sunday blues

this term, 'sunday blues.' is pretty common around the rogers' household. as a college drop out and currently employed server, it's a phrase not commonly coined by this chick. but today, i've got them sunday blues. for the first time in months, i have to work monday morning [insert tears]. in an effort to cheer myself up, i thought i would recap this great weekend that just happened.
after a let down change of plans, a weekend that was supposed to be spent driving to the big saint geezy was now to be spent finding the most entertaining, time consuming activities in cv. thought at first to be a challenge, i took on that challenge and fully conquered it. yay me.
thursday night: bees game. the first of many hopefully. the last time i went to a bees/buzz game i think i had diaper rash.
friday: sleeping in until 12, i wasn't mad. boutique shopping in logan (yes, this happened: bella me, and violet hill are a little out of place around these parts but so great) with a few of my favorite ladies. ever been attacked by box elder bugs at 2 am and had to sleep in your friend's bed with said friend plus one when the spouse is out of town? true story. attacked.
saturday: no sleeping in :( but for a greater cause: boating at willard with the veibells and zundels. two great families that have taken me in as one of their own. i can't remember the last time i went tubing but i know for a fact that i definitely wasn't as sore the next day as i am today. ouch, i'm getting too old. first complete grilling adventure finished off with a new recipe: pink lemonade cupcakes.
sunday: sleeping in and laying in bed to watch 3 episodes of bridezillas with celeste. a minor incident of me being a bad friend did occur and put a slight damper on the weekend but i definitely learned my lesson. dinner with my rogers' family. they're are among the greatest people i've ever met. evening walk with jk and lissi lou. loved every second of my extended weekend...

dear monday,
i've been well-prepared. let the games begin.
love, me.

oh, hello blog.

blogging is hard. at a time in my life when i should be recording my every move; for my future fam to learn that i was young and super awesome once, for myself when i'm old and decrepid and senile to remember how great i really had it; it's hard to sit myself down and analyze my feelings and detail my experiences. i'm at a place where the sky's the limit, i can literally do whatever i want to do: live where i want to, be with who i want to, work where i want to, do whatever my heart desires. i'm trying to live every moment to the fullest and sometimes i need to take a step back and record. so here is the first post in a promise to myself to ponder my decisions and remember what life is all about. in the words of the late gordon b. hinckley, "life is to be enjoyed, not endured." so here you can catch a glimpse at the sources of my enjoyment.

summer is unreal amazing. anyone who knows me knows my feelings about this season. in 2011, nothing has compared to the afternoons i've been able to join up with my roommates and bask in the sun's rays on so many occasions. speaking of roommates, all of mine are some of the world's greatest. lynsi elise allen, the newest addition to our home has been so GREAT. i love her more than words. melissa mortenson, those curls are an announcement of the crazy fun she brings always. i love having her as my floor-mate and waking up to her greatness. margee jean cooper, our little baby who just turned 22. i love her, one of the greatest friends anyone could ever imagine having.

probably the most sucky part about summer is having my amazing boyfriend all the way across the country. looking at the more positive side of the situation, besides the fact that we get to play for the other 7 1/2 months of the year, this means that i get multiple summer vacations in a new place. when else would i get the chance to vacation in beautiful minnesota? hopefully never haha. a visit in may, and a visit a few weeks ago and now we're visited out. minnesota is beautiful. i never thought i would say that but here i am, typing it up. great girls and great activities were the equation for fun afternoons while we waited for work to be over and the boys to get their cute behinds home. his office is now located in toledo, ohio. since we're down to the last six crucial weeks of the summer, my patience is being tested to its max, my heart is being stretched past its emotional capacity, and my understanding button has been taped down, and i can not wait for august 28th. don't tell anyone that all i want is for the summer to be over. i feel like wishing that is committing a sin, who wants summer to be over? this girl does.

i think that's about all the recap needed for now, so prepare yourselves for more insights and replays to come.

Day 20: Your Favorite Christmas Tradition

My family is what we'll call "unconventional." Whenever I think about holidays I feel like we don't have specific traditions that we've done every year since the beginning of our family. There have been so many disruptions and changing circumstances that we just started blowing in the wind and doing anything that meant we could be together.

During the years of two Cole children at Todd and LuCinda's there was a playroom downstairs and a shared bedroom with bunkbeds upstairs. When two became three, playroom turned preteen bedroom for Kirsten and half bunkbed/crib for Courteney and Spenser. When I think about Christmas as a child there is one specific thing that replays in my head year after year...

We weren't allowed downstairs until 8:00 a.m.

Spenser was always the first one awake, not just because it was Christmas but because this girl was the naughtiest of naughty kids. As soon as she saw one of my eyes bat open I could hear, "Courte? What time is it?" I would bust out of my sheets, let down her crib door, and somehow the two of us together could get her out of the crib. We would run to Mom and Dad's bed and jump on them yelling, "Hurry! It's Christmas!" and then snuggle with them until they told us it was 8 and we could go get Kirst.

Even though we were an official 4 years and 7 months apart, we shared so many moments together. I guess I've always been a little on the immature side. I hope my kids share as many great times as we spent together.

Day 19: A Hobby of Mine

As I get older, I'm seeing my adolescent hobbies, such as dancing and spending hours on msn messenger (yes, at one point in my life this was considered a hobby), start to diminish. Sometimes I get caught up in the moments of "I don't have any hobbies! All I ever do is go to work, sleep, and eat!" but the difference now is that I've established myself a bit more and realized what hobbies bring the most joy and will most likely be a help to what future goals I have in mind. Dictionary.com defines a hobby as follows...

hob·by

¹  [hob-ee]

–noun, plural -bies.

1.

an activity or interest pursued for pleasure or relaxation andnot as a main occupation: Her hobbies include stamp-collecting and woodcarving

While I'm not interested in collecting stamps or picking up on woodcarving, my current main hobby is probably working out. I'm all for looking great for this upcoming swimsuit season, but I don't hit up Sports Academy & Racquet Club for three hours a day pumping iron and running half marathons, I work out because I like it and I feel so much better afterwards. My best workouts come after a fight or a long day of waiting tables or a bad day of missing Ty.

Day 18: Put iPod on shuffle and list the first 10 songs that come up

1. Frank Sinatra "The Way You Look Tonight"

2. Regina Spektor "Eet"

3. Glee Cast "Pokerface"

4. Janet Jackson "Call on Me"

5. Adele "Turning Tables"

6. Gavin DeGraw "Dancing Shoes"

7. Miley Cyrus "Party in the USA"

8. Britney Spears "Womanizer"

9. In The Heights "When You're Home"

10. Black Eyed Peas "Meet Me Halfway"

My music taste is obviously pretty broad... haha