING one, but so completely honored regardless. I just hope the offer was because that's really what they want, and not obligatory because Ryan was a groomsman in our wedding.

Anyway, my "however" segue was to say that BECAUSE I was asked to be a bridesmaid for next June, I need to get my ass in gear NOW. If I can't curb my eating habits into a diet yet, I certainly need to change up my eating patterns as much as possible, and start exercising. The thing about exercising is that I don't have the time. And when I do have the time, I don't have the energy. Well, we found a way around that! We are purchasing a treadmill off Craigslist that I can put in the living room! That way, while I am watching my 1-2 hours of TV a night - I can walk while I do it! And on the weekends, I can put on an arm program On Demand and work on my flabby arms. Because, really, when it comes down it - you can wear something under the dress to suck in your stomach and thighs. But bridesmaid's dresses are notorious for showing off your arms. My arms are a hot mess and I need to do something about it STAT! So now I have a real goal to work to, which I think will make losing weight a lot easier (yet possibly more stressful). As long as I can avoid getting knocked up again by June, I can go tanning too! hahaha

Tomorrow I should be meeting my doctor for the first time. Every time I have gone in to see him, he has been in labor and delivery and unable to meet me. So I have seen the nurses instead. It really hasn't bothered me terribly because I haven't been far enough along to really *need* to see him. However, at this point - I think I'm there. Tomorrow is also the day that they give me the "drink" to determine whether or not I have gestational diabetes. Of course I am hoping like hell that I don't, but part of me wouldn't be that surprised if I did...

As far as the e-mail situation with my mother... nothing has transpired. I still talk to her, still see her... and we both pretend like the e-mails never happened. What else is new? I guess it's better/easier this way. At least for now.

Well, I think this is just about all the information I can offer to you at this time. Catch ya next time!

The Honeymoon is over...

The title of this blog was brought on by the fact that The Callahans have just returned from their Honeymoon (an Alaskan cruise). The blog itself was brought on by the fact that, no matter how hard I try, I can't stop thinking about MY honeymoon. And not just recently because of Chelsea and Ryan's marriage, but because I haven't been able to stop thinking about it since I got back this past September.

I can honestly say that when life gets you down, you often travel to that "happy place" in your mind. That happy place is now, and forever will be, the entirety of our honeymoon out West. The unfortunate part is that when I think about it, it just makes more sad. Knowing that it was the best time of my life and I will never be able to re-create it. I'm sure someday, when I'm old, we'll be able to go back - but things will be so different then.

There are so many different variables that created the happiness that was our honeymoon. It could have been that I was just high on being a newlywed, or the fact that I was FINALLY leaving the East Coast of the United States. It also could have been the fact that it was beautiful and sunny and warm the entire time we were there - and sun is proven to make people happier. But what I really think it was, was the fact that I have never in my life felt so free before. We had nothing to worry about. Our bunny was taken care of. We had taken the time off work. We had enough money to do whatever we wanted, whenever we wanted to. Nothing went wrong with our flights, accomodations, transportation, or plans in general. And it was just... us. No one else to worry about or wait for.

Life is just so different out there than it is here. Not only the weather, but everywhere you go, there is either something to do, or something beautiful to look at. The city is as intense as a city should be, and the water views are just as majestic as they are in the movies. The hotels we stayed in made us feel like we were movie stars. And we both had tans and new clothes and were looking like we might actually belong there.


Even the part I didn't so much enjoy, camping at Table Top Mountain in Angeles State Forest, was an experience I will never forget... and I know it made my husband happy.

We were in the car a lot, and although that might sound boring... I wouldn't have had it any other way. Not only did we have a sweet ride (Mustang), we had the freedom of being able to go anywhere we wanted, and stop any place we wanted to. It certainly helped that we rented a GPS to get us around, or else it may have been a disaster. We switched off driving so that one of us could rest or take pictures while the other one navigated. The best part was that the speed limits are like 10 miles an hour faster there, at least! At one point I got up to like 101 miles an hour, just because I could (I think we were passing through part of Utah at the time).

San Diego was our first stop. We drove directly there from the Las Vegas Airport. We were only there for less than 24 hours, but it was awesome just to be there. We had the most delicious dinner in the Gaslamp District at a restaurant called the Yard House, and took a walk down by the train station. The W Hotel we stayed at, had the most beautiful room I have ever slept in. The next morning, we found the ocean, and I was able to stick my feet into the Pacific for the first time ever. It was truly an amazing feeling.



From San Diego, we drove directly to LA, where we checked in to the O Hotel, in the Business District. It was a truly posh hotel, and a great choice to stay for 2 nights. We happened to check in on their 10th anniversary night, so we even got free drinks in their super fancy lobby/bar area. We met up with Keegan's friend Carly (who lives in LA), and she hooked us up with a fantastic wedding present... which just happened to be 3 different types of medical marijuana, 2 different types of medical marijuana baked goods, a small glass piece, a couple lighters, and some papers. We took an awesome walk through the city, down Hollywood Blvd, past somewhere where they were filming a Nelly/Akon performance for the Jimmy Kimmel Show, and then to our first experience at In N' Out Burger... where Keegan had his FIRST fast food burger EVER. The next day, Carly was our tour guide and took us all around LA, where we had breakfast at a diner owned by one of the Beastie Boys, passed by the high school where they filmed Grease, and the area where Mulholland Drive was filmed, onto Griffith Park to overlook the entire city and get the best view of the Hollywood sign. From there, she took us down the coast where we could visit Bradley Nowell's grave in Westminster, and pass through Garden Grove, Long Beach, Laguna Beach, Venice Beach, and a bunch of other great places. We also took a lovely stroll down Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills, and even used the bathroom at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel where Pretty Woman was filmed (best bathroom experience of my life by the way). On the way back, we stopped at the Academy of Performing Arts so Carly could pick up her tickets to the Emmy's!



When the LA fun was over, it was time to camp out for a night. We headed up to Angeles State Forest, to a place called Tabletop Mountain. I was less than thrilled as it got cold and I was not equipped for that... and then of course the minor issue that there were BEARS there. Not only that, we didn't have an aerobed, and I am not a fan of sleeping on the hard ground. I got through it though... it was an experience, and like I said - thrilled my dear husband.



And then, it was on to 4 luxurious nights in a GORGEOUS villa in Vegas! We stayed at Polo Towers, the only hotel on the Strip without a bar or casino inside (which may sound lame, but it was so refreshing to come home to no smoke or loud drunks every night). The villa we had was like an apartment. And don't even get me started on the jacuzzi tub... unreal. Vegas is larger than life. Like, so much larger than life than I ever thought possible. You see it on TV and in movies and it looks so big and flashy... but it is so much more big and flashy once you are physically there. We went almost everywhere and did almost everything we could while we were there, including: the Phantom of the Opera show, the Blue Man Group show, the Bellagio Fountain show, rode the elevator to the top of the Eiffel Tower, went to the top of the Stratosphere, strolled down Fremont Street, ate at Planet Hollywood, gambled at several of the big casinos, saw the Flamingos, visited Siegfried & Roy's Secret Garden, rode the rollercoaster outside New York New York, visited Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum, and even ate at Hooters. And somehow, that list doesn't even cover it. The funniest part? We drank while we were there, but we didn't get drunk - not once.


It was sad to leave Vegas, but exciting to head down to Arizona and visit my Condon girls. Arizona was freaking HOT. I don't know how people can live like that! I met up with the lovely oh-so-pregnant ladies, Erin's son Jared, as well as Erin's husband Dane, and we headed to the Hard Rock in Phoenix for dinner. After that, they took us to an awesome lookout where you could see the whole city all lit up. When we departed, we headed to Scottsdale to stay at the 3 Palms Hotel. It was an awesome hotel with very modern decor and a great jacuzzi tub right in the bedroom!


I have to say, one of the highlights of our trip was the long drive from Scottsdale to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. We split up the driving, and I even resorted to taking photos while driving. I honestly couldn't believe what I was seeing on the side of the road. These big sand and stone structures... some pink, some black... but so colorful and amazing. I had to wonder if the people that live in that area take seeing that for granted. I guess I would.

It started getting a little dark and rainy when we approached the North Rim. Luckily, the worst of the rain was just a sprinkle, so we were still able to cook and eat dinner on the fire without an issue. The air mattress we had purchased earlier in the day (since I refused to sleep on the hard ground again) did not inflate so well - but we made do. The next morning was beautiful. We had a fantastic view of the Canyon from our campsite... and were very close to the little paths you can take for better views. I took a whole bunch of pictures, as to be expected. It was truly majestic, and I'd camp there again in a heartbeat!


From there, we drove back to Vegas where we were going to spend our last night, drop off the car, and fly home. Our last night we stayed at the South Point Hotel and Casino, which was a very short distance from the Strip. Surprisingly enough, this was the one and only night we got drunk while we were on vacation... and we ended up buying a 6-pack of Miller Lite in the gift shop, drinking it all in our room, going to a fancy dinner and getting some wine, then buying another bottle of wine on our way back to the room. Not the greatest decision since we had to be up ridiculously early to return the car and get on a plane.


When we returned, it was like 60 degrees and raining, of course. While I was happy to see my friends and my bunny, I longed for the feeling that I had when I was away. We spent a great deal of our wedding money - and I don't regret it for a second! I knew it would be the one and only trip we take together before we have kids - and boy was I right! Part of me wants to pack up and move there... but I know it wouldn't be the same to live there as it is to visit there. I realize that I feel the same way about the West Coast as some people feel about Cape Cod in the summer! It's truly hilarious to me... because in my mind, the two don't even compare.

I think I will celebrate AK47 (my 47th birthday) on the West Coast... who's coming with me?!