Moving Day Re-Cap

Yesterday we officially moved out of our apartment - it did not go as planned.

Originally, Joe and I thought we'd easily be able to fit our stuff into a pod (after all, we purged a lot and also stored a ton of things in my parents' attic in anticipation of the move).

Once the pod was delivered on Thursday, it looked a lot smaller than expected, but we figured it could do the job.

(That's what she said)

But on Friday when Joe moved down the couch, mattress, and box springs - just those items almost filled the pod entirely.

Uh oh.

So I texted my mom and asked if they could bring my dad's truck so he could bring either our couch or bed back to their house for storage.

Poor parents - little did they know just how little we knew about moving. (And thankfully they brought a large van instead of his truck!)

They arrived yesterday at about 9:30 and we didn't finish moving until 3. In that time Joe and I had to face the truth that neither our couch nor bed would fit in the pod, and that we'd have to start figuring out what other things to leave behind.

**Side note** For those dental school wives/girlfriends/sig others out there, I have to say I am a bit surprised Joe scored so well on Quantitative Reasoning on the DAT given how he grossly overestimated the capacity of the pod haha **End of side note**

Since our furniture is all Ikea, it's not SUPER expensive, but we certainly didn't want to replace it all - so I went online and priced out all of our furniture so we could prioritize the expensive items best we could.

Thankfully, probably due to years of my dad packing our car for family trips, somehow he and Joe were able to fit quite a lot.

Let's please take a moment of silence to remember the items that didn't fit: our couch, big living room chair, mattress & box springs, TV stand, and bedside tables.

...

My wallet is not going to like replacing them. And, despite my latest obsession with thrifting, I get the heebie jeebies thinking of getting a used bed and couch. MAYBE a couch. Definitely not a bed (especially not with the bedbug issues they have on the East Coast).

It wasn't an entirely depressing day. Joe's highlight was smashing a broken cabinet from our bathroom. My highlight was throwing ropes down to the guys from our 8th floor window (it was so weirdly fun):

And the best part was being finished:

Now we will spend most of April at my parents' house 2 hours north of San Francisco. It'll give us quality time with them, one of my brothers and his gf (my other brother is away at college), my grandma, our god-daughter and her parents, and some of my friends from high school. 

On Tuesday, though, we take a quick trip up to Portland and Spokane to visit family for a few days. 

Our adventure has officially begun!

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Food Photo Overload

Apologies for the spotty posts - I finally have things going on to write about, but those things aren't giving me time to actually write :)

Wednesday night one of our very best friends, Stacey, came over for part one of her goodbye (she's also coming over tonight - gotta stretch this one out). Joe frequently cooks the three of us dinner, so this time she wanted to return the favor.

And boy did she ever!

She made us a roasted chicken that looked so yummy we tore into it before I thought to take a picture. It was delicious! There were even lemon slices between the skin and the meat. MMMMMM.

For dessert, she brought us special cupcakes from the bakery she works at on weekends:

Isn't she clever!?

As if that weren't enough, she gave us a super cute Disney photo album and a Disney gift card so we could go to The Napa Rose when we are at Disneyland next month.

Coincidentally, Stacey also has plans to be at Disneyland, but she will be there the Sunday before we planned to go. I wanted to go with her (it would be our third time there together) - but I've never gone during a non-summer weekday, and wanted to go on Tuesday or Wednesday to have the experience of (hopefully) short lines and small crowds.

Joe and I chatted and decided that instead of The Napa Rose, we'd rather use that gift card toward a two-day ticket and go with Stacey on Sunday and still go sometime during that week. Who says you can't have your cake and eat it too :)

(Stupid, stupid saying. If I have cake I most certainly WILL eat it - especially if it is funfetti).

So now we don't really have to say goodbye tonight! That makes me very happy. It will also save you from another picture of me crying - at least for now (oh what a drama queen I am).

Speaking of goodbyes, yesterday I went out for goodbye drinks with my department. It was really nice to have one last little get-together, and I enjoyed my Long Island Iced Teas (yes, I had two) a LOT.

After the bar, Joe and I went to our favorite SF restaurant. We've been seven times (we are creatures of habit) in the last couple years for various celebrations, and it was the perfect place to toast the conclusion of my job and the start of our adventure!

The view was gorgeous (as always):

And the food was incredible (we were pigs and ordered 3 sides!):

A little stingy with the number of rings for $8 - but delicious none-the-less

Yummy Mac & Cheese

Truffle Tater Tots - one of the biggest reasons we keep coming back. These things are INCREDIBLE.

Steak Au Poive - Joe and I love us some pepper :)

The bottle of wine we split was a mistake on top of my Long Islands. I barely made it into work today. Oops. But nothing a greasy burger at lunch wouldn't cure ;) 

Oh. And we are having pizza for dinner tonight with Stacey. Boy is this move going to make me fat(ter).

Dad - P90X after we get back from Portland/Spokane?!

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Packing

With 72 hours to go before we move out of our apartment, there is quite a bit left do.

Since my body has the worst timing for getting sick, of course I have been battling an awful cold for days (or maybe it's allergies - not sure which. All I know is I am exhausted, my nose fluctuates between running and impossible to breathe through, and I am sneezing so hard that my body aches. Oh - and my teeth hurt for some reason.)

Luckily, Joe already said that he would do pretty much all of the packing since I am working up until the day before we leave. Score!

All I needed to do was sort my stuff into what should be packed for the pod and what should be packed for the road-trip. Little did I know how hard it would be to pack for this road-trip!

Technically, we will be "homeless" from March 31 - June 3rd or 4th, but we will be staying with relatives and other places with washers/dryers for about 6 weeks of that.

Even so, that is a LONG time - there are lots of things going through my head (ie: how many razors should I pack? How many deodorants? Will I get tired of the same clothes? Will I gain/lose weight - and should I pack bigger/smaller stuff just in case? What if one of my black flip flops break - they are looking pretty worn - should I buy an extra pair? Oh, shoot - gotta pack tampons. How many will I need? Let's whip out the calendar and figure that out. Oh! And contacts - how often will I wear contacts versus glasses?)

The result of all of those "what ifs", "should I's", and "wills" means that I over-packed . . . just a bit

Joe doesn't have anything in these bags except for some extra razors and deodorant - besides that it's all me.

Before you think I had zero restraint, here's the clothes that didn't make the cut, and will be packed in the pod:

Excuse the handwriting - sick + tired of packing = I don't give a crap about my handwriting.

Kate's fun moving fact of the day: I always pack clothes in garbage bags because I can shove them in between furniture / boxes easier.

Tomorrow (assuming I am feeling better) Joe and I will be going to our favorite restaurant for our last San Francisco meal. Can't wait :)

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Goodbye #1

With a week to go before we leave San Francisco, the good-byes have started.

There won't be too many, since I didn't really let myself put down roots here (knowing we'd be leaving eventually for dental school), but there will be three rounds of goodbyes that are going to be really hard:

1.) Nick and Thea (last night)
2.) Friends from work (Friday)
3.) Stacey (Friday night)

Nick and Thea were my roommates when I first moved to San Francisco three years ago. We've had some great times:

Halloween parties...

Snookie and Cruella playing beer pong

Jersey Shore guy and Peter Pan Prom Pose!

Baseball games ...

Go Cards!

Joe and Nick even applied for The Amazing Race ...

Still waiting for a call from casting...

While I know we'll always be friends, and we didn't see them nearly as much as we should have once Joe and I got married and moved into our own apartment, it just really stinks to know that they won't be 20 minutes away anymore. That we'll have to figure out other Halloween plans . . . that we won't be able to do dinners and game nights . . . that when the Cards play the Giants we'll have to watch it on TV alone rather than at AT&T park with them ...

Ugh. Good-byes stink.


On a more positive note, we had a fun last night together.

Joe made his famous biscuits and gravy.

I made mimosas (my kind of cooking lol).

Yes - there is a bite missing. I couldn't even wait to take a pic lol.

We watched the Gonzaga game. DO.NOT.GET.ME.STARTED.

That was me with my Gonzaga finger before we lost, but I had a bad feeling. Imagine how upset I was with the actual result :(

We also played a kick-@$$ game that Nick and Thea got us for Christmas called Wits and Wagers. SO MUCH FUN!!!

Then we convinced Nick to try the first episode of Downton Abbey! He liked it more than he thought he would (how couldn't he?! The only person I know who doesn't like Downton is my dad, and that's because he can't understand the accents lol)

But then it was time for them to go home. And after too many mimosas and saying goodbye, I looked like this:

Ya. I don't take good-byes well.

At least we are spacing them apart. We leave San Francisco at the end of this month and then we are living with my parents for most of April. At the end of April will be another round of good-byes.

Moving is hard :(

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Jury Duty

Today I had jury duty and was pretty close to serving. I'm glad I wasn't chosen since I have an obligation to wrap up these last 8 days at work as efficiently as possible, but the further I got in the process, the more I actually wanted to serve.

Maybe it was the cheesy juror-prep video or the speech from the judge - but I started feeling very patriotic. Plus, the thought that my opinions could shape a person's life gave me a bit of a power trip ;)

Most of the other potential jurors (there were 71 of us total) didn't seem to share my patriotism / respect of the court. Not only were a dozen late (a few by 20-30 minutes!), but I was shocked at how they were dressed. I saw one girl in a sweatshirt, jeans, and sneakers! Believe it or not, I was the only person wearing a suit jacket or blazer. I also didn't see another set of heels besides the ones on my feet.

**Side Note** In fairness, I also had jeans on, but they were dark denim skinny jeans from Nordstrom. Plus, none of my dressy pants actually zip up over my gut, so it was either that or go sans bottoms. No one wants that. **End of Side Note**

Despite their attire, apparently I was among an impressive group. The guy who handled intake and explained the process said we were a "really smart and great group." He said this after we all raised our hands when he asked if we brought our jury summons (per the clear request on the summons, itself). Apparently, everyone following this simple direction hasn't happened in two years.

Yes. I typed that right. Two years.

Speaking of "smart" and "great," the defendant certainly wasn't either of these things (assuming she did what she is accused of. I heard enough speeches today to respect the phrase "innocent until proven guilty").

She was accused of a hit and run where the driver of the other vehicle was injured. She also didn't cooperate with the police officer when she was caught, refusing to provide her name or driver's license.

I'm confused as to how she can plead "not guilty" to this crime. Joe and I have both been victims of hit and runs, and I don't see a grey area: Car A is hit by Car B and the driver of Car B drives off leaving the driver of Car A with repair and (potentially) hospital bills.

Clearly, the driver of Car B is what?

A.) Spineless
B.) Un-ethical
C.) Selfish
D.) Pathetic
E.) A Criminal
F.) All of the Above

The correct answer is F in case you are curious.

Yes, I am biased. And I am sure there are a lot more details, but the defendant is probably lucky that I wasn't a juror. Sure, I would have listened to all of the facts, but I have high expectations of myself and others - it's not cool to hit a car, injure someone, drive away, and be uncooperative with police.

All-in-all, my first jury selection experience was an interesting one, but I'll be glad to get back to work tomorrow to continue the process of transitioning out. I can't believe that after 3 years I only have 8 days left!

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Thrifting Part 2

I'm the kind of person who gets on a roll with something, throws my whole self into it, and then quickly uses up all excitement for said thing.

This is why my diets always fail.

(This is also why I am shocked that I am still keeping up this blog!)

My latest "thing" is thrifting. I wrote yesterday about my first trip to the Good Will and how I planned to go again this weekend.

Given that this is my new "thing," of course I couldn't wait that long.

There's a huge thrift store a couple of subway stops from my work that I've always wanted to check out, so I decided to hit it up after work today.

This time, Joe was the successful one. I found him two Ralph Lauren polos ($3.99 each) and a Lacoste polo (just $2.99!).

Unfortunately, there's a small stain on the Lacoste, but I am confident that with a bit of De-Solv-It, the stain will wash right out.

What is De-Solv-It, you ask? Simply the BEST stain fighter on earth. Seriously - De-Solv-It is to stains what Kryptonite is to Superman.

Amazon is pretty much the only place I can find it unless I get super lucky at Wal Mart (Target stopped selling it).

*Side note* Yes, I know $12.49 + $7.18 shipping is a bit pricey, but the stuff lasts forever and does its job. *End of Side Note*

Even though Joe got the designer duds, I also scored. I bought 3 short sleeve sweaters ($2.99 each) which will be great for summer! 

  
If you know me, you know that I do what I can to keep my arms (and, heck, the rest of my body) as covered as possible. Since it's apparently a crime for stylish shirts to have any kind of a sleeve, you will rarely see me without a cardigan on. But long sleeve sweaters just aren't going to cut it once we leave the bay area. 

With these short sleeve sweaters, I can wear any shirt I want, cover my arms fairly well, and not die of heat. 

#winning

On a more disappointing note, tomorrow I have Jury Duty. Yes, I know it is my civic duty. But I have 9 days left of work and 10 days left before we move - so it's not coming at a good time. If I get on a trial I may have to use vacation time (which means I won't get paid out for it). Plus, there are things that I need to wrap up with work and the move. 

I'm crossing my fingers that if I do get selected, it'll be a short trial. I am honestly intrigued by the process - as I've been busting through Law & Order: SVU on Netflix the past couple of months. So if I do get on a jury, at least I'll have a cool experience. I definitely would want to be "Madame Foreperson," and they'd be crazy not to pick me. After all, I'm theatrically trained, so I could read the verdict LIKE A BOSS! ;)

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Thrifting

As a soon-to-be unemployed gal (with a hubby about to spend quite a bit of $$ for dental school tuition) - I've got to start getting creative with money.

I've always been pretty careful with finances - I save and I try to only buy things on sale - but there's always room to be more economical.

Hence my latest attempt at frugality: thrifting!

We only have so much we can bring with us to Philly, and clothes that I *hope* will eventually fit need to be finally purged (especially when many of these clothes were too small even 15 pounds ago...)

**Side Note** Boy was it a painful dose of reality to see just how many of my clothes wound up on that purge pile. Must remember how tall that pile was when I try to find motivation to do P90x with my dad when we stay with them in April **End of side note**

Plus, with San Francisco not having warm weather and me not liking to show skin, I have very few summer clothes. Warm weather clothes are definitely going to be needed on this road trip and in the humid Philly summer.

So, clearly, I need to buy a few things so I have clothes to wear on our trip.

Hating to invest a lot in (what I hope is) a temporary wardrobe, I figured I'd give thrifting a chance.

We're lucky to live in a pretty ritzy area, so the Goodwill store had some nice stuff! Plus - the local Target donates clothes they can't sell, so many things actually were brand new with tags and everything.

I bought three shirts and a dress. I would have bought more - but I was pretty overwhelmed with the size of the store and how they "organize". Definitely not a fan of their system. Clothes are arranged by color rather than size, and given the average BMI of the women in this area, finding a L or XL was like finding a needle in a haystack.

Nevertheless, here's what I wound up with (excuse the wrinkles - they've been balled up in the bag since yesterday awaiting wash lol):

The dress is the first pic - looks short, but that's because I took the pic further away

I'm officially a fan of thrifting - it's discounted shopping that feels a bit like a game. You never know what treasures you might find! I think I'll go back again next weekend :)

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Football Division

Joe and I agree on many-a-thing, but football is one place where we have strong division. He is a Kansas City Chiefs fan (boo, hiss) and I am a Denver Broncos fan (woot woot!)

It's kind of fun to have something to "fight" over.

It's even more fun that they are in the same conference, so we have lots of opportunities to argue over our teams.

(This is our house on a Broncos/Chiefs game day - j/k)

Joe just informed me that we (as in, the Denver Broncos) just signed Wes Welker. Boom.

He's none too happy.

I'm thrilled (in big part because he's none too happy)!

Ah, married life.

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Sick = Boredom = Too Much Pinterest

I've missed the last two days of work (worked from home yesterday, took a sick day today) to try to get the rest of my cold annihilated. I've slept - A LOT - but aside from that I've been pretty bored and have spent too much time on Pinterest.

Speaking of Pinterest, you can find me here.

After recovering (slightly) from the Downton season 3 finale, I've also enjoyed the chance to look up information about the actors, show, etc. I HATE spoilers - so when watching a show that has already aired, I avoid any mention of it like the plague. Once I finish that last episode though, I immediately hit up IMDB (as in, credits start rolling and my fingers are already typing imdb.com on my laptop).

***Side Note*** I have a system because, as previously mentioned, I am often late to the popular culture party. Most recent example? Joe and I just started The Walking Dead a couple nights ago ***End of Side Note***

This time around, I also realized I could do a search on Pinterest for things related to Downton Abbey, and found some gems.

Some of my favorites (no spoilers past season 2, promise):

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I Never Knew Being Sick Could Be So Yummy!

Friday morning I came down with a cold, and luckily survived the work day (we'll see if I can make it in tomorrow).

I am such a lucky wife, because Joe spoiled me with yummy warm food all weekend long to soothe my sore throat. The recipes were so good, I wanted to share.

Saturday for lunch we had Mac and Cheese - easy enough, no need to share that recipe haha. But for dinner, I asked him to make chicken pot pie cupcakes that I found on Pinterest. They were so delicious - here's a pic, that really doesn't do them justice:

Today for lunch, he made yummy tomato parmesan soup. I forgot to take a pic, but you can find the recipe here. Joe wanted to cut the calories, so he used skim milk instead of half and half. He also cooked it on the stove instead of in the crock pot. You could not tell the difference at all. The soup was super creamy and delicious. I'd try it in the crock pot next time just to develop flavor more, but definitely sub the half and half for skim milk. Your gut will thank you.

Tonight for dinner he made risotto. No recipe, and no picture, but it was very good :)

I think I may try to get sick more often. I haven't eaten this well in a while. Thank goodness for leftovers :)

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Addendum to My Last Post

*** Downton Abbey is a great show - but be prepared to have your heart broken (repeatedly) ***

I Heart Downton Abbey

In terms of popular culture, I tend to be a bit late to the party... and Downton Abbey has been no different.

(Heck, my grandma has been urging me for months to watch it.)

I figured I'd like it - I heard from enough people that it was a good show - but I wasn't dying to give it a shot. Plus, I didn't expect Joe would watch, and our goal lately has been to find a really good series to get into together. How could I expect my husband to get into a British period piece on Masterpiece Theater?

Well, about two weeks ago after I had jokingly suggested he give it a shot with me, my darling husband agreed to at least try it.

I was floored.

But I was more floored at the end of the first episode.

Floored because I couldn't believe I hadn't watched it sooner. IT.WAS.BLOODY.AWESOME.

(The British-isms are getting to me)

Plus - Joe liked it too!

Win!

Since then we've been watching at least an episode a day, and in a few minutes we'll start the season three finale. I'm sad to learn that season four is almost a year away - not sure how I will be able to stand the wait.

But the point of my post is this - WATCH DOWNTON ABBEY. Do it. Now.


You can thank me later.

Dream Team

I'm a worrier, and when I get particularly worried about something, I tend to become a bit of an emotional basket case (*cough* last blog post *cough*).

It's no secret that I'm worried about the next 4+ years, but I can't change what's happening, and I wouldn't want to.  After all, if I did that would mean I either want Joe to give up his dream or that I wish we weren't together - neither of which could be further from the truth.

Joe's dream is to be a dentist.

My dream is to be a stay-at-home-mom.

What I need to realize is that these dreams are not mutually-exclusive (which is what it feels like in my lowest moments thinking about the time and money dental school requires). In fact, his dream is what will allow my dream to be possible. If he has to wait 4 years to get to where he wants to be, then I can too.

We have to be a dream team (cheesy, yes).

So here's where I have to get creative - and I'm certainly a fan of that.

I have to figure out how to keep myself occupied when he's busy, how to stay connected to the people I love despite the distance, and how to keep our relationship great despite the time he has to devote to school.

Am I up for that challenge? Duh. I don't turn down a good challenge ;)

The First Year Calendar...

Joe's calendar for his first year of dental school came in the mail today.

I was so excited to finally have an actual idea of what next year will be like - until I actually read it and realized how little time he's going to have off.

So little, in fact, he even has classes on Christmas Eve.

...My birthday...

Christmas Eve is a terrible day for a birthday, but one of the redeeming things about it has been that it's always free of work/school for my family and me.

Until now.

I've never NOT been home for my birthday and, unless we fly home after classes that day, I won't be home for Christmas for the first time ever either.

And that will likely be the case for the next four Christmases and birthdays.

I know I sound like (at best) a drama queen or (probably more like) a spoiled brat - plenty of people don't get to see their family on Christmas or their birthday (my husband never sees his - they live in Missouri) and plenty of people have to pack themselves like cattle through TSA on overpriced flights the day before Christmas.

Intellectually I get this.

But anyone who knows me knows I am much more emotional than intellectual.

Darn hormones and my Italian blood.

And before you think I am too melodramatic, why I think this is so upsetting is because this also has made me finally comprehend is just how little I am going to see my husband and family.

I'll be 3,000 miles (or a $350+ round trip airline ticket) from my family in a city where I know no one and my husband will be either in class, studying, or sleeping 24/7/365.

I don't know why this is a newsflash to me. I've known this all along.

And for those of you wondering when we are going to have a baby, I'm pretty sure I've also realized that won't be happening during Dental School. Heck - with this schedule we won't even have time to make a baby.

 Ugh.

Just let me feel sorry for myself for a while. I'll need to put on a brave face for Joe for the next 4 years.