iphone pic roundup

I know you're sitting there thinking to yourself; 'man, i wonder what crappy iphone photos Amanda has been taking lately'. Don't worry, I'm here to oblige. 

This puppy gets soo tuckered at daycare that she can't even be bothered to put her tongue in her mouth when she passes out. 

The struggle is real.

During our stretch of warm weather, the puppy learned the joys of passing out in the sun.

So sorry for the food posts but Phil and I discovered something new at Von Hansons. For as much as we frequent that joint, it shouldn't be possible to find something new - but we did! 

Peppercorn rubbed beef skewers & Chipolte Chicken skewers (with zucchini, of course). We grilled it up, sat on the deck and enjoyed the weather!

The little lady celebrated her first 1/2 birthday. 

Pretty typical cuddle sesh. 

NEW MUMFORD. 

I'm going to be honest, I wasn't a big fan of Believe. One radio station compared it to Coldplay and then that's all. i could. hear! The Wolf is much better and (in my opinion) much more true to them. 

Guacamole + Cucumber Infused Vodka = All the makings for a bitchin' Friday night on the patio. 

There you have it. I'm glad I could grace you with my mediocre photos.

Until next time, folks.

#NIAW

For those who don't know what my fancy, fang dangled abbreviations are - NIAW = National Infertility Awareness Week. 

This year's theme is You are Not Alone. Genius.
It's crazy, really. Everyone knows someone who is or has been in this boat - Infertility impacts 1 in 8 couples of reproductive age. So, think about your friends, aunts, uncles, co-workers - you know more than 8 couples, right? At least one of them is impacted by this!

We are 1 in 8.

I find so much inspiration reading and listening to others' stories; the successes and failures. 

This is a great week to search blogs, read twitter and join a community because, as the theme states, you are not alone. We are not alone. Listen. Read. Speak up!

My favorite resource: Resolve

want more information on our story? click on the PCOS, Loss & Infertility tab at the top of the page. want even more? drop me a line!

   

#nationalsiblingday

Happy National Sibling Day to my favorite brothers of all time. 

I still remember when my mom was pregnant with Parker and I remember thinking; 

I already have one brother, I'd really like a sister. No, I want a sister. 

I didn't get my wish. Another brother it was and now I can't imagine my life without them much less with a sister. If I had a sister there would have been even more screaming around the house and I would have had to share my shoes - my brothers steer clear of my nude shoe collection!

They're perfect (to me). We laugh, cry, make inappropriate jokes and love eachother for who we are. 

So, Tyler & Parker - Cheers to you. 

You're the best little brothers a girl could ask for. 

I believe...

Nah, not necessarily in the religious kind, but I have beliefs - strong ones at times. Here's my list of what is generally important in my life. 

I believe in..

- Red Wine

- Live music. My favorite saying is "Live Music is good for your soul" and I really, truly believe this.

- Keeping my nails short

- And, having them polished 

(side note: sally hansen gel, no light, polish is the greatest gift to me - and my checking account).

- A cold beer at a baseball game

- That dogs really are a girls best friend

- Farmers Markets & Fresh Flowers

- My husband and our relationship

- That my girlfriends are my sisters

- Date nights

- An MPR membership & Birchbox are great investments

- Handwritten notes are always a good idea

- Coffee

- The Eve's of holidays are better than the actual day. And, of those, Christmas Eve takes the cake. 

- Minnesota is the best state in the world. Yeah, I said it, WORLD. 

What do you believe in? 

Arizona Vacay

This year after all of Phil's work (fun) travels I said enough was enough and I was escaping to somewhere warm. I booked a trip and headed off to the Valley of the Sun. Andrea and I planned and schemed to make the most out of our four days together and we did not disappoint. 

I arrived on Friday morning and we changed into our hiking gear and went to breakfast (:)). Daily Dose and the breakfast nachos! did not disappoint. 

We hiked our way around Gateway - my favorite AZ hike! The weather was perfect!

Friday night we got dressed up and went to Old Town and had a ladies night. Mama Mee joined us at Olive and Ivy & Kazimierz. The atmosphere was great and the wine was better. Olive & Ivy had the most amazing apps; bacon wrapped dates, apple cinnamon bruschetta, etc, etc, etc. 

Olive & Ivy

Kazimerz speakeasy entrance sign

Saturday morning I woke up to 70 degrees and enjoyed my morning coffee by the pool - not too shabby. When Andrea woke up we went on another hike - this time to Sunrise. I knew that Sunrise was a little more steep than Gateway but was not prepared for how difficult this hike would be. 

Halfway through the hike I felt like Katniss Everdeen looking for my next tribute. It was desolate (besides the other people hiking!) and beautiful. There was no sign of city life. Below is a screenshot of my health app - 101 floors to the top of the mountain. Andrea said, "we're almost there" to me at least 27 times .. clearly she was lying the first 26! 

The view from the top was stunning!

After our hike, we had to get home (quick) because the AZ Wildcats were playing in the NCAA tournament. We threw on suits, mixed up some margs & guac and laid out by the pool watching the Cats advance to the next round.

And let me tell you about these margaritas that we mixed up: fresh squeezed juice from the trees in the backyard + tequila = happy Mada. 

Saturday night we made a delicious dinner and home and drank too much wine by the fire. It was the perfect way to catch up with friends!

Sunday morning we woke up and went to the most adorable coffee shop; Sip. And did yoga. In the parking lot. It was so perfect. We were outside, listening to good music, doing yoga and drinking coffee. What more could a girl ask for?

yoga in the parking lot

After yoga we sampled some amazing Cartel Coffee (ON TAP - IT'S THE DREAM!) and soaked up the beautiful morning. 

Sunday afternoon we tried to go to a spring training game but settled for margaritas instead and did what any good Minnesotan visiting Arizona does - went to Oreganos. If you have never been - go. Get the "original pizza cookie" (pizzookie) and enjoy. This place never, ever, ever disappoints. 

 Monday was the perfect way to wrap up the trip; I had a quiet day by the pool reading and hanging with Marley (the puppy). Before I headed on back to Minny we enjoyed Orange Blossom beer (andrea's favorite) and laughed until our stomachs hurt (like we always do). 

love this girl!

I'm already planning my trip for next year! 

You know what's depressing?

Tonight I decided to combine all three of my blogs (baby mahal blog, first blog and new blog). I was going through posts - editing, cleaning up, etc. and came across the post when we first met with our RE (reproductive endo) and made a plan for baby Mahal. Want to know when that post was? APRIL 2013 - two years ago. Two years ago we made a plan and set forth to have a little one and here we are April 2015 and we don't. 

If April 2015 Amanda would have told April 2013 Amanda that I'd be where I am; crazy happy with my husband and (fur)baby - I would have laughed at her. Screamed at her. Told her she was wrong. Because how on earth could we have been so hopeful and two years later there would still be nothing. 

Here's the thing: It's a struggle every day. I think about it (pretty much) every day. I can be having the best day ever and hear that somebody is expecting and I get a deep pit in my stomach and my eyes well up with tears. It is gut wrenching and tough but I deal - we deal. 

I wonder what April 2017 Amanda would have to tell me? I can't (and can) wait to find out. 

Enough mushy stuff for one night. Peace, folks. 

Still Following Operation:baby?

Hey You. Yes, you. Are you still receiving updates from this blog? Well, we've moved. There isn't much going on in the world of trying for baby Mahal but for updates please head on over to our new home!

http://themahals.blogspot.com

How to follow: Scroll down and on the right hand side, you can enter your email address and click 'Follow".

Thanks for hanging out here.

xo- A