Ben & Mary Ella are ENGAGED!

My brother Ben and his girlfriend of 4 years got engaged on February 20th! We couldn't be more thrilled to welcome Mary Ella "officially" to our family, she's perfect for Ben. Ben & Mary Ella live in Indianapolis. Mary Ella is in her 2nd year of residency, she is a doctor specializing in emergency medicine and pediatrics. Ben is a physician's assistant in the E.R. at a hospital north of Indy. They hope to move back to Chicago after Mary Ella's residency is completed.

Congratulations Ben and Mary Ella!!!

Jason won a 46" Plasma TV today!

Today is Jason's lucky day... he won a 46" plasma TV from HyVee! He signed up when we were grocery shopping a few weeks ago, there was a big display of Budweiser along with this drawing... so real people really do win sometimes! I think we'll go have a few Bud Lights to celebrate ;) ...We have it set up in our bedroom for now until we have a bigger house! We already have a 46" LCD TV in our living room! Life is good... :)

Well this week has been CRAzy busy for me at work with the launch of our new drug, Victoza! I am working very long days, but it has been fun! It was Jason's turn to get sick this week, he wasn't feeling well with a sore throat, chills, and fatigue. I was really sick after returning from Vegas with aches, chills, congestion, headache... it lasted for over a week! I am relieved that we are both done with all of that yucky sickness. Oh and we got another 5 inches of snow today... so 2009-2010 is now #5 for the snowiest winters of all time! I think we are up to 63" this winter! Other than that, we are really enjoying the Winter Olympics! Go USA!

Happy Birthday to my brother Ben today, he turns 31!

Happy Heart Day!

Happy Valentine's Day! ...Oh, how I LOVE this day dedicated to LOVE! For all of you that know me, you know this about me! I'm a hopeless romantic! Jason and I had a fun Valentine's weekend... Jason spoiled me with pretty pink flowers and thoughtful gifts, I am so lucky to have a husband like him!!! ... after so many "single" Valentine's Days... I appreciate him so very very much! ...and I also have so much empathy for singles on this day too. But to me, Valentine's Day is not just about being in love... it's about celebrating LOVE! I love my friends, family, and of course my husband too! We enjoyed the movie 'Valentine's Day', so cute! I recommend it :)

So done with snow!

This just says it all. I cannot wait for green grass, budding trees, blooming flowers, sunny skies, and warm weather! ...I've got spring fever! After the 50+ inches of snow we've already gotten, we are supposed to get 5 more this weekend. I just wish we had a ski mountain closer to Des Moines to take advantage of all this white stuff!

I was in Las Vegas last week for a work meeting, Monday-Friday. We stayed at The Venetian/The Palazzo. We were kept very very busy with work meetings from morning til night, so there wasn't too much time to explore during my 1st trip to Vegas... but I got to see a little bit of the strip... The Mirage, The Wynn, and of course The Venetian/The Palazzo. I cannot wait to go back for FUN and see more stuff and go to some shows. Work is exciting and busy right now as we are getting ready to launch a NEW product for Type 2 Diabetes. The official launch date is Wednesday, February 17th and I'm super duper happy to talk about something new & different... but more than anything, I'm happy there is a wonderful new product for patients living with diabetes every day of their lives!

Well this weekend is VALENTINES weekend! Yay! We've got lots of stuff planned including a night out with the Funks tonight for mexican, going to the movie "Valentine's Day", reservations tomorrow night at "Dos Rios", a surprise for Jason Sunday afternoon ;) and watching our wedding video for the FIRST time (came in the mail today!). Oh yeah and the Winter Olympics start with the opening ceremonies tonight! Can I get a whoo-whoo?!

January update!

Hi everyone! :) Well I just realized I've been slacking a little bit on blog entries for the month of January so here is an update for you...

Jason lost 2 pounds and I lost 3 pounds in our 1st week of Live Healthy America (Jan 14-22). So that's good! We have been watching our portions, eating out less, and making healthier choices. Now we just need to get exercising!

Friday night we went to Ohana's Steakhouse with a group of our friends. It was my first time there and we had lots of fun! Our hibachi chef was quite the comedian and Nick and I even did a saki bomb! It was so nice to get to know Matt (Melissa's boyfriend) and Brad (Bridget's boyfriend) better! After dinner we went to Billy Joe's Pitcher Show and watched karaoke! That is one of my favorite things to do... hilarious! None of us had the nerve to go up there but maybe next time. We had a blast! Here are some pictures from the evening... check out Lindsey's cute baby bump! :) ...They are having a boy!



Our living situation has been a topic of conversation lately... we do like our lil townhouse but we really need more room! We have 2 bedrooms. One bedroom serves as my office/guest bedroom. We have no room to grow our family here, not to mention that half of our wedding presents are still in boxes in closets because we don't have anywhere to put them! We have a 1 car garage currently and it would be soooo nice to have a 2 car garage! So... what to do, what to do?! Do we put our townhouse up for sale by owner or through a realtor? Do we buy a house or build a house? Do we sell our house, live in an apartment, then buy a house? Or do we buy a house pending the sale of our townhouse? What if it takes awhile to sell our townhouse? Decisions, decisions! We'll keep ya posted...

Jason and I are going through the Alpha Course "Explore The Meaning of Life". It is a really neat course and we are enjoying it so far! The course is free (well the book was $5) and runs for 10 weeks... every Sunday night 5:45-8:15pm AND includes a free yummy dinner so that is awesome! Our small group consists of all young married couples, so it's been great to meet other couples like us at our church!

So... we are having yet another blizzard in Des Moines today with "travel not advised" for most of the state with some interstates & highways closed. This has been quite the crazy winter!

Until next time... ((HUGS))

Taylormade Living Healthy :)

Jason & I signed up for Live Healthy America's 100 Day Wellness Challenge. It started January 14th and it goes for 100 days. We both want to lose weight and be more active! ... Hopefully this will motivate us. We just went grocery shopping and bought a lot of healthy stuff. We have a treadmill in our spare guest room and also Jillian's 30 Day Shred DVD. Now... we just need to eat healthy and work out! Sounds easy enough, right? :) We weigh in online every Friday. The website keeps track of our % of weight loss. Jason and I are a team of 2... our team name is.... guess?! ...Taylormade!

I've always struggled with my weight. I can remember as a little girl writing in my journal about not liking my body and wishing I could eat what all the other girls were eating. It's been a life-long challenge for me. My weight has always yo-yo'd. Weight watchers has worked for me in the past. But the most success I've had is when I work out... on a regular basis... I see results... just 30-45 minutes a day makes a world of difference. So, I am once again committed! ...We are committed! Wish us luck!

Happy New Year!

Happy 2010 everybody!

Well, so far this year has brought me swollen glands, sore throat, nasal congestion, and now a runny/raw nose! ...I have not been feeling the best since January 1st. BUT, on the bright side, I can feel that it is starting to go away and that makes me smile :)

AND the hawks won the Orange Bowl last night! So that makes me smile too! :)

To go along with the new year, I have a new haircut! I got 8 inches taken off and I like it very much! It is sooooo much easier to straighten all those curls out when it's not so long. So that makes me smile too! :)

Here is a picture of Jason and I on New Years Eve, check out the new "do"...


So as you can see lots of things make me smile :)
...Quoting the movie Elf... "I just like to smile, smiling's my favorite!" I love that movie, it's right up there with National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation for me.

Now that the holidays are officially pretty much over... we have Valentine's Day to look forward to... do you heart the new background? ...what can I say I'm a hopeless romantic!

Smiles!!! :)