Finished Patio

So, I've been blogging for a while now about having a few projects done around the house. One of the big projects was that we wanted to do something with the back patio. The old patio shown below was a small slab of concrete that made it difficult to really do anything with. It was too small to comfortably put our table and chairs and because the patio is on the west side of the house, the sun doesn't get to that part of the grass until afternoon which made for sparse grass and a real muddy mess.

After much back and forth we decided to pull the trigger and add the extended flagstone patio with walkway.
Here is the in progress:

And here it is complete:

Obviously we have to fill in the newly created garden and re-seed the grass up to the patio and I can hardly wait to get my planters out and filled with flowers. We love the way our patio turned out, don't you?

2010 in Review

(Warning: LONG POST!)
What a year this has been! I knew it had been busy and crazy at times, but when I actually sat down and took an inventory of what happened this year even I'm surprised! Of course, I can't include everything but here is some of what went on in our world this year:
(Remember, you can click on the highlighted links to take you to the posts I've previously done or click on the pictures to make them larger)
Brave Girls:

What an experience this was. Something my soul so desperately needed - time to be still, time to think, and time to meet a group of amazing, like-minded women. I came back from Idaho with a new perspective and new friends.
At Brave Girls I met Rachel - and what a great year we've had! We signed up and traveled to multiple crafty venues this year. Looking forward to more in 2011!

Mary Englebreit Conference:

I traveled to St. Louis where I met up with Rachel and met her sweet friend Kara. We had such a fun time together on this trip! Creating, eating, sharing stories. It was great!

Craft Room Organization (Almost):

In 2010 I wanted to get my craft room in shape. At one point early in the year I literally couldn't walk around in there. I hired a personal organizer to come help me because yes, I was *that* overwhelmed with what I was facing. The organizer came and we worked for several days sorting, purging, planning - and things were coming along pretty well. However, I think I totally overwhelmed her because she had a minor accident on her bike and needed to take a break until she healed. I've tried to contact her and haven't heard another word. Guess I'm on my own to finish. I'm GOING TO COMPLETE this project in 2011. When I do, I will post before pictures (they will remind you of Hoarders) and afters. It's going to be good!
I left my consulting gig. Yep ~ unemployed. I had been feeling that it was time to move on but that is always a scary proposition especially when you don't know what is next. I took a leap of faith and decided I would take a month off and figure out what I would do after our trip. Well - a month has now turned into 7 months and I'm praying for work in the new year. No regrets though as to leaving - it was definitely time.

Our trip of a lifetime to Rome:

What a time we had!

I loved that Doug enjoyed himself so much on that trip. I did too but it made it even better for me that he loved Rome!

We ate and drank and totally absorbed the Italian culture. The food ruined us for food back home. Everything in Rome is so fresh and so flavorful and simple! We got home to tasteless garbage. What a bummer!
We took a trip back East that got cut short. While in NYC, before we could see my family in Connecticut, we got word that Doug's mom was very sick and we needed to get home right away. It wasn't good.
In September, we lost Doug's Mom. We miss you Carol...

Creative Connection:
Another *amazing* event! Rachel and I signed up for this one and could barely wait to attend! We can't wait for the announcement of the dates for 2011 because we are all over it!

What a surprise for us when we ran into our fellow Brave Girls Melody and Margie.

I went to Las Vegas for Inspiration Unlimited. It was my first trip ever to Vegas and I didn't really even get to see anything! I went straight to the hotel and attended the scrappy conference. I met some really nice ladies there and clicked with Collette (not pictured). I enjoyed the projects although, like usual I didn't get to finish them. Overall though, honestly, I didn't enjoy the event itself. The people were "different" - no where near as friendly as the women I've met at Mary Englebreit, Creative Connection and Silver Bella.

Silver Bella - This was my first year to attend and definitely NOT my last. I drove to Omaha and roomed with Rachel. Met some new friends, saw some "old" friends and took a handful of fun classes. Again - didn't get much completed but had such fun. That is what matters, right?

Just back from Omaha, Doug and I made the trip to Connecticut to meet my sweet new nephew Joao (pictured below). During our whirlwind trip we took a day trip to New York with Bobby & Jess.

We also had a baby shower for my sister January during that visit. It was a quick trip but so great to finally see my family - especially since the trip in August didn't quite work out.
We got to meet Baby Joao. I love my sweet nephew!

The day after Christmas Baby Garrett was born to my sister January. Can't wait to get to meet him!

Looking forward to a great 2011 - Happy New Year Everyone!

Inspired...Or maybe just crazy.

I'm taking a leap of faith and finally making some big changes in my life. I gave my notice last week at work and will be finishing up at the end of the month. Currently I do not have any active legal cases going on and I'm okay with that. At this point I don't plan on taking on any new clients for the time being. I'm taking the month of June to get my house in shape, get myself in shape and take stock of what it really is that I want to be doing at this point in my life. It's scary but exhilarating at the same time.
It's time to move on and experience more of what life has to offer. I've been wanting to do this for some time but I wanted to make sure the timing was right and I believe in my heart that the time is now.
We will see what happens!

Change is in the air...

And instead of being scared and resisting it, I'm doing my best to embrace it. Lots of thoughts swirling around in my head these days. I feel some kind of change getting ready to happen. For now, I keep focusing on this quote:

"Breathe. Let go and remind yourself that this very moment is the only one you know you have for sure."

I'm trying to just go with the flow and chill out. What I think I really need is a vacation. Doug and I just need to get away, have some fun and relax. The stress of too much work and not enough down time is starting to wear us thin. Today I started researching a few vacation spots - just have to narrow down a time and place.

The last few days I've been cleaning out my closet and purging all sorts of things. Trying to do that in all areas of our home. Sending things out into the world where they will have new owners who need them much more than I do. I've had too much stuff for way too long and it is time to let it go. The "stuff" is weighing me down. What I need is space and positive energy - trying to surround myself with it and send it out into the universe.

I'll keep you posted....