Life's A Dance

So what has been going on since Nov 13? Hmmm . . . Karl and I had a great Thanksgiving with his mom's side of the family. Amanda came in for the break and will be back in a few days for the Christmas break. We have been frantically decorating the house. Can I say how much I absolutely LOVE Christmas?!?! We have been wrapping presents and having fun just hanging out together. I am looking forward to Dec 17 at 1 pm! My parents will be coming into town on the 18th with my mom staying until the 3rd of Jan and my step-dad jetting out the 26th to go back to work. We are also looking forward to heading up to Dallas for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. We haven't been able to see that side of the family for a very long time. As far as our house re-modeling is going, we are still working on the closet. Yes, still. Hopefully we will get it done today . . . have you heard that before? I believe I have said this a MILLION times! But if I can just Karl out of bed, I think we can make it wor...

That's right! Don't you just love that song? I absolutely miss that era of music, just saying. It has been a very eventful week and day. We have gotten a lot of work done and are making way on our house, even if it is just in theory. :) Since our meeting with Teri, we have been looking at pricing of all our many fun house projects and met with a local contractor today to look at our basement and we found out that . . . it is actually possible to put the basement entrance on the outside of our house!!! He is going to be calling us in a few days to let us know about the price. Until then, we shall just wait and see. :) I am so excited, if you can't tell. :) This past week I worked on lots of homework and lots of things at school. Karl had Thursday off for Veteran's Day and was able to get some things done around the house - made me happy. :) Thursday night we went over to a co-worker's house to play games and eat snacks. We had a blast and can't wait to hang out a...

Do you ever have those days, weeks, months, when all you do is dissappoint those around you or are just surrounding by things to bring you down. I feel like this has been me for the past few weeks - especially in the worlds of school, both grad and elem. I will be receiving Bs for the first time in my graduate career and have been really tired and unmoticated at school. It has definitely been a rough few weeks. I am looking forward to the holidays and getting over all this school stuff. ;) Let's see, this week in a nutshell. We went and hung out with Sharon and Steph Friday night for a while, talking a little about the cruise and a little about life. Saturday night we went back up to the hospital to hang out with those same two great people plus Nat, Mara, and the kids, which is always a blast. I absolutely love hanging out with them and learning about babies and all their little needs. Sunday, we went up to the school and worked on the classroom for a little bit then went outside ...

I'm just saying . . . red ribbon week is crazy!!! I am so glad that it is over and that there is only a few more short weeks until Thanksgiving. I am just saying - HOLIDAYS, HERE WE COME!!! Karl and I were so happy to be able to spend time with family yesterday. Out in Grape Creek there is a house that does a Pumpkin Patch that serves as a fundraiser for their church. We went out there with Nat, Mara & the kids (almost wrote girls, that is taking some getting used to) and Jim & Sharon. We had a lot of fun taking pictures, picking out pumpkins, and eating seafood (minus Karl and the kids) at Red Lobster. We were so glad to be able to spend time with family. I signed up for classes and figured out that I can graduate a semester earlier by taking two classes next Fall. I am sooooo excited!! And this way we should be able to receive some more grants. Save just a little bit of money - now doesn't that sound good? Not sure if I shared this on the blog or not, but two months a...

But of course we are watching GSN - I don't know why game shows are so interesting, but they just are. We always tend to watch this channel when we can't decide what to watch, especially when it comes down to HGTV and SPIKE. The hubby and I are about to head to see Sharon. Talk to ya later!

I totally need to make this more of a habit!!! Let's see if I can fill you in on all the details of our life since the end of August. Well, the last I wrote I had just started Grad classes and they have been pretty frustrating but not as time consuming as usual, even with taking two classes. The only problem I have been having is with a professor that I have never taken before who is just difficult, to say the least. Oh well, I only have 7 weeks left to go. :( Work wise, Karl started his new job on Sept 16 th and has been loving it. Since Sept. 1, I have been conferencing with parents and trying to get the beginning of the year conferences under way and done with. As of now we are already 9 weeks into the school year and I cannot believe that it has gone by so fast already. On the weekend of Sept. 11 we, Karl, Amanda, and I went up to Michigan for my dad's wedding to his girlfriend of many, many years. It was a really quick weekend but it was really great to see all our famil...

Yes, you read that correctly - it has been 2 months. I cannot believe that it has been long since I have blogged last. We have had so much going on that I guess we have not had time to write about it - ever have the same feeling? Well, let's see, where do we start. Our little nephew was born - Stetson. So adorable! We were able to go and see him and Nat & Mara the night of his birth and it was just so exciting! We were also able to move Amanda out of the house, although probably half of her stuff is still in our house. LOL . It was definitely interesting moving her in and not getting to stay - although I did get asked if I was moving in, too. That's right, I still look like a college student. Hmmm . . . not sure what to think about that. :) Right after moving Amanda out, I started in-service and I am on to my third week of school, already!! Crazy, right?? It has been a crazy beginning, which I am sure will happen each and every year. I am enjoying this year immensely more ...

I know . . . I need to get on here more. I really should be working on homework now . . . oh well! Let's see . . . what has happened since May 30th? Well, we left Texas on the 31st and headed up to my grandma's house in Cortland, OH. Can I just say that we had a blast but were so glad to come home. It took us quite a while to get through East Texas and into Louisiana. While in Louisiana we had a blowout and had to stop at Wal-Mart to get the tire replaced, actually we replaced 3 of the tires. Needless to say it took forever for them to change the tires and now I officially never want to go to Louisiana ever again! While in Mississippi we stopped at a petrified forest that wasn't as great as others I have seen but it was great for Karl who had never been to one before. In Alabama we stayed in Montgomery and drove by the governor's mansion, the white house of the confederacy, and went to a museum dedicated to Rosa Parks. It was amazing how much history is still in ...

Isn't it so true?? We received an update from a friend this past week who just had her third child and the title of her newsletter was "Who Has Time To Blog?". I felt like I knew where she was coming from, and I don't have 3 little ones to chase down and change their diapers. :) Well, Friday was my last day of my first year of teaching . . . can you believe it??? I am so thankful for all the things that I have learned from being with those kids. I have also learned from all the mistakes I made, as well. This next year will, hopefully, be much better. Just for an update, I am feeling much better but my jaw does still feel askew on the right side. For all those who are wondering, I fell down several cement stairs only to fall straight on my jaw at the base . . . a cement slab. :( More than anything - embarrassing!!! Plus, having to tell everyone what happened and having kids stare at me all the time was kinda frustrating. But, I'm sure in a few weeks I will be feeli...

Allergies . . . yeah I still got them . . . I don't know if I am ever going to get rid of them. I have been wearing glasses for the last month and fear putting in my contacts. June 30th can't come soon enough. Well, we've been busy/not busy since the last time I was able to get on here. Amanda came down on Saturday and is trying to find a job, so if anyone has any ideas please feel free to let us know. I have just been trying to survive/reminiscing on the year and how much my students have grown and learned. It is really amazing how much we cram into their little heads in just one school year. I will miss them but I will be glad to start the summer, too. I have a whole lot to do so I'm sure I won't have much down time but I am still looking forward to it, nonetheless. This is short and sweet for now. I hope to be able to get on again sometime soon. Adios!

I know I . . . don't!!!!!!! I should have purchased stock in allergy medicines!!! Friday we went on our grade level field trip to the local Art Museum and then to Kid's Kingdom. I had a really hard time with my allergies all day and my left eye swelled up so huge that it grossed my students out. Sorry kids! But it was actually a really neat field trip and I had a great time, besides the whole eye gunky junk. I took a whole bunch of pictures and we were able to look at the pictures on our classroom ELMO. The kids really liked it a lot and it was good to close out on the whole day. Only 4 more weeks to go!!!! :) Last night we got a call from Mara that she needed to take Nat to the ER so we were able to get to stay with the girls. That really doesn't sound right - I was not happy that Nat had to go to the ER but I was happy that I got the chance to stay with the girls. It was all good until Payton started crying. When I went and got her up she was actually really happy and did...

Howdy, howdy, howdy! I just can't believe it has been two weeks since I have been on here. Jeepers! Well, it has been a busy week to say the least. My car, which I'm not sure if I have even put it on here yet, is still out of commission but Karl is going to take it in to have a diagnosis, so we will see what happens with that. Pray for it to be easily fixable!!!! We have a back-up plan but I don't really want to fall back on that unless we absolutely have to. We are down to 7 weeks left of school, one more for this six weeks. So crazy, right? I, for one, cannot really believe that this school year is almost over. I'm just thinking that at this time last year I was finishing up my student teaching, getting ready for the wedding. Only 21 days until our one year anniversary! So exciting! We have really accomplished a lot this year and I am so thankful to be married to such an amazing man! He is soooooooo great! The parents have been down this weekend and we've had a lo...

Can you believe it? Only (yeah, only) 9 weeks until . . . SUMMER!!! And that means, hopeful, VACATION with my hubby. This year was the first year that I went absolutely nowhere on Spring Break. We're going to try to make sure to at least go to Abilene or something next Spring Break. Let me tell ya, a vacation has been a long time coming! I am so ready for it, for sure! Freedom! Freedom! Financial Freedom! Not there yet, but we have gotten much closer. We finally got in our refund check and were able to pay off some of our debt that we have had since we've been married. It feels so good to only have our loans left. And once those are gone, it will feel even better. Hopefully two years and we'll be done with all our debt and it will feel soooo nice! Then we'll just have the house . . . oh well. :) By then we'll prolly be starting to have kids or something so one minor debt won't hurt, right? :) Let's see, what else happened this weekend that is exciting? We ha...

That's right! It is finally here! I am so excited that it is here, I just want for it to go really well for Karl and some other friends I have taking the exam, as well. I will be sitting here in utter anguish until I hear from Karl. They should be back in about an hour or so for lunch and we'll go from there. Hopefully we will hear that the test went well and then he will be getting ready for the physical exam, which is at 1:30, I think. Well, to keep my mind off of the craziness that is our life (aka TEST!), we'll talk about my birthday!!! :) I had a GREAT birthday! :) For starters, I got to sleep in 'til 10, which was great. Karl came home for lunch at 11:30 and went back to class at 1. I started getting ready at 1:30, with Kiana who really didn't help much, I might add. When Sharon came to pick me up I was super stoked to go . . . ALICE AND WONDERLAND, here we come! We stopped by to get Mara and got to the Theater and into the movie right as it was starting . . ....

Tick, Tick Tickin' Away . . . DC Talk flashback, ah those are the greatest. No really, I can't believe that I haven't blogged in this long, it's like 2 weeks or something! Man, what has been going on? Well this week is my Spring Break, so I have just been sitting around the house, doing dishes, cleaning, working on homework, you know all that fun stuff. Karl has Jail school all this week and next week, as well. Today he got pepper sprayed so he was able to come home early. :) But his poor face looks like a 400 lb man beat him up. :) But we are still going to try and go out to eat tonight for my birthday sometime tonight, given that I finish my homework. :) Other than school and Karl working, nothing much has been going on. Amanda came over last week for her Spring Break and we were able to go shopping and hang out together, so that was really fun. We went out to Mertzon on Thursday and hung out with the parents and Brother- & Sister-in-law and their little ones. Oh ...

Yeah, yeah, I'm watching Charlotte's Web, be jealous. :) We finished reading the book a couple weeks ago at school and the kids were able to watch the movie, for the most part, yesterday during our half day of school. Of course, I didn't get to really enjoy it so I am doing that now. :) It sure has been a long time since I have been on here. I'm trying to figure out what has happened since then. I have a horrible memory . . . :/. I guess I can start with today. :) This morning I picked up Karl from work and we came home to get ready to help the Hill's move their things from their old apartment to their new one. It is so exciting to move! I know can you believe I'm saying that. I like to help others move. :) Hopefully this summer we will have all of our things unpacked and ready to go so that our house is done, or at least all unpacked. :) On Tuesday school was canceled due to the snow, which no I didn't get to go out and play in, I was so stinking tired that...

Really lazy . . . just watching the Olympics and working on future plans on the laptop. I ordered Domino's Pizza online and it was here, literally, in 23 minutes after ordering. It was so crazy! And definitely soooo good! Well . . . I can't say that it was totally lazy. I had just finished grading some work and finished my homework for the day when I started to just chill, watching the Olympics. Then . . . I saw a gray flash come from the entry way and ran under the couch. My first thought RAT but then . . . KACEY! Yes, it was Kacey! So, I immediately grabbed Kiana by her chest and woke Karl up and said, "Kacey is out!" After about 20 minutes, Karl was able to catch him and put him back in the cage. Kacey's cage had been left open when he was fed last and we don't know what he got out . . . the last time we fed him was last night. :( I just went to turn on the water for Karl's shower and found Kacey's poop all in the bathtub (one of his favorite spots)...

Yeah, if you haven't guessed I'm not totally feeling 100%. Earlier this week I felt what seemed to be the beginning of Kidney Stones and now at the end of the week I feel like I have a head cold. Who knows? I just know I'm drinking lots of water and taking meds routinely. At least there is no school on Monday. Olympics! How much fun are they? I know I love watching them, even if I have no idea what is going on . . . CURLING? :P I can't wait until figure skating starts!!! I absolutely love it! My sister is up there working with a group that is spreading the WORD while up there. I'm sure she is having a blast. I know that it would be a great experience, no matter what. Well, Grad School has started again and I just finished my third assignment and have two more due by Monday. The one is almost done and the other one . . . not so much. :) Yesterday we had our Valentine's Party at school and we had a lot of fun. It was really fun watching the kids stuff their baggie...

Do you think if I asked my boss if I could get a raise for every paper that I graded it would work? :) I can dream, right? Well, let's see, life has been in a word, crazy. We lost PawPaw this week and spent a lot of time with family this week and were able to spend a great evening with Phyllis, which we both greatly enjoyed. We had a Super Bowl themed luncheon yesterday at work so that was definitely really good and very filling. :) This morning I got up and Karl and I took a big load of things to Goodwill so now we have a whole lot more room in our storage building. Maybe we can get that second room cleaned after all. :) Once Amanda is back in school during the Fall we will have a whole lot more room since her stuff will be in her apartment. But for now, we will just store her things, I guess. :) Let's see . . . tomorrow we will hopefully start taking down the horse fence so I am excited about that . . . if only HPU would send me my W-2!!! :) Oh well, I guess I just need to s...

That's right, spell it! F-U-R-N-I-T-U-R-E!!! We are super excited to finally have REAL furniture in our house. Now I still haven't gotten Karl to do any remodeling yet, :), but atleast we were able to get the furniture. Here is a before shot: And here are some after shots: Boom Baby! I'm afraid to even sit in them. :) Not really. Kiana still doesn't know what to do about them. :) Well, need to get ready so I can go to bed and be ready for school!!! :)

Karl and Nat are on their way back to our house with . . . OUR FURNITURE!!! Pics to come. :) We are so excited!

You heard it . . . Kiana lost her first tooth. I totally freaked out! Yesterday she was chewing on her bone and there was some blood on it but it didn't really phase us. Then today I hear her chewing on something really hard that kept hitting the floor so I went over there and there it was, her first lost tooth! So crazy to me! She is growing up so much, in more ways than one. I tried picking her up Thursday morning and I could barely get her off the ground. She is getting HUGE!!! :) Let me tell you, this week has been such a long week! It seemed like it just trudged on and would never end but here is the weekend so it did finally ended. :) I really enjoyed that 3-day weekend but it really messed up my week. So, we didn't get our furniture yet, so we are hoping that this Friday will be the day. :) Sorry, nothing else really exciting to report. Hopefully soon we will be able to boast about our AMAZING fence and furniture. :) But, until then . . . see ya!

Doesn't is just seem like that? I cannot believe that this week is already over. It is sooo crazy to me. I was hoping that this semester would go by pretty fast but this is just silly. :) Let's see, what happened this week? Hmmm . . . wow, I cannot even think. :( We went over to Blake & Apolynne's and ate some dumplings and played tons of games. It was sooooo much fun. We always have so much fun when we hang out with them. Wednesday night we went to our second Lve & Respect meeting and we really enjoyed it. Other than that we have just been chilling. I haven't really felt that well all week so I am ok with that. :) I haven't been sick or anything just didn't feel like myself. Taxes, taxes, taxes . . . woohoo!!! I wish that we could get our W-2s and all that business like right now but I guess we will just have to wait. We have some things plugged in but got lots more to go. I know . . . taxes??? How amazing is that? Not much I'm afraid but there real...

Yes, it is so true . . . we bought new furniture today! We are so excited! A couple months ago we went into Furniture Row, just after buying our house, and found a furniture set that we liked and went to finance it but were . . . duh duh duh . . . TURNED DOWN! Oh yeah, talk about embarrassing. SO we just saw it as God telling us that we need to wait which I am glad we did. Lately we have been having people over at our house and it's been a real pain just having our little bitty couch. I love that couch but it just isn't working for us. Just on a whim I went onto Furniture Row's site and saw a different couch set that I thought would work well for our house so we decided to go and look and just buy the two couches. We got there and looked at the set I found online that looked great on the site but after looking at it in real life we didn't really like it. It has loose pillows for the backing that you can move around and such and we didn't like that at all! We walked ...

We have accomplished a major feet (sp?) today . . . Kiana had her first play date! I felt bad for Nat & Mara as Maggie & Kiana ran through the home but I know that Kiana really had a great time. I really wish that I had a camera. Next time they get to hang out I will surely bring it. :) At first Kiana wanted nothing to do with Maggie. Maggie would go to say hey, or whatever dogs do, and Kiana would just ignore her and walk away. Mitzi wanted nothing to do with either of the dogs and I definitely don't blame her. Once Kiana got over her scared bit her and Maggie went to town, running thoughout the house, biting each other, pouncing on each other . . . it was very hilarious to watch. I cannot wait to get our fence in the backyard so Maggie can come over and they can just run and run and run!!! :) Other than that we didn't really do anything else today. We went grocery shopping and really had a good time doing that. Sure we could have gotten a lot more done but I'm gla...

Can you believe that I am blogging twice in one day??? Me neither! :) Today has been real great. I was able to sleep in . . . again . . . and was able to chill with my sister, run some errands, made pizzas and cookies and have done other things around the house. It's been a good day. :) Have you ever just sat and watched tv all day?? I usually don't do that but I have really had my share this week. I have been watching HFTV al ittle too much and have been looking at real estate and jobs everywhere (don't worry we are not moving or anything any time soon, not until after we get atleast one kid popped out and believe me that is not for a long time, too) and I really want to buy a house in Alaska!!! I have been looking around Seward and Anchorage, for both jobs and houses, and have been getting really excited. I know, I know, I get to excited sometimes but I love to dream. :) Well, Karl and I are both not really going strong with the whole losing weight thing but I have been w...

Yeah, I'm not sure how I'm going to get out of that habit. Oh, well. Well, here it is, our first blog of 2010. Woohoo! :) Life has been good. Tonight we went over to the McCarthy's and had a super great time eating spaghetti, watching Push, and playing Rummy. I just love spending time with them and just laughing and laughing with friends. I did not like how Karl had to leave to go to work :( but I can live with it. Atleast Amanda was able to spend time with us and is staying up with me. :) I have really enjoyed the school break and am not so excited about having to go back on Monday but what can you do? We both have been truly blessed this year, more than we can say: Karl's graduation in Dec 08, being able to spend time with my dad in Michigan for Spring Break, student teaching, Karl's first real job outside of college, getting our first place at Lakeshore, GETTING MARRIED!!!!, having an adventure in Alaska, gaining another neice, both of us getting hired (Tom Gree...