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!