High Five For Friday

I've had an eventful week! So eventful, that I'm having a hard time narrowing things down to the top five... let's see how I can do it.

1) Basically got everything in order for this fun series coming up in a couple of weeks! Get ready; it's gonna be a great time!

2) Caught up with a friend at Starbucks and got to try their new refreshers - pretty darn good, if I do say so myself!

3) Enjoyed a night out with some great girls! We were celebrating one of my oldest friend's bachelorette party - only a week left until her wedding! And those drinks were the most delicious things I've ever had. Thank goodness they let the bride get non-alcoholic - being pregnant, and all!

4) Got to hang out with this cutie {my nephew}.

5) Even though our time together was limited this week {gee, thanks night classes}, I feel like Trevor and I had a lot of quality time. It's quality, not quantity right now...

Linking up with Lauren, like always!

Answering Machine Response

Hey guys! I'm not posting here today {except for my post telling you I'm not posting... hm, how is that supposed to work!?} because I'm posting over at Cutesy Bootsie.

She was here last week telling you about her thoughts on fashion for the new school year. Now, I'm over there sharing my fashion loves and a tip or two about how to shop smarter, rather than harder.

I crammed the post full of pictures, my style, sarcasm, and my love of Target. It's definitely in your best interest to go check it out!

Here's a sneak peek:

My Perfect Fall Go-To by tjmcd featuring leather handbags

I've had the busiest week known to man because I've picked up a shift or two at work and another class started for me. I really hope that things settle down soon and we can get into a routine quickly. I'm mentally and physically exhausted {I slept for 12 hours last night and could have slept more if I didn't drag myself out of bed at 10am}. If you're the praying type, I'd love a few sent our way. I can't share too many details quite yet, but Trevor has a great opportunity through school and we have a few weeks to wait to see what's going to happen. If all goes well, I will break down and cry because we've been holding our breaths for over a year about this. Prayers and good thoughts would be appreciated.

Tomorrow I'll post normally again! Hopefully by then the piles of homework and laundry will be done :)

Now get your butt to Cutesy Bootsie!

deep down

Dear Future Self,

You will be grateful for all of the lost hours of sleep at this time in your life when you're enjoying life as a mom, wife, and nurse. Don't forget to keep your eyes on the prize. Just because you don't have enough time to sleep at night doesn't mean it's not worth it.

Please try to remember back to this past summer - our first full summer as a married couple. Remember all of the fun we had in Chicago, Indiana, at the cottage, and with our families.

I hope you've taken many relaxing vacations - this working full time, going to school, and blogging thing is exhausting! You need some time to recoup! If you haven't taken a vacation lately, do it soon!

Never forget how precious life is. Think of all the patients you've had with terminal illnesses. Think of all the cancer diagnosis blows you've helped soften. Think of all the families who have hugged you tight and thanked you for everything you've done. Think of all the warm smiles that have grown because of you and of all the tears you've wiped away.

Love. Love yourself, love Trevor, love your family, love your work, love your patients, love the stranger in front of you at the grocery store. Just love!

Don't give up! This is all going to be worth it soon. You didn't feel so exhausted and overwhelmed for nothing - make it count!

Teach grace.
Teach curiosity.
Teach kindness.

Follow your passion - don't for one minute do something that your heart isn't in.

Do yourself a favor - send yourself some flowers tomorrow!

Take care of those you love - and don't forget about yourself. Exercise, eat right, clear your mind.

Above all, live life to the fullest!

A Little Bit of Organizing

We have a drawer in our bathroom that holds basically everything we use on a daily basis.

Toothpaste.
Hair brush.
Booby pins.
Moisturizer.
Combs.
Toothbrushes.
Drawer lining crumpled up in the back.
Crap ton of hair that came out of said brush.

You know the drawer. Come on, I can't be the only one with a mish mash drawer!

And because our bathroom is so small, we only have that one drawer to use.
For the two of us.

Which means we basically just throw everything into the drawer when we want it out of the way.

So when I saw these at the Dollar Tree the other day, I couldn't help myself. I got one pack of long containers and one pack of square containers. Total cost: $2. Say whaa?

I started with a drawer full of crap useful things we use on a daily basis. Then I dumped it all out, sorted through it, vacuumed out all of the hair, and loaded it all back into the drawer - in an organized fashion, of course!

Here's the "before"!

It kind of makes me want to play the "I spy, with my little eye" game.

I spy, with my little eye, 3 things of floss. Why in the world do we need three things of floss in one drawer when we really never floss anyways?!?!

And then the "after", with the plastic bins:

Much better, right?! And I don't know what was better - the fact that it only cost $2 to achieve, or Trevor's reaction to finally having an organized drawer!

Do you have any organization tips? What about using products from the dollar store to spiff up your home?

Have You Met {the other} Sara?

Have you met Sara?
She blogs over at Miss V's Busy Bees and is a super sweet lady!

Here's what she wants you to know about her corner of the blog world--

I'm Sara, a 22 year old graduate from the University of Cincinnati. I'm your average girl with plenty of dreams, hopes, and goals. I love reading, crafting, blogging, Pinterest, shopping, and watching TV. My boyfriend & Socks (my cat) are my world beyond my family. I couldn't be more proud to call myself a teacher and cannot wait to start teaching on my own!

Have you visited Miss V's Busy Bees? You should! While you're there you should check out her step-by-step directions on how to make a tie blanket. Can you believe I never knew how to make one until now?! Anyway, they're incredibly easy and I'm definitely making one as a Christmas gift this year! If you're a teacher, you're going to want to check out the ways that Sara has found to spiff up a classroom {all for only a few pennies!}. 

And if after all of that, you still want to know more about Sara {yes! you do!}, read all about her - from A to Z.

Don't forget to follow her on Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest!

His & Her Q&A

I'm so happy it's Sunday again just so I can share this fun Q&A with all of you!

What is something weird your spouse does while asleep? 
His: Ummm, you drool all over the pillow sometimes. It's not like you sleepwalk or anything. You don't talk & you don't move once you're asleep.
Her: Sometimes when he stretches, he shakes the whole bed. 

Which of the 7 deadly sins are you? (anger, greed, sloth, pride, lust, envy, and gluttony)
His: Sloth.
Her: Yeah... he's totally sloth. I'm pride.

What was your favorite hiding place as a kid?
His: When we played hide-and-go-seek I'd always hide under the desk in the basement. It was a rockin' hiding spot!
Her: In my bedroom closet. Not only would I hide myself there, but I'd hide other things there that I wanted to keep private. 

What music artist do you love that your other half hates listening to?
His: Spaceghost. (Her: What the hell is Spaceghost?) And Judas Priest. I wanna get another one of their CDs.
Her: Showtunes probably. Am I right? (Him: I can tolerate some of your showtunes! But I hate Mamma Mia.)

What has your other half recently done that made you love them more?
His: Help me put together a resume. And allow me to go to school and not work.
Her: When I've had really long days at work, you will let me just sit on the couch and catch up on emails while you clean up from dinner. It's nice to just relax and let someone else take care of me after spending 12 hours taking care of other people.

What is your favorite hole-in-the-wall place to eat? (or favorite restaurant in general)
His: Mihm's in Menasha, WI and Damascus in Denver, CO.
Her: Gingerrootz or Sy's.

What do you admire most about your significant other?
His: Your persistence in getting things done. You have a greater drive to accomplish things that I do!
Her: I find this a hard question to answer... I think I most admire that you're OK with no change. I like to keep things new and interesting so I don't get bored, but you can do the same thing over and over and over without it getting old.

Ideally, where would you like to be 5 years from now?
His: Living in our own house with a couple of kids, driving cars that aren't POS's - and have enough money in the bank so we don't have to freak out. Both of us having secure jobs. Or, I want to be a lottery winner.
Her: Well, that would require that we actually play the lottery. But I agree with everything you said!

Who wears the pants?
His: Depends on the issue. Well, actually, I guess I never wear the pants. You wear the pants all the time.
Her: Me. Please reference the answer Trevor gave to the second and seventh questions - then you'll know why :)

What is your favorite/go-to YouTube video? (embed for all of us to watch!)
Him:

Her:
{Also check out my other post from this morning for another favorite YouTube video!}


Happy Sunday! Head over to Love the Grows for more His and Her Q&A!

Sunday Social

Happy Sunday, everyone! I'm spending my day at a baby shower for a very sweet lady. Before I do that, here's this week's Sunday Social!


1. What is the first website you log into each day?

My email. I keep a zillion tabs open on my computer so that when I wake it up in the morning, there are already a bunch of websites open. But I usually check email first, then Blogger to make sure everything posted like it was supposed to {because I schedule 99% of my posts}, and then Facebook.

2. Give us some funny websites that you visit that we need to know about.
The Onion - they come up with the most ridiculous stuff!
Funny or Die - I hardly ever visit the page itself, but it seems like all the funny stuff posted on Facebook or Twitter comes back to this site.

...I don't know of any other ones. I use the internet more for business stuff and catching up with friends... when it comes to funny stuff, I just see what other people post.
Yeah, I'm lame.

3. Pinterest or Facebook? Why?

This is a toughie... I guess Facebook because it's a little more versatile and you can catch up with friends. I still love Pinterest, though, but for different reasons.

4. Twitter or Instagram? Why?

Easy. Twitter. I can't IG because I don't have a smart phone. So sue me! My husband doesn't even like to text, so it's a stupid idea for us to get a smart phone plan if he's not even going to use it.

5. Favorite YouTube video. Post it!

David After Dentist {Remix}, no doubt about it! I will still laugh my butt off and sing along, even after how-ever-many years it's been since I first saw it. I love the screaming, it gets me every time.

And this little gem I posted a little while ago is a pretty close second!

6. Biggest online pet peeve?

Gosh, I don't know... spam, probably. I'm pretty tolerant when it comes to other stuff - I just figure it's a difference of opinion or that the other party doesn't know any better. Maybe I'm too nice?

I'm linking up with Neely and Ashley; you should too!

Saturday Inspiration

I definitely have to remind myself of this more often!

(source) (via)

Happy Saturday, lovelies!

I'm heading to the local Farmer's Market. What are you up to this weekend?

High Five For Friday

I swear these weeks just go by quicker and quicker...

Time for another H54F!

1) I've gotten to spend a lot more time with Trevor this week. His last day at work was last Saturday {because school started this week}, so he's been around a lot more. Bye-bye 60 hour work weeks, hello study hours at home!

2) A friend and I met up for Soup, Salad, & Breadsticks at Olive Garden this week. Man, I had forgotten how much I love that place! Not to mention how yummy their Chicken & Gnocchi soup is...
I only ate two breadsticks while we were there.
Now THAT is what I call self control!

(source)

3) Because I had a bunch of Target coupons, I got a lot of stuff for not a lot of money when I went to Target this week. Like, nail-polish-for-39-cents sort of stuff. And CoverGirl-bronzer-for-60-cents sort of stuff. And shaving-cream-for-24-cents sort of stuff.
It was pretty great! I love trips like that.

4) I worked an extra long day {read: 14 hours} at work yesterday so I am so happy it's the weekend! Plus, I have a bachelorette party and baby shower to go to {one tomorrow, one Sunday} - both for some amazing women - so it's going to be a fun one!

5) Speaking of working an extra long day, I was sleeping by nine p.m. last night. And (!!!) I didn't get up this morning until nine a.m. Twelve hours of sleep is wonderful! However, that also means that I was at home and awake for a whopping two and a half hours yesterday. Anyone want to come over and do my dishes & laundry to help me catch up?!



What was the highlight of your week?

Back to School Outfits - with Brook

Guys! I'm so excited to introduce you to Brook! She's a sweetheart and has stopped by today to share some great back to school outfits - just in time for school to start for me today! Everyone, this is Brook. Brook, this is everyone!
_________________________________________

Hey y'all! I'm Brook from Cutesy Bootsie and I'm thrilled to be here today.  Shout out of thanks to Sara for generously allowing me to guest blog today.  I blog about my life - challenges and victories, things I struggle with or am loving, my little dog George Bailey, or my experiences as an 8th grade teacher.  You can often find me on Pinterest or Twitter where I'm busy pinning and following some of my favorite things - pretty clothes, creative crafts, funky interiors, and innovative teaching ideas.

As we are  in the thick of back to school time, I wanted to share some of my favorite easy to wear outfits with you.

Source: polyvore.com via Brook on Pinterest

I've shared my love for maxi skirts before on my blog.  Love them!

My classroom tends to be freezing.  Or the a/c goes out and then we all sweat and get grumpy.  So I love to layer.  I nearly always have a scarf around someplace to whip around my neck.

Source: polyvore.com via Brook on Pinterest

I would never wear ripped jeans to work (or probably ever anywhere).  But I do think this outfit is darling in a casual yet pulled together way.

Source: polyvore.com via Brook on Pinterest

I would love one of these bags to tote my school supplies.

Source: little-white-whale.com via Brook on Pinterest

Time to study!

Source: weheartit.com via Brook on Pinterest

__________________________________
Told you she was pretty great! Head on over to Cutesy Bootsie and follow along with her teacher adventures!

Summer Bucket List Recap

Remember my post way back when about our summer bucket list?
Yeah, you probably don't.
Go ahead, review it. I'll wait here.

Ok, great!
Seeing as how the summer is quickly coming to an end and school is taking over our lives once more {for hopefully the last semester for Trevor!}, I thought I'd look back at the goals we set for ourselves the past few months.
You remember how there were 8 things that Trevor and I wanted to accomplish this summer? Let's see they went.

The first was to go on a picnic. Kind of a success!
We went to a local park one night for a bit of a picnic... but it was cold and windy so we said we'd make up for it another night.
We haven't.
Yet.
We have had an indoor picnic a few times this summer where we threw down a blanket and ate dinner on the floor in the living room... but it only half counts.

The second was to see a drive in movie. Success!
When we were in Indiana this summer visiting some friends, we saw the new Batman movie at a drive in. We took lots of pillows, blankets, and wine. It was a great time!

The third was to take a long bike ride together. Fail!
I don't even think Trevor has gotten on his bicycle at all this summer! In fact, I don't think we've done much healthy activity together this summer. We've been way too tired after long days at work to think about going for a run or a bike ride.
We need to work on that... yeahhhh.

The fourth was to take a trip to Chicago. Success!
We spent some time in the Windy City during our visit with our friends in Indiana. We met them downtown after taking the Amtrak from Milwaukee and spent some time eating delicious popcorn and walking around Navy Pier.

The fifth was to have a campfire. Super success!
We've had a few fires this summer. Some with my family, some just the two of us when we were on vacation. We even were able to burn old school stuff that I had been saving since middle school. Now that I'm no longer going to be a classroom teacher, I had A. LOT. of papers from college that I was more than happy to get out of my life.

The sixth was to go strawberry picking and make jam. Success!
I visited a local farm a couple months ago and enjoyed my morning picking berries. After, I came home and made some freezer jam. So good!

The seventh was to go to the Farmer's Market. Success!
I've only been to one Saturday market... but I wish I could say I've been to more. Working Saturdays hasn't really lent itself well to doing this, but I am trying very hard to go again this Saturday morning!

The eighth {and final} was to go to a minor league baseball game. Success!
Just a few weeks ago we went to a Timber Rattlers game with Trevor's brother and his girlfriend. We had a pretty great time eaing $1 hot dogs and drinking $1 beer and sodas!

Considering how busy Trevor and I have been this summer, it's a wonder that even half of these things got done. We've made up for the time we haven't had to spend together by doing a lot of fun things when we actually do have energy!

Did you do everything you wanted to do this summer?

Road Trip Through Wisconsin

Ugh, I hate when summer starts coming to a close.

Another class starts for me this week.

It's cooler outside.

Bummer.

Vacation seems so long ago! Let's re-live some of it, shall we? Just for the sake of holding on to summer a little longer.

While Trevor and I were driving "up north" to get to the cottage we stayed at, we had more than a couple of hours to kill. So I pulled out our gazetteer and started following along with where we had been and where we were going. 

I realized I kind of have an obsession with maps! I just find them so interesting... which is weird.

I digress.

So we're driving down some highway passing through tiny little towns and I realize that you guys need a lesson in Wisconsin town names! A lot of the names of cities in Wisconsin are Native American... so they have sounds that a lot of people {who aren't from Wisconsin} have difficulty with. You'll see what I mean in a minutes. We have some names that are quite the doozie! Get ready, get set, because here are some fun names!

Take your best guess... how would you pronounce these?

{Why-A-We-Gah}

{Oh-con-oh-ma-walk}

{Wow-wah-toe-sah}

{Kaw-kaw-nah}

Nothing about Ke$ha here... it's {Waw-ka-shaw}

Now, these next ones aren't too hard to pronounce, but they're significant for a reason - maybe you know them!

Oshkosh: home of Oshkosh B'Gosh. The company was bought out by Carter's but there are still some OBG stores out there! Oshkosh is also home to a lot of big festivals every summer. EAA, Lifest, Country USA, Rock USA, and on and on.

Chippewa Falls: Titanic anyone? This is where Jack says he's from... and he makes it sound like Chippewa Falls is in the Arctic {when in fact, it's not really that far north}.

Waldo: I've never been there, but I think it's sweet that people will actually, legitimately ask "Where's Waldo?!"

New Glarus: Home of New Glarus Brewing Co. which may be one of Trevor's favorite places on Earth. But really, they have some yummy beers. Trevor loves Spotted Cow or Fat Squirrel while I love Belgium Red {it's made with a whole pound of cherries in every bottle; so good!}

Lastly, Three Lakes looks like it's home to quite a few more than just THREE lakes...

So, how'd you do? Could you pronounce the names of the towns and cities correctly? Are there some odd names of places near where you live?

I've Been Bit {by the autumn bug!}

I know it's still August - and I'm not trying to rush things here - but I am having a hard time containing my excitement that it's almost time for the leaves to start dropping and the pumpkin-flavored everything to hit the store shelves!

Autumn is one of my favorite seasons to decorate around the house for - second only to Christmas.

Here's what I've been lusting over lately {because it's still too early for me to put out pumpkin spice candles and red & orange leaves}.

Source: suziebeezie.tumblr.com via Sara on Pinterest

Source: theinglenookdecor.com via Sara on Pinterest

Source: bhg.com via Sara on Pinterest

I also LOVE making baked goods in the Fall!

Source: passthesushi.com via Sara on Pinterest

Source: picky-palate.com via Sara on Pinterest

Source: picky-palate.com via Sara on Pinterest

Source: makeandtakes.com via Sara on Pinterest

And of course, the best part of it - the Pumpkin Spice Lattes! {Anyone know when Starbucks starts officially serving these?! I need one sooner rather than later!}

Source: google.com via Sara on Pinterest

Do you love Autumn as much as I do? What are you most looking forward to when Autumn finally does arrive?!


P.S. For more Autumn decorating and yummy dessert ideas, check out my Pinterest boards!
P.S.S. I'm guest posting over at Family Darr today - all about yarn wreaths, including ways to style a Fall yarn wreath!

His & Her Q&A

It's time for another His & Her Q&A! Once again, I love doing this link up because Trevor and I have such good conversation about the question prompts. Sundays are a good blogging day! 

Your house is on fire. What five items do you grab before you leave?

His: Wallet, our safe, I suppose my lovely wife. "Wait, - are you unconscious from smoke inhalation or something that I would have to drag you?", my computer, and the movie Stepbrothers. {hahaha!}

Her: My purse, our wedding albums, my computer {I lost everything about a week before our wedding and I will never again let that happen!}, our safe of important papers {which technically is fireproof, but I'm not risking it if I have a choice}, and Trevor.

If you could be/had to be the main character of any movie, who would you be?

His: The Rocketeer. I'd get to strap on a jet pack and fly around; it'd be AWESOME.

Her: Any of the female leads in Nicholas Sparks' movies ;)

What physical feature do you love most about yourself?

His: My teeth because the dentist is always telling me they look nice. Wait, am I supposed to say my {censored} because I'm a dude?!

Her: My smile.

Tell us why your name is your name. And if you don't have (or know) an answer, make one up.

His: I was named after a character in a movie that my mom liked. I don't know what movie it was - probably something random.

Her: I was born 6 weeks early and my parents hadn't picked out a name for me at all. Not knowing if I was a boy or a girl, they could only agree that they kind of liked the name Nicholas. So, when I came nice and early and wasn't a boy, they scrambled to find a name they both liked {Sara} and gave me Nicole as a middle name since they couldn't name me Nicholas.

What is the greatest place you've ever traveled to?

His: Prauge. Or Jamaica - that was more fun!

Her: Jamaica on our honeymoon.

Are you a morning person or a night person?

His: Night - far and away, night.

Her: Both. I can be up and functioning without any coffee by 4:45am with a cheery smile on. But at the same time, I can easily stay up until 11pm or midnight if I've gotten enough sleep the night before. 

Who is someone you wish you were closer to?

His: Just about any one of my siblings.

Her: My brother.

What quality do you have that you hope your kids inherit?

His: Patience. {Thank goodness he didn't say his procrastination!}

Her: My ambition.

What's your favorite memory with your childhood best friend?

His: Just hanging out at his house... doing whatever, and making whatever crap. I can't think of anything specific, I guess.

Her: Riding our bikes back and forth to each other's houses & playing school or house.

If you had to move out of the country where would you move to? 

His: Canada. They speak English there and they are some decent looking places. It'd be neat to experience a wicked-harsh Winter at least once. {He's totally going there on his own! Hah}

Her: England, Australia, or Ireland. Unless we could afford to live on the ocean with a full staff in Jamaica ;)

Head over to Love the Grows to link up your own His & Her Q&A! You know you want to!

Sunday Social

Oh, this Sunday Social is gonna be a good one.

I can't wait to see everyone else's posts because after this post is published I will officially have embarrassed myself and that means many others have too!

Prepare yourselves. Can't say I didn't warn you!

1. What were you like in Middle School/HS?(pictures)

In middle school, I ran with the more popular crowd... and I was a bit of a mean girl. But I was still friends with a lot of people from different crowds! 

This was in 7th grade on Crazy Hair Day {no, I did not wear my hair like that always}... I'm on the right with the glasses. Recognize the girl in the gray sweatshirt next to me? She's the beautiful bride I posted about in this post. I'm standing up in her wedding in a few weeks. We've been friends since 2nd grade :)

After we moved to a new city for 8th grade and high school, I {obviously} made new friends... but I think I'd say I was more of a band geek/smart kid/goody two shoes. Again, I was friends with just about everyone.

Me and my closest friends sophomore or junior year - I'm the one with the glasses. 

2.  What were your favorite past times?
Anything with my friends. Singing with friends, being stupid with friends, talking on the phone for hours with friends, AIM {with friends, duh.}, being annoying with friends, you get the picture.

3. What songs were you obsessed with?
Anything Maroon 5, & Wicked in high school.
I can't remember anything music-wise from middle school.

4. What fashion statement do you look back on and cringe?
Those poofy bubble stretch shirts. They looked like they could fit a doll but then you put them on and not only did they fit, you looked like a pointy dummy. You know the ones I'm talking about?

(source)

5. Who was your celeb crush?
Freddie Prinze, Jr. in middle school
Gregory Smith in high school

6. What were your favorite tv shows/movies?

Everwood & anything on MTV.

I also went through a phase at the end of middle school where I spent a summer watching TLC's A Baby Story and A Wedding Story. Don't hate.

It's so weird for me to think that these things all happened 10+ years ago... ugh. I feel old.

Ok! Now I'm off to stalk everyone else's linkups to see how embarrassing their photos are!

Happy Sunday!