Settling in

We've been busy not being busy. It has been wonderful. :)

I prepped for leaving retirement by getting a 90 minute massage (thanks to my hubby for the giftcard!), getting my hair colored (seriously blonde again) and having our dear friends Shaya & Bates over for dinner. They're so fun.

My first day went really well. I was very nervous for some reason, but everything was fine. I got my office assignment- it is really large with 2 windows and a door (that is for Jackson- he wants a door). I really like my new boss- she's so easy-going. Everyone in the office is really nice and helpful. It has been really weird to get to leave at 5 (or close to it) each night. That is what we're getting used to now. I was hardly ever home in the evenings when I worked Big 4 public accounting. I still feel excitement at getting to eat dinner at home with Jackson. That may sound funny to some, but it had been a couple of years since that happened.

I'm now two weeks into my job and I really enjoy it. The pace and atmosphere is much different and has taken some adjustment. It has been a great adjustment, though. I've really been working on becoming a more relaxed and accepting person and this new role really helps me with that. I realized that I was letting too much "little stuff" eat at me and that life is too short to "sweat the small stuff." I am noticeably happier- quite a few people have commented on it. I feel so blessed to have been able to make this change and get back to University life. I think it agrees with me.

Getting the party started early?

Friday night we went to the Marion High School vs. Eastbrook (my high school!) in boys basketball. One of our friends is a cheerleader and my cousin plays for the Eastbrook Panthers. The Panthers got beat pretty badly, but it was fun to go. It made me feel old to be back in that Marion gym. I spent so much time there in my youth and it always felt SO big, but it really isn't. We had a delicious Mexican dinner before the game with my parents including a dish of ARROWS CON POLO. (HA :) Love you, Mom.) We went back to Upland for a quick Ivanhoe's shake and then headed for home.

Jackson and I drove separately because I came from work in Muncie and he was coming from downtown Indianapolis. I followed him home most of the way, but his speed was too much for me. HA. Ok, so I left a few minutes after him and never caught up as much as I tried. Anyway, he pulled off an exit before our normal interstate exit to get gasoline. That particular exit has a really strange roundabout that we simply do not use often enough to remember. Jackson got to it and started to go down the wrong spoke so he corrected and went down the one he intended to go down. Then a car came out of nowhere and started tailgating him like he could not believe. He was checking around trying to figure out why this guy was so on him and must have started to swerve. Then the car behind him flipped on his lights. Uh oh. Jackson will tell the story of what happened below in italics for ease of reading:

In that brief moments from time I pulled over to time the member of Fishers finest was shining his flashlight in my car, I was racking my brain about what I had done wrong. The obligatory question came from the officer "do you know why I pulled you over?" Before I could answer, I was told I was going 47 mph in a 40 mph zone. Wow, I always knew Fishers had no real crime but 47 in a 40 was a bit on the picky side even in Fishers. Then the real questions started, where are you coming from? Do you have any guns, knifes, missile launchers, or grenades in the car? (He really asked that.) Before, I could assure the officer I had no weapons, the big question hit, "it's Friday night, son, have you been getting the party started early?"

My first thought was shoot, my second thought was it is eleven o'clock and this is a little late for an early starting of the party (I must be getting old). The officer informed me I have been driving eratically since the roundabout and swerving in my lane. I assured him I was coming from my in-laws, I had not been drinking, and would be happy to do any tests to prove my sobriety. The officer took my license and registration, and came back with no ticket for my speeding. Then it happened he caught me with my real addiction. He saw two silver cans on the passenger side of my car and his suspicions were peaked again. Diet Coke cans- I know I need to get off the junk- but I am hooked. After explaining that one away too I was finally back on my way to getting gas and home.

We laughed about how those Ivanhoe's milkshakes must be really potent. ;) I'm actually glad that the cop called Jackson out on having a dirty car (ha!) and that they're watching out for drunk drivers.

Saturday we ran errands most of the day. We had dinner that evening in Broad Ripple- such a fun part of Indianapolis except for parking, ugh- with two couples from my old job. Corey and Jenny and their spouses were so fun. I loved working with those two so it made me happy to see them again already. Jenny also left Deloitte to go work for DePauw University and Corey stayed onboard. I really enjoyed catching up and sharing some laughs.

Today one of my dear friends from high school, Derrik Heinzen, came down to watch the IU game and help us with some stuff around the house. I had not seen him in probably 7 years so it was nice to catch up! He is a union electrician so he hung a new light for us in the master bath- no more ugly chandelier- and he fixed our outside electricity that had gone out when we plugged in Christmas lights. It was awesome of him to be willing to come down and help out. We really appreciated it.

Tonight we had Susie in for a turkey breast dinner. They were on sale at Kroger so we thought "why not?!" and had a little turkey, dressing and mashed potatoes. It was quite good. We won't discuss the gravy here, Susie. ;)

As you can see we had a busy, but fun weekend. I loved not having to work at all on the weekend. I know one day that shock will wear off, but it has not yet!

NYE

This was taken at the Atlanta airport...the world's busiest. I guess people do not travel much on New Year's Eve. It was amazingly empty. I actually enjoyed the peace and quiet as I was deeply interested in my book about the Madoffs. (I love reading about the Madoff scandal. I seriously cannot get enough!)
Jackson and MacKenzie picked me up at the airport and we decided to stop by Susie's to say hello to all the folks she had in for cards and games. MacK even got to join the game. HA! I enjoyed my last Sprite since I gave them up for the new year. We headed home and were able to smooch at midnight before I collapsed after a long couple weeks of traveling. It is so fun to get away, but it is always nice to sleep in my own bed!
This morning (ok, afternoon. I slept for about 12 hours last night!) Jackson tested out his new griddle (thanks, Susie!) which worked wonderfully. I love this man and his cooking ability. We spent most of New Year's Day catching up on laundry, running a few errands and just getting ready for my retirement to end. I do still have one more day which I will spend at the spa, getting my hair done, furniture shopping with Susie and possibly dinner with Shaya and Bates. Life is good.

Fort Worth

Thursday I headed down to Fort Worth, Texas to visit our dear friends Kyle and Megan. They've lived there for some time now and I had yet to visit so it was time. Thursday we went to see TCU (I love college campuses!) and ate at a fun Mexican joint near campus. It was really good food and they served their salsa warm which was different and delicious. We spent most of the day just catching up and hanging out. We went to a Chinese buffet that night and spent a lot of time laughing at this exchange:

Worker: "Table for one?"

Man: "just me, myself and I tonight."

Worker: "Oh, ok. 3 of you...you'll need a booth then."

HILARIOUS.

The next morning Meg made me this delicious breakfast. It was so pretty that I had to take a photo. We went out to a fun bakery cafe for lunch and then got pedicures at a really nice spa. It was a good girly day.
That evening we went to the Fort Worth art museum to see the movie "Margin Call." It was such a great film and I cannot recommend it enough. The museum's theatre was super nice and made for a great movie-going experience.
Mocha and Buster are their two furry friends. I call Mocha Meg's mascot because she's been her constant companion for six years now. Buster, the little hotdog dog, is fairly new to the family and is a lot of fun. He has a really unique color and is always ready to play. He loved me for some reason. It was really funny.
Here is Buster taking a break on my pillow to enjoy a rawhide treat.
The next morning I woke up to Mocha sleeping by my head. It was so funny! It was a short visit and I headed home Saturday afternoon so that I could be home to kiss my love at midnight!

Wacky Wednesday

Wednesday was a really fun day. I was able to exploit my retirement and spend the day with my Mom and Guy. Mom and I ran errands, went to lunch and then met Guy downtown at the Indianapolis car show. We saw this really odd SUV convertible that I thought was brilliant. My Mom and I did some shopping afterwards, too. One of the best parts of living at home again is getting to hang out with my 'rents on random days.
That evening we grabbed some pizzas and headed to Heidi and Andrew's house to catch up and play with little Jax. Jackson and Jax have such fun together. Jax is such a great little guy- he warms my heart when he reaches for me to pick him up. :)
This is Jax's surprised face- he can do it on demand. SO funny!
I loved this. Jackson was pretending to be on the phone with someone complaining about Jax's behavior and Jax was so worried. Even Gunner came over to investigate. It was so cute. We loved playing with his fancy kitchen- those things have come a long way since I was little!
Jackson even helped get Jax to sleep. It was really sweet.

Before anyone decides to leave comments about us needing to have our own I will let you know I tell Jackson all of the time that I will grant him a divorce to go have a family of his own. He doesn't want that so we just gladly catch up with our friends' kiddos. :)

Petefish Christmas

Tuesday evening we went to Susie's to have a belated Christmas celebration with her. We had a yummy Mexican dinner at our favorite place and then we got to open presents. We were also able to FaceTime with Kathi and Grace so they could see us open their gifts. We laughed a lot at the Alvin that Kathi got Susie for Christmas. You see, Susie had a chipmunk problem this Fall and the one we trapped that we named Alvin died. Hence the gift of a chipmunk haunting. Hilarious.
MacKenzie was just as interested in Alvin the stuffed version as she was the real one!
MacKenzie helped us unwrap our presents and even brought her toys over in case we needed a break in the action. She's always so helpful. ;)
We got all kinds of great gifts (Christmas was GOOD to us this year all-around). Kathi secured this awesome photo of Tim Tebow when he was the the University of Florida. It is autographed and all. I was amped.
Jackson got an awesome Colts package. He got this framed, autographed Peyton Manning jersey, VIP tickets to first day of training camp and an autograph-ready football. It was awesome! We're pretty sure Kathi started stalking sports memorabilia places- HA!
Susie has this creepy Santa that she always puts out near the tree. I got a kick out of seeing creepy Santa look down on praying Tebow. It is the little things. ;)

More drumming

We stopped in to visit my old roomie Danielle, her husband and their twin boys. I've been able to stop and see the boys a few times now and boy are they getting big! We got them the same drum we sent to Alex. It was equally as well-received. It was really fun to watch them discover all of the parts and just pound that thing to their little heart's content.
I loved that they took right to the drumsticks and got to work making "music." ;)
We had a lot of fun visiting Danielle's family. We headed for the airport with a final stop at our favorite BBQ joint, Sonny's. We're over BBQ for a couple of months at this point- ha!
Jackson was a little sore about heading home and back to work. We had great flights and got home to bed so Jackson could return to work on Tuesday. I'm still enjoying my retirement and was able to sleep late on Tuesday. I love it. I also got a ton of laundry done and caught up on paying bills- oh so fun! ;)
Susie surprised us and brought MacKenzie home from S. Indiana on Tuesday. We were so happy to see that little girl!