Training Camp and Our Love Story (Finally!)

Well boys and girls, it is that time of year!  C’s team has officially moved into their hotel to start training camp!  I can’t believe this will be my third season cheering for this guy from the sidelines. 

I do have to say this is my least favorite part of it all. Having C move out of our home for 2 ½ weeks is just no fun.  I mean, he’s pretty much my chef so I am stuck eating rice or soup for dinner right now. Obviously there are other reasons but that one really stinks haha.

Thankfully the hotel they are staying in this year is a lot closer to the apartments than the one they had previously stayed in. We’ve been able to see each other every other night.

I will miss going to that other hotel though, for a very significant reason. 

Two years ago today, this happened.  Go ahead, check it out.  I promise it’s really short!

Ok, for those of you who didn’t feel like clicking, Tuesday, February 28, 2012 was the day I first met C, and it was at the front door of that old hotel.  I wrote a teeny tiny little post about meeting a boy and how I was being cautiously optimistic about it.

Alright fine, here it is:

“So....I met a boy.  Well, I've met lots of boys I suppose, but this one is special. He is very attractive, tall (6'4),  and a total gentleman. 

I've been helping out my friend A that plays for the Rattler's (the one I went to Vegas with) and given him a few rides around town. The other day, he brought along a teammate, C.  We totally hit it off. 

We've chatted during the day every day since I met him, which is really only 4 days ago.  I've hung out with him twice and we are going out again tonight. He asks me how my day was. He texts me goodnight. He texts me good morning. He even called to say goodnight last night.  It's been years since I've had a man do that. I love it :)

I wish I had better radar because what I can't tell is if he actually likes me or if he is just bored and loney in Arizona and needs a friend.  He is from Tampa but the team is currently living in a hotel for training camp.  He also doesn't have a car yet, which means he can't go anywhere unless someone takes him.

So......I'm being cautious.....but optimistic.”

Well, I have to say, two years later that I am so, so, so, thankful for that day and that we both did something that we really didn’t actually feel like doing.

Let me back up a bit. 

One of my friends, A, from high school was playing for the Rattlers at the time. Since the team was in training camp, the players were all staying in the same hotel, like they are doing now.  Since A had previously had his license suspended, he needed rides everywhere.  To be honest, I kind of had a crush on him but I knew he was absolutely and completely all wrong for me. He was a bad boy in every sense of the word. I had already told him that we would never be and we were just fine being friends.  That afternoon, he asked if I would give him a ride to speak to kids at a youth sports training thing he runs.  Now, this place was NOT close.  By not close, I mean about 25-30 miles away.  I really didn't want to give him a ride, but since it was for children and I’m pretty much too nice, I said ok.  I am so glad I did. 

Meanwhile, C had arrived in Arizona about 3 days before this. He was originally going to play for another team, but ended up getting traded (on my birthday!) and made his way to Arizona for training camp. He didn’t know a single guy on the team yet, so that evening he was just kind of hanging out in the lobby with nothing to do.  When my friend A walked by, he randomly asked C if he wanted to come and speak to the kids too. C was just planning on lounging around and didn’t really want to go, but at the last minute he changed his mind.  I am so glad that he did. 

Because I didn’t really feel like waiting around alone for A to do his thing with the kids, I had brought a friend and thought we’d find something to do while A was busy.  When we pulled up to the hotel, A came out and started crawling into the back seat (I have a 2 door car) because one of his new teammates was going to come along.  Then out the door came C.  I remember my first thoughts being “Oh man, he’s cute.  Who is this boy?” A introduced C real quick, then he climbed in the front seat next to me and we headed out.  I couldn’t stop thinking about how cute he was and obviously made sure to do the ring check right away!

C was supposed to talk to the kids at the end of their training so he had an hour or so to kill.  My friend and I had planned on grabbing dinner at that point, so we invited him along.  We all ended up at Margaritaville drinking margaritas and chatting.  He was actually late getting back because we were having so much fun!  

After watching him speak to the kids and seeing how great he was with them, I liked him even more.  I remember I kept telling my friend, “I like this guy. I wonder if he is single?”  We spent the night trying to figure it out, but never did. Once he was done, we decided to go out again to a place called Fat Tuesday’s to get “adult” slushies (they have alcohol in them).  Keep in mind, this was a week night…..I never go out on weeknights!  But we did and I had a blast.  I wish I had a picture of us that night, but alas I do not.  I only have a picture of him with my friend….womp womp. 

Where am I? Oh yeah....taking the picture. Boo.

I honestly can’t remember how we exchanged numbers or whatnot, but I am so glad we did.  We ended up talking constantly. I really liked him, but I had no clue how he was feeling. As you can see from the first post, I was definitely questioning that.  The night I was speaking about in the first post (that we were going to go out again) happens to be the night this post happened:

“So….he likes me :)

Our night on Friday was perfect.  We ate dinner at a BBQ restaurant (he sat next to me instead of across from me), walked around some outdoor shops, then rented a redbox movie (30 Minutes or Less) and drank some wine. We spent the night inching closer and closer together, feeling each other out.  Like I said before, he is just so hard to read.  Once he finally kissed me though, I knew.  I think we spent a total of 9 hours together and I didn’t want it to end.

We spent all day Sunday together getting him moved into his new apartment.  I think we spent four hours at Wal-Mart and Target. He made me laugh all day and it was nice to do something so low key and feel so comfortable.  It felt so natural. We ordered pizza and I even let him see my quirks…..how I put the pepperoni pieces off to the side and eat them all at the end because they are the best part.

I’ve never met such a gentleman.  He makes sure I walk on the inside in parking lots so I don’t get hit, walks in front of me down stairs (and behind me going up them) in case I fall, opens doors, and always sits closest to the door. I thought this stuff only happened in movies!”

I didn’t mention it in the post, but right after he kissed me he said “I’m not gonna lie, I’ve been wanting to kiss you since I got into the car.”  (The car he means is my car the first night we met).  Um?  How cute is that?  I wrote it down in my phone and dated it that night, so I know it’s real! I think about that night a lot.  I actually still have the empty bottle of wine we drank (yeah, I’m a little sentimental).  I think it would be awesome to someday serve at our wedding :) 

The wine we drank that night :)

By the way, he still does all those things I mentioned above (liking walking in front of me down stairs and behind me up them). Most guys drop that “act” after they reel you in, but not C.  His momma raised him right!

The first (very awkward) picture we took together. He wasn't ready haha.

Well there you have it!  That is how I met C and part one of our love story!  I was just going to talk about how he is in camp right now, but how could I not share the whole story (finally) when that’s where it all started!  I will try to do part two soon :)

Boxy Charm Review - February

Time for my second Boxy Charm review!

I honestly got this box maybe a week after the second box, so I waited a little while to show you all. I didn’t want to do two in a row!

This box is $21.00 a month with free shipping and is a “beauty box subscription that surprises you each month with the best beauty products from popular and chic brands. Each box contains full size and luxury size beauty samples from our team’s preferred well-known brands.” They aim to cover a whole look from makeup to nails, which I really like. 

February’s Boxy Charm theme was “Sweetest Box” and like last month, the packaging was just adorable! It came in a sleek black box with a pink bowed tied on the side this time. Inside, there was a cute sticker on the tissue paper shaped like a candy heart that said “Sweet Heart” and then the items were resting on strips of various shades of pink paper! So stinkin cute.  All of the items had a lovey pink and red valentines feel to them too.

So without further ado….my second Boxy Charm! 

           1)     Mirabella Eye Definer in “Bronze”– .073 oz. (FULL SIZE)

            I wish I used eyeliners, but alas, this is not my thing.  It’s really a gorgeous color.  I 

            might try to somehow incorporate it into my look during C’s upcoming football 

            season. His team colors are bronze and teal!

Full Size: $19.00 My Value: $19.00

          2)    Eyelashi Hand tied false lashes– (FULL SIZE)

Well these are interesting!  They look a bit long for me, but I am sure I can get some use out of them! The book they came in is pretty great, there is an outside case and the inside tray slides out.  I can definitely see myself using this for other things in the future!

Full Size: $9.00 My Value: $9.00

3)  Pandora’s Makeup Box Blush in “Classic Pink”- .14 oz. (FULL SIZE)

This is seriously the cutest little blush container!  It had a paper flower that you slide off, then the case is a little magnetic flowery thing!  The blush inside almost looks nude, so my only worry is if it will show up on my face! 

Full Size: $18.00 My Value: $18.00

4)  Mirabella LA LA Lips in “Love Velvet” – .081oz. (FULL SIZE)

Ugh. You already know how I feel about red lip products.  Why the heck do I get so many of these??!?  Gggrr.

Full Size: $23.00 My Value: $23.00

5)  NARS Nail Polish in Anardana – .5 oz. (FULL SIZE)

I love that they sent such a well-known brand, but this just isn’t my color.  I don’t like anything bright on my nails.

Full Size: $12.00 My Value: $12.00

 Final Cost: $21.00

Final Value: $81.00

Um?  Five full size, great products and a value of almost 4 times what I paid?  I’d say that is pretty awesome! I really adore the theme and looks of these boxes. I have honestly saved them in hopes I can use them for something else someday!

I like this one more than the first box, so I am definitely going to keep this one going. I can’t wait to see what packaging they have next month!  Green maybe?!

If you’d like to get Boxy Charm, you can sign up here!

(Also, I swear I’m not a review blog….I just like sharing these fun things! I have not been compensated for this review.)

Adventures in Flooring

(Also, how we spent our Valentine’s Day)

As I have mentioned before, I moved in with C over a year ago.  Since my condo was sitting vacant, I decided to work with a vacation rental company to make some money on it while it was sitting empty.  They have been renting it out to various guests for days, weeks or sometimes even months and I have basically made up the costs to keep it, which I love. The company also takes care of pretty much everything for me, which is great. Cleaning, maintenance, new light bulbs, service calls for the water heater, you name it, they do it.

Last Tuesday I found out something that they don’t take care of. 

The vacation rental company called me and said that the last guest had complained about the state of the carpet in the two bedrooms.  I knew that the time was coming where I needed to replace it (I mean its white and I’ve owned the place for 5 years, who knows how old that carpet is), but I was thinking that I would do it over the summer this year when it was “guest free” for a while. You know, because no one comes to Arizona for vacation when its 115 degrees outside. Thing is, the company thought it would be best if I replaced the flooring before the next guest came in since they’d be staying for a month and a half. If they were upset, it would be a lot of lost revenue. 

Problem was?  The next guest would be there in a mere 3.5 days.

Um?  Time for C and I to grow up and make adult decisions, and quick!

Obviously I freaked out.  I dropped everything, left work and headed to Home Depot.  I needed a flooring guru.  I knew nothing.  Did I want carpet? Did I want laminate?  Was there a huge price difference? After our talk I was leaning towards laminate since I thought it would keep better in a rental. My guru taught me what I needed to know, but then dropped a bomb on me.  There is no way they would be able to get anything installed that quickly. 

Freak out moment #2.  How in the world would I find a place that would have enough of a product that I liked in stock and be able to install it in 3 days?  Google, that’s how.  I found two places, the Carpet Depot and Express Flooring, and set to work.

The Carpet Depot was down the street from me so I headed there first. Basically they buy left over flooring from commercial installs so what they have in their warehouse is what you can choose from. They had both a decent carpet and a laminate I liked.   When I asked the price, I was told it was the same for both. Woo hoo!  I confirmed if the price included install and if they could for sure install on Thursday or Friday of that week (basically in 2-3 days).  Both answers were yes.  Oh man, I felt the relief flood over me!

The next day (Wednesday) I had an appointment with a “Design Consultant” from Express Flooring. I wanted to compare what they had in stock (as well as their prices) to the Carpet Depot.  The rep showed us what he called fiberglass flooring that looked a lot like wood.  It was hard and he ran his keys across it briskly to show us that it was pretty scratch resistant.  A lot of restaurants and grocery stores use it.  I didn’t love it, but I also didn’t hate it.  With the time crunch it was one of our only options, or so I thought.  He also kept trying to tell me about carpet, but I knew I rather pay the relatively small difference for something that would last longer.  Then he told us their prices, which were 1.5 times the price of the Carpet Depot. Naturally, I sent him packing.

I immediately called Carpet Depot to schedule the installation of the laminate I had chosen. Right away, the owner told me he had “forgotten” to include the price of installation and it would be $700 more.  I know that I clearly asked him this when I was there to confirm, which kind of upset me.  I had limited time though, so I gave in.  Fine, I’ll pay extra.  Then he tells me he needs to check with the installer. Of course, the installer says he can’t do it until the following week.  This was also something I KNOW I confirmed before I left.  Ugh. So let it be noted, don’t go to Carpet Depot if can manage it. They will jerk you around!

So I call the Express Flooring guy back and twenty minutes later he is standing in my living room again.  We pick out the fiberglass flooring we want from his limited supply of color choices (again, he keeps pushing towards that darn carpet), pay, and set up installation for the next day (Thursday).  We are now real adults who have made big, expensive, life decisions. 

That evening we moved all of the furniture out of the two rooms.  Then because we knew the flooring was getting replaced and there was no furniture in the room, we took the time to paint one of the wall in the master as well as some of the bases boards that were black.  Going from black to white is not a simple job, but we got it done. 

Since C had a few free days, he willingly volunteered to be at the condo for installation all day on Thursday.  He’s clearly amazing right?  Ten minutes after the installers show up, he calls me and says the product they brought for the floors is basically like a roll of linoleum.  Say what??  It felt like plastic and its one whole sheet.  The only thing that is even slightly like what we thought we were getting is the color.  It is the “color” of wood, which isn’t saying much.

Obviously I am livid at this point.  The installers are awesome and licensed contractors so I basically tell them I will pay them cash if they can install something before the guest arrives in their off time and I call Express Flooring to cancel my order.  The regional manager gets on the phone and swears he can right the wrong and wants to bring over some samples.  I tell him I don’t want him to waste my time with crap products or things that are more expensive, but he insists.  I relent, but not before telling him that if he is lying, my big football player boyfriend will be there and he will beat him up.  Yeah...I actually said that. I’m not proud.

Much to my surprise, he actually brings something I like! He also doesn’t charge me a single dime more even though the product would normally cost between $700 and $1500 more. What great customer service. We chose a color and I was fairly confident, as long as what showed up for installation the next day was the product I chose!

I picked the top one to match the cabinets....though I loved the others too!

C again offered to spend all day overseeing the installation (cause he’s awesome) and what do you know, the installers brought the right thing!   The guys arrived at 10am and said it would take 3-4 hours, which was even better. 

Too bad that didn’t work out.  When they pulled up the carpeting, the concrete was crumbling around the edges so they had to resurface it and wait for it to dry. Then,  halfway through the process they realized they only had enough glue for one room, so they had to leave for over an hour to go get some.  Finally, they weren’t planning on taking off the baseboards, which would have left a huge gap between the baseboards and the new flooring, so I gave them $40 cash to take those off and lower them (which allowed C to give them a fresh coat of paint too). 

One room complete!

All said and done, they weren’t finished and out of there until after 6pm. Keep in mind this was Valentine’s Day. After they left, it was up to C and I to clean up a little and put back all of the furniture before the maids came in the next day.  Also, since the baseboards had been moved, I had to spend time painting the newly exposed wall in both rooms as well as the tops of the baseboards again.

So what did we do?  We headed to the store for some beer (Red's Apple Ale for me...yum) and spent our Valentine's Day finishing all of the things listed above.  We weren't done until after 10pm.  Obviously, our Valentine's dinner plans were foiled and we were starving by that time.  So we did what anyone would do.....we headed to Jack in the Box!

A part of me wished we would have had lavish plans for the  evening, but honestly it was perfect.  We spent hours working together to complete something that looks awesome and had fun in the process. Sometimes its not about the fancy things you can do on a day like that, its just about being together.

Now here are the final transformation pictures!  Sorry they aren't so great, but you can only do so much with an iPhone!

The guest bedroom (we painted this last fall after C's season):

Before

After

The master bedroom:

Before

After

What do you think??  I kind of love it.  The only thing that stinks is I don't actually live there so I can't enjoy it!