A New Years Eve Wedding!

Ahhh its good to be back. A fresh slate always makes me feel awesome!

Last Tuesday morning I picked Caleb up from work and we hit the road for Celina, OH for our friends' NYE wedding! We checked into the hotel, and I headed to the reception hall to help decorate. We all went our separate ways and then met back up that night for the rehearsal & dinner! It was so fun having all the gals back together again! Lynds and I are so stinking excited to meet the first baby of our friend group come August!!!

Other than Caleb's undercooked (correction; not cooked) chicken at dinner, the night was absolutely amazing. Angie gifted the bridesmaids the most adorable monogrammed crew neck sweaters, and I've hardly worn anything else since!! The rehearsal was smooth and there was a good amount of down time so we all obviously had a mini photo shoot ;)

Us ladies had a sleepover (8 of the 9 of us slept in the same house!) and we woke up Wednesday morning with so much excitement!!! NYE was finally here and Ang was going to be married by the nights end!!! We all packed up and headed for the salon to get dolled up!

About two months ago, Lyndsie, Becca and I decided to go in on a gift together for Angie. Recently, they lost her grandmother and it's been really hard for her and her family. So, we had her sister snag a birthday card that Angie still had with her grandmothers hand writing on it, and got it engraved on a small charm that she could wrap around her bouquet with her. It reads "Love you Darling, Grandma". We were all in tears when we gave it to her, and her grandpa happened to be right by her side as she opened it. I'm tearing up just thinking about it. There's nothing like the love of your family!

We all had a blast hanging out together though, and once our make up was done...it was time to head out for photos! Of course it was the COLDEST day of the year up there, but we embraced it and had a blast anyway.

After their super sweet ceremony, it was party time!!!

The reception was pretty long but we obviously wanted to stay until midnight as it was NYE! We had a blast, and of course our feet were SO sore from all that crazy dancing.

Angie seriously was SO stunning. She handled herself with such grace that entire day, and I know she'll make an amazing wife. She's one of the weirdest/silliest people I know, and I mean that in the sweetest way!! I'm so honored that she chose me to be one of the gals to stand by her as she promised her entire life to the man of her dreams. It's been so cool to witness every aspect of their relationship from beginning until now, the biggest day of their lives. They are in Punta Cana this week, and I'm insanely jealous!! I hope you all had an amazing, and SAFE New Year!! 

It went well.

This gal started half marathon training Monday...and this gal is tired.

I forced myself to hit the gym last night and run 3 miles straight (thanks a lot, Hal Higdon). Then, this morning, I went before work and ran a couple more (who am I turning into!?). As excited as I am that I ran those distances, I'm wondering how in the world people can actually run marathons!? I've only signed up for 13.1 and last night I was jumping for joy when I reached the halfway point of my 5K distance.

I know, I know...mind over matter... but its tough!

Those 3 miles last night were really hard. I wanted to give up a lot. Trying to finish in under 29 minutes was difficult, but boy I did it...and I'm pretty proud.

Lately I've been feeling more like myself. I know its because I'm hitting the gym a lot more like I was before Christmas, I'm also making healthier choices...and it feels weirdly good to not be spending any money. It's like a game...how long can I go without breaking this $20 bill?!

I'm spending more time with people that I love, having real conversations with my husband, digging deeper into my Bible, volunteering my time more, learning new things, accepting compliments, even asking the receptionist at work how she is and truly caring...and its all working together to make me into a happier person. 

Generally, I'd say I'm already a joyful person...but there is something about this new year that has me excited.

2014, you better watch it. You're mine.

Unresolutions.

Happy Monday. I started this morning off horribly...its in the single digits here lately in Ohio and guess whose car doors were frozen shut this morning!!? .... if you guessed me...DING DING DING! I was late for work, didn't grab my gym bag...gahh. To say I'm a hot mess right now is an understatement. Aside from all that, I had a wonderful, relaxing weekend...until the Bengals crushed my soul with their loss. Seriously, I may have formed tears. So much anger...but luckily, my husband came home and we ordered a pizza to drown our sorrows in. Woops. Anyway, hope you all had a great weekend.

One of my sweet readers and also an awesome blogger friend, Kalyn, did a post on UNresolutions...I didn't know what the heck it even meant, but when I started reading her post I couldn't stop. I literally nodded my head along with everything she said. She essentially made a list of things she WON'T do in this new year, and I thought it was so clever. So I thought, why not join in on the fun?!

In 2014 I will not...

Stress myself to tears. This happened a little too often in 2013. I have this habit of holding things in until they make me burst...and I never really noticed it until Caleb pointed it out to me. I want to be a better wife, and that means talking through my problems as they occur, not once I've hit my breaking point.

Treat my body like crap. Of course, I'll have the occasional treat...but I want to be sure I hit the gym as often as possible. I really took control of my health in September of 2013 and have realized that exercising is more than just working towards a better body for me...it makes me feel good. It gives me confidence, and lowers my stress. I once saw a quote that said "you are just one work out away from a better mood"...and now, I totally get that!

Forget to do random acts of kindness. I truly believe this is what would make our world a happier place. If I'm intentional about my actions towards friends, family, and even strangers...I will, in turn, be a happier person.

Be so mean to myself. I find myself having a hard time accepting compliments lately...like I have to refuse them or say "oh thaaanks, but you're crazy", as if its impossible to just say thank you to someone when they say something nice about my appearance. Or if I'm looking at myself in the mirror and not being happy with what I see... I've realized that its hard to be happy when someone is always mean to you...and that someone was myself. So, I want to be nicer to myself, and realize...we are all uniquely made, and all wonderful in our own ways.

Insert random, happy photo here.

If you have no big goal(s) for 2014...just make sure you're happy with wherever you are...and if you aren't, change something. We all deserve happiness :)