Overwhelmed...And Part Deux

I'd first like to start off by saying, "Thank You", to all of you.  Your support, encouragement, and love is overwhelming.  Yesterday was a bit of an emotional roller-coaster that I was seriously under-prepared for.  I feel good though.  Getting my story out there.  Which was the point.  I didn't write the post so people would feel sorry for me, or tell me how much having a miscarriage sucks, or write me nice notes to make me feel good.  I wrote it so maybe other people in my situation would know they aren't alone and that we are all here for each other with an unquestioning understanding of how we feel.
The best support I got (outside of Tom and our parents) was from two friends who had gone through this same thing.  They understood my irrational thinking and equalized it with their own stories.  They understood the struggle to go back to the Dr. for the follow up appointment and be the only one not holding a new born or the only one not pregnant in the waiting room.  They got how lost I felt...they just got it.  Without those two checking in on me almost daily, my Mom dropping everything to come to Minnesota for a week (she also helped us pack because oh yeah we were still moving in less than a month), and my "rock" of a husband, I'm not sure I would have gotten out of bed ever again.  I mean maybe that's a bit of an exaggeration...maybe.
But lets move on...yesterday I left off questioning how we were going to figure out what to do next.....

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At this point it was mid-June.  The house was sold.  Some of our stuff was already in storage.  I had given notice to my boss.  We had a two-bedroom apartment waiting for us in Durham, NC.  I had nothing really lined up as far as work went in NC.  And now, the one thing that was dictating these decisions was gone.

We were once again in a position of having to make major life decisions without much time to contemplate them.

Luckily both of our parents are pretty level headed and were able to help us sort things through.  The most important being: Was Molly moving to North Carolina or not???  I answered that question pretty quickly, yes.  I'm really not sure how I initially thought we were going to be ok living separately for a year.  Once it was determined that I was moving everything else pretty much fell in to place.

My parents got us a P.O.D to load all our stuff that was going to NC.

It's funny because the P.O.D. was so organized until we just started throwing shit in at the end.  A quick shout out to Tom's brother, Jeff.  Seriously we couldn't have had a successful move without him!

After the P.O.D. was loaded and gone the house was empty.  Literally.  We were sleeping on an air mattress.  At one point I pulled our patio lounger that was staying in MN inside so we had somewhere to sit.  Luckily for Tom he only had to live this way a few days.  For me?  2 months.  2 months on an air mattress is a looooong time.  Thankfully Tom's parents let me move in with them once I had closed on the house.

See, Tom had to start his fellowship August 1st.  The closing was not until August 12(?).  And my last day of work was August 30.  The best part?  We had to sign papers to make me Tom's power of attorney so he didn't have to be present at the closing.  I told him I get to make all major decisions now since I'm his attorney :)  Needless to say that didn't go over very well!

I ended up staying in MN until the end of August.  I had a few commitments to my job I needed to finish, plus I felt bad leaving them high and dry after accepting the promotion and promising them I wasn't leaving.  Whoops!

The time away from Tom was tough.  Again, not sure how we thought a year away was going to work.  We chatted online for, like, 2 hrs everyday...

...and things got pretty serious :)  I just got a little T.O'd because he never even sent me a full body shot!!  Oh Napoleon how I love you!  ***FYI Mom that was a quote from a movie.  I wasn't doing anything naughty online :)

Finally August 30th came.  I had the truck loaded up the night before, thanks to Tom's parents and brother.  I worked that morning, said goodbye to work, picked up the dogs and headed out!  I drove to Des Moines so I could see my parents before leaving.  Spent the night in Des Moines got up at 2:45am and hit the road.  It was me, the dogs, and the last of our stuff in the truck and the open road.  I had all intentions of staying the night in West Virginia or Kentucky, but was making good time and wasn't tired and ended up driving all the way to North Carolina in one day.  I left Des Moines, Iowa at 3:20am and was in Tom's arms by 11pm that night.

Tom took this picture the next morning with the tag "Got my family back".  Melt my heart.

Yes I pretty much slept for a week straight after arriving in North Carolina.  You would have too if you'd just been through what I had the last 3 months.

So where are we now you ask?  Well, Tom is loving his fellowship.  It's a lot of work and a TON of hours, but it's what he wants to be doing so he is happy.  I came down with the hopes of being able to substitute teach but quickly realized that was not going to be a realistic option.  The unemployment rate in NC is above the national average which does not bode well for me.  I went to a temp agency a few weeks ago and the guy couldn't believe I had left a good job without having one in place.  Obviously that was not my plan douche.

Luckily though I was able to get a job and actually started this week.  I am working at a personal training studio as their office manager / website social media administrator.  It is quite perfect for me.

 It's weird though.  Our current reality is based on decisions we made when I was pregnant.  It's something I've struggled with.  Like the first time we walked into the apartment and I saw that second bedroom that was going to be for the baby.  Or when we were unpacking and I came across the small tub of stuff I had packed for the baby (old books of ours when we were kids and a stuffed animal).  It's those moments that still make it tough, but really overall we are doing pretty well.

Thanks again for all of your support.  I've missed you all and appreciate you sticking with me during my absence.  I promise I'm back now :)

XO XO,

Molly

Now this is a story all about how My life got flipped, turned upside down...

I've started this post in my head a million times.  But to actually write it out, to actually put the words on paper the screen...that I haven't gotten to.  Why?  Well for starters I didn't / don't know how much I want to divulge, I don't know where to begin, I don't know what all to include, and I don't know where to stop.
I've gone back and forth.  Do I just throw it all out there?  Do I continue my cryptic version that some of you understand and some of you don't?  Do I ignore the past months on the blog all together and just start fresh?
I've had to do some serious thinking.
Then one night Tom asked me, again, why I hadn't started blogging again.  I told him that it was going to be a hard post to write.  I asked him, "how do I keep my generally light-hearted, funny tone in a post like this?"  His answer, "Molly you have no idea who all reads your blog.  It's not just the people who comment or send you a text saying they peed their pants laughing at your post.  There might be someone out there who reads your blog who went or is going through the exact same thing as you.  Maybe your story can help them, or show them that what they are feeling is totally normal."
So, here I go.  I'm writing, well typing but you know what I mean.  I'm going to start at the beginning.  That's about all I can promise.  The rest will probably be a mess of word vomit.

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Ok, the beginning.  A quick recap of where we were in March.  Tom was moving to North Carolina and I was staying in Minnesota for the year while he completed his Sports Medicine Fellowship at Duke University.  Tom signed a lease on a one bedroom apartment.  Everything was good to go.  We were trying to enjoy the last months of his residency and last months of being together before he left.
Apparently we were enjoying each other a little too much because on May 10 I turned up pregnant.  We were shocked, excited, nervous, and thrilled (we had tried to get pregnant for a year previous to applying for Fellowships and it didn't happen for us).  But then reality hit.  What the hell were we supposed to do?  Some major decisions were going to have to be made quickly.  We couldn't take the normal 1st trimester and keep the pregnancy to ourselves.  We needed help making decisions and we needed to move fast.  We made the decision to tell our parents right away because we needed them to start thinking about different options.  I also told my boss pretty quickly because I had just taken a promotion and assured him I wasn't moving to North Carolina (funny how God works!).  We then needed to contact Tom's apartment complex and try and get out of his lease.  A one bedroom apartment was just not going to work anymore.  Luckily they were amazing and let Tom out of his lease and helped us get into a 2 bedroom apartment.  This is about where we were when I wrote this post.
We decided to put our house up for sale and luckily sold it within 24hrs.  We then made a million trips to Des Moines to move most of our stuff into storage in the basement of one of my Dad's offices.  Moving from a 3 bedroom house with a basement and a two-car garage to a 2 bedroom apartment really made us evaluate how much crap we could live without.  Did you know you can live without a 12cup food processor and sewing machine?  I know mind blown..... 
Although time was moving super fast, it felt like it took forever to get to our first Dr. appointment.  I was feeling pretty good (a little nausea here and there) and everything seemed to be going well.  Finally the day arrived for our first Dr. appointment.  Tom and I were both so excited.  We had figured I was far enough along that we would be able to at least hear the baby's heartbeat and we couldn't wait.  Our appointment was in the afternoon on a Friday so Tom could be there.  We were planning on driving to Des Moines immediately following our appointment to put the Monte Carlo in storage (again, funny how God works!  You'll understand in a minute just keep reading.)
The appointment went great.  Our Dr. was very excited for us.  He went over all the rules (you know, no hot tubs, no alcohol, no smoking, etc etc).  Right as he was leaving the room he asked, "Hey do you guys want to see your baby?"  We of course said, "YES!"  I may or may not have screamed a little.  So he wheeled in the ultrasound machine....

The is the part I would like to keep private.

This is the part where in a full tearful embrace, at 1am when we finally arrived in Des Moines after the heartbreaking appointment, my Dad said, "Molly sometimes life can be a bitch."

48 hours later I was waking up in a hospital bed sobbing uncontrollably, Tom never once leaving my side. Now what the hell were we supposed to do?  What does anyone do next in a situation like this?  We'd just flipped our life upside down, made MAJOR life decisions based on one very fragile piece of life and now that piece was in heaven.  Well tomorrow I'll catch you up on what we did and where we are now.

XO XO,

Molly

 

CRRRRAAAAAZZZZZYYYYYY

I apologize for my absence lately, but HOLY HELL LIFE IS CRAZY RIGHT NOW!!!!!
Tom is in his final month of residency, he actually has a "graduation" tonight.  My mom is coming into town for it.  I was out of town for a funeral.  God sent us a lightening bolt of reality telling us our "plan" for next year sucked and we have been scrambling to make a new "plan" ever since.  We are putting our house up for sale tomorrow.  We have been painting trim, taking loads to Goodwill, cleaning, organizing, mulching, planting, patching woodpecker holes, etc. etc.  We still have so much to do before tomorrow.  I'm pretty sure we haven't slept more than 6 hrs. any night for the last  3/4 weeks.  Addie decided she doesn't like grass and it takes a lot of coaxing to get her to go potty outside.  So anytime that used to be spent washing dishes while the dogs were outside is gone.  Oh we also went to a wedding out of town.  This jumbled mess of a post is how life has been lately, so again my apologies.  Tom assures me things are going to get better.  I believe him because its my only hope.
Stick with me, and I promise I will be back to blogging like normal soon (hopefully)!


XO XO

You'll thank me for sharing all of this in one post

Recent happenings that I have chosen not to write entire blog posts about.  You will understand quickly why.

• I sat on the couch and smelled a smell.  I thought Tom was making a hot dog.  I then looked to my left and saw a pile of dog poop on the floor.  Not good for hot dogs.

Yes the poop is steaming

• I have a new appreciation for a friend.  We absolutely can't stand the same person.  Have you ever noticed how if you don't like someone or something and another person feels the same way you instantly become friends?  Love it!
•  Tom and I hopped on the green smoothie bandwagon.  We are both really loving it as are our intestines.  Although the budget for Febreeze air freshener has gone up considerably.

Tom happy with his smoothie.  Check out those guns!

 My favorite green smoothie concoction so far is: 1cup spinach leaves, small handful of cucumber, small handful of celery, big handful of broccoli, half an avocado, banana, honey, water, ice.  Blend it up and drink.  I use this one for breakfast since its a bit higher in the calorie department.

• Do you ever have those mornings where the outfit you imagine in your head doesn't turn out and you don't have time to change so you just have to go to work looking like a fool in an outfit that looks terrible?  That happened to me this week.  I imagined my skirt a different color and my top a cardigan instead of a flowing top and my shoes not black.  It was bad friends.  So bad in fact I went home and changed on my lunch break.  The weirdest part of the whole thing?  No one at work even noticed I changed my clothes.  And it wasn't a subtle change.
• My work is trying to get away from the IT company they currently use.  They have asked me and two other people to be our new IT department.  I had to look up what IT stood for.  I really hope they aren't expecting much :)  I mean I was pretty sure it stood for Information Technology, but not 100%.

Thank you all for your kindness after the last post and for your patience.  I feel like real life is just boring lately.  Except I did go to a bridal shower this past weekend (for a co-worker) and all there was was wine and fruit salad.  All the church people got drunk.  It was awesome.


 XO XO,
Going to buy more Kale and Febreeze now :)

Happy St. Pat... Spring Cleaning Day!

Do you ever have those projects that aren't planned but stem from one tiny little mishap and change the direction of your entire weekend?  Since we moved into our home (in January 2011) the drawer under the stove has been slightly off the tracks.  Every time it is opened it falls crooked when it's closed again.  It's one of those things that drives you crazy at the time, but you quickly push it out of your mind because the stove is usually already turned on and hot and you need to get the skillet on it before your face burns off.

This weekend, after a full day of work, Tom had had enough of the drawer and pulled the entire thing out.  Unscrewed the hinges banged on a few sides and fixed it.  While the drawer was out we found the remaining macaroni noodles that had spilled a few months back after a late night of "spirits" and vacuumed them up, along with a disgusting amount of dog hair, a random cheese doodle, and some other questionably disgusting items found only under your stove/oven.  I then grabbed a bucket and sponge and washed the floor under the oven and around it's base.  What a nice feeling to know the underneath of your oven is nice and clean.  It will really make me sleep better at night...NOT!

 That same evening I needed to go to the store for eggs and ice.  Two items.  I ended up coming home with 3 bags of groceries and no ice.  Tom was annoyed to say the least as he had been waiting for the ice since I left and stormed out to go buy ice saying, "Tomorrow we are fixing the ice machine!"  Another little thing in our home that has never worked since we moved in.

So the next morning I woke up to the refrigerator pulled out to the middle of the kitchen and Tom telling me to see if water shoots out a tiny pipe.  This fix started the next round of macaroni noodle clean up, dog hair sweeping, and another round of sponge and bucket cleaning behind the refrigerator.  Then just as I thought everything was complete the water from the tiny pipe starting shooting water all over the freezer not just into the ice area.  We proceeded to pull everything out of the freezer give it a good rinsing off, clean the drawer bucket in the bathtub and organize the entire freezer.  By the time this ice machine project was complete we had a perfectly clean freezer, a bucket of ice, and a spotless area under and behind the refrigerator.

No dust bunnies here!

All the food from the freezer in the sink, and the freezer bucket clean!

With all the cleaning happening I'd forgotten to eat any breakfast and around 3pm was quite hungry.  With the kitchen torn apart I couldn't very well make anything to eat so I pulled a muscle milk out of the fridge and decided that would be good enough.  As I was drinking it I noticed this on the back of the bottle...

Although a donut sounded delicious the thought of crying myself to sleep sounded too depressing.

Lastly, remember this guy from the holidays???

He now has a forever home hanging on the wall of our garage.  He protects my car at night and watches over Tom while he tinkers on things (yes things because I'm never really quite sure what he is tinkering on).

Well I hope you all enjoyed your St. Patricks day more than the Spring Cleaning Day we had.

XO XO,

My Kitchen Is Cleaner Than Yours Is (for today at least) Molly

Trouble in the Bubble

You know those nights when you have something specific to do, but it's not until later and there is nothing to do before hand so you play a game?  Yeah we didn't either until a few nights ago.  We had plans but not until later and both of us were just sitting around so we decided to play a game.  We pulled out "Trouble" which Tom apparently used to dominate with his brothers, based upon his "special" whacking skills and continuous winning.  I could have cared less if I won.  I was more concerned as to why the weird guy from "The Big Bang Theory" was stuck inside a bubble on the cover of the box with a dog.

 

I feel like there's more than trouble in the bubble.  The dog looks like its thinking about attacking or just went to the bathroom and "Big Bang" guy looks like he just spit out the dice, which could be a serious chocking hazard.  Good thing there is a choking hazard warning.  Also this picture seems like false advertising.  I mean when I opened up my box and there was no guy or dog stuck in the pop-o-matic bubble most of my excitement flew out the window.  Don't get me wrong I played anyway, just not with quite as much enthusiasm.

XO XO,

Trouble in My Bubble

Things that may or may not (but definitely did) recently happen.

1. I ate a tomato when everyone else ate CHOCOLATE birthday cake at work.  At the time this was a very hard thing to do.  I literally thought I was going to die.  But after much reflection I realized I didn't die from not having the cake, and actually felt pretty good about myself.  We won't go into the details on how I proceeded to eat a bag of jelly beans the next week.  I consider this a success!

2. I got a car wash over my lunch break earlier in the week.  I went to one of those "fancy" car washes where you get out of the car and they clean the inside while the car goes through the wash.  As I was waiting for my car to get cleaned (which technically I am still waiting because they did a terrible job) the shopaholic in me starting browsing in the car wash shop.  I looked at windshield wipers, floor mats, window cleaner, etc. etc.  I then noticed a wall of greeting cards.  I started reading through them and read one that I thought was sweet and I could send to a friend.  I also thought it would be funny to send her an air freshener.  Today as I was re-reading the card and getting ready to put it in the mail I realized the card was for a girlfriend.  As in a lesbian relationship you are my girlfriend kind of thing!  I sent the card anyway explaining that I loved her but not in a lesbian sort of way.  To the lucky recipient...it went in the mail today :) 

3. I cut myself bangs.  Tom was working one night and I decided at 11:00pm that I wanted a new look.  I felt that I had paid attention enough at the hair salon to achieve this look successfully.  I took my time (2hrs.) and succeeded in cutting bangs.  The next morning when Tom saw me his reaction was, "why the hell would you ever cut your hair like that?  Are you trying to be Michelle Obama?"  Let's just say I have been wearing them swept to the side.  No I'm not showing pictures.  I like them and so do other people, but I'm having a bad hair day today and they look exceptionally bad.  I'm sure it doesn't have anything to do with the fact that I woke up at 8:40am and had to chase Rocky and Addie around the yard when I let them out because they wouldn't listen.

4. Tom decided it was time to start wearing in his "Mexican boots".  He tried showing the dogs the importance of wearing them in.  Addie was not impressed.  I had to deal with him thinking he looked amazing in them.  I may or may not have had some seriously strong drinks to help get me through the night of organizing his closet and ties while he wore the boots.

5. I had my first experience with an amaretto sour and a VFW at the same time!  I learned I love both.  Kim wanted me to try an amaretto sour and since we were right next to a VFW she decided that's where I was going to try one.  We walked in in the middle of Bingo which people take very seriously around those parts.  Bunny got pissed when Betty Black won (those are our friends) and Stefano decided to be classy and drink a martini out of the only martini glass the bar had.  We didn't tell him it wasn't supposed to be yellow.  Everyone was very nice and welcoming but they did make us sign in.  It was an experience to say the least, and actually Kim and I can't wait to take Eric & Tom there!

Kim made me do this.  If you look closely you can kind of see the bangs swept to the side :)

Stefano being classy

6. I walked around with a fractured wrist for 3.5 days all the while Tom telling me I was fine.  I ended up at Tria acute injury clinic and walked out with this.

I'm sure Tom would want me to add that he did look at it and thought it was just a cyst (which was partially correct) and to tell you all how he is such an amazing doctor and all that crap truth.  I love him, but as my doctor???  Well it's hard to treat your wife I'm sure :)

XO XO,

I Want Chocolate Cake!!!!

7 Dreaded Words (this is your warning that things are getting gross today do not eat while reading this post)

Last Friday I had to bring the dogs in to see Uncle Josh (Tom's good friend and our vet).  It was just their annual exam and both dogs needed to get a few shots.  No big deal right???

WRONG.

As I was hanging up the phone with the office after scheduling the appointment I heard those dreaded words.  Seven little words that you just know are going to change the rest of your week until the appointment.  Seven words that mean you can't just let the dogs be dogs.  Seven words that are the most dreaded words to a pet owner.  Seven words...that's all.
.
.
.
.
.

We're going to need a stool sample.

.

.

.

.

.

*$?@! *$&@#*!&@# =  my reaction.  Wednesday (3 days before the appointment) I pull out two plastic sandwich baggies and write in permanent marker "Rocky" on one and "Addie" on another.  I then turn the baggies inside out so when you grab the "thimble size amount of stool sample" it is in the inside of the baggie and you can zip it up with their name on the outside.  (This isn't my first rodeo.)  Finally I put the baggies in the mudroom on the door handle of the door we let the dogs out of so they are RIGHT THERE when the time comes.  I tell Tom I've done all of this and that we really need to pay attention when we let them out because we need this by Friday afternoon.  Tom's response?  "They never poop when I let them out."  Really Tom??? Really?????  That's how your going to play this game???  @^!&^@*&$

I swear once the dogs see the plastic baggies they know and get shy.  Rocky is always a private pooper, going behind the shed to do his biznezz, but Addie will normally take a shit anywhere (she's very liberal).  But once they see those baggies they're like, "Nope not pooping in the flat grassy area now, gonna go down the hill in the farthest back tree line corner.  HAHA come and find me now!"

So Wednesday was unsuccessful.  Thursday I tried hiding the baggies, but that didn't help either.  By Thursday night I was desperate.  It was late.  I was ready for bed.  It was cold and dark.  I had to let them out one more time.  So I threw on my big honking snow boots, Tom's big coat grabbed the baggies and headed out with them to try and follow them around the back yard.  Of course they go in two completely opposite directions, so I try and stand in the middle of both of them flipping my head back and forth like I'm at a tennis match.

Then it happens...Rocky starts turning circles and sniffing.  I don't want to scare him off so I stand super still and wait.  He finishes and I start to walk into the line of trees to get it and POOF! the motion sensor light turns off.  I jump and wave my hands and it doesn't turn back on.  I try and memorize exactly where I am and start walking back up the hill towards the light to get it to turn on.  Finally it turns back on.  I walk back to the place I so carefully memorized only to find no poop.  Now here is where I should have thought, "go get a flashlight" but I was tired and my brain wasn't thinking and also it was really cold.  So instead of going inside to get a flashlight I start sniffing.  Yep here I am in the middle of the night in my pj's, snow boots, and Tom's coat sniffing around the back yard for dog shit.  What has my life come to?!?

I quickly realize this is ridiculous after touching (through the baggie) the same pile of poop three times to see if its warm and go back inside defeated once again.

I had one more opportunity and I had to get both dogs to poop at the same time and be able to find it and it will be in the morning which means I have to get my lazy ass out of bed with enough time to spare for all this rigamaroll.  You can imagine how happy I was about this.  Especially when I pulled myself out of bed and Tom continued to snore away.

I sleepily climbed into my poop scooping uniform from the night before and had a come to Jesus meeting with the dogs before letting them out.  Luckily both dogs listened (there may have been some divine intervention happening too) and I was able to collect both samples for the upcoming appointment with no further problems (except getting a twig stuck in my hair).

Those of you who say dogs don't prepare you in anyway for having kids must be kidding right?!?!?  I better not ever have to chase my kid around looking for their poop in the middle of the freezing cold night in the backyard (but I guess I will if I have to).

XO XO,

I've dealt with enough dog poop for my life Molly

Starting a New Relationship (no it's not sister wives stuff)

I was quite inspired by the Ash Wednesday service I attended this week.  The sermon was about love.  How you should tell the people you love that you love them, how to love all people, how Jesus loves you no matter what, and so on.  Secretly I think it was more about Valentines Day, but whateves.

As I was sitting there I started thinking about who I love.  Tom, Tyler & Matty, My Mom & Dad, Tom's Mom & Dad, My Brother & Emily, Jeff, Ryan & Cristy, Ann and her family, Eric & Kim, My Grandma, Grandma Donna, Rocky & Addie, Aunt Carole & Uncle Larry and their whole clan, and the list went on and on and on.  (Please don't be offended if I didn't list you out specifically.  My list really went on and on and I could fill this entire blog post with the names of people I love.)  As all these names ran through my brain I realized I really am one lucky girl.  For all these people that I love, I know they love me back.  It's such a great feeling knowing you are loved, cared for, and matter.

From there my brain took a turn (I promise I was listening to the sermon at least a little) and I started realizing that often I take better care of the people I love than I do myself.  I even admitted to Tom the other night that I'm constantly thinking about how to be a good wife, and trying to come up with things that I think will make him happy.  You know what his response was???  "Molly, that's crazy.  All I want is for you to be happy.  If you are happy I am happy."  Seriously what a great husband.

So, I've decided I am going to start loving myself a little bit more.  I am going to start taking better care of myself and allow the people in my life to take care of themselves (I still love you).  I think if I love myself more in the end I'll be able to love the people in my life even more.

To kick off this new focus I've decided to give up laziness for Lent.  Yep, the Queen of Lazy Town is passing the crown on.  I think giving up laziness will actually turn out to be more than a one dimensional item.  It's not just "I won't take a nap after work", but turns into "I won't take a nap after work, instead I'll go to the gym."  See??? multi-dimensional.  Giving up laziness in turn will help me on my success journey.  If instead of taking a nap I go to the gym (which I have everyday this week btw) then I won't feel like eating crap which in turn will make me feel better about myself.  See how all this works?!?

When I explained this to my mom yesterday she said she was going to try and give up wine for Lent.  I said Jesus had wine, so she decided maybe she would give up laziness too :)

This whole process is obviously going to turn out to be a great love story and I'm sure Nicholas Sparks will want the rights to it sooner or later.  You can look for "Loving Myself" (hopefully Hollywood will come up with a better title than what I just did) in theaters Summer of 2020.

XO XO,
Loving Molly

A Second Lesson in Blowing

Over the weekend it snowed...again.  This time it was that wet, heavy snow that's perfect for making stuff.  I was feeling claustrophobic from being in the house and decided I would be a child again and go play in the snow with the dogs.  I threw snowballs at them like they were tennis balls, which was actually kind of mean because once the snow balls landed the dogs couldn't find them and kept dunking their heads in the snow thinking I was actually throwing something good.  Rocky was the winner though, finding one snow ball and eating it.

Then I tried to make a snowman, but quickly realized I didn't remember how to make one.  I ended up just getting a big lump of snow that Addie walked on and Rocky peed on.  I gave up.  I tried to take a picture of it for blog purposes, but this is what I got.

See the lump of snow?  Yeah, me either.

Then Tom decided it was time for my second lesson in snow blowing.  You'll remember from a previous post how I thought the first lesson went well, but Tom had serious concerns about my skills???  Well this time I would say it went much better (this statement was later confirmed by Tom himself).

To begin I actually remembered the combination to get into the shed where the snow blower lives (trust me that was a big deal.  Tom has given me that damn combination a million times but I never remember it.  Secretly I wrote it down and looked at it before we went out, but he doesn't have to know that.).

After carefully surveying the shed from outside to ensure there were no spiders, mice, or other animals that might attack me I entered the shed.  I actually remembered what the throttle and choke were and I was able to get the beast started all on my own.

The problem I have with blowing snow is figuring out the best route to blow to prevent the blown snow to land where I've already blown (that's a lot of blows in one sentence!).  Tom saw my confusion / frustration and helped by drawing a map for me.

No joke...this is what he gave me.  My poor sacred Coco La Palm Jamaican Resort never saw it coming (no pun intended).

After having a good laugh at the map, I realized it actually did help.  Up the center and around.  I succeeded in getting the entire driveway blown and Tom succeeded in drinking a beer and laughing at me.  After our driveway was finished Tom wanted to be able to play with his toy a bit and went to the neighbors and blew their driveway for them.  Remember the neighbor Joe who ALWAYS helps us out?  Yeah, instead of having to bake for him this snowstorm we actually got to help.  Tom blew the driveway and I shoveled the sidewalk.

After all the snow playing/blowing we I decided to warm up and watch the Grammy's.  Tom played his flight simulator and yelled from the background who he thought would win each award.

 The dogs clearly could have cared less that Kelly Clarkson was singing her heart out and winning a Grammy.

Overall, I'd say this snowstorm was a success.  Except for the fact that there were no eggs in the house, which Tom decided was the WORST THING EVER!  I will never understand this man.

XO XO,

Eggless Molly

Blurps & Burps

Last night while Tom and I were watching the Super Beyonce Bowl, Tom asked me to scratch his back.  This is anything but rare in our house, and normally there are no complaints and snoring commences quickly once the scratching / rubs begin.  Last night however was different.  I must have broken a nail at some point throughout the day and didn't realize it.  I went to scratch Tom's back and he yelped, "Holy Cow did you sharpen your nails?!!?"  Immediately I started laughing asking, "why on earth would one sharpen their nails, and how do you even think a nail would get sharpened?  With like a pencil sharpener?"  His response???  "No with one of those popsicle sticks with sandpaper on it."  I literally died.  He obviously meant a nail file.  Yes my friends, we sharpen our nails with popsicle sticks that have sandpaper glued to them in the Mullin household.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Last weekend when I was headed to the grocery store I asked Tom what kinds of snacks he wanted for the Super Bowl.  Obviously he said dip first, and second pizza rolls.  He was lucky cuz both were on sale.  The catch was that the only pizza rolls on sale were the 90 count bag.  I figured if I got the big bag they would last a while.

Yep, all 90 pizza rolls were gone in 4 days (minus the 4 that he gave to the dogs and 1 that I ate and thought tasted like poison [Tom assures me that is what they are supposed to taste like which is not very reassuring]).

He texted me today and said his burps tasted like pizza...well no shit you literally just consumed 85 pizza rolls in 4 days.  What do you expect your burps to taste like?!?!?  I mean, I love you Tom :)

XO XO,

Wife of a Pizza Roll

Communication (Not Our Best Quality)

Tom and I admittedly have communication problems.  It's been this way since the dawn of time, or at least since the dawn of our relationship.  It's actually been a running joke with our friends, no matter where we live and no matter what group of friends.

People quickly realize they have to tell us both what is going on because Tom or I won't relay the message to the other person until the last minute or maybe even when we're already on our way.  For example, one time I was half way to Des Moines for the weekend to visit my parents when I realized I hadn't told Tom I was going to be gone.  Molly communication fail.

One time I showed up to dinner at a friend's house straight from the gym, only to find out it was an engagement party and everyone was dressed up.  Also I didn't know the people who had gotten engaged.  Tom communication fail.

Two weekends ago we RSVP'd to three different dinner parties.  We realized it the day before.  Luckily we both went to the first, I left early and went to the second and then met Tom again at the third.  Couple communication fail.

Luckily we are both I am pretty laid back and just go with the flow.  The problem comes when you show up to a wine party without a bottle of wine, or a potluck style party without anything to share.  I am good at blaming Tom and he is good at blaming me, and so the circle goes round.  Really we should probably work on this, and admittedly we try, but I think we are just doomed.  What one person deems important the other doesn't.

Eric and Kim (who really are becoming regular characters in this blog) gave us a hard time this past weekend.

Yep it really did take that much for us all to figure out we were going / meeting at church and going to brunch.  Our lives would probably be much easier if we just talked.  Until then...it's up to you all :)

XO XO,

I Talk A Lot Just Not When It Matters Molly

Ah...Ah...Ah...CHOOOOOOO

Sorry for being MIA the last week.  An idiot I work with decided to come to work sick and has now proceeded to get EVERYONE sick.  And by everyone I mean everyone...literally the entire staff is sick and we just keep passing it around.  It's a petri dish full of germs up in here.  One girl has already used all her sick days for the year and it's only January (and she's still sick now for the second time).  I had to use two sick days, but don't worry Tom said it was just a cold and I needed to suck it up (he has the best bedside manner).

The nightstand with Lysol, sudafed, and kleenex.  The pups who are good snugglers and have a good bedside manner (clearly they got that from their mom).

I knew I was officially sick when nothing sounded good to eat (not even cookie dough).  I think I ate 2 pieces of toast in a three day period.  And you better believe the first thing I did once I was feeling better was to step on the scale to see how much weight I'd lost (4lbs).

I guess the only good thing about being sick was that I happened to be sick on the two coldest days in the last 1,466 days.  I think the high Monday was like -10 and the windshield was -40 (those numbers are probably wildly inaccurate double check with Belinda Jensen if you want accuracy) but I do know they were in the negatives.  When I finally graced everyone the dogs with my presence Monday morning afternoon night and let them out they looked at me like I was crazy.  Addie ran out the door obviously not expecting the cold got half way down the hill and then the cold hit her.  She looked back at me peed and ran back inside narrowly escaping Rocky who was smarter and practically peed right on the step.

Top Left = the door in the mudroom.  No we do not have fancy frosted glass, that is actual frost on the glass INSIDE!  Bottom Right = the door handle covered in frost.  The other two pictures you can't tell very well but there is frost there I promise, and these are INSIDE with storm windows / storm door!  That is how cold it is!

Finally by Tuesday late afternoon I was feeling better and decided January 22 was a good day to finally take down the Christmas tree.  Tom and I have been busy playing "guess the tune", "finger or twig", and "which dog is licking me?" lately and didn't make taking the tree down a priority.  Now I'm sure you're all wondering about the games we've been playing, and no they aren't inappropriate if that's what you're thinking.

These boxes may or may not still be sitting in the living room (they are).

Tom is crazy good at knowing a song after just the first chord.  Seriously, next time you're around him play a song...any song and he will know what it is.  AND if it was in a movie he will be able to tell you what movie and describe the scene for you.  It's mind blowing.  So "guess the tune" is a game that I inevitably always lose.  Basically we open iTunes or pandora put the songs on shuffle and see who can name the artist and title first.  Pretty much the only songs I ever win are Christmas Songs, Mozart, Beyonce, James Taylor and Chris Isaac.

Finger or twig (can be played with any other object not just a twig) is a game Tom invented in Jamaica a few years ago.  One person closes their eyes and the other touches them with either their finger or the twig.  Wow, the more I describe it the worse it sounds...I'm just gonna quit while I'm ahead.  But I will say this, we played it with my Mom on the beach and she thought it was fun too.  Yeah Molly, still sounding bad and now getting weird.

Ok well moving on, the final game "which dog is licking me" is self explanatory.  You have to guess without looking which dog is licking you.  Seriously, what is up with these games sounding so weird?!?  They don't seem weird in the moment...

Tom cheated...he knew it was Addie all along :)

Well this post has gone from sick to I don't even know, so I'm going to stop here.  Hopefully things will get back to normal soon.  Until then...

XO XO,
I've Shared Too Much Molly

A Lesson From Bambi

*I've been debating whether or not to say anything...I don't like conflict or confrontation.*

We all remember the cute little deer named Bambi who stole our hearts in the animated movie.  There is a specific scene in that movie where a little bunny named Thumper tries to teach Bambi words.  He teaches him the words bird and flower.  As Bambi gets more confident in using his words he accidentally calls a skunk flower.  Thumper laughs at Bambi, but is quickly reprimanded by his mother who asks him, "what did your father teach you this morning?"  And Thumper replies, "If you can't say something nice, don't say nothing at all."

I believe we all need to take a moment to remember the lesson little Thumper taught us.  It seems like lately people are forgetting how hurtful words can be, or how ignorant they can sound if they speak before they think.

I first want to say I am not pointing fingers at any specific people or using this post as a way to confront people without actually confronting them (there is a term for this but I can't think of what it is).  Believe me, I've confronted people already.  I second want to say I often do not think before I speak and am sorry if this has caused you any hurt.  I know I eat my words a lot, and sound ignorant a lot and I am working on it.  Thirdly and lastly I want to say that yes, I would much rather hear the truth from someone rather than something nice.  For example, I would much rather hear "Molly your house smells like dog" so I can fix it rather than people saying my house smells good but really they are holding their breath.  Get it???

Ok, so the reason for all of this.

Since the announcement of Duke people keep asking about our living / moving / my job / etc. situations and to be honest we haven't even talked about it.  Before match day we talked about many, many, many different scenarios.  Would we sell our house, would we rent our house, would Tom move and I stay, would we both go, and the list went on and on.  We never made any decisions, but kind of felt like since the fellowship is only a year I might stay and Tom might go.  Many factors go into this decision (that hasn't been made yet) one of which is the dogs.

Because the fellowship is only a year we obviously wouldn't purchase a new home, but instead try and rent an apartment or house.  Many Most rental places do not allow you to have dogs.  If they do it is like one dog under 50 pounds if that, so having 2 dogs over 50 pounds puts us at a huge disadvantage.

Lately, as I've explained our situation I've gotten a wide variety of responses / opinions.  Most ranging from, "Wow I don't know if I could be away from my husband for a year!" to "He'll be super busy anyway you might as well stay."  Those kinds of responses are great.  The responses like, "Why don't you just take your dogs back to the shelter you got them from, then your problems will be solved" and "Can't you just kennel your dogs for the year" are not great.  Seriously people?!?!?  You obviously do NOT know Tom or I very well to suggest something like that.

First of all, we rescued both of our dogs from Shelters.  They both had been abused and still show signs of it when scared.  We've worked really hard to get them where they are today, and honestly they are a part of our family.  They've learned to trust and love us, and we've learned to trust and love them.  I can't imagine taking a shower and not having Rocky laying on the bath mat next to me, or Addie licking my hand in the morning after she hears me press snooze one to many times.

Yes I know I bitch and moan about them, and yes they drive me crazy half the time, but so does Tom and I wouldn't send him back to the shelter just to make my life easier.  I love him and I love them and getting rid of them is NOT an option.

Opinions and honesty are appreciated when helpful and realistic but let's all remember, "If you can't say something nice, don't say nothing at all."  Because hearing "get rid of your dogs" makes me sad and is not nice.

And really, who could get rid of these sweet babies???

Yes I realize they are dogs and not humans, but I believe they have feelings just like we do.  I could never let them down after all this and send them back to a Shelter or Kennel for that matter.

XO XO,

Rocky and Addie's Mom

P.S. please remember this is ONE factor in a bucket of many that will determine what Tom and I feel is best for OUR marriage, and OUR situation.  Thank you to those of you who have been supportive and have listened, Tom and I both really appreciate it.

Tomorrow, Tomorrow, I Love Ya, Tomorrow, You're Only a Day Away

Just like the little red-headed Annie sang, I too can't wait for tomorrow.  Even more so I think, Tom can't wait for tomorrow.  Now you may be wondering, what is tomorrow?  And that would be a valid question.  We haven't talked about it much lately around here because we've just been sitting around waiting for tomorrow.

Tomorrow is match day.  Tomorrow is the day Tom finds out if, when, and where he will be doing a Sports Medicine Fellowship.  Tomorrow is the day I've been dreading / anxiously waiting for since July.

When going through match day for residency it was much different.  Tom felt very confident that he would indeed match.  The Medical school put on a huge party for the actual match process.  Tom received an e-mail a few days prior letting him know he did indeed match.  Everyone was going through it together.  We had an inkling we would be moving out of state.

This time...a whole different ballgame.  Tom does not feel 100% confident he will match.  There is no party except the one we are throwing at our house for him and Maria (who is also going through match day).  Tom didn't and won't receive an e-mail confirming he matched before tomorrow to ease that part of the process.  Only one other person in his program is going through it with him.  We have no idea where he will end up.

To say we are a bit nervous / on edge is a complete understatement.  The other night I just started screaming at Tom for no reason what-so-ever, then went to buy him beer and started crying.  I'm nuts.

I struggle with the idea that in one moment I will be happy, nervous, excited, sad, and shocked.  I struggle with the concept that this is ALL for Tom and not me, I mean yes, it is about me a little but I need to make sure if I am sad about where he ends up even if it is a great spot I let him be happy and not make it about how I'm feeling.  Or vice-versa if he's upset about the outcome and I'm happy.  I don't know I just need to make sure I let him feel how he's feeling and not make it about me.  I struggle often with the, "It's all about me" thing.  I'm like a little kid.  Oh Lord, I just hope tomorrow I can be an adult.

So, tomorrow...please keep us in your thoughts and prayers.  I know this isn't some life threatening procedure, but it is a BIG deal to us and we could use all the good thoughts we can get.  My prayer for tomorrow is this:  Please let Tom match, please help me be a good and supportive wife to Tom no matter what the outcome may be.

I'll make sure to let you all know (after family) what the outcome is.  Thank you all for your support throughout this entire process.

XO XO,
Nervous Stomach in Knots Molly


The way the match process works, as I understand it, is as follows:

• You apply to programs (Tom applied to 77,000 I can't remember the actual number but it was more than 20)
• You receive interview requests (Tom received interviews at all the places he applied to except 2)
• You choose which interviews to accept (Tom accepted and went on 10 interviews: University of Minnesota, University of Iowa, Duke University, University of North Carolina, Moses Cone, Maine, University of Kentucky, Oklahoma City, Ohio State University, and Toledo.)
• You rank the programs and they rank you (basically Tom went through each program he interviewed at and had to decide his first, second, third, and so on choice.  The programs do the same with all the people they interviewed.)
• You submit your rank list and the programs submit their rank list
• A computer program matches the lists up (for example if Tom ranked Iowa #1 and Iowa ranked him #1 that would be a perfect match and he would go there.  It gets dicey when Tom ranks Iowa #1 and they rank him #2 but the person Iowa ranked #1 ranks Iowa #2.  Its super confusing.  The part that makes Tom so unsure about matching is all 10 programs could have ranked him high, but if he didn't rank them close to the same they might wash out and other people might get the spots.)
• Match Day (Tom doesn't know if he will get an e-mail or what or when but tomorrow is the day he finds out.)

An Anniversary Trip with the Prchal's

Part 2 to yesterday's post.  Start HERE if you haven't read "Up North" yet!

I love Tom, obviously.  But sometimes he can be a bit much to handle on my own.  He is very high energy, I am very not high energy.  He likes to do anything and everything outdoors, I like to sleep in and go to the spa.

Last year we went to Lutsen (another "up North" spot) in the winter to get some much needed R & R and ended up hiking a mountain very steep hill with about a foot of snow on it.  Tom literally had to push my fat ass up the hill.  So this year when we started talking about getting away for our anniversary I had a wonderful idea.  Let's invite Eric & Kim to join us.  That way when Tom wants to go hike Eric can go with him and Kim and I can go shop and get our nails done.

So Tom and I went to Pequot Lakes Friday, spent our actual anniversary just the two of us and Eric & Kim came up Sunday.  It was the perfect plan...until the first morning when they were calling at 9am.  The first thing I said to Tom? "We need friends that sleep in!"

Now last Sunday you know there was a BIG football game (Vikings vs. Packers).  The Vikings had to win (which they did) to make it to the playoffs.  We decided to go to a sports bar to watch the game.  When we walked in we saw a line of crockpots on a table and a ton of people.  (spell check wants me to change crockpots to crackpots.  No spell check we did not see a bunch of crackpots when we walked in).  At first I thought maybe we'd walked into a private party or a potluck, but oh no we'd walked into the annual Spam cook-off.  Right up our alley!  The announcer went over the rules on how to vote and told everyone it was $1 to try everything and vote.  Tom tried to give me $1 (probably the only time he's ever willingly given me money) but I quickly refused.  Seriously, you want me to try everything Spam???  No thank you!

Luckily we arrived at the bar a little while before the game started (and the spam cook-off) because we got the last 4 stools at the bar.  They were actually perfect seats.  Right in front of a big TV, right in front of the crazy waitress who told us she would let a celebrity beat her for money or something, and right in front of the popcorn machine.  Within .2 seconds Eric asked the first waitress 55 questions and we basically never saw her again the entire game.  We ordered drinks and got cozy as the game began.

I quickly realized the best "small town" action was actually in the bathroom where one trip lead me to the middle of a conversation between a mother and daughter.  The mother was telling the daughter she was mad that her boyfriend got her a new laptop for Christmas because she didn't want her going to college, and the second trip landed me in the middle of a grandma trying to help her grandson go to the bathroom.  The grandson decided he needed to get completely naked to go (sorta reminded me of my brother and the freezing cold Chinese restaurant in Illinois) and also wanted confirmation that after he went the grandma would go too so he could flush both the potties down.  *Disclaimer...I do realize both of these situations could have happened anywhere not just a small town*

By the fourth quarter the drinks had been flowing for a while and the game was close.  When the Vikings finally pulled ahead and won Eric, who is not small to say the least, stood up in the middle of the bar and started chanting, "MVP, MVP".  At once the bar quieted and everyone started staring.  It was awesome.  Kim and I died laughing and Eric sat down like nothing had happened.  Don't we all fit in so well?!?

The next morning Kim and I decided to do a little shopping at the local stores and get manicures.  We found some sweet fleece lined leggings, grabbed a cup of coffee, and headed to the "salon".  You may be wondering why the word "salon" is in quotes...because really it was in a house.  After Kim and I got a bit freaked out about it we ran inside to escape the -15* weather.  It started out normal enough, the heat was broken, an old lady was confused about her appointment time, and we were 10 minutes late.  You know, normal!  Well things got a bit not normal after that.  I tried on about 77 different nail polish colors while Kim was getting her manicure and ended up getting nail polish all over everything.  Our manicurist started telling us all about how she and her boyfriend broke up but still lived together, the guys called us and told us to go get fishing licenses for Eric & Kim (sam hell do you do that?) and then we learned about how people poop on the floor of the salon.  It was the craziest manicure of all time!  After we were finished we quickly paid and left.  By the time I got back to the hotel and changed my manicure looked like this:

This is not my real hand but a pic I found online.  My manicure looked worse than this.

Biggest waste of money ever.  I tried to hide it from Tom as long as I could, but he noticed pretty quickly and asked if it was a new nail painting technique.  Yes shit paint is a new technique Tom, yes yes it is.

After the manicure massacre we headed out ice fishing again.  We really wanted to catch some big fish so we decided to go out with a guide who would put us right on the biggies, Walleye.  We met "Trax" as Kim thought his name was, it was actually Ryan and followed him to the lake.  He then put a 4 wheeler on the ice with a trailer hooked to it and told us to get on.  We all piled on the trailer with our stuff (you know pizza, beer, whiskey, cookies...regular stuff you take ice fishing) and headed to the house.  The house was a permanent ice house with a wall heater, beds, and 6 holes to fish out of.  Kim was hilarious because she'd never been ice fishing before.  When Tom asked Ryan how deep we were fishing Kim thought that was how deep the ice was, 24 feet!  And when there was a boom Kim screamed and was ready to be done.  I have to admit I was the same way the first time I went ice fishing last year.  Even Tyler, my then 4 year old nephew made fun of me.

Eric and Ryan were the only successful catchers.  Ryan caught a walleye and Eric caught a walleye and a northern.  Although it wasn't great fishing we still had a ton of fun.

We had reservations that night (NYE) at Manhattans.  They were serving a 6 course dinner.  It was fancy and delicious.  They had loaded Bloody Mary's that lived up to their name, and food that was to die for.  During dinner Eric and Kim got to witness what I deal with everyday.  Tom's mumbling and asking what every 5 seconds.  Eric started saying what constantly and has now been a running joke ever since.  WHAT??  They say it when it doesn't make sense, at the end of almost every sentence, and just because it is too quiet what.  Now I don't know if Tom is really asking what? or just saying what.  My life is confusing.

Kim and I rang in 2013 getting a tan in our pj's (sitting on lounge chairs inside the pool area at the hotel) and the guys rang in 2013 in the pool with some other weirdo.  It was magical to say the least what.!.  Tom had bad acid reflux and Eric had bad butt flux (you can decide what that might mean) but we kissed them at midnight just the same.  We love our guys :)

The Prchal's and Mullin's certainly hope your NYE was as magical as ours, and wish you health and happiness in the coming year.

XO XO,

what.

"Up North"

8 years ago I was a shop-aholic, had never really been camping (unless you count OLS at Camp Wawenock), and defined a vacation as somewhere out of state with a beach.  Not that there is anything at all wrong with that, secretly I sort of admire people who still get to be / think that.  But 8 years ago (give or take) when I walked into that stupid Stretch & Tone Class, my life changed...I met Tom.

During our first summer together we decided to get-a-way for a week.  Tom suggested the Wisconsin Dells (the waterpark capital of the USA) and I was totally on board.  I hadn't been to many water parks, but figured it must be better than White Water University in Des Moines, IA with its two water slides and a wave pool.  He said he would make the plans and I was happy to let him.  When the time finally came I packed my bags and drove to meet him in MN (I was living in IA that summer) and we would head to Wisconsin (No I don't know the abbreviation for Wisconsin and am too lazy to look it up) from there.  When I arrived in MN he was packing a lot of stuff.  Coolers, Flashlights, big long bags with poles in them, wood, and I was a little confused to say the least.  I asked him what all the stuff was for and his answer??? "for our campsite."  Pretty sure my jaw hit the floor when I realized we were going camping for a week.  He swears he told me, but I must have had selective hearing or thought he was joking.

Something close to the look I probably gave him when he told me we were camping for a week.

Well I obviously survived that camping trip, and honestly it was one of the best / most fun trips (most fun???  Not sure if that's proper grammar but whateves) I've ever had.  A whole new world was opened up to me.

Tom and me at the Wisconsin Dells...man we were skinny.

The whole point of telling you that story is to give you some idea of how much my life has changed (for the better) since meeting, dating, and marrying Tom.  Let's now fast forward from 2005 to last week.

Last week December 29 was our 5 year wedding anniversary, my how the time flies.  It seems like just yesterday I was getting ready to walk down the aisle.

Love this pic from our wedding.

Since 5 years is sorta a big deal Tom and I decided we wanted to get-a-way for the long weekend.  We didn't have the monetary means to go some where far, and didn't want to have to drive too far, so we decided to go "up north".  Now to many of you who think I already live in Canada, I know I live up North already.  But there is a saying Minnesotans use when they are going to Northern Minnesota...they say, "we are going up north" and everyone just knows what it means.

So our "up North" meant the Brainerd Lakes area, more specifically Pequot Lakes.  Pequot Lakes is no more than 2 miles long and has maybe two gas stations, a bait shop, some cute local shops (and by some I mean 2), a salon, and a grocery store.  It's small town at its best.  Everyone is super friendly.  There is not a Starbucks for miles.

We arrived Friday evening to our luxurious jacuzzi fireplace suite and pretty much didn't leave the room until Saturday afternoon to go ice fishing.  Yes, I did say ice fishing.

Last year Tom and I finally found something outside we like to do together, ice fish.  I mostly like to do it because I am a fish slayer and always catch the most fish.  Tom says the only reason I catch the most fish is because he is doing all the work like putting bait on my hook, setting everything up, and taking the fish off my hook, but I say if he really wanted to catch fish he could :).  So yes, we spent our 5 year anniversary ice fishing on Pelican Lake and I wouldn't have wanted it any other way (unless there could have been a beach involved).

Our little set up.  Thanks to Tom's Dad & Mom for letting us borrow steal their ice house these past years.

We literally walked a half mile out to the middle of the lake to set up.  All the white is snow covering the ice that is the lake.

Sunset "up North" in the middle of the lake.

Tom...too concerned with his stogie to catch any fish.  Ladies he's taken...

See I actually have a line in the water.  And yes I am sitting on a bucket, but that's the price you have to pay if you want the seat with the heater facing you :)

Part 2 of our trip "up North" will come tomorrow.  You should probably hold your breath because it's gonna be a good one, maybe, not sure really...well nevermind don't hold your breath that puts too much pressure on me.  It will be mediocre.  We will talk football, spam, more ice fishing, butt flux, and how the word "what" has changed forever.

XO XO,

Fish Slayer Molly