2011 - I’ll Miss You!

2011 has been a very exciting year for me and for many people who are important in my life. I have to say, I think 2011 has been my one of my favorite years in a while. Here are just a few of the highlights!

January: I started my new job in January. So far, I really love it here. I’ve made some great new friends and have really seen my skill set improve.

March: My mom turned the big six-oh in March. Although March was a really tough month (I won’t get into it)…I will try and focus on the good things that happened. I hope I’m as spunky as Mary Sell when I turn 60!

April : One of my good friends, and co-workers, Shelly got married in April. I absolutely love weddings, and I love that I got to celebrate with Shelly!

Shelly and me at her wedding!

May: We finally got around to painting our house in May.  I love how it looks! It’s amazing how a little color can really make a house feel like home.

Clearly I was working hard on painting...

June: The wedding festivities really kicked off for me in June. I had my “Bel Air” bridal shower in late June and it was really fantastic. Everyone who helped put it together did a fabulous job!



Cari, Megan, Me and Hope at my first Bridal Shower

July: In July, my best friend Megan got married. It was amazing to be a part of such a special day for her and her hubby Ray. I’m so happy for them!! Did I mention I love weddings?!

Me and the Lovely Bride!

August: August was really a continuation of all of the wedding festivities. I started the month with a crazy Bachelorette Party in Ocean City, MD. After hitting the beach all day, my girlfriends and I headed out for a night on the town (and on the bus!) Not only did I have an awesome Bachelorette Party, but I also had another Bridal Shower in August. The ladies of St. Mary’s through me a lovely shower!

The ladies at the beach!



I was super tacky!



Cari, Megan, Me, Missy and Hope at my St. Mary's Shower

September: September was really the biggest month for me. After all the planning and activities, I finally tied the knot. Not only did I have the wedding of my dreams, but I got to marry my best friend, Matt. I don’t think it gets much better than that! I have to admit, I was a little sad that my other best girlfriend, Christine wasn’t able to attend my wedding. Her absence tho, was for good reason. At almost the exact same time I was getting married, Christine was giving birth to a beautiful baby boy, Oscar. September really was the best month, EVER! Oh, and I forgot to mention I went on my honeymoon in September. Making the month even better!!

One of my wedding favorites!

December: As many brides do, I decided I needed to lose weight before my wedding. Instead of joining a gym, I decided to start running. Since I started running in the Spring, I have really come a long way. In early December, I completed my first 15k (a little over 9 miles). Although I was pretty wiped when I finished it, I managed to run the entire thing, no walking, in 1 hour 42 minutes. Not too bad for my first really long race! I have since signed up for a half marathon… hopefully it goes well!

Me, Diane and her friend Jen, before the Hot Chocolate 15k!

Like I said, 2011 has been a pretty great year for me. It’s wonderful to see all of the people in my life moving on to such great things. It’s time like this, when I can really be thankful for everything and everyone around me. Happy New Year!!


On Happy Holidays...

Every week I read Post Secret. It’s a blog where people can send ‘post cards’ with an anonymous secret, and the best of the bunch make it on the site. I saw this particular secret, and decided it summed up all my feelings on the “happy holidays” issue…

My Hubby

Matt and I aren’t much on PDA…in fact, we’re pretty much the most unPDA couple I know. I’m just not a fan of putting my business all out there, I mean you know we’re married, so I don’t need to push it in your face or tell you on Facebook that I have the best husband ever. (I’m not knocking people who do it, that’s totally your choice, it’s just not something we do!)

But every once in a while, Matt just needs a shout out, because he is absolutely perfect…for me. Despite the fact that sometimes he drives me crazy (I’m sure it’s a mutual feeling), I really do have to give it to him, Matt makes being married easy.

It’s no secret that I’m not the best at house work. Any of my previous roomies will attest that the phrase “it looks like a tornado went through this room” can be directly attributed to me. Matt is the complete opposite of me in that respect. I have to say, his organizational habits are really rubbing off on me. Of course I still have my moments, but with a little encouragement, my ability to pick up after myself has done a total 180. Matt also has an incredible work ethic, which I think I’m picking up on, too. Matt is one of those people who makes it a point to give 110% everyday at work. It’s amazing to see how well he is doing with his job, and how quickly he is progressing. He recently got a mini-promotion and will be starting a cross training program. I’m so proud of him!

Besides the big things, he is also one of those people who does little things, just ‘cuz. The other morning, it was about 25 degrees outside, and Matt got out of bed and went down to start my car and scrape the ice off. Had he not of done that, I would have been really late for work. I could probably sit here another hour listing off all the little things Matt does, but lets be real, no one wants to read all that gushy stuff!

So, all that being said, I have a fabulous husband who makes me extremely happy every single day. One of my favorite shows of all time is Sex and the City…I always said I was most like Charlotte. Looks like I was right.

Samantha: Relationships aren't just about being happy. I mean, how often are you happy in your relationship?
Charlotte: Every day.
Samantha: Every day?
Charlotte: Well, not all day every day but yes, every day.

Holiday Party Time!

Matt, me, Shelly & Craig

Last night we had the holiday work party.  I was on the party committee, so of course I was a little stressed about it going well.  All in all, it was a lot of fun and everything went off without a hitch.  I’ve had a little trouble getting into the holiday spirit this year…not really sure why.  But now that we’ve had a few really chilly days, and we had our work Christmas party, maybe I can finally get into that jolly holly mood!

Decorating – Sell Style

Matt's keeping Cisco company....

Just because Matt and I are now married and living in our own home, doesn’t mean we don’t get to partake in the annual decorating traditions held at my mom’s house. This past weekend, we made our way up to Bel Air to help decorate the Christmas Tree with my parents. Decorating the tree is always fun with my family. Typically, my dad puts lights on the tree, and then mom and I decorate while Grandma helps put on hooks, etc. As per usual, this year was no different from any other. Dad spent Saturday proudly wrapping 700, yes he insisted that there were actually 700, lights on the tree, and then Sunday, mom and I put on the decorations. To top it off, even Grandma helped string the tinsel. Not exactly sure what Matt did to help partake in the festivities, but if nothing else, he did a great job keeping Cisco company….

My family also has some unusual Christmas traditions. As my Grandma is “right off the boat” (literally) from England, we also make sure to continue the British Christmas traditions that she loves. When I was a kid, each year we would head to Grandma’s apartment for a traditional Christmas Dinner and gift exchange. Now that I’m an adult, and Grandma lives with my parents, we modified the traditions a little. Sunday night, dad fixed us the traditional British Christmas dinner…this included roast beef, brussel sprouts, potatoes and Yorkshire Pudding…he forgot the corn. After dinner, we headed downstairs to Grandmas table for Christmas pudding, desserts, singing and gifts from “the Christmas elf.”

Although it seems silly to continue to do some of these traditions (like get gifts from the elf), it really is the family time around the holidays that make it so special. I am so lucky to have such an amazing family!



Me and Grandma decorating mom's tree.



Grandma's famous "Christmas Pudding"

Silly Christmas headbands are a must!

The "Brown" Christmas tree!

Our first Christmas ornament

These last two photos are at our house...we just can't get enough Christmas decorating!

It’s Beginning to Look a lot like Christmas!

Especially in the Brown house….

This past weekend kicked off the Brown (& Brogan) Christmas season. As I said before, the weekend following Thanksgiving is the official Brown/Brogan family Christmas. Once we all get together after Thanksgiving, it’s time to really get into the Christmas spirit. As Matt and I made our way back from WV on Sunday, we decided to stop and look at Christmas trees. We pulled up at the lot and were ready to dive in an make the annual tree purchase, but the 70 degree weather really just put a damper on our festive moods. So we decided to wait a few more days until the weather became seasonal again.

Yesterday was the first chilly day in a while, so we decided it was time to start putting up the decorations. Although we haven’t gotten our tree yet, we have started putting up garland, lights, wreaths, etc all over the house. Getting our tree is on the agenda for Friday night, I’m really looking forward to it!

Happy December 1st - Let the Christmas Countdown begin!

Gobble Gobble

A few weeks ago I had a conversation with one of my girlfriends about the holidays. The conversation started with religion, and digressed into the holiday season (at that time it was still in the ‘quickly approaching’ stages) Religion aside, I started thinking about what makes the holidays so special for me. It didn’t take me long to come to the conclusion that spending time with good friends and family is what the holidays are really all about. I think it’s one of those things that you really understand when you get older. When I was a kid, everyone always told me that spending time with family was the most important part of the holiday season, I think I finally realize how important it really is.

That being said, this holiday season is going to be different then many past years. Due to some ‘little’ developments, Christine and family will not be spending the holidays with us. This makes me sad, but then I see Oscar’s little face, and all that sad just melts away…how can an adorable blonde haired child not make you smile?! This will also be our first holiday without Ms. Vicki. Although it is going to be tough, that’s one of the great things about our family, we’ll be there for each other, and I’m sure we’ll have a good time reminiscing about silly Vicki moments.

Ah the joys of growing up. Although some things are changing, there are certainly plenty of new memories and traditions to be made. After all, this is our first holiday season of Mr. & Mrs…

Hope everyone has a safe and happy Thanksgiving!!

What a Week

Just a quick apology for my lack of blogging this week. It's really been "one of those weeks," if you know what I mean. I'm just glad the weekend has finally arrived. Although Matt is working (boo!!) I have some time to catch up on house chores and get some Christmas shopping done, which is nice. Believe it or not, I'm actually almost done my shopping this year. Just a few more things to cross off the list. Oh, and of course I made time for a nice long run this morning, and managed to sign up for a 5K tomorrow w/ Shelly...ahhh.

So, is everyone ready for Turkey Day? Next week is going to be crazy. Working Monday - Wednesday...headed to moms Wednesday night for Thanksgiving, Turkey Trot 5K with lots of great people (Me, dad, Mr. Sam, Megan and Tasha) on Thursday morning, celebrating Thanksgiving, back to work on Friday (boo!! who needs money on Black Friday anyhow?! pshhhh), then headed to WVA for Brogan/Brown family early Christmas. Busy, busy. I love the holidays!

Reminiscing about High School

I know high school was a tough time for most people, but I have to admit, high school was pretty fabulous for me.  Over the weekend, Hope and I went to see the remake of Footloose (it was actually pretty good!) and it got me really thinking about my high school days.  I made a list of things I really miss about high school.  I wonder if I knew then, what I know now, if I would have done things any differently?

Homemade Dinner, Every Night

Every night, I would come home from school and my mom would have dinner ready for my dad and me.  Over the past several years, I’ve really come to appreciate it when someone else cooks for me.  Cooking dinner after a long busy day is not always fun, I miss the days when I came home every day and it was already hot and ready!

Life w/o Technology

For those of you who knew me through my college days, I spent a lot of time dealing with rejection and heartache.  Looking back, I blame a lot of my long nights on technology.  In the movie He’s Just Not That Into You, Drew Barrymore points out that in today’s day and age, you can be rejected by about 27 different kinds of technology.  Not that I don’t love my smartphone and my facebook, but back in highschool, if a boy didn't call you, or you weren’t invited to a party, there wasn’t a way to stalk online and be hurt over and over again.

Short Pleated Skirts

Man do I love short pleated skirts! Unfortunately, I’m just too old for them. I have tried to wear one and I looked silly. Also I would like to lump Super Low Rise Jeans into this category.  I just look bad in them.  For the record, I used to look really cute in both items.

Field Hockey

I miss being able to have designated time for organized sports.  Instead of having exercise or sports as a part of my regular schedule, I find myself trying to squeeze in my exercise when I have a few free minutes.  I miss being part of a sports team, and I miss that feeling I used to get when we had a really great win.

Spirit Week

What’s cooler than dressing up like a goofball and parading around all day?! (nothing, duh!) 

Ice Cream w/o Consequences

Before I hit age 20, I used to eat ice cream and not even think about the calories. (that would explain my freshman 15)….but while I was in high school, I could pretty much eat whatever I wanted and always stayed the same weight.  Maybe that was directly related to my designated time for organized sports…

The Bus

Can you imagine how fantastic it would be, to have a vehicle pick you up at your house and drop you right off at work?  And even cooler, if you were late it was the drivers fault, and not your own?! Oh wait, that was the bus in high school.  Why wasn’t it cooler to ride the bus?  I hated it then, I wish I had it now!

Sleepovers

I still occasionally do sleepovers, but usually that is because I’m far away from home, or because I’ve had too much wine and can’t drive.  I wish it were still socially acceptable to drive 10 minutes across town and watch chick flicks all night and then just crash on your girlfriends floor. Living with boys makes it a tad awkward now!

Summer Vacation

Why on earth did I want to work during my Summer vacations?!  I should have learned to be broke and have more fun instead of working.  I would give anything to have off the three warmest months of the year, now!

Lunch

Lunch in an office is either boring or expensive.  Nothing is more fun than sitting in a quiet staff lunch room (not!) and when you go out of the office for lunch, it gets really expensive!  Wouldn’t it be great to have lunch with all your best girlfriends, everyday? And furthermore, wouldn’t it be great, if you forgot your lunch, to have a kitchen full of inexpensive options waiting for you?

Ahhhh nostalgia.  As much as I loved high school, sitting here in my own house, with my own family is pretty awesome too – don’t think I’d trade it.

"The County"

View from the side yard.

St. Mary’s County is such an ascetically pleasing place. Although it is somewhat remote, Mr. Sam’s house, where Matt grew up, is simply beautiful, especially this time of year!

Pier off the back.

Dear Summer, I miss you already.

Don’t get the wrong idea, I usually love the changes in the seasons. Watching the leaves turn to vibrant shades of orange and yellow always brings a smile to my face. For some reason though, I’m just not feeling it this year. Typically, by the time Halloween rolls around, I’m excited to bring out the sweaters and blue jeans. Not this year. In fact, if we could skip right to next Spring, I wouldn’t complain at all.

I’ve been stuck debating my thoughts on Day Light Savings. On one hand, I can’t stand driving to work and looking at the stars. I mean really, that’s just telling me the world thinks it’s still time to be sleeping…but on the other hand, I don’t want to come home in the dark either. Why can’t the days stay long when the temperature changes? Maybe that’s the issue. I miss the sunlight.

I’m also very frustrated with my Fall clothing. Why do jeans hate me so much?! I recently was out shopping w/ a girlfriend, and she commented that she had given up on jeans altogether. I mean really, I’m not overweight, but somehow, jeans give me an ugly fat roll on my stomach. Maybe I just need to really invest in one good pair of jeans. I have a hard time spending more than $30 on a pair of them, but it might be worth it, just for the self esteem boost!

Anyone have any great ideas for getting into the Fall spirit? After re-reading this post, I think I need a pick-me-up!

Trick or Treat

I mentioned before that we had a little Halloween shin dig on Saturday night, in celebration of Matt’s 25th birthday. Just wanted to share a few photos from the event! Hope everyone has a safe, happy and maybe a little bit spooky Halloween!

The ladies :-)

Cowgirl Ginger!

Matt and Me, Sookie and Bill from True Blood

Happy Matt Day!

I certainly won't be quitting my day job to make cupcake
creations, but with a little help from Matt, it
came out pretty well! (and very tasty!)

Today is my hubby's birthday and he's turning the big two-five! Although the weekend has had some really crazy weather (snow on October 29th, what?!) all in all it's been a great weekend. Last night we had friends over for some Halloween fun, celebrating with Apple Cider rum punch and a homemade Halloween Birthday cake. Today we're watching the Redskins game here at home, with friends and family. Wings and pizza might not be every ones idea of a great birthday, but it's Matt's day, and this is how he wanted to spend it. Happy Birthday to the love of my life! (don't forget, you'll always be older than me!)

Twitter & Such

I have this new found interest in social media. I used to consider myself tech savvy. To say that now, would be a complete fallacy. That being said, you have to give a girl credit for trying, right?! I've been fiddling with this new thing called 'twitterfeed'...if it works the way it should, when I publish this blog post, my twitter and Facebook should automatically update with a link. I'm not overly optimistic...

Thursday Blonde Joke: A blonde woman gets in an elevator. She says to the man in the elevator "TGIF!!" in a very excited manner. The man looks at her for a minute, and then replys "s.h.i.T." Stunned at his rudeness, the blonde repeats herself, this time saying "TGIF, thank goodness it's Friday!"..as the elevator comes to a stop, the man looks at her and repeats himself as well "s.h.i.T...Sorry hunny, it's Thursday" :-)

5K Success!

Running has always been a challenge for me, but the past two weekends, I felt like I finally turned the corner – I completed my first 5K, and then another!

Two weeks ago, I headed out to the middle-of-nowhere St. Mary’s County for my first 5K. The race went great! My time was 33:05 (not too bad!) and I ran the entire thing without stopping. There were only about 40 people there, which was nice. There was no pressure and the course was really flat, which was great for a first timer. My friend Shelly also came out to do the race. It was her first race too, and I think we were both very happy with how it went!

Check out the woman behind us, number 30,069!!

This past weekend, I went up to Hunt Valley for the Race for the Cure. I was completely blown away by this event. Through my friend Diane, I was able to join on with a team that raised almost $40,000 for Breast Cancer! The entire event was huge. There were thousands and thousands of people, all together for a common cause. The energy and excitement of the event was enough to keep me pumped the entire run. Although my time wasn’t as good (36:00), I’ve decided to blame it on the massive crowd. After the start bell rang, I still waited at least 3-4mins before I even made it over the starting line! What a great event for a great cause - Certainly one I will go to again next year!


Facebook Frustrations

About 90% of the time, I really enjoy Facebook. It is a great way to keep up with old friends, especially when you don’t live right around the corner anymore. But lately, I’ve been increasingly frustrated with Facebook. I don’t want to find out about life altering events on Facebook, I don’t want to see 600 photos of the party I wasn’t invited to on Facebook and I certainly don’t appreciate being “friended” so that you can stalk your exboyfriend via my page, on Facebook.

I guess the logical thing to do would be delete my Facebook account…nah I love it too much for that. But if you’re interested enough to ‘post on my wall’…try picking up the phone and calling me…I would probably appreciate a real conversation instead of a half hearted wallpost.

Friday Night Face Lift

Playing on the computer when my hubby is home is pretty much impossible.  (Not that I would like it if he were sitting on the computer all the time either...) But since I'm hanging out by myself tonight, I decided it was time to learn how Blogger really works.  Who knew you could make so many changes to the templates, and add so many creative features to your blog!?! I'm completely intrigued with all of the possibilities available in blogspot.  When I started my blog I just slapped a template on there to get it started, but after three hours of tweaking and playing with it, I'm really happy with how it looks.  Hope you like it too! 


PS. happy friday!

The Ma & Pa Trail

The Ma & Pa Trail, found in Bel Air near my parent’s house, has always been my own personal challenge.  Dating back to my high school field hockey days, “going up to the trail” was always a good sign that I was in pretty decent shape.  As I transitioned From:  in shape high school senior  To: drink beer more days a week than I exercise college grad, my visits to the Ma & Pa became few and far between.

Since I’ve started running again, I haven’t visited the trail very often.  I always found an excuse why I didn’t have the time to make it up there, or it was too muddy etc.  Shortly before our wedding, I decided it was time to face the trail, but this time I was going to run the entire thing, from start to finish and back.  Go figure that the weather before our wedding was terrible…hurricane Irene really put a damper on my plans.  So, last week, about a month after the wedding, I headed up the trail – ready to run. 

For the first time ever (I think…) I ran the trail from one Bel Air end to the other and back.  The total distance was roughly four miles, and even though I was moving fairly slowly, I managed to keep running the entire time.  Four miles might seem like a small accomplishment, but for me, it was absolutely the push I needed.  Plus, now I am confident I’m ready for this 5K I’m doing on Saturday!

If you haven’t visited the Ma & Pa Trail, make some time to go check it out.  This hidden little gem in Bel Air is the perfect place to walk with pets, exercise or just spend some time with your family outdoors!

Apple Deliciousness

Apple picking season has arrived! Although Matt and I didn’t actually go out apple picking (Giant had a great selection tho!) I was able to get into the spirit of the Fall season and made some delicious Apple Crisp. I’m not the best cook, although it is a work in progress, but this simple recipe was super easy and tasted great with a big scoop of vanilla ice cream.

If you’re looking for an easy dessert, try it out! (and remember to thank Betty Crocker)

We had to try it out before I took a picture...
just in case it was a flop!

4 medium tart cooking apples, sliced (4 cups)
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup Gold Medal® all-purpose flour
1/2 cup quick-cooking or old-fashioned oats
1/3 cup butter or margarine, softened
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Heat oven to 375ºF. Grease bottom and sides of 8-inch square pan with shortening.

Spread apples in pan. In medium bowl, stir remaining ingredients except cream until well mixed; sprinkle over apples.

Bake about 30 minutes or until topping is golden brown and apples are tender when pierced with a fork. Serve warm with cream.

Makes 6 servings

5K Fall Challenge

When summer rolled around, I decided it was time to get into “wedding shape.” I wanted to slim down and lose some weight, but of course I didn’t want to pay to join a gym. Lucky for me, Calvert County put in a very nice new ‘park n ride’ right near our town house – and I made it my very own track.

Now that the wedding is over, I absolutely need some motivation to keep me going. Running is rewarding, and I felt great about my diligent exercise routine, but it is so easy to let it go, especially once the weather gets cold. So, I decided to sign up for a 5K…and then another. I’m scheduled to run my very first 5K on October 15, just a little over two weeks from today. I think I can jog the entire thing. I’m a little nervous tho! Hopefully the adrenalin from the race, and the support from some of my coworkers that will be running too, will be enough to help me finish without having to stop and walk!

I’m also signed up for the Race for the Cure – Komen 5K in Hunt Valley on October 23. That one is a little closer to Bel Air, so if anyone is interested in getting out and going for a brisk Sunday morning jog (or just interested in supporting a great cause!) let me know and you can join my team!

New Name, New Blog?

As you know, I used to have a Blog that I failed miserably at maintaining.  But with all of these fun changes happening in my life, I decided maybe it was time to start fresh.  So here I am, with a new name and a new blog. (Just in case you don’t get the pun, it is pronounced Brownie…like the snack)

So, if you know me, you already know that I love to start things, but sometimes lack in the finishing projects department. (Case and point, my old Blog)  One of my goals with this new Blog is to put my goals and projects in writing.  That way, when you haven’t heard anything about a project for a while, you can remind me that I need to finish, or stick with, it!

First goal of the Blog: post at least once a week.  That shouldn’t be too hard, right?!