An Eventful Weekend

Well my weekend was full of great things... and I will highlight the high points.

Saturday

I drove down to Crozet for my 2nd of 3 wedding showers, this one thrown by my sister-in-law K. It was a small gathering with great people and amazing food. I mean really amazing. K had a delicious spread of Risotto, green beans, spinach salad (in this really cool parmesean cheese cups) and prosciutto-wrapped chicken with a yummy mushroom sauce. Dessert was an assortment of cream puffs, eclairs and yellow cake with chocolate frosting and a strawberry cheesecake filling. Oh it was SO good! Aside from eating, we spent the afternoon opening gifts and just chatting away.

After everyone left, I stayed with Mike and K, have some QT with Julia and Ella (Cazin was there, but doing his own thing) I will tell you, Julia has Tita Molly right where she wants her... I will do just about anything with that girl, moreso as an effort to be a "cool aunt" that she has fun with. I am anxious for her to be a little older... like 13, because I seem to relate better with teenagers :) We can talk about Hilary Duff and the Jonas Brothers. Haha.

Sunday

I took the plunge... I did it... I bought a new car! WHAT?!?! Yes, I have retired the Civic and now am the proud owner of a 2007 Nissan Versa. It was a tough decision, well kinda, but it was time. I've been saying for years how I needed a new car, and Sunday, well the offer was too good to pass up. It started on Friday when I took the old Civic in for an oil change, and came back with a report of needing new tires and a new axle... another $1000 to put into my car. Ugh. Bruno said, "That's it! We're getting you a new car!" I whined for a second, then said, "Ok."

I had looked at the Versa before and obviously liked it, so it was easier to decide on what to get. We went to the dealership about an hr before it closed, test drove the car, and were pretty happy with it. However, me, not being one to make quick decisions, wanted to sit on it and try some other cars at other dealers. Well the Nissan dealership would have none of that. The manager came over as we were heading out the door, telling us, "I've got to make a sale. This is what I can do for you..."

Final verdict - free oil changes for 2 yrs, lifetime state inspections, 94k mile bumper to bumper warranty (my car started with 46k miles) and my monthly payment is $161. Um, yeah... could I pass this up??? Not a chance. So we left the lot with a new car and I'm SO excited about it! I wish I drove to work just so I could drive it more. But in due time...

It will take some getting used to, even with my friends who know me with my Civic. But after 10 years of driving it, it was time.

When I get some pictures taken of it, I will post them so you can see the beauty that is now my car. Yay!

Getting Closer!

Last night Bruno and I went and picked out his wedding band :) (PS as I post this our first dance song came on my iPod!) He picked out a tungsten ring that's mostly brushed, but has 3 thin lines of satin finish in it. It's really nice, a good size, and pretty unique. As I was looking at the rings with him I thought briefly that there wasn't much choice for the guys, but then I realized we were only looking at the Tungsten rings. There were a lot of other choices, some nice, some completely hideous. I looked at ALL the choices for women and I just have to give so much credit to Bruno for the ring he selected for me. I don't know how you could make such a hard choice, but he did, and picked out the most perfect ring for me. I honestly love my ring so much!

Otherwise, we WERE supposed to have ou "first" dance lesson tonight for the wedding. However, I got a message that our instructor needs to reschedule... doesn't he realize how hard it was to schedule this?? Ah well.

In other news, I went to the Britney Spears concert on Tuesday night with 4 of my funnest girlfriends. We started the night with HH at La Tasca. Luckily we were able to snag a table big enough for the 5 of us (after some stalking and quick manuevering from Susie and I). The Pussycat Dolls opened for Brit, and I thought they were awesome!!! Unfortunately, the did NOT play the song Lindsay and I most wanted to hear (Top of the World - theme song to The City) but we did love all the others.

Britney of course put on a great show with incredible choreography that got everyone in the crowd standing up and dancing. However, due to my never-ending concert trips, I feel as though I've become a bit of a concert snob. I mean this in the sense that I was disappointed that Britney didn't actually sing. I had heard she didn't, which is one of the reasons we got the cheap seats up top, but I was still saddened. There are plenty of artists who dance like she does and still actually sing (Justin Timberlake, Gwen Stefani) but what can you do. I had a great time, especially with Susie in town, and recorded a few songs as well.

Next concert is Richard Cheese and Lounge Against the Machine. I got these tickets for Bruno for Christmas, so we have been waiting a LONG time for this show. I'm really excited to see how it goes, as I've only heard good things about him.

AND Whitney and Jill are coming into town this weekend!!!! I'm super excited!!! We're going to Bruno's show at Whitlows Saturday night, so come out and join us! Otherwise, we plan on going into DC to see the Cherry Blossoms on Sunday. Hopefully the rain will hold out, but if itdoesn't, looks like we will visit the museums instead. I SHOULD have pics from the upcoming weekend so I will be sure to post them. I know blogs aren't as exciting without them.

Delicious meal stolen from Carrie

So a few weeks ago my friend Carrie posted this recipe on her blog and even though I've never been a huge fan of pork, the meal looked amazing! (she has a picture of it on her blog, and she's connected to mine, so check out the blog because seeing the pic really helps) So last night I decided to finally make this for Bruno... a nice homecooked meal after his crazy bachelor party weekend. The meal was DELICIOUS and SUPER easy to make. So I've pasted the recipe on here for all to enjoy. Thanks Carrie!!



Sweet Pork Tenderloin


Recipe -
Ingredients
2 lbs pork tenderloin
1/2 lb bacon, sliced thin
1 large onion, sliced thin
1/4 cup soy sauce
12 - 16 oz apricot preserves (you can use regular, light or sugar free it doesn't really matter)

Direction
Wrap tenderloin in bacon
Place onions in bottom of 9x13 casserole dish
lay tenderloins on top of onions
mix soy sauce and apricot preserves and pour on top of wrapped tenderloins
bake at 350 for 45 - 60 minutes (you can broil it for 5 - 10 to crisp the bacon at the end)

I don't like "gym molly"

Those were the words my friend Joyce typed to me last night when I told her I was going to Body Attack instead of out for St Patty's Day. After she razzed me a little, I told her it was only until the wedding then I would go crazy. She said, "Good. I like the drinking Molly better."

Haha. Yes, I now find myself a hypocrite, as I have turned into one of those people I once mocked. I remember giving Susie a hard time for going to the gym instead of coming to Rock Bottom. How the tables have turned...

What's odd is that now I kinda find myself weight obsessed, and I'm not sure if that's good or bad. I check my weight at least once a day... which I was told before that you should only do it every 2 weeks. I try really hard to monitor the calories I eat everyday, and have stuck to a good workout routine for at least 2 months now. I haven't reached the weight I was in college, and honestly, I don't see that happening. I mean, that would mean losing another 10 pounds, and that's just insane. But I'm relatively happy with my progress, especially when I think back to last year, and I was about 8 pounds heavier then I am now. Nice work. See what weddings will do to you??

I do feel good about myself when I work out in the morning, and get my butt kicked at Belle's class every week. But it is still so hard to get up in the morning and workout. I use Wednesdays as my break day, since Tuesday night is Belle's class. And let me tell you, I live for Wednesdays. I love sleeping in and not having to work out in the morning. I never work out on the weekends. Instead, I use that time to eat whatever I want. So sure, I could PROBABLY get down to my college weight if I worked out on the weekends, and tried to eat healthy then too. But then what would the reward be??? I need Wednesdays and weekends to keep me going. I will never deprive myself of the foods I love... and the great feeling of eating junk.

But overall, I am happy with my progress. I've had plenty of inspiration from my friends who have lost weight and look great (esp. Karen, Lindsay and Belle), so they keep me going as well.

Here's to the next 2 months, right?

It's REAL!

I had my first of 3 bridal showers yesterday. This one was planned by Karen and Allyson, my amazing MOH and bridesmaid. This one was deemed my "Friends Bridal Shower."

I was so nervous leading up to the event, and I'm not really sure why. I suppose it was the reality of all attention actually being focused on me, moreso than any birthdays I've ever celebrated. The games would focus on me, and the presents. It just made me so nervous, and as I later told Allyson, confirmation that I'm ACTUALLY getting married.

Up until now, it's almost been just like we're planning an event. True, we are planning an event, but it doesn't really hit you until this moment. And I suppose that's what made me so nervous. So nervous that I had clamy hands, and changed my outfit about 6 times.

I was still wiping my brow, wet with anxiety, as I entered the room and saw all my friends. I quickly paced around, said my hellos, gave my hugs, and breathed in the reality of MY shower. It's just so surreal in a way to look around at the pictures and realize they are of me, me and my fiancee. I've been to plenty of showers of course, but it was so weird being at my own.

But as I said, Karen and Allyson did an excellent job and I had a really great time. I would say my favorite game we played was a variation of catch phrase. The variation was in the words and phrases, which all related to me and Bruno. It was so cool seeing what the girls came up with based on their views of me and Bruno. I promptly bowed out of the guessing part of the game, halfway through, after realizing it wasn't fair for me to guess. The game ended up very close, my team only winning by one point. Good job ladies!

The food was amazing (homemade cannolis!) as were the guests. Thanks everyone for a great great time and I can't wait until May to celebrate with everyone!

Nobody knows for sure... kinda...

Our fate down at CBP has been a roller coaster ever since we found out the contract was going to end. Rumors went flying back and forth, and it seems like we may have an answer... finally... for now...

Monday afternoon, I was pulled into my boss' office. He proceeded to fill me in on the fate of the 8 of us down in DC. 4 of us would stay and work through the end of the month, the remaining 4, well, their job was done on 3/13. Yes, it's a Friday. Do they know yet? Well, I know one does...

Tuesday afternoon at our staff meeting we are informed that our last day is NOT March 31, but March 6. Yes, that's thus Friday. We were told to have our things packed up by COB Friday and that everyone would report to A-Town on Monday. Ok...

Tuesday later afternoon, my boss tells me that what we were told may not be true, and that we may be here until the end of the month after all.

Today, that was confirmed. The plan I was told on Monday is back in action. I asked my boss if the terms were going to change AGAIN and he says, "I don't know."

Could they make upt there mind please? And, last I heard from this afternoon, still only one person had been told that their last day was 3/13. Um... are you going to let them know anytime soon?

So yay, I will FINALLY be back in Arlington. Back to my window, back to my friends. But not back to work... there's really not enough for us there right now, so everyone is kinda stressing out about going back. But I've been assured that my job is safe... let's hope so...

How does he do it??

Bruno has done it again. I don't know how, but he has crept in to my mind and known exactly what I wanted for my birthday!

A few weeks ago, only like 2, I sent an email to Bruno letting him know I wanted a new black purse for my birthday. I hadn't mentioned it before AT ALL, just came to the realization one day after looking at the current black purse I own.

Last night Bruno gives me my birthday present early. (I think you know where this is going) Low and behold it's a new black Coach purse! I said to him, "Did you get this after I told you I wanted one?"

"No," he says. "I got it weeks ago, BEFORE you told me."

How does he do it??

And on the subject of purses, I'm growing into a expensive purse preferred type of girl, all thanks to Bruno. I never cared much for the fancy purses, and hadn't even heard of Kate Spade. Then he gives me a Kate Spade, my friend Michelle gave me a Coach Clutch, and now my newest Coach bag to add to my growing collection. All of the sudden, I care. And you know, there really IS a difference in the quality. The craftsmenship is really amazing, and mostly worth the money :) And I feel cool carrying my purse on my shoulder.