A little Country..... (Club)

I have been wanting to take tennis and golf lessons forever and I am finally pulling the trigger. I told myself that I was going to flip a coin this Spring and heads denotes "Golf" and tails denotes "Tennis."  The flip-a -roo landed on heads. So, its official, I am all set up for my lessons! YAY!  So, this means a trip to Golf Galaxy  in my near future and per my husbands previous boss, David... Nevada Bobs is a great place to check out too. I am so freeeeaaaakiinnng excited!  I decided that a new outfit would be in order since thats the best part right?   So stay tuned to see the new digs!  LPGA here I come. :)

My Guilty Pleasure

Its true, Im in love with Jerseylicious! This show is too trashy for words, but yep I LOVE IT! 

TWC

Mike and I were invited to see TOO WHITE CREW, a cover band for the friggen best tribute to old school hip hop music. Our friends Jon and Kelly had seen these guys at Taste of Madsion and fell in love. Needless to say, so did we. From the booty shakin' contest with a girl in (picture it) a pink leotard and heart shaped sunglasses and the BIGGEST butt for shakin ever,  (where the heck was my camera when I needed it!)
 to the best lineup of music. I think I spent half the night watching the awesome fly girls shake it as well but
thanks Jon and Kelly for telling us about this band, we had an awesome time. So awesome, I dont remember my ride home! :)   NICE!

Living life to the fullest... and the love that follows it.

I am struggling with a title for this post due to the circumstances, but as I type, I hope to find something that enunciates the feeling that I have for this situation... 




As everyone who reads this blog knows that I am hell bent on getting my BSN degree and become the best Registered Nurse that I can be.

In fact, last week Mike and I were sitting on the couch and were talking about our busy summer coming up with the Beyond the Booth events we have on the books and we got to the subject of school. I instantly started to cry... it was one of those cries when you feel like your SUPER overwhelmed with daily life activities, i.e. school, work, Beyond the Booth, cleaning etc.

As Mike asked why I was so emotional, I couldnt help but reflect my tears towards an exam that I had got a D on. A 'D' does not sit well in this stomach of mine, so I guess thats why it came out in tear form. Well, my "D" got bumped up via extra credit and I feel better about this situation but the tears that initially started all this were followed by my personal reflection of how MUCH I want to be an RN and the intense passion that I have towards my goal. Its something that I have wanted so bad for the longest time and the chance that I get to strive for my passion is so exhilarating!

My ever changing department of choice has changed about 10 times. First, it was Urology based, due to my many many years of experience, then I was obsessed with the ER, then OR. Now... I cant wait for my clinical rotation on the birthing floors and the neonatal intensive care unit. I work in the NICU currently and thats where this obsession started, so we'll see if this changes but I seriously dont think so. Im in love!

Today, however was another tear filled day and my passion for nursing went up x100! My boss had asked me to come in early and help out since the census and STATS were out of control. I got to the hosp. and grabbed my PDA (used to see what patient needs a blood draw and where).

I noticed that I recognized a name and she was in the Intensive Care Unit. I immediently went up to the department and sure enough, it was who I thought. As I walked into the room, my heart broke into about 110 peices. It was my dearest friend's auntie. My friend's family  surrounded  the bed, tears flowing from their eyes made me cry immediently. They had told me that she had been battling breast cancer and her treatments werent 'taking' anymore due to metastasis to her liver.
As I hugged them all, it was evident that it would only be a matter of minutes that she would be will us. As we stood around the bed, watching the monitor, it was at that moment that all you could do was reflect on what an amazing life this woman had lived and how many people she touched.

Her love for fancy recipe's and wine were her pleasures. She also worked as an advocate for the AIDS foundation in Washington D.C and traveled the world, as well as making a difference in the lives of people in Africa living with AIDS.

My favorite story about this amazing woman is the time when she had been working  in Africa, flew home for her nephew's wedding (my dear friend's brother) took a cab from Madison to Elkhart Lake, came for the ceremony and dinner, took a cab back to Madison and flew back to Africa.  The thought that she put towards others was selfless and thats how she lived her life.
I cant say enough about what I had witnessed today, and the emotions that Im overwhelmed with right now but I do know that she is, without a doubt, having the biggest glass of wine right now, knowing that she fought her battle with cancer to the end.... Just the way she wanted. :)



With this experience, I know that this solidifies my career choice.

( Love you Rose. You will be greatly missed.)

CHALK FULL!!!

I am the first to admit that this blog has been on the back burner... my last post was about pre-geriatric shoes on Dec 20th... and that post was pushing my creativity side of this brain of mine. I mean really... shoes??? and the best part is that I was totally obsessed with them and I still have yet to buy a pair. :) 

However...
I AM BACK! and i have a ton to blog about.  I will preface by saying that it is totally and completly random... no order what-so-ever! 

First... I thought since this is a fresh post, I will try to strum up a fresh background and I wont lie, Im really not a fan of this current one, but I loved the blue and orange together. The cheesy flower can go as well as the hearts, but the name is great; "A Day at the Beach."  How cute is that?  And for all who wonder why I never have a purple background (ya know, I have a giant obsession w/ the color, hence the name) but there is NEVER any cute ones out there. So, if that was just eating at you, now you know! ha ha :)

So, where to begin...

We finally got our new appliances. They are great, just a tad harder to keep a gas stove clean vs. the cooktop, but for all who dont have gas stoves and are inspiring Ina Garten wannabee's, they are fantastic!!!  I took a couple of pics but they are really really really blown out from the flash, but you'll get the idea.

Ive also been on a mission to find stuff for our wall around the house as well. I picked up these cuties at Shopko of all places. They are above our headboard and look super cute.

I also wanted to get some type of 'saying' that has that adhesive that you can cling on the any wall, but they are packaged in the worst way ever and look like a pain to adhere, so I decided that I was going to make my own.  Im a bit bias, but I think they turned out cute. :)

I also was on the hunt for a monogram "H" to put somewhere around the house, and long story short my friend Kelly invited me over for a post-stress wine night and she had a "K" that was absolutly adorable!  Of course, I HAD to get one similiar, and Kohls had this cutie for $6.99!

and this lonley(dying) tulip is just too cute not to add to the "around the house" portion of this post.

and last but not least I FINALLY found something I like for above the staircase heading downstairs!  

Moving right along, Mike and I were invited to a Bday party for his freinds/fraternity brothers this past Sat. They are identical twins and one (with glasses) works at a HOT club downtown Milwaukee called Apartment 720 and they had about 200 people invited to this parrrrtaaayyyy. We took up all of the VIP area and not to mention Nate's (in glasses) boss buys him a rediculous bottle of champagne every year and a little bird told me (his twin) that this bad boy is $2800!!!!!!!!!! WHAAAAT!!!!  I know right??  Anyways, you can tell what kind of night we had by the crazy pics! Happy Bday Jarrod and Nate! Cant wait til next year! ( the pic below is was posted on Apt 720's website for the celebration. Funny huh?) oh, and the very last pic is Mike post party. Couldnt resist! :)

the real Jay and Nate below

and of course... post champagne (ha ha)

Following this crazy night was my cousin-in-law's baby shower and let me just tell you that she is so adorable you guys!

Arent these the cutest ever?

As you can see it has been a busy couple of weeks with all of the above and school and work but now I can cross the "Need to update blog" off my list to do! YAY!  (Crossing it off is the best part!)

FootLoose

So Im officially old... I was with a friend shopping a couple weeks ago and I could NOT stop looking in the shoe department. Coming from a 'always wearing heels' gal to ballet flats through me for a loop at first, but now Im totally into these bad boys.  Now before you judge, let me remind you that I walk EVERYWHERE in the hospital that I work in, and have great shoes for that. (Danskos below)

 However, I have had it with uncomfortable totally trendy heels that make my feet hurt after 2.5secs for everyday wear, ESPECIALLY while doing Beyond the Booth events... that is the WORST!   So, im obsessed with finding the perfect shoe that is cute and equally comfortable. As you know, or dont, these two things dont mix usually except for these!!

and these...

They are 'Clarks' brand and insanly comfortable! So readers, this means that I am going to be sportin' these PLUS some open-toed dandys soon! (Stay Tuned)

Weddings, Weddings, Weddings!!

Its here!!!  The annual Wedding Planner and Guide Show!  We are super excited to be a part of the show for the 2nd year.