happy 25th!

Phil,

Hey buddy! Today marks what would have been your 25th birthday...well, it IS your 25th birthday. Only you're celebrating it somewhere I never thought you would--in Heaven. I think what shocks me the most is not that you turn 25 today...but it's what that signifies. That means it's been almost five years since you died. And, somehow, I just don't think that's possible.

Five years? Really? Some days five years seems pretty accurate--but other days, five seconds seems too long. I still miss you. I still wish you were here for me to hug and kiss and laugh with and have water balloon fights at 2am with. I still wish you were celebrating your birthday here on Earth instead of up there in Heaven...I'm a little jealous to be honest. I mean, you get to celebrate your birthday with the big guy....in the most fantastic place anyone could ever imagine...with anybody you could ever want there. And you know what the only thing I can think about is? I'm jealous of all those people who are there to celebrate with you. I don't exactly wish I was there...but I more so wish that you were here.

I wonder what you'd be doing. I wonder if I would be a part of your day. I wonder if I would be a part of all of your days. I wonder what you would look like--if you would still look the same or if you've changed a lot. I wonder if you'd have grown out your hair again...just the way I liked it. I wonder if you'd be a genius computer guy (well...I think that one's obvious!) I wonder where you'd be living, who your friends would be. I wonder what car you'd be driving--and crashing ;)

But those aren't things I'll ever get the answers to--now I'm stuck wondering what Heaven's like for you. I wonder if you miss me. I wonder if you watch over me--if you look in on me from time to time. I wonder if you hear me when I talk to you. I wonder if I'll ever get to see you again. And those are things I will get the answers to. I just have to be patient! And you know how hard that is for me...

Thank you for being my strength, for always being there for me even when you can't always talk back. Thank you for staying with me. I hope you found the happiness you were looking for. I hope you are happier than you ever thought possible. I hope you feel the love I still have for you and I hope you feel how much I miss you. You were, still are, and always will be the best friend anyone could ever ask for.

I love you more than I ever thought someone could love another person. I love you with my whole heart each and every day. I miss you every second of every day. I hope you are having a great 25th birthday...we'll have to catch up on the celebrations when I see you again..

Love you best friend,
Mels

You are my sweetest downfall

I loved you first
::Regina Spektor::

Wordless Wednesday

Padre Ramblings

*note* this version of Padre Ramblings occurred over the telephone


so cue to my phone ringing...

me: hey dad
padre: hey kiddo, it's your dad
me: i know...
padre: how'd you know it was me?
me: well...your number shows up when you call...
padre: it could be someone else calling from my house
*this portion of the conversation goes back and forth for quite some time so we'll jump ahead due to time constraints*
padre: well, I don't want to alarm you but...
me: yeah?
padre: I had some oral surgery today
me: ok...why would that alarm me?
padre: because I had surgery to have a tooth extracted today!
me: and why would that alarm me?
padre: (getting exasperated) because I had surgery today!
me: dad, you had a tooth pulled...it's not like you had open heart surgery

Wordless Wednesday

have I mentioned before that I love my friends?

especially when they say things like:

"I wouldn't trade you for all the graham crackers
with peanut butter in the world...and that usually does the trick"

followed by:

"thanks for being you"

sometimes your friends say just the right thing at just the right time...love you gina!

it's about that time...

...time for a new favorite song that is! Yes, I know I go through "new favorite songs" like most people go through water but still! This one is pretty dang good...

Francesca Battistelli-Free to be me

At twenty years of age I'm still looking for a dream
A war's already waged for my destiny
But You've already won the battle
And You've got great plans for me
Though I can’t always see

(Chorus)
‘Cause I got a couple dents in my fender
Got a couple rips in my jeans
Try to fit the pieces together
But perfection is my enemy
On my own I'm so clumsy
But on Your shoulders I can see
I'm free to be me

When I was just a girl I thought I had it figured out
My life would turn out right, and I'd make it here somehow
But things don't always come that easy
And sometimes I would doubt

(Chorus)

And you’re free to be you

Sometimes I believe that I can do anything
Yet other times I think I've got nothing good to bring
But You look at my heart and You tell me
That I've got all You seek
And it’s easy to believe
Even though

(Chorus)



Go here if you want to hear the song--it's not a music video but you can at least hear the song!

Pretty great huh?

Wordless Wednesday

Padre Ramblings

me: dad, are you going to be home for dinner tomorrow?
padre: yeah, i think so...why?
me: ok, i'm going to make turkey burgers
padre: well which is it? turkey? or hamburgers?
me: turkey burgers...
padre: oh

15 week challenge-week TWO!

Well...week two of Amy's challenge has come and gone! I'm down another 1/2 pound for a total weight loss of 1 lb. which is good but not good enough! And, truthfully, I have no one to blame but myself! I have still been working out but skipped a couple days this week (bad Melanie!) and I also have not been great about what I'm putting in my mouth :( That past couple days I've been getting back on track and it feels great--so hopefully next week I will have a big loss!

As for the challenges this week--I wasn't able to get to a park to do the weekly challenge--although now that I'm re-looking at it, I probably could have found a way to do it outside at the house!

Workout Wednesday focused on your triceps--which I LOVED! I've been very focused on my triceps lately so I loved this workout! I'm aiming big for next week!


And, on a personal note--aside from the challenge, I have come to the conclusion that I definitely need to get better about my nutrition. I KNOW that I have tons of muscle--I can feel it and I know I'm constantly building it up...and I can even see MOST of it--but there are some areas (ahem, arms, tummy) where I can't see it--and the problem is because the fat covering my muscle won't go away unless I really take control of what I'm eating--so that's my current goal: to get my eating back on track and continually eat healthy!

Wordless Wednesday (with words!)

just a sample conversation of rachel and me (at a random point throughout the day...through text messaging):

me: I did NOT know that...thank you monica!
rachel: I can't believe I almost lost another girl because of counting!


reasons why rachel is one of my best friends:

• when I text her a friends quote, she responds with the exact next line (and vice versa)
• she is literally one of the most caring and genuine people I know
• she would give you the shirt off her back (and then teach you the cutest way to wear it) if you needed it...
• she dances. anywhere. and everywhere. constantly.
• I laugh every second that I am with her
• and last but not least (and as a blast from the past-college edition), when I ask her where our next meeting is, she responds by saying "TBA??? Wherever that is?!"

Love you Rachel Ann Schoenecker Reese!

15 week challenge-week ONE!

This was the first week of Amy's 15 week challenge! I'm only down 1/2 pound but I'm definitely seeing improvement so I feel good!

The challenge this week was to create a healthy version of a meal you love! So I took the all-American "hamburger and fries" and healthified it! (yes, I made that word up!) haha

Instead of the hamburger, I made a healthy lean turkey burger and wrapped it in lettuce instead of using a bun. Also, instead of ketchup AND mustard, I just used mustard (no calories!). Then instead of french fries, I cut up a russet potato, shook the pieces in a bag of olive oil (1 tsp does the trick) and then baked them in the oven for my own version of french fries! And, to be honest, they taste just as good...if not better!

Workout Wednesday was hard but definitely a good workout!

Sorry no pictures :( Having a broken camera will do that to ya! haha