The Adventures of A & J

Hi! Yea, I know, been gone a while. Of course that means there is a lot going on. A. Lot. So many of you already know, John and I are engaged, but we are getting married. In 22 days. Yes, July 18th! OMG. So much has happened in the two months since I've blogged. So here is a brief summary...

 

We received a phone call at the beginning of May from TLC (The Learning Channel) about a new TV show they are producing called, "Masters of Reception." The producers expressed an interest in me and J (from an entry I had submitted) and asked us to move our wedding date up from July 18, 2010 to July 18, 2009. Like a crazy person I said yes and here we are, 22 days from wedding bliss. They did offer us a monetary incentive to make the switcharoo so that was really a no brainer. Yet, its so funny, here we are mere weeks away from the big day and we haven't been confirmed for the show yet. BUT, they are paying regardless so who really cares if they are there (well I do, slightly, of course.)

 

Okay so now I am busy working during the day and then fitting in fittings for the dress, hair trials, DJ meetings, etc., etc. This is a huge undertaking. If I knew then what I know now, I'm not sure I would have said yes to this! But the main thing is that J and I are enthused. We are very much in love and very much excited about getting married. But this whole wedding industry and huge extravaganza is crazy. Looney toons. Insaaaaaaaaaane!

 

So the next time I write (because let's be honest, things are a bit nutso right now) I'll probably be Mrs. J. Webb. Yay me!

 

xoxo

Anna

Well well well, what do we have here? Um, me! It's me! I'm back! Sorry it's been a while, our computer at home STINKS and there are not enough hours in the day anymore to get everything done. BUT, the good thing is that I have some news. For those of you who haven't already heard (or who don't mind hearing it again) J and I have a new dog!

 

Here are her stats:

 

NAME: Her name is Penelope Meadow Webb (I may be a slight feminist, but thought it only appropriate to give her J's last name.)

DOB: 12/7/2003

TYPE: Purebred Boxer

SEX: Yes, please! I mean, Female.

CUTENESS FACTOR: On a scale of 1-10, she's a 50. I mean it. I'm not predjudice, she's freakin cute.

COMMANDS SHE KNOWS: Sit, stay, come....but she doesn't know the command: "Stop begging for food" or "Get off the bed." We are working on it.

 

Here are some pictures!

 

 

 

 

 

 

So, come on, she is so cute, right? She is also very sweet and loveable and wants lots and lots of attention. She's just like her Mommy! We hope you all grow to love her as J and I have done already. I couldn't picture my life without her. I'm in love! Puppy Love! Hahahaha!

 

Okay, have a great day and HAPPY EASTER! TTYS!

 

A & J

 

 

 

 

Hello! Okay so I finally had a chance to take some pictures of our new house! Some of the rooms are a little messy, please don't judge . So far, so good with everything. I truly LOVE my new house. Mostly because it's MINE (and J's of course!) It's very cozy, very us. I hope you like what you see and hopefully you'll have some time soon to stop by and see it in person. So here goes...

 

This is the front of our house (duh!)

 

 

Here is our cozy living room...

 

 

The kitchen (duh again!)

 

 

Our "breakfast nook" LOL! To the right are the sliders to our deck (seen in a future pic!)

 

 

The master bedroom (I use this term loosely because as you can see, it's not all that big and glam, but it does the job!

 

 

Here is the second bedroom. This one is still pretty messy because it's being used as our dumping ground for now...

 

 

This is the third 'bedroom'...it's pretty tiny so we'll be using this as our office/computer room.

 

 

This kick a*s bathroom I've been working on...I left the wall above the sink out because we are STILL working on it Isn't our new vanity freakin great?!?!

 

 

The deck previously mentioned. It's right off the kitchen area, pretty new, in good condition : )

 

 

The backyard! Sorry, I wasn't about to go out and take a better pic, it's like 20 degrees here today! But it's pretty big and flat, very, very cool.

 

 

Well that's it! This is our home. Hope you enjoyed the pictures!

 

A & J

 

 

 

It's here, it's (almost) finally here! Moving day! Tomorrow is the day that J and I officially become true, honest-to-God home owners and dwellers! Very exciting stuff. Except for the fact that we have to actually expend tons of energy physically moving our stuff, we are thrilled to be crossing this bridge. Now, of course, the funny part is that I'm already dreaming about my NEXT house! Honestly, I'm like, "Well, we need a bigger bedroom, and larger kitchen and, well, roomier rooms." Guess it's always like that to some degree....I'm praying for some warm, dry weather tomorrow, and it seems that if the weatherman is right for once, we will get our wish! It's always difficult moving in between rain drops, especially because you are spending quite a bit of time, spacing out your steps just right so you don't bump into any water pellets. Plus then there's the whole thing about jumping over puddles whilst carrying a huge entertainment center, and that just ain't cool. So, in my perfect little world, the skies would unleash upon us at precisely 1 minute after the last person exits our house. There, I put it out there, so all of you have to keep me in your thoughts. Unless you want to come and help! Yes, that's the answer, more people = quicker move = less of a chance that it rains on us! Ha!

 

Okay, so I'm pretty sure none of you will be there tomorrow, but I promise that once all of the furniture is in it's rightful place, I will take some nice, pretty pictures and post them on here for you to see!

 

For now, I will tease you with this one, tiny picture of an outlet in our kitchen (it's the only one I could find of the house, SORRY!):

 

 

So there, it's a picture of our house : ) Enjoy!

 

TTFN!

Anna

 

 

 

 

Hi all! It's been a while, so much is going on. Work, weddings, house work, birthdays, anniversaries, baby showers, tastings, bridal shows, etc., etc. I'm sorry I've been away for so long. What's new with all of you?

 

So J and I aren't officially in the house yet. We've painted the rooms we wanted to (everything came out very nice, I might add!) Rich (my brother) came over to install our dishwasher (still leaks, but we're making progress!) The handles have been replaced on all of the kitchen cabinets, the whole in the bathroom wall where the medicine cabinet used to be is slowly resembling something half-way normal, and now we are just waiting for a free weekend to pack and move! So far it looks like it'll be on February 28th. I can't wait! It's been pretty hard to go back and forth from the apartment to the house and so on and so forth. Especially when we are having heating problems in the house (I'll spare you the boring, annoying details.) But it seems like that problem is fixed, I just like to check on it every day or so, this way we're not caught in a rough situation that could have been avoided (can you say busted pipes?!?!)

 

So that being said, I'm feeling like there are not enough hours in the day or days in the week. I don't want more time so that I have more work to do, I want more time so I can relax, unwind, read a book, watch a movie, etc. I'm feeling so guilty lately when I take some time out to just play a video game (okay, so J and I are addicted to this new golf game we got for Playstation...LOVE IT) or my mind goes berserk when I try and read a book or even a magazine article! It's racing around thinking about all the things I have to do, need to do, should do, could do....bla bla  bla!

 

Okay, so I think once the warm weather hits us and when we finally find a place for the wedding, then I will make time to just be still. Go for a walk, sit in the sun. Maybe I should schedule in the time for these things like I do for all the 'work' I have to do!

 

Well I hope all is well with you, and I promise, once the house is set up, I will take some nice photos for you all and post them here.

 

TTFN!

Anna & John

 

Sorry I’ve been MIA lately, as you can all imagine, things are a little bit chaotic in my world. J and I have been busy the last two weekends fixing up the house. Painting, cleaning, replacing, fixing, etc, etc. We’ve actually been able to paint the master bedroom blue (Glacier Bay) and the living room green (Peridot.) J even let me get a light purple for the 3^rd bedroom. Score one for Anna! I have to admit, the green out in our living room, is a bit much for me. Of course he loves it, but I feel like I’m being attacked by Kermit The Frog every time I walk into that room. Now, I know I have to give it some time, and wait until we decorate to see if it really is too much, but my gut reaction is to at least paint the one wall in a different color (maybe a light brown or something like that…) However, my arms and legs and brain are just so tired right now, so basically I’m thinking, what’s done is done (for now!)

 

We also had our dishwasher delivered last night. Yes, last night. As in Sunday night, at 9pm. I guess because of the bad weather on Saturday, the Sunday deliveries were all screwed up and of course we were the LAST one (#19 to be exact!) But thank goodness J is such a good man, because he drove me back to the apartment so I could lay on the couch and do, well, basically nothing while he waited for the delivery. It felt good, real good I tell ya!

 

So another little project we got ourselves into (well, honestly, I got us into it) has to do with the hole in the wall (literally) where the medicine cabinet used to be in the bathroom. J and I went to a hardware store to pick up the paint for bedroom #3 (did I tell you it was PURPLE?!??!) Anyway, of course I am a complete impulse buyer and we saw a full vanity set for sale (7 pieces, y’all!) It is gorgeous and I somehow talked J into buying it. Now it really is a good price for all those pieces, but unfortunately our bathroom is the size of an indoor outhouse (huh?) and doesn’t really have room for all of those pieces. It came with a kick ass mirror (no medicine cabinet) and now we have a 23” x 24” hole in the wall that we need to seal up and then hang the new mirror over. J, however, is not the best with that kind of stuff and so we will have to wait for my handy brother to come on over and show us the way. Hopefully that will be soon because it looks kind of funny to walk into the bathroom and stare at a huge hole in the wall.

 

Okay, well that’s all for now I suppose…I’m sure there will be more to come! Maybe next time I’ll focus a little on the wedding planning to give you some additional insight into our crazy lives and adventures.

 

Have a great week, TTFN!

A & J

 

Good morning, all! I have some fantastic news to share. Not only did J and I BUY A HOUSE yesterday (everything went as planned, we even have the keys!!!) But we also are now engaged to be MARRIED! Oh. My. God. Can you believe it? I couldn't be happier, I don't even know what to do with myself. If buying a house wasn't enough excitement...but throwing in a beautiful engagement ring and brand new husband-to-be, I mean, come on!

 

I just want to take this time to say how truly, truly lucky and blessed I am. How could I have landed such a wonderful, charming, loving, caring, silly, funny, gorgeous man? He loves me for who I am and I feel so supported and alive when we are together. He has seen me at my worst (and believe me, it ain't pretty) and has brought out the absolute best in me (or so I think, lol!) He has stuck in there with me when anyone else might have just given up or thrown in the towel. J has taught me the truest meaning of love and acceptance. Isn't that what love is all about? Finding that one person in this world who treasures you and wants you to actually be happy. What a concept!

 

Okay, not I'm just gushing, but I can't help it. I. Love. John. There! I said it! But it certainly explains why he has been walking around our apartment in circles the last few days! Ha! Ha! It's so funny when you are able to look back and connect the dots. Silly boy!

 

After the closing for the house, he said he wanted to go over to our new house and enjoy being homeowners for the first time. So although I was starving (I mean we had to sign papers for like, an hour and a half!) I agreed and we drove the 15 minutes over to our new home. Once we arrived, we walked up the stairs and John began to open up the front door. While he was fumbling around with the key, I told him he had to carry me over the threshold into the house. So he starts telling me that he doesn't feel comfortable carrying me into our house without being engaged first. So I look at him like he has a third ear, and tell him that he should just do it, damn it! Then he again fumbles around (this time into his jacket pocket) and whips out a ring box. He gently opens it up and says, "Will you marry me?" Um.....YES, I say! Then he slips the gorgeous, beautiful, sweet ring on my anxious little finger! And that's it! We're engaged : ) Wow, I still can't believe it. Did I say I was a lucky girl yet?

 

Here's a picture, in case you're curious (don't mind the intense, zooming and wrinkles on my hand!):

 

 

Isn't it gorgeous? Well, I'll have to post some pictures of the house soon, too! But for now I'm choosing to enjoy my newfound engagement to the best guy in the whole world. Oh and HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL OF YOU! I'm so excited for 2009 and I hope you are too.

 

See you next year.

 

 

Yipppppppppppppppppie! Is that a word? If so, is that how you spell it? Well if not, it is now and I don't care. So there! Oh, wow, I am so excited, John and I are closing on our BRAND NEW HOUSE tomorrow! I can't believe that we are almost there. It's been such a whirl-wind and honestly although it's been pretty quick, to me it has felt like an eternity. I am drained, run-down, exhausted, worn-out, spent...basically I am dog tired. We both are! J has been antsy for the last few days, this morning I caught him walking in circles in the kitchen. Seriously! J. Walking. Circles. Kitchen. Weird. I think what has me most relieved, is that I heard back from our lawyer and it seems that the only $$$ we need to bring with us tomorrow is almost exactly what we anticipated. What?!?!? Usually this doesn't work out so keenly to one's favor, but someone is looking down upon us today and helping us from going completely insane with anticipation and expectation.

 

So now all we have to do is get through the next 24 hours and we will be HOME free. Get it?! "Home"...well "free" doesn't really fit in here, more like Home Expensive. Anyway, the closing is at 2:15pm EST (for all you Central and Pacific Standard Time readers.) Then it's sign, sign, sign and then we are outta there. I hope we don't run back to the house after that and look at this itty bitty house and wonder what we just signed up for, but I'm going with the optimistic approach. We will run up the steps, swing open the front door and run around from room to room like little kids on speed. Oh, the good old days.

 

Well the good thing is that we still have our apartment for a few months (yes, I know, let me answer your questions: 1. We tried to get out of our lease but were unable to do so. 2. Yes, we will have multiple payments that overlap for a couple of months. 3. Yes it will be difficult but we will manage. 4. We thought about packing up our stuff and moving in the middle of the night, but then I grew a conscience, etc. etc. You get the idea, we've thought it through, I get it. It will suck for a little while. But we will own our own house. Wahooo!) What this all means is that I can spend a lot more time picking out wall colors, painting, decorating, moving, cleaning...all of that "fun" stuff. AND do so without taking off any vacation time! So when all is finished I can take off for a nice long retreat in my fantastic back yard. Ahh, the possibilities.

 

Okay, well that's that for now. To be continued soon once we finally close on the house. Wish us luck!

 

Love from A & J

 

Well it's been pretty hectic the last few days, but I wanted to write a little something before Christmas came and went. I guess what I want to say most is that I am excited for the holidays this year because I feel like I have so much to be grateful for. J and I are buying a house (the closing is NEXT WEEK already!) and I'm grateful for my family and friends. Also for smaller things, like my job, my ability to buy groceries at the supermarket, etc. You get the idea. So often we get caught up in what we DON'T have, forgetting that it's much nicer to focus on what we do have. Is the glass half empty or half full? These are real questions that we all hear so many times, that they eventually become a blur in our little reality. But the truth is that no matter how 'bad' things seem, most of the time, our circumstances are truly in no way dire. They are just that, circumstances. Maybe we can take this time to simply find joy in non-material things, like our children, significant other, Mom or Dad. Sometimes it's just that easy to find (or make) or own happiness. 

 

Anywho, this wasn't really meant to be a lecturing series, just an opportunity for me to offer some of my ever-expansive knowledge and wisdom of the human psyche, lol! And to get you to think a little bit about what the year has brought to you and maybe even taken from you. To open your mind to the possibility that things really are okay, and perhaps 2009 will bring more joy and happiness than you've ever imagined. Or not. But the point is that you will be okay! Everything is fundamentally okay!

 

So that being said, I want to wish each and every one of you a happy and healthy holiday and new year (in case I don't have a chance to get on here before we ring in '09!)

 

Take care, comb your hair,

 

Anna and John

 

 

 

So did anyone hear about that huge mega millions jackpot last week? Well I'd be lying if I said I didn't buy a whole bunch of tickets and wish really, really hard that I would be the sole recipient of the funds. Ah, as they say, "another dollar, another dream...gone bye byes." Oh wait, I added in that last little part. Man, c'mon, when will it be my turn, or that of my closest friends and/or family members to win the lottery jackpot? I'm not even saying it needs to be millions...but $10,000. That would make me feel like a millionaire. Wow, am I lame or would $10,000 REALLY help you people out? Let's be honest, though, I wouldn't hem and haw over, say, $50k, but just a measly $10,000 would suffice. The older I get, the more I start to realize that money really does rule this world and gosh, that's depressing!

 

Okay, just needed to vent a little. But if there are any millionaires out there willing to lend a hand to a hardworking, fun-loving, determined young woman, I'm your girl! Er, um, woman.

 

So that being said, it's just another day, in another week, in another year (almost) gone by. I have to say, it's been a good one, for the most part. I do have some ideas and adventures planned for 2009 and soon I will be posting my resolutions here for you all to hold me accountable for. The power of the internet, once you write it, you kinda have to do it. That helps keep me honest : ) More than just, say, taking my word for it, really.

 

Well have a good week and I'll be back soon enough. I'm doing that "keep 'em wanting more thing." Is it working?!?!

 

TTFN,

 

A (where the H - E - DOUBLE HOCKEY STICKS HAS J BEEN?)