March - Year of Resolutions

I didn't get my house cleaned yet. Surprised?

I did create a cleaning schedule for myself, and I'd like to share it with you.  I'm not going to tell you how to make one yourself, because you can find many other blog posts about it by searching Pinterest or Google. I just included things I already do or would like to do and then consulted my Home Maintenance materials from class to see if there was anything I missed (we're actually right in the middle of our Housing unit!).

Little Cabin - Part III

*I started this post maybe 6 months ago and am posting it as-is.

The Little Cabin is not so little anymore!

But you wouldn't know it, would you? How could you when I haven't posted about it in OVER A YEAR?

Oh my gosh, has it really been so long? I cannot believe I have left it hanging so long.  So much has happened, and though we've captured somewhat inadequate photographic evidence, I will let the pictures do the talking for the rest of this update.

Little Cabin - Part IV+

The Little Cabin has come an awful long way since I last wrote about it. In fact, we just closed our construction loan and set up our mortgage today! There is still quite a bit of work that needs to be done, but we've been allowed to close which has taken a lot of pressure off Mountain Man and makes both of us happier.

February/March - Year of Resolutions

I hope you didn't think I'd given up on my resolutions just because you haven't heard from me!

It has been a crazy, busy, strange start to 2014, and I'd like to say I've adhered to my resolutions resolutely, but I'm only human, and they've been on the back burner more than once.  The Little Cabin is coming along tremendously but taking up a lot of my and Mountain Man's free time/thoughts (post coming soon!). And then there's wedding planning. It's always something!

Anyway, I am finally here to check in with you about my progress on my 2014 resolutions, and I'd love to hear how you've been doing with yours.

January - Year of Resolutions

I know you weren't expecting another update so quickly.  Try to breathe normally; please, contain your excitement.

This is my good-faith effort to keep you updated on my Year of Resolutions, and seeing as how I'm actually a bit behind, I decided to go ahead and fill you in on my plan of action for January's focus on health. I gave you a basic idea of what my approach was going to be back in my full YoR post, but I am a detail-oriented person and a self-titled over-sharer, so get ready for more than you ever wanted to know about my weight-loss strategies!

Mustering Up Some Resolve

If you're anything like me (or most of the world, for that matter), you make a handful of resolutions each new year, make a half-hearted attempt at keeping them, and forget them by February - sometimes sooner.  This year, I wanted to do something different.  There always seems to be something on my mind that I'd like to improve or do differently, and with the overwhelming choices making my head buzz and turning my resolutions into a laundry list of personal faults, I decided to take a step back.  What I chose to do is not exactly ground-breaking, but it's an option that I hadn't considered before, and I think hope it might be a good one.

Miscellaneous

I've always loved that word, especially once I learned how to spell it.  I'm kind of a show-off that way.

I have been wanting to give you an update on the cabin and life in general, but every time I go to write one, I feel like I'm having to explain things to put them into context for you.  Maybe this post would more accurately be titled "Context," because that's really what I'm hoping to give you - an understanding of my life as it is at this present moment in time.

The Proposal

At long last, I will share with you the story of Mountain Man's proposal to me!

It was simple and sweet, which is just what I wanted (I had long ago threatened him with refusal if he proposed to me in public). I think that a proposal should be a private event in a couple's life because it's so intimate.

Even though I don't think there should be any witnesses, I don't mind sharing, because proposals seem to be one of those things that everyone is naturally curious about.

"So how'd he do it?!"

The Job Interview

Let me begin by saying this:

I hate job interviews.

Really, they make me a nervous wreck, and I almost never have a feel for how well it went.  This one was no different.

It happened so quickly that I had no time to prepare.  Last summer, I was an interview pro by mid-June, and there are some pretty standard questions that are asked during education interviews, so I had somewhat pat answers.  This time, I saw the open job, my heart stopped, I sent an email, and then I had an interview.

My heart stopped again.



You'd think I'd have some issues from all this heart stopping nonsense.

Living and Working in Tuscaloosa

Tuscaloosa . . . where do I begin?

When I accepted my teaching position and began telling my friends and colleagues that I would be moving to Tuscaloosa, their general response was, "Oh my gosh, you're going to love Tuscaloosa!"  Friends, if you know anything about me, you probably know what I was thinking.

"Yeah, right."

Updates 2013

Good evening, Wild Woman family! It hurts my heart to think about how long I've been away from this blog, but please know it was not without good reason.  I learned a lot in this last year, but I had to work very hard to do it, which left little time for the frivolities of maintaining any sort of active online presence.

Little Cabin in the Woods - Part II

Friends, I'm back!

I know I've promised you grand posts about my new apartment and my new classroom, and they're coming! Just not today.  Today is all about the Little Cabin.

Last weekend, I finally made it up to Mountain Man's territory.  He desperately wanted to work on the cabin, and even though that wasn't what I had in mind for the weekend, I made a promise to him to help, and help I did!

Before we get into the picture part of this post, Mountain Man asked that I include some sort of disclaimer about the state of the inside of the cabin.  He's a little embarrassed, but seeing as it's not his fault, I don't think he has any reason to be.  DISCLAIMER: WHAT YOU WILL SEE BELOW IS THE DIRECT RESULT OF WILD CRITTERS, VANDALS, AND A RESTORATION/REMODEL IN PROGRESS AND SHOULD NOT BE CONSIDERED INDICATIVE OF MOUNTAIN MAN'S PREFERRED LIVING CONDITIONS.

Now, ya'll settle in, because I've got lots to tell.

On Being a Single Lady

My friends, please allow me a moment to revel in the joy that comes from living by yourself.  It's just me, Tucker, and the dust mites around here, and it has been a glorious few weeks.  But I'm a realist, and I know there will come a day when I will think, "WHY DID I THINK IT WAS A GOOD IDEA TO LIVE BY MYSELF?! I'M SO LONELY AND BORED!"  So in the almost inevitable event that occurs, here is a list of things I enjoy about living alone to remind me when I'm in tears because the dog didn't appreciate the exquisite boeuf bourguignon I made.

Getting Settled

I haven't posted in awhile, and I wanted to take a minute to give everyone a quick update on what's been going on.

Last week, my family and all my available muscular-male-types helped me move from Birmingham to Tuscaloosa.  It was a whirlwind of a week.  I worked at Bed Bath & Beyond (where I've worked part-time for about 3 years) all day Monday and Tuesday, and I tried to pack as much stuff as possible out of the room I'd rented from a coworker all summer.  Mountain Man came down Tuesday evening and we crammed everything except a few pieces of furniture into my car and his.  You should have seen his face when I told him I wanted to put all the clothes from my closet into his little Mitsubishi Eclipse.  I am ALL girl when it comes to the amount of clothes and shoes I own.

Without overwhelming you with too much detail, let me tell you just how busy the rest of the week was.

Wrapped Monogram Wreath

I pinned this jute wrapped monogram wreath on Pinterest a few months ago and decided that my new apartment would be the perfect excuse to make one.

I made mine without looking to see if I had pinned a tutorial or not because it looked so simple (and it is certainly simple enough to do but does require some patience).  In fact, the image I pinned links to an etsy listing by Embellished Living.  I did a little Googling, though, and found out that Chelsea over at two twenty one has a tutorial you can follow if you wish, which reproduces the inspiration wreath almost exactly.

Here's what I came up with:

Little Cabin in the Woods

Are you ready for your first look at Mountain Man's cabin?

This month, he's been working on clearing the massive amount of underbrush and weeds that have grown up along the driveway and around the actual house.  He wants to get all that cleared out to make it easier to haul supplies and whatnot back and forth.

I wanted to chronicle this myself, but thankfully unfortunately, Mountain Man started this project without me.  The kind of work this will require is not my favorite or even something I know much about, but I've committed myself to helping him with this.  He's been anxious to get started, but hopefully I'll be there to take some photos myself next time and you'll get to see the inside too.

So without further ado, some before and after shots Mountain Man took of the grounds with his cell phone and emailed to me.

Thrift Store Coffee Table

I've mentioned before that I'm going to start my first year of teaching in a few short weeks.  Obviously, I'm very excited, but sometimes I think I'm more excited about living in my very own apartment BY MYSELF for the first time.

About a week ago, I signed a lease for an apartment in Tuscaloosa, and although I have much of what I will need to furnish it, there are some things I'm lacking.  While I was visiting my family in Florida this past week, I had a lot of time to kill, so I went shopping!  

The biggest items I needed (ok, mostly just wanted) are things to fill out my living room, like a TV stand, a coffee table, end tables, and lamps.  I found a TV stand on sale at Kmart and some lamps at Big Lots.  I couldn't find any pictures of the styles I bought online, but I'll be sure to post some once I get settled in Tuscaloosa.  That just left the coffee tables and end tables.

Red Velvet Cupcakes in a Jar

This week, I'm visiting my family in Florida.

Yesterday was my uncle Joey's birthday, and Wednesday is my brother's birthday.  Uncle Joey actually lives in Virginia, but he just came back from a posting in Bahrain with the Navy and is visiting his parents (my grandparents) here in Okaloosa County.  In honor of both their birthdays, we had a big family dinner out at their house tonight.  My brother, who is (or will be ) 17, opted for a cookie cake, but Uncle Joey's favorite cake is red velvet.

I had pinned this several months ago, which was crafted by the lovely Rubyellen of cakies, and all credit goes to her.  Having never gotten around to actually sending them to him while he was stationed overseas, I decided tonight was the perfect opportunity to test them out.

Here we go!

Welcome!

Welcome to Wild Woman, Mountain Man!

I'm Wild Woman, although most people know me as Jenny, and my boyfriend is Mountain Man, but I usually call him Riley.  We're just a couple of young, Southern folks carving out a place for ourselves in a little ol' state called Alabama.

Me and Mountain Man in the Sipsey Wilderness, August 2010