IMCO 2009

So I went on my business trip last week and it was a blast (mostly!). I left Sunday with Milena, my co-worker, and flew to Daytona Beach (via Charlotte) . We were cutting it really close for the opening ceremony that my company was sponsoring and so we had to put our butts in high gear to get there. We were a bit late but it was a real relaxed environment so no one noticed. We had a cocktail reception with appetizers but the rest of our crew (Mike, Greg and Teri) decided they were hungry for some real food so we headed down to a little place called Ocean Deck. Wait was too long upstairs at the restuarant so we went down to the bar that served food. It was crazy trying to get me in there (hello fake ID even though I'm 23 and just wanted to eat) but we finally did and had some good food. And a wonderful toast to me done by Greg (love that man!).

Monday morning I got up and went to breakfast with Teri while Milena worked away (she really should have given it a rest but I understand she had a few things going on). Then we went for a walk on the beach which was quite lovely...and I got a bit of redness but of course it just faded away once I got home. No tanning for me in the natural sun. Fake and bake here I come in a few weeks! So then I worked for a bit in my room and then tried to track down a few things for the show at the hotel. Then it was time to get ready to head over to the Daytona International Speedway. That was a really neat time! It was so cool to be down on the track and see how huge those stands are and how steep that track really is. Pretty awesome if I do say so myself. So then after dinner and a few drinks at the track we headed back to the hotel. We decided to head back down to the Ocean Deck since they had some decent live music. Good times again down there!

Tuesday was the show. Pretty much stood in a booth and gave people stuff all day. Answered a few questions but it was nice to meet some of the people I have been talking to the last 7-8 months through email and phone calls. I was pretty darn proud of myself for staying in that booth almost all day. I only took about a 20 minute break! We also did lunch at Bubba Gump's Shrimp Co. which was really neat - and since I despise sea food - I got fried chicken which was delicious! Tuesday night we had an awesome closing dinner reception that was a bike week theme - complete with airbrush tattoos. I recieved a wonderful blue japense symbol for peace and balance :) I had just a few drinks and headed back to my room.

Wednesday - Came home. Nothing exciting there. Oh well besides the massive and horrible thunderstorms that kept us grounded for about 45 minutes on the plane in Atlanta. Have I ever mentioned how afraid I am to fly?...terrified might just be a more accurate description but you say tomato, i say tomatoe. Luckily I had a very funny and distracting kid sitting next to me to keep me preoccupied from the happenings. Finally got home safe and sound though and glad to be back. Although work is still crazy as ever and busy I kinda missed it.

And I will be back later...or tomorrow...with a Mother's Day post!

Beautiful beach...I miss you!

Our massive hotel...literally a mile walk to get to the other side...yes it's the WHOLE thing.

Me and Milena out exploring on Monday

Feet on the beach

Run Forrest Run! Neat signs to stop the waitress (Stop Forrest Stop!) if need be

Booth we spent 8 hours in on Tuesday

Me and the beach

And again...

Daytona International Speedway

Last night...after just a few

Leavin'

Well I'm am leaving here in about an hour to go to the airport - off to Florida until Thursday for work. I'm excited but i know I won't get to enjoy all the weather that much since it's for work. But I will try my hardest - lots of pictures when I come back hopefully!!

Not much else going on - Ben still hasn't found a job. At this point it doesn't surprise me but it's getting really hard financially and I'm starting to worry.

Work for me this week was crazy busy - swine flu outbreak has people buying our products up like mad! Oh well - I have plenty of OT now which I can't wait to have!!

That's all for now...short and sweet. See ya Thursday!

Quick Update

Not a whole lot new going on here. Ben is still out of a job which remains a constant frustration around here. I am working away though! Which is hard when it's getting nice outside again :)

Other then this the only other thing we are accomplishing is some yard work. We did a few things in the back yard which I will have to come back and post later due to Ben being out of town and having my camera! And I was proud of myself - I mulched around the tree in the front yard today! I have been wanting to do that for a few weeks now. Other then this a whole lotta nothin going on around here!

Easter 2009

So this year we decided to stay home for once for a holiday! We got up and went to church and my mom met up there. Then I came home and napped :) I woke up and got to work on the Easter feast! We had ham, butter noodles, homemade mashed potatoes (courtesy of my loving husband!), chessy green beans (a tradition) and rolls. It was so good and I'm glad we finally got to stay home for once for a holiday! It was nice to be able to stay in my sweats.

The Easter Feast!

Ben getting his food

My step dad getting his food

In other news...well there's not much. Still workin, Ben's still not working. We are still hopin' and prayin' for something REAL soon. We need it - Bad...but he's trying. It's just a bad world out there right now. We are lucky he has unemployment or it could be much much worse. Other then this...just waitin for it to get warm outside for good. It keeps teasin' us then getting cold again! I can't stand it much longer.

One Year Ago...

Me and my hubby were getting married :) This first year has certainly had it's ups and downs but we survived. I love you honey!

Today we are going to Golden Corral to celebrate our anniversary and it's also Ben's Grandpa Blankenship's 74th birthday. Should be a good time :)

Chrissy and Waynes Baby Shower and Dinner for Anniversary

So today was a very busy day for us! First up, we had Chrissy and Wayne's baby shower. She is due May 14th. It was a very cute baby shower - their room is jungle themed so their were jungle decorations everywhere! They also had tons of games - guess when the baby will be born, finding hidden eggs, guess the number of diapers in the bowl, the women got to match baby socks for prizes (which I won!) and lots of other fun things. It was mostly her family but there were some friends there too that we know so it made for a good time. We are wishing them both good luck!

Mom to be - Chrissy

Cake

Mom and dad to be

Ben with Chrissy

Me with Chrissy

Next up, we had dinner reservations with my parents at 5 pm for our anniversary dinner. Our anniversary isn't really until tomorrow but my mom is leaving for out of town so we did it tonight. It is a very fancy restaurant out by my parents house called Lannings. The food was pretty good and the service was wonderful. It was pricey but my parents had gift certificates so it wasn't that bad. We had a good time!

Ben and I outside the restaurant

Mom and Eric after dinner

And last but not least my wonderful anniversary present, my anniversary band that matches my wedding band :) I love it! I wasn't sure if I was going to get it but I did. I love my hubby!

Welcome Trent Robert!

Our friends Robert and Rachelle welcomed their son, Trent Robert, on March 27th at 1:30 am. 7lbs 13 oz and 20 in long! He's absolutely wonderful! Rachelle was induced Thursday morning (March 26) - she dialated well throughout the night. But the baby was turned the incorrect way and she tried for 2 hours to push him out but it just didn't work. So she ended up having a c-section. Everyone is doing well :) Here are a few pictures from that night!

Robert going into the room for the c-section

Right after he was born Rob brought him out

Uncles with Rob and Trent

Too cute!

Proud daddy

Not too much else new going on in our world. Ben is still looking for a job...but as bad as the job market is right now I'm starting to get worried! Next weekend we have a baby shower to go to for Wayne and Chrissy. Still waiting for summer to appear!

Olivias Dedication - March 15, 2009

I forgot to post this last time....my god daughter got dedicated at church back on March 15th. See pictures below!! She's too cute :)

Danielle and Olivia during the dedication

Afterwards

She's too cute!

Me and my god daughter

Short Update

So I haven't written in a while. Not sure what is wrong with me. I can't wait for the weather to warm up around here so I get out of this always tired phase!

Ben is still on the hunt for another job - he lost his about 2 weeks ago now. Long story but it wasn't his fault. He's had 3 interviews but no luck yet. Until then he's mister susie homemaker.

This past weekend I went to a "Slumber Party", kind of like Pure Romance, at my friend Danielle's house. It was good to see her. I didn't know many people there but my mom came. Most people would think it was embarassing but I don't think so :) I love my mom!

Other then that I have just been working...and sleeping. Like I said at the beginning, I don't know what's wrong with me but I just get so tired by the time I get home! I just want to do nothing but sleep, sleep and more sleep. I am working on a few things that are keeping me up until at least 10 but then I just crash. Summer...summer...where are you?!?!

Besides that I have one more new addiction...

I ended up watching the movie over at a friend's house and then decided that I needed to read the books. Thanks to my sister...I spent this past weekend reading all 4 (well 3, I read Twilight last week). It is a really good story and I can't wait to see the next movie. I just wish there were more books! I want to read more :)

Celebrating Brian's Birthday

So last Saturday we decided to go out and celebrate our friend Brian's 26th birthday! We weren't really planning on it because Ben was working and they said they were going out early (before he got off work) but then ended up going out around 8:30 to dinner so we went. For dinner we went to Texas Roadhouse. We had a good time and then we headed down to the Valley to Coopers. We hadn't been there in a long while so it was a really good time. The owner is super nice and remembered us! I got really really drunk. I don't think I've been that bad in about 6 months! It was a great time, me and Ben had a good time with our friends. :)

Melanie and Brian at dinner - he's a goof ball!

Me and Ben at dinner

Brian and Liz

Me and Tim at the bar

Me and Mel - we were pretty drunk at this point....LOL:)

We had matching chapstick, I guess it was funny at the time

Mandy (who's birthday we were also celebrating), Mel and Christina

I love kisses when I'm drunk :P

Mel's super long straw

It was a wonderful weekend! We didn't do much on Sunday because we slept in pretty late. I have been pretty tired this whole week because I was sick Mon/Tues/Weds and I'm still not feeling 100% today. And of course I got Ben sick and he's mad at me. Spent $35 on meds at the store though to try and make us better!

Work is going well - just pretty busy and just lots to do. I'm being part of more teams at work and trying to learn as much as I can! I love my new position and my new boss. So much better then where I was at :) I enjoy work so much now!

Only thing that sucks about work is that everyone is getting pregnant. There are so many people I know who are pregnant right now. Part of me wants a baby now but I soooo know we can't afford it. Hopefully by the end of the year we will be in a better position to start trying where I feel comfortable. Until then I can only hope :)

Valentine's 2009

Of course I'm a week behind again! Last weekend we went out to celebrate Valentine's Day. Normally we don't celebrate it because it's not really a holiday to us but our friends asked if we wanted to go so we went. It was quite a bit of a wait since we didn't have reservations and that sucked big time but it was really good so it was worth the wait! We went to Japanese Steakhouse in Montrose called Wasabi. It was delicious. Now Ben and our 2 friends Kyle and Liz have never been there before so they were pretty excited about it. I've been a few times but it's been at least 2 years. Afterwards we went to a bar called Brubaker's for a drink (and I will never go there again, the girls that were serving there were rude). Overall, a great night out! We will be going back - when we have reservations :)

Our cook - poor guy was so tired. I think we were his last table...

Me and Ben (I was pretty tired at this point)

Liz and Kyle

And of course Liz and me :)

This week and weekend have not been that exciting...worked a lot that's about it. I have started to go out to my stepdads house to help him clean up his shop a bit. I am trying to get out there a few nights a week and help him out. He's not a good one with organizing or keeping clean. And he has a really hard time throwing things out. So we are working on that :) He had a lot of invoices that needed filed. His computer also got wiped out last year so we are going to work on rebuilding his customers in the software. Fun fun! Ben has been working a lot also. He is off tomorrow so I don't know what we are going to do. Might go to church in the morning and then maybe go to Kyle and Liz's so Ben can get his haircut. I'm going to try to do better and keep this more up to date :)

Lydia's Bridal Shower

So this past weekend (Saturday) was Lydia's Bridal Shower. Lydia and I went to college together and were in an organization called NSCS together. She was also in my wedding. She is getting married July 11 and then moving to Michigan :(

Me before the shower

Lydia opening presents

Cute cake they made for here...can you see the color theme here :)

Opening more presents and pictures of the guests

Lydia and her friend Lara

All in all it was a good time. Lots of purple :) She got a lot of amazing gifts to help her start her life in Michigan.

Not too much else going on here! Ben is back to work (FINALLY :) and I am just working too. Loving my new position at work!

My other major project that I have decided to embark upon is creating a family tree. I'm super excited about it. I am working on both my side of the family and Ben's. I already have a pretty good start but I'm hoping to get a pretty extensive amount done on it by the end of the year. Right now it's only really our grandparents and down. Just another thing to keep me busy :)

Excitement

So what's new with me you might be asking yourself (if anyone reads this?!). Well, work is going well but very busy and stressed. I have a lot going on, a lot more then anticipated. Luckily the new girl has started in my old position and it's such a relief to be able to pass things off to her now. She's great! But there's still a lot to do in my new position and it's getting to be interesting trying to get everything accomplished! But I love my new boss :) We did have our stakeholder's meeting and it's kind of scary to hear about all the cuts (not jobs per se but other things) they are doing to make it work without having to lay off people. Like no new hires, no promotions/pay increases, etc. Luckily they are still giving out our bonuses this month. Sometimes I forget that I work in a manufacturing world even though I am in an office!

Ben started his new job yesterday. He seems to be enjoying it so far but we will see. He will be training the next 2-3 months and then will move to his own store. What is nice is he will only be working 4 days, 12-14 hrs a day. He is used to working 12 hr days so I think he will be fine but I know I won't be up when he gets home! I am glad that he's back to work though, it's scary how high unemployment is!

Last night, I made a wonderful new recipe supplied to me by my co-worker! White Chicken Chili. I need to just say how yummy it was! Ben had some suggestions for the future and I learned a few things too but it was really good. Nice for a cold winter day. Check out my recipe blog for the recipe! It's easy even though it is a lot of ingredients.

Now to get to the excitement blog title...I filed our tax returns tonight (can we say early!). I always get mine done ASAP so I can get it back before the mad rush. What I'm excited about is that we got enough back to be able to cover our trip to Arizona in September (right after my birthday). I am so excited about this. I was kind of stressing about how we were going to save although I knew the return would be enough to cover the flights I just didn't realize it would leave enough for our rental car and spending money too. So I am moving the money to another account as soon as we receive it so we don't spend it. But it's a relief to not have to worry about that now.

So yeah I'm excited to go to Arizona in June and visit again with Ben's aunts and uncles and revisit our honeymoon spot :) It's so nice there and there's pools for me to lay out by with a good book so I'm ready and it's only February!

Well that's about all the updates I have for now. This weekend is Lydia's bridal shower so I will be back with pictures probably Saturday evening from that.