And the fun don't stop!

Whew! Guys, life has been crazy busy!

Like I have been so busy Michael has taken it upon himself to clean our house 3 times!! I haven't cleaned it in sooo long! But things have been good the past couple of weeks!

Yes, I am working 55 + hours a week...but I'm finding that work life balance they talk about except its like. Workkkkkkkkk 8-7 then hurry workout....then doing something fun...then go to bed...do it all over again!

So why not get caught up on what i've been doing?

I have a hefty amount of pictures on my phone so here we go!

- I have been running...well when time permits

- I have been trying to cook new recipes...well when time permits --- Tonight we made spaghetti squash with chicken, peas, broccoli, sundried tomatoes, and garlic and it was tastey and you couldn't tell it was healthy. Michael even gave me a high five.


- I have been patiently awaiting becoming an auntie! Michael's sister is due on the 21st!! whoop whoop! exciting!

- I have been trying to read but failing due to my busyness and trying to incorporate fun into my life.

- I went to the UK vs Ole Miss Basketball game on Saturday. Walked straight from work to the game. It was awesome and it made me a very happy lady.

- I have been taking full advantage of our free work meals on Saturdays. Um hello can you say Panera bagel + half a pumpkin muffin + fruit for breakfast?!?! So I definitely wasn't that hungry for lunch and filled up on pudding with bananas, cool whip, and nilla wafers!

- I have been having a movie night with my love Becca, with wine, and peanut butter m&ms and cuddling under blankets.

- I have been counting down the days until Michael's match day ---25 if you'd really like to know

-I've been mentoring my girl Adrielle. Bowling and getting our nails done all in one week?! super fun!
  

- I've been celebrating birthdays...you know...Kara's birthday...cause she's awesome

- I've been enjoying large margaritas!
 
- I've been playing scrabble with awesome friends...you know like real life words with friends?!


- I've been celebrating Valentines day (post to come about this wonderful day)


 -I've been enjoying the little things in life like Dunkaroos!


- I've been visiting Columbus to visit the very Cute Drew and Catherine Hamilton while enjoying a tour of the city and some fancy ice cream from Jeni's and yummy lunch from North Market (Columbus has reached the top of our list of places for Michael's residency)(this is gooey cake ice cream!)

I've been spending a TON of quality time with my hubby since I have been home the passed 2 weeks and it's been wonderful. Just the perfect work pick-me-up I needed!

 
It's been great! It's been crazy busy, but I'm young, I can handle this. At least I'm having a good time!!

Goodnight friends!

Griffey

In loving memory of my family's dog Griffey.

Lisa, my stepmom, found Griffey one day during my sophomore year of high school. He was standing in the middle of a fairly busy street near our house. No one claimed him. We were very excited to have him in our lives. We soon discovered that Griffey had the tendency to escape and "run away". Probably how he ended up with us. Oftentimes during the summer someone from the Ryle Marching Band would call to say they found our dog Griffey. He was so friendly he just wanted to hang out with everyone.

 He was super spunky. He liked to lick ...well... EVERYTHING. He had a favorite toy that made bird sounds.
(My brother, Dustin, whipped up this drawing in a day after Griffey leaving us, isn't it awesome?)

 He really loved Lisa a lot. He was a cuddler. He thought he was a guard dog. He was small yet mighty enough to scare the living day lights out of Willis.

Yet he was still like a puppy in some ways. How he felt comforted by sucking on blankets, towels, etc. while kneading them with his paws, kind of like a cat or a puppy feeding off it's mother. It was cute and gross at the same time.

He had bladder cancer for a year or more and was given a very limited time to live but he kept on keepin' on despite the bloody urine and doggy diapers. He lived much longer than we expected with the cancer but that doesn't mean we were ready to see him leave. He was only 8-9 years old.

It's never easy to lose a dog. They are so helpless. And so loving.

I saw this in a blog I was reading the other day and it made me cry. But I'm happy knowing he is no longer in pain.

A Dog’s Purpose

Being a veterinarian, I had been called to examine a ten-year-old Irish Wolfhound named Belker. The dog’s owners, Ron, his wife, Lisa, and their little boy, Shane, were all very attached to Belker, and they were hoping for a miracle.

I examined Belker and found he was dying of cancer. I told the family we couldn’t do anything for Belker, and offered to perform the euthanasia procedure for the old dog in their home.

As we made arrangements, Ron and Lisa told me they thought it would be good for six-year-old Shane to observe the procedure. They felt as though Shane might learn something from the experience.

The next day, I felt the familiar catch in my throat as Belker’s family surrounded him. Shane seemed so calm, petting the old dog for the last time, that I wondered if he understood what was going on. Within a few minutes, Belker slipped peacefully away.

The little boy seemed to accept Belker’s transition without any difficulty or confusion. We sat together for a while after Belker’s death, wondering aloud about the sad fact that animal lives are shorter than human lives.

Shane, who had been listening quietly, piped up, “’I know why.”

Startled, we all turned to him. What came out of his mouth next stunned me. I’d never heard a more comforting explanation. It has changed the way I try and live.

He said, “People are born so that they can learn how to live a good life — like loving everybody all the time and being nice, right?”

The six-year-old continued, “Well, dogs already know how to do that, so they don’t have to stay as long.”

Live simply.

Love generously.

Care deeply.

Speak kindly.

Remember, if a dog was the teacher, you would learn things like:

When loved ones come home, always run to greet them.

Never pass up the opportunity to go for a joyride.

Allow the experience of fresh air and the wind in your face to be pure Ecstasy.

Take naps.

Stretch before rising.

Run, romp, and play daily.

Thrive on attention and let people touch you.

Avoid biting when a simple growl will do.

On warm days, stop to lie on your back on the grass.

On hot days, drink lots of water and lie under a shady tree.

When you’re happy, dance around and wag your entire body.

Delight in the simple joy of a long walk.

Be loyal.

Never pretend to be something you’re not.

If what you want lies buried, dig until you find it.

When someone is having a bad day, be silent, sit close by, and nuzzle them gently.

There comes a time in life, when you walk away from all the drama and people who create it. You surround yourself with people who make you laugh, forget the bad, and focus on the good. So, love the people who treat you right. Think good thoughts for the ones who don’t. Life is too short to be anything but happy.

My sincerest apologies

Hello little bloggy

I’m Ashley and I’ve been a bad blogger as of late.

Can I make excuses?

Will you forgive me?!

Guys, honestly, my days have been packed.

Some of these days they are packed for the good and some of them, depending on the week, are packed full of icky.

And I mean I feel bad every day that goes by that I don’t blog. But it just can’t happen

Last week, well I won’t give last work week more than a few sentences. It just was not a good week. I’m not going to harp on it. Tears were shed but it’s over.

Now this week. I’m pretty happy with this week. My client is pretty low stress. I’m working in downtown Cincy. I have gotten to see my parents 2 nights this week. See my high school girlies (Bailey, Olivia, and Azra) for a chic sushi dinner in Hyde Park and ice cream at Bay’s after. I’ve been able to get in my parent’s hot tub. Michael joined my parents and myself for dinner Monday night. We visited ice cream heaven (Brusters). This week while working and living “on the road” I am a happy Ashley. And it’s allll good.

Optimism and Joy?! I think so!

And you know what else I haven’t even mentioned yet?! I haven’t exercised in a full week today. Ok that’s not good news. It’s actually bad. I had plans of starting my official half marathon training on Monday. But last Tuesday or Wednesday (can’t remember, week was a blur of ick) I was doing a circuit workout in the gym at like 6 in the morning. Sometime during that super intense and awesome workout I did something wrong. And now my back is jacked. Like I am constantly uncomfortable, even lying down I feel it. So sitting in conference room chairs that are built for 300 pound men does not do my petite frame well.

I have used a heating pad multiple times, refrained from exercise (which is IMPOSSIBLE for me), even had a licensed massage therapist work on my back, applied icey hot, Lisa rubbed it down for a while. And it just doesn’t seem to be feeling better. I’m going through workout withdrawals. Plus, I can’t give myself an excuse to eat that ice cream and not feel bad about it later, but since I’m used to working out all the time I’m used to burning it off relatively quickly by working out every day. UGH. So there, I haven’t been exercising and it’s so annoying. I really don’t want to get behind on my training plan but here I am already behind. And I guaranty I’ll feel out of shape on my first couple of runs!

But you know what? It’s hasn’t gotten me down! Not this week! I have my family and friends to distract me at night. And I think a cold came along to help me realize to chill too, so my body is appreciating the extra hour of sleep that I can get in the morning, or more work that I can get done in the evenings. I mean if you can’t hear out of your right ear and your back is feeling strained constantly I’m guessing its time to listen to your body.

Anywho…enough about my body.

I have so much to fill you in on and some pictures to post but this is getting pretty lengthy and well, I might just try to catch up on a little tv since I haven’t watched in a week.

Tonight on tap in Cincy fun?! Dinner with my good ol’ J-Boh.

Also, be looking forward to a recipe post. I NEED to make one this weekend and I have one in mind. Kinda excited about it. I failed at the whole recipe thing last week.

Also, need to get to reading my February book. I just haven’t wanted to read after the awesomeness that is the Hunger games, nothing can compare!

Well goodnight little blog and I hope to see you shortly!

Granola!

So today I forced myself to keep up with my resolution and make something new to me. Since there wasn't much extra time in my day I decided to make homemade granola. I had all of the ingredients already and I knew it would keep since I would be gone all week at a client.

I stole this recipe from a blog I read called Ben Does Life, it's his girlfriends recipe and its really simple but tasty! I tried a tiny bowl of it tonight with some milk but I can't wait to mix it in with my yogurt later this week!

Fact: Granola is delicious. AND easy to make (even I can do it!). 

• 3 cups large flake oats
• 1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
• 1/2 cup chopped or sliced almonds
• 1/2 cup chopped walnut
• 1/2 cup liquid honey
• 1/3 cup peanut butter (smooth or crunchy.. doesn’t matter)
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 cup raisins/dried cranberries 

• Heat oven to 350. 
• Mix together oats, coconut, almonds, walnuts in one bowl.
• In another (microwaveable) bowl, mix honey, peanut butter and cinnamon (sometimes easier if you microwave it before for 25 seconds). Add to the oats/nuts and fold in until all mixed up. 
• Spread on one cookie sheet (I would go with one that has a lip/edge to minimize mess).
• Bake for 9-10 mins. Take it out, flip it overstir. 
• Bake for another 9-12 minutes. Add raisins/cranberries. 
• Let sit to cool then store or eat!

Using large knives to chop up almonds is scary!!!

 There's my yummy granola bakin' in the oven!


So there ya go. I am keeping up with this even though it's getting really hard! This week I've worked the most hours that I've worked so far. I guess I can't complain though since the client was in Lexington. But I did end up with something like 57 chargeable hours!!

However, I did get to enjoy my time off. Friday evening Michael and I had a little date night and hit up Hugh Jass Burgers for some yummy burgers, sweet potato fries, and there's marshmallow dipping sauce! SO GOOD! Afterwards we came home and snuggled on the couch to catch up on a few shows. With Michael and my schedule our show watching is REALLY behind!

After working until about 3:45 on Saturday I ran home to take care of my pups and then headed over to my friend Mollie's house to hang out cause the Robertsons were in town from NKY visiting for the weekend!! Michael was out hunting quail with his dad, yuck, so he wasn't there until later.

It was fun hanging out with bailey, tim, mollie, and becca. After the Cats won a nice little game of basketball we headed out to grab some dinner at Sals. I stuck with their classic wedge salad and consumed 2 of there AMAZING rolls in record timing!

On the way home from dinner we swung into my favorite place... ORANGE LEAF!! I can gladly hit that place up at least once a week. So if any of you need an orange leaf buddy, look me up!

After hanging for a while I was quite tired from my long week and wanted to head home to put on some stretchy pants. I wasn't feeling the whole going out to the bars thing, especially cause it was so chilly out. That is when the Larson's came over to chill and watch a couple episodes of Arrested Development. Fun times!!

Then today was another great day. Church. Lunch with the Kastens (I haven't been in ages and we got to get the dogs out of the house for the first time in a while!). Then Michael and I used a Groupon that I had to use at the Movie Tavern since it was expiring this week. We saw "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close". Michael and I weren't exactly sure how we felt about the whole 9/11 thing. Not sure if it's been enough time. But I thought the plot was moving and I teared up a couple of times! We rounded out our day with bible study and picking up around the house. Oh and packing my suitcase once again.

I guess that's about it in my life. I thought some of you might want to know what's going on. Sorry there wasn't really much of a purpose to my post! Goodnight Friends!

Recipe update plus more

I wanted to keep you all up to date with my recipe making! This week wasn't a true "recipe" since it was so simple, however, I had never made it before so I thought that would count, plus it was SUPER easy!

 I made pulled chicken (Michael had it in sandwich form, I ate mine without the bread because I discovered my sandwich thins had turned green, that's what happens when you are out of town for 2 weeks!), corn bread muffins, baked beans, and peas! It was an easy comfort food filled meal. And man oh man, how much did I love having 2 home cooked meals in a row. Dining out is no fun to me anymore especially when you have pizza 2 days in a row, Bob Evans for dinner one night and for lunch the next day, and other nasty fried food.

My awesome home cooked meal yesterday was made by my one and only hubby!! He found a recipe on the spicy chicken sausage package for some yummy taco/burritos. The meat mixture had onions, corn, hot sauce, and sausage. Then we had refried beans, lettuce, and tomatoes! This was way better than something you would get at a Mexican restaurant. It was sooo good!

Of course I had to help clean out our fridge and polish of the orange juice with a splash of malibu coconut rum! Can you believe I have had that rum bottle since my 21st birthday?! There is probably enough left for one drink, sad day! (sorry for the blurry pic)

Also, since everything is so awesome I wanted to share my awesome workout that I did at the Johnson Center today. And can I tell you how at home I felt finally being back at the Johnson Center. Surrounded by motivated people, nice machines, and plenty to keep me distracted.

This run was awesome and with the intervals the 6 miles passed by so quickly! I ended up finishing in 47:59 which I was ecstatic about since I haven't ran 6 miles in months!

Distance	Speed
0-1 mile warm up	6.5-7.0
1-1.50	8.0
1.50-1.75	7.0
1.75-2.25	8.0
2.25-2.50	7.0
2.5-3.0	8.0
3.0-3.25	7.0
3.25-3.75	8.0
3.75-4.0	7.0
4.0-4.25	8.5
4.25-4.5	7.0
4.5-4.75	8.5
4.75-5.0	7.0
5.0-5.25	8.5
5.25-5.5	7.0
5.5-5.75	8.5
5.75-6.0	7.0

My endorphins were out of control after this amazing run!!

Even though I had to work from 8-5 today I still felt like today was a pretty awesome day!

Oh and I totally forgot to mention, I finally got to see my Becca today! She moved a week or 2 ago to her very own 1 bedroom apartment and I went over to hang out with her while she got ready to go out and hang out with friends tonight. I was invited but couldn't convince myself to get myself ready and presentable and I kinda just wanted to chill at home in my PJs since I haven't been here much. I loved seeing her though and we talked for a full hour. I just sat on her toilet lid while she got all prettified! 

One last note. If you are one to read blogs I would recommend reading this one. My friend Jessica (and birthday buddy, we have the same birthday and went and got our permits on the same day) has been writing an awesome blog for the past year and she is a great inspiration! She has lost an awesome amount of weight doing weight watchers so far and working out hard, I am so proud of her!! So check out her blog!

Ok, I'm going for real now! Happy Saturday everyone!!

Just checkin' in!

Hello there little blog!

Not much to report here. Just thought I'd check in and let you know that I haven't died, just leading the life of a financial institutions auditor during busy season.

You know....

-eating out for EVERY meal.

-chillin' in the hotel room by myself after dinner with the coworkers. We eat, live, breathe, and work together each and every day.

-barely talkin' to the hubby cause there's no service ANYWHERE in the hotel for AT&T users. I think I have maybe talked to Michael on the phone for 4 minutes this entire week.

-trying to watch tv shows online -- tv show length 1hr 25min. Actual time it took me to watch because of SUPER slow internet 3 hours. Realizing I just wasted 3 hours of my life trying to watch a show that is an embarrassing guilty pleasure...*ahem ahem* the Bachelor (once again, never watched this show before in my life, not sure what my problem is!) Shameful!

-waking up at 5:30AM to get a treadmill workout in on some purty old tmills. OH and remember, no service on cell phone = no pandora = no running music. Luckily TBS shows Married with Children at this early hours.  Can you believe he's the dad on Modern Family?! hahahHOWEVER, made it to the gym in the morning Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. Lets cross our fingers for tomorrow! This chicka is beat!

- trying to attain 55 CHARGEABLE hours a week...this is very hard. So is working in your hotel room after leaving the client.

- snacks, snacks, snacks!

-oooohhh Subway cookies?! Fazolis breadsticks?! Bob Evans TWICE this week, breakfast, yum?! Along with Mexican and Wendys?! This girl better watch out or she'll be puttin' on the busy season 15! One thing my group of coworkers discussed this week is our lack of ability to ignore food temptations while on the road. At least I'm not the only one that suffers from stuff yo face syndrome.

-Dreaming of wanting ice cream. Goodness gracious, Ashley please see above. I'm tellin' ya, when you're bored all you want to do is eat. Well, at least for me. You can ask the sour gummies and vanilla cookie wafers who I hung out with tonight.

- Wishing that one pair of my suit pants (out of the 3 suits I own, very limited) actually fit right and I didn't feel like a gangsta with a sag. Oh and also wishing that I didn't get mustard from my Subway sandwich on this same grey suit today, cause you know I RARELY get my suits dry cleaned -- EXPENSIVE!! -- (rarely as in I've only had my suits dry cleaned once since I started working at the end of August)

BUT tomorrow is FRIDAY! Which means I get to go back to Lexington! YIPPEE!!

Good night my little readers!

Grateful

What's worse than having to work in a tiny town that's a 2 hour drive from home all week? Getting stuck in bumper to bumper stock still traffic on the mountain parkway. We've been sitting here and haven't moved an inch in 45 minutes.  I also have no phone service. And the reading apparently I have is starting to girt my eyes in the dark.

Yes, this is completely selfish of me.

Opportunity to be optimistic?

I am grateful I am not involved in that wreck in front of us that we've seen one ambulance leave another arrive, 2 cop cars, and 2 tow trucks drive towards.

I'm grateful for a warm car to sit in with Sirius radio.

I'm grateful for the great weekend I had with my hubby and some great friends!

I'm grateful we had dinner before we left. A nice and yummy dinner from cheapside.

I'm grateful knowing Michael's working in a different direction.  No chance he's involved.

And I'm grateful that once I started typing this blog we started moving.