Riddle me this

If Zac is one of 6 kids, and all of those kids are married and have kids, how many dinner rolls do I need to bake for Thanksgiving dinner?  ( That's 14 adults + 14 kids = 28 people)

Also if Sally is three times older than John, John is 4 years older than Carl, and Carl has a 5 year old sister named Tammy, how old is Carl? j/k but really, how many rolls?

Super(califragilisticexpialidocious) Excited

The next week is gonna be super busy, super fast, and super exciting, for it is the week leading up to DISNEY!  Woohoo!.  My family doesn't go on many vacations.  In fact, this is the first in a decade.  Oddly enough, it's a bit of a repeat with a few new faces.  Ten years ago the sisters, mom, dad, and I (plus Annie's then boyfriend Jade, and my bestfriend Courtney) headed down to Florida to used up my aunt's time share.  Over Thanksgiving we are going again, to the same, though thoroughly revamped resort.  Annie and Maggie both went to Disney on their honeymoons, but I haven't been back, so it will be like brand new again!  

This year instead of Courtney, I'm taking my husband and the sisters will be bringing along their kids.  I can't wait to see Aubrie and Everett's expressions as we walk into Disney.  It will be incredible.  Especially considering their reactions as they walked into my newly Christmas decorated house the other day and each got wide-eyed and said "it's beautiful!"  Little do they know friends, little do they know.  

The vacation itself will be great.  The lead up may be crazy.  I know I have to work Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday.  Zac won't be home after Monday next week, so I have to have him pick out all his clothes this weekend.  After work on Wednesday I have to meet him in Springfield (about an hour and a half away) then we are going to his parent's house for Thanksgiving.  We have to drive back Thursday evening and he has to go straight to St. Louis for his Black Friday 4:30am - 5?pm shift.  Our flight leaves Saturday at 7am from St. Louis.  So....should he drive home for us to drive back the next morning, or should I drive down Saturday night and we stay in a hotel or find friends with enough space to store 2 cars for 7 days.....ughhhh.  I think I may want Zac to come home considering his boss warned him that if he took the time off during what should be blacked out days (from thanksgiving - february no one is supposed to be able to request off)  he may have to work 7 straight days after we get back.  That's a lot of away from home time.  Anyway, aside from Zac's job, my job, driving and packing, it's gonna be awesome!

The most wonderful time of the year

I have done it.  I've put up the tree. (I'll post pictures eventually) Just thought you all should know, and get on board.  Look at this tree, then tell me you're not ready.  

Merry Merry Christmas already!

Chicago

I love Chicago.  I do.  I know there are a lot of people not on board with that statement, but I don't care.  I love it!  Everytime Zac and I go we have fun together and is worth the cost of a hotel always.  Our anniversary trip was great.  We got in late on Friday night and headed first to Zac's favorite pizza place, Lou Malnati's for some deep dish pizza.  It was super delicious.  Always is!  To make things even better, our waitress gave our pizza to a different couple and we had to wait a little longer, but they gave us our pizza free for the mistake.  It was awesome.  Just look at that pizza, and they really do look like that at the restaurant, not just in advertisements.  I know that makes you hungry!

We went from Malnati's to our hotel.  Priceline hooks us up everytime and we got to stay at the Palmer House for supercheap.  We were pumped!  They gave us a king room instead of a room with two double beds and charged us nothing for the switch in reservation.  We also got a corner room, so we had views of the city on both sides from the 19th floor and the room was huge.

Our second day there we first stopped at a record store cause we can't go anywhere without searching for great old vinyls.  It's one of Zac's new favorite things.  Shockingly enough, it was 2 blocks away from the hotel.  After that we jumped on the train and headed over to meet my friend Megan for lunch at a delicious tapas place.  It's called Cafe Ba Ba Reeba and it was also great.  It was in a trendy part of town so we walked and wandered and window shopped for a while before heading back to take a nap at the hotel.  Unfortunately, we realized about 3 hours before our dinner reservation that the place was "business casual" attire and we had jeans.  So we were off again.  The hotel sits right on State Streets and there is tons of shopping.  There was Forever 21, Charlotte Russe, Old Navy, a thousand different shoe stores.  We found new outfits for ourselves in a little over an hour then had some down time before dinner.  We decided to do something special, so we had reservations at Mortons (it had great reviews).  It was wonderful!  The food was amazing, the service was great.  We would recommend it a thousand times.  This is Zac looking too cute before our dinner.

The next day we packed up and headed out.  Took us three tries to find the entrance to our parking garage, but we finally figured it out.  We got home early enough we still had some time to hang out before bed.  It was a  great trip.  Zac even says we should do it every year.  About that I'm not sure, but for 5 years, it was totally worth it!

Sleeping like a king

Over they years I've had many mattresses.  They've all been bad.  When I moved from Carbondale to start chiropractic school I was sharing a full sized bed with a 6'4" man (and I'm 5'10"ish).  I told one of the girls I worked with that I would LOVE a bigger bed, it would make my life.  She said she had a queen in storage that her aunt had given her.  The day before our big move, we went out to her storage unit, dug it out from beneath the piles and loaded it up into my brother-in-law's S10 truck.  Only after I drug out my other mattress and threw it on top of the "queen" did I realize they were the same size.  Mattress upgrade fail.  I did, however, haul 2 box springs and 2 mattresses in the back of an S10, pulling a trailer packed to the brim and sitting next to a multiple lamps and a large potted plant the entire way to St. Louis.  I kinda looked like this, with the addition of a trailer, moving very slowly in second gear up hills.  

Once in the Lou we dreamed of a bigger bed.  It didn't happen.  At least, not for awhile.  

After 2 years we had found a house and were all set to move.  The week before our move I was getting the mail and saw that there was a queen set for FREE because someone was moving out of state and could only take what fit in the car.  I called her up...and she lived just across the hall.  It was meant to be!     And it was clean! I was thrilled.  Now, one thing you should know, my husband is a flopper.  This is how he effectively broke the full size mattress, and subsequently the queen sized as well.  By the time we were ready to move home, the mattress was not so great anymore.  Luckily, there is always someone in need, so I gave both beds away (thank you Craigslist) along with piles of stuff I didn't want anymore. 

When we moved home we finally got a decent bed.  Annie and Jade had taken Mom's king when she and Dad bought new, and their still rather new bed was now for guests.  I figured Mom loves me more than guests so I got it!  It was great..for awhile.  It's gotten to the point where Zac and I sleep on extreme edges of the bed so that we don't fall into a crevise so deep we can't get out.  I found out that Annie had a warranty on said mattress and I told her she was crazy not to use it.  We found out the requirements.  It had to be "nearly perfect."  We were disappointed.  We had it steam cleaned, and then it kinda looked like it had been grilled from where the upholstry head of the steamer had been run across it.  But, to our surprise, it was "one of the cleanest mattresses" the guy from the furniture store had ever seen.  YAY!  He ordered Annie and Jade a new mattress and viola, Zac and I are sleeping like a king!  Now I realize this doesn't fix the whole hand-me-down mattress problem Zac and I seem to have, but I can't wait.  My husband will finally have a bed his feet don't hang off of and I will have more room than I know what to do with.  Life. Is. Good. 

5 Years Gone By

This weekend I'm doing something shocking, something "wrong," something you just don't do after you get married. My husband and I are taking a weekend out of town to celebrate our 5 year DATING anniversary.  I think it's a great idea.  My family thinks it is ridiculous.  I don't care.  I don't subscribe to the belief that it's not an important day anymore.  In my mind, I shouldn't have had to start the clock back at 1 day when I said "I do."  I knew I did way before that.  Technically, I think I should've started my clock this night, 5 years ago.  Enjoy the walk through time :)

That's right, Halloween 2005.  The night Zac decided he just couldn't live without me.  And shortly thereafter, I was surprised to realize I felt the same.  Of course, how could you not love me, dressed up as Dolly Parton?  (PS...those sleeeves were puffy as all get out and they came to a point on the back of my hand, I wish you could see that in this picture).  

Zac knew he loved me right away.  By the time I had made this wreath (annual Christmas craft #1 with my bestie), he had abandoned his boys and was spending most evenings at my little apartment.  

He even came to see my family and spend some time with us, as awkward as that may have been.  Just imagine, he called me on his way up for Christmas (the second time he was gonna be around my family) and I told him, "Just stay on I-57 until Mattoon.  You can meet us at the hospital." He didn't even try to negotiate. God knows I waited forever for my Aubrie Grace to get here and I wasn't missing one minute of her.  Now, Zac hasn't missed a minute of my first niece's life either, and I love that.

From then on, Zac made it up to almost all family holidays.  

Like Easter 2006

When we were back in Carbondale, he slept in on Sundays with me...and got annoyed that I thought he looked cute sleeping wrapped up in his dino blanket. 

But he still loved me and let me take more pictures, like this one.

He bought himself a sweet tight t-shirt that said "American Power"and a flame covered bandana to wear "for grillin' out" and I still loved him. 

I especially loved him in his uniform. 

Zac made it to my first college graduation. He even took the time to stare down my ex-boyfriend....and then tell me about it.

Time moved real fast, and before I knew it we lived in St. Louis.  A few months later my sweetheart was 24, but not too old, or too big, for balloons and party hats.  Admit it, even you love him in this picture.

 Two weeks later, it was time to celebrate our first anniversary.  One year down, lots more to go.

Over the course of the next year I got to meet Zac's parents, Jim and Lolla.  I got to find out that Zac comes from a highly functional family, a fortune we are both lucky to share.  

I also had the opportunity for Zac to prove to me that he would even give me the shirt off his back if I needed him to.  In this case, I needed kleenex for a terrible cold.  Zac instead gave me a big white t-shirt and took the liberty of cutting out the pit stains before he handed it over.  I laughed really hard at this, then couldn't let him leave the room until he modeled the pit-free shirt for me first.  I think it's marketable don't you?

By the time we got to Christmas again, Zac was fully a part of the family.  He even participated in Ugly Sweater Christmas.

2007 brought many great things, like the marriage of my best friend 

and my little sister, Maggie...

and the birth of this little guy

and another themed Christmas...

We watched some ball in 2008

ate big steaks

and got engaged.  

When I came home with a ring, Dad took the opportunity to make sure Zac was prepared for the life he was signing up for and took us to Rural King to get Zac fully outfitted for farming. 

Doesn't he make a darn cute farmer! 

In February we made the time for a short familyvacation to Galena to ski

and before I knew it, we were pronounced man and wife. 

Then we were off to see the world. 

We got home just in time for Caroline to join us and for me to graduate....again.

Then we wrapped up the year with the Vest Christmas ever!

This year we made it to Portland

and had our first married anniversary and so much more that would make this post even more ridiculously long.  

So you see...after all these years, I can't just start back at one.  I will not give up my dating anniversary.  Zac and I earned a little time for celebration.  Five years have passed so much faster than I ever expected.    I imagine five years from now I'll be putting together another couple dozen pictures asking myself again, where did it all go? 

Last minute prayers

A reminder to all of you following my blog... my sister Annie goes in for the follow-up ultrasound today to check on baby Ollie's heart.  Say lots of prayers for a completely healthy, completely complete baby. Thanks!