Reaching Mile Stones!

    So I have been working with Dusk on a new trick and today was the first day that he has done the trick without me helping him at all! I am super excited about it, because it's a trick that I never thought I would be able to teach him. ever. So lets just say I am one proud mama!

Happy Weekend with My Boys

      This weekend was amazing despite the cold, nasty weather Friday. In fact Friday night, Cole, Austin and I braved the icy roads to drive out about 10 minutes to have dinner with our friend Karrah. We ate at Brixx, A delicious, awesome pizza joint that makes thin crust pizza in a brick oven. The place probably has over 20 types of pizza! We ended up staying in the restaurant talking over 2 hours, we're pretty sure all the waiters and waitresses hated us.
      Saturday Cole and I woke up, fixed breakfast and booked our cruise excursions and hotel reservations for the cruise we are taking in March! We ended up going out and running some errands, then took dusk for a jog and worked out later that night. We ended the night with a home cooked meal of tilapia, rice and green beans and a glass of sangria. We attempted to make a fire in the fireplace in my apartment but unfortunately the wood we bought had trouble lighting.
       Today I started the morning by making Cole banana bread pancakes, using a recipe I found on pintrest which you can find here. I made mine with regular flour, and I made it without the nutmeg (cause, well I don't currently own any). They turned out absolutely delicious, way. way. way. better. than. regular. pancakes. For lunch Cole and I decided we would walk Dusk down to the Panera Bread that is about a mile and a half from my apartment complex, and on our walk back we stopped at the Starbucks that is on the way for some coffee for the walk back. When we got home we acted like lumps on a log. We were absolutely lazy...Then I made spaghetti for dinner and Cole unfortunately had to head back to Columbia :(

I really enjoyed this weekend, because I got to spend it with my two favorite boys ever, and I really think Dusk enjoyed this weekend full of family time as well.

Dusk and I waiting for Cole to bring us our lunch. 

My cutie :) 

My two favorite boys! 

All I need to have a perfect weekend are those two cuties! 

Love them both so much! 

Having Starbucks, Panera, all the home-cooked food, 

and all the quality time with them

just made it even better! 

Happy Sunday, I hope everyone had a great weekend as well! 

OOTW

   This past week was on the rather chilly side, especially closer to the end of the week. In fact on Friday we had a winter weather advisory all day, and the roads, cars and sidewalks were all frozen over. Thankfully for once the south was well prepared for the bad weather and the roads really didn't get too bad because the roads were actually salted and sanded before the bad weather arrived. (Normally when there is "bad" winter weather down here the salt trucks don't start their rounds until after the weather has started and the roads are already bad.) 

Monday: 
Watch; Fossil (old)
Braclet; Coach (Summer 2012)
Pants; Target (old)
Boots & Blouse; K-Mart (Fall 2012)
Faux Leather Jacket; Belk (Fall 2012) 

Tuesday:
Sweater; Aeropostal (Winter 2012)
Scarf; Charlotte Russe (Summer 2012)
Red Skinny Jeans (old)
Flats; Target (Summer 2012) 

Wednesday: 
Bracelet; Forever 21 (Winter 2012)
Watch; Target (Summer 2011)
Coat & Top; unknown (old)
Belt and Jeans; Target (belt is old, Jeans Fall 2012)
Shoes; Target (Fall 2012)

Thursday:
Blazer; J.C. Penny (Winter 2012)
Top; Aeropostal (Winter 2012)
Jeans; Pacsun (old)
Heels; Target (old)

Friday I was sooo darn excited to see Cole that I totally forgot to take a photos of my outfit...Silly me. 

On another note Wednesday was "picture day" at work, 

(which may I add made me feel like I was in elementary school again! ha 

does anyone else remember how exciting school pictures were back then?) 

to update our photos on the webpage. 

So Wednesday was the first time in ages that I actually took 

the time to straighten my hair. 

I forgot how much I loved it straight! 

Especially now that my hair has gotten so long...

Shine a Light

      This week has in general been a rough week, between working late, trying to work out daily and my lack of sleep I am honestly exhausted! This week has also dragged on...It seems like every time Cole is coming to visit the week before seems like eternity...and then as soon as he gets up here the weekend flies by. It's actually rather depressing. So the weeks before Cole visits I'm always in a weird funk, I'm excited for the weekend, but I normally have a depressingly long and stressful week. This week is no different so when I was walking out of work today and saw the sky all I could think was "well isn't this a little ray of sunshine in a bleak boring week" The sky was absolutely breathtaking, and it certainly changed my tune. The moon was bright and high in the sky way before it was dusk, and the sunset was vivid, full of burning oranges, yellows and reds as well as beautiful blues and purples. I am a sunset and sunrise fanatic, they just make me stop in my tracks and stare for a moment. When I see an especially gorgeous one my mind always thanks god for such beauty, I can't help to think how grateful I am for the path my life has take, and sunrises truly are an instant mood changer for me. Seeing beauty in nature always makes me see my day in a new positive perspective, and I can't explain why. I have been feeling so down and negative this week that it was almost like this sunset was there for a reason today :) Needless to say I am in a much better mood, and I am looking forward to tomorrow and spending the weekend with Cole!

The moon, tonight...
I couldn't believe how bright it was

And the sunset :) 

Ohhh on an added note, Dusk (who never even wants to be near me at night) literally slept right beside me all night last night, which made me super happy. I don't know why but I love snuggling with him! He is just so adorable, and warm, and fuzzy, and did I mention adorable?! He also has decided recently that my pillows are his to lounge on.

My cutie thinking he owns the bed

Healthy Mexican Rice

                      This weekend I spent a good bit of time surfing pintrest to get some healthy recipe ideas and I found quite a few. One was a recipe for healthy strawberry banana muffins, which I followed word for word on the recipe when I was making them, Which you can find here! I must say they turned out really good, and like the blog says they are super quick and easy to just grab a few as you're walking out the door. They also are pretty filling for me! The blog also says they keep well, which I have also found to be true so far. I made them Sunday and they still tasted the same this morning as they did when I made them.

                      Aside from the yummy muffin recipe, I kept seeing all kinds of Mexican recipes. All of which looked mouth watering, because I personally love Mexican food. Cole and I love it so much that we probably eat Mexican two to three times a week, well that was before we started to eat healthy. So needless to say I have been craving it like crazy.....so I decided to concoct a healthier Mexican dish, using some of the canned foods I already had in the kitchen.

Here is the Final Product
Mexican Rice

To make Mexican rice you need: 

-2/3 cups cooked brown rice

-a shredded chicken breast

-sauteed mushrooms (as much as you desire) 

-black beans, I used canned (as much as you desire) 

-yellow corn, I used canned ( again, as much as you desire) 

-shredded cheese 

- rotel

-black olives

-lettuce

-sour cream 

         Literally all you do to make it is, boil and cook the rice, then while your waiting on the rice to absorb the excess water boil and shred the chicken breast. Once the rice is done cooking place it on a plate, top it with the chicken, and sprinkle your desired amount of cheese on it. Then saute the mushrooms, heat the beans and corn up then begin layering all the yummy topping over the rice finishing it off with lettuce and sour cream. Andddd Enjoy!!!  It turned out absolutely delicious, and the rotel gave it a good little kick! I will definitely be adding this to my "make again" recipe archive.

***another idea is to use all these ingredients and stuff a burrito with them, it would be almost as good as a Moe's homewrecker!

Just Workin' on Our Fitness!

One of my new years resolutions is to workout more, and to run with Dusk.  

Last time I was in Charlotte Dusk and I ran almost everyday, and he loved it,

and this year is no exception. In fact I think he may love it even more now! 

Since I started working last Monday work has already been crazy hectic, 

and I already worked a good bit of overtime last week. 

When I get home Dusk is all kinds of excited to see me and go outside. 

Now when I get into my running gear, and haul out the old trusty mizuno running shoes

Dusk's excitement goes to a whole other level.

He literally goes nuts...

running through the house

spinning like a mad man

whining with anticipation 

jumping up on me

and finally howling his cute, adorable little (well big loud, probably obnoxious) bark! 

Watch the video below to witness the hilarious madness yourself....

Enjoy! 

Needless to say Dusk and I went on a nice long run, 

we even ventured out of the apartment complex! 

We were both worn out when we got back,  

Dusk has since re-cooperated 

and is now gnawing on his giant rawhide bone.

Happy Monday Ya'll!!! 

Dusk and I hope you had a great day! 

-Stacey and Dusk 

I swear my dog is part cat....

           This week I have come to the conclusion that Dusk must be an eighth cat!
The reasons I believe he is part cat:

1. He sleeps on the backs of couches. 
2. He bats things around with his paws, specifically tennis balls. 
3. He chases laser pointers...probably more than a cat does! and may I add he loves it!!! 

    My roommate and I have been rather entertained by Dusk's "dot" obsession this week! 

Back to the Grind

     Dusk and I moved to Charlotte (with Cole's help) last weekend, so that I could head back to work Monday.  So this past week has been spent unpacking, organizing, unpacking some more, and adjusting to the early morning schedule. Needless to say keeping up with some of my new year goals have been a struggle, but I have for the most part kept them.One of my biggest goals is to look presentable everyday, including make-up and my hair being done, so this week I took daily photos of my outfits.

Monday

Tuesday*

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

*Excuse the poor quality of the Tuesday photo, I accidentally deleted it off my phone and had to steal it off my instagram... Which you should follow me, @sessel91

Please note from the photos that my outfits went from decently warm weather, to winter weather...that's not because I am insane and wear skirts in 50 degree weather. It was actually around 70 degrees on Monday and then we had lots of ice and a little bit of snow around the area on Thursday night/Friday morning!  

 Now as far as eating healthier and working out, I have been working hard, Dusk and I have gone for a run around the apartment complex twice this week, and I have worked out twice, and I had an off day during the week. I also have been eating a ton, ton, ton of veggies and fruit! I hope to continue my healthy changes and improve them and my work out schedule this week coming up!

Internet withdrawls...Is that possible?

   As of Saturday I am officially a North Carolina resident...well that is for 8 more months. I moved into my new apartment near Charlotte for this round of co-oping. Needless to say the internet in my apartment is not set up yet and will not be until saturday, so I haven't been able to post this week. I'm actually writing this post on my lunch break at work! ha. Needless to say I have had a lot of adjustments and exciting things happen this week, and I have been unable to post them on the blog this week. So FYI be on the look out this weekend cause as soon as we get internet I will be blogging up a storm! I have a hilarious video or three of Dusk, which I am super pumped to upload on here. Whelp back to the grind! Hope everyone has a great day...mine is a tad wet...(Its been raining for the past few days here, and its supposed to snow tonight!)

Packing, Packing, Packing and more Packing...

         I have been in college for about three and a half years now and so far I have lived in NINE, yes I said nine different places since I started college, those places being in three different cities: Columbia, Clemson and Charlotte.With that being said I am getting ready to make another move tomorrow...This time is back to Charlotte, to do another rotation in my co-op, and I must say I am pretty excited, but I HATE packing! with a passion. Needless to say I don't really pack, I just sort of shove everything into bags and boxes, with no rhyme or reason. Honestly it makes it easier on me, the less time spent packing the better! In fact I am actually going out on a double date tonight instead of packing, yes I know I'm a slacker! hah. but that's alright.

New Year, New Goals

Happy New Years! 

Cole, Deidre and I rang in the New Years right, but with the new year comes changes, and the good ole new years resolutions! 

My Resolutions/Goals: 

1. Eat healthier- I want to eat more vegetables and fruits, and attempt to cut down on carbs. (If you know me personally then you know that carbs are my favorite food...pasta especially) 
2. Workout- I have started working out more regularly, and I plan to work out even more once I have settled down back in Charlotte. 
3. Exercise with Dusk- Walk/Run with him everday, and play ball/frisbee with him. 
4. Do my hair and make-up daily
5. Save Money during my Co-Op 

  

"My Truck is Gone"

           Since I have been on Christmas break, I have been staying at Cole's parents' house so that Cole and I can spend as much time as possible together while we are in the same town. Our routine is staying up as late as possible to spend time together, go to bed, Cole wakes me up when he leaves for work to tell me bye, and I sleep until I wake up...(I am attempting to catch up on all the sleep I lost last semester) 

          Monday morning I was woken up to Cole grumbling to me "My truck is gone" first thing in the morning instead of waking up to Cole saying goodbye and giving me my normal sweet kiss. It took a second to register, but when it finally clicked, I was hoping out of bed and walking into Cole's upsetting reality. While we were sleeping someone stole Cole's truck from right in front of his parents house, and all sorts of terrible scenarios and questions were running through our heads...Would the cops ever find the truck? The truck is probably scrapped, or parted out. If the truck was found, would it be fixable?  How long will it be before we hear anything? Is the truck wrecked somewhere? Is the asshole who stole it gonna be caught? Is something else going to be stolen? The day was filled with stress, worry and anger. The day literally felt like weeks, it dragged on and on and on. 

          That night while we were sleeping the dogs went ballistic  I woke up to them barking and I honestly thought, holy crap something else is getting stolen...but that wasn't the case at all! A cop actually was at the door at 3:30 am to inform us that the truck was found, that it was undriveable and that they needed to know weather Cole wanted them to process the truck, and have CSI dust for prints. Cole of course wanted it processed, and the truck is still being processed by the police. We are hoping that they can catch the rotten person who took it. 

The Holiday Season...

     I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year...I know Cole and I did!

Merry Christmas 2012! 

        Cole and I are always insanely busy during December, and this year was no different...if anything we were busier than normal. I got home from school a week before Christmas and we have been on the go since between spending time with family, meeting up with friends, celebrating the holidays, and finding time to workout!
       The weekend before Christmas Glenn (my brother) and Grammy made their way down from Pittsburgh to spend the week celebrating the holidays with my parents, Cole and I. Through the week we went bowling, saw The Hobbit, and went out on the town! We also spent a lot of time with Cole's family through the week.
        We also made time to go out on a double date with Sam and Deidre to a new restaurant none of us had tried yet and saw This is 40. 
       Christmas eve we made christmas cookies with Deidre like we always do, it is one of the Christmas traditions I will always continue! Actual Christmas day was madhouse crazy, we woke up and spent the morning opening gifts with Cole's family and enjoyed cinnamon rolls for breakfast. Then we rode over to my parents house, filled up on our traditional christmas breakfast, and opened gifts and snacked on the GIANT Whitman's sampler that Santa always leaves for the whole family on the coffee table.  Next stop was Winnsboro to eat christmas lunch/dinner and open gifts with Grandmommy, Grandma Janie and the rest of Cole's family and to end the night we went back to my parents house for dinner and went out to see The Hobbit with my brother and our close family friend Ashley!