Taking on the Role of A Single Parent

Just looking at the title of this entry, makes me a little sick to my stomach. For the next ? amount of months, Rosalie and I will be flying solo. Kevin has left for Qatar and we are unsure of when he'll return. I won't lie, it's so weird and quiet without him here. I know Rosalie and I will be fine.. we're tough chicks :) hahah.. but it will be extremely hard without Daddy around. I've been holding myself together pretty well because I know have a little Princess to think about. I just ask that everyone keep my husband in your prayers that he stay safe and say little prayer for Rosalie and I as we go through this deployment.

Reading List

I've really been getting back into reading lately.. and I imagine once Kevin has left for his deployment, I'll find myself reading even more. I thought I would share everything that I have read so far in 2011 and right now I'm working on my MUST read list or planning to read list.. a little input would be nice!

2011 already read list: -->and I must add, I have LOVED everything I have read so far.

~The House of Night Series 1-4.. Marked, Betrayed, Chosen, Untamed. I'm absolutely ADDICTED to this series. I have 5-8 ordered since the BX doesn't have the rest of the series.. they seriously can't get here fast enough.

~Life Laughs, by Jenny McCarthy... As with all Jenny books, she can be kind of, okay not kind of, but really.. crude. lol... If you get offended easily, then I wouldn't even bother picking this one or the next book up. lol. I am a HUGE fan of her books hahah

~Love, Lust, and Faking it, by Jenny McCarthy

~Safe Haven, by Nicholas Sparks.. one of my favorite authors!

~The Last Song, by Nicholas Sparks

MUST READ/PLANNING ON READING LIST!

~The House of Night Series 5-8.. They CANNOT get here fast enough!

~The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner, by Stephenie Meyer.. it's a Twilight Novella.. I'm pretty excited to start it... it's already on my book shelf!

~The Blindside.. by Michael Lewis.. this is also on my shelf

~The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets Nest, by Stieg Larsson.. this is also on my shelf, but i didn't realize it was the LAST in the series. boo.

~The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, by Stieg Larsson

~The Girl who Played with Fire, by Stieg Larsson

~PS I love you, by Cecelia Ahern

~The Hunger Games Series, by Suzanne Collins

~The Lucky One, by Nicholas Sparks

~The Choice, by Nicholas Sparks

~Message in a Bottle, by Nicholas Sparks

Okay I want some input.. what are your favorite books and what do you recommend!!?! I'll be lucky if my list of books lasts me a month! lol!

Goals

So I thought I would do a little update about my goals I set for myself for 2011.

Read One Book A Month:

~I've actually read 6 so far and am halfway through number 7. I've been a book junky lately.

Lose 20 lbs in 2011:

~I'm down 2 lbs this week. 18 more to go!

Workout 4 Times A Week For Half An Hour Each Day:

~I worked out 6 times last week.. a total of 3 hours in exercising. Woot.

Keeping In Touch With Old Friends:

~Kayla and I are still e-mailing each other religiously... and Kate and I talk on the phone about every other day. I can't wait to go home and see my loves

I would have to say that my first week of working towards my goals went pretty well!

keeping busy

I know I've been really slacking lately on updating. I've just been terribly busy.

I started the New Year off right and got right back on my diet. It's now Thursday I have done great. I've even taken a few pounds of water weight off that I put back on during the holidays. I've exercised every day except Tuesday because we were gone most of the day. I've already finished my book for the month and started another. I finished Safe Haven by Nicholas Sparks. It was most excellent. It started off kind of slow, but then I couldn't put it down. It was crazy that the main character's hometown was Altoona. What was even funnier was how amazing she described Altoona. I guess if you get past the fear of having a heroin needle thrown at your eye as you go through downtown, maybe it is amazing. haha. I am now on Marked, from the House of Night Series. I had a really hard time getting into the beginning. I was having a hard time following it.. maybe that was because I couldn't get it into and was only reading a chapter at a time and my mind was wondering as I was reading it, but now I can't put it down.

Kevin's been on 12s all week so he's up at 5am and doesn't get home til around 6:30. It def sucks because it makes for a long day and a very short night. What sucks even more is he'll be leaving soon and we haven't really been able to spend any time together. To make the week go by faster I've been throwing myself into all sorts of projects, and it's honestly worked.

Monday morning I woke up extremely refreshed. Rosalie slept all night and I awoke at 7 feeling amazing. I haven't slept like that in a LONG time. She was still sleeping so I got up and started cleaning. I did a nice deep cleaning upstairs. I got most of it done before she got up and finished the rest when she napped. I had all my laundry done and housework done and worked out by lunch time, which never happens. Oh that reminds me, we got a sweet new dryer. I know everyone has heard my constant complaining about our old dryer and how it took a day to dry a load of clothes and by the time it was dry some of it smelled so i'd have to rewash and hang dry. It got to the point where i didn't dry anything of Rosalie's for fear the dryer would do something to it. It was also getting extremely loud. Housing finally came out and gave us a sweet new one that dries really fast and is really quiet. I can now get all my laundry done in one day. AWESOME. That's the way it should be! I spent the rest of the afternoon working on getting the old laptop ready so kevin can take it because we don't want to chance something happening to our MacBook. I got it before I started college so it's over 5 years old. I worked on it for about 5-6 hours. All I have left to do is make sure the skype works okay and then he'll be set to go.

Tuesday. Rosalie had to get shots. Yikes. She got 5. Thank god she didn't spike a fever this time; then again, I didn't really give her a chance to. After she got them she was really docile and not herself. She looked like she was drugged. She slept the entire afternoon and as soon as she got up I got medicine in her. After she got her shots we went shopping and she got a new night gown and we got Kevin stuff that he would need for the deployment. That evening Rosalie and I had to go back to the base to pick Kevin up from work. It made for a really long day.

Wednesday. I did a deep clean downstairs.... cleaned cupboards and appliances.. Housing also came to fix our light in our bedroom. We've been without light in our room since before Christmas.

Today I'm working on washing everything.. rugs.. Rosalie's high chair cover.. laundry..

Well, that's about it!. How about some pictures of a Princess! :)

she's such a lil lady

wearing a dress her Grandma got her for Christmas..

and a Miss Khloe bow of course! I've ordered her 10 more this week plus all her frees one from the contest!

Rosalie and her best friend

I stinken love her

Giving Daddy kisses. So SWEET

I have to admit.. that's the Gallaher coming out there.

She looks so much like my bestfriend, my cousin Kate.. it's scary. I hope she doesn't get Kate's attitude :) haha kidding. Lovee you punky

Why Hello 2011

You know what's funny about a new year starting? I'll still be writing 2010. It'll take me until about May to say or write 2011 without thinking about it or having to turn 2010 to 2011 on a check. haha.

2010 was really good to us.

At the start of 2010, Rosalie was almost 2 months old. She basically just ate, slept, and pooped. The end of 2010, she was almost 14 months old.. talking up a storm, walking like crazy, busy and curious and has a mouth full of teeth. It's been fun watching her grow and learn. It'll be crazy to see how much she changes in 2011 as she enters the Terrible 2s, which I'm pretty we've been in since she was 9 months! lol!

We've seen so many beautiful European cities and countries and have been so blessed to be given this opportunity. The best part was being able to see some of them with my mom and being with her as she lived out her dream of seeing Italy.

We were able to visit the United States and Rosalie was able to spend 3 months with family that she never gets to see other than via skype.

I have many high hopes and goals for 2011.

First and foremost, my weight loss resolution. Last year my resolution was to lose 50 lbs. I easily achieved that. This year, I plan to lose 20 lbs. Starting today. I'm looking forward to seeing the old me again.

I've been trying to get back to the old me and I don't mean just looks wise... my old inner self. I use to love to read for pleasure and write and exercise. Somewhere between moving to Europe and having a baby, I lost myself. I stopped reading and just don't have the energy to exercise. Starting at Christmas, I started digging into books again. Since Christmas, I've polished off 3 books and am halfway through my 4th. It feels great to do something that I love again. I'm making it a goal to read at least one new book a month. I've also been emailing my bestfriend from back home a few times a week and I hope to continue that. Granted, I won't be emailing her when I'm back in the states because i'll see her all the time, but while in Italy, I don't want to lose touch with her or create any distance. I want it to be like I'm still back in Berwinsdale and her and I keeping each other updated on every single moment of each other's lives. Having her so active in my life again makes me feel like the old me. I've also been making a point to write to another friend back home that I use to work with at least once a month. As for exercising, i'm making it a goal to make sure I hit the Wii Fit at least 4 days a week for at least 30 minutes a day. It may not be much, but it's a start and is better than nothing.

2011 has many trips in store for us. Rosalie and I will be venturing back to the states for a long visit while Kevin's deployed. Say a prayer for safe and easy travels for us and for Daddy to stay safe. Once Kevin returns, we plan on visiting Salzburg, Austria.. Garmish, Germany.. Rome & Volterra, Italy.

Here's to a new year that be filled with health, love, and happiness.

Miss Cutie :)

Just wanted to let everyone know that Rosalie has been named the 2010 Miss Cutie for Miss Khloe's Bows :) Congrats Princess!!

Just a reminder.. please read.

As many of you know, back in August Rosalie was the winner of a Miss Cutie Contest at Miss Khloe's Bows. It's the end of the year and all of the winners are placed into another contest. The contest will be held on December 30th (I'm not sure what time the voting starts.. i think probably 9 pst)

I'm asking that everyone head to Miss Khloe's Bows on facebook on the 30th.. first you have to "Like" her page.. then she'll probably have an album with the contestants in it. You have to go in the album and "Like" Rosalie's picture. Be sure you "Like" her picture, not the album, and make sure you "like" the picture in the album, not the picture floating on the wall.. or else the votes won't count! You could even head there now and "Like" Miss Khloe's Bows page that way when she posts the contest on the 30th it'll pop up on your wall as a reminder :)

Thank you guys!!!!!!!!!!