A Better Me! January 7, 2010

I’ve made a few rules for me, to be a better me.

The first, stop crossing my legs.  Look around, EVERYONE crosses their legs, it’s something that just comes second nature to us.  I was talking with one of my 6 year old ballerinas and she even was crossing her legs! It’s unhealthy to have my body sitting uneven like that.  I already have poor circulation in my legs so this should help with that as well, not to mention I’d like to have varicose vein free legs when I’m fifty! There is no reason to cross my legs, when I can sit like in Anne Hathaway in The Princess Diaries, by crossing my ankles–I’ll try to not fall out of my chair when I do it.

Resting my head in my hand is something I’d like to cross off my annoying habits list.  I do it without even knowing it.  Not only is it rude, it looks unattractive, and I’m stretching the skin on my face.  I’d like to avoid a wrinkly face, wouldn’t you?  I’m also hoping that by not allowing myself to rest my head on my hands I’ll have better posture and my face won’t break out as much!

The third rule, for a better (healthier) me, would be to start eating breakfast on a regular basis.  This should help to jump start my metabolism and boost my energy in the mornings!

For those readers that see me–if I sit with my legs crossed or put my head in my hand please tell me to knock it off.  I’m serious. Here’s to a better me!

already looking better!

A True Madisonian January 5, 2010

I was taking a look at the newest edition of Madison Magazine.  One of the feature articles informed the readers of 62 activities they think every Madisonian should attend this year.  Activities included checking out the Museum of Contemporary Art, take Meiko to one of the many great dog parks, shop on State Street, tour the Capital building, go to a concert at the Barrymore or Majestic, and many more cultural events around the city.  Among these activities was a checklist “You’re not an official Madisonian until you:”

“Enjoy an ice cream or beer at the Memorial Union Terrace.

• I’ve had both-It’s one of my most favorite places to be in Madison enjoying beer and ice cream overlooking Lake Mendota with friends.

Me and Rob at the terrace

Scream your lungs out rooting for the badgers at a college sporting event.

• Ada took me to a Badgers football game last year against Penn State.

looks like we had fun tailgating, too

Stroll down State Street.

• My favorite shop on this street is called Pop Deluxe!

Take in the sights and sounds of quintessential Madison festivals: Willy Street Fair, etc.

• Rob, Meiko, and I went our first year in Madison to the Willy Street Fair.

Experience Madison’s lakes-on the water by boat or skis, around the water on foot or bike, or out on the ice in winter.

Lake Mendota

Make a lap around the Capitol Square during the Dane County Farmers Market.

• I LOVE the farmers market-pretty flowers, homemade baked goods, and fresh veggies/fruits.

mmmm freshly made that morning!

fresh cut flowers!

Catch a show at the Overture Center for the Arts.

• I’ve caught shows at the Majestic, the Orpheum, and at the University—don’t they count?!

Andrew Bird Concert

Watch fireworks set to music at Rhythm and Booms.

• I watched this my first 4^th of July in Madison—I was two weeks old to Madison.

At least thumb through David Mollenhoff’s Madison: The Formative Years.

Cheer for the Mallards at the family friendliest of baseball games.

• Robbie and I went with a great group of friends last year-for FREE- I just flashed a smile and got us tickets.

Pack a picnic and listen to Madison’s favorite outdoor music session: The Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra’s Concerts on the Square.

• This is always so much fun, packing wine and snacks while sitting with the rest of Madison on the lawn of the Capitol square listening to really talented musicians.

concert with Ada and Meiko

Develop an opinion on Frank Lloyd Wright and his Prairie Architectural Style.

• I have opinions.

Realize that having so much fun stuff to do makes Madison great- even if you can’t get to it all!”

• Madison is a great place to live!

I’ve completed quite a few on that list. I want to give a great big “THANK YOU” to Ada for opening my eyes to many of the great activities that she has showed me!  I guess I need to embrace I’m a true Madisonian, well at least for another 2.5/3 years until Robbie is done with his PhD and we get to explore another wonderful city!

Toodaloo ‘09 December 31, 2009

I’m thrilled to be welcoming in 2010; though, some pretty great milestones happened in 2009 that I’m so thankful to have been apart of and I’d like to share.

I…

Celebrated Rob turning a quarter of a century..

Burnt just about every single meal I tried to make in the oven…I think it’s broken, I can’t be THAT bad of a cook!

Took a private jetto Vail.

Watched Meiko chase Jack around my parents yard.

Still love Meiko kisses.

Sewed a million and one dance costumes.

Traded in my Michigan drivers license for a WI one.

Traded in Little Blue for the Tucson.

Performed in a May, August, and December dance performance.

Enjoyed watching the little girls I teach dance on stage.

Stood up as a bridesmaid for the wonderful Jessica and Steve Westbrooks wedding.

Jessica's beautiful bridal party 9/19/09

Attended the beautiful Natalie and Jesse Adkins wedding.

Natalie's in the White ;)

Attended Robs cousin,  Jamie and Tom Weibel wedding.

Took a road trip to visit my friend Stacy.

Spent many wonderful Wednesday nights with Ada and Frances.

Me-Ada-Frances

Enjoyed ice skating in a park across the street.

Made some great new friends,and cherished current friendship

Purchased Meiko winter booties for her precious paws.

Installed my One2Flush—seriously if I can do it, anyone can!

Spent many weekends on the road to MI visiting family and friends.

Treasured the time spent with my awesomely awesome sister.

Macker and Me

Shopped  Black Friday with my amazing Grandmother.

Oh yea…

And I got ENGAGEDto a wonderful man and my best friend, so I’ve done a lot of wedding planning, too!

toodaloo, '09

Bring on 2010–there are so many memories I can’t wait to have!

A Vaily Good Time! December 30, 2009

After spending 34 hours in the car and a whole week on vacation with Robbie I can officially say I’m not sick of him! Good thing since I decided to marry him!! I was sad on Monday morning when I realized I didn’t get to spend the whole day with him and had to return to work.

Rob and Me skiing

Robbie and I skied a few days at Vail.  Only about 28% of the Mountain was open due to lack of the fluffy white stuff, which seems like it’s not that much but we didn’t even ski all of the 28%; it’s that big!  One of the afternoons Mac was able to meet up with us and take a few runs, It was easy to spot which way she went in her green jacket and red snow pants!

Mac and Me at the top of the Gondola

MacKenzie works at a really fancy/expensive seafood restaurant called Montauk where we visited her at the bar and had really yummy lobster macaroni and martinis.  The wait staff was really confused when they saw me sitting there and then saw Mac bopping around.  Some of them caught on that we were twins….I heard a “there is a girl that looks JUST like Mac at the bar!” a few times.

Me and Mac and Montauk

Karrisa and Rob at Montauk

The  hockey team Mac and Karrisa play for had a friends and family night since everyone’s family was in town for the holidays so Rob was able to play with everyone and I sat in the stands with Meiko.  I believe Rob was the only one WITHOUT full pads, he had some under his Redwings shirt but I bet he would’ve like to have had butt pads, too! Here’s Rob trying to score a goal on Mac…

Rob in Red, Mac in Yellow--blocking the goal

Meiko's watching the game

Four of our meals we ate at Moe’s in Lionshead at Vail.  They have amazing pulled pork sandwiches, banana pudding, and macaroni! For only $9 you get the sandwich, your choice of 2 sides, and a drink—for anyone that’s been to Vail, that’s a STEAL! Everything is overpriced in Vail, so overpriced the gas stations don’t even put the prices up on their displays.  I guess that’s the price you pay for living in paradise.

us at Moe's!

Going on vacation with Meiko was a real treat! It was so nice to come back from skiing and be tackled by her kisses and love.  She was such a good traveler, sleeping 16.75 of the 17 hours there, and 17 of the 17 hours back! I think Meiko had a great vacation too; she was spoiled with love and got a few special presents from her GrandPawents; A snuggie and some very durable squeaky toys!

meiko in her snuggie

Robbie got some really great shoes, and I got the best present ever….spending time with Rob, Mac Karrisa, and Meiko.  I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, I’ll get made fun of because it’s really not that funny… I had a VAILY good time –get it? Vaily instead of very… I know, I know.

sorry for the poor quality photos, I neeeeeeeeed more than just my iphone camera.

Merry Christmas! December 25, 2009

Merry Christmas!!!

This year, we’re out in Colorado spending the holidays with MacKenzie and Karrisa! While we’re having a blast skiing and spending time with them this Christmas is a little different for us since we aren’t spending it with our parents. I guess that means we’re finally grownups with our own agendas…that’s hard to grip. (miss you Mom and Dad!)

I loved when I was growing up opening the Christmas decoration boxes and walking down memory lane with each ornament. The ornaments we made in school were always so fun to look at as well as all the numerous different ballet ornaments I’ve been given…I don’t think Rob knows how ballet oriented our tree will be in the future! The year we moved out of the house my mom started a new tradition for her tree, packed up all our ornaments and shipped them our way. Now her tree has a few hundred personalities other than just our family ornaments.

Here is her whimsical elf tree.

o'christmas tree.

Here is a close up!

layers of elves!

My parents tree is so much fun to look at! There are layers and layers of elves in the tree, not just on the front branches. My mom jokes (at least I think she’s joking) about taking attendance for all the elves, not a bad idea when you have so many! I’m always on the look out while at garage sales or thrift stores hoping to find a new addition to her elf family. The elves don’t stop just at the tree. You never know where they’ll turn up! There’s one in the bathroom, on the bookshelf, one taking a nap, and one overlooking the porch…

a few from the collection

Did you find the elf sleeping on the job?!

I hope everyone has a fantastic Christmas! Rob, MacKenzie, Karrisa, Meiko and I wish you joy and happiness—now it’s time to go ski!

R and B. December 19, 2009

This photo was taken 3.5 years ago and is still one of my most favorite photos of us.

aww.

It was one of our first photos together, can’t you tell by our over the top “i’m in love” smiles?! Six months from today I’ll bet we will be sporting the same smiles at our wedding!

Since this photo we have, graduated from Aquinas, moved to Madison, I’ve acquired a “big girl job”, Rob has made it through 2.5 of the 5 years of Bio-Analytical Chemistry doctorate program, adopted meiko, traveled and explored around the country, become engaged, have been planning a cottage chic wedding, and continue to learn from each other. Aww.

On The Road Again. December 18, 2009

We’re all set for our 17 hour road trip to Vail; we’ve got a full tank of gas, best friend (meiko) in tow, and a car full of smiles Here’s to a safe drive and good music to be played.

As my father always said while making sure we had everything we needed for our trip, “ski’s, boots, poles, gloves” I think we have everything needed to make this a great trip!

See you soon MacKenzie and Karrisa!

–update–we’ve made it through Iowa, now it’s robs turn to drive :)

Don’t fly away! December 17, 2009

It’s been a few weeks since we’ve sent out our save the dates so almost everyone should have received their copy.

We talked about doing the ever so popular save the date magnets.  We were  then quickly reminded that not everyone has a magnetic fridge…my parents being among that short list. So we decided to go the postcard route.

I thought about using vistaprint.com for  the printing.  When you sign up for their emails, they’ll send you at least an email a day, but in those emails you’ll find free products offered ALL THE TIME.  The printing would’ve been free after I had clicked on the email but I would’ve had to pay the $7 shipping charge, not so bad, eh?  However; we decided not to wait for the order and take the files I created to Officemax…all by myself in Illustrator, I might add.  Not the easiest program to use, so, go me.  Officemax had the postcards printed and cut within 30 minutes of walking through the door.  The whole reason behind not waiting was so that we could get them in the mail sooner rather than later (trying to avoid heavy holiday mail traffic!)   By going this route, I had created the files, had them printed and addressed/stamped all within 24 hours.  I think it was worth the extra couple dollars not having to wait.  Plus I was able to have my Grandmother and Mom help their opinions and addressing! Here’s the finished product!

save the date front (rob is flying away)

One thing I wasn’t going to compromise on was having rounded corners, I think postcards look 10times better with rounded corners. The back says, “don’t let this day fly away!” (Get it? Because Robbie’s flying away?)

save the date back

What do you think?!

Boston Terrier, Love. December 16, 2009

I’d really like to spoil Meiko with this amazing food and water tray,

food station

Strangly, Meiko looks JUST like that when she needs some food.

feeder in use.

The company, “These Creatures is committed to donating a percentage of our annual profits to non-profit organizations working to make the world a more livable and sustainable place for all creatures. ” I really love this product, but $175 is out of my price range.

A product that is more in my price range is this cute ornament. It looks a lot like a French Bulldog but we could get away with calling it a Boston Terrier…

ornament

Idea–>Magic Button! December 14, 2009

I have an idea!

and big tonsils

What if I told you, I had a magic button that would make your life easier? You’d want to know what that button was, correct?

I’m here to tell you today, you can subscribe to my blog with one click of a button.  Instead of having to check my blog every 10 minutes to see if I’ve updated, you will be sent a magical email letting you know I’ve updated.

All you have to do is head over to the right side of this page to the third green box and type in your email address… Easy Peasy. So, go ahead, sign up…it’s free!

Snow! December 11, 2009

On Tuesday night Madison received 18 inches of perfect white snow.  It was so quiet on Tuesday night from the city going into hibernation I thought I could hear the snow fall…Wednesday morning came and the city was still silent.  Schools had a snow day, the malls shut down, the University shut down, and even I had an adult snow day from work! I think the only people who went into work were those who drove the snowplows.

quiet snow

Meiko loved her first blizzard.  She jumped through the snow like a little snow bunny–though, she didn’t really have a choice, it was either, jump or be left behind, so she jumped through the snow banks.

Snowball Meiko

Having this snowday was really beneficial, I was able to tone up my arms by shoveling for two hours and make sure my snow pants fit for our trip out west in a week–and they do!

me and meiko in the snow

I have to thank Jane (!) for mentioning in her blog that the falling snow was a feature for all WordPress bloggers.   I  investigated the setting and now for your enjoyment, I bring you…..snow falling from my blog top, well at least until January 4th! Enjoy this fake snow as much as I love the real snow :)

safe travels. December 10, 2009

In a little over one week Rob, Meiko, and I will be making the 17 hour drive out west to spend Christmas with two of my favorite people; MacKenzie and Karrisa.

karrisa and mackenzie-they're cool

I haven’t worried about what I’ll need for the trip but Meiko is almost all packed. We’ve got her booties ready, plenty of sweaters and jackets, a portable crate (thanks to Jessica!),  and a harness.  Now, this harness is not just any harness.  This harness was created with lots of love and saved us lots of money.  Here is a photo of what inspired us for a little DIY,  from this catalog website!

catalog- harness

The reason we need this harness is for Meikos tendency to want to be anywhere we are.  We worry about her leaping out of the car when we stop along the way, especially in the mountains.  More dogs are lost while on vacation and we don’t want Meiko to be apart of the statistic.  The harness is nice because she can’t get tangled in it, she still has the option of which seat she’d like to curl up in a little ball and sleep in, and she can’t slip out of the car.

meikos harness, without meiko

While we’re willing to spend any amount on Meikos safety, $41 seemed a little hefty for a glorified zip line.  If you break down the components to this zip line, you basically  have a few carabiners, a harness, and two leashes.  With the exception of the heavy duty carabiners, we had all the tools to create the zip line for less than $8. She has a nice seat cover, too.  It should keep her precious little body nice and cozy on the drive since there are no seat heaters in the back seats ;)

I know ours looks very DIY but Meiko will be safe and we can use the difference to get her a few more bones for the trip. Here’s to safe travels!

Smell this. December 3, 2009

What is my favorite smell? Lavender? No. Cinnamon Buns? Yummy but, no.  Meikos breath? Absolutly not.  The smell I love is…..snow!

( I know I've used this photo before--but it's so cute)

Today I smelled and saw my first snowfall of the year.  It’s a refreshing scent and look to the area.  I love it, it’s beautiful and clean!  People in the area are already complaining about the weather…don’t they realize they live in the Midwest, where it snows? Their “bah-humbug” spirits about the weather wont get me down though, I’m embracing the winter this year, especially since I don’t have to get in a cold car this winter!  The Tucson has an automatic car starter, lucky me!

Having the snow fall tonight was so great, it’s finally starting to feel like winter and the holiday season.  Robbie, Meiko, and I start our trek out west in 2 weeks to spend Christmas with MacKenzie and Karrisa.

oh, yum! November 22, 2009

Back in October when MacKenzie and Karrisa were in MI, they introduced me to a yummy treat. I’m here to share this treat to you!

Who here likes caramel apples? Who here likes apple cider? Who here likes whipped cream? me. me. and me. If you’re like me and enjoy all three, here is the perfect fall treat!

First take an empty mug, or mugs if you’re being generous and sharing. I chose to use my Orla Kiely mugs that were a specailty collection item at Target a few months back.

mugs (i'm sharing)

Next, pour in some fresh apple cider, pop in the microwave for about 4 minutes. I’m sure you could boil water and add in mulling spices, but I’ll choose the simple way, thanks!

apple cider

Now for the best part! Top it all off with some whipped cream and caramel drizzle! There you have it, an instant liquid caramel apple.

oh, yum!

ENJOY!! Make sure you thank MacKenzie and Karrisa for this delicious treat they shared with me.

I’ve been tagged! November 19, 2009

So I’ve been tagged by Leah and this is a photo meme. So here’s the rules:

1. Go to the first photo album on your computer
2. Go to the 10th picture
3. Post the picture and tell a story about it
4. Tag 5 more people and let them know.

Concert

This photo is from our first summer in Madison.  Robbie took me on a lovely date to an Andrew Bird concert.  Looks like we were a little early to the show!  Robbie stretched out his arms to take this photo and I love this one.

I’m tagging, ClarindaCottage, PeachesOfMe, andJapanWalker!

Project Wedding. November 17, 2009

When Rob and I first got engaged I was anti wedding website.  I thought it was just one more thing for the bride to be to worry about, guests will get invitations they’ll have everything they need to know…why bog them down with one.more.wedding.item?

Turns out…wedding websites are actually pretty helpful.  With everyone so busy, it’s nice to to give fair warning and to help guests with hotel accommodations.  Unless you are our close family or went to college with us, you wouldn’t know how we met or who our wedding party is.

wedding website

I didn’t really search around for sites to use but my friend Stephanie did! Stephhas the same job as I do ANNNNNNND is getting married the same day as me, but in Iowa! It’s fun to keep track with each other of what we’re up with wedding plans as well as what we’re working on at work.  She had done research on which site to use, made a projectwedding site, so I thought I should, too. Thanks for all your hard work Steph!

Here is our site! Take a look! Hope it helps with planning :)

http://BrieLynnandRob.projectwedding.com

wednesday night vandal. November 6, 2009

I learned an expensive lesson.

Thursdays I have morning meetings outside the office so I was eager to get to my meetings and get the day started.  When approaching my car I saw a lot of glass on the ground.  I then found that a cinder-block sitting on my passenger seat from being thrown in threw the driver side window.  In panic, I realized I didn’t have my purse in my bag and it wasn’t in my apartment,  I had forgotten it in my car the night before, it was stolen.  As far as cash is concerend I normally only carry a $2 bill my Grandmother gave me a few holidays ago. I keep it around and think of her every time I get out my wallet, you can use debit cards for just about everything.  The only items of value that were stolen included, my purse (a purse I’ve wanted for a really long time that “Santa” got for me last year) and everything  inside it.  Nothing else was taken, not the Garmin, not the ipod accessories, just the purse.

Here is a photo of how my day started…

on my way to the car

The building my parking space is next to is a little garage to the neighbors house…I hate the fact that people can walk through there, though, it’s not a high traffic area.

lack of a window

Apparently, as I was told by the police officer, cinder-blocks are too “porous” to get finger prints off so we can’t find the person who did it by that way investigation.

the cinder-block

As the cinder-block made it’s way to the passenger seat it ripped a big gash out of the driver seat and marked up the doors with scratches.

drivers side

The good news about this story is, I got my purse back.  The police called me yesterday around 2pm letting me know they had my purse.  Some lady was getting gas, emptied her trash from her car and found my purse in the garbage can. The people who did this, were only looking for cash, everything was still in contact, with the only thing missing–my $2 bill. My purse now sports a circle of ash from whatever they were smoking, but I’m glad to have it back.

Here’s my advice.

1. don’t leave your purse in your car. ever.
2. don’t vandalize other persons property.
3. don’t steal, it’s not nice, and it’s not fair to the person you vandalized and stole from, with deductibles, hours missed from work, and fees for replacing cards, it gets expensive.

With a grand total of $2100 worth of damage…I sure hope the $2 bill was worth it.

Happy Howl-Ween! October 31, 2009

You should really feel bad for Meiko for a few reasons…

1. Rob and I torture Meiko by dressing her up, and by “Rob and I”–I really mean, I dress her up.

2. We (I) dressed Meiko up for Halloween, again.

3. Our big plans of dressing Meiko up as a shark this year fell short. We are on a tight budget, you know, since we’re getting married.  Leaving Meiko to wear  her costume from last year instead of getting a new one.

4. She still doesn’t like being a bee, as you can see.

Beeeeee happy Meeks!

unbuzzed.

I wonder if next  year she’ll like the bee costume.  The third time’s a charm, right?  If I was a betting woman, I would say the chances of that are slim to none.

an upgrade to the chapel. October 29, 2009

As much as I’d like to keep our wonderful engagement photos up as the main post, I must move on.

Remember this post? Well, there have been many changes in the wedding plans.   We will now be getting married in the beautiful cathedral of St. Augustine in Kalamazoo.   Our “small” wedding has out grown  Bukowski Chapel at Aquinas College.  While getting married on the Campus where we met was really important to us, we chose having family and friends be there with us was more important.  I must admit I’m excited about being able to walk more than 5 steps down the aisle towards the man I’m about to marry!

Take a look at this beauty!!

St. Augustine-photo by the diocese

and… the inside

-inside-

There are other changes, one post at a time friends, one post at a time.

Engagement Photos! October 20, 2009

A couple weekends ago while we were in Grand Rapids for a wedding we met up with our photographer Genevieve McKeiver to take our engagement photos.  We had so much fun with Gen-she made us feel so comfortable! These are a few of  the photos she put up on her blog–thought I should share, too!

All photos in this post were taken by the amazing Gen! If you’re in need of a fantastic  photographer please check out her other work, shoot her an email, she is wonderful to work with!