2011!

Happy 2011!

2011 is already shaping to be a busy work year for both Aaron and I, but here are a few things we're most looking forward to:

1. Continuing to house hunt-we haven't quite found the house with the land with the location were seeking, but know its somewhere out there

2.Weddings galore-we have 3 that we know of between May and July

3. A trip to the homestead for one of said weddings

4. A Beach vacation-not sure when, but definitely Nags Head

Not sure what else the year will bring, but so far so good! Happy New Year! We hope its full of happiness and success!

Holiday Recap

Hope your holidays were everything you hoped for and more. I had to work Christmas Eve and Day this year, so our holidays weren' t quite the same, but nonetheless a joyous time. We spent Christmas Eve opening our gifts to each other then went to my aunt's house and exchanged with their family. I spent Christmas (and my 25th Birthday!) with the kiddies and other nurses in the PICU. I was actually looking forward to Christmas with the sick kids-they certainly didn't deserve to be there, but unfortunately most of our children were intubated and couldn't enjoy Santa, or the Macy's parade, or our showering of gifts. It broke my heart to know that 4 precious children "slept" through Christmas. Immediately after my shift, Aaron and I headed east on 64 to see our families. I loved that we were again able to spoil our niece and nephews with things that they "have always wanted." Oh to be a kid again! We then went to my parents house and enjoyed birthday lasagna and ice cream cake-its become the tradition! Unfortunately the snow did not hold off long enough and by 8 am on the 26th we were headed back to Richmond. Short, but sweet visit! We were lucky enough to be able to go back to Yorktown/Mathews the following weekend for New Years and just like your average 25 year olds (ha) we were in bed on NYE at 9:30! We continued the weekend with our nephews 7 year old birthday party then headed back to Mathews for a family gathering at my parents. It was a nice ending to the holidays and to the year 2010!

and people wonder why they are spoiled...

Our niece and nephews could get anything and everything over on Aaron and I. They are the light of our world. We absolutely love spending time with them and I think they are many times our excuse to go home. I got a text from my sister in law yesterday that said "Alex just picked out a turquoise bracelet and said we should get this for Janah-she looks very pretty in turquoise". Talk about your heart melting-ahhh. Just Friday, Aaron went home for the evening and went to see the kiddos for a bit. As he was leaving, precious Julia stuck her little lip out, teared up her big brown eyes and said "Aaron dont leave me, I'll miss you". Talk about being wrapped around someone's finger. No wonder we buy and exchange 3 different pillow pets because a certain 3 year old can't make up her mind, go to 5 different stores looking for the perfect Halloween costume, find ways to squish 2 (sometimes 3) car seats in our smallcars, buy happy meals just to get more of the toysthe kids want, and the list goes on and on. They have our hearts!

Carson (1), Julia (3), and Alex (almost 7)

Thankful for so much!

Its a week past Thanksgiving, but I'm still thankful nonetheless. We had a great day with my family and Aaron's dad on Thanksgiving and spent time with the rest of Aaron's family throughout the weekend. As I stopped to look around I of course noticed lots of yummy food, my wonderful family, a loving husband and realized we have so much to be thankful for this year, so for this I am thankful-in no particular order:

1. A loving, and forgiving Savior

2. My wonderful husband

3. An amazing family

4. A job that I fall more in love with every day

5. The opportunity to grow in said job-say hello to the newest member of the Pediatric Critical Care Transport Team!

6. Health-mine, Aaron's, and my familys'

7. Christmas music on Lite 98

8. Mariah Carey's Christmas CD on repeat

9. My niece and nephews-and spoiling their hearts out!

10. Nutella, pretzels, and diet. dr. pepper!

11. A clean apartment

12. Pottery Barn

13. Dancing with the Stars

14. Ann Taylor Loft

Happy Holidays!

Finally Fall

With November upon us we have finally hit some fall like weather. Im not one to complain about warm temperatures, but I certainly am ready to pull out the hoddies and jeans. This fall has been a busy one for us so far. I have been picking up extra hours at work while we transition to computerized charting, and Aaron continues to stay busy at work also. We've also had the chance to have some fun! Aarons birthday was Oct. 15 and on the 17th we went to the Redskins vs. Colts game at Fed Ex field. Neither of us had been to a NFL game before and it was a lot of fun! We arrived at the stadium early and were able to see the players drive in in their BMWs, Mercedes, and Rolls Royces'. Of course I didn't know who any of them were without their names written across their shoulders, but it was still neat :)

We also had a sleep over with our niece and nephew in October. We had lots of fun shopping for halloween costumes, eating pizza, staying up late watching movies, and just being together. They certainly hold a very special place in my heart!

This past weekend I had big plans to begin Christmas shopping and get a pedicure while enjoying Starbucks but the nasty GI bug that is going around the PICU had other plans for me. While I was absolutely miserable for a good 24 hours it was nice to not be able to do anything but lay around and rest-something I desperately needed after working 46 rotating hours of work this past week. I feel much better today and plan on getting that pedicure!

Hope you all are enjoying fall! Cant believe the holidays are upon us already. What are your big plans?

Long time, no talk

Sorry for quite the delay in the blogging. Aaron and I have had a great summer. I have a new appreciation for the pool and the 3 day work week for nurses. Most days of the summer consisted of me laying by the pool reading books, listening to my iPod, and relaxing-it was marvelous!

Aaron and I also had 2 fun vacations-one to Nags Head and one to Tennessee. We went to Nags Head with some great friends and enjoyed laying on the beach with sand between our toes and cold drinks in our hands. The Tennessee trip started with the wedding of one of my roommates from Tech. Shelly was a wonderful roommate and a great listener whenever I needed her. She also made a gorgeous bride! Best wishes to she and Randal for a long, happy, healthy future together. We continued on to visit Aaron's grandmother. Shes a 95 year old ball of fire who has a heart of gold for her grandson with orange blood! It was a lovely visit and I'm so glad we were able to go. On that trip we also celebrated our 1st Anniversary! I cannot believe its already been a year. What a great year its been.

Another major happening this summer was a very sad one. Right before Aaron and I left for Nags Head I had a patient at work who touched my life beyond belief. This patient had lived 27 years past his expectancy-yes not the typical PICU patient. He had an amazing family and a beautiful soul. Unfortunately he lost his battle. I was able to sit with his family while he passed and what an amazing experience it was for me as a new nurse.

Our calendars are pretty full for the fall. I will be picking up extra time at work while we transition to computerized charting. We also have trip planned to Knoxville for the UT/Alabama game. Aarons birthday is in a few weeks and I have something up my sleeve that I hope will work out! Hope everyone is doing well! Sorry again for the delay in blogging!

We're Here!

Aaron and I have finally made it to Richmond. With a little help from our families and friends we finished our move this past Saturday evening. Our new apartment is much bigger than the one in Spotsylvania and the closets are amazing! We can both actually hang up all of our clothes! We haven't quite gotten things the way we want them, but with time I'm sure that will come.

After the move we decided to go home for the holiday weekend and spend time with family and friends on the water! Salt water and sand, a boat ride, and an evening spent on my families dock was just what we needed.

We made our way back to our new home on Tuesday and got back into the groove of things yesterday. Our commutes are amazing. Aaron has roughly a 10 minute drive and mine is a little over 20 minutes-much, much better than what we've been doing for the past year. We continue to look forward to all the things Richmond has to offer!

Hope everyone had a great holiday weekend! Looking forward to visitors soon!