Day 4--Bed Delivery, Gym, Dryer, Art work and More

The day started off with me going for a run and quick swim in the pool.  Since Kurt fell trail running yesterday, he skipped out since his leg kinda hurt from the cuts.  Wuss.  :)

After that, the people came with our new bed and put it together.  It is gorgeous.  I love it.  Went into town after that to the bank to cash in some money we needed to, and stopped at a place where we can open a PO Box.  They gave us an email address to put the request in at, which I did a little bit ago.  Hopefully they respond, as I need to order some things from the States and can't right now with no mailing address.



Went into downtown Jaco after that to look for some art work and order our clothes dryer.  Found some more pieces of art, and ordered the dryer.  That, our new frig and two couches are being delivered tomorrow some time between 11-3/.  Blocks of time, just like the US!  Ha.  Stopped at the grocery store, then came home for a while.



Worked on hanging the art work, and then decided to relax and head out so I could check out the gym for the first time.  Did a light workout, some abs, free weights and biking.  Can't wait to buy a bike so I can bike outside and not in a gym.  But until Kurt gets me some free weights, I like the gym for weight workouts.  Kinda busy and hot in there though.

Made dinner, this time adding in corn on the cob, which Kurt says was good.  I had fish, rice and fresh eggs, Kurt had the corn instead of the rice since I only had one serving left.  All was good.

Tomorrow I am excited to check out the farmers market in the morning!

PURA VIDA.

 

 

 

Day 3--Furniture Shopping in Sarchi and Meeting a Neighbor

We got up and decided to head to Sarchi to look for some furniture since we were not having a lot of luck in Jaco.  Sarchi was .about 1.5 hours from the house, kinda towards San Jose.  Anyway HOLY furniture stores!  This little town had about 100 furniture stores (or it seemed).  All handmade, local wood, gorgeous stuff.  I was seriously overwhelmed.  I really wanted rocking chairs.



We ended up buying a king size bed that is being delivered tomorrow, two fabric/cushion chairs on wood bases that are being delivered Friday or Saturday and being custom made for us, two rocking chairs with hand paintings of different costa rican birds, two bar stools for the kitchen as the ones the previous owner left were not attractive......We still need some other things, but that was a good start.  We still need a guest bedroom bed and mattress, and something for Kurt's clothes for our bedroom (like an armoire or dresser). Would also like some outdoor tables, but did not see exactly what I wanted so I will wait.    The prices were insanely cheap and the quality is the best I have ever seen. 

 

 

 

Came back and our neighbor, an American, who Kurt had met someone via facebook before I got here came over with his two Yorkies and a friend of his who does yard work.  Kurt is hiring him to do some things around the property.  The cost is about 1/3 of what we paid someone in the US to do the work, so that is awesome.  Can't wait for some landscaping and other stuff to be done as the last owner kinda let the landscaping go, even though he did mow the lawn.  We are having the lawn sprayed for ants and ticks and the like, he is then mowing it.  Then doing a lot of trimming of the bushes around the yard and hauling away of trash the former owner left in the yard.



Made dinner at home again, same meal as yesterday, it was super good.  Finished up that batch of fish, so I need to make another batch of something tomorrow. 

Went on a run tonight instead of in the morning and jumped in the pool after that to cool down, which was nice.  Midas came on the first step of the pool with me, I don't think it will be long before he is swimming with me and becomes a little water boy.  :). He is hilarious.



Another perfect day in Costa Rica.  Can't wait for stuff to start being delivered so I can start making this place more of my own.  I am already loving the front porch and that is with limited stuff done.

Tomorrow, we are looking into getting a PO box, and then probably hanging around the house.  Can't wait.  Pura Vida!

 

Day One/Two of my New Life

Woke up pretty early, which I guess is the norm here.  Sun comes up around 530 AM, so the pugs are ready to get up around then too, LOL.  I think we actually got up around 700 AM.  However, weirdly, I don't even really care what time it is here. 

Kurt started pulling all the luggage and bags in the house and I started unpacking it all.  Clothing, electronics, shoes, toiletries, jewelry, etc.  There are literally no closets in this house, so Kurt is going to turn one of the bedrooms into a huge closet vanity and storage area for us.  Right now, my clothes are separated on the floor in piles-dresses, skirts, shirts, shorts, undergarments, workout clothes, shoes.  Oddly organized.  Put all toiletries away in bathroom and jewelry is still in bags in a bookcase, need to organize that as well.



After all that, we decided to head into town to buy the most important item of the day, a mattress.  Went to bed/mattress store and bought a king sized mattress.  Could not find a bed I liked.  Still have not, so for now, we are sleeping the mattress on the floor until I find what I want or have Kurt build it.  Or hire someone to do it.  There is a guy building us the rest of our kitchen cabinets since they were only half done, maybe I can hire him to do something.  He makes all custom stuff and it's beautiful.  Anyway, also bought a new pillow and am teal bedspread.  Kurt was hungry, so we stopped for lunch at Mono Verde, where we bought had some appetizers that were incredible.  Awesome place.  After that, we headed to a store in town called Monge that sells electronics and furniture.  We bought a washer, as we don't have one.  Brought that home in the SUV.  Went back and bought two red couches as well as a refrig which will be delivered this week sometime.  After that, we went to the grocery store to buy some necessities for the house.  That night, we went and walked around downtown Jaco.  I bought an adorable sign for the front porch that says Pura Vida and has turtles on it, as well as an awesome painting by a local artist of two sloths that Kurt is going to hang soon.  Kurt had a milkshake and we came home and I made some rice for dinner.  Bed after that.

Slept much better on a mattress, LOL.  Woke up early again and decided to go for a run in my neighborhood with Kurt.  Went around 1.5 Miles as Kurt has not run in a long time and was getting tired because of the heat and just needing to build his endurance up again. It was still a nice run though.  We decided to head into town to pay the amount owing at Monge (they would only let us pay half on day one for whatever reason) and then Kurt had breakfast at The Coffee Shop, which is our friend Dean's fav place to eat in Jaco.  Left there, and headed to Escazu to go to the Costa Rican Lowe's called EPA and to Walmart.  Kurt needed a lawn mower desperately.  Found that and bought some other odds and ends there.  Then, went to Walmart and bought a ton of household and kitchen items.  It's weird because in MI I had everything I needed and here, have to buy everything. You don't even think about everything you use until you don't have it, LOL.  Bought two lounge chairs for outside and tested those out tonight and they are awesome.  Came home and unpacked everything and got it all set up.  Then made my first Costa Rican dinner of fresh tilapia, fresh eggs, and rice.  Ate it on the front porch and then chilled at the pool for a bit with Midas.  He just loves being outside.

Oh, I got my cell phone set up today as well at ICE.  So, I now have an iPhone 5s that can receive/send calls and texts and hook to internet, which is nice.  If you need Kurt or my numbers, just let me know.

My goal down here is to eat as little processed food as possible.  At the grocery store, I seriously would not even pick up anything in a package. Kurt bought some chips, and I think that was the worst thing we bought.  They have a fish market here I really want to go to soon, and on Fridays a veggie and fruit market. 

Kurt was exhausted after dinner and has been sleeping on the couch ever since.  I decided to take this time to catch up on my blogging.

Tomorrow, we are hoping to get a PO box here for mail.  Kurt is also hoping to mow the lawn.  We need to go back to Monge and buy a dryer, two bikes, and a grill.  I also want to get some more art work for then house, but that is not something we have to do immediately.  The owner left a couple pieces, I am just not crazy about them.  Will leave them up until I find what I want.

Anyway, I am getting tired now, so I am going to sign off.  I promise to post more pics of the house and area soon, just have been so busy getting the house set up and ready.

Hope everyone is doing well!  PURA VIDA.

 

 

 

 

Getting to Costa Rica

I am here!  And so happy to see my family.

The journey down here was long and exhausting.  It started on 5/18, with Ron picking me up from the house at 945 AM.  Loaded my 10 suitcases, 1 backpack, 1 camera bag, and purse into his truck and got to the Delta part of the airport.  Unloaded the suitcases.  Went to the counter to check in outside and was told that I had to go to another part of the airport and check in at Special Services because of the cat.  Begged the guy to help me, and he put my luggage onto a cart and took me to where I needed to go.  Waited in line there a bit.  The lady started checking me in, but then told me I could not leave the US one way without proving I had a return ticket. What the heck.  Now the US is trying to force us to come back when they tell us to?  Bought a ticket back to Atlanta for around the time of Ron and Erika's wedding in case I end up doing that.  Checked all my bags, paid for Lucie's airfare (an additional $125 to mine) and finally, headed to the security line.  Once there, they wanted me to take Lucie out of the bag and put her bag through security.  I asked if there was any other way as she was really nervous and I was concerned she would run away and be scared.  So, they let me go in this office type room and they searched her carrier in there.  Thank God.  Got done there, and we headed for our gate.  We were pretty early even after all the waits, so I settled in.  Mel's son, Drew, works at the airport now and he came to chat with me for a while, so that was nice.  Flight boarded on time and we were off to Atlanta.  Lucie was good on the flight, she only meowed a couple times.  Landed, and Lucie and I realized we had to walk a LONG way to our connecting flight.   We were in A and had to be in E.  So, we grabbed the tram and headed over.  Got there and had a wait, but this flight boarded on time as well.  Lucie did good in the second flight as well.  Slept most of it, and meowed some at the end, but I don't think anyone even noticed.

Landed in Costa Rica and went quickly through step one of customs.  Went to get luggage and hired a guy to help me with that.  Headed to the next step, where the luggage goes through a detector and they looked at Lucie's papers.  That went fine.  Then, they chose me to search my luggage.  Guy started looking at the bags & stopped after three. I think he got sick of sifting through bikinis and sundresses HAHA.  Next, headed outside where I was going to look for Kurt, but he was already looking for me.  Yay.  Hugged him and headed to the car were my bags BARELY fit, LOL.  Drove to Jaco in about 1.15.  Got there and I was starving after not eating much the entire day, so Kurt took me to a 24 hour place called Jaco Taco.  Had an amazing mahi burrito and then headed home.  The pugs seemed realllllly confused to see me, LOL.  But happy.  Went to bed right away before unpacking as I was zonked.  Had to sleep on this horrible air mattress that Kurt did not have pumped up enough.  First thing on my agenda, a MATTRESS. 

Anyway, what a journey.  I am very thankful that I made it here so easily and did not have many headaches.  It was pretty stressful for me travelling with a pet, always worrying how she was doing and having the extra stuff to carry around.  Glad I don't have to do that again. 

More on what I have been doing since we have been here in my next post........

Newest Member of the State Bar

This morning, Kory was sworn in as a member of the State Bar by Judge Connie Kelley in Wayne County Circuit Court.  It was a super nice ceremony and Judge Kelley made it really personable.  I loved it.  Ron was able to come to take pictures, Jennifer made it, and Angie got done with her hearing just in time to make it.  We are ran into a few other attorney friends while down there.

Here are some pics from the event:

Congrats Kory!

The Bar Results Are In and..........

Kory passed!  He got his results on Friday at around 300 PM.  Awesome news. I am taking him to be sworn in tomorrow in Wayne County.  He will be doing hearings the next day!  Yay!  I am bringing my camera, so hopefully I have pics from that event soon.



Had dinner with Rebecca and Lesley at Howe's Bayou in Ferndale this week.  It was super nice to see both of them and my soup was awesome.  Salad was good as well.  Drive to Oakland County was annoying in rush hour traffic, as usual.  Glad I never have to do that drive again.

Friday night, I had an awesome dinner at Crave in Dearborn with Ron and Erika.  Food was super yummy and the company even better.  I had the gem roll, a California roll spicy and miso soup.  All superb.



I ran a million errands this weekend and did some more packing.  Booked Dean's flight home as well for Monday.  Kurt will be alone for the first time after he drops Dean off on Monday, so he is really wanting me there. Bought some new earrings on super clearance while out.  I love them.  They have a screw back so I can be sure to not lose them in costa rica while doing tons of outdoor stuff.

I have to take Lucie in to the travel vet this week after Tuesday since she is out of town until then.  Then, I have to drive to Lansing to get the approval docs for Lucie to leave the country and enter Costa Rica.  Have to get some stuff done with the State in relation to the firm and bank accounts, etc.  Lots to do this week.  On top of lots of hearings at the office.

I did book my flight out of here though for Sunday at 145 PM.  Ron and his truck are taking me to the airport.  I think I am going to have a lot of stuff, like 8 suitcases and several carry ons.  Flying with Lucie first class, as I thought it would be easier for her to be around less people since she has to go in a carrier and everything.

Pic below is one Kurt texted me of Bugsy lying by the pool at our house. My indoor car apparently likes the outdoors now, especially the pool.  Too funny.

 

Suspense

Kory got notice today that bar results were mailed today, meaning he should have them tomorrow!

Once he gets those, I can start the process to move.  I cannot wait. I miss my family a lot.  Sounds like Kurt is getting a lot of things done though, so it will be less for me to figure out once I get there. 

I have so much to do once he does get his results though.  Have to within 10 days of leaving take Lucie in for her last appointment and get her approval documents from Lansing for customs in Costa Rica.  I have to get Kory sworn in at federal court and circuit and help him get things situated with the firm before I leave.

Was supposed to get a pedicure with Nancy tonight but she did not get my email and didn't make it.  I went anyway, and it was nice to relax. Looking forward to dinner tomorrow with Rebecca and Lesley in Ferndale.

In Da House! The Jaco House

Kurt moved into the Jaco house on Sunday around 200 PM.  Yay!  The pugs were excited to run around the yard and explore their new place. I am relieved he is there and things are going well.  He is now in the process of obtaining a cell phone, getting utilities switched into his name, and getting internet and satellite TV set up.  I have only been able to talk to him sporadically online and on the phone.  His one travel companion went home today to Florida & the other guy is staying on another week or so.  Oh, and Kurt said there were macaws in our yard today, so that is awesome.  I love macaws.

Last week, a group of women lawyers I am part of had a little going away dinner for me at FishBones in Detroit.  Had a blast seeing everyone and the food, as usual, was amazing.  Great service too.  Angie brought a cupcake cake, and it was super yummy as well.



I left work early today to get a massage.  Then came home to do things around the house. I packed more suitcases.  I was out at the pond feeding the fish, and was excited about 4 Koi I saw playing.  I saw movement in the pond, and looked up to see a goose.  Was then even MORE excited to see 5 baby geese!  They were insanely cute.  I was lucky enough to get some pics of them.  I was a little worried the Mama might attack me.  I don't think she was happy with my presence, but she stayed in the water with the little ones and left me alone.  It made my night.



Had a fabulous weekend.  Friday night, I went to a fundraiser for Paula's house with Ron and Jessica.  Great night with music, auctions, dinner and drinks.  Saturday, my Mom came home to visit and I spent the day shopping with her and having dinner with my family.  Sunday, I had brunch with my Momma, then dinner with my Aunt, Dad, and Carl for my Aunt's bday. 

Trying to keep busy, as it makes me forget how much I miss my husband and my pets.  Lucie is great to have around, but I miss the dogs and Bugsy a lot.  Boo.

Cannot wait for Kory to get his bar results so I can start planning my next steps.

  

 

 

 

Kurt's Blog and Trip Update

For those of you who are interested in following Kurt's journey to Costa Rica and his thoughts on living there, you can follow his new blog at: costaricakurt.BlogSpot.com.  We are also keeping this blog running, but it will mostly be my separate blog going forward!

For a quick update, Kurt left for Costa Rica on 4/24 at 600 PM and arrived tonight at 1000 PM in Jaco.  About a day earlier than expected.  Him and his travel partners, Barney and Dean, have checked into two separate hotels in Jaco.  Jaco is very busy right now and they could not find two rooms at one hotel that accepted pets.  The dogs and Bugsy are doing well, but Kurt can tell they really want to stop travelling and relax in one location.  Kurt will be going to the house tomorrow morning to check how it is doing and work out transferring utilities with the old owner who still resides there as our temp caretaker.  He has lived there and taken care of the property since we left.

Anyway, Kurt's blog details the journey from Newport, MI, to Jaco, Costa Rica.  He has be without Internet for some time, so he will update more once he is connected back up.

Next step now is me and Lucie starting our journey down there.  We are finishing up selling some stuff and getting the office ready for our departure as well as packing. No set date yet since we have to wait for Kory to get his bar results.

Pura Vida!

Moving Prep

Since my last post, we have a done a TON to prep for the move. We had a huge moving sale, where we sold the bulk of our furniture and a lot of other things.  We have donated a lot of winter clothes, given some stuff away, and I helped my Dad furnish some of his house with decorations since he had not much of anything in his house after my Grama died and the bulk of it was cleaned out.  It was crazy how many people showed to the moving sale.  It was 8-4 Friday and Saturday and on Friday, people were showing up to the house at 715 AM before I was even dressed.



We had a nice Easter weekend.  Friday, we left work early and went to Pinconning to visit Kurt's Grama, Mom, two sisters and niece.  We had dinner out, it was really nice to see everyone.  Kurt's Grama really needs some in-home care, she is kind of slowly losing her mind.  She thinks there is a family living in her house (ghosts).  I am scared she is going to burn the house down.  But, the family won't force her to have in home care or go to an assisted living because "she does not want to".  Sigh.  Nothing I can do about it, but I have a bad feeling she is going to hurt herself at some point.  Thank God she can't drive any longer.  Saturday, we went to my Dad's house in Canton and had dinner with the family. Got to see my two Aunts, my Dad, and my sister and her family.  Really nice day.



It was SO nice out here today.  I decided to work out outside in the driveway, just because I wanted to be outside.  Beautiful out.  I did jump rope and lunges for over an hour waiting for Kurt to get home from mediation.  He was there until 700 PM, ugh.

Kurt has planned out his route for getting to Costa Rica. I booked his first three hotel stays in Terre Haute, some city in Oklahoma and Laredo Texas.  Feels so close now. 

 

Had Kurt's going away party at Ron and Erika's, and that was a blast.  Huge turnout and a super awesome time.  My Mom and Ronnie were able to come down, and it was a great party, as usual.  Also went to Tigers opening day, with the tickets that Art Brand sold me.  Erika's Ohio wedding shower was this month as well, and I had a great time at that hanging out with Megan.  :).

Looking forward to booking my plane ticket with Lucie to Costa Rica. Not sure when that will be yet, but the sooner the better.

 

Costa Rican Car

What an exhausting day.

Got up super early to drive to Cuyahoga Falls, OH, to buy our new car for Costa Rica.  Had to go to the bank there first to get a cashiers check and deposit money to get this check.  A simply transaction ended up taking an hour as they could not figure out the transaction since I was getting a check made out from me and not the business to the dealership.  Super frustrating.  We then got to the dealership (finally) and that transaction seemed to take much longer than necessary as well, but finally, drove off with our new Nissan Xterra.  Stopped for lunch at a local Mexican place in Akron that was super yummy, and then drove all the way back home and to the office to briefly check in.  Check out the Meixcan place here: http://www.yelp.com/biz/rancheros-taqueria-akron.  I had the fish burrito lunch special and it was amazing.  Service was also spectacular and friendly.

Was insanely exhausted after all that.  Ugh.  Glad it's done now.  The problem is, Kurt is now ready to load up the car and leave NOW.  LOL.

Came home, fed my birds and outside animals and as we came in, three gorgeous deer sauntered into the yard.  That kind of stuff makes me SOOOO relaxed and happy to see.  They were just stunning, and it was so nice to stand and watch them saunter around and eat the veggies Kurt leaves out for them that my Aunt is always giving  us when her stuff goes bad.

Even though I was dead tired, I went to the gym and biked 12 miles.  Had no energy to do any more than that, but was glad I made myself do that!  Doing laundry now and trying to catch it up before I leave on Friday night for Florida.

Kurt spoke on two radio shows this week, here is the link to one of them with Jack Blood:
http://deadlinelive.info/2014/03/19/jack-blood-interviews-underwear-bomber-eyewitness-kurt-haskell/.  I love how he always says whatever he wants and is never politically correct.

Kurt bought a new supplement at GNC and he did not like it, but told me he thought I would.  I tried it and so far, love it.  I take it about 20 minutes before I work out.  It is ACG3, click here to see: http://www.gnc.com/NDS-PMD-ACG3-Charged-Blue-Razz/product.jsp?productId=25041546.  Anyway, it gives me energy after a long day of work when I dont feel like working out.  Highly recommend.

Update

Wow!  My last post was about not drinking caffeine, and I have not drank it since.  It was not a hard process at all.  I still crave it sometimes when I am tired, but I have avoided it.  Yay!

So, we have so much going on.  Tomorrow morning, we are heading out early to Ohio to buy our vehicle for Costa Rica.  We are buying a Nissan Xterra.  It is the best choice for us for Costa Rica.  Cannot wait to have that.  We are then going to renew our passports in Detroit at this place that does expedited passport renewal.

Kurt is planning on leaving April 24.  He has two friends going with me after his brother annoyingly backed out on him at the last minute, which I am still annoyed about.    Don't promise to do something and then back out because "your girlfriend won't let you go".  Either ask her first, or tell her no since you promised your brother months ago.  Whatever on that.  I plan on leaving in May, sometime after Kory gets his (hopefully passing) bar results and the office is running smoothly.  I will fly down with Lucie, and Kurt is driving the rest of the animals as they cannot fly since Pugs and Persians have a high death rate with being on planes.  He thinks the drive will take around 10 days, and he has to pass over many country borders, which will cause some delays.

So, the past few months have been busy to say the least.  Trying to sell everything in the house is going well.  The Saab sold and it going to be gone next week.  Only car left is the Porsche now.  We have had some people come look at the land next door and I think they will sell come Spring, since nobody builds in winter, especially this winter.

My Mom and I are going to Florida this weekend to visit my Grama and we have tickets to a Tigers game at the Blue Jays Florida Stadium.  Can't wait for that.  We will most likely eat at sweet tomatoes and Olive Garden as well since those are my grama's favs.  :).  Plan on running every morning and spending time at the pool.  It will be nice just to be outside & see the sun.

Went to a St Patrick's Party this past weekend at our friend Ron's house.  Super fun, as usual.  We all wore green, and had a blast.  Ate too much as usual, but you only live once......Had dinner at the Twisted Rooster with Auntie and my Dad on Sunday night which was nice.

I started using this awesome new machine at the gym, a stair climbing kinda thing.  Anyway, I freaking love it.  I work up a sweat far more than running and burn off calories twice as fast.  I have been doing it at least a couple times a week and I have gotten better and better with my times and climb.

Midas was fixed and had a nose procedure done last Friday.  We had to drop him off in the AM and pick him up Saturday AM.  He came home acting like NOTHING had been done to him.  I can't believe how fast he got better from surgery.  They told us he had to rest for a week.  Good luck with that with a puppy.  He is having none of that.  He wanted to play from the second we got home.  LOL.  Glad to have him home, hyper as usual!  XXOO.

So, that's my update for now.  Hope everyone is doing well.

ADDICT

Saturday night, I made this spur of the moment decision to stop drinking caffeine.



I drink diet pop ALL DAY LONG, so this seemed to be a daunting task.  I pretty much get up in the morning, open a pop and sip it while getting ready, drink about half.  Come to work, open another drink it until about lunch time. Drink another and sometimes another in the late afternoon.  Come home, drink 1-2 more.  I rarely mix it up with anything else.  And whenever I drink caffeine free mistakenly, I totally notice and get headaches.

But, I don't like being addicted.  I also, for various reasons, would like to stop drinking pop at all, but am starting with just no caffeine. 

Anyway, things have gone great.  I have not gotten a headache yet.  I did feel one coming on a couple times, took aspirin, and it went away almost immediately.  The only major side effect I have felt is being tired, lethargic.  Monday I felt tired all day and today, I felt tired a little bit, but feel it getting better, which is awesome.

I can't believe how non-horrible it has been. Yay! Proud of myself as I was reallllllly addicted. 

I have been doing this awesome ab workout, as well as a kewl leg one I found.  I mix these in with my other workouts for some variety.  The ab workout is a 30 day workout, and I am on day 21. 

Here is the ab workout: http://nsfitbitch.files.wordpress.com/2013/05/ab-challenge.jpg.  Thus far, I am really excited by the progress I have made with planks.  Up to 80 seconds.  The situps, weirdly, are the hardest part for me and the leg lifts are the easiest.

Here is the leg workout:  http://fit-bits.blogspot.com/2013/06/day-three-of-juneathon-tribesports.html.  This kicked my butt the first time I did it and I was sore for 3 days.  I think the wall holds are the hardest.

Found this great new site for buying discount stuff and ordered two necklaces SO cheap.  One was $6 and one was $10.  Shipping is really cheap too.  Check it out!  https://www.groopdealz.com/invite/612920

Got my hair done today by Nona and Daybreak Spa.  She was out on maternity leave, and is back and I was happy to see her!  Yay for color touchups and trims.

It has been SOOO cold this week.  Ugh.  Temps are not supposed to be above 20 for a while.  I hate it.  The power went out twice at work today, no idea why.  Luckily the second time was just as we were leaving for the day.

Hope everyone is staying warm!

 

Two Months

Hi from me and baby Midas, who now tops the scales at 16 pounds!  He is growing like a little weed and seems to have increasing energy every day which exhausts Kurt and I as well as Gretel. We still love the little guy though,.



I have no clue where to start and cannot believe it's been 2 months since my last post!  Life has been crazy busy.  So much to do, so little time. Literally.

Plan right now is for Kurt to start the move to Costa Rica in late April with me moving sometime in May.

Trying not to be overwhelmed with everything we have to do before we leave.....ugh.  On top of running a law practice and household.

So, Christmas 2013?  Negril, Jamaica.  We stayed at Couples Negril.  This is the same owned resort as the Ocho Rios trip we previously took.  The resort was perfect for us.  Our days basically consisted of getting up, eating breakfast at the open air patio (buffet), working out at the resort gym, going to the beach for the remainder of the day, relaxing in the room, dinner, live music, and more RELAXING.  We also drank a bottle of champagne almost every night and drank alcohol more than anything else.  I had an amazing 90 minute deep tissue massage at the spa, read two books and just enjoyed doing NOTHING with my awesome husband.  Overall a perfect week in the sun.  The weather in Jamaica is beyond perfect and the resort would be an amazing honeymoon locale--really romantic and not crowded or "party" like at all.  For anyone wondering, we found the best rate on flight/hotel for this trip through Orbitz and flew US Airways.



This winter has kinda sucked with weather.  Two weeks ago, we have the week from hell.  It started snowing on Sunday and we basically told the office staff that they could take the day off if they needed to.  Kurt and I went in late, and Angie worked, but everyone else stayed home.  Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, and even kinda Thursday, were pure hell getting to Court.  The roads were atrocious, especially in Monroe County where I live, and we were forced to drive the Jeep because there were actually snow drifts a car could not get through in the roads. I was so happy when the weather stopped some on Friday.  Then we had a week of no new snow and on the way home today, SNOW AGAIN and had roads.  Ugh.  Hope the morning commute is not pure hell. I have a 900 hearing I do not want to be late too.



Kurt is in Florida right now doing some stuff related to our move.  We have been slowing selling everything in our house, and started shopping for a vehicle to take with us to Costa Rica since we will only have one.  We have narrowed the search to the Nissan Xterra and the Toyota RAV4.  Pros and cons to both, will basically be whichever one we can get the best deal on.



Got to meet Megan's puppy, Willis, today.  SOOOOO cute.  He already weighs more than Midas!  Very sweet baby.  Love.  He spent several hours working with us this afternoon and he made work much better than normal!  :)

 

Attended a couple fun parties since my last post, one an 80s party and one a sequins party.  Both at Ron's house.  Had a blast at both of them.  Really enjoyed dressing up like an 80sn girl! :).  Also had two legal bar parties, one downriver and one in Monroe.  Both nice and nice to see lawyers out of the courtroom.





Kurt and I were invited to an amazing charity event for Veterans, wherein we got to meet some really awesome Tigers players of the past, our favorite being Denny McLain!  We also met Alan Trammel, Lance Parrish and many others.  What an awesome party.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Long Past Due

Wow!  No posts since September 29!  Life has been kinda insane.  Work, stuff after work, working out, starting to get things ready to move........Selling my stuff online is like a second fulltime job.  Exhausting.

So, let's see, what has happened since September?

Let's do bullet points!

• Vito passed away on October 1.  It was horribly sad, and I almost hyperventilated I was so upset.  He was the sweetest, most giving and happy dog I have ever known.  It was pretty devastating for us.  He died in Kurt's arms, and we had him cremated so we could bury his ashes.  I am not going to rehash the events of that day, because I still really miss him.  Certain songs remind me or him, specific things in the house.  I think Gretel really misses him too, however, I think she is slowly getting better with it.
• On October 2, we adopted Midas Ezekiel.  He is from Port Huron and a total doll.  He will be 13 weeks on Monday.  He was 3.8 lbs when we got him, and he is already up to 9.2 lbs!  he had been to the vet twice for vaccines.  He loves Gretel and harasses her quite a bit.  They are becoming friends though.  Oscar is pretty indifferent about Midas, and the cats don't really like him but tolerate him.  He is either sleeping and an angel, or crazy and running around like a maniac.  But, he is super smart (can already sit and shake and is working on stay and lay down).  He has been to work with us almost every single day since he got him.  Some of Midas' favorite things are: toys, food, chasing Gretel, space heaters, cuddling, and sweaters.  He likes to be warm, a lot.  He brought Kurt and I a lot of happiness during a really sad time, and we love him to pieces.  Pic below is of Midas and I the first day we got him.  We made a stop at Petsmart before heading home.

• Went to Manistee to visit my Mom another weekend.  I made it a long weekend and left Friday morning, came home Monday night.  It was a really nice, relaxing weekend.  Also got to see my sister and Nick (nephew) on Friday, and my cousin Carolyn and Aunt Luann on Saturday.  Sunday, I went and visited my friend Heidi and her girls in Bear Lake.  Did some shopping and got some runs in and overall had a fabulous weekend.  The day after I got home, it snowed in Manistee, so I was happy I got out of there in time!  Snow is not good.

• Kurt and I went to a day Tigers playoff game.  It was a blast.  They lost, but we had a really nice time skipping work.  The weather was awesome.  We were sad the Tigers eventually lost and did not get to the World Series, but were happy we got to go to a playoff game.  can you find us in the pic below?

• One of my fav parties of the year occurred during Halloween, the Ron Bruce Halloween party.  Kurt and I were board games this year, I was Twister and Kurt was a dart board.  We had a blast at the party and I may have drank a little bit too much.  We also went to another party the next weekend that friends of mine have every year at a hall.  Had a blast there too.  There was a DJ and food and prizes and it was a blast.

• Angie and I modeled at a charity event for breast cancer research in Southgate, MI.  We modeled CABI clothing, which is one of my fav clothing lines.  It was a fun night, we each wore like 6 outfits, and we each won contests in the raffle as well!  I won an amazing Stella and Dot necklace, and Angie won two spa treatments.  Super awesome.  Here is one of the outfits I modeled.

• Angie and I also went to another fundraiser in LaSalle for an awesome agency called CASA.  

CASA of Monroe County is to advocate for the best interest of abused and neglected children who are under the protection of the family court. Through the use of court-appointed, community volunteers, CASA seeks to assure safe, permanent families for these children as quickly as possible.

We had a table full of friends there, and had a great time.  Angie and I both won plants, I took mine into the office and it is beautiful.   Pic below is of the girls from our table, some of my fav people.  This is a great organization and I was happy to go to this event.  Got to see some great fashions (fashion show) and see some great people.

• I have been doing things on the weekend to avoid Kurt watching football.  I had my first facial in years at Daybreak Salon last weekend, and it was awesome.  I may start doing those every so often since I do not usually do masks and stuff like that at home.  It was very relaxing as well.
• Kurt has had this nonstop sinus infection, I wish he would get better!  :(.  The weather has been pretty cold, and I have had to start wearing coats, scarves and boots.  Which are the ONLY three things I like about cold weather.  Ugh.  I truly cannot wait for nice weather every single day in Costa Rica.  I think the older I get, the more I hate the cold.
• My friend Mel had a Premier Designs jewelry party last night at her house.  I had a really nice time and of course, bought some jewelry.  It should get here soon.  :).  Just what I need, more jewelry.  It was really nice to see some friends I had not seen in a while.  
• Well, that's about it.  Not much to blog about considering I have not blogged in so long, but wanted to update.  Countdown to the move is on! :)

Perfect Vision

• Had a recheck appointment at the eye doctor.  My vision is 20/20 in both eyes!  Yay.  So glad I took the plunge and got the eye surgery.  I was nervous for years about it, and am so glad I did it now.

• Had dinner on Thursday at Fish Bones in Greektown to celebrate my BFF from law school and her husband moving back to MI!  Welcome home Julia.  Also got to see Julie, Jessica and Nancy. Food was awesome, company was better.

• Vito got sick again this week.  He was really lethargic and would not even eat a treat (which for Vito is unheard of) so Kurt took him back in to the specialist.  His blood sugar count was 7 times what it should be.  So, they had to keep him overnight to do more tests and try to regulate his sugar count.  Anyway, long story short, he was there three nights.  Ends up he now has diabetes and pneumonia.  He finally got to come home Saturday afternoon.  He had meds for the pneumonia.  He also has insulin shots for the diabetes.  We have to give him nightly shots of insulin.  We also have to for the pneumonia 4 times per day steam up the bathroom and take him in there for 10 minutes.  Most high maintenance dog ever.  Poor little guy.  We were really glad to have him home again, the house was pretty quiet without him and I think little Gretel missed her bestest friend.  

• had dinner on Saturday night with Ron, Erika, Ashleigh and John at Dolce.  Awesome time, even though it took forEVER to get our sushi.  It was crazy, almost 2 hours to get our food.  it was homecoming in Monroe, so I am guessing that had something to do with it.

• Went today and had a mani/pedi and went to the mall since Kurt was watching football and I like to avoid him on Sundays.  Got some amazing deals at the mall, two tanks on clearance at Express and at Macy's a dress, pair of leggings and two sweaters for winter.  I have been avoiding winter clothes since I will not need them in Costa Rica, but I needed some cardigans to wear over things, got white and black.  Those wear out so quickly since I wear them so much and I did not have any for winter.

Weekend Fun

Watching the bridal party come down the aisle.

Thursday night, my friend Jill and I hosted a party at the Monroe Country Club (she is a member and got us the hook up to use the facilities, thanks Jill!).  We had a CABI clothing and Premier Designs jewelry party.  It was a huge success.  Not sure how many people we had in and out, but I would guess around 25 or so.  Anyway, Jill and I each got $130 in free jewelry, a free scarf, as well as 6 half off CABI items and $30 in free CABI stuff.  I got some amazing jewelry already (and gifted my free scarf to Angie since I don't do scarves).  The CABI stuff I ordered today and cant wait to receive.  I got all stuff that can be worn now and in Costa Rica.  Jill and I had desserts available for everyone as well as wine and beer.  Anyway, it was a great time.

Me and Carolyn, the bday girl.

Friday, I got to attend the wedding of my "cousin", Susan.  "cousin" meaning my Mom's best friend's daughter who my sister and I grew up with.  Susan got married to her fiance, Mark, in Howell.  Kurt and I left work early on Friday, so I had a chance to work out and head to Farmington Hills so I could ride to the event with my family.  Got there and got ready, then headed to the wedding.  The facility was beautiful and the wedding was really nice.  It was really nice to see a lot of people, and I got to catch up with some people I have not seen in a really long time, as well as do some dancing and eat some great food.  Got home super late.

Me and My Momma.

Saturday, I went to Farmington Hills again for a family party.  My cousin Carolyn turned 17 so my Aunt had a late party. I got her some bath stuff from ULTA, and it was a fun afternoon of outside games and hanging out watching baseball and football.



Today, I slept in, then went running outside.  Headed into town to Carson's as I had a great coupon to use.  ended up getting some amazing deals.  I got a Nautica bathing suit coverup marked down from $71 originally to $14.  Also got three workout tanks and a pair of work out shorts super cheap.  I had a coupon for 25% off anything in the store and used it on all items.  Headed to Kroger next to pick up groceries for the week then did a bunch of stuff around the house.  Headed out with my camera to the yard to take some fall pics.  it was really peaceful walking around by myself taking random pictures. See pics here

Not happy it's the end of the weekend.