my upstairs neighbors are "hippo-phants"

why hello there.

long time no... tell/read.

hope you are all doing well!

as for myself...

just fantastic - and i honestly mean that.

des moines has me feeling right at home - give or take the two and a half hours that i am away from "home".

facebook has been my go to lately to keep everyone posted, but ill still try to give a brief over view of my life the past, well, however long it has been since i last posted,

because aside from all the working and sleeping i've been doing, i try to find the time, but life gets in the way... as usual.

but here goes:

for starters, and most importantly...

my nails are extremely long and make almost every girl jealous, "are those real?!" - even some guys, because unlike keifer, they don't get an amazing back/head scratch every night;p

ok but no seriously:

i have a new nephew!!!

how adorable is he, you ask?

umm, well... f***ing adorable!

Jace Michael Riley:)

i fell in love with him the second i saw him - just way too precious.

it's these past 3 weeks that make me wish i was still in storm lake... seeing him grow and change every day - i hate missing out on that part of being an auntie!

but part of the missing out has been...

a wonderful weekend getaway with keifer, just the two of us, to pammel state park in winterset.

we rented out a lodge that sleeps up to eight people, as well as a stove, fridge, and microwave, so plenty of space, as well as a fire pit and charcoal grill and picnic table outside.

 and thankfully we have friends like mollie and meghan that watched easton and daisy for us so that weekend could happen for us - definitely and very long overdue. 

i have also had a couple nights where the "roomie", also known as the one and only whitney, and i get together and do something - wednesdays are our typical "roomie nights",

whether it's going out for a bite to eat or having a drink or two or laying out in our "backyard". they've become one of my favorite nights of the week that i look forward to.

i've also got to spend some valuable time with jovee and journee while erin and shane had a getaway - they are just too precious (even if i only got three hours of sleep one of the nights lol). 

i still cant get over how much i love being closer to erin, especially when she works on wednesdays, which is one of my days off, so i go and sit at her salon for a few hours and just chit chat. (are you sick of me yet, erin?)

i've also got to see my aunt and uncle and one of my cousins that i rarely ever get to see: james, nicole, and madison.

madison had a soccer game in johnston so i got to catch up with them for a bit, and watch madison's team. and then nicole's parents took madison and i out for lunch, which it was great seeing them as well. i believe we all agreed that it had been probably ten years since i saw them last, but maybe even longer.

my mom, pika, and the girls, also made a trip to des moines to do some summer shopping and stay in a hotel. so while they were here keifer and i had the pleasure of taking them out to eat at joe's crab shack (of course we paid... who wouldn't offer to pay when we were getting 50% off cause it's my place of employment?! lol just kidding - it really was our pleasure... being they had driven all that way to see us!)

they also stopped by my apartment and got to see just exactly where it is that i am living now.

mom is quite pleased with the location, and she likes that when i tell her stories now she can actually envision what i am talking about - so that's good, right!

so interesting, unimportant, but relevant to giving you updates.

easton had some "bug".

it was a few days he was, well let's just say you couldn't tell what came out of his mouth and what came out of his butt.

so he went to the doggy doctor.

and johana if you are reading this, your input would be appreciated...

but...

after being told that his temp was fine and his skin and color was all fine - you know all that animal stuff they check - and after i spend $98.00 to here that the "bug" had passed, we find out that my baby boy is, well, only 1/2 a man dog now.

yes, you read that correctly. he only has one testicle. obviously, the other never dropped and won't. 

they told me he needs to be fixed, but is that because it is life threatening? or because they believe getting your pets fixed is the right thing to do in all situations, good or bad?

so now, my adorable, precious baby easton is "off in the head" and only has one testicle. 

i think it only makes me love him that much more - my special mr. easton.

i've got to spend time with mollie, meghan, and brenna as well.

when don't i have a good time with them?!

just recently did i meet them all and start getting together with them, but all we do is laugh, or so it seems!

and even though i am (almost) 22, it was nice having someone to go to and stay the night with when i didn't want to be alone in my own bed (thanks mollie!).

as many of you know, i am in the process of becoming a manager at joe's! Eeeek:D

so yesterday, i finally got my application and resume put in for the position and all the testing done that is required as well.

when the district manager gets it all looked over, i will be having an interview with him - nervous... - and then i will have to spend at least 200 hours in the kitchen and so many shifts behind the bar before i get the title, and pay. 

so, no, it's not totally official yet.

but i was offered the position by my general manager - whom said he thought i was best fit for this position, "...i believe you won't let other walk all over you." or somewhere along those lines. so in other words, "you are a b****, and in this case, that is O. K." lol.

coming up:

june 5th, which is a thursday, i am flying to texas once again to pick up my beautiful niece kitana and bring her back to iowa for the summer, as i did last year. 

that friday, keifer, kitana, and i will make our way to storm lake so she can be reunited with all her dad's side of the family.

keifer and i will be spending the weekend there, and i couldn't be more excited. it's not all that often that he gets to join me back home, being our schedules are on two different pages.

but,

on a different note...

ok, no, maybe its the same note:

i. am. tired!

SURPRISE, surprise!!

haha

so i'm going to leave this one at that.

time flies

so it has been a while.

this i am well aware of ... sorry.

i know i'm not the first to say that life has a thing for getting in the way.

sleep

eat

work

...

not even on my days off do i get break:

laundry

cleaning

paying bills

grocery shopping

picking up extra shifts

and trying to catch up on some sleep.
therefore, all i have time for tonight is something short and sweet.

so going on my third month being in des moines, things couldn't get much better.
of course i miss my family and few friends back in alta and storm lake, 
but this move has been working out for easton and myself.
we get to spend a lot of time with keifer and daisy, and even dillon and baylor.
though i see them way more now than ever before, i feel as though i still don't see "the blakelys" enough.
i've met some possible candidates for new friends... i say possible cause everyone knows how miriah and "friends" go.
libbie and i had a chance to get together and catch up - 2 years of catching up to do... overdo one might say.
we found a walking trail/park two blocks from the apartment, so now that the weather is somewhat cooperating, that'll probably be our new hangout.
not only am i a full time server at joe's, i have taken on the title of the "retail guru" as well - i'll be in charge of inventory of all retail products as well as placing orders weekly and monthly, and keeping the gift shop in order, which will be no problem for me, right?! so i'll be working thursday-tuesday at the wonderful joe's crab shack:)

my mom, the twins, and the step dad will be here over easter weekend - finally they will get to see the new apartment and join me for lunch at joe's.
i'm babysitting jovee and journee for a couple days in a couple weeks so erin and shane can get away - couldn't ask for a better way to spend my days off:D yay!!!
but as for tonight, keifer and i will be stuffing our faces with cheesy enchiladas, cheese sticks, a beer or two, and watching a movie before bed - for tomorrow is my monday, which came all too quickly.

until next time my friends!

all work... and play

all work:

it's been a while - sorry.

i've been trying to get used to the hours, or schedule, at the new job.

last week seemed to be a bit unorganized: lunch shift one day, dinner shift the next, morning shift again, then a double shift, oh and another morning shift after having worked all day the day before - it is exhausting. 

but i do like love it.

tips are awesome.

coworkers are nice.

management is laid back.

and the atmosphere, altogether, is fun.

just to brag a little:

one of my managers told me that him and the other manager had been talking and think that i am "doing a great job, and keep up the good work."

also, i'm only used to storm lake, iowa, small town, small restaurants, kind of tips. so my first week of serving on my own, it was like christmas for me when i was averaging $15, $18, and even $25 per hour during my shifts - SCORE!

...and play

a couple of weekends ago, keifer and i went on a party bus for one of his friend's birthday.

that was definitely something different, but fun.

we went bar hoping to three small bars in the west des moines area before heading downtown where we ended our night at one other bar before catching a cab back home. 

we also just had a date night at the funny bone comedy club, which was a good time and something new to me as well. 

and with keifer's birthday coming up, we might even be going to a hockey game.

(lots of things to do in a bigger city that are new to me)

just a couple of side notes:

- easton has finally warmed up to whitney (for those of you that have forgot, that is my roommate). 

- dillon moved back home for good this time ha. so i enjoy getting to see him more often, being he lives with keifer... we actually just had a lunch date this last week at joe's crab shack (50% off our meals, so why wouldn't we).

- i'm going to have to say the biggest perk for me though, right now, is living ten minutes from erin's salon and thirty minutes from her, shane, and the girls - it's only a matter of short time before she bans me from seeing her more than once a month ha.

- i've come to the realization that i can't be as busy or tired as i say i am when i point out to myself that i finished the first season of sons of anarchy in five days and about to finish the second season today, which would only have taken me four days to finish it. ha.

- i live in a bad location. 

ok, no it's a good location as far as the part of des moines and neighborhood that i live in. but bad because i am four minutes from valley west mall and ten minutes from jordan creek mall. shopping addicts and people with credit cards (both of which are me) should never live anywhere remotely that close to malls.

and while i do miss all my family back in the (712), as things begin falling more and more into place, i couldn't be happier with the decision i made.

"i got crabs..."

"...at joe's crab shack."

ok, no i didn't really get crabs - duh.

it's my new job!

YAY!!

yesterday was only my second day of training, which is intense.

and i have a whole week of "crab class" - yes, it is really called "crab class".

i have to take a test after every classroom session, passing with a 90% or better, or i have to retake the test - from the handbook to basic concepts to the menu.

the difference with the menu...

it has to be known like i know the back of my hand.

i have a final test at the end of training over it and if i don't pass, i have to retake the menu portion of "crab class" over again.

god lord, i NEVER studied this hard in school - i even have notecards made.

other than that test...

i already like it:

it's a laid back and fun atmosphere.

my co-workers all seem nice.

and being that seafood is not cheap, tips are $$$$.

i will be full-time there, until i find a full-time job elsewhere and then i will be part-time there (i guess that is a BIG if i find a job).

my new journey is finally in full swing:

new apartment

new roommate

new job.

and i couldn't be happier - maybe i little less stressed (seriously if you want an idea of how stressed i am, quit your job for a month with zero income... while trying to find a new job with zero decent work experience... and heads up, BILLS DON'T STOP COMING just because the income stopped coming... yicks).

but still, couldn't be happier.

so if you are ever in des moines,

stop by joe's crab shack on south jordan creek parkway next to jordan creek mall, and request me as your server - unless you don't plan on tipping me well, then you can request someone else... please. ha.

interlude

moving.

i hate it.

especially when you have to start over on everything:

new apartment.

new job.

new city.

new friends.

ok, it's more so fun and exciting...

...but that is if you got everything in line, and boy oh boy, that was far from being where i was at. 

but it is starting to fall in place (now that i am actually here and it has to).

friday

i was aware there was a storm headed to des moines saturday morning so keifer and i decided to drive down to osceola that night after we got all loaded up.

(again, a huge thank you to those that helped me out: kalvin, casey, shelby, keifer, and even angie, with the tv stand)

we started loading the truck about 5:30pm and keifer and i were on the road a little before 8:30pm.

i was exhausted, 

but knowing my car was sketchily attached to the back of that uhaul that was going 65mph at points, and driving on bumpy road, i couldn't be more wide awake - anxiety at it's worst!

i know it is hard to see, but following keifer, who was driving the uhaul, pulling my car, can you imagine the thoughts running through my head?

if anyone was wonder everything fit that i needed except for my two end tables, and i forgot my bed frame and a few pillows.

we got to keifer's apartment at 11:00pm, but to park the uhaul, we had to take my car off the dolly and park that, take the dolly off the uhaul and park that, and finally park the uhaul. 

we got to bed by 12:00am, which was plenty of sleep.

saturday

whitney and i had to meet at the leasing office to sign our lease and pay our first months rent.

we got our keys...

and it was official.

YAY for us:)

we stopped by they apartment before picking up keifer and the uhaul to fill out our move-in check list - we were thorough that is for sure; we even took pictures.

after that, keifer and i got subway before we started unloading what we could by ourselves.

jarael and josh (huge thanks to them as well) stopped by to congratulate me on my new place by helping keifer move my two sofas, a dresser, and my "aggressive" tv stand all the way up to my second floor apartment. 

jarael obviously had the easiest side;p

whitney didn't move much in on saturday besides dishes - oh my gosh i have never seen so many glasses - so keifer stayed over. call me a baby, but i didn't want to spend my first night in des moines alone (and thank heaven i didn't).

we got breakfast pizza from casey's as well as those new aluminum, twist top, 16oz cans of bud light.

we did a little r&r and unpacking while the cyclone game was on.

after, we thought we would watch a movie and scratch some scratch tickets.

just as we are about to start the movie, a loud ringing/buzzing noise started coming from the hallway.

i'll just make this long story short:

1st floor neighbor called 9-1-1.

she knocked on our door and told us to get out.

there was smoke all over the first floor.

firetrucks were on scene in less than five minutes.

we sat in the car with the dogs for over an hour until they cleared the apartments - keifer was rather irritated that night.

now, yesterday i finally found out that the apartment the fire started in was completely empty and should have been locked up. 

well, it was not.

can anyone say, "sketchy"?

as erin put it, "if this doesn't prove this was meant to be, then i don't know what will." - jokingly of course.

but really, great welcoming we sure had.

[super bowl] sunday

for starters,

GO SEAHAWKS!!!
and no we weren't the ONLY ones cheering them on - i got proof (sorry emily and jason)

keifer bought a cable splitter and moved his bedroom tv to the living room so this is how we got to watch the game.

yes two televisions for three people - keifer, whitney, and myself - to watch football ha.

and i made cheese dip as well to snack on during the game,

which of course was delicious, and keifer had the brilliant idea of adding veggie sausage patties to it!

snacks.

beer.

football.

perfect sunday.

monday

keifer and i went down to osceola to say our "until next time"s to dillon.

that butthead is leaving us all again.

i know i'm not the only one that is going to miss him - those 2 months with him being back we were definitely all spoiled.

we all played some cards and pool.

and i got to cuddle with miss journee some more.

yes, i bought her that outfit.

and whether her parents like it or not, jovee and journee will be packers fan.

i love getting to see "the blakelys" more.

and i can't wait to spend nights with the girls.

even with all the stress of starting over, beginning new, i am also excited and happy it is finally happening and in "play".

[sneak peek]

love the fireplace, even if i never use it ha.

 i got my own bathroom.
not that i would care if whitney and i had to share...
...but we are girls, and bathroom time and space are critical to our beauty.
sharing bathrooms can be a hassle working around each others schedules. 
so a definite plus to the apartment.

our movie collection is quite large.

many movie nights to come (whitney has a popcorn popper too... SCORE).

more pictures, projects, updates to come.

but for now that is all i got.

happy hump day:)

mixed emotions

before i go into full details, 

i should start with some updates.

last weekend,

i was down in des moines to meet up with whitney (my potentially new roommate).

we sat down over supper at legends and got to know each other  a little.

i'm not so sure how much she would agree with me on this, but we have a lot in common.

after an hour of chit chat, we decided we are a good match for each other, and apartment searching would begin.

i know there is curiousity stirring about how dillon and i were planning on being roommates, so where did whitney come into this picture?

simply put,

we all thought this would be the better fit for me.

i'm one hundred percent sure this is what i want to do, and dillon is a little less sure.

so saturday morning,

we got together and drove all over des moines.

oh my gosh, how annoying is apartment searching. especially on a saturday when most leasing offices are only open until 4 or 5.

we viewed two that were definite possibilities, but the cons out weighed the pros at the end out the day.

on sunday,

we had a lot of time to process everything.

our requirements of our potential apartment were adjusted based on what we saw the previous day,

and more online searching began.

so by monday night i had a list and a route of five different places to view on tuesday morning.

it was narrowed down to three places - that worked out great because i got lost which stole an hour of my time - and after viewing them, it was narrowed down to two potentials.

i then had my interview at verizon wireless, which went well, and was on my way back to storm lake.

while i was working and packing all week.

whitney was viewing another apartment.

and this is where it all falls into place.

meadow ridge apartments

includes:

1100 square feet

*2 bedrooms

*1 3/4 bathrooms

wood burning fireplace

*water, sewer, and trash included in monthly rent

*cetral air and heat

*cable and internet bundled at a low rate

*pets allowed - even dogs.

(*met our requirements)

just exactly how excited am i?

freaking out excited.

but oh lordy,

the stress can go away any time now.

so our appointment to move in is on saturday at twelve o' clock.

luckily for us, 

weather is supposed to be nasty with approx four inches of snow - there is a lot of sarcasm in that.

but no really... yuck.

anyways, i'm picking up the u-haul today at ten o' clock this morning.

keifer is driving up when he is off work to help load everything up, and kalvin is going to help as well - thank you so much to the two of you (and possibly casey, shelby's boyfriend).

keifer will be staying the night and we will be taking off first thing in the morning. 

he doesn't know it yet,

but he is driving the u-haul that will be pulling my car and i'll be driving his car;p

once there and all checked in and paperwork is signed and paid for, 

erin and shane are lending a helping hand to help unload.

did i mention this apartment is on second floor? 

i'll say my prayers now for those at the bottom of the stairs while moving the tv stand...

hopefully, saturday and sunday i can get all unpacked and settled in.

monday, i am supposed to start my job at the maids,but i'm also to have a final interview with verizon sometime as well sometime next week. that is a cluster f...

but friday will be a nice relaxing getaway.

keifer and i have the luke bryan concert.

yay:)

well that is where i will leave off for now.

there will be pictures to come of the moving tomorrow i'm sure. 

so keep a look out!

have a good day for it is friday!!

when morning comes

this one will be short and sweet,

but i thought i might update you all on my day tomorrow.

i am getting up bright and early... seven o' clock in the morning to be exact.

i have five apartments that i will be stopping at to see if i can squeeze in a quick tour and gather some information.

(have one apartment or two in mind as of right now, but want to make sure i see all my options)

than at eleven o' clock i have an interview at verizon wireless in altoona - all thanks be to jarael madyun!

things aren't falling into place quite yet like i had hoped would happen this weekend,

but i trust they will soon.

that's it for now.

until next time

:)

i could go for a caramel moolatte right about now

well, if you didn't already know, let me inform you...

i feel like crap. 

and isn't that just perfect timing, being that monday and tuesday i have job interviews and doing some apartment searching. so that's just pooie!

but...

i'm sure my excitement and nerves will overcome and push aside how crappy i feel - ick!

anyways, i took some nyquil - usually i am out within a few minutes of taking it - and i seem to be more awake than i was before i took it. 

it could be that i have so much going on right now and my mind is in ten thousand other places, one not being that i need to get some sleep. 

or maybe it's that i can't breathe out of my nostrils?

either way, i'm not getting any decent sleep tonight, so i decided a random blog was due.

so...

here is my next few days in a nutshell:

(i'm thinking i will be too busy to post while it's all happening so i'll give a heads up and then once things are "set in stone" so the speak, i'll fill you in on my game plan)

saturday, or tomorrow:

i work until one o' clock and then i am headed to des moines.

i never know what the plans are upon arrival, but i sure would just like to lay in bed and watch playoffs and "dexter" all day, and maybe get some little caesar's pizza for supper, or keifer could make me breakfast supper in bed?!

sunday:

whether i get to watch playoffs all day on saturday or not, it's definitely a "tradition" that sunday is a very lazy day, and football is an all day thing in the nevius/madyun household, and that i am thankful for. 

it will definitely be needed because monday is going to be everything but lazy/relaxing. 

monday:

so far i have one interview on monday and one apartment tour afterwards. 

dillon, or course being he will be my roommate, and erin are tagging along for the tour (erin is worried about the location of the apartment and says we need to have her approval - such a motherly figure)

after the tour, i have a lot of places i want to stop at to fill out applications and hopefully talk to a manager on the spot.

ok, so i may not have a life the first few months after moving there, but i don't really have much of a life here in storm lake either... i hope to have two jobs, and maybe even three to get ahead on bills and a little money saved up for those emergencies.

tuesday:

i got a phone call today from a lady wanting to set up a time sometime tuesday to do an interview (i was napping when she called at 4 and when i woke at 6 i figured it was too late to call back so i'll get back with her monday if that isn't too late). hopefully a short interview before my return back to storm lake can be squeezed in.

well, that's that.

more or less, just waiting to know if dillon can do this as soon as i'm wanting to. 

it is kind of rushed - i can somewhat agree on that - but i also see there being no other way of doing it. living here and working where i work, there is no saving up so that i could possibly do this at a later date. 

my paychecks now, just get me by every two weeks. 

and well, i'm ready to get this new beginning started for myself:)

not only will i be closer to keifer, dillon, erin, shane, and the girls (and all those bvu guys) but hopefully i will get to see more of my old friend libbie, and even emily and jason when they return to the area every once and a while!!!