.meet maggie.

Dave and I have wanted an english bulldog for YEAAARRRSSSS. The time has not been right and we waited and waited. Finally we have settled down, saved up some money and knew the time was perfect to start looking at rescue bulldogs. We applied met with a few and then the sun shined down and we got the most perfect english bulldog for us!

This is our new baby girl, Maggie!!!

After a whirlwind of rushing to meet her at a park, a house visit, and then picking her up in, all in a 24 hour period, she is ours! We adopted Maggie from a Underdog Rescue here in St. Louis Park, MN. She was rescued from a puppy mill where she was used as a breeder. After a hard life she now will be spoiled silly by Shoave! 

 

.every english bulldog needs a union jack.

 

.nap time with momma.

.bulldogs are soooo cute when they sleep. 

We love having Maggie!

We feel sooo lucky to have been able to find her!

.away we go....someday..maybe.

Have you seen the movie, Away We Go? It is one of my favorite movies, I could watch it over and over again (and still cry at all the same places). I feel like I have always connected with Maya R.'s character. In the movie she loses her parents the same age I lost my mom and now she is traveling with her partner to figure out where to raise their child.  I always feel like I am trying to figure out where it is that I/we will settle down in this life. Since 2008 I have been a little bit of a wanderer moving from MN to DC to Australia to MN......and then to...who knows!

On our wedding anniversary (4 years!) Dave and I talked a lot about our future, mostly about where do we see ourselves living and raising a child. We decided that we are going to do our own, Away We Go.  We took out a map of the U.S.A. and marked it up with where we could see ourselves living and where we never ever want to live!

We decided that we really don't want to live in-land, except for a few certain cities. Since Australia we have been craving the ocean and beach, so it looks like we may head to either coast. My criteria is that it should be at a max. 5 hours away from the ocean! So where are we considering? 

Tacoma, Portland, Seattle, and maybe somewhere in California 

 Houston or someplace near on the Gulf of Mexico coast

Minneapolis (of course!) and Fort Collins 

Virginia (VA Beach or Fairfax area), North Carolina, 

Australia, New Zealand, & London for our international desires!!

Now we have the exciting opportunity to research these different areas and plan visits!  I have my own top three cities but I'm not sharing those with anyone..not even Dave!! I am excited to see where this adventure will take us and where we will finally settle down. 

Are you familiar with any of these places?

Have any tips or info you would like to share??

.i love.....

these pictures of my mom!!! 

This photo set is in my top 10 favorite pictures of my mother. 

Today is her birthday, she would be 59 (hellooooo...old fart!)!!!

I love her and think about her every day.

I know she would be so proud of the woman I have become

and 

I will always be proud of the woman she was 

and 

the woman she inspired me to be. 

.happy birthday mom. 

.shoave...this is going to be mushy gushy.

Holy Cow!! Every year seems to just fly by, I can't believe that today Dave and I have been married for four years!(here is what we did our first three years) WHAT!?!? How did this happen? Being in any committed relationship (married or not) takes work, you have your good and your bad times. It's just how it is but it doesn't mean you love the person to your side any less! A relationship is all about accepting the others annoying habits, working through issues, supporting each other, laughing at inside jokes, and knowing what the other is thinking with just one look.

Our 3 year portrait (gansta style)

This last year has been one like no other..it's been kinda perfect. Dave and I have spent more time with each other this one year than probably any other period of time. We both quit our jobs to move to Australia and then when in Australia both of us only worked part time. Until a few months ago it was always just the two of us....literally. Every day we hung out together, either running errands,sitting at the beach, or going on adventures. And when we started to work in Australia we always had Thursday Date Nights because you know those 20 hours each week we didn't see each other were a long 20 hours!

.Visting Sydney for the first time.

.Great Ocean Road in Victoria.

I am so grateful to him for letting me talk him into moving across the world to have an adventure of a lifetime!! It's one of the things I love deeply about this man is that he wants to enjoy life to the fullest as much as I do and is willing to take risks with me. This year has been full adventures and the unknown, which we wouldn't have been able to do alone, we could only handle them together. He is there to push me forward, to calm me down, and to just plain out tell me when I am crazy. 

.WhitSundays.

.Valentines Day.

Now that we are back in the states, both working full time jobs, I find myself missing all the time we had together. We still see each other every night and probably more than other couples see each other, but it's not the same. I could spend every single day just hanging out with this kid and I miss being able to do so. Not everyone has the luck that we have, to randomly spot your other half in a bar when intoxicated! 

I hope that everyone has the ability to be with the one that balances them, that supports them, drives them crazy, kisses their forehead, holds their hand at movies, says "I love you" daily, accepts their oddities and weirdness, and willing to take on the world as a team. When you have this you have everything you need. 

.happy 4th.

Every 4th of July when I was a little kid my mom packed my sisters up into the car and we headed to Valleyfair, the only amusement park in MN. My first ride every year was to ride the ride the Merry Go Round, even when I was older I would head there out of tradition sake. We spent the blistering hot day riding rides, eating in the parking lot, splashing in the water park, and waiting for the fireworks. 

During the fireworks (and laser display) my favorite song was "Proud To Be An American" by Lee Greenwood. I would sing along and cheer when they mention the lakes of Minnesota, like any good little Minnesotan would do. Back then 4th of July was all about family, fun, and eating delicious cotton candy, fries, and funnel cake. Now as I have gotten older, I am able to appreciate and understand this wonderful holiday. I still watch fireworks and hang out with friends, but I now make sure I take time to think about all the people who have fought and laid their lives down for this country. How without their dedication, love, and pride in this country we could not be where we are today. 

.Enjoy the fireworks.  .Be Safe.  .Hydrate.

.Remember Our History. 

.june books.

I'm gonna be honest with ya...I just wasn't in the reading mood this month. I think it's because on my lunch breaks I run home to eat, chat with Dave, and do some errands instead of relaxing for the hour and reading. I may need to switch thing up a bit to get back into my reading groove. But without further ado, here are the books that I read in June (how is it already JULY!!!).

The Lucky One: Nicholas Sparks (did you see the movie?) If not, the book is about a Marine, Logan, who finds a picture of a pretty girl while in Iraq. The picture seems to be lucky because when his is in possession of the picture people around him get injured but he never does...always barely escaping. When he returns from duty he walks from Colorado to the east coast to find the girl in the picture. He keeps his secret, gets to know her, girl falls for boy...and so on. Girl has horrible ex-husband which adds to the relationship drama. It's a Nicholas Sparks book so you kind of know what to expect.

Source

I've Got Your Number: Sophie Kinsella  I love her books, they are always an easy delightful read about a silly girl who falls in love. The story is about a woman who loses her engagement ring (family heirloom) and then has her phone stolen. She finds a phone in the trash she takes and uses it as her own. It ends up being a company phone in which she "shares" the phone with the boss of the person who trashed it....and can you guess what happens next.  Yep, she finds the ring, her fiance is a douche, she doesn't get married, and the guy on the other end of the phone is mr. perfect. Even though it's predictable...I did cry and I did enjoy it lots!

Source

It Looked Different on the Model: Laurie Notaro I love Laurie Notaro, I own many of her books. She writes short little stories about her life which are hilarious and very relatable. I always feel like if I ever met her I would be friends with her. This book was filled with stories about someone stealing two trees from her porch, her mom forwarding stupid fwd. emails, and running past vans because a kidnapper can catch you.  Even though some of the stories were funny I don't find this to be as good as her other ones. It was decent..but I recommend reading some of her earlier books first. 

Source

The Genie and Joe Maloney: Anita Feagles This is a children's chapter book from the 60's. Since one of my 30 before 30 is to read all the books I own, I thought I would get a start and read a really easy one (plus I wanted to boast my reading number!).  This was a cute little book about Joe who lives with 3 sisters and has no boys around to play with. One day he finds a genie, who isn't the smartest, but grants him three wishes. The genie gets two of them a little bit off (magic lamp = lamp that turns on) but does find Joe a friend to play with, which was the most important wish. 

Source

Rune Like A Girl: How Strong Women Make Happy Lives : Mina Samuels The book started a little slow in the beginning and it took me awhile to get used to her style of writing. At first I felt like it was reading someone's research paper in college, which is not what I'm looking for in a book. However, I kept with it and it started to be pretty good. I found myself thinking about the things Samuels wrote about through out my day. Its inspiring and makes you want to get up and do something. Working out makes us balanced, healthy, happy, proud, teaches us to set goals, and I hope to be someone who continues to get out there in the world into my later years. 

Source

2012 Goal: 22/50 books