Updates

Wow, sorry it's been almost two weeks since I've written a thing!  I feel like when we move into our house I'll have more exciting things to talk about.  For now, it's just life as usual.  Anyway, here are some updates:

--We had our home inspections about 10 days ago, and they went fairly well.  It's pretty hard to walk around and listen to someone "bash" the house that you have fallen in love with.  I know that sounds incredibly silly and that them being so picky ends up helping me in the end, but I got a little discouraged afterward.  We ended up asking for a lot of different repairs, and the seller agreed to fix everything!  It was so nice not to have to go back and forth, haggling about who will do what.  It all means we're one step closer to moving in!  So excited!

--With our future home hanging in the balance, I have become OBSESSED with pinterest.  It's seriously an addiction.  It feels so good to pin things and know that I will soon have a house that I can actually execute those ideas in!  Speaking of pinterest, I finally made something that I pinned!  It was this broccoli cheddar soup.  It had an amazing flavor, and I finally got to use my blender!  Only had it for about 5 months, no big deal.  My only complaint would be that, in using the blender, it purees everything down to a baby-food consistency!  I wish there was a way to have larger chunks of broccoli and carrots...any ideas?

Yeah, this is definitely not a picture I took :)

I feel super lame, but that's really all that's been going on as of late!  We have a meeting with our bank to finalize our mortgage application on Thursday, so I'll keep you posted on that.  And I'm of course making some delicious dinners this week since I only work Tuesday and this weekend, so expect to see a few posts about those as well.  Have a great week!

Exciting News and a Whirlwind Weekend

After months of looking and a week of nervousness and waiting, it finally happened.  WE GOT A HOUSE!  I mean, really...we got a house!  I have to keep saying it over and over again because I really just can't believe it!  It honestly was a perfect way to cap off (not really... cap off, it happened Saturday) a whirlwind weekend.

Our humble abode :)

This weekend was seriously jam-packed.  We flew into Indianapolis on Friday afternoon to start with a visit with my best friend from college, Ashley, and her fiance Scott.  We were also lucky enough to be joined by two of my good girlfriends from Chicago, Maura and Bridget.  We definitely got a little crazy, but it was such a long overdue visit that that's to be expected.  I mean, seriously, I haven't seen anyone since the wedding!

Love these girls!

On Saturday morning, bright and early at 7:00 am after getting to bed at, oh, 3:00 am!, we headed to the old alma mater for homecoming.  This was the first time Keith and I had been back since we got engaged.  And even when we got engaged, we were on campus for like 10 minutes.  So it was great to get back and see the place where I met so many amazing people and had so much fun for 4 years.  Keith's parents set up an amazing tailgate, we're so lucky!  During the tailgate, I was calling back and forth with our real estate agent, trying to finalize our offers/counter offers to get to what both parties agreed on.  Right before we headed into the game, we got the call.  I honestly am so glad to be done looking for houses, and I think we ended up with one that is PERFECT for us.  Did I mention the walk-in closet is about 15 feet long?  Yeah, amazing!  It's also a little funny that it happened at Purdue.  Apparently all our major life decisions do :).  People kept telling us we'll have to conceive our first child there...a little creepy but thanks for the suggestion?  I have to admit, the day was also amazing because Purdue won the homecoming game despite being underdogs.  GO BOILERMAKERS!

Saturday night we camped with Keith's parents.  Before you go feeling too sorry for me, his rents have a camper with heat, running water, a real mattress, and a toilet.  Not exactly roughing it :).  It was a really fun time, and it's always nice to catch up with the in-laws.  Especially now that it doesn't happen as often, seeing as we're in KC and not Chicago anymore.

Bright and early again (seriously, why do I always have to get up super early when I'm on vacation???), we got up to head back to Chicago.  We were hosting (at Keith's parents house) a little get-together for all our Chicago friends so we could see them before we headed back Monday morning.  I woke up feeling exhausted, and wasn't SUPER excited about seeing people and not just lounging around all day, but it ended up being a hit.  Worth the exhaustion after all. 

After all the excitement of the weekend, we had a little scare time-wise at the airport.  We got to our gate about 20 minutes before we were supposed to take off.  And I had to run all the way there!  I hate looking like that crazy/unprepared person running through the airport.  But we made it!  And we're so looking forward to the next steps of this house buying journey.  I'll keep you posted!

PS I am terrible about taking pictures!  I'm going to start getting better so you have something fun to stare at while you listen to my awful rambling :)

Yay for me!

I had a pretty crazy weekend.  Friday was my mom's birthday, so Keith and I went out with the whole family to enjoy a delicious dinner.  I got a yummy filet, a treat seeing as we don't eat steak very often!  Then came Saturday.  I ran my first 5k!  I had been training for about two months, and the fruits of my labor finally paid off. 

It was rough getting up (5:30 AM!), so I was feeling a little groggy.  But the energy was very high once we got there, so I really got in the spirit of things.  I felt pretty good throughout the run.  I wasn't used to having to dodge so many people, and we were some of the last people to start.  I think I will definitely try to get to the front with my next one so I don't get stuck behind so many walkers!  The other road block?  THE HILLS!  The entire first mile was an uphill incline, which was pretty killer.  Then, in the last 0.2 miles, there was a super steep hill.  That one almost did me in.  But I kept running and didn't walk once!  I finished in 29:50, not too shabby.  I'd like to shave some more time off that with the next 5K, which we already signed up for.

I'm excited to have a game plan for the next race.  Our plan is to do another 5k on Thanksgiving.  That gives me about another month to shave some time off.  As for beyond that?  We are going to begin training for a half marathon!  A group of girls from work did one on Saturday as well as one of my favorite bloggers, and it has really inspired me.  Right now, it seems completely unachievable.  Like, really?  13.1 miles?  Yeah right.  But we'll see how it goes :)

On a side note, we looked at another house today (the one I posted about last time is under contract now :( ).  I think it's the one!  More on that next time though...

Halloween

I'm not a huge fan of Halloween.  I feel at my age, it's just an excuse for girl's to dress in slutty costumes and parade around bars "without judgment."  In the past, I was that girl.  Instead, I choose not to dress up anymore.  I'm sure I'll feel different once Keith and I have kids, but for now, that's where I stand.

That doesn't mean I'm not buying any costumes this year.  I heard on the news the other day that 15% of costumes bought for Halloween are for pets, and I'm proud to say I contribute to that statistic :)  So, without further ado, here is Gus the clown and Lucy the cheerleader!

My loves :)

Some people may think it's silly, but I love it!  For now, this is my favorite way to celebrate Halloween--with my two cute dressed-up pups!

Compromise

I absolutely hate to admit that I'm wrong.  I'm pretty sure that's a big part of being human, particularly of the female variety.  But I think I may have been kinda wrong about our real estate agent.  Let me explain...

I am very particular, as one should be, about the potential house that Keith and I and our future family will live in.  I want a lot of things.  I want a 4+ bedroom, 3+ bath house, preferably a two story.  I want a wonderful kitchen, since I'm in there quite a bit.  I want a big master bathroom, since, once again, I'm in there quite a bit :).  I want a finished basement, really for kids.  I have so many fond memories of playing in our basement with all my brothers and neighbors.  It's nice to have a place all to yourself when you're younger.  Those are my main requirements.  Not too bad, right? 

Unfortunately for me, I also want to live in a specific part of the city.  And for our budget, my list of wants are pretty impossibly to fulfill.  So I'm trying to figure out where the compromise is.  I'm pretty sure, like our real estate agent told us, we're going to have to move a little further south than I originally wanted to.  If we do that, though, I can get absolutely everything I want in a house.  In fact, we've been eying a particular house in a suburb that our agent suggested that looks absolutely perfect.

I die...

Umm yeah, pretty amazing!

As you can see from the pics above, I could literally check EVERY SINGLE wish off my list.  But I have to live pretty far from the original mapped out area I had in mind.  So that's the dilemma.

We're going to go look at a few more houses sometime in the next week or so.  Hopefully we'll start feeling confident one way or another, whichever way that might be!

I hate the stock market

It's been way too long since I last posted!  I've been very busy in the last week or so, working overtime shifts and trying to keep our house clean.  Seriously, with two dogs, that is a full time job!  Unfortunately, that feels like all I've been doing so not too much fun stuff to report :)

One bummer of the last few weeks was NOT putting an offer on a house.  Keith and I found a house that we really liked, and we were THIS CLOSE to putting in an offer.  But we didn't.  Why, you ask?  Because the stupid stock market took all of our moneys :(.  Well, not all of it, but about 25% of our down payment.  So, alas, we decided that we would keep to our goal of having 10% down and not put in an offer.  I'm pretty crushed over this, but I know that half of becoming an adult is learning to be responsible.  And that was very responsible of us.  Sigh...

In more exciting news, I am 8 days away from running my first 5K.  I honestly can't believe how far I've come in just under two months.  I can now run for 25 minutes, or 2.5 miles, without walking at all!  I know that doesn't sound very impressive, but for me it is.  I'm hoping to run about 4-5 more times before next Saturday, working my way up to 30 minutes running.  I was initially trying to run the 5K in under 30 minutes, but I will be overjoyed if I can finish it without walking.  So that's the new goal!  Another goal that Keith and I tentatively made last night?  We're going to keep running and attempt a half marathon in the next year.  Crazy, crazy, crazy.  Never thought I would be able to even fathom that :)

That's all for now kids.  Hope everyone is enjoying this beautiful weather!

House Hunting

I'm such a bad new blogger!  But I have been absolutely, crazily busy for the last week.  I've been at work everyday since Friday, and Thursday Keith and I went with our realtor to look at some houses.  It's getting so close to the point at which we can put in an offer (aka when we have enough moneys saved up :)), and it's getting really nerve-wracking!

Right now, we're "mourning" the loss of one of the houses that we've had an eye on for awhile.  We were really hoping it would stay on the market for another month so we could put an offer on it, but alas, that simply did not happen.  So now we're trying to choose from what's left.  And before I get too sob story on you, the others houses we're looking at are amazing.  It's just hard to accept that you're never going to find the perfect house, because it doesn't exist.  And that's just not fair...

So we're torn.  I LOOOVE cooking and being in the kitchen.  And Keith isn't exactly handy, so I need a finished kitchen.  That's priority number one.  Priority number two?  A good master bath.  I have been getting ready in the world's smallest bathroom for the last 9 months, as in my "counterspace" is the freaking toilet, and that just is not going to fly any longer.  Wouldn't you know though, it's practically impossible to find a house with both of those things.  So I guess I have to choose.

I'm keeping my hopes up though (at least trying!).  We still have a few months minimum before we need to be out of our rental, so we've got some more time.  And I think when I least expect it, that perfect house will come along.  :)

Running on Empty

I, like every other girl in the universe, struggle with my weight.  I'm constantly hoping to lose, to tighten, going on diets and crazy workout routines.  Lately, I've been trying for the whole "lifestyle change."  I'm counting calories (which doesn't really seem like something that's sustainable forever...) and I'm doing the Couch 2 5K program.  Needless to say, it all is very overwhelming.

The whole food thing is probably one of the hardest parts for me.  I've definitely had some issues in the past.  And I'm not one of those girls who gets really skinny and stops eating when I'm stressed.  Quite the opposite, in fact :)

Generally, I eat pretty healthy.  I love to cook, and I honestly would never make something that was super bad for me.  I do have a sweet tooth though, and ice cream is my weakness.  I would be lying if I said Keith and I haven't gone out and gotten ice cream like 3 times this last week.  But I went grocery shopping on Monday, and I got a few sweet bites to hopefully thwart that habit.  I guess it's really just about setting yourself up for success.  So I'm trying!

As for the working out part, I am not a runner.  I really, really don't like running.  It takes every ounce of strength I have to get up in the morning and get out there.  Is that normal?  I feel like everyone else seems to just LOVE working out.  Or at least like it a tiny bit.  I keep hoping that I'll start enjoying it.  In the meantime, I'm going to keep at it...I guess we'll see...

Despite having bad days (ice cream days?) and bad workouts, I'm going to keep at it.  I don't have a super specific goal.  I, like most women, know a number I'd like to see on the scale, but I'm trying not to make that my everything.  I really (cliche I know) want to FEEL better.  I want to run further and faster.  I want to find balance.  Because that's really what it's all about...BALANCE.

Here Goes Nothing...

Hello all you in the blogosphere!  My name is Lisa, and I'm a long time listener, first time caller.  Seriously though, I've been following and reading a million blogs and have recently decided to try my hand at it all.  I will preface all this by saying I'm not the best writer!  I was one of those girls in school who actually loved math and science, can't tell you how many times I got B's and C's in English!  And so, without further adieu, a little bit about me :)

I was born in Kansas City, but went to Purdue University in Indiana for college.  It may or may not have been for a boy.  But at least he was THE boy!  We both graduated from Purdue and moved to Chicago.  I got a pretty BS degree from Purdue, school was mainly a social gala for me, so I started as an administrative assistant at a company in the Loop.  Needless to say, I got bored FAST.  As I mentioned earlier, I was a Math/Science girl, and I hated not using any of that in my daily life.  So I applied to go back to school for a nursing degree.  Best decision of my life! (Well second best, my hubby is the first :))  I graduated from nursing school and moved back to Kansas City with my then fiance, Keith.  I got an amazing job on a neonatal intensive care unit.  I basically get to cuddle babies for a living--you should be very jealous!  Keith and I got married in June, a stressful yet amazing affair, and are currently house hunting like it's our job.  Like every free, waking moment!

That's basically me in a nutshell.  Maybe that's a little TMI for my first post, but I just want to get it all out there!  I'll basically use this to document/vent about adventures as a newlywed, life with two pups (pics to come!), recipes and cooking (my favorite hobby!), house hunting, working, and anything else that tickles my fancy.

So this is my life, welcome to it.  Hope you enjoy!