Summer Illness Sucks

Brian and I are sick. I'm sure it's from the drastic temperature changes we underwent going from home, to Montana, to back home. High in Glacier: 70. High in Lawrence: 93. Plus probably being on airplanes with nasty, germy people. I started feeling sick the day after we got back. Sore throat, headache, stuffy nose. Brian was feeling it yesterday. I'm doing a little better today, but Brian is worse. We've layed around all day and done practically nothing. I managed to get a little cleaning done. We are having people over tomorrow and I was not comfortable with having friends in our house in it's current state. I made some brownies using AB's cocoa brownie recipe. They turned out pretty good and will be gone before tomorrow I'm sure. I have had 2 and Brian has had a bite pretty much every time he's entered the kitchen. So yeah. They're half gone.

I'm hoping we're both feeling better by tomorrow. I want to hit up the farmer's market in the morning and get some yummy, fresh goodies to cook with next week. On a related not I also really want to go get our plants back. A friend of Brian's from work watched them for us while we are on vacation. We were going to get them sooner, but we got sick. I miss my tomatoes, peppers, onions and spices. I feel like a neglectful plant mother. I'm hoping we can do that tomorrow as well. I would also like to run to Walmart and get some things for my classroom. I really need some clear plastic tubs to use to organize my classroom library. They also have some great dorm stuff right now I would like to get for my reading area. Cool, fuzzy colored rugs and pillows and bean bag chairs. Starting next week I will be hitting it hard getting ready for the year. Working on my room, orientations, meetings and such.

Tomorrow evening we are having friends from KC over for a pre-engagement party, party. We're planning on going out to The Sandbar to celebrate. I also messaged some of my girls to see if they would come. I hope they do. I haven't seen them in forever and I miss them. Plus I want to show my ring off. ;o)

A couple of our boxes came back today! We shipped our camping gear to our friend Brett in Montana before our trip and shipped it back to ourselves when we left. One of the boxes contained a really cool Glacier National Park poster we bought while we were there. Luckily it was one of the boxes that came today! Here's a picture of it hanging on our living room wall. I think it looks great!

Ooooh! Fun and pretty!

I got bored and started fiddling around with my blog this afternoon. Sure I should have been uploading pictures from vacation, working on classroom stuff or cleaning the house, but meh, who cares? I think it looks pretty cool now! I didn't do anything too fancy. I just starting messing with settings I hadn't really messed with. It's not terribly personalized or amazing, but I like it for now.

I've been going through the pictures from vacation to upload to facebook. It is a TASK! I got rid of a few that were blurry or crooked or just looked bad. We still have 1,051. Yeesh. Here's one I came across that I forgot about that is really pretty!

I love how you can see the sun shining through the clouds. So beautiful!

Feeling Frustrated

So I've been doing really well since going off Lexapro for my anxiety. I haven't had any problems except for a couple of days before I start my period. I noticed this happened last month and again this month. I talked to Kim about it the other day and she suggested talking to my doctor about  switching birth control pills. I thought this seemed like a good, logical idea. I went to my doctor today for a physical for work and I wasn't very happy with what she had to say. Her suggestion was to not switch my birth control because it might mess up my cycle, give me cramps, and cause trouble with acne. She thought it would be a good idea to prescribe me Prozac to take just during the week before my period. I was NOT happy to hear this. I thought that she would be totally on board with switching my birth control. It seemed like the next logical step. Prozac seems drastic. I asked a lot of questions. I had a hard time when I first started Lexapro waiting for it to build up in my system. It made me feel weird and I don't want to feel that way again. I guess there is a possibility it could, but if that's the case then I don't have to take it. She wrote me a prescription for 20mg for 30 days. She wants me to try it during my next cycle and see if it helps. I called Brian, my mom, my friends, and Kim to get their opinion. Mixed reviews, but most say I should give it a try. I know that if I don't like it and it doesn't help I can look into switching birth control or something else. I just really don't want to be on anything, you know? And honestly these past 2 times I've had anxiety before my period sucked major bad while they were happening, but I got over it. I'm feeling great now. Aside from the stuffy nose and sore throat that I have recently acquired. I'm just feeling really frustrated with the whole situation. I guess the best thing I can do now is not think about it or worry about it until next month and only if I need it.

Gettin' Engaged in Glacier!

I'm back! As promised. And ready to share the story and pictures from when Brian popped the question as well as some pictures of the beautiful scenery we were so lucky to see! So first things first: The ring!

Not the greatest picture, but isn't it pretty?!? It's absolutely perfect! 1/2 a carat, solitaire, princess cut, white gold band. It was a little tight at first because my fingers were swollen from hiking, but now I'm getting ahead of myself. Let me start at the beginning.

It was July 20th, our 6th day at the park and our 3rd day at our second campsite at Rising Sun. We were going on a hike starting from Sun Point to see 3 waterfalls: Baring Falls, St. Mary Falls, and Virginia Falls. It was pretty dreary that day and and rained off an on. It was also kind of windy and cold. But I figured it would be worth it to have a nice hike and see some beautiful waterfalls. I had know clue what was about to happen.

We hiked along the trail and stopped at Baring Falls first. It was pretty cool, but kind of small so we didn't stay long. Here's a picture:

Nerves of steel that boy has. Who would have known he was an hour away from proposing. 

We hiked on and soon we approached St. Mary falls which was much larger and more impressive. Here's a picture of it! 

See what I mean? Gorgeous huh? 

As we took in the beauty of the falls and snapped a few pictures Brian suggested we sit for awhile on a nearby rock and enjoy the view. I agreed and scooted up beside him. He rested his head on my shoulder as he said, "I'm just going to put my head right here." I said, "okay," as I reached up to put my finger on the dimple on his chin like I often do. I said, "I'm just going to touch "my spot."" Right after I said this Brian reached into his pocket and pulled out this: 

He said, "How would you like it to be your spot forever?" At this point I was starting to think something big was about to happen, but was still very confused. I kept trying to ask, "What are you doing?" But all that would come out was, "Wah...wah...wah..." Brian pulled out the most beautiful ring I've ever seen from the bag and said, "Sarah Michelle Moore, will you marry me?" I finally able to speak and I spat out, "Are you serious right now?!?" Brian replied, "Yeah I'm serious!" And then I said, "Yes! Of course!" He put the ring on my finger and I bawled my eyes out.

We were able to ask a guy nearby to take our picture on the rock:

Not the most flattering photo, but who the hell cares?! 

Afterward we decided to skip the third waterfall and hike back. We were hungry and had to pee and we had just gotten freakin' engaged! I was so excited! I wanted to tell my mom and Kaleigh ASAP. Which wasn't very soon seeing as we had NO cell service. I was so excited to tell SOMEONE that I ended up telling the older couple camping across from us on the hike back! It was pretty funny! 

For the rest of the day I did a lot of this: 

And this.....

And this.....

And lets face it I'm still doing a lot of this.

Later that day I used a calling card to call my mom and Kaleigh from a pay phone to tell them the good news. Brian got both on video. Maybe I'll share those later. 

His proposal was everything I could of dreamed of. I was completely surprised, he asked me in front of a  beautiful waterfall, and I had no way to call anyone or Facebook right away. I was completely in the moment. 

Now we're back home and I've got wedding on the brain. I've been looking at The Knot and magazines getting all sorts of ideas. I even found a picture of a dress I like and want to try on! I know we've got awhile before we need to start working on wedding stuff. I really don't want to rush through our engagement, but I think we're looking at next August maybe. I'm sure you will read all about it on here! 

I will post more pictures of Glacier later, but I'd like to leave you with, what I think, is the prettiest one. 

Isn't the reflection on the water breath-taking? 

Back home with BIG news and time to get busy!

Greetings everyone from the comfort of MY bed! It is so good to be home. Brian and I had an amazing time at Glacier National Park! I will look back on this trip forever as my favorite vacation because.....I'M ENGAGED! That's right. Brian popped the question while we were on our trip. I plan on doing a whole post about it, but lets just say I was very surprised. There were lots of tears, and of course I said yes!


Although the scenery at the park was beautiful (there will be a post with pictures) and I had a fantastic time I am soooo glad to be home. 2 weeks is an awful long time to be away. Today will be about relaxing and catching up on a few house  things, but after that it's going to be BIZ-EEE! I have dentist and doctors appointments all this week. Gotta get that stuff taken care of before school starts! Then next week I will be going to new staff academy and working on my room. The week after will be more back to school meetings, and then it will be time for school to start! Whew! This summer has gone by fast. It seems just like yesterday I was stressing about finding a job and worrying I wouldn't be able to enjoy my summer. Now here we are at the end and it's been great!

I'll be back later today with the engagement post and Glacier pictures! See you then!

Meet Me in Montana

We're leaving for Montana tomorrow! I think I'll wear my  hair like Marie. Looks good don't it? Our flight is at noon and we'll have a lay over in Vegas for FOUR HOURS! Oh what will we do???

Mmmmhmmmmm! Yeah right...Gambling makes me nervous and I'm broke so....maybe I will window shop.

After our lay over we fly to Missoula. We're staying with Brian's friend Brett our first night. He has a mastiff! I'm excited to play with the doggy. Then Thursday morning we'll get in our rental car and go to the store to get our food then head to our first campsite! We'll be camping at Lake McDonald for 4 days then move to Many Glaciers for another 4 days. Then we'll be headed up the Prince of Whales hotel in Waterton, Canada! Super excited about this! Look how beautiful it is!

After a couple of nights here we'll be headed back to Brett's for 2 days then fly back home! I'm really excited. Brian and I are going to have such a great time. I have to admit I am a little nervous. I've never been camping for this long before and I hope I can hack it. There's still snow in some parts of the park and you know how I feel about winter,  but it shouldn't be too bad.

We'll take lots of picture so expect a big post when I get back. See you in 2 weeks! :o)

My my how time flies!

Brian and I are headed to Illinois this weekend to celebrate my God daughter, Reygan's 2nd birthday. I can't believe she's already 2! It seems like it was just yesterday I was out there for her birth. And now she's a big sister and growing up so fast. She's so super smart. She already knows all of her colors and shapes. It's cause her mommy and daddy are super smart and teach her lots. Here's a picture of Reygan and I the day after she was born.

And here's one of Reygan now with baby brother Jackson!

Pump the brakes! Maybe...

I've been feeling very conflicted the past few weeks. I feel like summer is FLYING by. Last weekend was the 4th of July and it feels like school just got out yesterday. We are going to Illinois this weekend for Reygan's birthday then off to Montana shortly after we get back. Part of me is like, "Slow the hell down, summer!" But then another part of me is feeling good about it going by fast. I think I've decided next summer I will be getting some sort of job. I feel like I have waaaay too much down time. It makes for a lot of boredom, and at times worry. I took my last Lexapro probably 3 weeks ago and since then it's been a roller coaster. Not an adult, big roller coaster, but at least a little one. Like at Camp Snoopy. For the first couple of weeks I had a lot of trouble with dizziness and weird heart flutters. I was weepy and worried I would feel bad again. Then most of last week was wonderful. The dizziness went away. I felt like myself again. Then things started feeling off again. I had a little panic attack one evening. I was excited to go celebrate the 4th with my family, but at the same time felt worried I was going to have negative emotions again. My therapist had said that if I felt persistent emotions that are not reflective of my environment I should take that as a sign I may need to go back on medication. I don't feel like that is the case. I would say 90% of the time everything is great. Then every now and then I feel a sense of sadness and worry that I'm not going to feel good. That I'm going to have anxiety. Or that I'm going to feel sad during a time I should feel happy. And then worrying and ruminating about it makes me frustrated. Sometimes it's a sadness that life is different now. Don't get me wrong I'm super happy with the life I have with Brian and my family and friends. But going to my parent's house; home doesn't feel like home anymore. This summer hasn't felt like summer to me. I wasn't as excited about the 4th of July as I usually get. Maybe it's just changing and getting older and life is going in a different direction. A good direction. But it's foreign, because it's new. It doesn't mean that I've lost my spark or my happiness. That I have a mental issue. It's just a new chapter and I need to embrace it.


I have so much to look forward to these next few weeks. Like I said we're going to Illinois then Montana. It's going to so fun. I get to see my best friends and my God daughter and her little brother. Then spend some quality time with the love of my life in a beautiful setting. No sense in ruining all that with worries of feeling bad when it is absolutely not going to happen. I need to remember to shake those negative thoughts whenever they pop up. I know that they tend to come around when I'm by myself or don't have much to occupy my time. If I know that then I should use my strategies to help. I can do it. I've done it before and I will get to a point where it is easier and I won't have to do it as often. I just have to keep working at it.