what day is it?!?

It is hard to believe it has been well over a month since I have last posted. I have seriously considered just putting a "hold" on this whole blog thing for a while since I feel like I have a hard time remembering what day it is anymore. I've decided against that decision and will press on to keep trying to keep up with this thing. I do not like the fact that life has been so busy lately that I haven't had time to do the things I enjoy...so, I'm going to do better about running on a regular basis, scrapbooking (have a few years to catch up on!), cooking/trying new recipes and maybe every now and then can squeeze in a blog post. Besides work (which has been consuming my life when I'm in town) we've been out of town quite a bit and have managed to do lots of fun things over the last month and a half. Here are a few highlights:

In mid-September, we headed up to Niagara Falls, NY to stay with Anthony's grandparents who live up there. The weather was perfect and we had a wonderful time (as usual) hanging out with them and eating good food. This is the finest Italian/Puerto-Rican couple you'll ever meet and I love them so much and am thankful to have such a close relationship with them. It is crazy that I've been going up there for the last 10 years!! After we returned from our relaxing trip up north, Anthony and I jumped right back into work and didn't see each other for about 4 days cause he was working the crazy long hours. I am so proud of my little attorney husband. Work for me has been very busy as well--under-staffed and more work to do that can possibly get done in a day...I'm not complaining just stating the reasons why life has been a bit of a blurr.

At the beginning of October, we made our annual trip down to Austin for the AUSTIN CITY LIMITS music festival. This whole experience probably deserves a post all on it's own but I'll try and sum it up for you here. For the last several years, we have gone to this wonderful music festival in Austin. In the past, we've purchased the 3-day passes where you can come and go as you please for 3 days in a row, listening to live music and being outside in the great Austin weather. Tickets for this thing go on sale months before the event and even before you know what groups will be there but it's always a good time and we like to go every year. This year, we decided to just by one-day passes for Sunday since we wouldn't be able to take off work on Friday and didn't love the groups for Saturday. We headed down to Austin on Friday evening and got to hang out with my sister and her family. On Saturday, Anthony and I watched our niece and nephew while my sister and her hubby went to ACL. We had a great time being aunt and uncle and getting some alone time with the kiddos. On Sunday after church and a wonderful brunch, we headed to ACL to take in some of the music. Pearl Jam was the main group we wanted to see on Sunday and they weren't performing until the end (8:00PM) and then we'd head back to Dallas after it was over. Here's a quick breakdown of the weather for the weekend:

Friday - PERFECT, sunny and in the 70s, not a cloud in the sky

Saturday - RAIN all day long

Sunday - MUD (see picture below) like you've never seen in your life!!

It literally looked like chocolate pudding EVERYWHERE. Basically, I walked around all day with no shoes on because it was pointless to even wear them and it came up to my ankles. It was craziness but what an experience. We suffered through the mud and had a great time. We even stayed through most of Pearl Jam but my poison ivy-covered body just hit a limit and had to get home. Oh yeah, did I mention I got poison ivy?!? It broke out all over my body and the itch was like nothing I've ever felt before...after almost 4 weeks, it is pretty much gone (this story could also be another blog post).

Even with the crazy work schedule, mud bath and poison ivy, I managed to get away for a few days to CHICAGO. My friend Lauren was going up there for a few days for work and suggested I look into plane tickets and go with her. It being so last minute, we both figured it wouldn't happen but luckily, we found super cheap flights so I got to go! Since we both worked while we were there, it wasn't all fun and games but we did squeeze in a lot with the little time we had. I took her to some of my favorite restaurants, showed her the University of Chicago and where we used to live, went to Second City, Millennium Park and even did some shopping.
I also got to see two great friends while I was there--Cortney and Kevin--and even watched some of the Chicago Marathon!! Which, by the way, has gotten me motivated to get into running again. I love running. It is good for me, theraputic even. I even think I want to run another marathon sometime soon but for now, I'll just work on getting back in shape :)

This past weekend we headed to Abilene for ACU homecoming. I can't believe it has been 5 years since we graduated!! So much has changed around campus; if you haven't been back in a while you wouldn't believe all the things they have done. It's is definitely prettier around there. It was a great weekend spent hanging out with Anthony's family and seeing old friends. Some of our best friends from Chicago actually live in Abilene now so it was fun getting to see and stay with them. Funny how things in life work out...when we met them our first Sunday in Chicago I would have never thought we'd be hanging out in Abilene!

I am looking forward to being home this weekend with not a ton going on. Although, I guess I should start thinking about the holidays since Thanksgiving is just a little over a month away. I do love this time of year and all the things that come with it. My favorite part (other than family time) would have to be the baked goods! I've already made one batch of pumpkin bread :)

I know this blog post is a bit scattered...that's how my brain has been lately but that is all changing today because I am taking my life back! Seriously though, I love my life and have nothing to complain about. It's just CRAZY but I wouldn't trade it for anything. Thanks for reading (if you made it all the way through).