Spring Surprises

I was able to catch a photo of 2 of the 3 deer behind our house a few days back. The deer are the reason I'm hesitant about putting too much money or getting too attached to my flowers this spring. From what I've been told they LOVE to eat flowers~

This is the are by the AC on the side of the house. I was almost sure these plants were weeds. Actually i'm still not completely convinced. However I'm a sucker for blooms and this are is not a landscaping priority at the moment. We are going to put a french drain in on this side of the house to help with the water issues and rebuild the wall on the side of the patio under the deck before putting in new landscaping in this area.

The azaleas in front of our house are WHITE. They are pretty but I think I like the pink/red at the Yorkshire house a little better. But then again not enough to replant. One is much healthier than the other so I hope it survives. I think it will since it was healthy enough to bloom. This is the are to the left of the front door when starting at the house. We transplanted the hostas and the three plants in the front from the back yard. We will have to wait and see what the "mystery" plants actually do, If I don't like them then I'll put in something else!

Excited to see the Iris's in the back yard are a pale purple color. These are in the area near the coy pond so they will have to be moved when we take out the coy pond and and install the french drains/move dirt around more better drainage.

Easter Decorations

So I finally got around to digging out our Easter Decorations on Wednesday (4 days before Easter) at least we will get to enjoy them for a few days.
Sometimes I feel like Stuart (and many other people) wonders what I do all day Monday to Thursday because I only work Friday and Saturday nights. I'll admit that some days I do have a lot of free time but most of the time I stay pretty busy. For example today I did 90 minutes of hot yoga, made lunch, made the bed, picked up sticks in yard, started mowing the front yard, ran out of gas and had to go buy some, made a produce run to Kroger to catch what was on sale this week, finished mowing the yard, weeded the flower bed, showered, finished picking up the house, dried my hair and got dressed up for a critical care nurses educational dinner meeting, made a snack, packed Stuart's lunch for tomorrow...and somewhere in there I managed to complete and put away three loads of laundry. So yes, I only work part time but night shift is physically taxing and I spend Monday recovering and usually need additional rest on Friday. All in all I love my job and the flexibility it provides. I love that I have done 5 hot yoga and 3 ashtanga classes this week and my body loves it also. With any luck I'll make it to hot yoga in the morning, before running to mall to pick up $10 birthday gift card (gotta love free stuff), and Costco for veges (need to restock and make a vege tray for a pitch in at work on Saturday night). So yes, I only work 2 nights a week but no I don't have any shortage of things to do!

Spring is here (well maybe)

Last week Mom and Dad helped me transplant some flowers from the back yard to the front yard. We have some major yard work to do in the back yard, later in the summer including moving quite a bit of dirt and putting in french drains to help control water runoff. Luckily it rained on Sunday and again today (as you can see from the picture) so the transplanted flowers are thriving. Last Saturday Stuart and Joe put in a long day of work on the deck-future patio. They demolished lattice work and vines below the current deck and began the process of adding additional wood and metal supports to the existing structure so that we can make a patio below the deck. They also took down the existing deck rails which we are going to replace with white vinyl railing. On Sunday afternoon Rachel, Stuart, and I made a spur of the moment visit to Breck County to see Jacob. Wish I would have gotten a picture of the three of us but you have to settle for pictures of the flowers and deck.                                                 

No more Doggies

Today was our last day dog sitting. I'm not going to lie, it seems quiet around the house tonight. I took this picture this morning just before I went to pick the dog's parents Anna and Billy up from the airport. I think Stuart the dogs more than me, I liked having them around but didn't like having to take them out to the bathroom at 5am! I'm very glad that Anna is home, I had picked up the phone to call her five or 6.six times over the last two weeks!
Not a whole lot of other happenings in our life right now. Stuart and I are trying to eat a more healthy diet. By eating tons of fresh produce, which actually tastes really good to me, we have both managed to loose a couple of pounds since last week. I've been tracking my intake and was very surprised how much sodium we are taking in on the healthy diet. It makes me realize the INSANE amounts we must have been taking in before. My goal is to be even more mindful of our sodium intake. I'm going to attempt to soak and cook a bag of chickpeas to use in a soup recipe this week instead of using cans. It shouldn't be too hard and it will be cheaper and healthier.
Well, gonna get off her and watch the National Championship Game. Go Butler! Also excited that tomorrow mom and dad are coming up to spend the night .

Brittney's Bachelorette

On Friday March 25 Rachel and I went to Nashville to celebrate Brittney and Jacobs upcoming wedding. I didn't manage to get a picture of all three of us together. The top picture is Brittney with Callie, the 4th bridesmaid. Brittney's little sister Katie is maid of honor and Rachel and I make up the remainder of the wedding party. We had fun eating dinner at Margaritaville and dancing at Cadillac Ranch. However, Saturday was a very long day for me after driving from Nashville to Indy with only a brief stop in Louisville and then working 12.5 hours and driving back to Louisville! May 20th, the date of the wedding, will be here before we know it~