I'm Baaaaaack!!!

So I took a bit of a hiatus. Ok, it was a long break from blogging. I'm not even going to apologize because I know that it won't be enough. But the last 7 months have been full of ups and downs and I'm going to share everything with you. So my next several posts will be catching you up from June to now. I know that I have a lot of making up to, but I promise I will be taking this serious (ok, semi serious). I know I don't deserve it, but I must ask a favor of you all. Stay on my ass. Let me know when you want more blogs, or better yet remind me when I start doing a crappy job again. This will help a lot.

This blog is going to cover one event. Stewart and I made it to the one year mark!! I can't even believe it. We survived. One year together and no lawyers were called in. No news reports with the headlines "Wife Kills Husband in First Year of Marriage"! It was a tough year. I not only was finishing school, for 8 months I didn't have a job, I was student teaching and coaching, and then I was thrust out into the working world. So many things happened.

But what I want to talk to you guys about was the day of our anniversary. We were both working on our one year and we were also broke as hell due to the fact that we were planning a vacation to the beach. So we had a very low key night planned. I asked the hubs what he would like to do and he asked for a night in. Thank god!! Sorry, I just was not in the mood to get dressed up after a hard day at work. Had it been a Friday night, I might have considered doing something else. I decided to cook for him. I asked him what he would like and he requested my pot roast. Hallelujah! A crock pot meal, even better!! This is doable!

So we woke up on our anniversary like it was any other day. But as the day wore on something weird happened. I started to become extremely nervous about dinner and about seeing the husband. I don't know why it happened and to this day it still confuses the heck out of me. But I raced home to check on the roast and what do I find at 5:00?? That damn roast isn't done!! How could this be happening? I have made this meal for him countless times and somehow I am messing this up! I noticed that the dining room table is a mess so I rush to clean it off and make it more presentable. I find candles and a pretty table cloth to make it more romantic. By this point, I'm pacing. The rolls weren't turning out well and the roast is still not done. I am so freaking nervous!! What if he doesn't like it, what if I didn't do enough, what if I should have made something else. I mean I am freaking out!! After another hour the roast is done. I was so panicked that it wouldn't get done, I forgot to season the dang thing. Needless to say this isn't how I wanted the night to go. I set the table, I pour a bottle of wine, and light the candles. My husband walks in the door completely surprised, and I start getting even more nervous. I was so nervous I could barely eat. He finishes his roast and move on to our wedding cake, which was delicious! It made the whole night even better. In the end, the night was a huge success and it was perfect. But it made me think, after a year of marriage I still cared what he thought. I still wanted to impress him and I still wanted to prove my love to him. I know I don't get sappy a whole lot, but I love that man to pieces and I wanted to give him an anniversary he deserved. He has been there with me through some of the hardest times and this was a chance to show my love to him. He loved it!! So here are a couple of pictures from the dinner. There are none of me because I looked like hell. And that's putting it kindly.

Simple I know, but it was the best I could do.

Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed. I know it was a little sappy, but fear not this sassy little wife has many more stories to tell. In the meantime, I need a little help. Due to the fact I'm no longer a true newlywed I will be changing the name of this blog. If you have any idea let me know! I'm open to anything.

~H~

Mrs. Band Teacher

As you all have read, I am married to a band teacher. My husband is a pretty amazing man. His love has and will always be band. I have come to love this about him even more, but it tends to be very annoying. I support my husband 100% in his job. So today's blog is about the pros and cons of being Mrs. Band Teacher. And yes, I have been called this more then once. I do have a name people!

Pro: As a football fan, I love getting to watch football games every friday. And most of all I love getting into the games for FREE!!
Con: I literally go to every football game, every Friday. Do you guys know how hard it is to have a nice date night when your husband constantly has to be at football games?! It's hard!! Some Fridays I don't want to give my husband up, I want to keep him and make him buy me dinner!

Pro: I'm always guaranteed to have Tuesday and Thursday nights to myself, and to have girl time. I use this time to catch up on my shows and to go get a mani/pedi.
Con: These are the nights Stewart has practice. Meaning we won't eat dinner till 8 or 9. By this point neither of us want to cook and so most of the time we eat cereal. Now you're probably wondering why I don't make dinner and have it waiting for him. Well, sometimes I do and sometimes I just don't want to have to make dinner that late. And I'm not always sure when he will get home. Judge all you want, but you would feel the same way EVERY Tuesday and Thursday.

Pro: My husband's mind is usually preoccupied during marching season, so I can get away with a lot. Such as, when I tell him he "promised to take me to dinner", but really he didn't. Bad of me I know, but sometimes a girl has to do what a girl has to do to get a nice date night. (P.S. Stewart I know you're reading this. I love you!)
Con: My husband is preoccupied!!! Meaning he isn't listening and I'm going to have to repeat myself a lot. Most of the time that doesn't bother me but sometimes it just gets under my skin.

Pro: The end of the year band trips are awesome!!! This year we went to six flags with the kids and I was a "chaperone". But hey, it was a free trip to six flags!
Con: I had to chaperone like 30 kids and they were crazy! It's hard to have fun when you are constantly on edge about where the heck the kids are and if someone has taken them. Luckily, no one was taken and I was able to have some fun. I'm not sure you would classify me as a good chaperone, but none of my kids got into trouble so I call that a success!

Pro: I love to bake for people so I am constantly volunteering to bake for the band. I like to bake brownies, cakes, cupcakes, etc. And the kids really seem to love them, so I guess that means I'm pretty good at it.
Con: Ugh!! I'm gaining so much weight from the constant eating of sweets! I know what you are thinking, "just have discipline Hannah". Well guess what, I don't know what that is, so I'm just going to blame this on Stewart's job.

That's all I have for right now about this subject, but trust me as soon as marching season is back, you guys will have another update for sure. But in all seriousness, I love my husband and that means loving his job no matter what. So I love being Mrs. Band Teacher-sometimes!

I'm A Bad Blogger

Friends, family members, and internet world I apologize for my lack of writing these last several months. Between school, student teaching, and finding a job I slacked off from updating. I am so sorry. But that is going to change I promise! Be patient with me and I promise you won't regret it.

So here we are less than a month away from our 1 year anniversary. The time has flown by. We have been through many ups and downs these past several months, and I will later talk about them. But for now I am going to update you on our lives from the past several months. Here are some pictures for you guys to look at so you can see what we have been up to. And mainly, to prove that I haven't killed my husband.

We went skiing for Christmas. We had an amazing time!! Stewart was playing with real snow for the first time. It was a lot of fun to watch. What was even more fun was watching him try to learn and ski. I asked him if he wanted me to go to ski school with him and he said not no, but hell no. Haha. So that was a fun adventure that we were able to share together and to share with my family.

Here is a picture of us at Easter. Please ignore the fridge that has a keg built into it behind us. That's just how my family rolls and it makes every holiday an even better one. : )

So here's the story behind this tent. This is the second tent that we purchased. The first one, that my husband just had to have (it was not the one I wanted), turned out to have a broken pole with it. The one I wanted (shown above) turned out to be perfect. It was fun having it in the house for oh, 2 weeks. Now you're probably wondering why in the world we needed a tent. And you're looking ahead to see if there are any camping pictures. Yeah, there's not any. We didn't go camping and we didn't plan to go camping. He just had to have a tent. And I was that amazing of a wife to let him get one. : )

And now my greatest achievement. I graduated from college!!!!!! It only took my 4 1/2 years but I did it. It took a ton of hard work and it was even harder being married. But it was so worth it!! I have a great husband who was super patient with me as I worked on school and completely let the house fall apart. He was my rock through all of this.

And now to close this up. I am now employed. I have an amazing job and it has helped out so much financially, but it has also made me feel important and that I'm able to help my husband. He still has 3 jobs and we hope to one day not have so many. Please forgive me for the lack of blogs. I have a long list of things I plan on writing about. Trust me, you're not going to want to miss it. Keep on the look out to the second edition of Sleepless in Louisiana.

Homework, and Cooking, and School Oh My!!

I know it's been awhile guys and I will try and do my best to keep everyone updated better. Good news though, we have hit the 3 month mark and we haven't killed each other or filed for divorce. Success!! I'm not going to lie though, these past few months have been a challenge. I always laughed at people when they said marriage is hard and you constantly need to try. Well, they were right! This has been a huge adjustment for Stewart and I. We have both lived on our own for awhile (especially him, being old and all) and we were set in our own ways. I thought after dating for 4 years, that I knew just about everything. Wrong! I thought after the first month of marriage I found out everything. Wrong! We are over 3 months into the marriage and I'm still finding out weird things about my husband. For example, when he gets dressed for work he puts his pants on, zips, buttons, and buckles the belt all before putting his shirt on. He then proceeds to unbuckle, unbutton, and unzip to tuck his shirt in. Who does that?! That's a lot of extra effort!!! Just put the pants on leave them unbuttoned and put your shirt on! I could probably save him 5 minutes every morning if he would just listen to me! But of course he doesn't. So instead, he wastes those precious minutes every morning. Each day holds an interesting moment when we look at each other and think "I never knew that about him/her, I wonder how I could change it". At least that's what I think.

I'm also struggling to keep up with household chores, do homework, try not to skip class, and have dinner ready. You would think it wouldn't be so hard, but it is. I put in a lot of time in school (cause I'm still trying to graduate) and by the time I get home, I do not want to cook dinner. Cooking dinner is a waste of time and energy that could be used somewhere else. Like sitting on the couch and watching TV. Yes, sometimes I don't cook because I don't have the energy and I just want to sit down. Don't judge me! I don't know how people do it and have kids and everything else. I can barely handle school and being a wife! I am getting better, but I do feel bad when my husband comes up to me, looks in the kitchen, and says "I guess we are eating out again". And other days when he says this, I want to slap him upside the head. I do have to admit that he's pretty amazing and helps me as much as his small male brain will allow him to do. He folds the laundry and puts it away. He takes the trash out (sometimes). He washes the dishes I cook (over several days). And he helps with the dogs (everyday). But mainly he's super supportive and has become very patient when I say "let's eat out" or "you may or may not have clothes to wear tomorrow". And generally, my "may or may not" is for sure may not.

I have had to grow up a lot this last couple of months. I have had to back down on several fights, because I was wrong (but really I wasn't). I have had to cry to get all my frustrations out. I have had to call my mom for advice. I have had to admit that I'm married to the most stubborn man on earth. But every night I go to bed beside him and think how lucky I am to have married him. I am so thankful for the multiple "I love you"s that I get. He is my better half and he's my best friend. More then anything he's driving my crazy. But I do love him.

Never EVER Workout Together

Some couples find it very relaxing and very exciting to workout together. Well, that's not the case in my marriage. My husband is the most annoying person to workout with. He thinks he knows everything; even though I'm the Kinesiology major. I mean seriously, I'm studying this stuff, and he's going to ignore me?! Ridiculous. He tries to tell me that it's because we are working out different parts. Umm, hello, there are other exercises besides squats. Sorry, I'm just trying to provide him with a wider variety of exercises. You don't see me trying to tell him how to play the trumpet. That's his job, of course he knows what he's doing. Or at least I hope he does. You never know.

Also, I have had several trainers and been to several bootcamps. I know what I'm talking about! I have teachers that I can use as resources, textbooks on hand, and workout plans that I have used. Take my advice, I have been doing this a lot longer then he has. I've actually played sports, he was in marching band. Really, who do you think knows more?!

So not only do we not do good working out together, he always exercises at inconvenient times. Tonight for example, right before I want to start cooking. Do I look like I'm one of those kinds of wives that would have dinner waiting for him for when he gets home. I don't think so! Why workout knowing that I'm hungry and I want to start cooking. Now, he will tell you it's because I won't let him workout. Well that's bull. We have an elliptical and several other pieces of workout equipment and yet he prefers to go to the gym. I'm sorry that I want him to use the things that we have at home. Use the things that we have available and that are FREE!!

Sorry for the short rant, but somethings need to be said. On a better note, I have lost 5 pounds since walking down the aisle, and I feel amazing. Looks, like marriage is for me. : )

My Husband the Writer

My husband is a man of many talents. He won't admit to any of these but he's an incredible musician, great teacher, very artistic, and he's very good at building things. His latest venture is writing. And I have to say it's become the most annoying. Now, I will support my husband till the end of time. I always have. But sometimes I just want to tell the man to stick to one hobby and perfect it. What's wrong with having one hobby that you are absolutely great at?! Then you can say you're the best at it. It doesn't make any sense to me!! So he writes, and I have to put up with it. It's very boring to just sit around and listen to him type and mumble. Yes, he mumbles. It's very annoying and drives me insane. And god forbid you interrupt him when "he's on a roll". Trust me, bad idea. Not only could you possibly lose your life, he will bring you back just to kill you again. How am I suppose to get anything done in this kind of stressful environment?!

So he came to me a couple of years ago and told me he was going to write something. I was of course very excited and supportive of him. Well a year goes by and nothing finished. Ok, sometimes these things take time. Another year goes by and nothing. Really?! Two years, and the man hasn't produced a single finished piece of writing?! I've heard of writers taking a long time to write but come on, this thing isn't even a 100 pages.

So finally, a couple of months ago he comes to me with a finished novella and I have to admit it's amazing. I didn't realize just how talented he was. Yes, he needs some good editing and some more experience. But the man has some talent. He finally self published it as an e book. He has had some sells but not what he was hoping for. I have no idea what he was expecting. No one becomes successful over night.

Look guys, I'm trying to be the supportive wife here, but the man is driving me insane. So could you guys do me a favor and buy the dang book. It's only 99 cents. You don't even have to read it! Just buy it and delete it (that's what I did). Just kidding. Support us here. I'm trying to get him famous so I can be the trophy wife I deserve to be.

Offerings by Stewart Felkel. You can find it on amazon, barnes and noble, itunes, and smashwords. Please for the love of all goodness buy the book!!

Husband Tells All!!

I love my wife dearly, but as the Baptist say, bless her heart. I have never met another woman quite like her. She has been asking me to do a guest post about how things look from my perspective. The only restrictions were that I have to keep it brief and be funny. If you have ever met me, or read my blog, you know that my sense of humor is very much an acquired taste. Furthermore as all of my students will tell you, I talk. A lot. The word verbose is used about me often. I’ll try to stay on topic though. Today, rather than write a serious dissertation on what it’s like to be a newly married groom I thought that I would humor you with random facts about my wife. If you have ever met her then these will be very familiar to you. Audience members, please feel free to add your own in the comment section.

Random Fact 1- I can always find where my wife is in the house by following the trail of shoes. Now, when she moved in I obviously rearranged the closet to accommodate her clothing. While doing so I gave up some nice shelf space to her shoe collection. Gentleman in the audience, every joke about women and shoes is 100% true. That’s why they’re funny. Now, this substantial, well semi substantial, shelf space is only used to house the shoes that aren’t really made to be worn. Most are apparently made to look cute while inflicting maximum pain on a woman’s tender feet. The shoes that my wife wears regularly tend to be found in odd place. Under the couch, the bed, beside the dining room table, the doorways, even in the kitchen. The inevitable question when we are about to leave is “Stewart, where are my shoes?”

Random Fact 2- My wife tends to spread out. When we first got engaged I lived in a small one bed one bath house. A house that I built with me on two hands I might add. With a little help from my friends. Now, it was a regular question in Casa de Felkel as to how we were going to house myself, a wife, and two rambunctious dogs. We especially questioned our bathroom situation. Fast forward a year and we are in a new home with vastly more space and a master bath that has his and hers sinks. Fantastic! The other day I went to brush my teeth only to find my lovely wife doing the same. At my sink. Why my sink? Because hers was full of clothes. Clothes! Who drapes clothes in their sink? Not only has my sink been commandeered, but the plugs on my side are being used to power straighteners, hair  driers, and other instruments that look like they could be used to interrogate terrorists. She told me the other day that we need more space.

Random Fact 3- My wife is cool, calm, and collected in a crisis situation. Provided the crisis is overly large and/or not about her. That’s right, large scale, end of the world, zombie apocalypse style crisis don’t bother her at all. Once upon a time she was caught in a hit and run accident. The story is actually very amusing, but I’ll let my wife tell it to you one day herself. I was following a ways back in my own vehicle when I found her wrecked car parked and her calmly calling the police, her parents, insurance agents, the works. No sweat. Never mind that she almost died ten minutes earlier. Small scale crisis are a different matter entirely. Today she almost had a panic attack because she convinced herself that she wouldn’t have enough observation hours to be allowed to student teach. Rather than call her advisor she convinced herself that she wouldn’t be able to graduate for an additional six months. You could say that we have an issue with mountains and molehills.

 Well, that’s all I have time for tonight. If I’m allowed back, a big if, I think I’ll write about how decisions are made in a marriage. Husband’s it will be familiar territory I’m sure.