{Stars & Stripes}

The 4th of July is one of my favorite holidays - mostly because it doesn't seem crazy, just relaxing. I love sitting in a lawn chair, being with people I love and watching fireworks! I was worried about how I'd be able to handle the heat, but I drank LOTS and LOTS of water all day long and Benny forced me to sit down and relax with my feet up in between activities. It really wasn't too bad!

4th of July 3 years ago ..

And here we are spending our last 4th of July as a family of two!

 

Friday night we wanted to go to the fireworks but had no lawn chairs and were being super lazy - so we went and parked somewhere and waited and waited and waited. I kept telling Benny I was going to die it was so hot in his car so he'd turn the air on for a few minutes and then turn it off and I instantly thought I was going to die again. Finally they started, and of course, a big tree was blocking our view! We did end up driving around and finding a spot and caught the end of them .. Poppy went CRAZY during them. My tummy is so stretched out now and Poppy is so big that we can feel definitive body parts so that was quite entertaining! We got up in the morning and drove to Estherville for the flight breakfast and aerobatic demonstration. We waited in line forever for the breakfast and were almost up to the front when we realized we'd miss the show if we went in, so we got out of line and walked around and checked out the airplanes. The show was neat (nothing like the Sioux Falls airshow), but it was still cool to see. We got back to town and enjoyed some Subway and picked up some new lawn chairs at Wally World. We spent the afternoon just relaxing (and I cleaned light switches around the house..ha) and hanging out. Benny even got in a few games of ping pong in with Ryan. 

Then it was off to mini-golfing...which is one of the few activities I can still do - it's just a little ackward and I can't bend down to get my ball out of the hole!

                                          

*You almost can't see Ashlee behind that tummy*

And, of course, we have to take this picture every summer.. Nice hand, Benny.

 

 Benny just being Benny -- "Ok, guys, here are the current standings."

We kinda sorta like each other... sometimes...

 

Shawna and Ashlee hula hooping - I was going to give it a try because I thought I might be pretty good if I balanced it on top of my tummy, but I decided I'd just end up in pain.

 

We all enjoyed some pizza at Godfather's where apparently soft serve ice cream is NOT free - just for the record - and then it was off to Arnold's Park for the concert and fireworks. I skipped the go-karts...

Great friends .. even if Ben did almost put me into labor with his crazy driving.. I think I'll go for a ride with him in about 2 weeks when baby hasn't come yet!

Little Sis .. aren't we cute?! She's adorable!

The Love Birds

I LOVE being at Arnold's Park for the 4th .. quite the atmosphere!

Top it all off with a gorgeous sunset (this picture doesn't do it justice)

By the end of the night, I really wished I had a couch to sit on or at least a pillow, but I was thankful for Landon's little footstool. 

 All the boats out on the lake.

And since we're old, and pregnant, and have jobs .. we went straight home (okay, we got a little lost on the way) and went to bed! The fireworks didn't scare Poppy out, but hopefully they at least gave him/her a little encouragement...

The End. 

The Dash

This Sunday was the third Sunday we attended a new church in Spirit Lake. We prefer a contemporary service, so we hadn't given the Presbyterian church a try yet but I decided to go with my friend Ashlee a few Sundays ago. Nick and I have been trying to find, and praying for, the right church since we moved here. I can't say for certain if we've found it just yet, but we have enjoyed and got so much out of this church in the 3 weeks we've been going that we keep wanting to go back.

I was so impressed from the minute we walked through the door at how welcome EVERY person in that church made us feel. We were approached after church by so many people asking our names and where we were from and told they were glad we came to worship today. We had not found this in any other church we have tried in the area. It was a great feeling, and I look forward to every Sunday!

Anyway, to the point.. The pastor at this church gives phenomenal sermons. I sometimes struggle (thank you, A.D.D combined with extreme fidgeting) to focus on what they are teaching and get lost in my own daydreams, but this man has my full attention from beginning to end. He makes sense, he doesn't skip around and lose me, and his messages are meaningful. This week was all about "the dash."

He started with a verse from Ecclesiastes which got my attention right away because it's well-known, one of my favorites, and I read it at Lauren's funeral:

There is a time for everything,
   and a season for every activity under the Heavens:
  a time to be born and a time to die,
   a time to plant and a time to uproot,
  a time to kill and a time to heal,
   a time to tear down and a time to build,
 a time to weep and a time to laugh,
   a time to mourn and a time to dance,
  a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
   a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,
 a time to search and a time to give up,
   a time to keep and a time to throw away,
 a time to tear and a time to mend,
   a time to be silent and a time to speak,
a time to love and a time to hate,
   a time for war and a time for peace.

He went on to talk about "the dash." When you see a gravestone, you see a birth date and a death date, but what really matters -- the most meaningful part -- is the dash. It's the life in between those dates and how a person spent that time that really matters in the end. A woman wrote a poem about this and I hadn't read it before he mentioned it at church -- I'm sure many of you have heard of it, but I really love it.

The Dash Poem
by Linda Ellis

I read of a man who stood to speak
At the funeral of a friend
He referred to the dates on her tombstone
From the beginning to the end

He noted that first came the date of her birth
And spoke the following date with tears,
But he said what mattered most of all
Was the dash between those years

For that dash represents all the time
That she spent alive on earth.
And now only those who loved her
Know what that little line is worth.

For it matters not how much we own;
The cars, the house, the cash,
What matters is how we live and love
And how we spend our dash.

So think about this long and hard.
Are there things you’d like to change?
For you never know how much time is left,
That can still be rearranged.

If we could just slow down enough
To consider what’s true and real
And always try to understand
The way other people feel.

And be less quick to anger,
And show appreciation more
And love the people in our lives
Like we’ve never loved before.

If we treat each other with respect,
And more often wear a smile
Remembering that this special dash
Might only last a little while.

So, when your eulogy is being read
With your life’s actions to rehash
Would you be proud of the things they say
About how you spent your dash?

After Lauren passed away, I definitely began living my dash a little differently. The sunsets are a little more pink, the "I love yous" a little more frequent, the hugs a little longer, and relationships a little higher on the totem pole. Material things mean a little less. Worrying seems like a waste of time. Being who I am, speaking my mind and not caring what others think has become my thing. But I still need a little reminder from time to time...

And although this sermon touched me personally, it really is a message for us all. We spend our days worrying about how much money we have, what we look like, what others think of us. We always want more, but we never stop and smell the roses. We're so focused on our own lives, our busy schedules, our problems, our joys, ourselves that we fail to see the beauty in others and the struggles they are going through. We know that today could be our last day, but we still live as if there's a million tomorrows...

So, in the words of Clint Black, "I'm gonna spend my time like it's going out of style!"

How are you spending your dash?!

God, Family, and Roast Beef

Benny and I have been talking about what we want for our family for a long time - what values and traditions we want to carry on from our own childhoods and what things we would like to be different for our children. Obviously, these conversations are occurring more often now that there's actually a little on on the way.

Thinking of my childhood usually brings smiles - I was blessed with two wonderful parents and two awesome brothers (I didn't ALWAYS think they were awesome... that came later in life) who made life a lot of fun. Now that one of those people has chosen to no longer be a part of my life (or at least a healthy/positive part), sometimes these memories bring a few tears as well. Despite what emotions they bring, they are a part of who I am and a part of the mother/wife I will be. I could go on for days about everything I remember from my childhood, but instead I'll share something so relevant to today .. Sundays.

I remember Sundays growing up in two different ways - Football Sundays and Spring Sundays.

Fall Sundays meant waking up to dad on the couch with a cup of coffee in his favorite Bears shirt watching ESPN pregame shows. Mom would either be sitting on the couch with her bible, out in the garden, or putting the roast in the oven. I don't remember many Sundays we didn't have roast, carrots, and potatoes. We'd all hover around the TV for the BIG game - the Chicago Bears and whoever they were playing. When I was younger, I'd play with my mom's hair coming up with all sorts of new styles for her and sometimes even beg her to leave it that way. I always sat in the same oversized chair with her because we were both little enough to squeeze in. Sometimes we'd get bored of the game and go to Hy-Vee grocery shopping. To this day, I still miss grocery shopping with my mom - it was one of my favorite things to do. I think too often we only remember the BIG things, but it's really those little memories that mean the most. Sometime in the afternoon, my dad and his friends would have a big football game in our yard. It was the PERFECT yard for playing football. All the kids would run around the house doing whatever kids do or chase each other around the yard. I sure do miss that farm!

Sundays in the Spring were a little bit different... My parents weren't big church goers when I was growing up. As I went off to college, they became very involved with their church and bible study, but I usually had to convince them to go when I was younger. What I do remember about church Sundays was dad putting on a button up shirt (the only one he owned that wasn't HyVee white) and combing back his hair after he got back from doing a few things at work. Mom would get all dressed up, do her makeup and curl her hair. We'd head to church and then afterward we'd all pile in the van and head to Creston. The whole way we would listen to Casey Kasem's Top 40 on the radio - Jake would bring his headphones so he didn't have to listen, but he'd turn them up so loud that I'd complain to mom that I could only hear his music. Of course, I always won because I was the baby. We'd enjoy a meal at Happy Chef (which I don't think is even there anymore) - I'd always have chocolate milk. We'd conclude the day walking around Walmart picking up a few miscellaneous items. If we didn't go to church, we'd often all pile in the van and head to Des Moines or Omaha and spend the day shopping.

Most importantly, I remember Sundays being about family. We weren't worried about getting things done - those could wait until Monday. This Sunday was much like those I remember from my childhood. We got up and cooked a hearty breakfast of eggs and hashbrowns. Benny put on his button up shirt and combed his hair while I got all dressed up and curled mine. Off to church we went (where Poppy kicked/punched me through the entire service) and then it was to Walmart for him to get a haircut and me to pick up a few random things. We came home to the aroma of roast in the crockpot - my mouth was watering already. I made a pan of brownies, ate half the pan of brownies, and beat Benny in a few games of Ping Pong. We'll probably spend the rest of the day cuddling on the couch while the snow falls outside.

I feel truly blessed to be married to someone who will not only stand over the pan of brownies and eat them with me, cut the fat off my roast, drive me safely to church in the blizzard, and hold my hand while we're praying - but someone who shares the same values in life and truly appreciates all the little things. We are so blessed and I give all the credit to the man upstairs.

P.S. I encourage you to check out the song our praise band sang at church this morning - I'm in love with it! It's called "How You Live." Happy Sunday to you all!

Creepy, Crawlies ..

I have always been passionate about helping others, and when I chose the human services field - I knew I would love it. I knew that along with it would come some very stressful situations and some very unpleasant conditions.

Disclaimer: My house is not spotless - far from. We don't vaccuum, dust, and clean the counters every day. We pick up clutter when people come over, and sometimes we do have dirty dishes.

Every week, I enter multiple homes with conditions from spotless (cleaner than my house will EVER be) to not knowing what I'm sitting in. I see cockroaches, lice, and mysterious sticky substances. I am exposed to secondhand smoke, scabies, mold, and every virus/bacteria you could ever search for on WebMD. While I don't overly enjoy all these things, they don't particularly bother me. (Although, the smoke bothers me much more now that I'm pregnant .. I don't even go into relative's homes who smoke since I've found out I'm pregnant, but when it's your job - you have no choice). I just trust that God will protect me (and Poppy) from all these things that go along with helping others. I know I'm making a difference, and to me that's worth all the risks.

Anyway, today I had a situation that truly gave me the creepy, crawlies .. and it will give you them, too, so if you want to sleep without itching tonight - please don't read on. However, I also found a lot of humor in it because that's just what I do and probably the reason I'm able to keep my sanity at my job.

I was on a visit today and halfway through I was informed that the apartment is infested with bed bugs. I am not kidding you - bed bugs are seriously one of my worst fears. I fear hotels for this reason and the thought of them makes me ill. But, being the professional I am, I had to remain completely calm and take it with a grain of salt rather than becoming hysterical and jumping around the room scratching all over in true Grace fashion. I finished the visit, went outside, and that's when panic set in. I had been sitting on a metal folding chair - good. However, my coat had been on the  couch - bad. I got out of view of the apartment and took my coat off (it was not the least bit warm today, either) and opened my trunk. I had a grocery sack in there so I tied it up securely and got into my car. Then I panicked again - my seats are cloth so if there were any on me, they were giong to jump to my seat. Ahh! There was no escape. Anyway, I took a deep breath and drove back to the office where I panicked to one of my co-workers who reassured me that there was little chance I had picked any up but to make sure I dried my clothes when I got home just to be safe. I then spent a good 20 minutes researching bed bugs - never do that - you'll just itch more!

I made it through the work day - scratching like crazy - and pulled in our garage at home. I would guess it's about 30 degrees in our garage. I stripped down naked and set all my clothes on the steps. I am OCD about laundry - seriously - OCD (like reds don't go with pinks) so I left my shoes, pink bra and pink undies on the step and threw the rest of my clothes in the washer. I then ran to the shower and took a forever long shower to try and get all the itchies out of me. (It didn't work).

Let's just say - my husband was a bit puzzled when he pulled in the garage to find my tennis shoes, bra, and undies on the step. ;) I'm currently washing/drying my clothes for a 2nd time .. just to be safe. I wanted to just throw them away, but my husband would have been extremely upset at my irrationality so I stuck with this system instead.

I know you are all probably thinking this was an extreme overreaction and that the likelihood of me bringing them home was small, but you just never know and I tend to err on the side of overreacting. I will most likely start visiting this house once a week and I will just have to get used to it and deal with it because this is the job and field I chose, but I have a feeling there will be a lot of changing in the garage moments after work until I can deal with it.

When I texted my coworker about it, she pointed out that, "What husband doesn't want to come home to a naked wife?" Good point .. Benny might not mind my overreacting after all. ;)

Who Says You Can't Go Home?!

I always love going home. I remember in college I would get so excited for a weekend at home - seeing high school friends, visiting relatives, and eating a home cooked meal. I always had to stop at the high school to catch up with old teachers, too. Now I look forward to going "home" just as much. Even though Spirit Lake is our home now and where we own a house and are starting a family, I can't drive down one street in Spirit lake and have a thousand memories flood back to me. When I go home it's the football field and all those nights cheering under the lights, the dance studio where I spent so many hours, the Hy-Vee where I knew exactly where everything was that I needed & everyone knew my name, the hair salon where the same lady cut my hair for years, the farm I grew up on & even though my house has been torn down - I can still drive by & think of every moment we shared as a family, and the high school where I fell in love with my sweetheart! It's crazy to think that my children will have those memories .. but here. (or maybe not - you never know where we'll end up!) Some people just couldn't wait to get out of my hometown, and while I can't say I could ever go back to living there - I sure do get homesick sometimes.

I got my favorite doughnut (the filled long john with the crumbles on top!) at the bakery, my favorite pizza (Breadeaux) and got to catch up with quite a few people. My grandma was sick with the flu, but I couldn't keep myself from stopping by her room to show her my baby bump and tell her I love her. I stayed with my aunt & uncle & cousins which is always fun! Uncle Jerry had picked out a pair of Iowa State slippers for Poppy. Saturday morning I got to watch my little brother play in two basketball games. I was such a proud sister - he's quite aggressive out there. I didn't know I was so competitive, but I got really excited when he had a good move or play! Saturday afternoon I visited some friends and got to catch up! Then it was off to Clarinda fto spend the night with Robyn & Lily. If you don't know this already, I LOVE Lily. She has had me wrapped around her finger since the minute she was born. We spent the evening twirling around, doing moves from her dance class, and singing from a church bulletin while she played the piano. We finished the night watching "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs" and Robyn actually zonked out before me for once.

Sunday was one of the best days ever!! We loaded up Robyn's truck and headed to David's Bridal in Omaha. We met the other ladies in Red Oak and made our way! I felt like I was on an episode of "Say 'Yes' to the Dress" because I've never go to be part of someone's wedding dress experience. Our big party sat in the chairs and waited for her to come out with the first dress. I'll admit it was a little emotional for me .. she's so pretty that I'm pretty sure she could've come out in a potato sack and rocked it, but she was gorgeous!! Every dress she tried on was SO pretty. She did say YES before we left -- I got very anxious when the lady asked, "Is this your dress?" because I really didn't know what she was going to say (but really hoped she said YES because in my opinion it was PERFECT). We went out for lunch and then we met up with Benny and we headed home. Benny finally got to meet Baby Emma who was born in December - I'm way jealous I haven't met her yet, but I have a bad cold anyway so it was probably best I stayed away. He keeps talking all about her & it makes me so excited for when we have our own little one!

Our Wedding - May 22, 2010 - Can't wait to get
the reverse of this picture on June 1, 2013!!

It was a wonderful weekend at home - it always is! I'm always glad to be back at our house with just the two of us, but I look forward to the next time we get to go back for a visit .. and the best part is I have today off!!

Baby Enma smiling at Benny!

The AWESOME wreath Emma's mommy made us!

{Crazy Little Thing Called LoVe}

Yesterday was a holiday .. I guess. Some people just LOVE Valentine's Day, others absolutely dread it, and quite frankly I'm indifferent. But, celebrate we must! I asked for no gifts and in lieu of flowers, I wanted to go shopping. My growing belly has outgrown pretty much all my pants and I am not resisting the maternity clothes - bring them on. So we spent the day on Saturday in Minnesota getting some new clothes and some stuff for the house. It was nice to just be together doing something. And for the record, I never want to wear pre-pregnancy clothes again. Maternity clothes are SO comfy!

We got each other a card and I don't think either card could've been more perfect. I decided I'd make Benny a fancy little meal for supper and get dressed up rather than going out and spending money at a restaurant. The meal was delicious. My favorite part was drinking milk out of a wine glass! 

Our little meal

Poppy Says, "Happy Valentine's Day!"

Counting Sheep

Pregnancy + flu symptoms = NO SLEEP. So between the hours of 3am and 6am, you:

- have a revelation about what you should name your baby if baby is a girl .. and need your husband's approval that very second. It's a grumble, but I definitely think there was an "I love it!" in there. Tomorrow you can remind him how he agreed to that name... You look up what that name means and realize it's PERFECT, so then you email yourself and CC your husband a list of full names for your children.

- start planning your 2nd child's nursery because you're already finished planning the 1st child's room.

- discover there's a baby sale at Target ending tomorrow and add a bunch of items to your cart that you're not actually going to buy because in the morning your husband will remind you that a)Baby won't be here until July and surely Target will have at least 100 more sales between now and then and b) There IS a budget for the nursery and if you choose to go over, you may have to get a 2nd job which leads you to search for a part-time job because you know you'll go over budget.

- feel compelled to listen to every sad song on Youtube and cry your eyes out. No wonder your husband bans you from watching Extreme Home Makeovers (hey, I'm sure that's on right now...) and sad movies.

- may have a desire to eat everything in the kitchen. If you're choosing between tator tot casserole, fruit snacks, and the rest of your DQ blizzard - you may end up choosing all 3.

- go to Amazon and finally buy the 10 items that have been sitting in your cart for months.

- wonder if your husband will get violent if you start a load of laundry, and maybe the dishwasher, and maybe get some more stuff out of the nursery?

- click "home" on Facebook 1,000 times hoping that someone else in the world is also awake and might have posted something interesting. When you realize you're the only insomniac, you move to Pinterest where you also find out you are the only person among your pinning stalkers awake. Boring.

- search for restaurants to eat at for Valentine's Day and look at the mall directory to plot out your shopping trip.

- check the weather ... for the next 2 weeks. Then check the weather in your hometown so you can compare.

- search the Okoboji classifieds just in case there's something you just can't live without. There won't be.

- wish you wouldn't have watched all your DVR-ed shows on Thursday while your husband was working late so you had something to watch now ..

- type a blog about what you are doing between the hours of 3am and 6am because you are clearly out of things to do.

-and then you get mad because you realize you could have accomplished so many more things in those hours you were wide awake that you won't be able to accomplish later in the day because you'll be napping.

ZzzzzzzzZZzzzz...

Thoughtful Thursday

I've been thinking a lot lately about the things I've been through in the past couple years. I've had moments I felt on top of the world and months I thought I'd never smile again. Life has thrown some sharp curves at me, but I'm still standing and I think I'm finally figuring out why. It's all about attitude.

I don't think that happiness is based on what you have or even what happens to you. It's how you handle and react to those things that determines your happiness. It's accepting that not every day is going to be a bowl of ice cream and not every chapter of your life will be from a fairytale.

Maybe it's the bump growing in my midsection, or maybe it's the thermometer hitting 48 in January that's got me on cloud 9, but I have been one happy girl lately even with the raging hormones. I was complaining about something at work today and then I stopped myself mid-sentence and said, "Why am I even complaining? I don't even care. I love my job and it really doesn't matter." I was done complaining about that insignificant detail from yesterday's staff meeting. I do love my job - there's something about getting up every day and sitting in a classroom full of 2 year olds who say the most HILARIOUS things, being welcomed into people's homes by little voices screaming, "Teacher Grace is here!" and seeing the difference I'm making in their lives, and laughing all day long with the awesome ladies I work with that makes getting up in the morning a breeze. Some days my job sucks. If your job doesn't ever suck - you might want to do some evaluating and make sure you're actually doing your job.

I remember a time last year when I thought, "Is this really the rest of my life?" I was going through a very difficult family situation, I hated my job, I was grieving the loss of a best friend, we had no friends in this town, and I was very homesick for family, friends, and college. I had a lot of good things going for me - the most significant being a husband who stood by my side when my world was crumbling to pieces. Yet, I was just down in the dumps and it was no good for anyone.

I realized then these three things were missing from my life: Prayer, Laughter, and a Positive Attitude. All 3 of those things are now a SIGNIFICANT part of my life - I don't go a day without praying, laughing, or looking in the mirror and smiling. Yes, even on a bad hair day .. I look in the mirror and smile. I smile because I see a person who has taken some really horrible situations and used them to become a stronger woman. A woman who can't wait to take on the world, follow her dreams, be a best friend, and put my trust in God. I'm not perfect - far from - and my life is far from perfect, too, but it's the only life I've got and I choose not to waste it frowning.

I'm not saying every day of my life is great - and every day of yours won't be either .. you will get sick, people will let you down, and you will have to work to get what you want. Don't pretend your life is perfect because you're not fooling anyone but yourself. Cry when you need to, fall apart, and admit things just suck. But just try smiling in the mirror sometimes. Try waking up and counting your blessings. Try having a little faith...your shoulders will be less tired if you stop carrying the weight of the world. Try thinking, "Today will be a good day" instead of complaining and dreading all the work ahead of you. Be thankful for the life that was given to you, that you are able to do the things you do, and that there is no one else in this world just like you. No matter what, believe in miracles -- because if you don't, what's the point in believing in anything?

XOXO

SnOw DaY?!

Checking the "Iowa School Alerts" this morning was a little disheartening ... Any other day I would LOVE having a snow day, but this particular day I'm a little bummed. We are supposed to have our dr.'s appt. today (and it was going to be an exciting one!), but my dr. is in the town where I work. Since school closed, I'm not even allowed to go into work and it's also not safe for me to be out on the roads that are already "completely covered" and there's 5 more inches on the way. We already pushed our appointment back a week due to Nick having training, so hopefully they can get me in next week at a time Nick can make it. Bah humbug.

My snow days are a little different in my new position. Last year, whenever my centers were closed, I was required to take the day off and use an "off contract" day. In my new position, I work year round so I am required to work from home on snow days. I packed up all my paperwork yesterday anticipating this! I really don't mind having the laundry going and the TV on while I sit in my jammies doing paperwork. So even though I'm bummed about missing the appointment, I'm not that sad to have another 3 day weekend! And maybe I'll even have a couple new posts today... Happy Snow Day to me.

Now if only I don't make myself sick worrying about Nick getting to and from Minnesota...

I'm too Pretty to Do Math!

I know I have blogged about Lauren several times, but I am so overwhelmed at how all of us have made the best of the worst of circumstances. Losing Lauren was a tragedy, but life can and will go on...and we'll all be wearing a little memory of Lauren along the way...

If there's one thing I've learned through this grieving process, it's that Lauren was friends with some of the greatest girls I've ever met and I couldn't be luckier to have them in my life. I was not in Lauren's class. In fact, she is two years younger than me. I was friends with a couple of her good friends through dance or cheerleading, but some of them I never got to know very well until now. Sometimes I get sad thinking about how I know Lauren would have been my friend forever - all the memories we would have made - but then I feel grateful that now I've got a great group of girls who know exactly how I feel and when we all need a little laughter in our lives. I got to spend Sunday with those girls .. and it was exactly what I needed.

Some people might find it a little strange that we went through Lauren's closet and called dibs on tanks, t-shirts, workout pants, jeans, dresses, purses, shoes, sunglasses, socks (yes, very colorful socks), nail polish, jewelry, etc. But if you really think about it, what's the point in having it sit in her closet collecting dust (I know, Lisa is quite the duster, but let's be real). It was such a fun day. Going through Lauren's stuff brought up all sorts of memories -- what kind of trouble she got into wearing a certain shirt, why there was nail polish all over the bottom of a purse, how she could pull off the craziest shirt and look fabulous in it, which articles of clothing in her closet actually belonged to someone else in the room, and how if she loved a shoe it didn't matter what size it was - she would squeeze her foot in it. We also came up with a very special idea that will help each of us have Lauren with us at the biggest events in our lives (but I won't tell you about that..it's a secret).

I'll leave you with my best finds of the day -- A deck of Barbie cards in a Barbie tin AND the "I'm too pretty to do math" socks that I bought her a few years ago and she wore ALL the time (but we hadn't been able to find them since the accident).

Lions & Tigers & Dancing Elephants? Oh my!

Donna and Adam came to visit us for the weekend. We have been so excited for them to come since we rarely have visitors and they hadn't been to our house since we moved in so I couldn't wait for Donna to see the changes. Plus, our new furniture came on Thursday .. woohoo!!

They got here Friday night and we hung out at the house. I talked Donna's ear off and showed her the 400 pictures I had finally printed from the last 3 years of my life. Nick convinced me to let him buy Mario Kart ($50 for a game..rediculous!) so him and Adam played that all night.

On Saturday, we woke up bright and early to the sound of Donna fumbling around in the kitchen in search of coffee supplies. We both hate coffee, so although we do have the stuff, it is not easily accessible. We spent the morning crunching on some good old Cap'n Crunch and lazying around. But then it was time for the big event .. The James Cristy Cole Circus. We headed to Spencer for one heck of a show.

I decided during and after the circus, that people in the circus are just plain stupid. Not talented. Stupid. I don't care how much you've practiced or how "balanced" or "strong" you are, to run around the outside of a giant spinning wheel blindfolded with no mat or net below you just isn't smart. Entertaining, yes. Donna made the comment, "This is worse than riding in a car with Nick." I really enjoyed the trapeze artists, aerial dancers, and the dancing elephant. Adam's favorites included the man on the space wheel and the "ball of death" which was three guys driving motorcycles in an enclosed sphere at the same time without running into each other. That was also Nick's favorite, but Donna really enjoyed the tigers/lion.

After the circus, it was stir fry for supper, a comical game of Apples to Apples (Adam's FAVORITE game .. even though he doesn't know what half the cards mean!), and watching Ghostbusters until we all fell asleep on the new furniture.

They left this morning and even though there was plenty to get done around here, I napped for quite awhile and then kicked Benny's butt in Mario Kart. It was a very good weekend and we look forward to the next time we have company! And since Donna took the pictures this weekend, all I have is one of our new loveseat which includes a shot of Donna in the background. We also got a matching couch and recliner!!

Right where we left off...

There's nothing I love more than a friend who you can go months with only occasional life updates or without hardly speaking to at all, and when you meet up, it's like you never missed a beat.

It's been really hard trying to make friends in a new town where we essentially don't know anybody. Most of my co-workers don't live here and neither do Benny's since he works in Minnesota. It's not like the college days where friends lived in the same building as you and you had a ton of opportunities to meet new people. Although we're starting to get out more and try a little harder at having a social life, I get VERY excited when someone I know is coming to down. A familiar face always makes my day.

My friend, Krista, and one of her friends for college met me for supper tonight and it was wonderful. Krista and I have been friends since high school. We danced together, but it wasn't until we were both at Iowa State that we became really close. It's been fun to watch Krista change .. and she really has changed a lot .. and become such a wonderful young lady (not that she wasn't wonderful before, but you know what I mean). I always get so proud of her accomplishments .. it's like she's my little sister! But I don't worry about telling her anything and everything because I know she won't tell a soul or judge me. We've had some really great conversations (and wine + so you think you can dance nights). She's just one of those girlfriends I love being around!

Tonight was a great reminder that no matter how far away I may travel in life, those old friends will always be the best of friends and will always brighten my day!!

Oh, and the pizza wasn't bad either...

Breaking the Facebook Addiction: Week One

I logged onto Facebook for the last time last Wednesday to tell Robyn "Happy Birthday" ... it was tough walking away knowing it'd be a month before I logged back in. When I got home from work, I instantly came to my computer, just like I do every day, only to realize I wouldn't get to waste the next half an hour on Facebook. I think it's going to take a week just to remember I can't let myself go to it.

My morning ritual is to get a bowl of cereal and plop down next to my computer. I always check Facebook "real quick" while I'm eating, which turns into a 1/2 hour of sitting there staring at the computer and causes me to be late for work. One morning last week, I got up and got my bowl of cereal. I sat down in front of my computer out of habit .. I even went to Facebook and started typing in my login information and then realized what I was doing just in time. I'm so glad I realized it because I'd hate to fail without it being intentional.

We went back home for the weekend to visit family & friends so it was easy not to be tempted since I was so busy .. except when Robyn was sitting on the other end of the couch facebooking on her phone. My relatives kept asking if I was having withdrawals and said they missed seeing my updates every 20 minutes, but other than that I made it my first weekend without even going to the website!

I've officially made it ONE week! I'm actually handling it pretty well. Other than the first couple days being rough, I don't even really think about it as much now unless someone says something about it. I have SO much more time on my hands. I've been working out and getting to work on time and going to bed earlier! I feel pretty wonderful. I haven't really been using that extra time to keep my house clean, but oh well. I do miss getting to "communicate" with everyone and see what everyone is up to, but like I said, I don't really think about it that much.

I didn't know if I'd make it, but now I'm positive I will!! Especially if Benny gives in and buys me the Birthday gift I want as an incentive! :)

Breaking the Facebook Addiction: Preparation Stages

I'm officially breaking the Facebook addiction. Although I'd like to think that being addicted to Facebook officially makes me a loser, I truly believe there are far too many people who are dealing with the same problem. You log on just to see if anyone "wrote on your wall" or "commented on your photo" or "liked your status" and the next thing you know, it's 3 hours later and you're looking at pictures of a baby who belongs to a friend of a friend's mom's sister's aunt .. yep, I'm a loser. They say that it's possible to be addicted to sugar (another problem of mine..ha!) and I think that not being able to go a day without checking Facebook constitutes a problem. So while I won't be on Facebook again (after tomorrow) until April 9th (hated to miss all my "Happy Birthday" posts), you can keep up with my progress through my blog.

The reasons I love Facebook:
1. I get to keep in touch with family members I could call every now & then, but let's face it, I don't .. and this is a great way for us to keep in contact!
2. I get to see pictures of everyone's big life events -- engagements, weddings, babies, birthday parties, etc.
3. I can share my photos with family members and friends I don't get to see very often.
4. If I ever need sympathy, advice on what car to buy, recommendations for supper, etc. all I have to do is post it as my status and the notifications will be popping up right and left.
5. I can create an event and invite all my guests or send a message to several people at one time (turns out, there used to be a thing called email .. and mail .. that could accomplish the same thing..who knew?)

Here are the reasons I've decided to break my Facebook addiction:
1. I need to get to work on time or I might get fired.
2. No one believes I can do it .. which goes to show how addicted I really am.
3. I really don't need to know what some person I met 7 years ago at summer camp is doing today nor do they need to know what I'm doing.

What I hope to accomplish:
1. A cleaner house (Instead of immediately getting on Facebook after work, I hope to spend 20 minutes picking up around the house/doing laundry)
2. An enjoyment of reading -- I can't remember the last time I read a book for enjoyment. I keep buying them, but now I've got one I REALLY want to read so I'm going to.
3. I'm FINALLY going to print pictures and start scrapbooking.
4. Working out.  We paid for a February membership at the Y and went once. With all this extra time I'll have on my hands, I'll be in shape in no time. ;)
5. When I rejoin the Facebook world, I will spend much less time on it because I will realize how big of a time waster it really is.
6. PROVE EVERYONE WRONG!

So, what does one have to do to give up Facebook for a month? I wouldn't dare delete my account after all the hours I've spent uploading photos.

The steps I'm taking to avoid all temptations:
1. Telling everyone via my facebook status that I'll be MIA for a month ... so that all 346 of my "friends" will know if I fail.
2. Changing my homepage
3. Benny will be changing my password tomorrow
4. Benny will be changing HIS password tomorrow
5. I will be cancelling email notifications from Facebook (really, that would be cheating, but I considered it!)
6. Since I haven't joined the smart phone era, I don't need to worry about anything coming to my phone.


Wish me luck. Text me (please...). Enjoy my progress. Join me?

Signing Out.

Happy Endings & New Beginnings!

It's official -- I'm a grown up. Here's my blog so friends and family will always know about the ups and downs and crazy events in my sometimes chaotic life. Who knows where this blog will go, but I hope you enjoy!

This has been a crazy emotional rollercoaster of a month for me. It was full of happy endings, new beginnings, goodbyes that came far too soon, and a lot of laughter and tears.

Not to start on a sad note, but I must. A few days before my graduation from Iowa State, I got the shocking news that my sweet Uncle Joe had passed away very unexpectedly. Joe was the kind of uncle everyone deserves to have. He never had kids, so his nieces and nephews were treated as if we were his children. He was a loving husband, a son who called his mother everyday, a brother who wanted to go first because he couldn't bury his brothers, a PROUD Marine, and yes...a big hearted uncle. Losing uncle Joe was beyond heartbreaking and not a minute has gone by I haven't missed him and wished he was here to celebrate and tell me how proud he is...but I still know that he is truly proud. Two days before his death, my uncle Joe finished the cedar chest he was building Benny and I as our wedding gift. He wasn't supposed to be working on it, but he finished it anyway. He was to give it to us that Sunday, but he never got to. I wanted more than anything in the world for him to stand there proudly as he revealed the beautiful chest he had put his heart into. Benny and I will cherish it forever. This was a "goodbye that came faaaaar too soon". RIP Uncle Joe.

I graduated from Iowa State University with a BS in Child, Adult, and Family Services on May 8th. It was a bittersweet day. My time at Iowa State was definitely too short but words can hardly describe what my two years there meant to me. I met people whom I will NEVER forget, became a part of a dance club that turned out to be an amazing experience, and made memories that will last a lifetime. There are so many people who made my time at Iowa State so special and I am going to do a separate blog recognizing them or this would take all day for someone to read!  My college days may be over, but there is no doubt that I will be back. Thank goodness our wonderful ISU friends gave us season tickets as a wedding gift. We will be in our Cyclone gear at every home game and it will be great to visit with friends.

Next came my bachelorette party. My MOH was in charge & went all out planning this special night. It was SO fun to act like a kid again for one night and let go of all the stress of wedding planning. We got to race down water slides, drink out of inappropriate straws, prance around in "bachelorette attire" and "team bride" pins, and laugh until we could not laugh anymore. They made me feel like a princess and I had the time of my life.

After the bachelorette party came a week of non-stop wedding planning, stressing, planning, stressing, and stressing some more. Thanks to Robyn...and Anna for finishing some ribbons...the programs got finished the day before the wedding (procrastination on my part?). They were lovely. Everything about our wedding somehow went perfectly. I have no idea how because I was the most unorganized bride ever. I didn't have to stress a minute that day because everyone pulled it together. A huge shout out to my BA personal attendant who took her position to heart. That girl ran around like crazy and was never more than a foot from me ready to hold my train, fluff it, pull out the sewing kit ... anything you asked, she did it! Thank you SO much Kelsey! :) Our wedding day really was the BEST day of both of our lives. We will never forget just how much fun we had with our friends by our sides and our families who traveled so far just to see us promise to love each other forever. Being married to Benny is something I have dreamed about for a very long time, and that dream has finally come true. I feel truly blessed to have such amazing friends, wonderful family, and now a perfect husband (shhh..don't tell him.)

The day after our wedding we ate brunch with friends and opened gifts with our families. We then headed to Colorado...only making it to Lincoln before we were too tired to continue. It was a wonderful week in the mountains with no cell phone reception or internet access. We enjoyed each other's company, relaxing, hiking in the mountains, campfires, smores, breakfast by the water, and sight seeing. It was so nice to just be able to spend time together after such a busy month. We could've stared at the gorgeous mountains all day. It was hard to come home, but we were ready to see everyone and finally see some wedding pictures. I was so happy to come home to so many sweet comments from friends and awesome pictures.

Tonight we celebrated my favorite little person's 1st Birthday. Lily has been such a blessing in our lives. We have loved her since the minute she came into this world (I loved her before that, too...hehe). We have watched her grow and become quite the little spirited girl. We are proud of every milestone she reaches and we cherish our time with her. She has definitely become part of the family.

Tomorrow we embark on the next adventure. We will be moving to our new condo. We've never had our own place together, so this is very exciting for us. I have a few mixed feelings as I type away tonight. I'm leaving behind my family, friends, and everything I've known over my entire life. Yet, I'm starting the next adventure in my life and only God knows where it will lead. I know with my best friend by my side, I will accomplish anything I put my mind too but it's still hard to say goodbye. I will miss the small town life, but I will be back to visit! Anyone who would like to jump in the moving truck, feel free! ;)

I promise this will be the longest blog I ever write. After this, they will probably be real short. It's been an exciting, emotional, and chaotic month. I have so many memories that will carry me through all the rough times I may face in the future. Thanks to everyone who was part of any of these events. Whether happy, sad, or both, this month will be imprinted in our hearts for the rest of our lives.

~Every New Beginning Comes from Some Other Beginning's End~