The Fabulous Life of Stefanie

Yesterday marked 8 years since we stood in front of everyone that matters to us, during a full mass that I insisted upon, and vowed to do this thing forever. Forever is hard; it isn't what it used to be, they say. But with you, it's easy, seamless even. Forever is not long enough because of the way that you make me laugh, the way you make me think and the way that you love and support me in an unconditional way I had never known could exist between two people. I didn't think it would end up like this for me. A girl from Nevada with a wild streak that tangled around a domestic streak with no real idea of how two people go about making a marriage not just last but flourish . But it did happen. We made it happen. We are doing it everyday of our lives together. Is it all fireworks and passion? Nope . Sometimes the only alone time we get is a quick two minute conversation running down everything that needs to be done and juggled and figured out that day to make all of our li...

These two and their shenanigans. I just had to post this cuteness. Hi y'all! Just wanted to pop in and wish everyone a happy Friday, mostly because I just really love typing that it is finally Friday. It has been a very busy week between work, Matty back in classes and trying to not sleep through my half-marathon training runs (the weather is just so crisp and perfect for sleeping at night!). Today is our four year wedding anniversary, and to celebrate we are going to my AIL's house to do laundry and not make our own dinner. I know, it IS heavenly. Then tomorrow we get to go out on a dinner date to canoodle and talk about how incredibly awesome the last four years have been. I am so proud of everything that we have accomplished together: a healthy child, our own home, growing careers and so much travel, laughs and memories. I really, really love that man of mine and am amazed at how these years are flying by. Four years ago! We have absolutely not one single thing...

Since yesterday was Father's Day and we had a whole lot of awesome family fun to partake in, I didn't get a chance to come here and wish my favorite dude a very, very happy day. But let it be known that Madeleine and I think we have the very best guy in the world for this whole fathering job and I thank God every day that I get to be on this crazy journey with such an amazing man. My Dad passed away unexpectedly when I was five and despite having tried, I don't have any sort of relationship with any of the men who have been in the step-father role for me. It definitely makes me sad, and for some reason this Father's Day it made me a little more sad than usual. I tend to miss my Dad the most during the big events - graduations, weddings, babies being born - but lately I have felt his absence in the smaller things. Wanting to call him and ask about painting things in our new home or wondering what kind of neat things he would want to teach Madeleine about the wor...

In addition to writing this extremely popular, internationally followed blog (teehee) I am also a big fan of reading blogs and, like everyone else and their mother (and my mother) I also follow a lot of friends and non-friends on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. A lot of wonderful content is shared there but, let's face it, a lot of it is the bright side of life and we tend to leave the nitty gritty difficult stuff out. We see beautiful smiling babies, dressed up date nights, fun vacation shots but not so much the meltdown in the car seat, the slow nights at home catching up on the DVR or the bank balance that follows a wonderful vacation. There are some people that balance it out, and there are some people that take it waaaaay to the extreme and put their entire life out there, dirty laundry and all, which is sadly sometimes too crazy for me to look away from. I admit, there are some people I stay friends with on Facebook just because their dramatic lives and status updates are ...

Saturday I had a bit of a nervous breakdown. In the middle of doing a huge pile of dishes I felt myself losing my last thread of sanity for that morning and went ahead and had an ugly cry. Then, I did whatever I do when I am feeling overwhelmed, and cleaned the hell out of the whole house, rearranged some furniture, made a new recipe and asked Madeleine to accompany me in a brass band dance party in the kitchen. I may have also sent a mean text to my husband and taken a xanax. Coping methods, people! They are so varied among us, no? The most ironic thing about all of this is I knew exactly what was wrong before that ugly cry came out. I was feeling overwhelmed and out of control about one aspect of life (our financial situation) so I projected it onto something that I had more control over (the cleanliness of my house). I do this ALL THE TIME. When I am stressed out about the miles ahead of me on a long run, I switch my brain over to my to-do list at work and start meticulousl...

Aaaaand fini. I'm amazed I was able to take time each day to write a bit (or at least almost every day) but not at all surprised that I found something different to be thankful for all thirty days.  Life is messy and complicated and not the picture perfect Instagram pictures we see every day, but there is beauty to be found in it all. Even on my hardest days, in the thick of exhaustion and anxiety, it takes just a glance at my healthy baby girl or a chat with my wonderful husband, a text from my best friend or an early morning run to know that I have a lot to be thankful for.  Today I am thankful for all that I have but also for what is to come in the next year. Although I can't predict the future, I do plan on meeting some big goals in the months to come and I'm excited to be at a stage in my life where things are consistent and wonderful but there are always chances for improvement. I get to be a part of a huge new chapter in my organization; Maddie is growing and learnin...

I am not sure where to start with this post, what witty or cute thing to say, so I am just going to skip that and let this picture do the talking: I ran a marathon! Yep, twenty six point two miles later, I am a marathon finisher and I am feeling pretty darn good about it. The bottoms of my feet are sore, but the rest of my body feels totally great, which means I trained well and didn't push myself too hard on race day. It also means that I need new running shoes, apparently about 800 miles was my limit on my trusty Brooks . The race was pretty amazing for a number of reasons The weather was perfect - cool and sunny with some splashes of cloud breaks to keep from being too bright or hot. The views were beautiful and varied - the Newport mansions, the ocean and lots of greenery - oh New England, you beautiful thing  you. The spectators were awesome - there was a group at mile twenty banging on pots and pans and waving a flag and cheering their hearts out who could not h...

I started using eye cream for the first time in my life about a week ago, as a preventative measure, you know? I get really dry skin around my eyes and figured that not only would I be helping to fix that situation but that I would also be tackling any wrinkles that may show up in ten years (shhh, I know, I know, don't ruin it for me). Last night as I was washing my make up off for bed I noticed that my eyes seem a little brighter and the dry skin is a lot better, making me feel pretty good about my purchase...fast forward nine hours when I am standing in front of the same mirror with bags the size and color of a body bag hanging out underneath there. Hell-o Monday! But hey, we had a good weekend and learned that even (especially) on a Sunday a late nap will definitely screw the kiddo's sleep schedule up and keep her awake way past the time that we want to be awake. Never stop learning, people. We started our weekend off by attending a beautiful wedding reception in Narragans...

Since having the baby Matty and I have been lucky to make it out for a date night once a month, though it took us until the third time out to really let loose and not inhale our food and rush back as soon as possible. I have to admit, it was pretty awesome just to relax and enjoy each other, to talk about work and dreams and gossip (my favorite topics, especially the latter two) and to allow Maddie to have her fun time away from us too (ie. getting spoiled with love by her Grand Aunt). We decided to get dinner at the Island Creek Oyster Bar in Kenmore Square as we had been meaning to go there since they opened, but someone was pregnant for 9 months and couldn't have raw oysters, which is the whole point of going there, if you ask me. The spot itself is really well thought out and resembles being down the Cape in an artsy, modernist sort of way. There is a huge mural of the shore on one wall and oysters in cages line another wall while dozens of cans of Narraganset line the bar wa...

Matty introduces me to Madeleine for the first time Happy New Year's Eve everyone! You know what I love about this time of year, aside from playing with all my new Christmas presents?: the lists. I love me some lists, and as the year ends everyone has them - the top news stories, the biggest celebrity breakups, the best this and that. I just can't get enough of them. And so, in the spirit of year-end lists, I present to you my own lists of the top Stefanie-centric things and events of 2011 - enjoy! Three generations in front of our well decorated Christmas Tree My Top Ten Life Events of 2011 Giving birth to a beautiful and healthy baby girl Moving to our new home and new neighborhood (Dot Rats for life!) Watching my husband finish the Boston Marathon (his 1st marathon ever) Celebrating the first year of marriage to my amazing, loving husband Getting to tell our family and friends about our bun in the oven My sister-in-law moving back to the East Coast from Seattle Buying our f...

I think it's despicable that I only post once a month, I promise (myself) that will change, even if it's just a few words on life, some pictures or a random thought, I will post more. I follow a lot of bloggers and I look forward to their (more frequent) posts, so I need to embody their consistency and get to it! Oh, and I heart blogging and the great feedback I get from my friends, which are the best reasons of all to post more! Since we last spoke.... Fall kind of turned into Summer but is turning back to Fall, I hope. It's October, which meant an intense need to go apple picking and find the perfect pumpkin, so Matty, Kate and I set out for Tougas Family Farm to get our fill yesterday. It was a pretty farm with a great selection of apples (which is important for our varied needs to bake, puree, eat and cook) and they had pygmy goats (!!) the only issue was, that even in a tank top and flip flops, it was just too damn hot. At eight months prego I could be biased, but ski...

I love my husband. I know that most wives love their husbands (at least I hope they do) but seriously, I L-O-V-E that man of mine. We had such a lovely, relaxed, spontaneous and full weekend together, and I just needed to say that I love him oh so very much. I feel like the luckiest girl in the world when I am around him...or thinking of him...or sound asleep dreaming of our future together. Friday I got out of work early (just because, thanks work!) and went home to relax and clean the house a little and make some curried rice with shrimp for dinner. We finally watched The Fighter (which I loved) and we snuggled on the couch and went to bed early and everything was just how I love it. In bed with Matty on one side and Louis on the other, both snoring away. It's like an ocean sound machine for me. On Saturday Matty went running (one week until race day!) and I took my Little (H) on an Easter Egg Hunt at the Parker Hill Library. H and I also played on this great playground between t...