Okay, I’m back! I know I left you hanging last week but now I’m back and ready to rock it :). I’m officially back in Arizona until the fall and have been attempting to find my way back to a little thing called ‘routine’. To be honest, I’ve forgotten what that looks like!

There are several things about Arizona that I missed while I was gone this summer. 110 degree weather was not one of them! Between my enormous amount of editing and the intense heat, I am quickly becoming a hermit in my own home :). Maybe I’ll be able to come out of hiding by November!

A quick little story about overcoming obstacles. One Arizona night last month, I realized my night would not be complete without ‘Breyers Mint Chip Ice Cream’. I mean, it’s THE BEST! So I got in my car and drove just down the street to the nearest Quick Trip. (side note: having a quick trip near your house is both a blessing and a curse!). I knew what I wanted. I was on a mission. But when I walked up to the freezer and saw my deliciously decadent ice cream staring at me, there was obstacle number 1 staring back at me. The price tag. (side note: I’m a bargain shopper and love me some savings anytime I can get em’!). Now as much as I wanted my breyers fix, I couldn’t shake the thought that Wal-mart sells it for at least $2 cheaper and its right down the street. So I got back in my car and made the mile drive to the neighborhood Walmart. (side note: it was a Saturday early evening). I pulled into the parking lot and it was PACKED. After driving around the parking lot a few times, I finally found a parking spot. I got out of my car and walked into the store with my eye on the prize. That was until I saw the lines that seemed never-ending! (side note: do not attempt to go to Wal-mart a mile from ASU the weekend prior to school starting). There was no way I was waiting in a line that long. My ice cream probably would have melted before I even got home! Now most people would have probably thrown in the towel at this point. It is just ice cream, right? WRONG! I was on a mission folks! So I made one last attempt. Got back in my car and drove to the nearest Fry’s where I finally purchased my dairy delight. I bet you can imagine how good that ice cream tasted when I finally got home and devoured it. Moral of the story: don’t stand in the way of a girl and her ice cream!

I love surprises. I love being surprised but I also love being the one doing the surprising. You may know that Joe is a huge Packer fan, but he’s never had the chance to go to a game or see Lambeau field. Thanks to the generosity of my brother and sister-in-law, I was able to give Joe one of the best presents of his life: a ticket to the Packers vs Bears game on Christmas Day. Every year, my brother and sister-in-law draw one game from her family’s season tickets. When they drew the Christmas Day game, they knew just who to offer their third ticket to. Emily presented me with the opportunity and I jumped at the chance at being ‘wife of the year’. I debated on whether I wanted to wait until Christmas morning to tell him, but I just couldn’t! So instead I thought it would be fun if I came up with a fun way of telling him the news. I flew back to AZ last Monday and told Joe that I had a present for him. I pulled out a poem that I had written for him. I’m pretty sure at that point he was probably thinking “ohhhh, one of those presents…”. Little did he know that the poem was just a means of revealing his sweet prize. It went a little something like this:

I know that you think writing poems is no fun,

but I really like them, so I wrote you one.

 

You’ve been such a blessing since you came into my life;

and life’s only gotten better since I became your wife.

 

You’re my constant encourager, pushing me to dream big,

you see the tree when all I can see is the twig.

 

You’ve put wants aside so that I can could live out my dream,

and I couldn’t ask for a better man to be on my team.

 

You’ve done so much for me, I thought I’d get you something fun,

before you start daydreaming, no, it’s not a new gun!

 

In all of our years together, I’ve never seen you cry,

although I’ll probably never see it, I thought I might try.

Maybe this will do it:

you, the Packers, the Bears,

OH MY! 

 

On December 25th with Emily + my bro,

you’ll be in Lambeau field braving the snow!

 

I hope that you have the time of your life,

love your ever-so-blessed, grateful wife. 

I think it’s safe to say that this was probably his favorite poem, ever! If a camera were present, it probably would have captured something like this after I told him…

(photo by Brittany Janelle Photography)

Happy Labor Day everyone! xoxo