Aloha Day 1

I'm back! After my longest blog hiatus yet. It was completely unintentional so I'm sorry  I left you hanging! Derrick and I disappeared to Hawaii for 18 days and we we're so busy getting work sorted out before we left that the blog kind of took a back seat.

I'm back now though and have a ton of updates with Hawaii taking the highest priority.

We had an absolutely amazing time! It's going to take several posts to catch you up on everything so here goes. Derrick and I arrived on Thursday the 30th totally jet lagged and but complete excited. Here's our first look of Maui!

We fell asleep at 7 PM that night and we were up by 5AM the next morning starving so we walked to Krispy Kreme before our first Hawaii excursion.

For day one we booked a 24 mile bike trip from the Haleakla Crater.  The bike trip was all downhill with very little pedaling so don't let the 24 miles impress you. It started with a van ride up to the crater complete with photo ops.

Like when the bike fell off the top of the van.

And the time Derrick mis-interpreted my instructions and I supported his weight instead of the opposite.

Before the bike ride started we got a look at the crater and it was truly amazing. This photo is not photo shopped.

This is silver sword. It only grows up in this crater which is otherwise very similar to a desert with very little growth. It feels like bird feathers and has a silver metallic color that actually shines. 

The ride was spectacular and we stopped at a lot of the vistas along the way.

 

I took video of our trip when I could remember so here's the first. 

The bike trip was awesome and a perfect way to spend the day before family arrived. I know I've bragged on Derrick about this before but he is the ultimate trip planner and is always looking for things that he think I'll enjoy while on vacation. I love getting to sit back and just enjoy the trip and doesn't seem to mind taking the reins on the planning.

Don't worry...this isn't going to be a one post per day re-cap but I am going to stop here for now.

Weekend Shenanigans

This weekend was beautiful and so fun! Derrick and I got to play ultimate for the first time since winter league and it felt SO good to run and play again. I was writing a contract in the car on the way down on Friday night so we only played Saturday because of work commitments on Sunday but it was definitely worth it to play on Saturday. 

I sent this picture to our highschoolers on Saturday. It's not often they get to see their coach in action. 

We even managed a quick visit home and a Skype call with Jay and Jack. We hadn't been home in forever and we're leaving for Hawaii soon so we did Jay's birthday skype call  a little early.

On Sunday, Derrick coached while I showed houses and we ended the evening at the pickleball courts. We were lucky no one was there because I was SO full from dinner. I had to take a break every 10 minutes! I'm not a real person sometimes.

Crosby was wiped after a weekend of frisbee and family. She's still sleeping all day today trying to recover from the weekend.

This is unrelated to the weekend but I don't think I posted this picture yet. Michael and Rebecca got a new puppy named Belle and she is so cute! Crosby isn't sure what to think though...sorry Cros!

One Day it will be Christmas

I was thinking about this today and I don't think I've ever shared it on the blog. It's really silly but it's my coping mechanism for getting through tough days. I shared it with Jack over the summer and he's already said it back to me so I think he liked it :)

My job can be kind of stressful sometimes, especially when due diligence deadlines creep up with no resolution in sight. Whenever I'm really stressed out I just tell myself "one day it will be Christmas."

Christmas is so fun and no one stresses out about work on Christmas. No one wants to see houses or is looking at offers. It's the best day of the year!

I have been busy recently but not really stressed out so I don't know why this was on my mind but it works for me...maybe it will work for you!

Queen City Tune Up

Last weekend our high school team went to Charlotte for the Queen City Tune-up. The weather was amazing and the team was even better! We are in the thick of the season right now. We have three practices a week and league games sprinkled around. This was our big away tournament of the season so we all packed up and headed to Charlotte for the weekend.

On Saturday we went 1 and 3. Our first game was probably our toughest in the sense that we were pretty well matched against that team but our guys had to play hard. I think playing so hard that first game tired them out for the rest of the day. We didn't end up winning that one but it was  very good, close game.

Part of Derrick's motivation to the o-line during the last game was they got to pick dinner if they scored the point. They did and they chose Olive Garden. The busiest place ever that doesn't take reservations and we needed to seat 35. Luckily we were able to head there around 4:30 and only waited for about 30 minutes.

On Sunday we dropped down to the lower bracket and had three more games. We won all three games on double game point. Talk about giving your coach a heart attack! It was so fun to win those games so closely though and our team was so pumped up about it. 

I feel like all I talk about it how much we love this team. This picture just makes me smile so much though. We are so lucky to have such an awesome group of guys.

Best Plants Ever

I had to mow the lawn last week because it's been so warm and beautiful here. It's been absolutely gorgeous which means Derrick and I have been doing a lot of playing outside. That and coaching 3+ times a week and there hasn't been much time for blogging. 

I have a new light fixture to hang over the kitchen table and I still need to finish the craft room shelves but I have zero motivation to do it. Anyone want to come over and kick me into gear???

Anyways, while I was mowing I realized our lambs ear around the mailbox are coming back. These are seriously the best plants ever. They have required zero maintenance. 

Their leaves get brown and soggy over the winter but I just pull those off and reveal new baby leaves growing beautifully. It's been almost 2 years with these guys and I love that they hardly require anything from me.

You can see here where some of the newer leaves are peaking through some of the older leaves. Give it a couple months and they'll be monstrous in size. 

Lambs ear! Get some!!

Silent Auction Buckets

My business has been sponsoring Triangle Ultimate for a few years now and I've been really happy with the business partnership we've created. I've seen my business grow and I'm also supporting an organization that I really love and that has offered me so much for the past 10 years. 

This year is their 20th anniversary and they are throwing a party over the weekend complete with a silent auction. They asked if I'd like to donate anything. At first I wasn't sure what I could possibly donate...real estate isn't exactly tangible and anything I could offer real estate related would really limit the buyer pool.  

But then I thought about what Derrick and I bid on at a silent auction last year... a dog goodie basket! I decided to make it a little more home related than dogs so I put together a crafting/diy basket and a home improvement basket. Here's a sneak peek!

The first one is the crafting basket. I tried not to get too specific and picked up a lot of items that I've found useful in my crafting arsenal. 

I picked up a lot of craft glues including a glue stick...you cannot craft without a glue gun!

Those markers were a great deal so I picked up a pack for myself too. I use those paint brushes for staining b/c they are cheap and there is no guilt to throw them away afterwards.

Chalkboards are in right now so I had to include one and I thought this little clipboard was just really adorable. It's got a tripod on the back so it can stand up if you want to use it for  a photo.

Last but not lease, a self-healing cutting board and a razor blade. This is awesome for cutting detailed paper and I've used mine for all sorts of things.

The other basket I did was a home improvement basket. I found a cute little Lowes bucket and stuffed it with all sorts of things I've found useful as a homeowner.

I didn't take individual photos because it took forever to stuff that bucket just right but here's some of the items you can find inside.

-tape measure
-level
-stud finder
-safety glasses
-hammer
-screw driver with 10 changeable heads
-WD40
-painters tape
-angled brush

And more..but you'll have to bid on it to find out what else!

If you're local and part of Triangle Ultimate, you should come to the anniversary party on Sunday! There are lots of other great auction items and there will be food, drinks, and music! Hope to see you there!

Galentines Day!

Galentines day is the most wonderful day of the year! It's a celebration of love for all of the great gals in your life!

I have some of the best gal pals a girl could ask for and I feel lucky to be surrounded by such amazing women all the time. My Mom set me up for success by showing me what amazing women are supposed to be like and I've since surrounded myself with the best. Happy Galentines Day Ladies!