Siblings

I've finally gotten my 14 year-old sister's school photograph for this year.  She's in 8th grade & is smart, funny, kind and beautiful!  She's also kind of hormonal but we love her!!!  She enjoys movies and reading and has invited herself over for an extended sleepover this summer.

Kate - Spring 2011

I've had my 12 year-old sister's photo since the fall.  She's in 6th grade and loves music.  She sang "Baby" by Justin Bieber at karaoke and sang it really well!  She's got such a great voice & can play piano & guitar & even plays percussion at school.  She's also funny and pretty and has such a unique style. 

Rebecca - Fall 2010

Beyond the two of them, I have quite a few other siblings.

My step-brother Jeff & I don't talk much but have been getting along very well for years.  He just got a new job at a fire department & is very excited about his opportunity.

Of course, this is where you're expecting a photo of him & I cannot for the life of me find any photos...  Wait!  Here's one!!

Jeff 2007

Amy is 23 and has been with her boyfriend for a few years now.  She works hard and plays hard and helps the family a LOT.  We don't always get along (including right now) but I love her and always will.

Amy & Ben 2010 or 2011

Dani is my step-sister and is 21 years old. She & her boyfriend have also been together for quite a few years and have been living together for at least the last year & a half or so (probably longer). She is extremely unique and gifted and while she struggles with her complicated past, is working very hard to make a great future for herself. She is a nanny and is working on running her own business and may be attending school sometime soon.

Dani & Alex 2011

Daniel just turned 21 (see yesterday's post on my personal blog) and has a full-time job and a part-time job and is trying to finish school. He loves playing video games and hanging out doing nothing. With so many differences, I'm surprised when I find myself thinking about how alike we are.

Daniel 2010

Emily is a beautiful, funny, bright, fantastic young woman.  She's 19 and working her way through community college right now.  She's very mature and has a very promising future.

Emily 2009

I've already talked about Kate & Rebecca who are the next in the age sequence.  They live with my mother and are both doing VERY well in school!

Rebecca, Emily & Kate 2010

I also have a few siblings that I don't see much (well, at all, really) that live with my father.  Even though I don't spend time with them, I love them and am working with my father & step-mother to mend the past and have a future relationship for all of us.  Amanda, Shannon and James are much younger than my other siblings and when I see them it brings a smile to my face. It's really cool to see how much you can love your siblings even when you don't even know them.

Amanda, Emily, James & Shannon 2010

I hope you enjoyed this post! Share it with your friends and family and remember to tell your siblings that even when you're angry, you still love them. I need to do that too.

Coffee, Coffee, Coffee!

I apologize profusely everyone.  I know that I set out to post something every day but I have found myself slipping a little into a sad mood and this makes it very difficult to do much of anything.

Having said that, I would like to share something with you about yesterday.

There are some days when you're just completely exhausted.  Like yesterday.  I was completly obliterated.  I didn't sleep well Tuesday night at all (about an hour) and was hoping to get so much sleep that I skipped out on celebrating my baby brother's 21st birthday at midnight.  This happened to be about the time that I woke up to go to the bathroom & was never able to fall back asleep.

Anywho..  I decided that I would splurge.  I got a large Iced Mocha from McDonald's (not what I thought it was at all) but found it perfect for what I was needing.  It tasted more like coffee than mocha but picked me up for the morning.  I kind of feel like Lorelai from Gilmore Girls because she LOVES coffee and I think I'm beginning to like coffee too.

Lorelai Gilmore played by Lauren Graham

Concerned that I would crash when I still had 6 hours to go for the day, I began thinking about asking someone if they're going to be going to McDonald's for lunch & asking if they'd bring me back another coffee. 

There's one episode where she has broken up with Luke & she goes into Weston's Bakery and orders coffee.  Because she drinks a LOT of coffee, she says, "Coffee, coffee, coffee!" when ordering and the waitress provides her with 3 large cups of coffee!

"Coffee, coffee, coffee is a saying, like an exaggeration. It's a funny, desperate cry for caffeine."

It was about this time that I received a delivery from "Designs By Carol".  My husband, sweetheart that he is, decided that since I had gotten so little sleep & have been feeling so down lately that I needed a pick-me-up & had my favorite flowers (tulips) delivered to me at work!

They smell beautiful!

I hope I've brought a smile to your day.

So Sorry!!

I'm SO sorry I've been AWOL.  To make up for it, I'm going to share some gems from This awesome site.  Basically, you put in your Twitter name & it searches through your past Tweets & combines them to predict your next Tweet.  I hope these make you smile & laugh too!

• Scranton/WHAT is Canadian. He calls ham bacon which is at this time of judgement...
• You ok? I'm enjoying a fork... :/ I'm so much better! Good morning! Mmmmmm...
• Its interesting to see what you're feeling like to go away... Come join us for bed.
• Off to Starbucks to enjoy a month to fall back asleep. Good night Tweets! My dog cracks me up!!
• Some people take a sign saying, "I'm so loudly!" The early bird gets the end of a guy with Themeleon!
• Off to get a complete asshole & have come up with my food for a blast!!! Every person for it...
• Glad to do you last night Tweeters. Time to enjoy fancy yet probably cold dinner for bed.
• Late night Tweets! Happy birthday to start an AT&T bill when they ate watermelon, Can I kick it?
• Don't understand how to meet with the alarm & stress in the best wishes for it really need to make more.
• Mmmmmmm... Chipotle! For whatever reason I wish I love this day today. Like socks? HA!!!
• I found the cup of the blood work for Food Day - is at the lady falling into the better year.
• Ready for a complete success! Testing, 1, 2, 3... I'm stuffed!!
• Tweet, tweet.. Good morning Tweeties! Check out my dogs just finished a 10 digit account number!
• Oh my dogs are you had a great day? Ready for the best way to the Rebel Alliance & coxsackieviruses!
• It says the new phone since the fountain in my second thoughts but I love banana bread!
• "Congratulations on your eyes, you'll be interested! Had a great weekend!!" Some people need to hear that.
• Had a bladder infection & thought of you.  For a "way to go" & the realization that I'm eating lunch.
• The correct way please!!! My sister in Res! Best wishes for a long, hard time for you!!!!!!
• Me:  "I have tears filling my first break."  You:  "How's your day now?"  Me:  "......... So much better!"
• Woah... I was rooting for us out at work. It will go away... Come join us for the end of our relationship.
• Ready for the windows are you? It will talk soon.
• Good night everyone! Driving home from hell!

You know how when you're reading something & it doesn't really make sense & your mind will add or remove a word or letter or punctuation?  I have slightly modified these (removing a word or two, adding quotations...) to let you know how I read them.

I hope this finds you well.  Find something to enjoy today & share!!

 My favorite thing to photograph is nature.  I find that I'm especially drawn to trees - I'm not sure why.  Here are some of the ones that I've taken in the past year.

Schaumburg, April 9, 2010

In January, Mike and I needed to go empty out and release my car to the insurance company because it needed to be totalled due to an accident.  While Mike was at work, I had lunch at Panera and it started to snow.

Just starting to snow in Park Ridge, January 11, 2011

After looking out the window for a while, I decided to go for a little walk to the other shops - one of which was a chocolate shop!  YUM!!  I got some chocolate, candies and some special dog treats for our pups as well as a "cheesecake" caramel apple for my sister's birthday.

A Park Ridge tree-lined street, January 11, 2011

At the end of the day, we went to meet up with my mother and siblings to have a birthday dinner at Uncle Julio's in Oakbrook.  Dinner was great!  Ok..  So this blog wasn't just about my love for photography.  I love thinking back on the fun things in life and remembering them.

I hope you're all doing well and have a wonderful Friday!

Sending Love Your Way

Wednesday was kind of a downer of a day.  A customer called in to work and was upset about the emails that he received and was very cruel.  He was yelling at me for nothing and even though it was completly ridiculous it still bothered me.  He was very upset with me about something that I had no control over and we didn't even do anything wrong.  It kind of put a damper on my day even though I knew it was silly to let him bother me.

It's days like these that make it difficult for me to find something positive and I did struggle to write this one.  While thinking about the good thing to post about, I began thinking about the past.  I thought about how I called my husband right after dealing with this terrible customer and how great it was to speak to him.  He can be such a loving, supportive man.  I remember the day we got married...

Mike nervous before the ceremony.

I remember the love that we had for each other...  I remember the dedication that I felt to him on that day.  The vows that we said, the ones that I spent months putting together to describe the way we feel about each other, really moved through my heart.  I loved him so much.  I was SO nervous!

Me getting ready before the ceremony.

I remember our family being there to share our day.

Me with my sisters.

Us with our parents.

Us with my step aunt & her husband.

Us with Mike's aunts.



Us with my step-grandmother.



Mike with his grandparents.


So I think about this day in the past and I remember...  Then I realize that I love my husband more than I ever did.  He and I have grown so much closer together through the ups and downs of only four years of marriage that I cannot fathom how much more we'll grow in the next 40 years.  Thinking about our future together and the love that we share makes me happier than words can describe.

Sending some love your way...  Have a wonderful day. :)

The Men in my Life

Today, I'd like to take some time & show you the men in my life.

My loving husband, Michael.  We've been married for more than 4 years and knew within a month that we wanted to be together forever.  We moved in together after being in a relationship for just a few months and have experienced a lot of uphill battles together.  There has been a lot of growing up that we've done together.

Mike helps me with the daily chores.

I love it when he's happy with life.  He enjoys playing video games and drinking beer but always loves to watch movies with me.

Enjoying a Miller!

He even helps cook dinner sometime!  :)

We love Shells & Cheese with broccoli - YUM!

The other man in my life is my pup!  Chewy is a 3 year old basset hound mix.  We're pretty sure he's mixed with a german shepherd.




He's always so curious!

I love the men in my life.  They bring me stress but also a lot of joy & love.

I hope that you are able to experience the amazing amount of love in the little things the guys in your life.  One of my friends was just reminded of the greatness in the little things that her husband does for her.  The following was her Facebook status recently and is reprinted with her permission.

"Has the best husband ever... he is picking up subway for me and I forgot to write olives down but he remembered. It is the little things that matter"

Enjoy!!

I Love My Mom

I don't know about you but I love my mom!!  I took Monday off to go to the doctor & spend time with my mom.  She was wonderful enough to drive me there & take me home & then we both spent some time together. 

My new driver's license!

We got my Illinois driver's license (FINALLY) at the Illinois Secretary of State's office.  I have lived in Illinois for a few years now and have been slacking on getting my driver's license updated.

Afterwards, we walked around the mall for a little while & stopped at the Apple store to see if they had any iPad 2 in stock for Mike (they didn't) and ended up eating lunch at PF Chang's.  It was pretty good.  I recommend getting the chicken lettuce wraps - they were SO good.

My mom reading the menu.

I love my mom!

I had a good time!

I hope you have an opportunity to spend the day with someone you love & enjoy some GREAT food!

What Does Family Mean to You?

Good morning!  I hope you had a great weekend.  I know that I did.  My husband & I had spent Saturday together and had a wonderful day.  It was beautiful outside and we took the opportunity to get out of the house.  I worked at my part-time job on Sunday and came home absolutely exhausted.  My husband heated up some frozen pizza and we watched "Grown Ups".  It got me thinking about how important family is.

My husband's grandmother with his father.

My husband hasn't had a lot of contact with his father's side of the family since his father passed in 1996.  Two years ago, his grandmother passed away and he was unable to attend the services.  I have a few regrets about the circumstances surrounding the situation and wish that I could go back and change a couple things.

My husband's father (on the left) & uncle in North Carolina.

After my husband's grandmother passed, we were able to obtain some old photographs of the family.  His sister was able to come back from the services with stories, photos and love from the family he hasn't seen in quite a while.  They were able to catch up and have been closer ever since.  It's so great that he has her in his life and that they are able to lean on each other.  

My mother & me.

As far as support goes, my mother is the best person I know.  She's a wonderful woman and has been a major beacon of love and support for me & my husband for many years.  I'm not sure what I would do without her.

How do you feel about family?  I realize that family life can be difficult but sometimes family isn't necessarily the "blood" relatives, it's the people who love you.  Who are the most important people in your life? 

Remember, you can share this with your family & friends.  I will talk to you tomorrow!

Welcome!



This is Anna

This is my first attempt at a daily blog.  My goal is to bring you something funny, beautiful or cute to make you smile every day.  The first time I thought about making the decision to love every day was when I was preparing my wedding vows. 

One of the phrases that I had specifically selected was, "Nothing is easier than saying words and nothing harder than living them day after day. What you promise today must be renewed and redecided tomorrow. At the end of this ceremony you will legally be man and wife but you still must decide each day that stretches out before you that you want to be married." 

To me, having a successful marriage filled with love & support is to make a decision each day to love my husband.  I try to find at least one thing every day to love about him and the more I have focused on doing these two things, the happier I am in my marriage.

I am extending this to find something to love about every day & would like to share my findings with you.

I hope this finds you well and brings a smile to your day.  Let me know what you think & don't forget to share this with your friends because everybody needs something to smile about!

This is Chewy

Chewy is so photogenic!