Love this video OR every other blogger loves this video

by nicole

I just had to share... since everyone else is. Cool, right? ;)

Lift, Tuck, Burn!

by nicole

One of the best parts of my mornings for the last 6 months has been working out with the women at Pure Barre Seattle. It’s easy to say that I was already hooked before I even went to my first class. I did a lot of research on the nets and YouTubed everything Google presented to me. Conclusion: I want a Pure Barre body!

So I jumped on the Pure Barre train back in February after attending the grand opening party for the new Bellevue studio. Somehow I even worked up enough courage to introduce myself to the owner, Sami Sweeney and said something like “if you ever open another studio, I want to be a teacher!” What a goof! I purchased 5 classes at the event and decided to stretch them out over the month, after all I only had 5 and I wanted to make them last FOREVER. My beautiful and fit friend Heidi C. and I went to our first class on February 22^nd fully expecting to get our butts (seats) kicked and oh we definitely did! The next day I couldn’t move! I had tucked, lifted my seat and burned my muscles to fatigue during that 55-minute intense routine. I was so hooked!

 It quickly became my favorite part of my morning. I lived for Pure Barre and was becoming obsessed.  I’d find myself tucking in the grocery store, pulling my belly in towards my back in the car (sitting abs), balancing on my tiptoes in kitchen and going “down an inch, up an inch.” I’d find a way to bring it up in every conversation and sharing my new love with all of my girlfriends. Eventually I had stocked up on month unlimited packages and Heidi and I started going together almost everyday during the summer. Just in the last month alone we’ve gone 23 times! I’ll shout it from the mountaintops, I LOVE PURE BARRE! And you should too. Honestly. And I still want to be a teacher :)

Just you, me and Friday Harbor… sounds like a song

by nicole

We really did not want to come back to Seattle. We could live on that lovely little island for the rest of our lives… just us, our bikes, and some future babes :)

Almost exactly two years ago we went on the same 3-day bike tour of the San Juan Islands after only knowing each other for 3 weeks. It was Tony’s idea and of course I happily agreed to the adventure.  So for our 1-year anniversary we knew exactly how to spend it… visiting all of our favorite spots from the time we fell in love. We left the city late Friday night the 5th and stayed in the dumpy hotel we stayed at the first night we unsuccessfully found lodging on Orcas Island two years prior. Woke up super early the next morning and headed, with all of our gear in tow to the Anacortes ferry for Friday Harbor. Perfect way to start out our anniversary.

By the way, National Geographic named San Juan Islands #3 2011 World Travel Destination. Check! Enjoy the pictures because as we all know, that’s the best part of a blog.

Orca pod, 300 yards from our tent

 

Ice cream in Roche Harbor, northern tip of San Juan Island

Original hotel built in 1886, obviously it's been restored

our campsite, right on the cliff. one of the advantages of being a "hiker/biker."

Tony preparing the fire for our tin foil dinner of carrots, potatoes and onions

Sunset, day 1

kayaking with sea creatures and husband, day 2

kayaking with the orcas, day 2

After 2 hours of straight paddling, it was time for a lunch date! PB&J sammies, homemade larabars, lil' cuties, almonds and dried apricots.

Light House at Cattle Point, day 3

Squinting from the sun?

And then our camera broke... but does he not have the sexiest calves?!

A first for us.

by nicole

It’s hard to believe in two days marks one year since Tony and I got married. 365 blissful days (honestly!).  We’ve done so many things in just one year.

Traveled along the Oregon coast for our honeymoon. Came back for one day then hopped on a boat with Tony’s mom and dad, sister and brother-in-law for a 7 day cruise to Alaska to celebrate his parent’s 30^th anniversary. Tony got a new job at a social media company. We moved into our first apartment together (just 300 steps around the corner from Tryna and Jamie). Did the Washington MS 150 bike ride 3 weeks after we got married – 94 miles in 1 day (mind you I went on maybe 3 training rides total post wedding). We spent Thanksgiving alone in Portland where we ate the best non-traditional Thanksgiving meal. Now a Sheehan family tradition. Turkey? No thanks. Spent Christmas in Boise with Tony’s family, which is always pleasant.

We rung in the new year with Brandon and Heidi and their unborn child. I got a job (finally!) nannying to two of the most loving and grateful children I’ve ever met. Went to Kansas in April to celebrate my grandfather’s 90^th birthday. Celebrated Tony’s birthday May 6^th and then for only 10 days we were 27 years old together. Then I turned the spry young age of 28 on May 16^th. June was a blur minus Tryna’s birthday, Tony interviewing with NY companies :) and visiting the great Salt Lake for Tony’s cousin’s wedding. In July we vacationed to the exotic city of Los Angeles. I stayed at the beach and hung out with Rachel (soon to be a famous musician) while Tony schmoozed other techies at a convention.  And all the while loving each other more and more each day. Tomorrow we drive north to the most beautiful part of the Pacific Northwest to celebrate our anniversary riding our bikes around the islands, camping along the water and hopefully catching a glimpse of orca whales and visiting all of our favorite spots from our trip two years ago.

So friends, here you go, the Sheehan blog that you’ve been requesting for the last year and the many years since I stopped blogging (was that really 4 years ago??). Hope it’s not boring… like this post :)

Pictures from the past year

Seaside, OR day 1

Seaside, OR day 1

Seaside, OR day 1

Seaside, OR day 1

Cannon Beach, Haystack Rock

Manzanita Beach

Rockaway Beach

Shipwrecked, Astoria, OR

Alaska sunset, day 1

Alaska sunset, day 1

Co-pilots

Cutest towel animal from the week

Happy 27th!

Peanut butter and chocolate, his favorite

Salt Flats, June 2011

Dancing and filming ensued post pic of course

Move out day July 31st, first apartment

7 days married

Alaska sunset

The gang navigating the fjords

Co-pilots

Cutest towel animal from the week

Happy 27th! May 6, 2011

Peanut butter and chocolate, his favorite

Salt Flats, June 2011

Dancing and filming ensued post pic of course

Me and baby Mason, July 2011

Move out day July 31st, first apartment

Our cozy bedroom

Not yet. Or maybe so.

by Tony

We haven’t figured all the ins and outs, but we’ve been dreaming up this blog for awhile now. It’s a new year, one that will be hard to top 2010, but we’re ready for that. Officially declared!!

Introduction: our cutesy married couple blog

by Tony

When one of my college friends got married a couple of years ago, and started a cutesy husband-and-wife blog, I promised myself that I would never ever do that when I got married. I made that same promise to Nicole while we were dating, while we were engaged, and post wedding. If there is anything that people care about less than the minutiae of an individual’s life is the minutiae of a married couple’s life. “My husband killed a spider in the tub. He’s my night in shining armor!” and “My wife’s crumpets are the best crumpets of all time!” or “I was just thinking about how wonderful our wedding was. Here’s some pictures to help you remember” even “My husband leaves his dirty sock on the kitchen table. What a slob!”  That kind of stuff. Blech.

So … with no need for further introduction, here is our cutesy married couple blog. I promise you that we will never make it a forum for expressing our love for each other, nor a forum for listing grievances about each other. We will keep that to our Facebook walls. (Just kidding.)

But really, we don’t want this blog to be lame. We ask that you, as readers, be our moderator. If ever this blog becomes too adorable for your liking or includes phrases such as “best wife ever” or “husband sent from God to make me the most blessed woman in the whole world,” please admonish us in the comments section. Thanks for indulging us and helping us feel that even though we are a married couple our lives are still interesting.

A picture of the cutesy married couple. An example of the kind of picture you won't see on this blog. Promise. -- Image copyright by ArielNayNebeker.com.