shoud i stay or should i go now.....

so i am having a little bit of a dilemma and i was thinking maybe, just maybe my wonderful blog readers would have an idea as to what i should do about his dilemma- it is small but it is important.

should hubby and i take a road trip for our one- year anniversary of being married?

i know that this may sound like an easy question but really it isn't for many reasons. i decided to make a list- well because i love lists and possibly it will be easier to understand for you then me babbling on and on and on and on..... okay here goes

PROS OF TAKING A ROAD TRIP
1. We desperately need a trip- things have been waaaaaay too hectic in our lives this year and we really haven't been able to spend uninterrupted quality time together as much as we would like. i believe this trip would definately do our relationship some good and give us the time together that we need and deserve

2. We would probably have the money for it- i assume that after renting a car (which hubby found out would be about $220 dollars for unlimited miles for one week), getting a hotel room (which my mom and aunt said they may be able to pay for as a present for my b-day which is in july), food, gas (which they say should be about $3.50 cents or more by summer)and miscellaneous expenses that may arise we are looking about between $600 and $800 dollars for this trip- realistically speaking. We could swing it only because d and i will be working full time this summer.

3. We vowed when we got married that we would take a trip every summer because traveling and spending at least one week a year- COMPLETELY ALONE- was very important to us.

4. We will someday in the near future start trying to have kids- i don't want to pass these opportunities to travel up now because we may not get them again for awhile.


CONS OF TAKING A ROAD TRIP
1. We will have the money but should we really spend it on a road trip? We do have other bills to pay- is it irresponsible to take a trip when we have other obligations? I think that we may be able to do both- pay off all our outstanding debt as well as take a trip- but what if we can't? should we still take the trip?

2. I would have to take a week off from both of my jobs- i don't have PTO or vacation pay so i would be loosing a weeks pay. D has vacation time so that should be fine.

3. D is going to be having his plumbing apprenticeship interview on April 14th (which we are very excited about!) after that interview he gets placed on the May list and then is taken off the list and put in a apprenticeship based on his interview and test scores ( his test scores not only met the standards but exceeded them by a very very large margin) so my question is- what if he doesn't have to wait long for an apprenticeship? what if he gets called sometimes this summer- will his new job let him have a week long vacation? i guess it won't be too bad if we had to cancel because we would just be renting a car- so we could cancel that and cancel the hotel- but if there were penalties that would suck! D seems to think that if he is upfront with his employer right away he will be able to still take the week off- i am not so sure- but that could just be me being pessimistic- "Hi my name is Negative Nancy!"

So those are my pros/cons- i'm not really sure what to do! part of me wants to be responsible and not take a trip but most of me wants to say screw it and take the trip.

Also if we do go on a trip- where should we go? again because i love lists and pictures to brighten my blog i have decided to show you lovely blog readers some of the places D and i are contemplating road tripping to.....

1. The Beautiful South Dakota- i have never been but D has and he says it is absolutely gorgeous!


2. Maine- i have always wanted to go to Maine- ever since i was little- i even wanted to live there for a while before i decided to go to College ( which i never regretted!)


3. San Fransisco and or Napa Valley- D and i considered going here for our honeymoon but decided on Vegas instead. We absolutely love wine, good food, and beautiful sites- so i believe this could be a great option- but also very expensive.


4. Boston- D really wanted to go to Boston i'm not sure if i'm sold but it does sound really beautiful.


So those are the places we have been pondering over- we haven't checked out any prices yet as far as activities in those areas, hotels or bed and breakfasts- so i'm not sure which is the most cost efficient- if any of them are at all.

If anyone has any suggestions i am definately open to them! Places to go, how to go on a road trip with a tight budget, and of course whether or not we should even take a road trip- i love honest opinions and i know all of my blog readers will be honest with me- i can take it!

well hubby just got home and is anxiously awaiting for me to get off my blog and watch the new season of Top Chef with him- i have to say the competition looks fierce this year.... i can't wait to see it- now every time D and i go to a restaurant we are so critical of the food- just call us wanabe Tom Colicchio's!

the first step is to admit

so i have been thinking lately about an addiction that i have- one that probably many of us share- not just in the blogging community but probably throughout the world- yes this addiction is that big! to accurately depict my addiction i will give you none other than an ecard, why? because they are so damn funny and say exactly what i need to say....






yep it's true guys i have a facebook addiction. my dear husband and i have the below conversation weekly, if not daily- why? because i am obsessed...

me: did you get my facebook message?

d: no, didn't go on facebook today- why what did it say?

me: that's the whole point of going on facebook! if your not going to check your wall then i'm not going to write on it and i'm sure as hell not going to tell you what i wrote! And what's with your profile pic? i mean seriously babe it's time to change that picture!

d: uh huh..... have you ever learned about the signs of addiction?

me: your point?

yea so that is the convo very regularly around the dubinsky household- i love facebook- i can't go a day without checking it at least 2 times! i will even get up early to check it- if i work at 6am i get up a couple minutes early just to check my facebook. is that so wrong? all of my friends are up there- their info, what's going on ie status, pics, fluff friends, and of course happy hour- now i know they aren't real drinks but isn't it awesome to get a drink from a friend?

yea i need help..... but in all honesty facebook is a very useful tool. i not only use it to see what's going on with all my friends but i also use it for school. now your probably all thinking- "school? what is she smoking!" but i'm serious! if i need to get a hold of one of my classmates i know i can get a hold of them quicker on facebook- if i need someones phonenumber? facebook! it all leads back to facebook!!!

so i invite you all of my wonderful blog readers to join facebook if you have not already- and if you have please do not hesitate to look me up- i am always looking for new facebook friends :0)

tonight is soup night- d and i looooooove potato dumpling soup- after our hectic, crazy, stressful week we definately need a soup night. and because i love to punish myself i will be making it from scratch- real potatoes, real dumplings- the whole nine yards! i think i might even post that recipe because it is just sooooo good. and if i am not in a soup induced coma by tomorrow i will be back to blog more :0)

random monday

hello all! sorry i have been a little absent- it was quite the weekend and it turned out to be quite the monday! lots of things due in my history of psych class and definitely not enough time to get them all done! so today will be kind of a random list.... tomorrow there will be more coherent things posted.....probably :0)

i went out this weekend to rascals for happy hour- $1 dollars taps from 3-9pm....yeah lets just say my night ended early- like 9:00 early but all in all it was very fun and we had a great time :0)

D and i have been practicing our swing dancing for our upcoming lesson at Carroll College this Friday- we are so psyched! this swing semester will be awesome! teaching is definitely a passion for us- and how couldn't it be when that is how we met and fell in love? :0)

i have two papers due by the middle of the semester (which is scarily right around the corner!) one is 5 pages long on cloned food (for my environmental science class) and one is for my history of psych class- 10 pages on Freud- :0( that is one long paper. these are the times i am glad i am good at bs :0)

in about another 4 months D and i should be almost completely paid up with our bills- that my friends is the best feeling in the world! after that we can move on to more important things in life- a house, kids, and of course just enjoying each other- not like we don't do that everyday <3 onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipIKigCVTtEVX8qLPdwNd5hgTSj-YZ4adRiUt40kvhESlx7ffGTjZtCC2-wascVG3q5BrCJ7zy9lYCYziJWMjNo1VJsy2_RTsbKDddC4BOdnc5OPyU3M89eElTk85Yx1Hfy6P1tH28ECY/s1600-h/P1010969.JPG">this is me and hubby's unbelievably talented and slightly big boned kitty dexter dressed up in a space suit- yea he was mad :0)













i love this picture- i really think it captures dexter's love for the costume- peta doesn't have this blog site do they?











this is dexter trying oh so desperately to escape this suit- doesn't he just look defeated?

















this is how wonderful my husband is- he got us into the penguin exhibit at the zoo so i could pet the penguins! this is what he likes to call my duck face- why duck face i have no idea- don't i look awesome with penguins?









enjoying myself in all that is penguin :0)


















my fabulous dance moves julia! :0) what were we doing?
photo- www.mthreestudio.com

















and finally my one and only shot of the night- this is the face i make- very elegant! :0)www.mthreestudio.com
happy monday everyone! <3

this morning in my car.....

so i realize that this may be a strange title for my post but my car really did get me thinking today. allow me to explain- i spend a lot of time in my car- and i mean a lot! i probably get in and out of my car about 10 or more times per day- i am always running- work, school, work, back to school, home, the store, or just daily errands. this is very taxing but you know what? i wouldn't trade it for anything, why? because the time that i am in my car helps me get two things:

1. time for myself
2. time to reflect

both of these things are very important- not only for me but for all of us. i really feel like i do my best thinking in my car. i enjoy getting in my car and running my errands because i know it's just me, my radio, and the open road. in my car really i am limitless- it can take me anywhere i need or want to go.

this morning i was in my car- thinking about those events i had spoken of in earlier posts (which i may or may not blog about later- we'll see how today goes!) and i realized something- i have spent far to much time dwelling on these events- life throws you curve balls and that is okay- in fact it is what makes us all stronger. i don't like to be tested- but sometimes it is necessary- and i truly feel that we will be in a better place because of all of this- maybe not today, maybe not even this month- but soon.

i just wanted to write this post in a way to remind myself- good things are ahead. i feel better everyday- this month has been hell! but then again i think that maybe i don't know what hell truly is- i don't have it that bad and i don't like to act like i do. everyone gets down on their luck- what i love most about blogging is that i can post and people reach out to me when i need it the most- no matter how silly or serious the posts- you are all there- i couldn't ask for more. what i love even more is that i am able to read all of your blogs and be there for you- that is something that is most important to me. :0)

so after this post i am thinking things will start to be a lot brighter around here at my blog. new things are coming- i could just tell how the world was brighter today- i try to look at like as if there is always something to look forward to- when i come home at the end of the day i know this is true- i have a husband who loves me more than anything in the world- and i love him just as much- we share everything together and i love that. i have a family who is always there for me- through it all- and friends that do the same- more than they know! and last but not least i have this blog- which has helped me write all this down and have a feeling of relief and connectedness to others- which is so important.

i will leave you with this picture- that i feel is very fitting- darin and i took a road trip to florida two years ago- we didn't have any money, but we did with what we had- and it was the most amazing time either of us have ever had- well maybe besides our wedding day and honeymoon :0)

happy thursday everyone!

my balloon mobile

so i have to say that after my last post i was feeling pretty down. I went to work on Valentines Day and was pretty sure that my day was in no way going to get any better. well i was wrong- i never took into account that i have the best husband in the world- and yes that is the whole world :0)

he made me heart shaped chocolate chip cookies- totally romantic and cute! he tried to use cookie cutters but they didn't work- so he formed them in to hearts by hand! i was floored- they were perfect hearts! he did an awesome job!

but that is not all i received!

he made me a huge valentines display on the ceiling of our bedroom- red balloons and pink streamers (see pic at bottom of post!)- so that before i go to bed at night i can think of him, and the moment i wake up i can think of him- it was totally sweet and just what i needed to feel better. he also got me a box of chocolates and a beautiful card(yet again another pic :0) that was so sweet. i really realized more then ever how lucky i am. not because my husband gives me things on valentines day- but because he is kind, compassionate, caring and wonderful every single day of the year- i just don't always see it because i'm too busy being stressed- which definitely has to stop.

i feel like i am devoting entirely too much time to being stressed out. i feel like i need to spend more time for myself- being happy about what IS going right in our lives. i spend waaaaay to much time being down- and i hate being a debbie downer- it's just not who i like to be- for myself, other people, or my awesome husband.

i really am hoping that this week will be different- i am going to go into it very positively- open mind, open heart, open eyes- i can only take one day at a time and life may not always be fantastic or go the way i plan but it really is beautiful and gives us amazing opportunities otherwise gone ungiven- does that make sense? i hope so!

well loyal blog readers this post is going to be a little short- i have a lot of psych reading and i hope before i fall asleep i can spend some quality time with the hubby cuddling and watching a movie- i have been promising him we would do this all week- i hope to keep my promise!

but before i go- did anyone drive last night in that horrible ice storm? unbelievable! D and i saw 15 accidents between racine and milwaukee- we couldn't believe it! some cars were even turned over- completely on the hood of their car! i don't think we saw so many squad cars in one night- ever! i hope all of you are safe and sound- drive carefully!!!! i can feel spring- i really can- it just has to be right around the corner! we need it!

have a happy monday everyone! more to come to you later :0) i will leave you with some pictures from our valentines day festivities :0)
my balloon mobile!













my beautiful card <3













me and d at benihana! <3

Dear Mr Valentine, Please Bring Me Some Good News

so this Valentines Day has not been like most- in fact i'm not really much in the Valentines Day mood. I don't say this to sound like a debbie downer- in fact i don't want to be- not at all. I love Valentines Day- i love the little conversation hearts that i eat waaaaaaaaaaay to many of, i love the fact i don't need an excuse to eat a ton of chocolate, and most of all i love being with hubby because i feel that without him days like this would mean nothing- no day in my life would be the same without him.

i just wish that things would start going our way- i mean, we have had A LOT of bad news in the past couple of days- things i cannot blog about now probably will when it is all said and done. i want to feel like our life is going forward- i hate the phrase " one step forward, two steps back"- why is that fair? sometimes i just don't get how life works- or how the things that happen to us could possibly happen- isn't their a limit as to how much two people can handle and take on?

well i am trying my best to put myself in good spirits- tonight D and i are going out to Benihana's- I LOVE BENIHANA'S!!!! We are actually celebrating our 6 month anniversary- we have been married 6 months! can you believe that? i can't - it seriously feels like i just walked down the aisle a month ago! i look overall at my life and realize that even though i probably don't have everything i have always wanted (who does) does not mean that hubby and i won't get there- we will build a great life together- we have already started! i look at our small apartment, ever mounting pile of bills, and of course our hectic work schedules and i realize that it won't be like this forever- something is bound to change. If there is a Valentine Fairy could you just do one thing for me? Bring us some luck- some positive change,- show us a sign in the right direction, please? this is really all i can ask for- and i sometimes even feel selfish asking for things- but i feel like what we need right now more than anything is support- support to get through all of this crap so we can move on to better things. i know it will happen somedays i just get really tired of sitting and waiting, ya know?

well girls i am off to work- then off for some fabulous hibachi- leave me kind words- D and i could both use them right about now!

Have a wonderful Valentines Day with your significant others- i leave you with a picture of me and my love- i encourage you all to do the same- look at the happy times because life can't always be what you want it to be- it is important to remember what brought you here and what will bring you through- trust me it helps! :0)
photo by www.mthreestudio.com

oh cricket cola, how i adore you....

okay so cricket cola will not be my only focus of this post- but let me get it out of the way because well i can't stop thinking about how good it is. for those of you who don't know what cricket cola is- it is a cola that is infused with green tea- full of sugar? yes. bad for you? probably. damn good? hell yes!!!!! it is probably my favorite soft drink- here is a picture of my love....i mean my favorite beverage- yea my beverage.....




























okay so that picture kind of made the post huge- but it had to be glorified :0) i have only been able to find it at Potbelly's sandwich shop- any ideas of where to get it? let me know! i love it- soooo good :0)

anyways not too much new- last night hubby and i went to botanas- a really cute mexican restaurant down on 5th and national- the food was awesome! very authentic and tasty :0)

tonight is our friend rachel's b-day so we are going out to club anything for some cheap beer and dancing- it should be a fabulous time!

other than that my life is semi-boring right now. it seems like all i do is school and work, school and work- no time for anything else. it really is sad but it won't be like this forever. hopefully a new job is on the horizon for hubby in the upcoming weeks so keep your fingers crossed for us! we really need to start banking some cash- we have a lot of bills and no way to pay them! we keep looking at this gorgeous house that is right near our apartment- i love this house!!!! it really is everything we want- but alas now is not the time- soon but not now. our goal is to be debt free by the end of summer- i know we can do it- D will be working a better job, i will have two jobs- so that is double the income- i really hope we can put all this debt nightmare behind us and move on! i can't wait! i have houses on the brain, i would really like children in the near future- all of these things unfortunately require money- but hubby and i don't like to dwell on money- we wish we had more but wishing doesn't make it so- and some day the luck will turn in our favor, i just know it.

so while i anxiously await the return of my husband i will leave you. there is lots of housework to be done and not a lot of time to do it in. however i have been known to clean the house in a record 20 minutes flat- we'll see what happens!

have a fabulous saturday night everyone- more musings soon to come!

started out good, went to bad, and then got better

so today started out good (see post above) i went to school- loved, and i mean loved my first class- fiber fabrics. This class rocks! we did wool dying today which was awesome! we died our own wool! i have never done much with wool or felting for that matter so i am psyched for wednesdays class! oooh! I found the perfect gift for petra (one of my best friends babies- so cute- i love her to bits!) that i can make myself!














aren't these just the damn cutest booties you have ever seen for a baby? absolutely adorable! and i can felt them myself! i am so excited! last semester in ceramics i made petra pig tiles- they were small square tiles- i made her two of them and then attached them to a nice blue wood antique looking frame- nada says she just loves them and looks at them all the time! am i the best auntie harmony ever or what? :0)

so after that class i went to psych- which i was totally prepared for- book in hand, notecards with both of my questions and of course my notebook with lots of notes i had taken while reading- i never do that! :0)

then it was lunch- salad and a taco- usually i man the taco bar- i love thy taco bar- but i only had one which i am proud of- i want to try to start eating healthier so i decided i could do without another taco and simply go for a larger salad. it was a good choice- salad is delicious and it actually filled me up so i was good to go.

finally the last class of the day was my fieldwork art therapy class- which was awesome because i had not had that class yet. we shared some stories about our vacations, did a group centering (where we introduce ourselves and tell everyone why we are there) and then we read through the syllabus- piece of cake! we were out of there by 4:15

then it began......i got to my car and decided i had plenty of time to drive home before work- so i got home, got out of the car and stepped in a huge and i mean huge pile of slush/dirt/cold water/unrecognizable slime- ewwww. i was pretty saddened by this but decided not to let it get me down- after all it was kind of funny when you think about it- i mean who does that?

then i got inside- changed into my work clothes and decided to count my money for the week- yea, i have a $20 that will last me for gas, food...wait, where the 20? i know i had a 20! WHERE IS THE 20??!?!?!?!?!!?
yep- you guessed it - i had lost the 20 dollars. so i did the only rational thing i could think of- tear apart my school bag, purse, bedroom, car and living room to find it- you would swear i was looking for a fix or something! absolutely insane- did i find it? no, definately not. so i call D at work- cry about how i lost my 20 dollars ( it must be that time of the month i swear to god i have never felt so emotional- but hey, 20 dollars is a lot of money!)

i then went to work- tons of shit in my inbox- what a great night this will be!

i randomly picked a stupid fight with hubby and instantly regretted it when i hung up- sometimes i just don't channel my feelings well- within minutes i had texted a make up text and all was good- but still- why did i have to do that?

so by now your probably thinking- did anything go right with this girl? is this whole blog post going to be about complaining? the answer? no! i got home, calmed down- turned on the tv to my favorite show- anthony bourdain and decided to make some ramen. as i walk into the kitchen i see a crisp 20 dollar bill sitting in the cat's water bowl- i ran at that water bowl like i was in the middle of the sahara dessert with nothing to drink. the cat looked at me- meowed at me- wondered- "what the hell is she doing?" but i had found it! wet, but still good!

so as you can all see- the day began good, started going south- and then we were back on track!

well i better get a move on my homework- all while making potatoes for a work party, doing the laundry, and spending quality time with D- trust me people i am a seasoned pro at this- it will all get done- or i will have one hell of a fun time procrastinating while i don't do it :0)