Something about Nothing

I have so many thoughts going through my mind!

• I’m thinking about my upcoming divorce hearing and saying good bye to Adam (mentally);
• The odd dream I had last night about Greg’s ex;
• Wedding stuff, mainly finding our site for the ceremony and reception;
• The slow realization that Greg is going to be my future husband;
• Van’s offer to pay for my tuition so I can finish my medical assisting/nursing certification/degree;
• And much more…

Mainly, I am thinking about my wedding and divorce with little bits of the dream I had last night; which I’ll start off with first…

Last night, I dreamt that Greg and I were living with his ex temporarily. It was very awkward for me in the dream, even though we (Greg’s ex and I) were rarely home at the same time. Then, at some point in the dream, the exes sister spies on me and tells the ex what I’ve been doing (supposedly) and then the ex leaves all these notes around the house for me (and they weren’t very positive notes). The same day I discovered the notes around the house, she comes home while I am there and I confront her about the stuff she’s writing to me. And, somehow, after talking about everything we become friends. And, I recall thinking in the dream how odd it felt realizing that we’ve basically ‘made up’ and were actually talking as friends. Very strange dream, no?

My second thought is about saying good bye, permanently, to Adam.  Honestly, I am not that upset about saying good bye as I have no emotional attachment to him what-so-ever; but I thought I would be able to send an email every once in a blue moon to say ‘Hi’ and see what he’s up to (just as I’ve done since 2005 when he moved out). But, I confronted him (via email as that’s the only means of communication I have to him) about the impression I had that he doesn’t want to be hearing from me for non divorce related stuff. You see, I’ve always remained friends with all my exes, even if I started a new relationship or if they started a new relationship; it just wasn’t odd to me. But, Adam is different; he’s a very private person and even though I’m not asking him private questions, I got the feeling that he doesn’t want to be hearing from me after the divorce. Which, as I’ve mentioned, is fine. After all, we need to close certain chapters from our past and move on to start the new chapters. I don’t think I’ll ‘miss’ him in any sense. I guess, in a sense, I received closure from him when he, more or less, confirmed what I thought. So, that is that.

Now, onto the wedding stuff! Last night I bought my first wedding magazine!! I bought the winter edition of The Knot, the magazine version of the website for things in the DC, VA, MD area. And, today, I read that magazine from cover to cover! I highlighted things of interest and worth looking into and checked out a few vendors and potential wedding/ceremony websites.

Even though, as of today, I have 653 days until my wedding, I want to pick out my location; and it’s slightly difficult because I don’t know how many guests we’re going to invite vs. attend. Greg thinks we’ll easily have 150 attendees; I think he’s wrong. Plus, if we have a wedding with that many guests, it’s really going to be financially stressful for us (I, without mentioning anything to my family - as in asking, am not expecting help from our families for our wedding, especially since I’m a repeat bride (sorta)). I am expecting something smaller, like around 75 guests. The second topic of discussion is where to host our wedding and reception. Greg said he wants to do something exotic and feels that if we hold our wedding and reception at a park, that it’s too traditional. Greg and I view the word ‘traditional’ in terms of a wedding completely different; to me, a traditional wedding is a wedding that is held in a church and the reception in a banquet hall. So far, Greg and I have added Ripkin Stadiumas a possible ceremony/reception site. My Mom, on the other hand, would like us to have our wedding reception (as least) at her house. Granted, there are 20 acres to fit everyone, and there is a small beach where we could have the bon fire, but I feel it would be too much of a drive for everyone, and that there are no hotels near by for the guests (since EVERYONE would need a hotel room); if Mom lived closer, then I would seriously consider it (after all, my other wedding reception was held at home in Churchton). I believe the planning would be easier on me if I knew how much money I had to work with. But, I want to know how much everything is going to cost before I set my budget… it feels like I’m in a ‘catch 22′ regarding this part of the planning. Eh, as Greg says, we have plenty of time. Oh, and another item we dicussed was our “save the date” notices - we’re going to send them out this summer. We’re thinking magnets so everyone can put it on the fridge and, hopefully, not forget.

So, not too much going on.

Although, I really should be planning Amelia’s First Birthday Party, as I only have 2 weeks (eek!!). Guess Greg and I will work on that this weekend…

Let the good times roll!

Tomorrow is the December edition of the Ralston Social Club! Greg is looking forward to the party, as is Brooke; I think she misses Amelia.

As I’ve mentioned before; my weekends for December are all booked! I don’t think I’ve ever had this much of a social life since high school. It’s nice, don’t get me wrong, but W.O.W!

Before we left for Jay’s, Greg and I did a little clothes shopping (Greg’s letter finally arrived). I did a little window shopping for an outfit to wear to my cousins wedding reception and Greg’s company party (which is set at semi-formal for a Dave and Busters). I didn’t really see that much at Fashion Bug, but I have a few more stores I want to check out before I plop down the dough for a new dress or whatever I decide to buy. After the window shopping (Greg didn’t buy anything either since the store didn’t have the brand he wanted in stock) we had a nice lunch at Chic-fil-a. It’s been ages since I’ve eaten there! I have to give props to the customer service; the place was packed and yet I didn’t have to wait more than 3 minutes in line to place my order. I was very impressed!

Oh, and “IT” has arrived - so no more worrying about what could have been. Though, Greg and I had a heart to heart discussion last night about what could have been. Greg’s only fear is that we wouldn’t be able to financially provide for the baby; which I believe is what everyone fears when they learn their pregnant. Although, Greg did mention that if I were in fact pregnant, the estimated due date would be around Aug or Sept and that is just after he finishes paying off his car (and that’s where the extra money would come from - his lack of a nearly $400 a month car payment). Are we heartbroken that we’re not pregnant? No. We know we’re going to try for another baby in a couple of years - who knows, we could have a honeymoon baby (after all, Amelia is a birthday baby).

Also (I know, my mind is running a mile a minute) - I changed the memory card from my PSP to the camera and realized that I had Amelia’s Third Hair Cut pictures on there! D-oh! I forgot all about those! So, they’re uploaded onto Flickr. Go have a looksie!

And another thing; Greg and I are horrible at keeping surprises from each other. Absolutley horrible. Greg told me what ONE (apparently there are two surprises) of my BIG Christmas presents is: A laptop!!  And, I get to customize the laptop, color and all (of course I am going with Ruby Red)!! Isn’t this an amazing gift?! I’ve been wanting a laptop of my own since my last one died (nearly two years ago)! The next big purchase is going to be Greg’s dream camera, a Canon EOS 40D. We’re hoping/planning on buying that with our tax return money. And, since Greg revealed one of his gifts for me, I allowed him to open one the gifts I got for him: Skullcandy headphones. When Daniel visited me in July (and gave me his PSP), Greg fell inlove with the headphones Daniel had. So, I kept that in mind and found them at FYE at Marley Mall. Paid a much better price than what is listed on Skullcandy’s website!

Well, I’ve become hunry. Afterall, it is nearly 10pm. Time to raid the frige.

I had so much fun last night!

The WIC appointment was really quick, for once, and I was out before 6pm.

I was at Arundel Mills by 6:05pm and headed through Bed, Bath, and Beyond (love the beyond stuff) on my way to Lane Bryant.

Lane Bryant had a really good sale going on and everything I bought was 50% off the ticketed price! I was in the store for about 20 minutes and bought five tops and two Capri’s. I didn’t see/find any skirts that I liked. The only downside to the trip was that I couldn’t find any pants or Capri’s that I like that were in my size; they were either too big or too small, so the one pair that I bought is about two sizes too big, but it has a belt/sash that I can use to make sure they stay up. When Greg arrived, I was already checking out. My total came to $94.00 and that was including a donation to some organization (I forget the name). Greg was impressed with my ability to go in and find what I like and leave, and that included trying on clothes!

After Lane Bryant, we headed over to Chevy’s for dinner. We ran into someone, the manager, who used to work at the company that Greg works for (since he was wearing the company shirt/uniform) and they chatted for a few minutes while I went to the table. Dinner was alright. The wings were great, but my meal wasn’t what I was expecting. I should have paid attention to the description of the item I ordered.

After Chevy’s, we stopped in FYE to see if they had The Transformer’s Movie, they did and we bought it.

After FYE, we headed over to Carter’s to shop for Amelia. Carter’s is a hit or miss when it comes to their clothing and prices. We looked around and bought three pairs of pants (one being overalls), and seven onsies, all in the nine month size. I did find that their selection was a little on the lacking side, but we were able to spend $55.00 without any problems.

After Carter’s, we headed over to The Children’s Place to see what they had. Their selection was even worse! But, I did find a nice little sweater cardigan for Amelia to wear in the mornings. Even Greg liked it, a lot. And, it was on sale from $14.99 to $4.99! Also, I found an adorable holiday dress that I would like for Amelia to wear for photos. It’s red checkers with black, gray, and white with a black bow on the waist. I found red tights to match and cute little black Mary Jane’s (just have to choose between shiny or matte) and thought about putting a nice red bow in her hair. She is going to look like a doll! I didn’t get any of the items because I want to talk to my cousin April about doing pictures for the Holidays first (to see if we want to do coordinating dresses; matching dresses, etc).

Finally, after The Children’s Place, we headed home. It was after 9pm when we left. We were shopping for three hours! When we got home, I did a little fashion show for Greg and he liked all the items I bought and stated, again, that he was impressed with the deals and time of my shopping spree! I am such a smart shopper.

Once I was done with the fashion show, I watched a little TV. There wasn’t anything on the network channels, so I headed over to Comedy Central and watched South Park for an hour. It has been a long time since I’ve watched this show (one episode a couple weeks ago doesn’t count since I used to watch this religiously). The episode at 10:30 was good! Hilarious even!! Greg and I were laughing so much, though mainly Greg. I am looking forward to Drawn Together tonight. After South Park, I headed for my shower while Greg put on Transformers. We watched the movie until midnight, with Greg skipping through the movie.

My sleep wasn’t that good last night. I kept waking up thinking I’ve overslept yet I didn’t want to look at the clock (my cell phone). Plus, I was having some pretty odd dreams; one being that of a nightmare sort. Sadly, I don’t remember the details.

Last night, on the way home from Arundel Mills, I called my Mom to check on Amelia and to tell her about the deals and clothes that I bought. Mom then goes on to say something along the lines of “See, you’re doing fine!” referring to Greg and me, or just me, keeping Amelia and being able to support her and my, or our, self. This time last year, without knowing, I was about 25-27 weeks pregnant; I was fighting bronchitis with no health insurance and I just started at a new job. October was a rough month for me, unbeknownst what I was going to experience in January! I shared with my Mom all the worries, concerns, thoughts, feelings, emotions, etc that I had when I told her in December that I was pregnant and felt that I wasn’t going to be able to provide all that Amelia would need, on all levels. So, it’s such an odd feeling to remember all the anxiety and fears I had last year and to see where I am now; very, very, odd feeling.

Everything at work has been resolved and I now have my money, which, as I mentioned, is more than I was expecting. Greg and I talked about what to do with said money and we’ve decided to do some major clothes shopping for myself and Amelia. So, tonight we head over to Arundel Mills for an evening of shopping and then dinner at Chevy’s!

It’s so nice to be ahead of the bills. Greg and I have paid everything early; car payments, insurance, day care, utilities and cable, cell phones, etc… and we still have extra money for shopping. Then, when we receive our paychecks next week, the only thing we’ll need to pay is rent and day care and that isn’t including the bonus from Greg’s company and my commission check for September. We’re going to be so far ahead of the bills - it’s honestly exciting.

With all that said, I can’t wait to go Christmas shopping! I have already decided on what my ‘big gift’ for Greg is going to be and I have a lot of little gifts that I plan on getting him as well. But, I am mostly excited about the ‘big gift’ since I know he will love it. The only problem that I see, and I’ve brought this up to Greg, is that I don’t know whenI am going to be able to get the gifts since we’re always together. His response was delivery to work which I don’t believe I have that luxury. I’m sure I’ll figure something out.  I just wish I knew what he has in mind for me… he says he’s already thought of a few ideas as well as some things for my birthday… Greg’s better at keeping surprises better than I am (since I get too excited and want to share them right away).

Yesterday, when I had a free moment, I was looking at Baltimore’s Harbour Cruises information since Greg and I talked about possibly holding our wedding there. As I was doing the research, I learned that they have a minimum of 125 guests for one package and another of 75 guests. I don’t think Greg and I know that many people! We’re thinking our wedding will be very small and intimate of maybe 40-50 guests that we know for a fact will be there. Budget wise, it’s looking like we’ll be spending about 3-5 thousand dollars, which isn’t all that bad. We’ve also looked into other places for a honeymoon (due to a concern of Greg’s) and have thought about going to one of the Caribbean islands or even to Hawaii. The only thing we’ve agreed to, thus far, is a fall wedding.

I have an appointment tonight at WIC. These appointments are always interesting. Amelia has never attended any of these appointments, thankfully, but many others do bring their children along. I remember one appointment from earlier this year that this one women had two girls; one was about 8 and the other was maybe 1. The 8 year old was being called Tony which I was thinking of as Toni Braxton and then I noticed the 1 year was being called Mickey (the other pronunciation - not like mickey mouse) and then when the 1 year old was misbehaving, the girl was called Michael… I thought for a few minutes that maybe the 1 year olf was a boy, but the mother referred to the 1 year old as ‘her’ and ’she’ - so the girls had boy names. I thought that was odd.

Yesterday, my cousin April and I exchanged a few emails talking about our babies and family plans, etc. Olivia had her two month check-up earlier this month and she was 14.4 pounds and 24 inches! Ameila, at nine months, is 18.4 pounds and 27 1/4 inches. There are nearly six months between Amelia and Olivia and Olivia is kicking butt with the height and weight compared to Amelia. When Amelia was two months, I believe she was around nine pounds or so… My Mom says it’s because April had more pre-natal care than I did so she took pre-natal vitamins longer than me (remember, this time last year I didn’t know I was pregnant) so that alone is probably why Olivia is different than Amelia. That probably has some truth in it but I don’t think it’s the only reason.

Now, for shopping; I am thinking of getting mostly skirts and a few new tops. I like wearing skirts of all lengths and find them more comfortable for the weather. Especially with the office being too warm for my personal liking.  For tops, I am trying to stay away from sweaters since that’s too warm and hoping that I am going to be able to find nice 3/4 sleeved shirts or dressy t-shirts.

I am getting excited that I get to leave at 5pm today! I would love the 8-5 shift but I don’t think I would be able to get out of the house with Amelia in enough time and that would also mean that we, Amelia and I, would need to leave at 7am each morning. I don’t think she would adjust well to that change.

On another completely different note…

I am so loving it having Lisa at work with me! We get together during lunch and sit outside and chat away! She is going to watch Amelia for Greg and me in December when Greg’s company has their holiday party. Greg and I are counting the days until the holiday party because it’s going to be at Dave and Busters in Rockville and the company has rented the entire place for themselves which means we’ll have unlimited food, drinks, and games for free! Greg and a few of his co-workers are talking about renting a limo to and from Dave and Busters, which sounds like so much fun! I haven’t heard anything about my company’s holiday party, yet, but they’re probably going to wait until the last minute like last year.

 Well, I am going to finish my letter to my girlfriend, Kara.

Those past three days flew by! Greg and I had so much fun too. There were times that we felt guilty for enjoying our time without Amelia but the time off was needed.

I’ve talked to my Mom at least three times a day to see how she and Amelia are doing. So far so good. Amelia is chasing the dogs and crawling all over the place. Mom says Amelia loves being in the high chair and playing with her food.

Work has been hella busy since the moment I logged in and I came in 10 minutes early! But, Lisa is here and has begun her training. It’s so nice working with her again. We’ve caught up on a lot of things during lunch and on our breaks. I’m really excited to see her here. I know she’s just as excited to be here vs. where she was before.

Speaking of work, they have resolved the issue and I should have all my money by tomorrow. Whoohoo! And, they sent me an email telling me how much was going to be deposited and it’s more than I was expecting so I will be able to do some clothes shopping for me and Amelia and Greg (if he’ll let me buy him some clothes) as well as get our oil changes and maybe Greg some new tires or pay off my two credit cards - there are so many options!

Work is providing the office with lunch today - yay!

It’s pay day - yay!

It’s Friday - yay!

I am feeling pretty damn good today. Especially since my check was MORE than I was expecting and it didn’t include my commissions from August (the commissions will be in the next check). My employer treats me so well!

Amelia was so sleepy last night. She was falling asleep in my lap as I was talking to my Mom. She was being as cute as could be… sucking her thumb as she lay her head on my chest. Aww…

Mom is going to watch Amelia from Oct 13 - 20. Greg and I are thinking of taking a few days off to do a little local traveling and go to Hagerstown for some clothes shopping.

This weekend is going to be spent doing small errands (Costco’s, Target, and Alcohol Store), having the cable installed in our bedroom, and going to Centennial Park in Columbia. Fall is starting to show it’s colors and Greg and I want to get some pictures. I mentioned before that I am thinking of creating a Christmas Card for this holiday and I want to make the card a collection of this past year in pictures. I guess I should get started with that… plus I want to take Amelia to a photo-shoot place and get some new pictures done and maybe some with all three of us. I know my Mom wants to get some pictures taken of Amelia and Olivia together for the holiday. Ugh! So much to think about!! Though, it is exciting!!!

Ok, who else watched Ugly Bettylast night? That episode was great - I was all excited to see that Santos survived the shooting and then BOOM! it was just a tease!!! I actually cried when it showed that he didn’t make it (could blame it on the hormones). I was so happy to see Henry get off the bus AFTER Betty finally started to move on. I am so hooked on that show! Greg, for some unknown reason, doesn’t seem to care about it. I may be able to get him into it later… like many other shows (Scrubs, Top Chef, Hell’s Kitchen, Heroes).

After Ugly Betty, Greg and I talked about our trip next summer to Seattle and all the places that we want to see. Greg actually had an itinerary! We’re definitely buying the Seattle City Pass and the Go Seattle Card although some attractions overlap (I’m leaning more for the Go Seattle Card). We are looking to be in the Seattle, North Bend OR., area for 15 days and have a budget of about $3500.00 (including travel, room and board, and food). I am trying to get over the budget thing. I, personally, have never spent that much money on anything in a 2 week time span. I have a hard time spending money on unnessary things (mainly things for myself). I work hard for my money, as does Greg and everyone else out there, and I have a hard time of letting go I suppose. I remember when Greg and I went to Atlantic City in March 2006 - I had $150 for play money and after $40 of ‘gambling’ I stopped because there was no way in hell I was going to waste the rest of my money; I was working two jobs at that time and could use the left over for many other things.

Last night I had some pretty interesting dreams. The main dream was of my wedding. I remember the dress I wore (which was pretty nice) and the rings. I remember my cousin April being my bridesmaid and my Mom taking care of Amelia. There were a few odd things about the dream, though I can’t remember the details at this moment. But mainly, I remember the rings. My engagement ring was a three stone ring in white gold or platinum and the wedding band was a ring of many little diamonds in the band. I remember thinking that I really liked how they looked together. I told this to Greg this morning and he didn’t really have a response.

I’ve killed a good bit of my afternoon looking at engagement rings (when I was assisting with a customer). I am going to post the ones I like next. Any feedback would be fun!

Lately (when I have a free moment to myself) I’ve been letting my mind wonder and I’ve done a lot of thinking; thinking about all the things that have happened in the last nine months in my life - how I feel about the events that have occurred, what caused them, and how to improve or keep things as they are.

I’ve noticed that I’ve changed, not a lot, and for the better. I am not as lazy (not referring to just physical, but more emotional) as I once was - not because Amelia is around, but more along the lines that I feel proud of my accomplishments and I want to take care of everything and ’show them off’ so to speak. For instance: I want to keep the condo as clean as possible (not OCD clean) whereas when I was living in the townhouse with Sean and Aaron, I could care less about the appearance or how clean the place was; my car: previously I kept telling everyone I keep my car in the messy state that it was as my anti-theft - meaning that no one would want to go through my car to see if there is anything of value worth stealing, now a days I can’t stand items left in my car and right now it eats at me (very little) that the car is still slightly messy from the move. Those two examples are just a couple of the major events that have occurred in my life in the last nine months: Buying my first car and Greg and I moving in with each other (and all the shit we went through to find a place). 

Then I begin to think about Amelia. I will admit that it wasn’t ‘love at first sight’ with her and it took me some time to accept her and develop those motherly loving feelings. Don’t get me wrong, I never neglected her or felt any resentment towards her, it was just a huge mental and emotional adjustment for me to have her in my life; especially after all the conversations that Greg and I had when we learned that I was pregnant (they weren’t of the positive sort) including putting Amelia up for adoption once she was born; big emotional adjustment here and probably one of the biggest adjustments I’ve every had to make in my life, thus far.

The second major emotional adjustment was due to Greg and he finallyadmitting his feelings for me. Even today I am still adjusting to the fact that he’s in-love with me and tells me!!! After nearly a year of him denying his feelings for me - I knew he had feelings for me and I tried to get him to admit so but he denied it and finally in February he came out (not in that way). Thinking about that night in February still gives me butterflies. But, there are times that I will remember things that he told me before he admitted his feelings and I will bring it up to him and pick his brain as to why he didn’t tell me certain things when I asked the first time.

One night last week, as Greg and I were lying in bed talking, I asked him how many near death experiences he’s had; he told me about his close to drowning experience and the two carbon monoxide events. My only near death experience was in January 2007 (10 days after Amelia was born) when I began to bleed without known reason (later results showed that a part of the placenta was in the uterine lining and had fallen out) and let me tell you that I have never been so scared in my life as I was on January 22 when out fo the blue the bleeding began. I called my doctors office and they told me to wait an hour and call back if the bleeding didn’t slow down or stop (when I called the doctors office, I was in the shower watching all the blood run out of me as if I was peeing) and then I called my mom, hysterical on the phone, and she thought I dropped Amelia down the steps (as that was a fear of mine at the time) and when I told her what was going on she told me to call Greg. I was too afraid to call Greg; I didn’t want to inconvenience him because in my mind  still ’saw’ ‘us’ as just friends and that he still wanted to put Amelia up for adoption (though he didn’t feel like that, but that’s is how I saw things) and by having him come over it would interrupt his work and he would be missing time which would be loosing money… I know, hormones make a girl crazy… but, I called him anyway and he came right over and saw my condition (which he told me at a later time) which was that I was in obvious shock - I had no color in my skin and that my lips and toe nails and finger nails were blue from lack of oxygen and blood - freaky, huh? Greg arrived just before the ambulance did and within 20 minutes I was on my way to the hospital, again. Later, once I was hooked up to TWO IV’s to make up for the fluid loss, and examined, Greg was joking around with me and said something along the lines of:

Greg: “I hope Aaron doesn’t freak out when he gets home…”

Me: “Why?”

Greg: “Because there was so much blood in the townhouse and outside that it looks like a murder was committed. Plus, your car is still out front and there is no baby or you at home - just the blood all over the place.”

Me: “Mmm… good point. Could be an interesting story later, though. Eh, I’m sure he’ll figure things out and know that I’m fine.”

Mom was on her way up so she could explain what happened.

The following morning I was released from the hospital (I stayed the night and received a blood transfusion) and Greg told me that he was going to take two days off of work to take care of me and Amelia (which is when I introduced Greg to Bravo’s Top Chef and we watched all of Season 2 in one day). During that time, at some point, I asked Greg if he was mad at me for asking him to come over on the 22nd and he was like ‘hell no!’ and said that he would have been mad if I HAD NOT of called him. That confused me to no end but life continued. A little over two weeks later, Greg and I had THE TALK and finally talked about our feelings for each other and thus began our real relationship.

There are a few occasions that I ask Greg a thousand and twelve questions about his feelings for me. I also ask him a lot of questions about his past relationships as well (mainly feelings and such), although I’ve been asking fewer and fewer questions as I’ve slowly accepted the fact that Greg and I are together together (not that I had and thoughts or feelings that he was going to leave me to go back to any of exes) - I guess, in a sense, adjusting to the knowledge of the relationship and feelings that Greg and I have for each other is like having something you’ve been wishing to happen actually come true and you’re in disbelief because who ever has a actual wish come true… it’s not that I am insecure about myself or anything or that Greg is with me only because of Amelia… it’s just that I never, in my wildest dreams, expected Greg and I to actually fall in love with each other and plan our future together. Never.

So, with thinking about Every.Single.Thing. that I have been through these past nine months (the crazy hormonal state I was in in March and what I did as a result; the anger I had in June when I learned that Greg and I were not going to move into that first place; the emotional ‘issues’ Greg and I went through about a certain person; and everything in between) I am feeling pretty damn good right now. My life is actually good and happy. I feel like an adult and that I am handling my life and all the situations that have been thrown at me and I’ve succeeded through them and survived without an ill effects on myself or my outlook.  I feel accomplished; as if I just survived one hell of a hurrican and once the storm was over, I still have a place to call home.

I made it.

Friday: Don’t remember since I went to bed pretty early.

Saturday: Greg and I had a pretty productive day! First, we talked about going to Kinder Farm Park before going to Arundel Mills but since the weather was so hot and humid, we skipped the park and did a nice walk around the mall. We were good and didn’t buy anything. Amelia did very well sitting in the stroller like a big girl! Greg and I did look at rings but mostly picked up booklets to look at the different styles and to see what I like and dislike (definetly going for the round or princess cut; hate the marques cut and think the heart cut is gross). Then we talked about if we wanted to get a set (engagement ring and wedding band) or just the engagement ring and get a band later. Greg, I believe, is going for the set.

After the mall we went to Super Fresh and bought needed and not really needed items for the week. One of the not really needed items I bought was cake mix and frosting. I was in the mood to bake a cake for some reason. But, all in all, we did really good shopping wise.

Once we were home, we fed and played with Amelia and I finished cooking dinner (did another crock pot roast) and then began on making the cake. As I was mixing the batter a weird thought or realization came to mind: I feel domesticated. It’s not a bad feeling at all, but it was just a weird moment to realize that here I am finishing up dinner preperations and began working on a cake at 8pm and on a Saturday night.

Once Amelia was asleep, Greg and I watched Ghost Rider. Eh, it wasn’t what I was expecting. It started really slow and with my short attention span I was already thinking of something to do and just have the movie on for background noise.  But, I didn’t and stuck it out and watched the whole movie. Greg and I didn’t really care for it and I will give the movie two stars on Netflix. The other movie that we have to watch is Letters from Iwo Jima. We’re probably going to watch that tonight.

Sunday: The weather was great! The skys were clear and there was an awesome breeze. Greg and I got up bright and early (Amelia is our alarm clock and she’s always up by 7am) and we were out of the house by 10am! First, we headed over to Costco’s and bought another bag of Skittles (I know, I know) and then we headed over to Kinder Farm Park where we spent the latter of the morning into the afternoon. Of course we took lots of pictures but at the moment we don’t have internet access at home to upload them. We’re going to see how long we go without before we cave in and order service.  It looks like the person that we usually bump off of has left for the weekend and of course their computer and router were turned off as well so we haven’t been able to connect. We hope they return today.

Greg and I discussed buying a membership for $30 which would give us access to all the county parks and not have to pay the $5 per vehicle (so it pays for itself after 6 visits). We have a new goal/plan and that is to get out more on the weekends. Way back in the day, Greg and I talked about visiting a State Park every month (a new one each month). So far, we’ve only visited Catcotin Park in Hagerstown/Fredrick MD and that was back in April. We talked about visiting other parks but with the move and all things related we never got the chance; so now that things have calmed down in our life we’re able to do more recreational things. I am looking forward to this goal, as is Greg. We did so much walking (which is good exercise) this weekend and we want to continue. Greg has started to loose some weight and he wants to continue. Greg also mentioned sometime while we were at the park that he can’t wait until Amelia is 3 years old so she can enjoy the park as much as we do. He can’t wait to show her the different types of animals and flowers and planes (BWI airport is not too far from the park and we can see the plans fly over as they’re about to land).  Next weekend, I’m hoping we can visit Downs Park, which is on the water.

We returned from the park around 12:30pm and tried put Amelia down for a nap (since she only slept during the car ride to and from the park) but she wasn’t going for it. We played a little in the office and then we played on the floor. Greg took a little nap (since he stayed up until 2am playing Civ and Casino Tycoon) while I tried to teach Amelia to crawl. She did very well and actually ‘crawled’ 3 steps before plopping down. She is > < this close to acutally crawling. I’m figuring that by next weekend, the 15th, she will be crawling more regulary, just in time for the family get together!

The rest of Sunday was spent around the condo. Did some laundry, talked on the phone with my Mom, Brother and Cousin and played with Amelia.

The conversation I had with Sean was interesting. He finally received his security deposit from JM, the townhouse owner. She took out $475 of the secruity deposit for Merry Maides and other charges WITHOUT telling my brother in advance. Plus, Sean paid an extra $600 deposit for Max, his dog, and she kept that as well. I told Sean to not deposit the check as that would mean he is accepting her terms and told him to find the lease AND do some internet research since it seems she took her merry time with returning the security deposit (which it should have been within 30 days of the end of the lease).  There are a lot of other little things that seem unfair with her reasons for witholding the money (the front lawn wasn’t mowed when in fact it was before we left - not our responcibility if it wasn’t mowed before she leased it to new tenants). Anyway, there’s a lot of drama going on regarding the townhouse. I hope Sean is able to resolve everything without getting a lawyer!

*** Fast Forward to 5:10pm ***

Yeah, another busy day at work; what fun I’m having!

There is more that I would like to write, but I’m running out of time. Maybe if the internet is working when I get home I’ll be able to write more, if not ya’ll are going to have to wait.

Until then!

J

Whew! One moer hour to go (as I type).

I’ve had two very interesting conversations today regarding money that is heading my way; from Comcast (of all people) and my reimbursement from daycare will all be arriving around next week!! Whoohoo… that’s going to be over $500 and we could probably use that money for 2 new car seats (one for each car) and maybe a new vacuum cleaner…

Stupid work kept me from writing more… after the 5pm ship leaves it’s just me and one other to cover the phone lines (yes, more than one line comes into the call center)….

Well, hope everyone has a great weekend!

Yeah, so I am totally not in the mood to work whatsoever.

Greg and I have been chatting back and forth about what we’re going to do this weekend and about the condo. So far, this is the plan:

Saturday: Sleep in as late as possible. Then, at 3pm we meet the condo guy, sign the paper work, give some money and try to contain our excitment!

After that; no plan at all.

In the mean time, I’ve been money crunching with numbers. Since we’re paying the pro-rated rent when we sign on Saturday (well, just under the total amount), we need the security deposit when we move in. Also, we still need to pay rent to his Mom, but it’s only going to be half since we’re moving out on the 17th of Aug. But, I also have to pay my cell phone, which is past due, and then my car payment and insurance before we move in. I think we’re going to be able to make it. It helps that Mom is watching Amelia all of next week! Greg and I have got to do something nice for Mom.

But, other than that I haven’t done much today. I did work, a little, on my projects (at least there isn’t a ‘due by’ date on them) and I’ve already enrolled 10 new customers today (which a lot since we’re so slow) and did the email thing with Denise and my Grandma. Oh, and to top it off, played some DD. I’m sure I’m not suppose to be playing this while at work, but my argument is how is it any different than reading or working on a puzzle book? I have the volume off and such, so it’s not interrupting anyone and as soon as I get a call I put the DS down and focus my attention on the call. So, they can’t say that the game is lowering my quality of call (especially since my score is averaging around 98%, which exceeds expectations).

Well, two more hours to go!

Discount Airfare