I'm going to hell.

Yes, that is my new destination - HELL.

I sent an email to my step-mom asking for my step-sister's address. She had given me a gift for my shower and I need to send a thank you but I know that she recently moved. In the response, my S-M sent the address and asked if I wanted the addresses for my step-brother, her father, brother and sister too for reception invitations.

CRAP! I hadn't even thought about inviting them. I've met them maybe 2-3 times since my dad remarried about 8 years ago and couldn't pick them out in a crowd if my life depended on it. Considering I had already told my mom that she couldn't include anyone on the invite list that I didn't know, I was torn on what to do about this group. I typed out an email to B asking for his opinion. My comment to him was, "Do you think I should include S-M's family in the reception? I'm torn. Now that she sent this I almost feel obligated."

A short while later I IM'd him asking if he had seen my email. "What email?" he asked. My heart literally dropped to the floor. I then realized that I had hit reply instead of forward. The email had gone to my S-M. SH*T, SH*T, SH*T! I am a TERRIBLE PERSON.

I immediately emailed her again, stating the truth. I was VERY sorry. I don't know her family and hesitated at inviting them. She responded with, it's not a big deal but I still feel terrible. Her family is now on the invite list. I now feel the need to do something extra nice for them to make up for my faux-pas...

AHHHH!

I just spent 20 minutes writing my blog post and for the first time ever Blogger timed out! Since I don't have time to rewrite everything here is a brief replay:

• Indiana bridal shower went well. A lot more people there than either B or I expected but not surprising since B's mom is one of 11 kids.
• I passed my PMP exam!!!!
• Recruiting at U of Illinios was fun but HOT. We were outside in a tent from 7:30 - 5:00 in 95 degree weather.
• Spent the weekend in Peoria with my mom and nieces. My sister was celebrating her anniversary so I helped keep the kids entertained.

More about those events later...back to work for me.

Busy Busy

It's been a bit busy lately. Too much stuff going on at the same time and things (like blogging) are falling to the way side. I've been trying to study for my Project Management Professional certification exam. Why get certified? I've been asking that of myself a lot lately. Seems like one of the staples for IT that doesn't typically get outsourced to contractors, is project management. Many of my co-workers have been getting certified and I figured, it can only help my career so why not?

Getting PMP certified isn't a bad idea, I just chose a bad time to do it. Between wedding stuff, working out, studying, and house renovations, there isn't much time left in the day. I think B and the puppy are feeling neglected. Oh, and I've also started recruiting for my company. This involves taking occasional trips down to my alma mater (U of Illinois).

The exam is next Wednesday. I just need to get by until then. We are headed down to southern Indiana to visit B's family and for bridal shower number 2. That means I have at least 7 hours (or longer depending on Chicago traffic) of studying as we drive down and another 7 hours back. I should be overflowing with PMP knowledge by Monday!

FUN!

My bachelorette party was loads of fun. We all met up at a hotel in Chicago and started the night off with some girly pampering. Foot soaking, pedicures, wine, cheese, fruit, etc. Firecracker did a great job with organizing everything! AND because she loves me, I was only required to wear a white feather boa for the evening. I didn't mind (except for it being very hot wrapped around my neck) and people still got the point that it was a bachelorette party.

The first stop was a favorite Tapas bar where we stuffed our faces and drank lots of Sangria. One person got a fried banana dessert that turned out to look very appropriate for the evening's festivities (I know all you ladies can use your imagination!).

Next stop was Fado's for some Guinness (my favorite adult beverage). This is where the games began. Firecracker had found this card game for everyone to participate in called That Guy. Each card had a picture and description of a certain type of guy. The point of the game was to find a guy that matched the card, gain approval from the group and then have them take a picture with the bride-to-be. The person with the least amount of cards by the end of the night wins a prize. Examples of cards - Sugar Daddy, Bad Dancer Guy, Stripper Guy, Bald Guy, etc. Let's just say that I met a lot of interesting people that night. :)

At Fado's, the manager (a very nice Irish guy named Jimmy) stopped by our table with a free round of shots and a Guiness for me. We also started talking about places to go and see in Ireland. Talked to a bartender from Australia so that my friend Auzzie could hear a little bit of home.

The next few stops I'm not sure on the names. They were near my old office in Chicago and were lots of fun. After Fado's, the details get a little fuzzy for me. At some point we hopped on the train and headed back towards the hotel. Tried a few places near the hotel but lost interest and headed back to the room. Most of us gathered in one of the suites and drank a little more and chatted. Then off to bed.

Believe it or not, I was the first up the next morning. Considering the dog usually wakes me up every morning between 5:30-6:00 am, I slept in until 7:30. I think the pounding headache woke me up. Got up, took some drugs and tried to lay back down but wasn't able to go back to sleep. We all got up and went out for breakfast.

The game winner was my friend from Cleveland. Her prize was something that girls enjoy and requires batteries. ;) Hopefully she didn't get stopped by airport security on the way home!

It was a great weekend. Thanks to the girls and especially Firecracker for pulling it all together even though she is extremely overworked these days.

One last tidbit. My dress has arrived and it's the right one this time!!! I shut myself up in the spare bedroom yesterday and tried it on. It's way too big which is soooo much better than being too small. I'm off to the seamstress tomorrow to get it sized down.

Shopping Sucks!

Why is it when you really want to buy something, you can never find the right thing? And when you don't have the money or you are shopping for someone else, you find tons of stuff you like? I went shopping yesterday to find a party outfit for this weekend. It's supposed to be in the 80's this weekend so I was trying to find some sort of sleeveless shirt or fun skirt.

I found a skirt I really liked - short, jean skirt. Tried it on and was on my way to the checkout counter when I decided to check the price. The only reason I hadn't previously checked the price was that I was in Express. Most things are around the same price there so I expected this LITTLE skirt to be around $60. Much to my shock, the price was $120! WHAT!?! Did they sew gold leaf into this skirt and I didn't notice? Not sure why it was so expensive but needless to say, it went back on the shelf. I couldn't talk myself into spending that much money on a little jean skirt when I can buy a pair of nice full-length jeans for half the price.

The only highlight of my shopping trip was that I can now fit into a SIZE 6!!!! I don't even remember the last time I wore that size. I'm now looking forward to trying on my wedding dress (which should arrive next week).

Watch out Chicago!

The wedding is approaching - four weeks from this Saturday. People are starting to ask me if I'm getting nervous. Can't really say I am. I'm the type that doesn't get nervous until 5-10 minutes prior. I just don't think about whatever it is that could make me nervous until the very last minute. Kind of like Scarlet O'Hara, "I'll think about it tomorrow." It has been very effective for me. Not sure I'll pull it off for the wedding but we shall see.

This weekend is the bachelorette party. A bunch of girls are meeting up in Chicago for a night on the town. It should be a very fun time! A few people have cancelled and some other issues have cropped up that are putting a slight damper on the trip. I'm trying not to let it get me down.

I need to go get a new outfit for this weekend. Funny how girls must buy something new for certain events. In this case, almost all my party clothes are now too big. In general, this is a very good thing (the working out and dieting has done the job). However, when you are trying to look your best, having baggy pants that might fall to the floor without a belt is not a good look. I'd rather choose to drop trow on purpose, not accidentally. So, I must work a shopping trip into my busy schedule sometime before Saturday morning.

Overload

I tried another new thing last week... waterskiing. I previously tried to waterski about 15 years ago with little success but thought I would give it a shot again. The second time around was a bit more successful but not by much. I was able to get up out of the water for maybe 2 seconds before falling over. After about the 8th try I gave up. My arm muscles were shot so I was having problems keeping my grip.

One side effect from waterskiing is water up the nose. I had a sore throat that night from all the water and activities. Unfortunately, that sore throat turned into a fever and sinus infection. I spent much of my Labor Day weekend ingesting drugs, Vitamin C and plenty of liquids. Some of those liquids probably didn't help too much but it was worth it.

Firecracker and her new boyfriend, Fenway, came up for a visit on Saturday. It was a fun time. I like this boyfriend soooo much better than the last one. We went on a brewery tour and to a baseball game. What is a baseball game in Milwaukee without tailgating??? It was a beautiful day so Fenway got to see the better side of our city. We talked about closing down a local pub, Wolski's but by the end of the baseball game, most of us were ready to head home. Instead, we fell asleep watching Iron Chef. Aren't we an exciting group?

Sunday, we had a lazy morning, drove around for a bit and went for brunch down by the lake. That pretty much sums up the rest of my weekend - lazy. Didn't get as much accomplished as I had planned. Seems to be a common occurrence for me. I always forget about that stuff I need to get done. I should write a list and post it somewhere very noticeable so I don't forget.

Me? Golf?

Most of my friends know that I have issues with golf. My dad is addicted to the sport and highly encouraged my sister and I to take up the sport. One of my clearest memories from my childhood is my rather pissed-off mom telling us that we can't go to the movies because dad spent a little too much time at the 19th hole. She didn't actually give that as the reason but having seen dad almost fall over because he bumped into the car on his way into the house, I knew why we weren't going (even at the age of 8).

Incidents like that have made me a might bitter towards the sport of golf. However, I recently decided to give it a try again. B likes to play golf and it's something we could do together. I dove into the deep end on Tuesday by going to a tournament hosted by the women's network at work. I have not even picked up a club (other than put-put golfing) in over 10 years but the organizers encouraged non-golfers to come out and play so, why not?

Even though I am really bad, I ended up in a foursome with 2 people that have never golfed and 1 person that can golf but is definitely not a pro. This made the experience much more fun than I expected. We had a good laugh over our inability to hit the ball well and a little alcohol added to the fun. I am now more than willing to go out and play with B when the opportunity arises. Hopefully there are still enough nice days left in the year so that I can get out on the golf course again.