The Happy Life Wife

Show and Tell Monday: Christmas Talk

1. Tell us what your favorite thing about Christmas is.

My favorite things about Christmas are bringing family and even the unexpected close together. The giving to people in need and common goals to help others out this season can bring us all together. If we get down deep, the best thing about Christmas is the reason for the season, Jesus. It's a time of year that we all can come back to our faith if we haven't felt as connected. It's a time that we all can remember how blessed we are. It really is my most favorite time of the year...to risk sounding corny.

2. Tell us what your plans for Christmas are this year.

This year we've been especially blessed by my in-laws, we're all going on a cruise! We're leaving the 23rd and will return the 29th. We'll spend Christmas day at Epcot, hit Grand Stirrup Cay, Nassau, and back to NYC. While it's something totally different, and we'll miss our Ohio and far away family it's going to be jam packed full of great memories!

3. Show us a picture of Christmas in the Past.





























Christmas morning two years ago with one of our beasts.

4. Do you wrap your presents all in one box, or wrap each present separately?

Usually separately, I love under the tree to look nice and full! We even wrap what goes in the stockings!

5. Tell us and special traditions you and your family like to do?

On my side we always get up in the morning eat breakfast together and sit down and read the story of baby Jesus and reflect on what this day was really about, then dig into presents! On the hubs side it's a tradition to go to Christmas Eve service at church and then everyone gets a matching set of PJ's, yes even as adults we get excited for matching PJ's!

With Love,

This is belated, but welcome to the world Colby James! My dear friends Holly & Ben welcomed their 2nd blessing this past Friday and added their little boy to their family, and Calleigh became a big sister!

If you notice there is a picture of Holly's parents taped up on the surgical drape. About a month and a half ago Gina, Holly's mom, passed away after a battle with breast cancer. I know Mama Gina was looking down and blessing that day with the biggest smile on her face.

To donate to the fight against breast cancer check out The Gina Brunen Memorial Fund.

With Love,

I need to give my immune system a turbo boost, because lets be honest I get sick way too often! I'll return tomorrow kids!

Show and Tell Monday: My Christmas List

We all have dreams right? I'm not talking about the sleepy time dreams here, but the kind of dreams that we have about our life. Dreams that we're actually kind of OK with never happening because they're so far out there dreams. Well, here are some of those far out dreams of mine!

- I want to live on some land, or at least own some. I don't want to live in the middle of nowhere, but I'd love to not have people live 10 feet away from me one day.

- On that land, I'd love to have a semi mini farm. Our own large garden, chickens for farm fresh eggs, maybe a horse or a goat even!

- I'd love to be a real live full time stay at home momma.

- Even though I want to be a SAHM, I'd love to actually have my own photography business. Having a legit small business, better camera and all...I swoon.

The thing is, I have a pretty darn great life! I pretty much live versions of my dreams now.

- OK, we don't live on land at all. We in fact live in a twin with a small fenced in yard, on a stinkin' adorable street. Our house is great, we have three bedrooms a finished third floor, a dishwasher, great front porch and again a fenced in yard for our giant fur babies.

- We do grow our own raspberries, blackberries, basil, potatoes, and either twin on each side has a raised garden in their back yard. They share the wealth and it's great!

- I'm a semi SAHM. I'm home with Josh the majority of the time. I'm a nurse and have the luxury of having alternatives to working the typical 9-5 job. I work 2-3 evenings a week at a local hospital on a med/surg/trauma unit. Hopefully I'll eventually be night shift and be home with my boy and hubs most of the time. This is a great compromise until we are financially able to do the whole real live SAHM thing.

- I do have my own photography business, that is VERY small, but it's still mine. Mostly things for just family, friends, and a few referrals. I do work maybe once a month, and it's fun for me. I do have a great camera that I've had for four years that still works great!

I'm so thankful for my real life dreams and the life that I live now. It's no cake walk, but it's ours!

With Love,

Linking up with Chelsey and other ladies for Wordless{ish} Wednesday!

With Love,

Linking up with Women Connect '12

Sometimes I fail...

It's so true! Sometimes I downright fail. At blogging, at work, and some days as a person I think lol! This isn't a "woe is me" kind of post, it's a true and laughable post. This past week I haven't blogged once. Not really because I was too busy or anything, I just didn't. Sometimes this past week I was in a really bad mood, I mean foul, and my poor husband usually gets the brunt of this. Did I have a reason for being in a foul mood? Simply, no I didn't. To top it all off this past week of work, I feel like I left and could have done so much more...even though we're really busy. I looked back and really enjoyed Thanksgiving only to realize I didn't take one stinkin' picture to remember our son's first Thanksgiving by...total mom fail right there folks! My only reasoning for all of this is that sometimes I just fail...and it's OK!

It happens to all of us from time to time, or so I like to think at least! I figure the world definitely didn't stop turning by me not blogging for a week, I still have a job, my husband still loves me, and I hope that I will remember the little special moments from Thanksgiving, and that Josh will forgive us for not documenting it.

Failing and not wanting to fail is something that I've struggled with my whole life...maybe it's oldest child syndrome or something. I would get really down on myself for not succeeding or being "the best" at something. I've struggled with weight (still struggle) and will lose weight, gain it back, and get horribly down on myself, and start up a diet again rather than just changing my lifestyle to keep myself healthy and would beat myself up about it.

This is all changing in my life and changing for the better! It's a new journey that was sparked by becoming a mother. I want to be the best example for our son as possible, I'll never be perfect, and that's OK too. I just want to set the example for him that momma doesn't expect perfection, she just wants you to do your best, and be happy, and how could I be that example for him when I'm not walking that walk myself? So, here's to moving forward! We're not starting another diet, we're changing our lifestyle. We'll eat better, and be more active as a family. If weight loss comes with it, then bonus! My goal is to grow my blog and post at least five times a week. If I don't gain any more followers and I only post once a week, but enjoy it, then I'm OK! I'll continue to try my best at work to be the kind of nurse I want to be, and recognize that It's a a process, I'm always learning, and no one can do it all!

So, yes, sometimes I fail!

With Love,

With Love,

With Love,

Blogging along tonight with the lady over at Mommy and Her Meltdowns...

1. What do you wish someone had told you about pregnancy?

Honestly, how great it can be! I'm not trying to look through rose colored glasses here or anything, there are REALLY rough days in pregnancy. I feel like though that everyone focused on the negatives telling me, "You're going to be SO sick!" or "Just wait for those stretch marks." I ended up trying to focus so much on the positives of being pregnant when I was pregnant because of this. Again, I had some rough days, or quite a few. But those aren't what I remember now!

2. What do you wish someone had told you about labor and delivery?

There really wasn't anything anyone didn't tell me, 'cause let's be honest this is something people usually have no problem letting you know all the details about! Usually, it's every one's horror story for delivery. I'm a nurse I know the basics, not all the details because I don't work in anything close to labor and delivery, but I had an idea of how things would go, and we went in with a very open mind...no birth plan at all!

3. What did you feel when you delivered, emotionally and physically?

Emotionally I was exploding, but on the inside. I'm probably one of a handful of women (or at least I feel like it) that didn't cry when our boy was born. I almost have guilt about it, but I didn't cry at our wedding either, but I cry watching Homeward Bound...makes sense, right?! I had a c-section so hubs held our boy first, and while yes it would have been great having him put right on my chest after he was born, there was something so fantastic about looking over and seeing him in his daddy's arms and him looking over at me with the proudest look on his face that can never be replaced. Physically, I felt SO much relief! I was exhausted after over 48 hours of labor in the stinkin' hospital! I was also going nuts because thanks to my sock falling off my foot while I got my spinal I spent the entire 25 ish mins on that table feeling like my sock was half on my foot.

4. How long after delivery did it take for you to feel physically normal again?

I had a fantastic c-section with no complications and a great recovery. I wanted to get out of bed two hours after and wasn't allowed...darn rules! Once we got home I had the wonderful elephant ankles thanks to fluid shift, and soreness from over do-ing it sometimes, but I'd say after a couple weeks I for the most part felt back to normal. I still have some soreness around my incision, and of course my stomach is not back to normal yet, but I figure it took almost 10 months to get that way, give it at least that to get back to where it was or better.

5. What is the best thing about being a new mom?

My bond with my son. There are many nights I just sit staring at him while either dancing or rocking him to sleep that I cry. I cry because I'm so happy he's ours, so happy he's healthy, and so happy that we were blessed with being his parents and get to watch him grow.

6. What is the most unexpected thing about being a new mom?

You totally lose your modesty to a point...especially being a breast feeding momma.

7. Do you miss being pregnant?

Yes. Flat out yes. I had a pretty easy pregnancy, rough days that are expected, but really pretty smooth sailing. I miss knowing my boy was safe inside me, his kicks, and carrying him with me all day. Looking back I pretty much loved being pregnant, though at the time I may not have acted it. That being said, I love love love having him and getting to snuggle him.

8. How many kids do you want? How do you want them spaced and why?

We're thinking four. We're each from a family of four kids and we liked it. When it comes to spacing we'll totally play it by ear. The one thing I know is there was a very large age difference between me and my next siblings due to re-marriage and I do not want that. While I'm very close with my sibs, I wish I had the growing up memories and bond that the hubs has with his siblings all being only a couple years apart.

9. Is it hard seeing how fast they grow and how do you handle it?

It's incredibly hard. I leave him for an eight hour shift at the hospital and come home thinking he's changed in just that amount of time. I handle it by just loving it! It's natural, it's what all kids do, and it's what all parents experience. I soak up my time with him, and started to journal our days here and there to remember it all.

With Love,

With love,

1. Tell us what you like to do when it's cold outside.

One of my most favorite things to do when it's cold outside is slip on my Uggs (yes I still love them, and I need to get a new pair) or most comfy slippers, curl up on the couch with my little family, and put in a nice winter movie like White Christmas or Holiday Inn. Sip on a nice glass of red wine or hot cocoa and my night is made!

2. Tell us some of your favorite winter recipes.

They're not full recipes, but feel free to ask for them if you'd like! My moms freakin' fantastic chili, I choose to sub the ground beef with ground bison and let it cook all night and day before eating it...yum! Also, Pecan Cream Pie! My stepdad's mom was a baker by trade and she had the most amazing pecan cream pie in the WORLD guys. I mean, rock your socks off, pecan cream pie. It's become our Thanksgiving staple dessert. Quite honestly, anything in my crock-pot!

3. Show a picture of something that makes you think of the cold.




























4. Tell us/show us some of your favorite accessories/outfits for the winter.

Apt 9 boot from Kohl's

Burberry Pashmina

Caheez Winter Headband

The North Face Parka

The wonderful lady we are buying our house from introduced me to the Apt 9 boots, currently on sale at Kohl's for $49.99. Love love love the Burberry Pashmina (doubles as a nursing cover!). Found this fantastic headband over at Caheez for only $20. A splurge, I have the Eddie Bauer version, a great down parka. It gets chilly in these here parts!