Clean, clean, clean!

Even though I have tons of reading for school that I haven’t even thought about starting, I’m still feeling good after a relaxing, yet productive weekend.  Friday night, Ryan and I went up to our favorite bar to hang out with Ryan’s brother Taylor for awhile.  I didn’t drink or anything, but it was nice just to be out among the living. =)  We didn’t get home until 2:30 or so, so I slept really late on Saturday.  Saturday morning, Nico woke both Ryan and I up barking her head off at someone in the street.  Although we could have gotten up then, we just turned on the TV and lounged for most of the day.  We didn’t make it out of bed until nearly 4:30 in the afternoon, when we were finally too hungry to stay any longer!  It was just what I needed though…ever since school started back last week I had been feeling exhausted, and I finally felt like I caught up.  Plus a little Saturday afternoon lovin’ is always nice. =)

After getting absolutely nothing done on Saturday, I woke up ready to go on Sunday.  Our house had become an absolute wreck, so I spent most of the day on Sunday cleaning away.  I did take a break to go to a fitting for a bridesmaid dress, and to get some food at Ryan’s restaurant where he was working.  By Sunday night, I had gathered several bags of trash, a couple of bags of clothes and a box of stuff for Goodwill, and a large pile of boxes, etc. to be taken to recycle.  Not to mention several large items to be returned or given away to folks we know.  And our bedroom is immaculate!  I know it won’t stay this way, but I am really enjoying it for now.  On Monday, I tackled my office/guest room and the rest of the house.  It is looking really good, and now that it is done, I finally feel like I can concentrate on school work and other things.

My semester started last week, and so far, I think it is going to be pretty manageable.  Just a few tests, projects, papers, etc. in each class, but a ton of reading (which I am putting off as you can see). =)  I have two short papers to write before next Monday, not to mention reading eight chapters in various textbooks, a research article, and the Alcoholics Anonymous Big Book. =)  Blah.

Instead of studying, I spent a couple of hours online tonight, looking at engagement rings.  I’m such a girl!  Actually, we found out that our good friend Elenore’s mom is a jeweler, and so she is probably going to be making my engagement ring (resetting my mom’s old engagement ring that she gave me).  These days, Elenore designs most of her mom’s jewelry, so she told me that I need to give her an idea of what I like, so that she can help guide Ryan when the time comes.  Although I don’t have a lot of requirements (white gold, not yellow; nothing too fancy), I did find a few different things that I liked.  I figure I can email the pictures to Elenore so she’ll have an idea, but it still leaves a lot of variety so Ryan can choose what he would like as well.  I am strongly hoping that he gets off his lazy butt to get this done in the next 6-9 months…I am more than ready for us to make this official.  Also, all our closest friends are leaving the country for extended periods, so I’d really like to get planning so we can be sure to find a time when our best friends can all be present.  Just because I’m such a girl, here are a few of the links to rings that I liked:

http://www.dimendscaasi.com/build/step1.asp?prodID=1A3BA

This one is a little fancy, but I like the thin-ness of it, and I think it is the kind of thing that Elenore’s mom does well.

http://www.herdreamdiamond.com/proddetail.php?prod=hdd-24

This is classic, nice and simple, but very pretty.  It’s really my style.

http://www.sunjewelry.com/er3357.html

This one is really different, (never what I would have imagined) but it really intrigued me. 

http://www.sunjewelry.com/er3484.html

I just thought this one was so pretty, while still being really sturdy, with the bezel setting.  Although I think traditional solitaire rings are really pretty, I really want something that I can wear daily without worrying about losing the diamond, or scratching one of the kids I work with!

I think I would be really happy with just a plain band and our small, but pretty diamond (it’s about 0.5 carat), but I also know that Elenore and her mom enjoy making more intricate things, and they are very good at it.  So part of me wants to take advantage of that as well.  I just don’t want to end up with something that I won’t enjoy years down the road.  Anyway, it’s not completely up to me, so I’ll just hope that Elenore can steer Ryan in the right direction!