Magnificent Monterey

“Men for the sake of getting a living forget to live.”  ~Margaret Fuller

Like many, we have been busy this year…busy, stressed, spent. Somehow the days go by in a blink, the weeks go by in a yawn, and before you know it another week starts all over again with a renewed hope of this week finding time for some relaxation and fun.

We cannot believe this year is already a third over. It’s amazing how fast time flies when you factor in the stress that comes with making a living…and ironically, you are so busy making a living that you forget to actually live most of it. Last week, we were both at our breaking point. The stress of everything was overwhelming, and we decided right then and there we needed to stop and enjoy some of what we work so hard for.

I made a huge personal step forward in relinquishing all control of planning every second of our lives, and told Dee that if he wanted to he could plan our whole weekend. He of course did, and he of course made it all a surprise.

Saturday morning, we woke up, packed our bags, and hoped into the car for what I thought was just a fun weekend getaway…little did I know how romantic it would end up being as well.

About 5 minutes into the car ride, not able to hold the secret from me any longer, Dee spilled the secret to me that we were going to Monterey and that our weekend would consist of:

·         Staying in a luxury hotel right on the ocean

·         Going to the Monterey Bay Aquarium

·         Couples massages and relaxing at the hotel spa

·         Dinner at a lovely local restaurant

·         And whale watching

It’s amazing how long the weekend actually felt. We both had such an amazing time and realized we need to do this much more often. We vowed that so long as we are kid-less, we would do a weekend getaway every other month.

Here’s a link to pictures from this weekend. We captured it all…the hotel, the amazing aquarium, relaxing in the hot tub overlooking the ocean from the spa, and even a humpback whale! J

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10101416725876881.3085665.10011637&type=1&l=b31fcdba01

Cowboys & Angels

Dee and I frequently text each other throughout the day. When you spend all of 8 hours together a day, including sleep, texting when you're apart keeps us smiling. Last week, he sent me a text asking me to buy a new country song called "Cowboys & Angels."

As soon as I heard it I knew why...it's our new song.

Romance. :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LlPgV1v2w34&feature=related

Our March Madness & Happiness

Sigh…so few posts for the month of March. We had good reason though…or at least excuses. Ready? Here they come…March Madness & Happiness!

Madness:

·         We made great strides in making our house a home – complete with Dee spending a full weekend digging up the dead backyard grass and re-seeding. Thank you two full weeks of March rain, and we now have grass! Ta Da! Also bought additional and much needed furniture…pics to come hopefully this weekend!

·         Dee worked 60 hour weeks for pretty much the whole month while…

·         I heard that I got the much wanted Supply Chain Strategist job I interviewed for at HP, and I started mid-March. Translated into Stephanie terms…begin 3-6 months of working crazy insane hours to learn as fast and as much as possible.

·         Lost count of how many different doctor appointments came and went…opinions, tests, scans,…waiting….more waiting….more opinions….madness.

Happiness:

·         Mom & Dad Lohmeier came to visit! They conspired with Dee to surprise me, which was so great. We had such a blast spending 4 days with them and were so glad to have our first house guests! Miss you already mom & dad!

·         I met with the first surgeon (being advised to get two surgeon opinions) just over a week ago. The second, and who happens to be one of the best in the country, I cannot see until early June. The good/great/incredible news? He doesn’t believe I have cancer! Apparently, there are two different types of calcification originations. One like mine that starts in the thyroid and encroaches on the nodules is apparently rarely cancerous he told me. Ones contained to only the nodules are almost always cancerous. This is what my endocrinologist had told me I had. The bad news? It doesn’t sit quite well with me that I have a drastically opposite opinion from the surgeon and endocrinologist, albeit a much better outlook if I go with what the surgeon says. For now, we are clinging to what the surgeon has told us, and are looking forward to the second surgeon’s analysis to better understand where exactly we stand! I was also told that I will still have to have surgery to get the parathyroid tumor removed; but, they want to wait for it to grow a little bigger first. All in all, praise God!!!

So, there you have it. Our March madness and happiness summed up. April hopefully brings more happiness…and more blog posts! ;)