10 Things

1. Things that are tiring: trying to buy and sell a house at the same time.   Don’t even get me started on how tiring it is to think about packing and moving…..

2. Things that are annoying: people who can’t use the word your and you’re correctly!

3. Things that are consuming entirely too much of my brain space this week: things that are completely out of my control…..see #1.

4. Things that are sadly enjoyable: making lists….oh how they calm my OCD!

5. Things that are lame: all of the unexpected expenses that keep popping up in our world.

6. Things that are lifesavers: family and friends who listen to me whine.

7. Things that I do not keep enough of in the house: quick dinner options.

8. Things that rub me the wrong way: the actions of people during and after a divorce…you once supposedly loved the person and now you want to make their life hell?  Baffles me….

9. Things I'm having trouble believing: that Christmas is less than 5 months away.

10. Things that keep making me chuckle: Big Bang Theory reruns….I don’t think “Bazinga” will ever get old lol

Impulse Shopping

Written on 7/11/13

I like to shop.  I think Kohls might possibly be heaven sent.  I love to bargain shop.  There is some sort of satisfaction in finding a cheap shirt that fits well that I can get my money’s worth out of. 

I’ve always been an impulse buyer.  I see it, I like it, I can afford it, I buy it.  I don’t live outside of my budget, I don’t live off credit cards, I don’t hoard.  I just like to shop.

Then there are the big ticket items…cars for example.  I’d rather take a bullet in my left foot than buy/sell a car.  I hate the bartering, I hate the games.  I just wish Kohls sold cars (hello 30% off coupon).  Anyway, just simply stating there are exceptions to my shopping rule. 

And then comes house shopping.  I don’t find it nearly as miserable as car shopping, but I must say it is more stressful.  Most people don’t go with the impulse buying in this department, but apparently this girl does.

So my townhouse is under contract; inspector came yesterday and next week is the appraiser.  Nothing about these next few weeks is in my control.

Throw into that mix, the fact that we found a house last night that we want to buy.  That house and its ability to be ours, is completely reliant on what happens with aforementioned townhouse.  We put out an offer, wait to see if they are even willing to take one with contingencies and if they are, we live with the fear that someone can swoop in and take it from us at any time.   What kind of sick game is that?!?!  These people (i.e. realtors, banks, sellers, real estate board) are killing my ability to impulse buy.  They are making me wait it out and think about it and analyze it and stress about it.  Sheesh.

For now, I just remodel the place in my head and wait…..Halls don’t wait well.  It’s not a gift we were graced with. 

Perspective

Disclaimer: I freak out easily, I want things done now now now, I have a certain way I want them done too…..in saying that, this method of madness has worked for me for 31+ years, so why fix what isn’t broke?!? Lol

Anyway, not my point. 

When I get my mind focused on something, I have a tendency to beat the dead horse, and then kick it a few times just for good measure.  So, we scheduled an appointment at The Meadows to see the house they are building that would be very similar to ours.  Keith was hospitalized for a brief stay (heart scare – he’s fine whew) and we had to reschedule.  So finally, July 3 arrived and we went to see our home.  I left there completely disappointed.  There are so many things that didn’t match the picture in my head…..the living room is small, the dining room is almost non-existent, the master bedroom and bath are a joke and the “modification” to move the laundry upstairs only further cut into our space.  Basically, it wasn’t our dream home. 

So we left, I shed a few tears and then I called in my MOHs….I decided that April and Heidi could fix it or talk me off the ledge (see Disclaimer above).  So we drove back out and walked through again.  I think I left there liking it even less.  I feel claustrophobic in that house....there is not room for our existing furniture, there is not room to put a pack and play by the bed one day (God willing), there is not a big space to host friends and family for dinner…..it just isn’t right. 

So I left again and really started feeling sorry for myself.  Then I remembered what I had planned for that evening.  I went to Kroger and Wal-Mart to gather groceries and went home so Heidi, Keith and I could make casseroles, dips, meatloaf, etc.  I wish they were for a dinner party or a shower or something fun, but in this case they weren’t.  That night we cooked for a close friend of Keith’s who is caring for his young children while his wife goes through chemo for Stage 4 colon cancer.  The moment I remembered that, I just forgot about the house. 

Suddenly walls, windows, square footage, etc. didn’t seem important.  Taking care of our friends and loving them in a way that so many people loved Dad, Heidi and I was all that mattered.  So we mixed, shredded, stirred, stuffed and were thankful we were all healthy enough to do so. 

On Thursday morning, we delivered the food, mowed their yard for them and sat back and chatted with their family.  The house was the last thing on my mind.  Don’t get me wrong, the house crept back in there as the weekend went on, but suddenly I’m not spazzing as much, I’m just going with the flow the best that my personality allows.

I’ve always hated when people tell you “someone else has it much worse than you,” I think it is cold and uncaring.  Everyone is allowed to be upset, we have a right to be sad, and yes in reality, there is always someone else in a far worse situation BUT it doesn’t make your heart hurt any less to be told that.  So I guess, the point of saying all this is, sometimes when things seem to be “the end of the world as you know it,” take the time to do something for someone else who is walking a rough road.  It quickly puts a lot into perspective……

Sidenote - links to two of the recipes we tried....Thank You Pinterest!!
Easy Meatloaf
Dorito Taco Bake

We also made Sausage Stuffed Shells, Mexican Rigatoni and Buffalo Chicken Dip. 

A Place to Call Home

Written in June 2013....

I bought my first house about 6 years ago….my landlord decided to sell the place I was living in and I decided it was time to jump into the real estate world.  When I first saw what was in my price range, I contemplated running the other direction, but my realtor finally took me to the place that I would learn to call home.  My 2 bedroom, 1.5 half bath townhouse was the perfect starter home for me and the cat. 

Over the last few years, neighbors have come and gone, but I’ve always consistently been surrounded by young people that are in similar places in life….we all work, some are in school, one family has a son, but overall, we just mesh well.  There are very few things that I don’t love about this place, but two huge ones are the parking/stair situation and the lack of storage!!!  When the Christmas tree box is right beside the shoe collection, it starts to get frustrating quickly. 

Somewhere along the way, I got a roommate.  She showed up one day and never left….and with her came her belongings (aka her hoard) and made space even more limited.  I love her and all, but my sister has a lot of stuff!!!!

And then there was an incident last Fall/Winter that resulted in me adopting another cat….it totally happened by accident, but let me just tell you….those sad eyes that Puss in Boots sports on Shrek, are alive and well in Ms Joey.  I just could not leave her in the cage….no matter how hard I tried.  With her came a second litter box and her assortment of mice; taking up even more space.

So, by the time I got married, there was no room, yet a big person and a part-time little person and their stuff needed to move in.  I kept telling myself we could make the miracle happen, but let’s be honest folks…..epic failure. 

This is where the biggest mistake happened…..Keith and I started browsing the real estate sites.  It was Russian roulette, but we continued to play the horrid game.  Then one morning over coffee and scones, it happened….we opened Homes and Land magazine, saw a house and went on a Sunday drive to see it.  We left the development that day, knowing we were going to live there (not in that house, but in the area.)

We stalked neighbors in the development to ask questions, looked at websites, called companies for initial meetings and before I knew it, we were listing the townhouse with my original realtor and meeting with banks.  In between there was massive cleaning, stocking a 10x20 storage unit, yard work and 101 other events that I have blocked out to preserve my sanity.  One day, we got a wild hair,as my grandfather called it, and reserved a plot…..we agreed it was where we both wanted to build and when Keith and I agree on something so easily, we have to snatch it up lol.

On the afternoon of Monday, June 24^th our townhouse went on the market.  On Tuesday, we were informed of emails showing interest, by Wednesday, we had an offer.   The offer is one we didn’t think twice about accepting….now we just need 101 things to fall into place perfectly….needless to say, I’m holding my breath, hoping and praying yet preparing myself for this to crumble.  (This realist lives by the line, Hope and Pray for the Best but Prepare for the Worst.)

So now we wait…we wait for our home to be sold so we can put money down on building a new home.  We worry about living in a shoe box trailer for 4-6+ months, we stress and worry some more.  And we dream about the new gorgeous home that we have picked out in a neighborhood that we really like.  We hope and chat about something we want so badly, but something that scares us at the same time. 

Hopefully this will be the home, where we raise Perry, where we decorate a nursery, where we spend some of the first years of our marriage together…..I refuse to let myself fall too far in love with the idea, but it’s hard.  It just feels right….and if it in the plans that God has for us, it will be our home.  If not, we will dust our disappointed selves off and move on….but it won’t be easy. 

So all this rambling basically comes down to this: The months ahead of us are going to be a bumpy ride.  We’re ready for the ride, as long as in the end, it takes us to our home, wherever that may be….

Sandy Toes and Salty Kisses

And the Honeymoon begins….

We waited a week after the wedding to leave for our honeymoon because the house was rented out Saturday to Saturday and we didn’t want to lose two days.  I am so thankful for this decision….it saved my sanity!!  So we left work on Friday, May 10^th and after a few errands in town, we hit the highway. 

First stop was Fredericksburg, VA where we got a cheap but clean hotel and a nasty dinner for the night.  We were thankful that the trip got a little classier after this night =)  We’re still laughing at our first hotel choice which we quickly flew (drove) away from when we realized the windows were covered with black trash bags and there were people walking out of the woods….I’m not that much of a bargain shopper!!  We got up early the next morning, grabbed some breakfast and hit the road.  The honeymoon week had officially begun. 

We made it to the Outer Banks around noon and ran errands to kill time until our 4pm check in.  My Dad and Lisa rented our beach house (Name: On The Beach) for a week as our wedding gift and we were so excited to see our home away from home.  We had lunch at Barefoot Bernies, went grocery shopping at WalMart and Food Lion and headed to the check-in office.  We finally arrived at our house….the excitement fully kicked in and we got right to unpacking and carrying everything in.  The house was HUGE and perfect!!!

We did our chores and quickly made our way to the pool for a dip….it was still pretty chilly but overall relaxing.  We finally made it next door to the Rundown Café for dinner and called it an early night.

Over the next week, we did a lot of swimming, sun tanning on the beach, souvenir shopping and plain relaxing.  We drove around and saw some of the other towns, hit the Outlets and just enjoyed our break from the world.  We ate way too much….High Cotton BBQ, Pigman’s BBQ (men and their meat smh), Duck Donuts, Kill Devil Custard, Fireflys, I Got Your Crabs, Captain Georges, Front Porch Café, Mexican, NY Bagels and my favorite, Black Pelican. 

The weather was chillier than we anticipated so we spent some time curled up by the fire place and spent a lot of time in the hot tub!!  We managed to get better weather toward the end of the week which we were thankful for.

Some “hoots” of the trip included:

1. My rib dislocating (happens occasionally).  So Keith got to push that puppy back into place and I spent the day in bed and drugged up.
2. Keith took his cell phone for a swim in the pool so we were down to one phone because somebody doesn’t think insurance is necessary “because I’ve never lost or broke a phone.”
3. We had two birds commit suicide in our pool.  The first one we found minutes before the pool girl got there and she assured us that the chlorine content was so high we would be fine.  We found the second one 2 days later.  RIP feathered friends.

Some of my favorite memories:

1. Having a whole week just to enjoy a simple life and celebrate finally being married.
2. We saw dolphins a few times….in all of my years of going to the beach, I have never got to see dolphins that well.
3. Having breakfast on our upper deck every morning.  It was peaceful and gorgeous and my favorite part of the days. 
4. Seeing the look on my husbands face when he saw the damage I can do with crab legs.

Unfortunately, the week came to an end and we got up early Saturday morning to head home.  We made a few stops along the way, but made it home at a decent hour.  Unpacking wasn’t the most fun thing to do, but we survived and feel blessed to have such amazing honeymoon memories. 

Happily Ever After Begins Here....

It has been 39 days since my wedding and on every one of those days, I have thought to myself, write down everything about your wedding so you never forget the things that made it “your day” (I have a lot of conversations with myself).

Anyway, today I’m doing just that…..

Thursday May 2.

I woke up early to do all of my errands and then operation stalk Sams Club floral shipment began.  According to the website, 1 of 6 boxes had shipped…the others were MIA.  I had a fun little convo with the customer service rep who thought I was a crazy bridezilla (I was nice, just frantic), and he promised me I would see them by early afternoon.  Around that time, the doorbell rang and the wedding weekend madness began.  I headed to Kathy’s house with enough flowers to decorate a graveyard and the centerpiece making began.  We made 25 centerpieces, assorted vases, a cake topper and somehow managed to not kill each other along the way.  Me, Jenna, Kathy and Lisa cut, tucked, stuffed, plucked and arranged our little hearts out. 

After that ended, it was off to run a ton of errands and make the first of many deliveries to Ramada.  I fell into bed way too late but managed to get some sleep.

*This is also the day my sister decided to find the broken bone in her foot and get put in a walking cast….attention hog!!!  j/k

Friday May 3

And the madness continues….I started this day out the right way, with caffeine.  After that, it is all a whirlwind.  I was stressing out at first because I thought I had too many people that were willing to help, but my thoughts on that quickly changed.  I had the perfect number of people helping and they’re all God-sent.  I had people decorating, picking up cookies, picking up food – they were basically my brains, my feet and my sanity. 

We took time for pedicures, Happy Meals and manicures around noon and then immediately got back to work.  At the church, we were having major musical malfunctions and I honestly thought my poor guitarist/soloist was going to run away and never come back.  That guy (and his wife) were real troopers and solved the problem. 

Overall, I stayed pretty calm and managed to get showered and back to the church in time for rehearsal so I can’t complain.  My poor wedding planner had been put on bed rest (she had a happy, healthy baby boy!!) so it was interesting to run my own rehearsal with the help of Ms. Jenna.  She and I worked together a while back and she’s just as OCD as I am so she was perfect to step in and take the reigns. 

We rehearsed a few times, made some tweaks and moved on to the more important part of the evening – Rehearsal Dinner.  My Aunt Kathy and Stepmother, Lisa had gone to the ranch before us and had everything ready to go.  The food, the decorations, the weather and even the darn ducks, were perfect.   Keith’s parents hosted the dinner and I think everyone enjoyed the laid back evening.

My MOHs both surprised me with sweet gifts…Heidi got me a ring pillow Pandora charm and April got me a bracelet with our favorite quote on it.  I would have cried if I had the energy to do so.  It was also fun to give our families and bridal party members their gifts. 

After dinner clean-up, I got my last single girl kiss, ran more errands, went to Ramada Inn (again!) and finally went home to crawl into bed.  Wedding prep is just plain exhausting.

Saturday May 4

THE day had finally arrived.  I’d dreamed about my wedding for 25+ years and even on that morning it still had not sunk in that it was my turn…in some ways it felt like another day as a bridesmaid. 

Heidi and I went to Starbucks and Panera to get coffee and bagels and then we met the crew at 3Cs Salon.  Lisa and Melissa wrestled 8 heads of hair into side knots for the girls and a pile of curls for me. 

We went straight to the church and they finally let me sneak off to Ramada to get a quick sneak peek!!  Everything looked amazing (those wedding planners at Ramada can run a reception lol) so I calmed down and went back to the church.  My flowers were arriving as I got there and they were more beautiful than I ever imagined.  Zia Floral is a newer company in town and I am SO glad I went with them….such amazingly sweet people and beautiful, high quality work!!  April paid the balance on my flowers, because her heart is far bigger than I could ever deserve…and around that time I found a few minutes to let some tears pop out. 

Suddenly it was time to get ready (not sure how that snuck up on me), but I was put in the make-up chair and the madness began.  Halfway through getting my face applied, Keith had my wedding gift and wedding letter delivered….insert more tears.  Melissa (M Salon) went back to fixing my face and before long I was stepping into my dress with cameras, video cameras and all eyes on me.  Still doesn’t seem real. 

At some point my flower girl was MIA and the story later is told that my wedding cake took a nosedive in transit and her poor mother was trying to save the cake that her and her husband so lovingly got us as our gift.  All I know was it was the best tasting wedding cake I have ever have and no one would ever know that it was originally a little taller and bigger and pretty much ruined a poor SUV. 

Things really start hoping at this point.  My Daddio gets his first peek (cry some more) and I showed the girls my “something old and something blue” (cry some more).  Lisa and Rhonda Allen made me a patch that said “Mommy” out of my Mom’s old blue pajamas and it was sewn into my dress near the bottom.  After that I remember getting my veil and comb put on, grabbing some flowers and away we went.  I don’t remember feeling nervous, just thirsty and rushed. 

I walked down the aisle, and married the man I love….simple as that. 

Well sorta, the beginning went something like this, “Dearly beloved we are gathered here today in the presence of God and these witnesses to unite Keith and Heidi in holy matrimony.”  (Insert gasp from the crowd)  “Ummm I mean Holly.”  Yup, my sister was offered to my husband. 

Keith also later shared the special fact that Perry had a bathroom issue that resulted in him having a little bit of kid pee on his hands during the whole ceremony (I still insist he could have made time for an emergency hand wash even if the preacher had already started walking out!!)….isn’t that special?!?!?  I held those hands for at least a good 15 minutes lol

My Pastor then went on to forget my hand blessing ceremony completely, but at the end, we were married, and my singer found a way to make my music happen, and it was perfect.  I can’t wait to see the video and see all the little things I missed.  I hear the flower girl threw her petals t-ball style and who knows what else happened, but it is still perfect in my mind. 

For once, it was mine.  I didn’t have to fix anyone’s dress, or hold anyone’s flowers, or do anything but be the bride (don’t get me wrong, I love being part of my friend’s weddings!!)  It was a total 27 Dresses kinda moment lol

We did pictures at Dorsey’s Knob (almost had to beat up a cranky groomsman) and then headed to the reception.  We were introduced and then put at the head table for dinner.  I was so overwhelmed at that point that I couldn’t even eat (that never happens to me haha), but by the time dinner was over, I was feeling better. 

I remember telling people as we danced, that I felt like a princess.  For the first time in 31 years, I felt beautiful (I’m really not conceited).  God, I hope I never forget how magical that felt.  I loved my dress and my veil and be married to the handsome guy beside me.  I wish time could have stood still.  But the night progressed and we didn’t have enough time to say hello to everyone, but we danced and chatted and enjoyed our night. 

Perry and I had a cute moment….someone asked for a Riggle family photo and he looked at me and asked “You’re my family now??”…..I told him “Yes” and asked if that was ok with him and with a shoulder shrug, I was told, “Sure.”

Around 8:30, we were playing in the photo booth and I was chugging water by the pitcher.  I think I grabbed a few cookies from the awesome cookie buffet that our friends and family had created, but after that I just remember being tired. 

We finally made our way to our honeymoon suite that the girls had decorated.  I managed to bust a votive holder on the floor so we got to call housekeeping to borrow a broom.  Even on my wedding day, I wasn’t any less clumsy.   And that was the end of our wedding day. 

The next installment will be Honeymoon 101….

And So It Begins...

This was written in February of 2013, but I just finally got the nerve to post so here it goes!!

Hi my name is Holly, and I’m a blog stalker.  “Hi Holly.”  A dear friend of mine (name withheld to protect the innocent) introduced me to the world of blog stalking and in that time, I’ve always secretly wanted my own. 

The normal thoughts ran through my mind, “Who would want to read about my boring life?,” “What would I possibly write about?,” “Could I keep it peppy and upbeat and not be one of those Facebook whiners?” and the list goes on.  Well today is the day….today I start my blog.  It might be a bust; I might get bored after a day or two, but gotta give it a whirl.

*Please note that I will write with horrible punctuation and rough grammar (I do promise to use your/you’re; to/too/two and its/it’s correctly).  Oh and ramble….I like to ramble.

Anyway, I guess I should tell you about me, although I assume the people who read this will know me….hhhhmmmm.  I’m 29.1 which mainstream society calls 30 years old.  I was born and raised in Morgantown, WV and plan on living here until we retire and buy my beach house (a girl can dream).  I come from a family of 4 – My Daddio, Jim, My Mommy, Debbie, who passed away 5 years ago from cancer, and my Sister, Heidi.  Needless to say, our world has been rocked, rolled, twisted, turned, flipped, kicked, punched, and glued back together a lot over the last few years; yet we survive. 

I’m approximately 75 days away from marrying the man that I love (and waited a long time for), Keith, and with him comes a sweet little 6 year old, Perry, who has already won my heart.  I currently have two furry children, Roo (short for Roosuphus George Harold Hall) and Joey (short for Josephine Margaret Eloise Hall) and I talk to them far more than I should ever publically admit. 

I play with drugs for a living, in the legal way aka I work for a pharmaceutical company.  I’m a certified cube monkey, even though I dream of owning a florist.  I graduated from WVU with a Bachelors degree in Business Administration. 

I really don’t know what I plan to talk about in future entries, we’ll see how this goes.  In the meantime, I have to end this so I can stalk some more blogs to find out what I should write about next (see, I am my own enabler.)