life, lately.

as of late.


Willow: has settled into a new sleep pattern.  First, she falls asleep directly on top of Cori, preferably as close to his face as possible.  At some point in the night, she settles either between us or on either side of us.  It's adorable and annoying all at the same time.  We've also finally found a solution to her flea problems- unfortunately, Florida's warm weather is perfect for breeding fleas, and Willow- our rambunctious, let me outside NOW cat- is particularly sensitive to them.  The expensive medicine didn't work; the $8 flea collar from Wal-Mart is doing the trick.  Go figure.


Dinner: has been yummy.  My newest hit with the hubby is Buffalo Chicken Stuffed Shells.  Of course, I don't eat it at all, but Cori loves Buffalo chicken and I've never made him anything of the sort... ever... so it was time.  It was fairly easy to make and he loved it, which is good because there is a lot of it and it is allllll for him!  In the last few weeks, we've also enjoyed Shrimp Scampi, Scallops with creamy bacon corn sauce, and the ever-classy (but so yummy!) Corn Dog Muffins, to name a few.  


Tampa: has been lovely.  We're still very much enjoying our church and the friends we've made there, bike rides around our neighborhood and time with our neighbors, and plan to continue to take advantage of our season's passes to Busch Gardens.  Yesterday we went to the beach, and it was just perfect.  Clearwater Beach (beautiful!) is about 30 to 45 minutes from us, so we got there by 10, enjoyed a few hours of soaking up the sun and splashing up the waves, and headed home at 1.  It's still foreign to me to have the beach so close.  Shouldn't I have to take a week off work and drive hours and hours to get to a nice beach like this?


Our tv: has been keeping us relaxed and amused with Netflix providing episodes of Parks and Recreation and Brian Regan sketches, and the library with movies like Lars and the Real Girl.


This summer: is shaping up to a be good one.  I'll be working full-time for the first summer in a long time, and while I'm mourning the relaxing days of summer past, I'm looking forward to teaching a summer VPK (voluntary pre-k) program.  I'm also excited for a conference (with speakers such as Tim & Kathy Keller and John & Noel Piper!) with some girlfriends from church, am hoping for a long weekend in NOLA, and am in the midst of finalizing plans for an anniversary/vacation trip with Cori.


The fall: already holds some pretty wonderful events.  One of my best friends, Kim, is getting married in October and I am SO excited to celebrate with her.  And of course, there are babies!  My friend Katie and her husband Aaron are expecting a boy in September, and in November, my friend Jenny and her husband Clarke are expecting a child.  My 10-year high school reunion is being held the day after Thanksgiving, so I'm hoping for a Virginia trip where we can combine seeing both our families with a meeting of Baby White and my reunion.