Category Archives: Daily Life!

Black Friday Shopping & a Baby Shower

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Happy Tuesday to ya! I feel like I’m still trying to catch my breath after the busy holiday. Yesterday was a Jazzercise sandwich  – I taught at 5:40 am and 6:45 pm. I was making up for my missed Sunday class. 🙂 And now tonight I teach my normal double header right after work at 5:40 and 6:45 pm. Needless to say, tomorrow night I’ve got to clean/organize my house! My living room is basically a disaster zone…

photo(33)All my packages that made the trip back from STL with us are still just piled in the floor like this. I’m not okay with it, and yes, I have a mild anxiety attack every time I walk into my house. Thankfully, a lot of this stuff is for Christmas, so I can wrap it up and put it under our tree to get it out of the way!

Black Friday Shopping

Let’s back up a bit to Thanksgiving night and the shopping event of the year! After dinner on Thanksgiving afternoon, Nick’s mom and I got our game faces on. It was time to shop. Most of the stores were opening between 6-8 pm on Thanksgiving night. Our first stop was Michael’s because it was already open and located right next to Kohl’s (our next stop!). We loaded up on 50% off holiday decor before we went to get in line at Kohl’s.

image(16)We were here around 20 minutes before they let us in. The crowd was really calm, and we got some great deals. Overall, a good experience!

image(17)WOOOOOOOOOT!!! This is why we waited in the cold. I got lots of random gifts here and saved enough to make it all worthwhile.

We proceeded onto Target and Ulta before calling it a night around midnight. Karen was back up at 5 am to go to Lowe’s, but I slept until 7 when we went back to Lowe’s (I wanted some 99 cent poinsettias!), Walmart, and Petsmart. We nabbed a couple more doorbuster deals at each store before heading home once again. Nick thinks I’m crazy. But I’m almost done with my Christmas shopping now and saved lots of money. 🙂

Amy’s Baby Shower

On Saturday, I borrowed Nick’s car and headed from STL into Illinois to see my mom’s side of the family. I wanted to see my grandma, and my cousin Amy was having a baby shower while our family was in town for the holiday!

image(14)Baby showers are so fun! I met my mom and aunts at my grandma’s house early on Saturday morning where we had a quick lunch (turkey leftovers!) before my cousin’s shower.

We arrived at the local firehouse where my aunt’s had rented a a room and filled it with tons of decorations!

photo(51) photo(50)Cute! And my prego cousin is pretty cute too.

image(13)We watched Amy open gifts and snacked on fruit before cutting into the cake.

image(15) image(12)It was amazing, and the piece I grabbed was about the size of my face. YUM!

I was so thankful to be able to spend a little time with my extended family over the holiday weekend. Now I just wish we all lived closer!

I headed back to STL around 5 to make it in time for dinner with Nick’s family and headed to bed fairly early. Can you see why I’m tired?! I’m pretty sure I relaxed for about 2 hours the entire long weekend. It was fun, but this is why I’m still recovering!

Nick and I made it back to Springfield late Sunday afternoon, and I was ready for my own bed. I’m sure many of you feel the same way after your family’s Thanksgiving! Now we have a couple weeks to recover until Christmas. 🙂

Hope your week is going great!

Thanksgiving in STL

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Happy Monday! And Happy Belated Thanksgiving! I didn’t catch a second to check-in over the long holiday weekend, but I’m finally back in action!

My Thanksgiving in St. Louis was so much fun and jam-packed. I was ready to come home just so I could get a whole night’s rest! I also ate way too much and kinda feel like a stuffed turkey this morning. Is anyone else out there feeling extra fluffy today? I’m sure it’s a common theme around the nation. Luckily, I got to start my morning with a Jazzercise class followed by a light breakfast once I got to work.

Tis the season!
Tis the season!

My Luna bar was extra healthy and festive for my breakfast. Win! I paired this with Greek yogurt and an apple + all my little vitamins. I’m determined to get back on track this week!

Gobble Gobble 5K

Nick and I arrived in St. Louis late on Wednesday evening. We had a quick dinner with his parents before I headed to bed. We had an early morning turkey trot to rest up for!

photo(53)We were so sleepy! The Gobble Gobble 5K took place in Arnold City Park, and it was a packed event. They said around 1,200 people were registered for the run, and Nick and I spent most of the race dodging around other runners.

Nick’s mom came along to cheer us on and take some pre-race photos.

image(19) image(18)Do you like my turkey hat?! It’s awkward fantastic, I know. 🙂  I tied the legs underneath my chin, and that sucker stayed on the whole time!

We finished in around 29 minutes, which wasn’t terrible due to the overwhelming crowd. Plus, we weren’t trying to break any records here. Just something to do for fun before we start gorging ourselves at Thanksgiving dinner!

We were frozen popsicles by the time the race was over (it was around 20 degrees on a shady course), so Nick’s parents took us to get a hot breakfast at Denney’s.

photo(52)Nick wasn’t too excited about running in the cold, but we still finished strong. And I was thankful for warm food and coffee in my belly!

The rest of our Thanksgiving day was spent cooking and traveling to Nick’s aunt and uncle’s house in downtown St. Louis. His whole family gathered there for a mid-afternoon meal. I helped out in the kitchen most of the day, so everything went unpictured. My bad. But it was the typical turkey dinner with all the fixings. I ate way too much and loved every bite!

A few hours after dinner, we headed back to Arnold to get our game plan on for Black Friday shopping. Most of the stores we wanted to go to started their deals at 6 pm on Thanksgiving night. Nick’s mother is a hardcore Black Friday shopper, and I always go along for the ride.

But more on this later. 🙂  I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving with your loved ones!

Thanksgiving in Hartville

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Hey there! I’m back in the land of high-speed Internet after a busy weekend at my parents house. It was a great weekend to celebrate an early Thanksgiving with my immediate family.

Nick and I headed to Hartville on Saturday morning after I got in a long run of 11 miles. It was a cold morning, and the run was fairly easy for me knowing that I was earning the right to eat a huge turkey dinner!

image(13)YUM!!! Once we made it to Hartville, my mom and I got to work on preparing this small feast. I whipped up my sweet potato casserole first thing and put it in the fridge to bake right before dinner time.

photo(52)This stuff was tasty right out of the bowl, so I was excited to bake it with marshmallows! The marshmallows kinda failed though…I melted them instead of just toasting the top.

image(10)Ooops! Still tasty though! I made them extra spicy with cinnamon and nutmeg. They were a hit around the table.

My mom cooked our 9 lb. turkey in her beloved CrockPot (hence my obsession with my own Crockpot!), and it turned out amazing despite my doubts of it even fitting in there!

image(15)It was falling apart it was so tender, and all the juices made an awesome gravy.

photo(50)But let’s not forget about the amazing carbs that we all know and love too so much.

photo(32)I had a couple of these babies, and I enjoyed every bite!

Our little feast also featured stuffing, sweet corn, and a cauliflower salad that my mom is famous for.

image(12) photo(33)And for the sweet stuff, cranberries and pie!

image(11) image(14)My sister-in-law made the homemade pumpkin pie. She made the crust and everything! My pies weren’t that homemade, but at least I tried. 🙂

photo(51)This is Angel, my brother’s schnauzer-mix. Isn’t she cute!? Her and Mac played the entire evening. They are a hyperactive-match made in doggie heaven! Also, check out my mom’s awesome retro kitchen floor. Love it.

Getting together like this makes me so thankful for my family and all the blessings they bring me throughout the year. I’m one lucky girl to have such wonderful parents and family members!

Nick and I headed home on Sunday after church with full tummies and lots of leftover pie and sweet potatoes. And now I’m trying to get in the groove to get through 2 more days of work before we head off again to St. Louis. Tonight’s agenda is packing my suitcase…again!

Have a wonderful evening, and I’ll see you tomorrow!