So much to look forward to

I've got a case of the travel bug. 

Mr. Ruby and I haven't gone on "vacation" since our honeymoon...three years ago. Luckily, in order to satisfy my travel appetite - we've got so much planned in the upcoming months. It makes me SO happy to have so much to look forward to. 

In honor of Independence Day...we will be celebrating in the most appropriate place you can possibly imagine - Washington DC. This should be one awesome Fourth of July!

Can't wait to celebrate in our nation's capital

A few weeks later, I will be carrying on a tradition of visiting my very best friend in one of my absolute FAVORITE cities - Chicago! 

My very first trip to Chi - my bestie showing me around town

Last year's trip to Chi - LOVE THIS PIC!

Then, Mr. Ruby and I are celebrating our anniversary ( a couple months late) going White Water Rafting and ATVing in the Mountains of Bingham, Maine and then off to Acadia National Park and Bar Harbor Maine for some relaxation and LOBSTER!

Quaint little town of Bar Harbor

Our kind of vacation!

This is the hotel we're staying at - Wowszerz!

And finally, we're planning a CRUISE with some of our pals. Neither Mr. Ruby nor I have ever been on a cruise, and we think it would be such a blast to go with some fun friends!!!

Hopefully somewhere in the Southern Caribbean

Saying Goodbye to a dear friend

It's so hard to say goodbye. 

My friend has been with me through thick and thin.

We've been through so much together:

High school dances.

First kisses.

Summer nights spent in Kansas going to field parties, finding random run-down "haunted" houses in the middle of nowhere, and stealing cool-sounding street signs (and yes, we always returned them). 

Driving around on Friday and Saturday nights with the windows down, favorite tunes blasting and checking out cute boys.

Multiple middle-of-the-night-study-break-trips to Dara's Convenience store for  32 oz. Diet Cokes.

A first cross-country road trip from Kansas to California, and most recently from Texas to Rhode Island.

Yes, we've been through it all together. And now, I am officially saying Bon Voyage. 

*******************************************************************

***********************************************************

*****************************************************

************************************************

******************************************

*********************************

*************************

******************

************

********

*****

**

*

Yes, that's right. 

I had to say goodbye to my little 97 Honda Civic. She's been with me since I was 16 years old. First car. Still driving it. 

Yep. You heard me right. STILL driving my very first car. 

We decided it was time to move on....

So, Mr. Ruby bought himself a brand spanking new George Jetson Spaceship of a car. 

He is the proud new owner of a 2010 Toyota Prius. 

Yeah for going green. Yeah for the environment. Yeah for ugly.

Oh well. I love Mr. Ruby, and Mr. Ruby loves his new Prius. So, I guess that means I technically love the new Prius. (Sigh).

Oh, and I must point out that this is MR. RUBY'S CAR. Not mine. I am driving what was his car ...and only plan to drive the Prius in a state of dire emergency. :)

In all seriousness - this car gets AMAZING gas mileage. We've been averaging 52 miles to the gallon! And it is quite comfy and has some cool technology going on inside. Not to mention it makes the environment happy. 

The only major downfall? (You know, besides it being hideous?)

It has the (ahem) unmanliest gear shifter you've ever seen. 

I guess it's a good thing Mr. Ruby already has himself a woman........

Please, please don't tease me.

No way. This must be a joke. Seriously? The SUN IS OUT!

The sun has only shone about 4 days total in the past 6 months. 

I feel like I live in Seattle. Or a really dark, damp cave.

This is seriously a monumental occasion, and it's only supposed to last a few hours. 

Therefore, I am taking advantage of every single moment. It is 9:00 a.m. and I already took the dogs for a long walk. We're hooking up the bikes and going for a massive bike ride. We are going to find a cute restaurant and dine al fresco. Wash the car. Sit on the deck. Grill a few burgers. Roll around in our happiness.

And then, it will all be taken from me. 3:00 today, is doomsday my friends. We will be back to rainy darkness for the next week. 

Ugh. 

Weiner Wednesday...Finally!

It's been TOO long since I've done a Weiner Wednesday post. 

All I really have to say is that this Wednesday is immeasurably better than last Wednesday. 

Let's recap:

Last Wednesday, I was deathly ill, shivering uncontrollably, had a terrible day at work, failed an exam, and had to work at an event...on my ANNIVERSARY!

Fast forward to this Wednesday: I'm getting along fabulously with my boss, I was so productive at work, I retook my test and passed it...AND we found Mr. Ruby's wedding ring!!!

Yes, you did read that correctly. We found Mr. Ruby's wedding ring. It's been lost now for about 9 months. It flung off in the car last fall, and we couldn't find it anywhere. We searched that silly car for about 2 months straight and finally gave up. 

Well, this weekend, we're trading in our car (stay tuned for a post)...and I couldn't stand the thought of checking the car once more. We took the car to a friend's dad's auto body shop...and he FOUND IT! 

Now maybe Mr. Ruby won't get hit on so much. ;)

HAPPY WEINER WEDNESDAY!!!

Deep Thoughts by Mrs. Ruby

There are many things on my mind right now. Please let me share.

• If the sun doesn't start shining soon, I truly might die. Yes, die.

• I have been having two recurring dreams lately: 1). I am in a dance recital, and right when I go onstage...I completely forget the routine. 2). I notice that a tooth falls out and I reach up to touch my mouth when all of my teeth start to fall out one by one. Both dreams equally horrifying. 

• I am currently craving: kettle-cooked potato chips and Cinnamon Toast Crunch.

• I desperately want to go to Italy. Right now.

• I hate confrontation. I got in my very first mini-fight with a co-worker today. I choked up and am still sad about it...even though we "made up". :(

• I'm having an absolute blast here in New England with Mr. Ruby. Yet, I miss every single thing you could possibly imagine about home.

• I am so sad about Jon and Kate.

• I really want to be an elementary school teacher. 

• I think it would be so fun to live under the sea. No kidding - I'm obsessed with sea life.

• I am so thankful for my amazing husband, family, friends, job and health. Thank you Lord!
  

The usual Sunday blues...

Ho-Hum.

Another Sunday. 

I'm not quite sure why I dislike Sundays...even more than Mondays. I've seriously been like that since high school. I get little mini panic attacks thinking about the upcoming week. 

Yes, I'm aware that I'm neurotic.

Well, it was a pretty low-key weekend. Mr. Rubes and I went out to dinner at the most adorable little little Italian restaurant on Friday night. 

We spent another rainy Saturday with friends at the movie theatre. The girls went to see "The Proposal" - SO cute and funny! Sandra Bullock and Ryan Reynolds make quite the duo. 

Then this morning, Mr. Ruby and I decided to try another little hole-in-the-wall breakfast place. We heard amazing reviews about this one downtown...so we tried it. Delicious. We love experiencing the local flare. One of our favorite things to do. :)

This weekend has been nice because I feel almost 100% back to myself and have restored my health. I was terribly sick this week and actually took a sick day for the first time EVER. I had a sinus infection, bronchitis, and an ear infection. So miserable. I think my body was just repaying me for how I've treated it the past few weeks. I flew to Kansas, got very little sleep, flew to Vegas, got absolutely no sleep, and on the way home I sat next to a woman who coughed and sneezed all over me. Not to mention I've been super duper stressed at work. 

But, my second ZPack has kicked in and I'm feeling so much better! Thanks for all the get well wishes...I think they helped! ;)

I leave you with some of the fun pics from last week in Vegas. I went with one of my best buds from work, and not only was the conference amazing, but we had a pretty fun time ourselves. 

Grabbing dinner and drinks after our first session

We stayed at the Paris Hotel

Outside of the Venetian Hotel

Night on the Town

A little sightseeing at the Bellagio

A little waterfall action at Tryst

We were obsessed with the Wynn Hotel

I got to see one of my BEST FRIENDS during my four hour layover in Denver

I hope everyone has a very happy week!!!

This stuff only happens to me

First of all, I want to thank EVERYONE for the sweet anniversary wishes...AND for wishing me better. I really appreciate all the love! :)

And I'm so happy to say that I am feeling so much better. My second ZPack is kicking right in! Oh, and aside from the fact that I was SOOO sick and went to bed at 8:00, Mr. Ruby and I managed to have a sweet little anniversary. I typed up 50 of my favorite memories from the past three years, and he wrote me the SWEETEST poem from the past 3 years of marriage. Gotta love it. 

So, I absolutely must share my awkward moment of the day. WARNING:(mostly to my dear father-in-law) There will be talk of woman body parts.

So...I mentioned a couple weeks ago that I had to go to the cardiologist because I had an abnormal EKG. So, I had my appointment today and brought work out clothes because I was told I was going to do an exercise test on top of some echo-cardio-gram-something-or-other.

Well, when my first test was complete, the nurse told me to get ready for my exercise stress test. I asked her if I should put on my work out clothes and tennis shoes. She started laughing and asked "Are you a southern girl?" I looked at her funny and said, "Well, I'm from Kansas...why?" She said..."Well, the fact that you used the word 'tennis shoes' gave it away." 

Am I the only crazy who doesn't say "sneakers"?

Well, I digress.

So, the nurse told me just to put shorts and sneakers on, but to remain naked on top. 

I immediately felt myself turning red. Anything involving naked or exposed breasts makes me feel silly. (Yes, I'm like 15 years old still).

She said, "Oh darling, you'll get to wear a Johnny."

Hmm. O....k.... 

So, I put on my shorts and "sneakers" and my "Johnny" (a.k.a. hospital gown). 

I walk into the room without one single ounce of pride as this very nice woman asks me to open my gown. I do. 

I'm standing there with everything hanging out as she proceeds to put fresh-out-of-the-freezer goo and patches all over my torso...all while talking to me about her son who also has a sinus infection and potentially the swine flu.  

She then tells me to get on the treadmill and explains that I will be starting out slowly and then increasing speed gradually.

I looked at her and asked, "So...I'm going to work out without a bra?" (Keep in mind, I normally work out with TWO sports bras).

Not only did I have to do this without a bra, but I was in a hospital gown...with the front open. (Although, she did try to assist my pride by closing the gown as much as possible).

Sigh. 

I got on. The treadmill started. It was pretty slow and at a small incline.

One minute later, it sped up. And inclined more.

One minute later, same thing.

Oh dear. At this point...I was feeling some pretty heavy bounce. 

I think I even laughed out loud thinking of the sight I must be. 

After 10 (yes 10) minutes, I was full-on running at a pretty steep incline. I wheezed/yelped out, "Oh my gosh, how much longer?" 

She said my heart rate still needed to increase quite a bit. 

I think I shed a slight tear. By this point, my girls were literally running a marathon of their own AND it felt like the gown was sandpaper rubbing against my nips. 

After 13 painful minutes, the heart monitor thingy swung off my finger due to the sweat, but I luckily reached the goal heart rate. She asked if I wanted to keep going and I yelled "NO"!

I got off the treadmill and sprinted to my clothes...and I've never been so happy to see my bra.

Celebrate Good Times...Come On!

Exactly three years ago, I said two little words that would change my life forever:

I DO.

I am happy to say that Mr. Ruby and I are celebrating our THREE YEAR anniversary today! (We'll just ignore the fact that I'm terribly sick and have to go to this lame-o meeting tonight.) Nothing can take away from the fact that the last three years have truly been the absolute BEST I've experienced!

I'd just like to give an ultra-brief summary of our past seven years together and also take a little walk down memory lane. 

• Where did it all begin? Sophomore year of high school. Mr. Ruby sat behind me in biology, and I would ask him "Excuse me, would you please stop tapping your feet?" And today...I'm still asking him to stop tapping his hands/feet/fingers/anything he finds to tap to the beat in his head.
  
• Junior year of high school, Mr. Ruby and my best friend (who unbeknownst to her would later be my maid of honor in our wedding) became super good friends. I soon joined the triangle of friendship. 
• Senior year, we went to two school dances together...the night of senior prom, I started to feel these crazy butterflies. Weird, considering we were just really good friends. 
• Summer after high school...I had to make the first move: kissed him first AND asked "Ok, so like, what are we?"
• We started dating and decided we would "break up before I left for college and he left for the marines". 
• That never happened.
• I left for college. Mr. Ruby left for the marines.
• We had an emotionally draining four year long distance relationship.
• Mr. Ruby was deployed to Iraq twice. 
• We got engaged in San Diego (my favorite city EVER).
• We got married right when I graduated.
• We moved to California...broke as a joke. Waited for Mr. Ruby to finish his term in the marines.
• I got a job that relocated us to Dallas. Made some friends. Got our first dog. Got our second dog.
• My job relocated us to New England. We LOVE it here (aside from the whole missing home thing).
• And now here we are...three years into our blissful marriage. :)

Please join me in a walk down memory lane...

Homecoming...just friends

Senior Prom...also "just friends" ;)

First date :)

Marine Corps. Ball

Goofballs even back then

Visiting me in college

My princess face...to get what I want ;)

The night of our PERFECT engagement!

First peek at his new bride...

Best day of my entire life

Time to CELEBRATE

Fun on the trolley as the new Mr. & Mrs.

At Last. 

Happiest bride ever

Honeymooning in Puerto Vallarta

Developing our new love for kayaking

Yep, we really lived here

We've come a long way from our studio "luxury" apartment with a "home theatre system" (a.k.a. Mr. Ruby's laptop)

Our first date as a married couple...in Palm Springs,CA

The beautiful San Diego

Our first baby :)

Visiting one of our faves: Chicago!!!

Our first trip to New York

Camping in Vermont

Hiking adventures in New Hampshire

Providence Waterfire

CHEERS to many more anniversaries!!!