Friday Favorites!

Happy Friday everyone!!!

I feel like this week has flown by. With the holiday on Monday and snow day on Tuesday it's gone by fast for us. 

I always enjoy reading about people's favorite things so here is my list of my favorite things lately.

1. Fiber One Lemon Bars.

Holy cow, these things are so so good! They are sweet enough to where it curbs my desire for something really bad for me haha. 

2. Longmire (Netflix)

This show is really good! I started watching it with my Dad when I was in Florida and I became instantly hooked. It's about a small town Sheriff in Wyoming. It's based off books by author Craig Johnson. I highly recommend you start watching it. 

3. Rugged Outback Therma Weather Boots.

I wanted a pair of boots for snowy/icy days but didn't want to pay an arm and a leg. I found these at Payless and couldn't be happier with my purchase. They are warm and fit great. I definitely recommend them!

4. Puffer Vest- C9 By Champion

Speaking of cold weather, I'm not the biggest fan of running in it but let me tell you layers work wonders and these vests are perfect! I've been searching for good vests to run in and I finally scored these at Target. They are lightweight but warm. The pockets and collar are fleece lined which is perfect. The collar is high enough to where it can partially cover my face if I get cold. I have 3 of them and wear them constantly when heading out for a run.

5. Fun Water Bottle

This might seem like a pretty simple one but I absolutely love my new water bottle. A sweet friend of mine gave it to me when I wasn't feeling good last week. It's pretty much perfect for me, it says "blah, blah, blah. Go workout." haha! She knows me so well! I've been a slacker lately when it comes to drinking water and this has already helped tremendously!

Now that I've shared mine, what are some of your favorite things lately?

Have a great weekend!

To Buy Or Not To Buy

Buying or renting a home is one of the biggest decisions a military family will make. This is due to the nature of not knowing how long you will be at a particular duty station. Some are adamant about buying and some are adamant about renting/or living on the military installation. 

We have been on both sides. At 4 out of 5 of our duty stations we have opted to live on post. We chose that due to convenience. We have always enjoyed being close to Kyle's work and we are not the most picky people when it comes to where we live. The only time we have deviated was when we purchased our home in El Paso. We decided to try something new and we loved it. The wait list on Fort Bliss was extremely long and we only lived 4 hours away so we were able to travel there to look at homes. Unfortunately, we were only there for 22 months ( certainly not what we expected) and due to the unstable rental market at the time we decided to sell our home and we took a huge loss. 

We are preparing for a summer move back to NC (unless the Army decides to change that haha) and we have gone back and forth as to what to do. 

The housing for Kyle's rank on post is not really ideal. It reminds me of our first home on post there which wasn't terrible but it was tiny for the two of us. Now that we have E it would be a tight fit and I just don't want to have to deal with that. So post housing is out.

Next, we looked at renting a home. For what we are looking for, at least 4 bedrooms, fenced in yard, and a big kitchen the rent cost is extremely high and would ultimately be over our allotted BAH (basic allowance for housing).

So....as of right now we have decided to buy a home. Having worked in the mortgage business, I understand the process and know what needs to be done in order to get everything started. Once we have orders in hand we can begin the process. Thankfully, I am already in contact with a realtor in the area and she knows what we are looking for. I'm definitely hopeful that we will be able to find what we want, whether that be new construction or a resale. The market there is relatively stable and we could turn this into a rental property. As of right now I will be flying out there Memorial Weekend to look at homes and hopefully put an offer on one. If we get orders soon that trip will be bumped up. I'm ready to get this show on the road!

Have a great day!

E's First Snow

One of the things I was excited about when we moved to Kansas was E experiencing snow for the first time. She was born in Louisiana so the likelihood of her seeing snow there before we moved was pretty slim. 

We were all excited when we woke up yesterday morning to see snow on the ground! We missed the snow that happened around Christmas so we were thrilled that we would get to play in the snow. It was still slowly coming down as we were getting ready to head outside.

I purchased E a snowsuit on Amazon and a friend gave us her daughter's snow boots that no longer fit. She was ready to go! Kyle of course had to put her to work first haha.

She definitely didn't know what to think. She was intrigued by it but just couldn't quite figure it all out. She would sit down for a few minutes, rub her hands in it, and then get back up.

When I purchased her snowsuit I also bought a snow tube so she could have some fun. She really enjoyed that! She would let out a little giggle every now and then.

Later in the day we took her down the hill in our backyard which is significantly bigger. She loved that.

It was so fun playing in the snow for a little while and watching her just explore it all! It was such a memorable experience for all of us.

Kyle and I both wanted to get a run in but we were unsure how the sidewalks were with all the snow. We decided to give it a shot and went out as a family. A 4 mile snowy family run was the perfect way to end the day.

Overall, E's first experience with snow was a huge success! We will probably head out later today and play around for a bit longer if it warms up.

Hope you all have a wonderful day!

A Quick Getaway

One of the things I am not a huge fan of is the cold, especially when temperatures make it unbearable to do anything outside. Last week we decided it was time to escape the cold. We loaded E up and headed to Great Wolf Lodge in Kansas City. It's a plus because it's only 45 minutes away from!

If you have never been to Great Wolf Lodge before it's pretty amazing. We have been to the location in Charlotte but that was long before E. It's a hotel with an indoor waterpark! You can't beat it. They have themed rooms or standard rooms which are just as adorable. You have so many amenities to choose from to include an arcade, spa, ice cream shop, miniature golf, candy shop, restaurant, and even a fun game called MagiQuest for the kiddos (well and adults too if you so choose). They also have activities throughout the day for kids which is pretty amazing, this includes story time at night. When you book your room it includes your wristbands for the water park, for us with the military discount, you couldn't beat the price. 

We knew that since E is little that she wouldn't get to enjoy all of the slides but to be able to splash in the water and be in 84 degree temperatures was so worth it. We only stayed for one night which was just enough time to have fun and stay out of the cold. We arrived on Friday right at 4 which is when we could check in. Once we checked in we headed up to our room to get changed for the waterpark.

We spent about an hour playing in the water before heading up for a snack.

It was close to dinner so we called it a day, got dressed, and headed down to the restaurant. Dinner was really good and of course we saved room for dessert at the sweet shoppe.

We took our dessert to the room and let E play before putting her down to bed. Let me tell you that she slept like a champ haha. Something about playing in the water just takes it out of you.

We all slept great and were up bright and early the next morning for breakfast. E was so fascinated by the balcony, whenever she was in the room she just wanted to stare at it haha.

We had the cost of breakfast rolled into our stay and it was worth it (you can pay for it separately but they include tax and gratuity when you book it with your room). It was an amazing breakfast buffet with everything you could possibly imagine. E was in heaven.

We finished up breakfast and headed to the waterpark. We checked out of our room ahead of time and just kept a grab bag of clothes to change into prior to heading home. We spent several hours in the water and E was so happy. 

 

They have a really great kids area that is the perfect depth for littles. We took her into the last river a few times and had a great time.

Even though our stay was less than 24 hours it was really nice to get away and enjoy some family time. 

*If you don't have kids, I still recommend going! As I said we had gone a few times before having E and it was still just as fun.*

Have you ever been to a Great Wolf Lodge?

Places I Want To Visit

I keep a note in my phone of places I want to visit. It's always being updated and changed, it's fun to research and find new places to go. 

Here is my current list.

1. Branson, MO.

It's only 4 hours from us and I have heard amazing things from friends who have visited. Silver Dollar City is an amusement park that looks like a lot of fun. They also have the Titanic Museum there. Based on this info from Trip Advisor it looks like we would never be bored. I hope we can check this off my list before we move.

2. Denver, CO.

I have only been to the airport in Denver a handful of times but I have never been able to explore the city. It is only a 9 hour drive which could easily be done during a long weekend. All of the hiking and  outdoor activities is what has me drawn to visit. I've heard nothing but amazing things about this city. 

3. South Dakota.

This place has been on my list of places to visit since I was a little kid. To be able to stand in front of Mount Rushmore and The Crazy Horse Memorial would be incredible. There is so much to do and see there. It is only 10.5 hours away and it would be the perfect family vacation. Exploring a new area together while exposing E to so much incredible history. I am so excited that we will be checking this off my list in March. We decided to make this our Spring Break family trip. :)

4. Biltmore in Asheville, NC.

Since we are heading back to Bragg in June the Biltmore is high on my list. We never made it the first time we lived in NC (we had 4 years and failed lol). I've only seen pictures and it looks amazing. Friends have told me how wonderful it is. They have everything from a winery, carriage rides, biking, river float trips, and much more. 

5. Great Smoky Mountains.

This pick goes back to how much I love the outdoors. We drove through the Smoky Mountains when we moved to and from NC. I've always wanted to go back and it would be roughly a 6 hour drive. Between the hiking and waterfalls it would be the perfect weekend trip. They have the Element Ghost Town to explore plus Dollywood is only 30 minutes away. 

Hopefully we can check a few of these off my list.

Where do you want to visit this year?

Life in the Smith House

As of yesterday we are finally back into a routine. Kyle is back in class while E and I have resumed our normal daily schedule. Before I get started I want to say Happy Birthday so our sweet furry kiddo, Emma! She is 14 years old and still spunky. I have had her since she was 6 weeks old and she has been the best companion. <3 She is even starting to warm up to her little sister, which is the cutest thing.

We have, however, enjoyed the last few days of Kyle being home. We have been experiencing pretty frigid temperatures but we have tried to get out of the house for at least a little bit. 

This is what it looked like on post on Friday. I went on a run with friends and they took this photo. I mean it's absolutely beautiful and during the run is started snowing. Let me just say that this desert girl was giddy haha. 

E is not a fan of the cold weather so when we were out shopping on Saturday she was bundled up. 

I will say though that I have become a huge fan of layering while running haha. It made the fact that it was 10 degrees out somewhat bearable (Don't let E fool you, she was only mad because we stopped lol). 

We had a low key NYE which is exactly what we wanted. I picked up some party hats, we wore them for a bit and played around the house with E. She passed out at 7 and then I watched a show on Netflix and Kyle played video games until 11:45. We waited until midnight said Happy New Year and then went to bed haha. Emma and Fishy even got in on the festivities. :)

We were up bright and early the next day for SLAM. I love when Kyle has a day off so he can go. He really enjoys going and admits that it's a hardcore workout.

We were both hurting at this point haha!

Lastly, as of January 1, Kyle is officially a Major according to the Army (we will have his ceremony at the end of the month) so in honor of that I wanted to share his CGSC yearbook photo that we had taken back in September.

I love how classic it is. I am so happy that we were included in the photo. 

Have a great Thursday!!!

Goals for 2018

Hello, 2018 and Happy New Year, everyone!

As with every year, my first post is always focused on goals. I'm not one for resolutions as I feel they are easier to just throw aside after a while. Goals seems easier to obtain and achieve. Here are my goals for the year!

1. Pay Off Credit Card. 

We got somewhat off track with this last year. I blame the move and setting up a new household. But let's me honest there really is no excuse. One of the things we did do in 2017 was pay off my car 3 1/2 years early. All we have left is this credit card. While it's not an astronomical amount, it's something we desperately want to eliminate. My goal for this year is to pay off this card. Kyle will earn a pay raise due to promotion this month so we will making more substantial payments. They will be automatic so I won't be tempted to alter them. 

2. Eat Better

I would be lying if I said that I ate the best all the time. However, I want to get better about making certain choices. My workout group is starting a challenge on January 15th and I'm hoping it will help me incorporate more fruits and vegetables into my diet. I eat them but not regularly. It's a small change that I know will make a big difference for me.

3. Train and Run Chicago Marathon

It's no secret that I am running the Chicago Marathon in October. I am both terrified and excited. I've ran a marathon before but I did not train as much as I should/could have. I want this time to be different and I'm going to work my butt to ensure that it is different. Of course, on race day anything can happen but I am determined to go into it feeling the best I can. I am working on my training plan but I have a variety of races that will fit into my training schedule which I am excited about.

4. Read More

Since E was born I have read absolutely nothing, I know it's terrible! To be honest, it makes me sad. There are so many good books out there and I'm determined to jump back on the bandwagon in 2018. I want to take the time before bed every night to read instead of playing on my phone and zoning out in front of the tv. I know it will help relax me. I do have a list to start from but send me any book recommendations you have.

5. Be More Present

I set this goal last year and I want to continue it. I want to put my phone down and truly enjoy every moment I can with family and friends. I need to realize that I don't have to document every little thing. It's okay to not have a photo that goes along with a story or experience. It's about living in the moment and I need to do that. 

What are your goals for the new year?