*phew*

I have successfully survived my first week back in the working world...

I am exhausted.

My days start really early with personal training sessions at 5am, 4 days a week. Then I rush home to shower and change before hitting the road to get to work on time. I spent the majority of this week cramming my (tired) brain with a TON of information. Appears as though my job requires me to have a certain degree of knowledge regarding every aspect of Student Financial Aid/Accounts. That's A LOT of information, people. Then there's the commute home which I forgot can be so incredibly aggrevating.

Fortunately for me, I am in love with my new job. EVERY aspect. From my co-workers, who are all so encouraging, supportive and funny; to the benefit package I'm entitled to as an employee; to my supervisor who couldn't be more patient or sweet; to the actual work itself...including the interaction with students and parents. I feel like I was made for this job (well, once I'm able to wrap my brain around all the info).

PLUS, I'm on campus again with my best friend from college, Anna, for whom I am the matron-of-honor in her upcoming August nuptuals. It's so great to have lunch together and chat about upcoming wedding-related projects, and to have such a major member of my support system just a matter of a couple of buildings away.

If that's not enough, every night this week when I came home from work, Erich already had dinner ready and on the table. He did all our grocery shopping for the quarter on his one weekday off, AND did a number of loads of laundry. Am I the luckiest gal in the world, or what?

All in all, though I'm exhausted from all the running around and getting adapted to my new environment, missing spending precious time with both my husband and my couch, I'm overwhelmed by feeling supremely satisfied and blessed.

First day of work!!!

So I have the best job already...I can tell.

The people in my office are all so friendly and welcomed me right away even though I wasn't in the office very long today.

I'm stoked because the training period for this position is a month...a month! The past couple of jobs I've had have been trial-by-fire type situations, so I'm super excited to be trained thoroughly before I'm left to my own devices.

Part of the reason the training is so long is because of the massive sheer volume of information that I have to learn which brings me to the third reason I'm already in love with my job...I'm at home right now, changed into pjs ready to do some hard core reading. AND I get to stay home tomorrow too and keep soaking in all of the info!

Alright, time to get cracking!!!

(Thanks to everyone who thought of me today as I started my first day...I think it's going to be a great fit!)

It's possible that I'm about to rock your world...

A post by a good friend reminded me how much I like, no, LOVE shopping online. I love doing it from the comfort of my home, sitting on the couch with my socked feet on the ottoman, watching tv in my pajamas with a steaming cup of tea in one hand without the crowded stores, parking lots, dressing rooms, never finding what I want in my size, standing in line at the checkout and rude or impossible to find store clerks (even though I have a special place in my heart for those who work retail). And even though I am crazy about the holidays (I honestly start to crave holiday music around July), and enjoy the cold and bustle of downtown shopping during that time of the year for the experience alone, I do NOT love shopping for Christmas presents among the crazed and panicked shoppers who MUST have this or that item and don't care who they have to trample or offend to get said item. So Erich and I do a great deal of online shopping and mostly through Amazon.com (most of our family and close friends have wish lists through this amazing website, so shopping for them is a breeze!)...that, and my dear, dear husband is slightly agoraphobic (by my diagnosis) and would rather chew off his left arm than go to the mall.

But, I digress.

Awhile ago I was doing some shopping online looking for shoes for my wedding (that's the excuse I use, but truthfully I just love shoes...I think I might actually have a problem) and stumbled quite by chance on an amazing website. They only sell shoes (womens, mens and childrens) and handbags (oh, the handbags!), but it is the most comprehensive, user-friendly, reasonably-priced, magical website EVER!

First of all, they have

FREE OVERNIGHT SHIPPING!

There is even a counter on the webpage that tells you how much time you have left in the day to put in your order to get your purchase the next day.

Secondly, if you're looking for something specific there are many different search options to narrow down your choices including style or category, specific brands, color family, size, width, heel height and price range. And you can select more than one option at a time (example, white pump in a size 8 1/2 or 9, with a heel height of no more than 1-1 3/4", 2A width, and preferrably by Steve Madden or Chinese Laundry and under $100). It couldn't be easier.

Thirdly, let's say you find a pair that you think look cute but want to get a better look at. Click on the picture and you will be whisked away to an area where you can see images of the shoes from every conceivable perspective...you can even scroll your mouse over the picture itself and see a close-up view of whatever area of that shoe (or handbag) your cursor is over. This is also the area of the website where you can select to add the item to your cart, save for later, email a picture (and information) of the item to yourself or others, or even have them email you should your size become available.

Fourth, let's say you get the shoes next day and they're the wrong size...

FREE 365-DAY RETURN SHIPPING!

I believe they only do credit and not cash returns, but still...that's pretty freaking awesome!

So check it out and let me know what you think of the site. But if you're like me, you'll be in shoe and handbag heaven!!!

Fruity goodness...

Our friends the Montgomerys came over yesterday for our weekly Saturday game night & catch-up time. Yesterday was really gorgeous, and marked the first day of the season that the pool in our complex is open. So Dylan and I spent a little bit of time with our feet in the water (the pool is heated and was the PERFECT temperature!) before it became overrun with other residents. We also spent some time kicking around the soccer ball on the lawn outside of our building. It was a really fun afternoon.

Whichever of us hosts the day figures out and prepares dinner for everyone. So since they were coming up to our place to check out Wii Fit (which is a total blast...working out was never so fun!), Erich made chicken and cheese-filled tortellini with peas and bacon in a pesto alfredo sauce and I figured out dessert.

I took a trip to the local Thriftway to get some inspiration and found some really lovely, reasonably priced seasonal fruit and a premade Bavarian pound "tart" cake. So, I thought I'd try my hand at a mixed-fruit tart.

I started by taking the cake and adding a thin layer of apricot preserves as a base for the fruit. (In the future, I would probably take some of the reserved juices from the strawberries and saturate the cake since it ended up being a little on the dry side.) I then added a layer of Fat-Free whipped cream (note to self: be sure to take out of freezer at least 30 minutes before trying to assemble). Next was the fun part...arranging the variety of fruits in a pretty fashion. No real rhyme or reason. I used all fresh fruit; strawberries, blueberries, kiwi, plums, seedless green grapes, and raspberries.

To add a nice shine and a little bit of sweetness, I combined 1/4 cup of the apricot preserves with 2 tablespoons of water in a small saucepan and brought it to a boil, stirring constantly, until the preserves are melted. Then I brushed the top of the tart with the sauce giving it a lovely glisten.

All in all, it was the perfect ending to the first of many beautiful summer days.

What kinds of desserts are you all falling in love with?

I got it!!!

I'm so excited! I got the call today offering me the position I interviewed for on Tuesday and I'll be starting work Thursday, June 5th!

Better savor these last couple of weeks at home...

YAY!!!

It's a nail-biter...

I have an interview today from 11-12:30 at my alma mater, Seattle Pacific University. It is for a Student Financial Services Representative and is a job I think I'd really like...but I'm nervous.

Incredibly nervous actually...

I haven't worked a really real job since July of last year and feel a bit rusty.

Here's hoping!

********************Update********************

I think the interview went well but won't find out till the end of the week (at the earliest) or the first week of June (at the latest). I'll let you all know when I find out!

So it's been a little while...

I'm lame.

I spend between 30 minutes to an hour each day checking other people's blogs, catching up on what's going on in their lives, melting with each post about their children's recent adorable-ness, and being envious of the enormous photographic talent out there in the world. I get antsy when I see that someone hasn't updated their blog in awhile, and feel (neurotically) left out of their daily comings and goings.

So I thought that the least I could do was update our own page since it's been (gasp!) over a week since the last post.

I spent the majority of last week at our good friends Marcus and Tiffany's house painting their nursery in preparation for little Blake Steven who is due to be born in a scant 4 weeks (ack!). For those of you who might not know this about me, I actually really enjoy painting...the whole process. Imagining an overall change for a space, picking out coordinating colors, the tools, the cutting, the rolling, the touch-ups, and especially the finished product. So when Tiffany asked me if I would consider helping them get the nursery ready for Blake's arrival, I was more than happy to oblige. I didn't get any pictures of the room (none that are good enough to post anyway), but the room turned out really lovely. I think it's going to be a wonderful space for Blake to grow up in and I was so happy to be a part of the whole process!

My future sister-in-law, Monique, had her bridal shower on Saturday at The Painted Plate in Olympia which is an adorable store where you can purchase bisque-fired pottery pieces and glaze them yourself. The party didn't start until 7:30pm so my good friend Jen and I drove down to Centralia to visit with friends of hers from college, Michelle and Neil, who are both teachers there and who have recently brought their own little bundle into the world. His name is Owen, and he just turned 2 months old...and boy, is he adorable!
Their house was custom-built by Neil's stepfather and it is AMAZING! It sits on top of a hill that overlooks the entire Centralia-area. We could actually see the rain move across the town and head right for us...it was beautiful.

They also have a sweet little dachsund name Winnie who is just a hoot. She craves lots of loving (as you can see in the picture below). What she loves best of all is to sit on your chest with her neck in your face so you can give her zerberts. She could just sit there all day long...too funny!

After a really fun time meeting and hanging out with that adorable little family, we headed up to Olympia for the bridal shower. I used to really be into ceramics in high school and then took some additional classes in college, but that was over 5 years ago so I was a little rusty. But the idea for the shower was really cool. In lieu of a gift, each attendee was to come prepared to paint a piece of pottery for Thomas and Monique. Everyone was given a 4-inch square tile that would eventually end up as the frame for the mirror in their guest bathroom. We were given some loose perimeters regarding color (primary blue and green) and theme (frogs), but mostly left to paint whatever we liked. Now, I don't think I'm terribly creative, and I'm really glad that Thomas and Monique have a sense of humor because this is what I came up with...
(ha, ha...poop)

Jen and I wanted to do something else for them so we decided to paint a plate for them. A very long time ago when Erich and I were first dating we had gone to dinner at Cucina! Cucina! where they give you crayons and encourage you to draw on their paper tablecloths (classy!). I sketched a rough cartoon drawing of Thomas that I thought was so funny that we still have it hanging on our refrigerator today! What better than to eat off that face! So Jen and I painted the rim of the plate red and yellow stripes and I tried to recreate my cartoon rendition of Thomas...what do you think? (Oh, by-the-way, Thomas made an appearance at the bridal shower, but it wasn't co-ed)
All in all, we had a really great time. Erich and I miss Jen & Berto (Jen's boyfriend) terribly since we used to hang out all the time when we lived in Wallingford. So it was a real treat to spend such a fun day with her (the margaritas and wine helped too!).