week in review

so all those things i was looking forward to over the weekend were ruined by some weird stomach bug i picked up :( on friday after the gym i just went home and laid on the couch to study and watch tlc bridal shows while my stomach ached. saturday morning i had to wake up and volunteer for 7 hours - which was fun and it went well but i almost vomited numerous times. i came home to nap and woke up even worse and tried to pull it together and go to mary's birthday dinner. i made it there but got sick at the restaurant and had to leave :( i got more sleep and have an awesome boyfriend who left a concert to bring me ginger ale and make me toast - i woke up feeling a little better the next day and pulled it together to go to the hawks game. i wasn't going to miss that!!! i still didn't feel very good but the hawks winning the game and quality time with mary and caitlin was a good temporary fix. monday i had to leave work early and skip bingo, which i HATE to do. i rested up a lot and ate a real meal of plain chicken breast and rice. big step up from the toast and soup i had been consuming for 3 days straight. i woke up the next day feeling almost back to normal and went off to class that night. i really do love my class. i'm learning so much and it really reminds me that i did make the right choice for my program. lots of potential thesis topics are arising. then on wednesday, i woke up and felt like a whole new woman! i'm still exhausted but no stomach issues anymore - knock on wood. i got to get a work out in and then go to the girl & the goat with tara for dinner. i've been DYING to try it. we ordered way too much ofcourse - we had their special bread with whipped goat cheese and a tomato spread, a goat, yogurt and cheese pizza, a chickpea fritter with goat cheese and hummus, crispy chicken breast and a chicken empanada, ham frites and sweet potato gratin with crispy onions and bleu cheese. we could have probably done without the pizza for sure but we wanted to try something with goat. my favorites were the sweet potatoes and crispy chicken breast. none of it blew my mind but everything was good - thoughtful, interesting and good flavor combos. but the best part was just spending time with tara - it had been awhile! and last night i got some quality time with my man - we went to see blue valentine which i thought was a super depressing version of 500 days of summer. i liked it though and i thought ryan gosling was phenomenal. tonight we're off to u of i to see his bro play in his bluegrass band. i'm really looking forward to it! and tomorrow is bella's 2nd birthday party. so the week had it's ups and downs but hopefully the rest of january will be fabulous!

looking forward to....

january has been pretty good to me so far with lots of birthday celebrations, a junk food dinner party, a weezer concert, a wine tasting, ice skating with mrs. j, tara's great work party and an enjoyable class. but there are so many things to look forward to for the rest of the month!

*celebration of service tomorrow

* celebrating mary's birthday tomorrow night

* hawks game on sunday

* girl & the goat with tara on wednesday

* family time on thursday night

*the day off on friday

* seeing rob's brother's bluegrass band at u of i

* bella's 2nd birthday party!

* huge alumni event in 2 weeks

* rob's 26th birthday party

* caitlin's work party

* getting to my first women's bball game of the season

and then it's february!

transition from vaca back to the real world

monday was my first day back to work after just under 2 weeks off. i ended vacation with mixed emotions. the first half of vacation was busy and full of family time but the second half basically involved a lot of couch and tv time. i can't even really remember what i did...mostly because it was a whole lotta nothing. normally, i have a hard time relaxing and being lazy but i didn't have much trouble this time! my eyes didn't feel tired, my skin looked better and i was sleeping for about 9 hours every night. i did start to crave productivity and felt guilty for being so lazy so i was definitely ready to get back to work on monday. i am glad to have a handle on my projects, have a routine and to jump back into a regular social life. however, i'm really really really tired. i had my first class after 6 weeks of no school on tuesday. i actually loved it! i like the content, the format and the professor. i'm so glad to be back in a classroom learning relevant things that i can apply to my work and my life. BUT i'm not quite ready to be doing homework again...i have so much reading to do and i don't even know how to sit down and do it anymore. i also didn't work out over break and monday was my first work out back. it was pretty standard but yesterday i decided to take a cardio kickboxing class...i haven't seen my face turn so red since jr. high basketball. it was sooo hard and i'm sooo out of shape. i ended up in bed at 10 p.m. but still feel totally exhausted. my calendar is nice and full - just as like it. filled with work functions, fitness classes and fun social outings. i'm so excited for so many things - a wine tasting tonight, weezer concert tomorrow, ice skating on saturday and several birthday parties - it's going to be a great month! but my body hasn't adjusted back to productive yet. i'm still stuck on the desire to sit around and do nothing. there are so many things i like about my non-vacation life but i need to get back in the groove!! hopefully i snap back soon!

2010 recap!

2010 was quite the year! it was full of wonderful memories and special occasions. here are some of the highlights!

i took 8 vacations/trips this year! i started the year in prague with rob, milwaukee with tara and ry, daytona beach with the horaths, california to visit caitlin and the liebls, hunky dory with the jensens, france with depaul folks, minnesota for rob's cousin's wedding and galena with my best girlfriends - not to mention several trips to michigan throughout the summer/fall. i can't believe i was out of town so much! i had so many amazing experiences with wonderful people and i can't be more grateful for all of the fun travel i did this year.

i was part of two weddings this year for two of my best friends! i had the honor of standing up in both weddings. it was so special to be part of two of my oldest and best friend's special days. i had an absolute blast at each wedding and both of the brides did a wonderful job!

i also became an "auntie" - unofficially. rob's sis had a perfect baby boy, luke. its been great watching him grow up over this past year and to be able share many memories with him and amy & tom.

i tried 64 new restaurants! my new year's resolution last year was to try as many new places as i could and i surpassed my goal! here's the list of all the places i tried:

tizi melloul, prosecco, nesh, blackbird, gemini bistro, may st. cafe, floriole, red mango, izaru, eleaven, bistrot zinc, duchamp, fireplace inn, piccolo sogno, firehouse grill, dmk burger bar, lucky's, devon seafood & grill, meze, sola, park grill, harmony grill, el nuevo, primebar, the counter, shiso, big star, falafel, kith & kin, fuego, cafe twist, five guys, renaldis, rhapsody, pho&i, jam, lokal, urban burger bar, the crossing, longman and eagle, chizakaya, revolution brewing, zocalo, cookie bar, birds nest, m burger, sable, fresca at macy's, del seoul, meatloaf bakery, paciugo, more cupcakes, al's beef, sunda, julius meinl, mista, bangers and lace, lovely, crisp, dog house, walnut room, table 52, castos, xoco.

i'm pretty proud of that list! it was a mix of fast food, burger joints, foodie spots, gourmet, dessert places, cafes and bars. i had a really hard time selecting my favorites but i think these are my top fives: longman and eagle, jam, table 52, nesh and crisp. my least favorites: fuego, blackbird, prosecco and urban burger bar are definitely places i will never return. honorable mentions: piccolo sogno, zocalo, kith & kin, julius menil, xoco and fireplace inn. i plan to keep track of all the new restaurants i try again this year because it's great to look back at all the amazing food i tried and meals i enjoyed.

this year's resolution is to be more spontaneous and allow more me time. i'm looking forward to all that 2011 has to offer! happy new year friends!