Inspired by Spring

The Spring-y weather has inspired me.

It inspired me to - most importantly - stop being the hillbilly neighbor with the snowflake Christmas lights illuminating my balcony every night from about 6-11 p.m. And to put away the cute glass pumpkin that Sheila got me back in October or November... that just hung out on the little table next to the watering-can-shaped citronella candle. I don't discriminate against holidays... I represent them all. At the same time. So what?

But no longer! I pulled out only the most Spring-appropriate decor I could dig up. I swept off the dusty crusty floor and Clorox wiped the furniture and the banister in preparation for some serious patio-sittin' in the upcoming weeks/months.

Then, I busted out my cute little paper lantern patio lights and my genius hubbs even figured out which ends plug where {moments before we left for Home Depot to get the adapter thingy that I swore up and down we needed because those dumb lights were just broken... he's so handy!} and he put them on the timer. This. was. huge. Last year, those lights got totally neglected thanks to me thinking that they just didn't plug in right. Not only do they now light up but they do it on their own! Amazing.

Un-lit...

Lit!

A close-up of their cuteness.

Because I failed miserably at being a plant-owner last year (definition: I forgot about watering my hanging baskets for a few weeks. Give or take a month. And by the time I decided I wanted to revive them... they just looked beyond help. So I laid them to rest in the trash compactor.) I thought I'd give it another whirl. I'm another year older. One year more mature? I mean... I've kept Bella alive for almost 2 years now. I can handle a couple of plants! So, me and my green(ish) thumbs picked up a couple of hanging baskets at Home Depot on Sunday to come live on our balcony!

Hanging basket #1

Hangin' out in their new home (thanks hubbs... he did the dangerous stuff!)

Hanging basket #2 (they're twins)

View of my flower friends from the doorway

I didn't stop there. Ooooh no. What's that little plant stand and wooden basket in the corner, you ask?? That is my balcony herb kit. In a few weeks, these itty bitty pots will sprout Chives, Cilantro, Oregano and Parsley! {We hope.} I'm a little salty about it, because I didn't do my homework (it was an impulse buy) and after I got home and planted everything, I found such cuter herb growing kits online. But its not all about the containers I suppose... so we'll see how these guys do and if I have any luck, I can always add to my collection of fresh seasonings!

Herb kit: Home Depot ($10). Plant stand: TJ Maxx ($14).

Cross your fingers for me that these things actually grow into something more than dirt!

Ignore the extension cords. Unless you have suggestions for me as to how I can hide them or something - then please leave me a comment! I also picked up a new citronella candle since the Georgia sun melted my old one into a puddle... now Andrew can use the useless one as an ash tray for his cigars. Yay. And I haven't given up on my hopes of growing a "plot" of veggies in our urban vegetable garden! I just haven't gotten around to reserving one w/ our leasing office yet.

I'm not convinced that this gorgeous weather is really here to stay, but for the days and nights when the sun is shining and the temperature is comfortable --- we're ready! Some of my favorite memories of newlywed life are the nights spent sipping wine and chatting about nothing at night on our balcony. Can't wait to share some of those sweet moments oh so soon :)

Looking forward

My computer issues are still not resolved.
But I did get some color while we sat by the pool basking in the 74 degree sun on Saturday!
So I'm not mad that the entire side of my computer is fried and useless.

Needless to say, no new photos to share quite yet! But hopefully soon.
Until then, here are the things I am excited about in the upcoming weeks! In no particular order:

1. That child is coming to visit me in about a week.Woop! I love sissy visits!!!

She will be wearing a big ol' black boot on her foot, but I have no concerns that it will impede her ability to keep up w/ me for our week of food, fun, shopping and girly-ness.
2. We've been doing a lot of grilling. 

The weather has been too beautiful to cook indoors - so we've been grilling salmon, kabobs, bison burgers, chicken, veggies, you name it - literally every night.

3. We will be {hopefully} heading to this resort in FL in a few weeks w/ some friends!

Ironing out the deets as we speak....... coordinating 8 peoples' schedules is no easy task.

4. I have a new baby cousin as of about 48 hours ago :) 

It is killinggg me that I can't zip home for the weekend to meet him, but he will still be an itty bitty when I see him in May. Welcome to the world, Jackson!

5. I get to visit w/ my mama in 2 weeks!!! Just the two of us for 4 whole days!

I haven't seen her since the beginning of January and I'm starting to have withdrawals. This time last year, they had already visited for a weekend post-holiday season. I need some quality mother-daughter time!!

6. Better than just visiting w/ my mama at home... we're heading to Cali for the weekend! 

Praying for nice weather, of course, but I'll survive even if its ugly out thanks to the shopping and dining in/around Newport Beach.

7. I am planning to reserve a "plot" in the urban vegetable garden at our apartment complex for the spring/summer. 

I'm excited to test out how green my thumbs are! My guess is: not very. But the dirt and seeds are free, so its worth a shot. Maybe I'll get a tomato or two out of my efforts?!

8. No, this isn't a joke. I'm pumped to go to H&R Block this weekend and get our taxes filed! 

Painful for most folks... but exciting for two full-time students who get $$$ back for basically nothing. Woohoo! Normally my dad's accountant takes care of our taxes, but last year they didn't get sent off until April. And I'm impatient. And want our refund. Like, yesterday.

9. Oh ya, I'm not just going to Cali for any old reason. We're going for a wedding! 

My very first friend in the whole world is getting married. I haven't seen here in about a decade, so I'm just bursting at the seams w/ excitement about this one!

10. Itttts "patio season" in the ATL! 

My favorite time of year. We have already started scheming where we need to wine and dine while the weather is the perfect, comfortable temp. Gotta squeeze in all our faves before the summer heat and humidity arrive.

Welp. That just got me way too excited for a mid-week afternoon! So much to look forward to in the next couple of weeks!!! Notice how "Go to the Apple store" is no where to be found on that list. Don't hold your breath for pictures or updates......

By my bday in April, maybe you'll get filled in on the events of Andrew's February bday. Maybe :)

Long time no see...

Dear little blog,

So sorry for neglecting you this past week. My free time has been filled with birthday festivities, reading for school, and painting my nails. While I know those excuses are all lame, my real reason for not blogging has been my computer issues. My camera card slot isn't working, and neither are my USB plugger-inners so I haven't been able to upload any of my fun pictures to share. I'm saving my b-day/Vday updates and a few others for when I have pictures to accompany my ramblings! Hubbs is in charge of helping me fix these issues this weekend... or will be accompanying me to the Apple store (last resort - hate that place!).

If we don't get around to computer surgery, you'll have to forgive me... as you can see, the weather forecast might induce me to procrastinate a little longer in order to enjoy the sunshine :)

In the meantime, rest up and brace yourself for a photo dump next week and catch-up sesh (or two) on our life!

xoxo,
Emily

P.S. Crossing my fingers hard that this warm, sunny weather is here to stay!!!

It's Friday

Maybe this is just funny because it's Friday...
Or because I'm really tired. And slap happy. And easily amused.
Whatever the reason, I thought this was worth sharing... just in case it makes you giggle, too! :)
Just don't giggle alone in your echo-y office (like I did). People might think you're weird.

Found on Emphasis Added!

Busy

Its been a busy little week 'round here!

Poor hubbs has been studying 24/7 for his midterms. My doc-to-be has been so diligent that we actually stayed home for the Superbowl and didn't even make any cheesy fatty dips or drink beer! (Read: This. is. serious.) Fret not, I still whipped up some delish football-ish food... lazy bookworm style. Remember the slow cooker buffalo chicken hoagies? Welp, we had those and they were awesome. While we watched, we also read. Lame-o.

While my cute hubby has been buried in his books with the funny x-ray pics and other illustrations that crack me up as I sneak a glance in passing {nakey people - no matter how medical-y, still funny to us immature folk} I've been tied up with Law Journal stuff, school stuff, laundry doing stuff, catching up on sleep in order to ward off a cold stuff, and birthday planning stuff!

Andrew turns 24 on Monday. Which is also Valentine's Day. So I've been busy planning b-day dinner, V-day dinner, ordering presents, and selecting the perfect Oreo Cheesecake recipe in my "spare" time! The cake isn't quite what I had planned... but it was his request! This is huge. He never, ever, in a million years asks for (or even tastes) dessert! So how can a girl say no?! Stay tuned for pics, recipes and recaps of our upcoming fun - until then, have a little fun for us, because we are having none til Saturday night ;)

Goals

While my goals to lose a few lbs. by dieting and toning up my butt dimples by exercising are exactly the kind of goals that can be fun to accomplish... in the interest of full disclosure, I should share a less fun, more challenging goal of ours this year: get our finances in order!

Generally, we've been pretty good about managing $$$ since we got married. But we had some adjustment issues (maybe it was just me...) going from a life of luxury to a life of frugality. As full-time law/chiropractic students, we are living largely on student loan money. Its enough to get by, but not enough to support the habits we'd grown so accustomed to before we got married: nice dinners out 2-3 times per week {thanks, dad!}, bi-weekly mani/pedis, regular trips to the mall, hair style/highlight upkeep, and all other "just because" purchases. We quickly learned that old habits die hard.

In addition to cutting out some of our more frivolous spending habits, we created a budget in Excel to help us see where our dollars are going, and how much we have left over for fun stuff. My mom emailed us the other day with this link: Mint - that tracks your spending trends, keeps track of dates bills are due, and helps you achieve your spending (and saving) goals. Its a really cool website that takes a lot of the headache out of budgeting for us! And the spending trends it reveals, right down to the category of spending or a specific store or restaurant, were horrifying eye-opening to say the least.

We're also setting spending limits for our weeks and weekends. This isn't a novel concept, but its new to us this year! Our new manta is "once its gone, its gone!" Meaning... once we spend our weekend limit, or our weekly miscellaneous spending amount, that's it! By making our budget more rigid, rather than a rough approximation of a number we'd like to stay around, we're guaranteed to stay on target with our spending/saving. 

Although slaving over painting my own nails last week was not half as relaxing - or pretty - as when I get them done at my fave salon, the thought of that $45 still sitting in our bank account was satisfying enough that I plan to do the same thing this week :) Figuring out a livable, manageable, reasonable budget that works for us {as newlyweds}has not been the most fun aspect of our marriage, but it has been necessary. I look forward to the sense of accomplishment we feel when we see that we've reached the goals we set for ourselves, and I know that these are valuable skills we'll be thankful to have developed in the future.

"There are plenty of ways to get ahead. The first is so basic I’m almost embarrassed to say it: spend less than you earn."

Paul Clitheroe 

1. List your expenses 

2. Add it all up 

3. Cut back