Sexy @$$ Contracting

So after a long day at the cafe (and gearing up for moving the bakery tomorrow) Bill and I spent some quality time together. I don’t want to blog long so we can snuggle and get some decent sleep in, but these pictures should keep you up to date.

We held Pie Week this week. Pies sold like crazy, and involved me pulling a straight 24 hour work day before crashing. We are happy with the results (and landed a wedding because of it).

Then the heavens opened and gave me a gift…my new oven….

Which Bill and Robert (the “Chief Geek” at the cafe and my brother from another mother) installed for me…

Then, tonight after the cafe, Bill needed help on a job site….with a view like this I WILL ALWAYS HELP!

Seriously though, he does amazing work!

I didn’t really help….I just held stuff… Then it was late and we were both hungry. We haven’t eaten out in months, or even had a date night, so we ignored the mounting bills, and had dinner out. Probably not a good idea, but we have to cancel date night a lot because of money, so we went.

In a room full of decently dressed people, there was my redneck in ripped off sleeves and a baseball cap with beer caps and a fishing hook. I loved every fucking second of it. He’s amazing, and I wouldn’t change a thing….

Even when he tries my appletini….

Off to bed. Ciao for now!

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Still Here

So I’m still here….It’s been awhile, but when you’re working from 5:00 am until 11:00 pm every day, blogging takes a back burner.

Of course, there hasn’t been a dull moment, and there are a lot of changes in life.

For one, the bakery is moving. I’m moving (mostly) out of where I’m working from, into the cafe. This is requiring me to do a whole mess of paperwork and spend more money than we really have. It’s scary and exciting at the same time. I will have a better financial deal, but less space. The trade off? I’m always at the cafe anyway, I’m with my adoptive family, and this was something Josh and I talked about doing before he died in the car accident. My oven arrived the other day, and I actually cried, wishing Joshua was here to see it. I know he’s watching me from heaven, but the selfish part of me wants him here.

I’m looking at this as opening a second location, even though I’m sharing it. The cafe is open late and on Saturday, so more opportunities to sell my baked goods.

I have something called “Pie Week” going on this week. My extern, Alicia, and I baked breakfast pies, sweet pies, savory pies, etc. etc. and advertised this week as “Pie Week.” We made 130 mini pies on Sunday, I don’t know how many more today, and we have a whole week to go!

In other news, Bill has started his own contracting business, and I’m so proud of him!! He’s pulling in crazy business, and working a LOT.

I’m trying to get him set up with paperwork, invoices, bank account, LLC, etc., but there aren’t enough hours in the day!

I DID find time to work on my novel for about an hour. It’s almost ready to go to the prospective agent who is interested….or at least was when I contacted her two years ago. Let’s see what she says. It’s been almost a year since I touched it. Maybe I can find another hour in 2013. That is probably all I need for now! You would think I would just do it already!

Our zoo is doing well, but someone told Bill about Wayne Newton having penguins at his house, and we are now on day two of me trying to explain to him why we can’t have them at our house. Apparently they were on TV, one had floaties on, Bill is hooked, I said we only rescue our pets, and he’s trying to find abused penguins to bring home. I thought he had let go of the monkey thing…but when I kept saying no to penguins, he started with the “what about a small monkey” business. No pun intended.

I’m still at the cafe, and want to get home before midnight. As soon as these customers leave, we can cash out and go.

Ciao for now.

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Pictures!

Here are some new pies introduced at the bakery this week:

And for the holiday…

Here are some pictures from our time at the park.

Baker finally going in the water.

Oak being very clingy to mommy after daddy accidentally got him with the shock collar on high instead of low.

Diesel still going after balls even if he’s blind in one eye and starting to lose it in his noodle.

Daddy about to throw the ball for the millionth time.

Almost a great picture of Oak and Diesel fetching together….slow ass camera.

Tonight Diesel literally jumped in my arms because of fireworks….hoping we get to sleep at a decent hour…but Oak is the only one NOT spastic about the noise! I think he thinks the fireworks across the street are just glow in the dark tennis balls (Bill’s line…..not mine. He’s so funny).

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The Fear

It’s been another long week. I managed to work the bakery, the Italian restaurant, and the wine bar/cafe. I’m tired, and a bit cranky.

The truck Bill has me driving made the week with no break lights, no signals, no A/C (in Southern heat), no side mirror, and no horn. I’ve been feeling frustrated as Bill drives around in a truck that has 90 grand into it. Our friend Dan is working on it now….while Bill is sleeping. I feel like I’m working my ass off, and not getting the support I should.

The house is a mess, I’m falling behind at the bakery (even though my new extern is amazing), and I feel like he should he helping me, not letting Dan fix the truck. I expected to come home from work today, and him be here…..maybe picking up the house for me. He wants friends to come over later, and the house is a disaster. Kaila moved out, and that makes me sad.

I’m also really homesick. Today my friend Becky is getting married back home….and I’m almost 1,000 miles away. I should be home. Getting a text from my friend Megan asking if we are going to her wedding next month didn’t help. She’s getting married just three hours away, and I can’t afford to go…even if I am working 90 hours a week.

The Italian restaurant is so slow, I’m not even making minimum wage most days, but I can fit it in my schedule, and I need the money.

Bill goes home to Illinois in a few weeks. I’m upset. I want time off, I want to go home, and I’m tired of being on survival mode. I fear I can’t get out of this mess. I fear I’m not going to keep the bakery open. I fear I’m failing….and I’m doing it by myself.

Dan put the new part in for the truck. No luck. Part of me wants to go inside, wake Bill up, and tell him to fix all this shit. Part of me wants to give up on all this…..or maybe crash this truck. The final part of me just wants to cry.

On the inside of Bill’s lip is a tattoo that reads “Cowboy Up.” I think my next tattoo is “Cowgirl Up” on the inside of my lip. I need a reminder to do that every now and again.

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My Day Off!!!

It’s been a few weeks since I took a day off. It’s been a few months since I had a day were I didn’t do at least one thing all day, related to the bakery. What did I do all day? Well, after about 80 hours of working three jobs this week…I slept. Then Bill went to one of my jobs (friends of ours) and cut a hole in the wall. The craft beer and wine bar is growing, and one of the walls makes it hard to see the lounge from the actual bar. Bill took his construction knowledge (from pre marine days) and, and is doing the work at cost for Dave.

I worked my first two shifts at the beer and wine bar, known at the Cafe, and even though I know nothing about beer or wine, it went well.

I met the owners almost two years ago. They brought me on to do the baking for them. It was a father and son-in-law duo. Josh, the son, became like an older brother to me. On March 18th 2012, Josh was driving to pick up Liz, his adorable wife, with his kids in the car, when he was killed in a car accident. None of us are over it, none of us will ever be the same. I know I was blessed to have him in my life, and I know he’s watching us from heaven.

When his father in law, Dave, who calls me his middle daughter, said he needed help at the cafe, I jumped in. I can’t let Josh’s dream turn into a locked door. Even after Bill and I are financially stable, I plan on being at the cafe.

Anyway, back to my day off! I refuse to camp, yet Bill loves it. I finally agreed to camp in the back yard. He pitched the tent while I was at work, and had burgers on the grill when I got home. It seems a little silly to camp outside, when we have a perfectly good bed inside, but  I did it. Except for the dogs barking at every little noise, we had fun!

Then tonight we are fishing. Well, Bill is fishing, I’m going to work on the edits for the novel I wrote, and haven’t touched in months.

It’s hard not looking at books on baking, sending emails, and doing bakery related work, but Bill is making me do things not related to work. He threatened to toss my computer in the ocean if I do, and I kind of need that, so I guess I’ll comply!

I’m only working the bakery tomorrow, and its with my new extern from Le Cordon Bleu, who I LOVE already. She’s great! Hopefully tomorrow I can write more and tell you all about her!

Ciao for now!

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