...THE IMPORTANCE OF DATE NIGHT.

Those of you that follow me on twitter know that last Friday, I was SO excited for date night. It wasn't that we were doing anything special, or out of the ordinary from our normal dates (I mean, I guess getting to see The Hunger Games might have had a little to do with it :) ) but simply that it was just that...date night.

I am not sure what it is exactly, but something about it always sparks a little fire inside me. I love looking forward to "us time," I love getting dressed up for him, and I love feeling like were rejuvenating our relationship a little each time we have a date night--it's just a good feeling all around. And after 7 years of being together, I STILL get butterflies in my stomach and still stress about what to wear and how to do my hair..silly, right?!

With that being said, I put together a short little list of Date Night Rules I like to abide by and think others should too! :)

Date Night Rules

1. Though spending QT at home can be wonderful, it is not a true date night. Get out; do something! Go to the movies, dinner, a comedy club, etc.

2. Plan a few days or even a week or so ahead. It makes it so much more exciting when you have date night to look forward to all week!

3.Date night is for TWO people, you and your better half--not you 2, plus 3 other couples; that's called going out or double dating. It is not the same dynamic, so don't try to pass it off like it is.

4. Both of you must shower and "get ready" specifically for date night, even if you both showered earlier that day! Make a habit of this, get excited to get dolled up if you're a girl and out of those business clothes if you're a guy.

5. Absolutely NO mundane tasks included. Unless you have time to kill in between reservations, buying the new nail polish or looking at golf clubs can wait.

6. If you're sitting at a table, you should always sit in two adjoining sides. This makes it easier to talk AND sneak a bite of the others food :) (Please do not share one side of a booth though--that makes me uncomfortable to walk past.)

7.Share a dessert, even if you're full and aren't a fan of sweets. Something about sharing a dessert and trying to convince the other person to "eat the last bite" is totally romantic.

8. Have a beer or a glass of wine if you want it, but don't have more than one or two; you're there to enjoy one another, not the feeling of being tipsy! You can have too many next weekend in your man cave or at the next Lia Sophia party you attend.

9. You must ALWAYS text the other person earlier in the day and tell them just how excited you are for Date Night. I guarantee they not only feel the same, but will appreciate reading something like that in between checking emails and dealing with cranky people.

10. Stay off your phone if possible...meaning emails, texts, and phone calls! The texts can wait until you get in the car and the emails will still be there when you get home!

**Wordless Wednesday**

**Wordless Wednesday**

...(not) IRISH, BUT LUCKY.

Three best to have in plenty - sunshine, wisdom, and generosity.

 --Irish Triad

----I need to apologize ahead of time, I literally took 5 pictures all day. I am terrible at this if you haven't noticed, so sorry for the lack of photography!

Celebrating St. Patty's Day!!

St. Patty's Day happened to fall on a Saturday this year...double bonus, right?! Here's how we celebrated, where we celebrated at, who we celebrated with, and...how many green beers I drank?

Ryan and I started out the day getting up at the crack of dawn. We had BIG plans for the day and didn't have time to be sleeping in! Our plans consisted of meeting up with friends, going to DM for the parade, drinking green beers, and staying in a hotel.

So as our alarms started to go off, we got up, showered, and got ready--dressed in green, of course. I wore a shirt I had made that was green and FULL of glitter, and Ryan wore the shirt he wears every day haha. (No really, this was the ONLY time I would excuse the wearing of this shirt!)

We packed our bags, kissed the girls goodbye (no, they're not Irish either) and headed out the door. We drove across town and picked up some friends and then had to go meet another group of friends so we could all drive up there together. After filling up on gas and getting a few beverages, we were off.

Awhile later we arrived downtown, and amidst the mothers with 8 kids and 100 year olds trying to celebrate their heritage, we managed to find a parking garage to park illegally in. After parking and walking down several flights of stairs, we braved the streets of downtown and headed to our hotel. Not to our surprise, the streets were absolutely packed. The parade hadn't even started yet and people were EVERYWHERE--inside and outside!

Now, I'm not saying I don't like kids, but--I don't like most kids. I also don't like strollers, moms with strollers, or people dressed as The Joker. With that being said, the parade was definitely not calling my name, but at first we DID try to find a spot to watch. Immediately realizing it was a bad idea, we headed back to the hotel and the bar--a more realistic approach. (We stayed at the Marriott and they had several bars there, a ballroom with a band, and no shortage of people.)

We met up with several of our friends and "started" celebrating the Irish holiday. We stayed at one bar originally and then over the next several hours, we bounced between several hotel rooms (all of our friends also had rooms) and groups of friends and family located on the various (30) floors.  We would go to one room and hang out with a few friends, then decide we should go down to the bar, then decide we should go eat lunch with his parents, then decide we should visit other friends in a different room; repeat, repeat, repeat. There was SO much going on and SO many people there it was unbelievable. We finally ended up hanging out in one hotel room long enough that a group of us decided to walk downtown that evening.

It was a little bit further of a hike than we thought it was, but we eventually made it. After arguing about what to do and which bar to brave, we all paid $10 to pass through a PUBLIC street (no joke) and headed into one, only to find out that there was a TWO HOUR waiting period for a table and food, and no room to stand--forget air conditioning! We huddled around a group of friends that already had gotten a table (and food) and then a few of us decided we should head back out onto the street we paid $10 bucks for in search of food. I'm not sure whether this was breakfast, lunch, or dinner, but we ended up at the Gyro cart. If you've ever been drunk in Iowa City, you KNOW this is heaven, so finding it on a street in DM when it's still daylight out? #winning. After ordering a few Gyro's and managing to knock over the guys sign 50 times (way to go, Ryan) we headed to a different bar where a few friends had gotten a table.

Everyone ordered food and drinks, and the boys seemed to be in heaven--there were several big screens lining the walls and March Madness certainly filled the air. Even better, is that at one point the State game was on, which everyone was excited about (except me).  We ended up hanging out here for basically the rest of the night, watching the game and attempting to be Irish. We eventually made our way back to the hotel, which seemed to have died down a bit. Several of us hung out in a friends room for quite awhile before stripping off all my green and beads and calling it a night.

Later on, as I laid my head down on my pillow that night, my body covered in glitter, blisters on my heels, and stamps and bar bracelets up my arm, I said a few prayers while realizing just how lucky and blessed I am. Get down on your knees and thank God you're still on your feet--Irish saying. 

I have wonderful friends who I care SO much about, a family and "in-laws" that mean the world to me, and a wonderful fiance who I get to share it all with--even though I'm not Irish, I sure am lucky!

Ryan and yours truly!

Adam, Bobby, Kayla, and Aaron...none of which are smiling for the picture!

Ben, Skyler, Maggie, and Skid--oh, Mags!

I took this picture 4 times bc I thought Con was accidentally closing his eyes...ha!

....MAKING GRILLED ASPARAGUS.

One of my absolute favorite foods is asparagus...weird, right? I love it on fettuccine alfredo or grilled especially. With that being said, the weather has been wonderful lately and Ryan has been a grilling machine--grilling up my favorite food! This is sooo easy to make and so delicious, I just had to share it with you all!!

Ingredients:

asparagus

olive oil (we use garlic flavored)

salt

pepper

1. Cut the ends of the asparagus off up until you reach the green--you don't want any white left.

2. Rinse it all off and place it on a plate.

3. Splash olive oil over the asparagus (it doesn't take much) and coat with salt and pepper to taste

4. Grill for about 20 minutes, or until tender!

5. Enjoy!

**Wordless Wednesday**

...GIVING YOU A WEDDING PLANNING UPDATE!

It has certainly been awhile since I have updated you all on what exactly is going on with my wedding planning and how far I've come. I know it is still quiet aways away, and I still have A LOT left to do, but this far, I feel pretty confident in what I've gotten done! So what is taken care of?

Priest ü
(Father Mike)

Church ü
(St. Mary's)

Reception site ü
After getting the actual wedding setup, it was crucial that we got the reception site setup right away so it didn't get filled, leaving us with nowhere to celebrate. After a few phone calls and paying for the rental, we got our site reserved and taken care of immediately.

Caterer ü

After talking to a few people whose weddings I loved, I found the common denominator of the catering happened to be this one particular person/company. Everyone I talked to said she went above and beyond on for their special day and she is certainly worth it. I immediately got ahold of her and after talking to her about availability and pricing, and then discussing it with my parents, we decided to book her right away! This has been the biggest relief to me up until this point. I am very excited to pick out what will be served and very confident knowing every wedding she has catered has been wonderful and everyone is overly pleased. So, double-check there I guess!

Florist ü
We do have our florist selected for the wedding, but have not done anymore with it past that point. We had an appointment scheduled last week but we ended up cancelling. To be honest, I just had NO idea what I wanted yet! Considering it is a "winter wedding" and I won't be having a lot of floral arrangements, I figured I don't need to stress quite yet over what my bouquet will look like, right?! To me, that seems like something I could do in September, as opposed to NOW. So we postponed this appointment to a later date--so, florist (check) arrangements (not check)

Photography ü

This is certainly the most recent addition to my wedding planning. My mom and I attended a bridal show together just recently; it was very small and intimate, leaving us plenty of time and chance to actually talk with everyone, as opposed to the one in Omaha. During this time, I met a photographer and her husband--who I think just happened to be along for the ride--and absolutely loved talking with them both! We talked about EVERYTHING and I really felt like we "clicked." They were a younger couple, seemed like they liked to have a good time, and most importantly, seemed interested and WILLING to do a NYE wedding--her husband was excited about the partying--winning! So with that, I told my parents I was sure this was who I wanted to do my photography. She just sent me a contract this week, so hopefully this is all "a go."

Invitations ü
I don't want you all to fall over in your seats, but I making these! Yes, I know this sounds absolutely insane and you're probably wondering WHY would I do this to myself?! The answer is actually quiet simple--I looked for DAYS UPON DAYS for invitations that I absolutely loved. I am not kidding you, I looked forever! I would spend endless nights online looking, and once I thought I had found one that was ok, I would buy a sample. Once I received it though, I was never satisfied. This went on for quite awhile and finally, I told Ryan I just wanted to try to make one or two and see how they turned out--this way, I could add the things I wanted, and subtract the things I didn't. With that, I began making my own! I now know EXACTLY what I want them to look like and EXACTLY how I want them done. Am I saving any money doing it this way? Probably not much. Am I saving any time doing it this way? Absolutely not. Am I happy with the way they are turning out? Absolutely! And that's all that matters, right?!

Wedding party (half check)
Yes, I only gave this a half check. Why? Because my fiance is the most laid back individual on the planet! I'm pretty sure he is going to wait until the day of the wedding to even THINK about who he wants to stand beside him! I, on the the other hand, type A personality, already have this all figured out. :)

Groom: haha
Flower Girl: Faye (my cousin's daughter) She is THE sweetest, most perfect little girl--and she absolutely melts Ryan's heart! He always says when we have children that he wants our girl to be just like Faye--isn't that sweet?
Ring Bearer: Our nephew
Bridesmaids: :) (I will make this a separate post very soon!!)

Dresses, Dresses, Dresses (half check)

With my sister being out of state (hopefully not for much longer) I have tried postponing dress shopping as long as possible. Finally, just last week, I broke down and made appointments hoping she will be all moved back by the final one, at least. With that said, the girls and I will be bridesmaid dress shopping on April 14th and bridal gown shopping on May 19th!! Aaaah so excited!! I have no idea what kind/color of dresses I want my bridesmaids in--this is mostly up to them and what looks good the day of hunting! As for me, I am ALL over the place! I honestly have NO idea what style of dress I want, all I know is that it want WHITE and only white! :) Wish us luck--we could be in for a few loooong days.

Decorations ü

My mom has been making these, aren't they neat?! So detailed!

Though we obviously do not have everything purchased for the decorations, I am fairly certain of the look I want and what I am aiming for. I want it to be a very "wintery" theme with LOTS of whites and silvers covering the place--white, blue, and silver are our colors! I have done a couple "test runs" of the centerpieces even and feel confident enough to make several (as in 50) of them, so I'm satisfied with that for now! My mom has also been buying and making these here and there which is a huge help! Needless to say, our computer room has quickly filled up with wedding things and it's beginning to spill over into our guest bedroom.

Guest list ü
Of course this is not finalized but Ryan and I have spent hours making this and double, triple, quadruple checking it. For the most part, I think we have it created and counted, and will only have to add a few people from here on out. This is a double check because it lets me know how many I need to plan for!!

Off the top of my head, I think that is all I have gotten done this far. I am confident in everything I have accomplished though, and appreciate everyone's help so far!! A SPECIAL thanks to my mom who has helped me so much lately--I appreciate it!!

I am hoping to have the rest of the stuff (majority) done by summer so I can kind of, shall I say it...relax?! I would rather be stressed and consume myself with wedding stuff now than in the summer when all I want to do is lay out! So here's to hoping the rest of this goes as smooth as it is has so far!!

I think we'll need a few of these nights to get us through all this :)...

**The photography, catering, and dress images were all from Google images.

...MAKING HONEY PARMESAN PORK (CROCK-POT)





Croc-Pot Honey Pork



Ingredients:
 2-3 pound boneless pork roast
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons garlic powder
1/4 cup water
2/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
3 tablespoons soy sauce
3/4 cup honey
(1/2 cup Wondra and 1/2 cup water to make gravy)

1. Spray Crock-pot with Pam, turn on low, and place pork inside.
2. In a bowl, combine all of the above ingredients (except what's used to make the gravy). It will end up looking strange and even smelling funny but cooks wonderfully!
3. Add mixture to Crock-pot by smothering pork and making sure it gets underneath!
4. Cook on low for 6-8 hours, or until meat is thoroughly cooked.
5. Once cooked, remove the meat from the Crock-pot and place a cup of the broth in a saucepan on medium-low.
6. As you're waiting on that to boil, combine 1/2 cup Wondra and 1/2 cup water in a bowl.
7. When the broth starts to boil, stir in the mixture slowly but continuously. Wait until it's at its desired consistency and then remove from heat.
8. Pour over the pulled apart pork and enjoy!

**Wordless Wednesday**

**BELLA UPDATE!

Waking up from a nap in the laundry basket.

Yet again, I find myself updating everyone on the status of our little Miss Fluff. All of this happened within the last couple weeks and I have not yet posted about it except briefly on Twitter, so here goes...

I believe it was 3 Friday's ago that I had walked in the door from work and had no more than taken off my makeup and changed out of work clothes that I noticed Bella's stomach growling. It was the craziest thing. I could literally hear her stomach growling over the television and from across the room. I got closer to her to make sure it really was her stomach making these odd noises, and sure enough, it was. I kept encouraging her to go outside, thinking maybe she had to go to the bathroom, but she didn't seem interested. After awhile of doing this (maybe like 10 minutes), I just kind of gave up and thought it would subside.

Well, I was wrong. In just a matter of minutes, she was hunched over very strangely and couldn't walk without falling over. She was trying to and would stand up and then bend her body and fall back over. It looked almost like a kid that had a tummy ache and couldn't walk, but worse. I immediately shot out of my chair and instinctively picked her up. She let out the LOUDEST, most God awful squeal I have ever heard in my entire life. I had no idea what to do and was of course freaking out, so shaking, I called the vet. I was praying that HER vet was in the office--thank goodness she was, because no other vet is familiar with her case. As I explain to her what was going on, she immediately knew what was wrong with Bella and said she had gone into shock from being off her medicine--at this point she had only been off it a week, I believe. Her body wasn't able to produce what her medicine was giving her and was going into shock because of it--she used a few fancy words and then put it that way to me.

With that, I had to rush out to the vet and Bella had to get an extra high dose of medicine. Just minutes after, she snapped out of it. I told Ryan and the vet (and probably everyone else I have talked to) that it seemed like a miracle I had walked in the door exactly when I did. Had I gone to tan or work out, who knows what would have happened.

We were sent home with MORE medicine for her to be on for a week, but at a lower dose than before she was ever taken off it. Dr. Lisa thought maybe we didn't get her to a low enough dose to wean her before, and this time lowering it even more would be good and wouldn't send her into shock. She gave us two weeks of this and scheduled us for another appointment.

In this two weeks, she seemed to be acting "ok" but her body was telling a different story. She had an upset tummy on several occasions and was having a lot of ....well, not good bowel movements. I told Ryan I wasn't sure she was doing so well on this really low dose of meds, but I was hopeful because Dr. Lisa was so certain before that she could be off medicine forever.

Well we went back in for her checkup, thinking she would be taken back off the medicine (that was the whole plan) and once on the scale, Dr. Lisa had a change of plans. Bella had lost weight for the first time since being on the medicine, which started in August. With the news of that, and the fact that she had been having an upset tummy and all the other symptoms, Dr. Lisa said she just simply has to be on the medicine, and on a higher dose--the dose we originally tried weaning her off of. She said that it was such a low dose and seemed to be working that she feels confident leaving her on it for life. There are a few side effects as previously mentioned but those certainly do not outweigh the benefit at this point.

So here we are today. Little Miss Bella is back on her medicine, this time for life. She seems to be doing well with it and hasn't had an upset tummy in the last week and seems to be going to the bathroom just fine so this doggy mom is happy! Unless something goes wrong, we won't have to go back to the vet until April, when she will get blood tests run again. Until then, I'm knocking on wood saying we have this thing figured out!! :)

Again, a big thank you to everyone who cares, has been concerned, or even just understands! I know they are "just dogs" to some people but they certainly mean a lot to us!