A Post of Cheers and Jeers

• Cheers – and a HUGE THANK YOU – to all of those veterans who we are honoring this weekend. Your sacrifice and service are not forgotten.
• Jeers on the Harlan Cyclones loss on Tuesday night in football. Bad calls made it a less enjoyable game for many fans. But congratulations on your four season-spanning 49 and 1 record.
• Cheers on visitors! My in-laws, Mom and Dad N, will arrive tomorrow evening and will be with us all weekend. Yeah! (Seriously, I really mean Yeah! My in-laws are awesome!
• Jeers on sore losers. An election is the people’s chance to choose who they want to represent them. Did all of my choices win? No. But that’s OK. That’s why we have a democratic government. Stop whining if you or your candidate lost. There is nothing you can do except run again in a few years or encourage others to vote.
• Cheers on my friend’s Michele and Chad’s new baby, Chloe Madison, born on Monday! Congratulations Chad, Michele and big brother Mason!
• Cheers for federal holidays! I LOVE three day weekends!

Have a great weekend!

A Post - Mainly in Pictures

Besides being incredibly busy, I have just haven't felt a lot like blogging latley. But I give you the following photo essay.

My super-adorable nephew, Ryan. Mommy is an Iowa Hawkeye fan and, as you can see, he is nicely decked out!
My other super-adorable nephew, Marshall, and his buddy, Liam. Aren't they adorable together?!

My nephew, the cow - Ryan's Halloween greeting.

These are a little small, but here is our newest niece, Corrianna. She is a tiny little thing and answers only to Princess!


That's all I've got for now.

Yep, still back

So I returned to the blogging world, only to be so busy that I haven't had time to post!

Hubs and I headed up to MI last week and spent a loonngg weekend with the family. Chris and Mike spent Fri-Sun at their event while Carrie and I and the little man spent time together. We took lots of walks, scrapbooked, watched Chronicles of Narnia, painted our toenails, watched the Lions lose (again!), picked apples, played with pumpkins and relaxed. Ah! Our mom & dad-in-law joined us on Sunday afternoon and the guys arrived soon after. It was so good to enjoy each other's company and laugh and play and, of course, let Marshall entertain us. I took a ton of photos but most are on my film SLR. Here are a few of Marshall at the apple orchard. You can tell he's all boy - look at the mud he found! And he LOVES apples!

Marshall and his little snack - apples and dirt!

Marshall and Mommy - sitting on his first giant pumpkin!

This week has already flown by! We got home late Monday night (yeah for Federal holidays!) and back to work we went today. I spent this evening baking apple pie using up just a few of the 1/2 bushel of apples we brought back from Michigan. We've got a busy week ahead and are looking forward especially to Saturday. Along with some friends, we are planning a game night at our church for adults complete with snacks and tons of games. If we get a decent turn out, we're hoping to make this a monthly event.

Hope you are all having a great week!

Getting back into the groove...

OK, I think it's time to start posting again. I'll update on all the other happenings later but wanted to mention a couple of things quickly.

First, if you have any interest in ministry or missionary work, go check out my pastor's daughter's blog here. This is Elizabeth's second year in Latvia. She recently returned there after being home in Iowa for the summer. Elizabeth is an incredibly beautiful, Spirit-filled, young woman. She doesn't have many posts yet, but if you keep checking in on her, you will see what an incredible writing gift she has. She would love to know you're reading too!

Also, go check out Julie's story about her friend Beth's adoption story here and buy a chance to win the amazing quilt Julie is making. Thanks to Catherine for passing on this story!

Will catch up with you soon! Have a great weekend! Thanks for all the thoughts and prayers while I took some time out!

Sorry

To those of you who do stop and read, I am sorry. I just can't do it right now. There is nothing huge and overwhelming going on right now. But there are some smaller things, smaller things that sometimes feel big and overwhelming. But God is good, ALL the time. And so is my husband. Thank God for my amazing husband. That boy can handle my ever-changing moods like there's nothing to it.

I will write again sometime soon. First I have to finish my thesis. And then I have to work through this other stuff. Honestly, I don't even know what all it is yet. I just know I have to deal with it. Chris and I will be making some decisions and they're going to be tough decisions to make and follow through with. But again, God is good, ALL the time.

Take care, my friends.

Unmotivated

So I haven't felt like blogging at all lately. Could be that there's a lot going on. I'm not sure what it is, but I just haven't wanted to write much of anything lately - my blog, e-mails back to friends, or even my thesis. On that last one, I must get my tukus in gear if I really want to graduate in December. But like I mentioned, it's just very hard to write right now. So I'm going to share some photos with you and a little bit of what's happened over the past few weeks.

We got to see my sister Roma and her husband Rob and their little guy Ryan a few weeks ago. Here's Ryan and Chris having fun. I think Ryan was afraid that Chris was going to take his book home with him!

Below are some of my favorite guys in the world. In the back is the world's greatest husband, Christopher. Beside him is Mike, Dan and Arlin. In front are Kenny and Dave. These guys are all in our small group and are a lot of fun to be around and study with. This photo is from our Father's Day celebration/challenge. They're gathered around the chair they had to build and got judged on. This group was the winner of the challenge.
Katia and Ian came out the weekend before the 4th of July. We spent one of their evenings here out at our friend Cherie's house. Here's Chris with Ian and Griffin playing swords. Here's Chris and I with Katia and Ian.

It's been so busy lately; I feel like time is just flying by. I got sick in the middle of July with a combination of a sinus infection and bronchitis. I ended up missing several days of work trying to shake them. Finally recovered enough to go back to work only to head to Florida for a work conference. Had a great time there although the plane rides there and back didn't help my sinuses. I got to spend some time with my friend Tami and meet the precocious and adorable Cori. Also got to see my friends Mike, Robert, Damarys and others. It was nice to catch up and quite fun to meet new people. Unfortunately, there was no time to go see or visit any of the local attactions in Orlando but I had still had a great time. I was able to go on a conservation tour to The Nature Conservancy's Disney Wilderness Preserve which was very cool. We went on a hike through a nature area, canoed in a lake that is part of the headwaters of the Everglades, and took a swamp buggy tour over some rough terrain. Definitely a cool ecosystem!

Got home from Florida on Friday afternoon and had a wonderful weekend with my husband. And then it was back to work. Seems like Chris and I have been running ever since. Spending lots of time with church friends and catching up with friends we haven't seen in a while. We're getting excited too - Chris' brother Mike and sister-in-law Carrie and their little guy Marshall are coming down to spend Labor Day weekend with us. We can't wait! Marshall is now walking on his own and we especially can't wait to see him! My sister Robyn is also due with my niece on September 2nd. We can't wait to hear about Baby J's arrival! I'm thinking it could be anytime now. My friend Sharon and I went garage saling on Saturday and I found a bunch of cute little girl stuff, along with some fun Iowa Hawkeye stuff for Ryan (Mommy is a big Hawkeye fan) so I need to wash all of it and get it ready to send. I love the fact that my sisters aren't garage sale snobs so I can get stuff for them and the babies. :)

We are planning a weekend trip out to Denver in October to see Robyn & Erik and Baby J, and Roma & Rob & Ryan. It's nice that I have 2 sisters in Denver and we can see them all the same weekend. We're actually planning on going out on Amtrak - something neither Chris nor I have ever done so we're cautiously excited about that. I'm just hoping we are both able to sleep on the train.

That's about all I've got for now. Oh yeah, I've been noticing some interesting paths on my stat counter - some local, some not. I don't mind people reading my blog (obviously since I haven't password protected it or hidden it) but I do like to know who's reading. If you're reading, and haven't commented yet, drop me a line. I'd like to know who my audience is. :)

ABCs

ABC's from Rachel

A is for age:
32

B is for booze of choice:
Kaluha & Milk over ice

C is for career:
Soil Conservationist with USDA NRCS

D is for your dog's name:
No dog – no indoor pets due to allergies

E is for essential items you use/love everyday:
Current favorite CDs, water, hair clip, lip balm, Werther’s original chewy

F is for favorite song(s) at the moment:
“While You Were Sleeping” – Casting Crowns & “Dance, Dance” – Fallout Boy

G is for favorite games:
Settlers of Catan, Crazy 8s, Yatzee (with Chris), Liverpool Rummy

H is for hometown:
Sioux City, Iowa

I is for instruments you play:
None, would love to play piano or guitar

J is for jam or jelly you like:
Grape jelly, strawberry jam

K is for kids:
None yet

L is for last kiss:
Christopher, this morning

M is for most admired trait:
Being able to befriend anyone

N is for name of your crush:
Christopher

O is for overnight hospital stays:
When I was sick as a baby, with Chris when he was sick in January

P is for phobias:
Spiders (esp after my infected bite this summer)

Q is for quotes you like:
“Always give your best. Never get discouraged. Never be petty. Always remember, others may hate you, but those who hate you don’t win unless you hate them. And then, you destroy yourself. And so we leave, with high hopes, in good spirit and with deep humility and with very much gratefulness in our hearts.” Richard M. Nixon, upon resigning the Presidency

R is for biggest regret:
wanting others to like me, need the approval and acceptance of others – really working on this.

S is for sweets of your choice:
Chocolate chip cookies – trumps almost anything else.

T is for time you wake up:
6:00 am

U is for underwear:
Hipsters, fun and cute

V is for vegetables you love:
Green beans, corn on the cob

W is for worst habit:
Habitually being late.

X is for x-rays you've had:
Ankles, wrists, elbows, knees, ribs, skull – have I mentioned that I am a major klutz!?

Y is for yummy food you make:
Rosemary chicken, lasagna, Grandma Ford’s peanut butter frosting, spinach rosemary roll-ups, Lust cups (Remember these, Deed? Haven’t made them in ages!)

Z is for zodiac sign:
Cancer

Now you know my ABCs... Won't you play along with me!Do it on your blog and then leave me a comment that you did it.

A few photos

Had a few photos uploaded that I hadn't had time to post yet.

The first 3 are from the weekend Katia and Ian were here. The boys fell asleep on the couch watching Finding Nemo.

Chris and I had been wondering what to get our nephew Marshall for his 1st birthday. Daddy said Marshall would like a sports car, preferably a convertible so he could, and I quote, ride like the wind. Oh yeah, and red would be good. Do Uncle Chris and Aunt Renae deliver or what?!

Check out Marshall loving his new ride! Photos are courtesy of Grandpa Nicholson.

Marshall and Grandpa

Marshall in his convertible

Marshall and Daddy cruising

Marshall loving his sports car

More smiles from Marshall

A final photo of the 1-year old!

Off to Florida

Haven't been feeling very inspired to blog lately. Here's a little update.

Had a great weekend visiting my sister and her husband and meeting Ryan. He was even cuter in person! We also got to see my cousin Tommy and his wife Sarah and their little guy Sam. They live in Sioux City and Sarah and I started talking about scrapbooking and how we need to get together and work on our scrapbooks. The guys weren't too excited about that until we figured out that both Chris and Tommy are big sci-fi fans. So now we're hoping to plan a weekend in Sioux City with Tommy and Sarah soon.

On our way home Saturday afternoon, we headed to Council Bluffs and saw Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Curse followed by dinner at Ruby Tuesday's. The movie was good, not outstanding but it was fun.

I spent half the week home sick with a sinus infection combined with bronchitis. I'm finally starting to feel better. Which is a good thing since I have to jump on a plane at 10:00 tomorrow morning. I'll be in Florida through Friday. I am looking forward to the conference (annual work one that I go to every year) but Florida at the end of July?! Hmm, two things come to mind - hurricane season and HOT! And I though I'm feeling better, I'd kind of rather stay here to finish recuperating, not push my luck by flying across the country. But no matter, I'll be on my way to Florida in the morning and Chris will be baching it for the week.

Hope you all have a great week! A few pictures...

Ryan wasn't so impressed with Tommy!

Ryan with Mommy & Grandpa

Who wouldn't love to get this in the mail?

That's my nephew Ryan! And I get to see him TOMORROW!!!! Yeah! Can you tell I'm an excited aunt?! And Chris and my brother-in-law Rob get to meet for the first time! Yeah! Although, Roma and I talked and decided this could be a mistake since both the guys are so mischevious and full of trouble. We'll see how the weekend goes.

So it's county fair time here. Which means HOT weather - and thunderstorms. We're in a warning right now and, although hail and lightning might not be good for the crops, it would so kick the humidity we have just hanging over us. It is blasted hot and humid here! And we are going to enjoy a little of it while we watch the fair parade tonight with our friends and their kiddos! But the sky is looking a little scary right now. Hmm.

Not much else happening here. Just excited about seeing the fam tomorrow, working only 1/2 day (YEAH!) and finding lots of AC over the next 72+ hours.

A Quick Rant - And a Praise!

Just a little update

First off, I have to say I LOVE short weeks at work! I so don't mind working and I really do love my job, but it sure is nice to have a super-short week! 4-day weekend followed by a 3-day workweek - oh happy me!

Chris and I have had a great week. He has been superbusy at work, as have I, so when we get home it's all about relaxing and together time. We have a little nightly game of bocce ball and it's fun to just get out there and play and tease each other and watch the crazy cats try and steal the balls. Hello Kitty - get out of the way! Last night he kicked my tukus! At one point I was down 17-3. I rallied back and only lost 21-10, I think.

Tonight we get to hang out with our friends Josh and Renee. We are bringing dinner with us and will eat and play games at their house. We are so looking forward to it. We've all be swamped the past few months and haven't really had any time to spend with them. So tonight we get to catch up and have fun.

Now to go back to the title of the post.

The Rant
So this morning I'm calmly driving to work - doo duh dooo. Just driving along. Then I reach a corner where another county road intersects the county road I'm on. And a mini-van decides they must pull out in front of me. No problem. I slow down - WAY down. Because they are not driving my speed (about 7-10 over - it's a county road!) but they're only about 2-3 over the limit. Now I can respect that someone, especially with children in the vehicle, wouldn't want to speed. So I slow down. So we get to the edge of town where one of the town's big daycare places is. And the mini-van flips on its turn signal - and flicks a cigarette butt out the window! GRRRRR! I so don't care if I offend anyone with this - if you are a smoker and smoke in the presence of your children - BITE ME! I would like to ring the neck of Little Miss-I-won't-speed-but-I'll-expose-my-little-darlings-to-noxious-gases-and-fumes! Grr. Grr. Grr. I know - there is nothing I can do about it. But I can rant about it on my own blog!

The Praise
I have got some of the best co-workers! Tomorrow is my birthday and when I got in the office today, they had up a big banner (we do this for everyone) over my desk. They have kind of forgotten the past 2 years so it was awesome that they remembered this year! Plus, Marolyn (she made our wedding cake so you know she's a great baker!) brought me a whole container of chocolate waffle cookies with a note that these are for Chris and I! Yeah! And then she baked me a fruit pizza and wrote Happy Birthday Renae on it for all of us to share. And then I got told that they're taking me out for lunch! Yeah! They make me feel so special.

And tomorrow, Chris is going to help one of the guys with a project during the day so I will have some downtime. I'm planning a quick workout followed by a relaxing bath and catching up on a new book I'm reading. I'd also like to get caught up on some of the housework while Chris is gone. In the evening, we're planning on heading over to Omaha and one of the funplex type places with go-karts and mini-golf. We both thought that sounded like fun.

Hope you all have a great weekend!

Happy Independence Day!

Yeah! I love the 4th of July - not only for the fireworks and great food and fun times, but because it's only 4 more days until my birthday!

Katia and Ian came and visited for the weekend. It was so fun to have them here! They got here later on Friday so we just relaxed and ate once they got here. We took our time getting going on Saturday but ended up shopping in Omaha. We found a pirate costume for Ian (his current obsession! Have you ever listened to Veggie Tale's "The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything over and over and over - try it sometime!) and some other fun stuff. We even had time to stop by the Just Desserts place - yum! After we got home, the boys, Chris and Ian, had quite the water fight outside while Katia and I threw together a quick dinner. Sunday was church and then the swimming pool - it was the perfect day to go swimming. Just the right temperature and not too crowded. We came home, changed and grabbed a snack and tried to rest before heading to our friend Cherie's house for a barbecue and fireworks. It was a very nice and relaxing evening. Ian crashed on the way home and it wasn't long before we all headed to bed. Poor Chris had to work on Monday but I had taken the day off to see Katia and Ian off. We got them packed up and on the road before noon. I was able to get in some quiet time, a good workout, a library trip and grocery shopping before coming home for a quick nap. We made homemade pizza for supper and crashed pretty early.

Today we've taken it pretty easy. We both slept in and kind of putzed around this morning. This afternoon we headed into Harlan to the laundromat. We have a washer and dryer, but we have these huge quilts and blankets that almost don't fit in our washer - and they don't dry well in our normal size dryer either. So we loaded them up and took them into town. We had the place all to ourselves and squeezed in a game of Trivial Pursuit while we waited for our stuff to dry. We followed all that excitement up with a round of disc golf at the park and then headed over to Westphalia for their annual Parish Picnic and chicken dinner. Now we're home for th evening and relaxing. It's nice that we have such a short work week ahead - Yeah!

This weekend we're taking it easy again, hoping to spend some time with friends on Friday night and spending a quiet evening at home on Saturday (seems like we don't have many of those lately). Then next weekend we'll be in Sioux City to see my sister Roma and her husband Rob and little guy Ryan while they're back. We're so excited about that! The following weekend after that, I'll be crazy getting ready to head to the NOPHNRCSE conference in Orlando. I fly out Sunday morning and get home on Friday. I'm very much looking forward to seeing my friends and co-workers, but honestly, Orlando, in July - if a hurricane doesn't sweep me away, there is a good chance I may just melt!

I just realized that it's already the first week of July and my thesis still isn't done. I MUST get to work on it! It's been difficult to really sit down and write. I am definitely not feeling inspired but I'm thinking I may just need to inspire myself - like now! My thesis is a bit different from the typical thesis as it's not a research thesis but a creative thesis. Yep, I basically get to write 60+ pages of my own poems and stories. Not a bad thing normally, but I am not feeling creative in the least, even my crocheting and scrapbooking have suffered. I would so love to have the majority of the work on it done by the time the fall semester starts up so I don't have to worry so much about deadlines. We'll see how much I can manage to apply myself.

Anyway, things are pretty ho-hum here in Renae-land. Hope you are all doing well!

Offer and More

Offer

We got an offer on our house in Michigan today. It's a pretty decent offer. Now we have to submit everything to the mortgage company to see if they will accept it and allow us to short sell. Send up a few prayers up for us that all goes well and the mortgage company gets their heads out of their tukus'.

Weekend
Chris and I headed up to Sioux City on Friday afternoon to visit my parents. My awesome husband drove the whole way and let me take a nap - despite the fact that he was a little tired too. We met my mom at the mall and had dinner and shopped around a little bit before heading back to the hotel. In the morning, we picked up Mom and then Chris dropped Mom and I off at my cousin Tami's bridal shower. He went off to explore on his own while we had some girl time. It was nice to visit with my aunt and cousins. I think one of the coolest things is just watching my cousin Tina and how much she has grown up. Tina was born the day before me, our moms even shared a hospital room and her parents are my Godparents. Anyway, Tina was always the wild child (at least compared to me). She got married shortly after we graduated from high school and then had her oldest son Ethan. Sadly, that marriage ended when her husband took his own life. A few years later, she met Josh and married him and they had Noah and Sydney. Both are adorable, as is Ethan. But they found out in the last few years that Noah is autistic. It is so incredible to watch how Tina is with him. She was a good mom anyway, but she is absolutely amazing with Noah and all that she has done to help him advance. She is such an advocate for him. I was almost in tears just being so happy for her and so proud of her.

After the shower, Chris came and got Mom and I and we picked up Dad and relaxed for a while. We all headed to Famous Dave's for an early dinner and then we headed back home. Sunday was church and small group.

This week we are trying desperately to clean and sort and organize our house. We have kind of been shoving stuff in since before the wedding. And then we brought back a whole bunch of Chris' stuff from Michigan and now we have a massive mess. So we have been unloading closets, and basically making keep, sell and toss piles. I have a nice pile of stuff for a garage sale. And we have thrown a ton out already. It feels good but I'd like to get rid of even more. Ever since I moved my mom out of the house my family had lived in for over 20 years, I have this overwhelming need to downsize.

We have another motive for getting things cleaned out though. My friend Katia and her little guy Ian are coming down for the weekend. And since the bed in the spare room is currently covered with all kinds of stuff, we're thinking we should get it cleared off and the room cleaned out so they can sleep in there. And maybe we should get the other rooms done so we have some space to relax and play. Which means I will be cleaning and sorting every night this week. Not so much fun. But I'm hoping the end result will encourage me to keep on top of it.

We are really looking forward to seeing Katia and Ian too! We'll miss Seanie but he gets to spend the weekend at the lake with his grandparents. We're hoping to maybe hit the zoo on Saturday and hopefully go swimming at some point too. It'll just be nice to have them here.

Photos and More

Yeah! Blogger is finally cooperating and I can post some photos! These are from our trip to Michigan over Memorial Day.

We also got some fun news this weekend. My sister Roma and her husband Rob who live in Denver will be visiting in July. They have a 6 1/2 month old little guy, Ryan. Chris and I haven't made it out to visit them yet so we haven't even met Ryan. And Chris and Rob haven't met yet either. So we'll get to see them and spend some time in Sioux City. Should be fun!

My nephew Marshall all smiles

Our friend's little guy, Liam

Liam and his Daddy, Bill

Marshall and Grandma

Marshall and Liam playing

Carrie, Mike and Marshall

Amy, Bill and Liam

TGIF!, Date Night, Weddings, & Photos

TGIF!
Yeah, it's Friday! Chris headed out early (way, way early) for his company retreat in KC. So tonight, my friend Melanie (whose husband Dan works for the same company and is also at the retreat) and I are going shopping! Mel's kids are visiting Grandma this week and won't be home until late tomorrow so we're both single and carefree tonight! Of course, knowing us, we'll probably spend the whole evening looking for stuff for our husbands and talking about them! We're planning a nice dinner in Omaha and then more shopping, followed by a sleepover at Mel's. I'm looking forward to some girl time!

Date Night
Last night, Chris and I went had our date night - a yummy spaghetti dinner at Joe's followed by a movie. The movie ended up being a serious downer. Chris had voted for Cars but thinking that The Break Up was a romantic comedy, I opted for it. After the movie, I promised Chris, and I am repeating that promise in writing here, that he gets the final say on all future movie choices. He is really good about balancing the number of chick flick, comedies and superhero movies we see so it's all his from here on out. Like I mentioned, I was expecting a romantic comedy, and there were funny parts, but honestly, it was just depressing, very sad. We walked out feeling terrible but it was nice to realize that we don't act anything like the couple in the movie - and Chris is always telling and showing me how much he appreciates what I do. I cannot thank God enough for a loving, Godly husband.

Wedding
Tomorrow afternoon Chris and I have a wedding to go to. He probably won't make it to the ceremony but is planning on meeting me at the reception. We are in charge of running the wedding video so I'm really hoping he gets back in time to do that. I'm running over to the reception site today to set it up and I am hoping it works! Wish me luck! This is the first wedding we've attended since our wedding 6 months ago and we're looking forward to relaxing and enjoying the evening. We're also excited about the gift we're giving them! Our friends, Deedra and Justin, gave the neatest gift and we're using the idea for Stephen and Laura's wedding gift. Deed and Justin gave us a simple little decorative box. Inside was a note that this was a blessing box. You were to write down your blessings, large and small and put them in the box. You could pull one out to read when you were sad or needed encouragement. Then on Thanksgiving, you should read all the blessings together. We love it and use it regularly. And now we get to pass it on! Joann, my friend and Stephen's mom, thought they would love it too so that makes it even better. Laura also mentioned to Joann that they hadn't received any photo frames as shower gifts and she was hoping to get some. So now they will be getting frames too. I think this is the first wedding I've been to where I haven't agonized over the gift and it is so nice. My goal on the shopping trip tonight is to find the perfect boxes for the Blessing Boxes - and to buy several! We have several more weddings this summer and I love this gift idea.

Photos
Finally was able to upload the photos from my camera to the computer from our trip to Michigan. I didn't get many taken but there are some adorable ones of my nephew Marshall and our friend's little guy Liam.

Never mind - dumb blogger won't upload photos right now. Will put them on later today.

Hope you all have a great weekend!

Another Catch-Up

Seems like I am forever catching up on here. It's been a very busy several weeks. Here's what's been going on...

Michigan
We left on the Friday of Memorial Day weekend and headed for Michigan. Uneventful trip. We made it to Chris' parent's house around 2:30 in the morning and proceeded to drop into bed. On Saturday, we swung by the house (horrible condition) and then went to catch up with Mike and Carrie down in Ypsilanti. Mike, Chris and Brad headed back to Brighton to meet up with some of the other guys and then they were off to see X-Men 3. In the mean time, Carrie and I, with Marshall in tow, attended a 1st birthday party for the twins of Carrie's fellow resident, Ann. Ann's little guys, Ben and Owen, are adorable. The party was amazing - tons of food and cake, and even more babies! Everywhere you turned there were babies - ranging from just over a year to a 3-week old little girl. There was even another set of twins (children of another of Carrie's co-workers) names Charlotte and Owen. Chris and I love the name Owen and thought we would like to use it but now we're not so sure. Seems to be gaining popularity. Right before the cake was served, Marshall decided he'd had enough. So we packed up, heading back to Brighton and Chris' parent's house. After the guys got home, we all grabbed dinner and then watched the Pistons game (versus The Heat) and then it was bedtime.

In the morning, Chris and I and Mike and Carrie headed to church and then home again for lunch. Then the group of us headed to the Chris' house and the nightmare that was waiting for us. Before we could do much, we had to clean all the garbage out of the house and yard. So off to work we went. We worked all afternoon, heading home in the late afternoon to eat and cool off. We went back later that evening after it had cooled off to get some more done. While we were there, two of the neighbors stopped over and helped for a bit. It was really nice to visit with them as we worked. We headed home again to relax and go to bed.

We were back at it early Monday and now we could at least clear whole rooms and get walls wiped down in preparation for painting. Chris and I stopped and bought flowers and plants and mulch. My job was to get a flower bed planted in the front to improve the aesthetics of the exterior. It was incredible how much of a difference a flat of impatiens, a flat of celosa, a single hosta and a little bush, along with a few bags of mulch will make. In no time, the outside was looking great. We slacked off a little on Tuesday deciding to ride with Mike up to Clare to check out Mike and Carrie's new house and accompany the house inspector. It was a nice break and we had a great time with Mike. We got back in the afternoon and spent the rest of the day working at the house. In the evening, our friends Bill and Amy and little Liam came up and helped for a while. Then we headed out for a nice Chinese dinner with them and back to bed for more sleep. By Wednesday, we had given up on the idea of getting all the garbage out of there ourselves and called to get a large dumpster for the yard. Can you believe we filled it - and then some!? It was crazy how much trash two slovenly bachelor's can make. We spent the rest of Wednesday taping and cleaning and ripping up carpet all prepping to paint. On Thursday, the painting frenzy began. We painted for 12 hours straight. I HATE the smell of paint now. It never used to bother me but now I just want to barf when I smell it. Bill and Amy came up again on Thursday to help and we snuck out for a late dinner at Dairy Queen - YUM! By Friday night there was light at the end of the tunnel. The house was looking (and smelling) a lot better! We went to the house just for a few minutes on Saturday to grab some stuff and finish cleaning out some stuff we needed. Then it was home to spend the little time we had left with family. Bill and Amy and Liam came up, along with Mike and Carrie and Marshall. We all went out and grabbed dinner at Applebee's and then went back to Mom and Dad Nicholson's house. The babies played together while the adults relaxed and chatted. We got up early on Sunday morning, packed up and headed home. Another uneventful drive and we were home by 9:00 on Sunday night.

VBS
Chris and I both headed back to work on Monday morning. Starting Monday evening and running all week was our church's Vacation Bible School. Chris got to lead around a group of 3rd and 4th graders while I cuddled babies in the nursery. We both had fun. By Friday night we were both beat though. But Chris was a trooper. He helped with the final program and was in costume - complet with sailor hat and little grass skirt. I'll post a picture soon! Our friend Cherie and her son Brett followed us home that night so Brett could help Chris unload his massive TV that we brought back from his house. Cherie and I worked to get the door and shelves out of the entertainment center so we could fit said massive TV. It was questionable for a few minutes if it would work or not but we managed to fit it in with only 2 minor scratches to the entertainment center. And then there was the jumble of wires to deal with! And until Brett and my super-savvy husband told me otherwise, I didn't realize that coaxial cable wasn't that great! Who knew?! By shortly after 11:00, Cherie and Brett had headed home and Chris was just about done getting everything hooked up. We even watched a few minutes of Lord of the Rings before heading to bed. I have to say, I was not in favor of using the massive TV. I mean, come on, isn't my little 19" good enough?! But seriously, the clarity of this big TV is amazing! And it's flat screen which I guess is supposed to be good too. And you can actually read the closed captioning!

The Babysitting Adventure
On Saturday, we were scheduled for another adventure. Chris and I headed out at 7:30 in the morning to head to our friend's house. We were going to be watching 4 year old Cameron and 1 year olds, Trevor and Jennika all day. The kids were up and ready to go. Daddy was already gone and Mommy headed out right away. We had planned to do some yard sale-ing, so we headed up the kiddos and were off to meet our friend Sharon for the city-wide garage sales. We finished up fairly early and were invited to Sharon and Brian's house for lunch. So Chris and I and the three kiddos and Brian and Sharon and their little one Noah, crammed into their living room, complete with enough toys to open a toy store. It was hilarious! Their were babies and toys all over the place. We left around 1:00 to get the kiddos home and down for naps - which gave Chris and I a chance to catch our breath and take a quick nap. Tony and Kathi came home to change for an evening wedding and were off again. Just a few hours later and everyone was ready for bed - except Miss Jennika. She fell asleep for a bit but then was up to party until Mom and Dad got home. We had a fun time and let Kathi and Tony know that we'd love to do it again.

And now we're finally settling in to be home again. Life is good. Hope you are all well.

More about Renae

Stolen from Laura at Nate, Nate Rollerskate.

A little more about me:

I AM: a wife, a sister, a best friend, a believer, a friend, a hoper, a thinker, a feeler.
I SAID: I would help my friend dye her hair on Saturday. I’m not so sure about this now.
I WANT: to hire a housekeeper. That’s how bad my house is.
I WISH: I could stay motivated. I love the way I feel after working out but it seems like such a chore to get there.
I HATE: feeling so vulnerable and, at times, jealous.
I MISS: My dad. My Grandma. My bestest friend Amyla. My Michigan family.
I FEAR: losing Chris. BUT I trust in God that there is a purpose to everything under heaven.
I HEAR: The hum of the air conditioner, the keyboard as I type, the printer starting up, the radio in the distance, music – always – in my heart
I WONDER: If I’ll ever stop missing the man my dad was.
I REGRET: not being closer to my sisters.
I AM NOT: afraid to die. Sometimes I feel like I am so happy that I don’t know how much more I can stand. It’s a good feeling.
I DANCE: to a song that is always in my head.
I SING: not really that great, but always with exuberance.
I AM NOT ALWAYS: very deep. Sometimes I just want to be shallow and self-consumed and then I remember what it’s really all about.
I MADE: a crocheted baby blanket for my nephnew, Marshall.
I WRITE: all the time. I have to finish writing my thesis.
I CONFUSE: a lot of words and sometimes letters. It’s like my brain is too full to properly regurgitate what I need.
I NEED: to clean my house. We still haven’t unpacked from vacation.
I SHOULD: call my mom. It’s been a few weeks since we’ve talked.
I START: lots of crafty stuff, but lose interest sometimes.
I FINISH: My Masters Degree in December! Must finish the thesis this summer!
I BELIEVE: that wishes on stars do sometimes come true and that laughter can cure so many hurts.
I KNOW: no matter what I look like or what I’m wearing, my husband thinks I am incredibly beautiful. And I am finally believing it when he says it.
I CAN: remember the most obscure facts, figures and names. My friend calls is radio trivia.
I CAN'T: Bear to see my husband tear up. And, like Laura, I can’t do a cartwheel either. Never could.
I SEE: dead bugs in the lights on the ceiling. They cast shadows on my desk. Gross.
I BLOG: to keep friends and family amused and apprised of what’s up in our lives, to get things off my chest.
I READ: almost anything. Lately it’s been all comp books but I just started a book by Angela Hunt called The Novelist. I’m also reading Dr. Laura’s The Proper Care and Feeding of Husbands - she has great insight.
I AM AROUSED BY: my darling husband using big words in an effort to make me laugh.
IT PISSES ME OFF: that some people treat marriage as such a convenience and find the lamest excuse to walk away.
I FIND: the older I get, the more content and happy I am.
I LIKE: the smell of coffee, fresh garden tomatoes, band concerts around the square, farmer’s markets, the smell of rain, long hugs, the sunset from my house on the hill, the sound of Chris singing to himself, cheese, the softness of a baby’s skin.
I LOVE: my husband.

Just a note...

Here's what I know:
*We are back home.
*We are tired.
*Tonight we have VBS (Vacation Bible School). And every night the rest of this week.
*I am helping in the nursery. Cuddling babies is about the extent of what I can do right now.
*It was a very long week in Michigan. I will write more about it later. For now, I am glad to be home and so very, very thankful for my amazing husband who drove 8 of the 10 hours home.
*The house is officially on the market.
*I miss our family and friends - especially Mom & Dad Nicholson, Mike & Carrie and Marshall, and Bill & Amy and Liam.
*My allergies are MUCH worse in Iowa than in Michigan.
*Will post pictures too.
*Gotta head to VBS.

Thanks for all the prayers! Every single one was felt and so appreciated!

Three Cheers for Friday!!!

Yeah! I'm so happy it's Friday! Not that this week has been bad. It's actually been a very good week. Here are a few highlights -

• My best friend, Amy, got engaged on Tuesday night to her beshert (that's the Hebrew word for soulmate), Ross. Ross completely and totally surprised Amy and it was awesome to be in on it.
• Had a great week working with my co-workers. We are getting a new boss soon (in 2 weeks) so I think we're all a little nervously optimistic. In the meantime, we are just working away - and having a lot of fun. I love getting to work with such good people.
• My husband and the other guys in the small group surpised the women last night with a belated Mother's Day excursion. We visited the Danish Immigrant Museum in Elk Horn, IA followed by dinner at the Danish Inn. It was a very fun evening.
• I FINALLY got my hair colored again - Goodbye Gray! And the best part was I got to spend the afternoon with my friend, Renee. She cut and colored and we talked our heads off. Renee's husband Josh has been going through some medical stuff so it's been tough to find time to catch up. Yesterday afternoon was perfect and we had a great time.
• And, of course, the highlight of my week was watching Taylor Hicks win American Idol! Yeah, Taylor! We can't wait to buy your CD!

So it's been a really good week. And now that it's Friday things are better. Wanna know why? Ok, I'll tell you - in three cheers (see title of this post).

• Cheer 1 - Today is mine and Chris' 6-month anniversary. I know, I know, not all that long, but it has been 6 of the very best months of my life. I cannot tell you how very blessed I am to have Chris as my husband. I am looking forward to the next 60 years with this man.
• Cheer 2 - I am only working a half day. And again, you may ask why? Well that would lead us to cheer 3.
• Cheer 3 - We leave for Michigan in just a few hours! Yeah!!! We are heading out a little after noon and don't come home until June 4th. Of course, we'll have lots of work to get done with the house and all, but we also have time planned with our friends and family. We should get to Mom and Dad Nicholson's house by midnight tonight. And then tomorrow, Carrie (my awesome sil) and Marhsall (my cute as can be nephew) and I are going to a birthday party while the guys go see X-Men 3. Then it's a family dinner celebrating my mil's birthday (which was Wednesday - Happy Birthday Mom!). And who knows after that. Chris and I are just happy to be going and to get to see everyone.

So life is fabulous! We're at T-minus 3 hours. Just have to run around and get a couple of errands done, including gas and ice, and then we're out of here. Goodbye Iowa! Hello Michigan! Hope you all have a great long weekend!

10 Things I Want to Say to Taylor Hicks

In a tribute to the new man of soul:

1. Please do not dye your hair. No matter what Simon says, gray is sexy.
2. You are SO much better than Katherine.
3. Please do not conform.
4. We will never buy Katherine's CD - we promise!
5. Don't let anyone take away your uniqueness, not even the guy who signs your checks.
6. Don't do anything your mama would be embarrassed to read on the front page of the local newspaper.
7. Joe Cocker should be very proud to have you singing his songs.
8. Sing that funky music, white boy.
9. You can come sing me to sleep anytime.
10. No matter what happens tonight, you will always be my American Idol.

And 1 thing my husband thinks, "He looks like a chicken when he jumps around like that. Can't he just be cool?!"

Barbecue, Babies and Other Fun

I picked up Noah on Friday afternoon and he and I headed home to meet Chris. Noah was so excited to see Chris. He is on a big daddy kick right now and he tends to like all men and Chris is his buddy. So the two of them spent some time playing while I got our gear ready to go. We loaded up and headed to our friend Cherie’s house for the evening. We had a great evening, cooking out, eating and relaxing with Cherie and her sister Vickie, and our other friends Kathi and Tony and their 3 young ones. Kathi and Tony have 3 year old Cameron and year old twins Trevor and Jennika. So there were lots of babies – all playing and crawling and walking all over. The little ones finally decided they’d had enough excitement for the evening and we all headed home. We got home and put Noah straight to bed – only 2 hours later than his normal bedtime! He was a tired little guy and slept most of the night through. He had a few little bad dreams but was mainly able to get himself back to sleep. And wonder of wonders, he even slept in! Sharon, Noah’s mom, called at about 7:45 and we completely missed the call. She called again about 45 minutes later and Chris made it to the phone – but Noah was still asleep. Sharon said he never sleeps that late! We finally all were up by 8:45. Chris and I were trying to teach Noah was Saturday mornings should be all about – relaxing and family time. We had hoped to spend the whole day outside but we got a surprise rainstorm in the morning so we spent some time reading and playing and relaxing before the sun finally came out. The three of us took a walk in the park and did some running around in the afternoon. Noah didn’t get a nap in so by 6:30 he was a little bit cranky. After a good dinner and a bath, he went right to sleep. On Sunday we learned that if we want to get to church on time – and with a toddler – then we definitely need to get up earlier! We still made it but were just a little late. Noah was a doll during church. We met Brian and Sharon at Pizza Ranch and lunch with them and our friends June and Mike and their kids Griffin and Jessalyn. Brian and Sharon were so happy to see Noah again. And we were happy that we survived and Noah was still in one piece with not a scratch on him! He is such an easy little guy to take care of! We are fully aware that our own children might not be so easy but it was still fun to take care of him, and fun to think about the future.

Noah and Chris on the slide at the park

Chris and I got home and promptly took a nap! We spent some good quiet time together in the afternoon before Chris headed to small group. I was dealing with some tummy troubles so I stayed home and crashed. When we got home we watched a little TV and talked. I love just getting to relax with Chris. We did the same thing on Monday night after we got all of our stuff done – just sat on the couch and cuddled and talked and then goofed around.

We’re getting excited about our trip to Michigan. We’ll have a lot of work to do while we’re there but we’ll also have some downtime to spend with family and friends. Should be a great trip.

Hope this finds you all well!

PS – Please send up some prayers for my friend, Victoria. Vik’s dad has been fighting cancer for a couple of years and earlier this year, the doctors said there was nothing else they could do. Her dad is now in hospice care (in his home) and Vik’s brother Eddie moved home to care for their dad. Victoria just finished up her first year of PA (physician’s assistant) school and has her first rotation in Seattle, where her dad lives. She in on her way there now (actually sitting in the Detroit airport as I type this). Please pray for strength for her and her brothers, Eddie and Curtis and for her dad to come to know Jesus as his Lord and Savior before he passes from this earth. Thanks. Love, Renae

Good Stuff and Not So Good Stuff

Good Stuff

I haven't been posting lately as it seems there really hasn't been anything exciting happening. But I'm all good with that. I like that my life is fairly measured and predicatable. It's been very soothing to have the same routine over the past few weeks - especially since June could very well be a contender for the busiest month of our lives. So in the mornings, off go Chris and I to our respective places of employment, we put in our time and then I head to get shots (love my allergy shots) or exercise and ususally get home within 10-20 minutes of each other. We fix dinner together, relax, spend some time talking and just spend the evening together. It's been very nice, very calming and restful. Our weekends are spent taking care of housework and chores, running errands and doing any shopping we need to - again restful, relaxing, soothing.

But all that changes, albeit temporarily, tonight. Tonight, and this weekend, we shall attempt yet another round of babysitting/temporary parenthood. Our friends' Brian and Sharon are once again trusting the care of their young one to us. This time Brian and Sharon are headed to Eastern Iowa for a Truth Conference - all about absolute and world truth and what it means to Christians today. And we shall be here at home with 19-month old Noah in all his glory. We stopped by Brian and Sharon's last night for a healthy dinner of salad and got the low down on what all we need to do to keep Noah healthy, safe and happy. We came home with a stroller, huge basket of his food, a bag of videos/CDs/books, pedialyte, Dr's info, and a swing we can hang on our swing set. We have yet to get the little guy himself! I'll pick him up this afternoon at the baby sitter's house along with his carseat, clothes, diapers and sippy cups for the weekend, additional toys and more food that she has. Whew!

We are very excited to have him all weekend - and that Brian and Sharon trust us! I think Chris and I are both a little nervous though too. The last 2 times we've had Noah overnight, he hasn't done well on the sleeping front so we're already resigned to two fairly sleepless nights. Tonight we're hoping to wear him out! We're heading to a friend's house for a cookout and games and we're hoping that Noah will be ready for bed by the time we get home. Tomorrow is supposed to be nice so we're planning on spending most of the day outside - and Noah loves being outside. Mommy and Daddy will be back late Saturday night but we're planning on waiting until Sunday morning at church to give him back. So hopefully it'll be a fun and educational weekend for us!

Not So Good Stuff

Since Chris' renters/friends are moving out at the end of May, we did a bunch of checking and decided that our best course of action right now is to sell the house. We got a hold of a great realtor back in Michigan and she was full of energy and ready to sell the place for us. Because of conflicts with his renters/friend's schedules however, she hasn't been able to get into the house. Until this week. And it wasn't good.

When Chris called me after talking to her, his first comment was that Cindy (our realtor) sounded like she was trying not to cry. Yep, it was that bad. And these are supposed to be his FRIENDS???? According to Cindy, the one roommate had been smoking in his bedroom (it was obvious by the smell) - this guy knows that this is the one major thing that Chris did NOT want him to do. Along with that, the house was a pit - and they had known for a couple of days that she was coming to look at the house. Oh, and another thing - there was food ROTTING into the carpet! Hello! I was sick - I still feel sick. I am so hurt and so angry with Chris' so called friends. How could they treat him this way? Granted, they still have 7 days to get out of the house and get everything cleaned up but these guys are not the most stellar as is. I feel like they totally took advantage of Chris' friendship and trust. And I have to say - I LOVE my sister-in-law Carrie. She told Chris last night that she didn't think he should be friends with them anymore - and I totally agree. But my amazing husband is handling the whole situation with grace. He says that he will see how the house looks when we get there. If it's not OK, then he will call them and give them a chance to make it right - ie, cleaning it more, painting, paying for things. And if that fails, then he will deal with it. I love this man.

Cindy was very discouraged by the condition of the interior. But Chris and I are holding onto hope that we can make some minor changes and repairs and it'll work. God-willing, the house will sell quickly and we can be done. But we'll see what He has planned. For now we just continue to trust that we're doing what He wants.

So just a few hours and I get to go pick up Noah and then we'll head home to meet Chris and go from there to our cookout. I'm looking forward to my friend Cherie's homemade potato salad and a grilled burger! Yum!

Hope you all have a great weekend!

Still Tripping After Shooting Up

Ok, yeah, that title could have some of my friends ready to hold an intervention for me. And if said intervention meant I could sleep for long uninterupted periods of time, I might just sign up!

But seriously, I had another round of allergy shots this afternoon. And they are finally reacting in a big, bad way. I had to have my serums remixed and like a good little patient, I have been getting them twice a week. Last week, due to contracting my hubby's wonder bug, I had to skip a set of shots. So in I traipse today, and lo and behold, I get the nasty reaction today. My head is throbbing and I am having massive hot flashes in my cheeks and upper arms where I get the shot along with a little bit of breathing trouble. Not enough to call the doc or head to the ER, but enough to keep Chris and I from enjoying the great outdoors this evening. Could be from still not feeling 100% or it could just be the increased dosage. Whatever it is, I don't appreciate it. I sincerely pray that my children don't have to deal with allergies like I do.

On a good note, we found out who are new boss is going to be. And we're pretty excited about her. She starts in June but according to the personnel office, our other interim guy had exhausted his official 120 days, so I am now acting DC for the next month. It's really not that hard, but I am amazed at the increased stress I am feeling. I think the stress is definitely adding to my headache. Tomorrow is an out of town meeting that I've already been assured will add to my stress. But Wednesday should be fun. We have our annual Conservation Day for all of the 6th graders in the county out at one of the state parks. I am really looking forward to it right now - a day out of the office, away from phones and farmers and other people.

As I mentioned above, despite my fondness for Lysol I still managed to contract Chris' bug and feel wretchedly ill most of Friday and Saturday. Sunday I felt well enough to head to church, spend some wonderful time relaxing with my husband and then we went to small group. My wonderful husband and I got to spend some time snuggling and relaxing - a great ending to a very good weekend.

Doing the Happy Dance!

Yes, friends and strangers, I am officially doing the happy dance! Here's how it went down:

Chris and I had planned to go to Omaha on Saturday but with the whole "selling the Michigan house" situation, neither one of us really felt like going and spending money, knowing that if the house doesn't sell within 6 months, that we could really need that money. It was also raining like crazy so we decided to wait and see if we'd feel like going later on. Chris tackled the dishes and I started working on laundry. We cleaned like madmen! A little after noon, I decided I needed a break and walked out to the mailbox. And like I've done every day for the past 3 weeks, I frantically searched for a letter with the UNI return address. Unlike every other day over the past 3 weeks, this time said letter was actually in the pile! Yikes! I didn't care if it was raining or not, I opened it. And all I could see was PASS, PASS, PASS!!!!! Yowza! And, of course, being the mentally stable, serene individual that I am, I promptly burst into tears! I ran into the house and totally freaked Chris out since I was crying and dripping wet. It took him a minute to realize what was happening and then he was so excited for me! So, in case you haven't been following my posts, I officially PASSed by English comprehensive exams for my MA degree - both my written and orals! YEAH!!! Which means I just have my thesis to finish and defend and I'll be done! Double YEAH!

After receiving such awesome news, we decided that we definitely had to go celebrate in the city. We decided we would just return the things we needed to return, pick up a few minor things and then do dinner at a nice place. We ended up at Olive Garden which we both like. I don't think I always realize how much a good or bad server can affect your meal. We had a fantastic server named Chris - he was a winner on the name alone! Seriously though, he made us feel like we were his only table, and we know we couldn't have been because it was packed in there. If you ever make it to the Olive Garden on about 74th and Dodge in Omaha, be sure to ask for Chris. He was awesome! Chris (my Chris) and I were both stuffed but we got a dessert to go to share at home later. We stopped by one of the malls to run a quick errand and had to detour through the food court to use the bathroom. When I came out, Chris grabbed me and said he thought we really needed to try this new place. The new place turned out to be a little shop called "Lora's Just Desserts." It is owned by a local woman and she bakes the most amazing treats! We bought a piece of chocolate layer cake and a mini cherry pie to take home. They were both fantastic! So if you're ever in Omaha, out at the Westroads Mall, stop by Lora's Just Desserts or you can go visit her at www.lorasjustdesserts.com.

On the way home we swung by our friends Brian and Sharon's and visited with them and little Noah. We have been so out of touch with studying for my comps and all of our weekends away so it was nice to just sit and visit for a while. Sunday was busy with church and small group and relaxing.

Can't believe we're already to Wednesday! Chris had another bout of stomach flu on Monday night and Tuesday so that was lots of fun. So far I've managed to dodge it and will keep praying that I don't get sick. I need to make another pass with my trusty Lysol spray but we're getting closer to germ free. Chris is feeling much better and is back at work today which he is very happy about. So life is good again in the Nicholson household!

Miles and Miles to Michigan and Back

Chris and I left around 3:00 on Thursday and headed to Michigan. I drove the first several hours and then he took over. I think I slept from the Iowa border all the way to Chicago. We were making great time but got stopped due to the never ending construction in Chicago. We made it to Ann Arbor around 2:00 a.m. and crashed on Mike & Carrie’s sofa bed. Marshall must have been excited to see us because he was up before the crack of dawn – 6:00 am! We snuck in a little bit more sleep and then got up and ran some errands while Marshall took his morning nap.

The guys left to head to Kalamazoo around 2ish and Carrie was at work so Marshall and I hung out with Mom and Dad Nicholson. We had a great time relaxing and talking and taking a walk. After Carrie got home from work, we ate dinner and played some games. And Marshall decided to show everyone his new game – playing peek-a-boo with his bedroom door! The wee one was supposed to be sleeping but he has learned to stand up in his crib. And on Friday, he figured out he could reach his door and open and close it, laughing hysterically every time he saw one of us. It was quite the fun game – until Mommy moved his crib away from the door and the wall.

On Saturday we scrapbooked and relaxed, spent some quality time with our friends Bill and Amy and their little guy, Liam. Amy and Bill are awesome people! I am excited for when we move to Michigan knowing we have great friends there in them. It also makes me so happy to have such a great brother-in-law and sister-in-law in Mike and Carrie. They love Chris so much and have welcomed me with open arms. I had such a great time spending the weekend with Carrie and Marshall. My in-laws are also wonderful! It was so nice to hang out with them and get to talk a lot. Chris’ dad told me several cute stories about him – how fun is that?!

I left Ann Arbor pretty early on Sunday and headed to a camp northwest of Goble, MI to pick up Chris. I was able to get in some quick visits with several of our friends before we headed for home again. We made fantastic time and got back to our house around 8:30 on Sunday night. It was really nice to get home before midnight – our usual return time.

So now we’re home again for a few weeks. We have a couple of small jaunts planned over the next month – one up to Sioux City to see my parents, another up to northeastern and north central Iowa to see some friends and then we head back to Michigan at the end of the May.

Not much has been happening since we’ve gotten home. We are still making decisions and doing some research in regards to renting or selling the house in Michigan and have been spending time on that every night. Other than enjoying the weather, we’ve been having a fairly low-key week. On Saturday, we’re heading to Omaha and the Build-A-Bear Workshop. We’re going to build a Nikki’s Bear, with a portion of the proceeds going toward autism research (see my post below for more info). And hopefully by then I will know how I did on my written comps. Still no news for now.

Hope you are all having a great week! I leave with you some photos of the weekend...

Our friends - Bill & Amy and Liam

Super Smiley Liam (Check out all that hair!)

My Fantastic Sister-in-Law Carrie with a tired Marshall

My Happy Little Nephew Marshall

Marshall Jumping for Joy

Marshall Playing with a Final Haven Dagger

Weird Facts About Me

Yeah! My first tag - thanks to Lisa over at The Shizzle! Visit Lisa here.

1. One of my favorite foods growing up was ground up meat. My family would take chunk bologna and dill pickles and grind them together in a meat grinder. Throw in some miracle whip and then eat on crackers or a sandwich - YUM! (Chris thinks this is SO gross!)

2. I go through phases with foods - especially sweets. For a month, all I'll want is peanut m&m's. Then I can't stand them again for a good 6 months. Just got done with a Hershey Kiss with Caramel phase. Right now, I'm loving rice krispy treats.

3. I used to have to have it completely pitch black in my room to sleep. Since my house was broken into a year ago (with me in it) I now have several night lights and light from the yard light that have to be on.

4. I don't really twirl my hair so much as twist it and smell it. I think I am obsessed with having nice smelling hair, especially since my husband can smell it. Weird, I know.

5. My pillowcase is an old Raggedy Ann/Raggedy Andy one from when I was little. It stays cool better than any other pillowcase I've ever had. I also have a little blanket my mom made that stays cool. I keep it up near my face - Chris likes to try and steal it since he likes how cool it is too.

OK, I am so tired I'm not going to tag anyone but play if you're up to it - and let me know if you do.

Update on our weekend and the whole Michigan trip tomorrow. Plus pictures of my oh, so incredibly brilliant and adorable nephew!

Livin' la vida loca

Hope this finds you all well!

It seems like life is constantly busy lately. Our week flew by in a rush and all of a sudden it was Saturday. I think I mentioned before that Chris was playing the repentant criminal in our church’s Passion play “Watch the Lamb.” As a criminal, he was basically dressed in a loin cloth, with a rope around his wrists. And he had to be rubbed down with baby oil so the blood (made of Karo syrup and food coloring) wouldn’t be so hard to get off. So the wives of the two criminals and Jesus were recruited to rub our men down with baby oil. Anyway, this meant that both Chris and I had to be at the final play practice on Saturday morning at 9:00.

We showed up at practice only to get some bad news: Jesus was in the hospital with kidney stones. OK, actually it was Ron who was playing Jesus who was in the hospital. Our friend Mike, who was supposed to play the violent criminal, stepped up to play Jesus and another Mike stepped in to play the second criminal. So practice was a little intense that day with people trying to learn lines and get used to a semi-new cast.

We finally got done with play practice, stopped up to visit with Ron’s wife in the hospital, picked up groceries and headed home. We had about 2 ½ hours before we had to be back at church for the play so we put away groceries and crashed on the couch to watch a movie. We had to rush to get ready and get back to church but it was so nice just snuggling and relaxing for those 2 hours. Despite the wild weather and tornado warnings, the play went very well. It was incredibly powerful and very emotional. The mother of the director wrote it based on Ray Boltz’s song “Watch the Lamb.” My friend Brian took pictures with a special lens. He’s supposed to be posting them to a website soon and I’ll be sure to post the link here.

So we headed home and finished picking up the house and getting things ready for Sunday. We went to the early service and it was great. Our pastor has really been on fire lately and it was so awesome to hear him speak and lead our congregation. Instead of Sunday School, our church holds an Easter brunch between the services. I could not believe how many egg casseroles there were! We headed back home and started getting Easter dinner ready. Our friends, Brian and Sharon, and their little guy Noah, Dan and Tina, and their kids Martin, Harrison, and Marie, and Cherie and Brett all came up for the afternoon. We had an Easter egg hunt for the kids and the rest of us visited and relaxed. We sat down to a HUGE meal – ham, cheesy potatoes, green bean casserole, Snicker salad, deviled eggs, homemade bread, fruit salad, fresh veggies, and coleslaw. Then to top it off, Sharon and Brian and Noah had made a bunny cake that was delicious! After everyone left, Chris and I relaxed and took a little nap. We ended up skipping small group because I started not feeling well. Instead, Chris let me take a long nap while he cleaned up.

This week has already flown by too. It’s already Wednesday and today is my Friday! We head to Michigan sometime tomorrow afternoon. We are both hoping to get out of here around 2ish but it may be a little later. At this point, we are planning on driving straight through to Kalamazoo. We’ll find a place to stay overnight there and then check out the campground in the morning. I think Chris is going to drive to Ypsi with me so he can see his family too. Then he and Mike will head back to Kzoo around 1:00. And I get to stay with my sister-in-law Carrie and my nephew Marshall until Sunday! I’ll get to see my awesome in-laws on Friday too! Then on Sunday I’ll head back to the campground at Kzoo to pick up Chris and head back to Iowa. I am so looking forward to the whole weekend – even the 20 hours of driving. It’ll be nice to have some girl time with Carrie and to get to spoil Marshall a little. I’m also hoping to see my friends Amy and Bill and their little guy Liam.

Tonight is all about packing and loading the vehicle. I’m also hoping to get laundry done, a semi-healthy dinner prepared and still find a little time to snuggle with my husband – and get to bed at a decent time.

Probably won’t blog again until we’re home. Hope you all have a great weekend!