You faithful readers, may already know of most of the happenings of my year, but just in case you missed something, here is our Christmas letter for your reading pleasure.....
Rejoice Friends and Family!
It’s that time of the year again – time to reflect on all the blessings we have received this past year and celebrate our greatest blessing, Christ Jesus our Lord!
This year has certainly been an eventful one for us. Last Christmas we did a “tour-o-Missouri” and were able to visit most of Nick’s side of the family. We stopped in Higginsville, Tipton, Kansas City, and, of course, Springfield.
Nick continues to stay busy at St. Paul, and with various youth activities. For the second year in a row, he had the opportunity to co-chair the Florida/Georgia District Middle School Gathering. He had a great time spending one weekend with over 800 participants! He also spent many hours preparing for the National LCMS Youth Gathering that took place in Orlando, FL in July. Candace, two additional adults, and 22 high-school students had a great time during the five day event.
Candace is still enjoying her financial analyst position with Marriott and is looking forward to finishing her MBA at the University of South Florida in Tampa this coming summer. After many years of crocheting, she took on a new challenge and learned to knit this summer. She spends any free time she can manage to find between work, school, housework, and helping out with the youth, honing her new skills. Candace continues to enjoy cooking and trying out new recipes on Nick.
We were fortunate enough to do some traveling this year. In May, we took a trip to Texas to visit Candace’s family and attend the wedding of Kim Pfluger (now Miller), a life-long friend. Also in May, we traveled to Missouri for a long weekend to help Nick’s parents move into their new home. It is beautiful, and we look forward to many happy memories that will be made there.
June brought us to Indiana for Candace’s family reunion to celebrate her grandparents’ 70 years of marriage. In August, we were fortunate enough to be able to travel to Illinois to attend a friend’s wedding, as well as visit with a lot of our college friends we don’t get to see very often. As you can expect, we had a great time.
Remodeling phase 2 took place at the end of August. We removed (in both bathrooms) our old cabinets, countertops, and faucets and replaced them with new ones, including a medicine cabinet/mirror/light fixture. It was hard work, but it looks great! Nick is by no means a handy-man, but is slowly picking up on things (except for the plumbing…..Nick tried to put on a new valve which did not work and sent water spraying from the wall into the bathroom!)
The fall saw some difficult times as we had to say good bye (for a little while) to Candace’s grandpa Harold. It was a beautiful service and celebration of the 90 years of earthly life Christ blessed him with.
Thanksgiving was again spent with our good friends Dave and Sonya Timmerman who now live in Coco Beach. We are excited they are so close now!
In early December, we celebrated our 5th anniversary (a little bit early) by going to Discovery Cove in Orlando to swim with the dolphins! We also got to pet a two toed sloth, a small anteater, and stingray, as well as feed many different kinds of birds. It was an amazing experience, one that we won’t soon forget.
This Christmas will be spent in Texas with Candace’s family, and in January, we will travel to Missouri to have a “late” Christmas with Nick’s family and celebrate Murray’s (Nick’s brother) 21st birthday. We are eagerly awaiting the vacation, relaxation, and the time together with the ones we love.
As we look back over the past year we give thanks to the One who gives us all that we need and even more, and we look forward to the promise He has given to all of us – fulfilled in His birth, death, and resurrection. May your family also find peace and joy in this assurance.
Blessings this season and throughout 2008! ~Nicklaus and Candace Moss
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
Thursday, November 29, 2007
Like being a kid again....
That's pretty much what our Thanksgiving can be summed up as. For 3 whole days I had no responsibilities, no cares in the world, got to do what I wanted to, and so forth and so on. The boys pretty much sat on their arses the entire time playing Command and Conquer on their computers they figured out how to sync together. What nerds, and what boys!!! Normally this would have bothered me to no end, but with cable and Dave and Sonya's big screen, I was perfectly content to watch food network and TLC's What Not to Wear, and paid no mind to the boys and their game. Also, one afternoon, Sonya and I ventured out to do a little bit of shopping. It was mostly window, but it was successful in that my single purchase of the day took care of my sister. Not only was I excited to find exactly what I was looking for ON SALE, but now I have one of my toughest people off my list. Her, my dad, and Nick have got to be the hardest people to shop for, but it all the more exciting when you find something you know they will like (hopefully).
Keeping true to our tradition, we ventured out one evening and took pictures that will go out in our annual Christmas letter. Both Dave and Nick love photography, so we get "free" pictures at studio quality! Thanks boys!! Here are a couple "contenders" we are trying to choose between. Which one do you like?
#1
#2
#3
Just for fun, here is a cute pic of Dave and Sonya - the best hosts ever!!
We also had fun cooking lots of awesome food. The pumpkin pie bars were alright, but the Oreo truffles were amazing!! (Yes, Jo, those are the ones.)I will definitely make those again even though they were a bit time consuming. Late at night we amused ourselves with poker, trivial pursuit 90's, hearts, and phase 10. Good times, good times. True friends are one of God's greatest gifts. People who you can be yourself around and don't run screaming in the other direction. :)
Here's hoping you had a wonderful Thanksgiving and are blessed with an even better Advent and Christmas season!
Keeping true to our tradition, we ventured out one evening and took pictures that will go out in our annual Christmas letter. Both Dave and Nick love photography, so we get "free" pictures at studio quality! Thanks boys!! Here are a couple "contenders" we are trying to choose between. Which one do you like?
#1
#2
#3
Just for fun, here is a cute pic of Dave and Sonya - the best hosts ever!!
We also had fun cooking lots of awesome food. The pumpkin pie bars were alright, but the Oreo truffles were amazing!! (Yes, Jo, those are the ones.)I will definitely make those again even though they were a bit time consuming. Late at night we amused ourselves with poker, trivial pursuit 90's, hearts, and phase 10. Good times, good times. True friends are one of God's greatest gifts. People who you can be yourself around and don't run screaming in the other direction. :)
Here's hoping you had a wonderful Thanksgiving and are blessed with an even better Advent and Christmas season!
Monday, November 26, 2007
Prayer Request
Unfortunately, this blog entry comes with sad news. Over the Thanksgiving holiday a close church friend's husband was in a terrible accident where 60% of his body was severely burned - 25% of his body is 3rd degree burns. He is at supposedly the best burn unit in the southeast in Augusta, GA undergoing treatment. He was supposed to have his 3rd surgery today on his L arm and R leg. He has already had his R arm, L leg, stomach, and back worked on (scraped and cleaned out). Multiple surgeries are certain to follow. They have sent off a removed portion of his unburned skin to Boston so that they can "grow" new skin for him - this will take at least 21 days to harvest. Amazing, isn't it?
The recovery process is going to take months and will be a long road for both Jen and JD. Please keep them in your prayers as they go through this difficult time that is very touch and go right now. Physical healing and spiritual prayers are both needed.
P.S. We are also trying to think of things we can do for them, so any ideas are welcome! Our high school youth group (Jennifer is an AWESOME volunteer) is going to send a care package, but I'd love to hear other suggestions.
The recovery process is going to take months and will be a long road for both Jen and JD. Please keep them in your prayers as they go through this difficult time that is very touch and go right now. Physical healing and spiritual prayers are both needed.
P.S. We are also trying to think of things we can do for them, so any ideas are welcome! Our high school youth group (Jennifer is an AWESOME volunteer) is going to send a care package, but I'd love to hear other suggestions.
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
Thankful
Sometimes life just makes it plain hard to be thankful. After the past couple of weeks I have had, I'm searching for the silver lining. So, this great month starting off with my mom calling me on the 6th to let me know that Papa is now up in heaven playing scrabble with Chandler (my younger brother who passed away in 2001). My Papa was 90 years old, had 9 children (all still living), and just celebrated his 70th wedding anniversary with my Grammie this past June. He lived a long full Christian life, and I am happy that he is now home with our Savior and isn't suffering any longer. So, as far a funerals go, it wasn't bad. I ended up playing Lift High the Cross for the final song at the service (trumpet). It was hard, but it meant a lot to my Grammie, and God gave me just enough grace to get through it.
The nice thing was that I got to spend some time with my family. They are completely exhausting sometimes, but I love them all. It was wonderful to see my beautiful sister doing so much better. Even though she may not be able to see a difference, I certainly can! I just want her to be happy and enjoy the life God has blessed her with - she's always in my prayers, that's for sure.
Then, two days after I got back from the funeral ordeal, I had all of my wisdom teeth (3) pulled. Great fun that was. I am still in a mild amount of pain and still a little dizzy at times (that crazy pain medication really messed me up, but on the plus side, I felt no pain for 3 days), but I think I'm on the downhill slope at this point.
So on with the silver lining already. Yes. While in Indiana at the funeral, I knitted my sister a hat which for some reason she really seems to like. I was loving it until the decreases, but it just doesn't look right. I also knitted the falling leaf hat in knitty's fall patterns (version 2). Turned out a little big, but otherwise lovely. Darn if it's always got to be something! If I make it again, I will definitely go down from #7's to #5's dpns. It may be fine for someone. I will admit that I have an abnormally small head. It's true. I'm not lying. Anywho, I need to go yarn shopping again. I have completely depleted my yarn worth knitting supply. I'm starting to understand the concept of a "stash". Although, I am pretty particular and first like to start with a pattern and go from there. I digress.....
Thanksgiving is a mere two days away! And its all the more appealing since I have been on a liquid/soft food only diet for the past week. FOOOOOD!!!! MMMMMMMMMMM.....Nick and I are traveling over to spend the grand holiday with our wonderful friends Dave and Sonya again. We are so blessed to have such great friends. I'm about ready to head out to the grocery store to shop for the goods, and then I'm heading home to make these (pumpkin pie bars):
as well as some little delights I like to call Oreo Truffles!!! Be very very jealous. I will try to take some pics to share with you all when I get back!
Have a happy turkey day. :)
The nice thing was that I got to spend some time with my family. They are completely exhausting sometimes, but I love them all. It was wonderful to see my beautiful sister doing so much better. Even though she may not be able to see a difference, I certainly can! I just want her to be happy and enjoy the life God has blessed her with - she's always in my prayers, that's for sure.
Then, two days after I got back from the funeral ordeal, I had all of my wisdom teeth (3) pulled. Great fun that was. I am still in a mild amount of pain and still a little dizzy at times (that crazy pain medication really messed me up, but on the plus side, I felt no pain for 3 days), but I think I'm on the downhill slope at this point.
So on with the silver lining already. Yes. While in Indiana at the funeral, I knitted my sister a hat which for some reason she really seems to like. I was loving it until the decreases, but it just doesn't look right. I also knitted the falling leaf hat in knitty's fall patterns (version 2). Turned out a little big, but otherwise lovely. Darn if it's always got to be something! If I make it again, I will definitely go down from #7's to #5's dpns. It may be fine for someone. I will admit that I have an abnormally small head. It's true. I'm not lying. Anywho, I need to go yarn shopping again. I have completely depleted my yarn worth knitting supply. I'm starting to understand the concept of a "stash". Although, I am pretty particular and first like to start with a pattern and go from there. I digress.....
Thanksgiving is a mere two days away! And its all the more appealing since I have been on a liquid/soft food only diet for the past week. FOOOOOD!!!! MMMMMMMMMMM.....Nick and I are traveling over to spend the grand holiday with our wonderful friends Dave and Sonya again. We are so blessed to have such great friends. I'm about ready to head out to the grocery store to shop for the goods, and then I'm heading home to make these (pumpkin pie bars):
as well as some little delights I like to call Oreo Truffles!!! Be very very jealous. I will try to take some pics to share with you all when I get back!
Have a happy turkey day. :)
Thursday, November 01, 2007
Halloween Fun at Work
So let me just tell you how BIG of a deal Halloween is in my office. People plan for weeks(months even)in advance in attempt to claim the coveted title of best team, individual, scariest, etc. It's sheer madness. I participated, but since I'm not all that "into" Halloween, I have no chance of winning anything, but that's fine with me. It becomes even harder for me to really get into it since I am not a part of a team, but rather and "individual contributor". However, I joined forces with another independent, and we were the Next Iron Chefs. It was great. I wore regular clothes, threw on my apron, and Ilia (my partner in crime) made us these rockin' hats. I must say that we looked pretty stinkin' awesome. Behold:
Is that not a great picture? Now, I must tell you how the whole thing works. It's not enough that you dress up, but you also must decorate your cube/ area to reflect your costume and theme. So, my desk became kitchen stadium:
Check out my fantastic Kenmore flat-top stove. I hand crafted it myself. :)
Among the craziness were teams that did: Candy Land, The Adams Family, Star Trek, Wild Hogs, Disney's Magic Kingdom (an entire department combined forces for this one with one team doing Monster's Inc., one toy story, one the Haunted Mansion, and one various Disney characters like Mulan, Fairy God-mothers, Cinderella, The Little Mermaid, etc.), and my favorite, the IT help desk did the "Beyond Help" Desk Mental Hospital. Then in the afternoon, all the kids (employees kids, grand kids, nieces, nephews, etc.) come and trick or treat in all of our areas. It's so fun to see all of the kiddos in their costumes. It provides a safe environment for the kids, and is nice since this is the only trick-or-treating that some get to do since their parents don't feel comfortable taking them out at night.
So there you have it.... a snippet of the crazy place I work.
Is that not a great picture? Now, I must tell you how the whole thing works. It's not enough that you dress up, but you also must decorate your cube/ area to reflect your costume and theme. So, my desk became kitchen stadium:
Check out my fantastic Kenmore flat-top stove. I hand crafted it myself. :)
Among the craziness were teams that did: Candy Land, The Adams Family, Star Trek, Wild Hogs, Disney's Magic Kingdom (an entire department combined forces for this one with one team doing Monster's Inc., one toy story, one the Haunted Mansion, and one various Disney characters like Mulan, Fairy God-mothers, Cinderella, The Little Mermaid, etc.), and my favorite, the IT help desk did the "Beyond Help" Desk Mental Hospital. Then in the afternoon, all the kids (employees kids, grand kids, nieces, nephews, etc.) come and trick or treat in all of our areas. It's so fun to see all of the kiddos in their costumes. It provides a safe environment for the kids, and is nice since this is the only trick-or-treating that some get to do since their parents don't feel comfortable taking them out at night.
So there you have it.... a snippet of the crazy place I work.
Friday, October 26, 2007
Something worthy...
So, I found something that may be worthy of the beautiful purple merino I recently bought. What do you think? I love it, but am having difficulty with the pattern. I don't know if it's the pattern or the reader (I know that it's partly the pattern because I did find an error I could prove was wrong, so I feel slightly vindicated). I guess we shall see how it goes this weekend. Wish me luck!
Monday, October 22, 2007
My first time....at the Yarn Store
So I finally got to experience all that is a real yarn store this Saturday. It was quite exciting and beautiful. I went with the fabulous Julianna, Christy, and Christy's adorable daughter, Emma. That kid is too much fun. We had a great time. I did learn some things on our outing:
1)I want lots and lots of things that I can't have.
2)I'm super cheap and I believe this makes me the opposite of a yarn snob. I was amazed at how expensive a small bit of yarn cost. $17 for a ball of yarn! I hardly pay that much for an article of clothing. Although, I did not leave empty handed (thanks Julianna for prodding me along!). I got 4 sets of dpns in various sizes I need for projects I want to start, one ball of something beautiful called Rose Garden (It's oh so girly), and finally 3 balls of Merino in a royal purple - it's gorgeous!
3)If I had all the money in the world, I would build a house that had a room filled with yarn that I could look at, knit/crochet with, touch, etc. anytime I wanted. Knit and Knibble had a beautiful wooden table that I wanted to just plop myself down at and knit for hours. Unfortunately, we were on a schedule and that just wasn't possible.
4)I may be (apparently) the only person in the world that prefers to knit on metal needles. The girl at the yarn store said she didn't think they had any when I asked her for them. After a few minutes she did find them and said, "Oh, we do have them. I just didn't think we did since no one ever uses them." Gee thanks... I think the preference of metal comes from my years of crochet. Metal feels "right" and I like the ease of "slippage" they provide.
All in all it was great trip. After the yarn store, we went to hoyti toyti Hyde Park in Tampa. I was introduced to Anthropology where I beheld more pretties that I could not have. It was a really cool store, though. Then we went next door where I had a pumpkin truffle at Godiva - yummy!
But alas, I have the big dilemma of finding something worthy of knitting my 276 yds of purple Merino. Any ideas?
1)I want lots and lots of things that I can't have.
2)I'm super cheap and I believe this makes me the opposite of a yarn snob. I was amazed at how expensive a small bit of yarn cost. $17 for a ball of yarn! I hardly pay that much for an article of clothing. Although, I did not leave empty handed (thanks Julianna for prodding me along!). I got 4 sets of dpns in various sizes I need for projects I want to start, one ball of something beautiful called Rose Garden (It's oh so girly), and finally 3 balls of Merino in a royal purple - it's gorgeous!
3)If I had all the money in the world, I would build a house that had a room filled with yarn that I could look at, knit/crochet with, touch, etc. anytime I wanted. Knit and Knibble had a beautiful wooden table that I wanted to just plop myself down at and knit for hours. Unfortunately, we were on a schedule and that just wasn't possible.
4)I may be (apparently) the only person in the world that prefers to knit on metal needles. The girl at the yarn store said she didn't think they had any when I asked her for them. After a few minutes she did find them and said, "Oh, we do have them. I just didn't think we did since no one ever uses them." Gee thanks... I think the preference of metal comes from my years of crochet. Metal feels "right" and I like the ease of "slippage" they provide.
All in all it was great trip. After the yarn store, we went to hoyti toyti Hyde Park in Tampa. I was introduced to Anthropology where I beheld more pretties that I could not have. It was a really cool store, though. Then we went next door where I had a pumpkin truffle at Godiva - yummy!
But alas, I have the big dilemma of finding something worthy of knitting my 276 yds of purple Merino. Any ideas?
Friday, September 21, 2007
Excitement is a new Apron
Don't you just love surprises? In my family we have always had the tradition of giving "happy presants" on occation. A happy presant is a gift for no reason just to make someone you love happy. Nick won MAJOR brownie points yesterday. I came home, got the mail, and lo and behold, there was a package containing this:
How cute is that? I was just saying casually in conversation last week that I needed an apron (since I love the kitchen, but I'm a messy cook), but that it was hard because I didn't want a grandma flowerdy one. I wanted a young, sexy, house-wife one. I have to say that not only am I impressed he picked this out of an everyday conversation we had, or that he spent several days trying to find the "perfect" one, but that he hit the nail on the head so accurately. If I had to pick an apron out, I would have picked one just like this. Amazing! Maybe we don't give guys the credit they deserve. Just look what this one is capable of! :)
In other news, I have over 200 pages of reading to do this weekend!!! :P And I desperately need to buy yarn and dpns to make this:
Julianna, we need to make a date to go to the yarn store. When are you available? :)
How cute is that? I was just saying casually in conversation last week that I needed an apron (since I love the kitchen, but I'm a messy cook), but that it was hard because I didn't want a grandma flowerdy one. I wanted a young, sexy, house-wife one. I have to say that not only am I impressed he picked this out of an everyday conversation we had, or that he spent several days trying to find the "perfect" one, but that he hit the nail on the head so accurately. If I had to pick an apron out, I would have picked one just like this. Amazing! Maybe we don't give guys the credit they deserve. Just look what this one is capable of! :)
In other news, I have over 200 pages of reading to do this weekend!!! :P And I desperately need to buy yarn and dpns to make this:
Julianna, we need to make a date to go to the yarn store. When are you available? :)
Tuesday, September 11, 2007
The Wait is Over!
That's right. I've finally got some pictures of the bathroom rennovation process. It was quiet exciting, a definite learning experience, and only included one major catastrophie - which is not bad considering all the stuff we did.
So here is the process in pictures.
Our Bathroom right before Demo
Nick removing the old plumbing in our bathroom
Yea! The nasty sink in out! At long last!
Out with the old......
In with the new!
O.K. let me just tell you how much Charles did NOT like all of this mess and noise. However, as soon as we got the new one in, he had to come inspect it fully, and make sure that he claimed it as his own - just like the rest of the house. He cracks us up! :)
O.K. Charles we know the sink is yours......
Now for the before and afters for our bathroom:
Before (obviously)
After.....
and After
Next up was the guest bathroom. I must say that I got way better before and after photos of this one.
Right after demo
Good bye to nasty sink #2
This is a way before picture - before we got our new tile and toilets last year. Check out that rad pink tile and the designer toilet seat! And, WHO puts light blue and red together? That is NOT ok.
After!
Before angle two
After angle two
And finally....Before
After!
So there it is....we still have a bit of finishing touches to do. The tile guys have to come back and redo 1 tile in each bathrooms since the new cabinets are slightly smaller than the old ones. After that is finished we have to instal the baseboards. Currently, we are changing out all the light switches and outlets in our house since the current ones are almost 30 years old, broken, and/or nasty. Nick is doing them little by little after work each night. It's amazing how even the smallest things can make such a difference. The best part about this, besides growing in our marriage and the satisfaction that we did it ourselves, was that we saved a boat load of money on installation! Yippie! Happy rennovations to all.
So here is the process in pictures.
Our Bathroom right before Demo
Nick removing the old plumbing in our bathroom
Yea! The nasty sink in out! At long last!
Out with the old......
In with the new!
O.K. let me just tell you how much Charles did NOT like all of this mess and noise. However, as soon as we got the new one in, he had to come inspect it fully, and make sure that he claimed it as his own - just like the rest of the house. He cracks us up! :)
O.K. Charles we know the sink is yours......
Now for the before and afters for our bathroom:
Before (obviously)
After.....
and After
Next up was the guest bathroom. I must say that I got way better before and after photos of this one.
Right after demo
Good bye to nasty sink #2
This is a way before picture - before we got our new tile and toilets last year. Check out that rad pink tile and the designer toilet seat! And, WHO puts light blue and red together? That is NOT ok.
After!
Before angle two
After angle two
And finally....Before
After!
So there it is....we still have a bit of finishing touches to do. The tile guys have to come back and redo 1 tile in each bathrooms since the new cabinets are slightly smaller than the old ones. After that is finished we have to instal the baseboards. Currently, we are changing out all the light switches and outlets in our house since the current ones are almost 30 years old, broken, and/or nasty. Nick is doing them little by little after work each night. It's amazing how even the smallest things can make such a difference. The best part about this, besides growing in our marriage and the satisfaction that we did it ourselves, was that we saved a boat load of money on installation! Yippie! Happy rennovations to all.
Friday, August 31, 2007
Alas!
Alas, school is back in full swing, and at least one of my professors is on crack - I'm quite sure. No really. What other reasonable explanation is there for someone who has 5 text books + additional articles as assigned reading for the semester? Honestly. By the next class, I have to have finished reading a 191 riveting page turner on "The Evolution of Cooperation". NON-STOP fun I tell you.In his defense, he is not the only one on crack. Apparently I am, too. I have (like a loon) signed up to take 3 classes this semester. Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday from 6-9:40PM. The good thing is I will be totally finished the week before Thanksgiving. Then it will be all downhill from there.
School has plighted my knitting activities, though. :( Sadly, I am going to have to face the reality that I will have to put it on hold for the next 12 wks. "sigh" I was able to get a couple projects under my belt this summer, though. I made a baby sweater, a hat (it's really not worth wearing, but it was great practice honing my dpn skills - that's double pointed needles for all you non-knitters., and a really cleaver headband/hat thing. I will have to make another one of these. You know how winter hats always give you fits if you wear your hair up? Well, this little ditty lets you have the best of both worlds. It's a fairly simple pattern if you focus on your counting. It's a simple K2 P2 pattern worked on straight needles, but I think I'm going to modify it a little bit on my next one to make cable stitches on the center stripes. I have taken pictures of my pieces, and eventually (I promise) I will get some of them posted.
In other fascinating news, Nick and I are continuing to work on our bathrooms. We- well Nick really - tore out the cabinets, counter top, and sink in one of the bathrooms last night. I am very impressed! Nick, the man who, when I married him could hardly hammer a nail in the wall has been just amazing with this bathroom project. Now, you may be thinking, demo - that's easy. You're just tearing apart something. You are partially true, but he also had to unhook (and not destroy) the plumbing fixtures. Plus, he - all by himself - repaired a hole in the drywall. AND, now that it's painted and textured (also done by wonder husband) you can't even tell where the hole was! Let me tell you! I AM AMAZED!! Today we are going to Lowes to buy all the new stuff. We went a few weeks ago priced and picked out all the things we wanted. Today is ZERO% financing for 12 months on our CC (nothing like getting to hold on to your money for another year!), so today we will be going to purchase all the goods. I am SO EXCITED!! I have been waiting oh so patiently for this day to come. :)
Other than that, it's been same old, same old around this joint. We won't be doing anything too exciting this weekend. Staying around the house working on the bathrooms. So, if that sounds like your cup of tea, you are welcome to come over.
School has plighted my knitting activities, though. :( Sadly, I am going to have to face the reality that I will have to put it on hold for the next 12 wks. "sigh" I was able to get a couple projects under my belt this summer, though. I made a baby sweater, a hat (it's really not worth wearing, but it was great practice honing my dpn skills - that's double pointed needles for all you non-knitters., and a really cleaver headband/hat thing. I will have to make another one of these. You know how winter hats always give you fits if you wear your hair up? Well, this little ditty lets you have the best of both worlds. It's a fairly simple pattern if you focus on your counting. It's a simple K2 P2 pattern worked on straight needles, but I think I'm going to modify it a little bit on my next one to make cable stitches on the center stripes. I have taken pictures of my pieces, and eventually (I promise) I will get some of them posted.
In other fascinating news, Nick and I are continuing to work on our bathrooms. We- well Nick really - tore out the cabinets, counter top, and sink in one of the bathrooms last night. I am very impressed! Nick, the man who, when I married him could hardly hammer a nail in the wall has been just amazing with this bathroom project. Now, you may be thinking, demo - that's easy. You're just tearing apart something. You are partially true, but he also had to unhook (and not destroy) the plumbing fixtures. Plus, he - all by himself - repaired a hole in the drywall. AND, now that it's painted and textured (also done by wonder husband) you can't even tell where the hole was! Let me tell you! I AM AMAZED!! Today we are going to Lowes to buy all the new stuff. We went a few weeks ago priced and picked out all the things we wanted. Today is ZERO% financing for 12 months on our CC (nothing like getting to hold on to your money for another year!), so today we will be going to purchase all the goods. I am SO EXCITED!! I have been waiting oh so patiently for this day to come. :)
Other than that, it's been same old, same old around this joint. We won't be doing anything too exciting this weekend. Staying around the house working on the bathrooms. So, if that sounds like your cup of tea, you are welcome to come over.
Wednesday, August 15, 2007
NYG Baby!
Sorry for the delay - after a long but inspiring week at the 2007 LCMS National Youth Gathering, I came back to work for a few days and then we were off to the Midwest to visit our friends from college. I think this is the first time I've been able to catch my breath!
The few days with our friends can be summed up in a few phrases - foam 'n fellowship, lots of girl talk (did I get an education!), non-stop Mario-carts, 3am nights, a very pregnant friend waiting for the big day, reconnecting. It is truly a sign of a wonderful life long friendship when you can go without seeing each other for over a year and pick up like it's only been a week. I love you guys!!
So back to the NYG...it was in a word - AMAZING! As usual, it delivers, praising Christ the King and touching the hearts and minds of so many youth (and adults, too). The theme was CHOSEN scripturally based on 1Peter 2. We are all chosen in Christ, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God! - what a wonderful thing to know! The kids we took (22 in all) were absolutely fantastic, and they appeared to have had a great time. I sure hope so. So here are a couple of pics from the gathering:
The Backpacks - fun and really easy to decorate this year, but since they weren't colored, it didn't have the same effect when you were walking down the street.
Nick serves communion during the worship service on Tuesday night. This was a big highlight for him!
Tommy and Dave being silly. I love you guys!
I can't belive it's been six years since I met you. I can't imagine my life without you! I love you!!
The few days with our friends can be summed up in a few phrases - foam 'n fellowship, lots of girl talk (did I get an education!), non-stop Mario-carts, 3am nights, a very pregnant friend waiting for the big day, reconnecting. It is truly a sign of a wonderful life long friendship when you can go without seeing each other for over a year and pick up like it's only been a week. I love you guys!!
So back to the NYG...it was in a word - AMAZING! As usual, it delivers, praising Christ the King and touching the hearts and minds of so many youth (and adults, too). The theme was CHOSEN scripturally based on 1Peter 2. We are all chosen in Christ, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God! - what a wonderful thing to know! The kids we took (22 in all) were absolutely fantastic, and they appeared to have had a great time. I sure hope so. So here are a couple of pics from the gathering:
The Backpacks - fun and really easy to decorate this year, but since they weren't colored, it didn't have the same effect when you were walking down the street.
Nick serves communion during the worship service on Tuesday night. This was a big highlight for him!
Tommy and Dave being silly. I love you guys!
I can't belive it's been six years since I met you. I can't imagine my life without you! I love you!!
Monday, July 23, 2007
Bragging......
Yeah, just wanted to say I have the best husband ever!!!
He sent me flowers today at work......for no reason. :) Even the tightest of tight-wads like myself enjoy the surprise and joy of getting flowers for no reason. AND he got me daisys so they should last a long time.
Continuing on, we are going to be re-vamping our bathrooms shortly!!! Yea! I have been waiting patiently, and it is almost here! Saturday we went and picked out what we wanted for both bathrooms, and priced some things. Turns out, it is going to be less expensive that I had origionally thought. Bonus. I primed the hall bathroom, and plan on painting tonight - sage green, thanks for asking (it was a light and navy blue "under the sea" theme - I described it as looking like a children's coloring book- not too pretty). I've got to get the painting taken care of before the cabnits and countertops come in - don't want to get paint drippings on the new stuff. I will try to post some before and after pictures when everything is finished (may be a month or so).
Family news.....Mom, Dad, and Courtney all arrived safely back in Texas - Praise God! and God willing she will now begin her long road to healing and getting her life put back together. Keep praying!!
Knitting news... I have completed the back and the front left panal of the baby sweater I am attempting to knit. I am getting a little bit faster, but I am still pretty slow. At least my stitches appear to be even. My first project (a little hat) wasn't completely horrible (but far from gift worthy), and best of all, I learned a few things from it, so that's the important thing.
The LCMS NYG is this weekend in Orlando! All the hard work and planning will finally come to fruition. I pray that the kids have a wonderful, faith building, friendship making, inspiring time! Keep us all in your prayers! We are leaving Friday evening and having a night of fun at (appropriatly) Fun Spot before the gathering starts on Saturday afternoon. I've never been go-carting before, so I'm sure that will be an experience!
All in all, this has started out to be a fabulous week! Hope yours is going just as well!
He sent me flowers today at work......for no reason. :) Even the tightest of tight-wads like myself enjoy the surprise and joy of getting flowers for no reason. AND he got me daisys so they should last a long time.
Continuing on, we are going to be re-vamping our bathrooms shortly!!! Yea! I have been waiting patiently, and it is almost here! Saturday we went and picked out what we wanted for both bathrooms, and priced some things. Turns out, it is going to be less expensive that I had origionally thought. Bonus. I primed the hall bathroom, and plan on painting tonight - sage green, thanks for asking (it was a light and navy blue "under the sea" theme - I described it as looking like a children's coloring book- not too pretty). I've got to get the painting taken care of before the cabnits and countertops come in - don't want to get paint drippings on the new stuff. I will try to post some before and after pictures when everything is finished (may be a month or so).
Family news.....Mom, Dad, and Courtney all arrived safely back in Texas - Praise God! and God willing she will now begin her long road to healing and getting her life put back together. Keep praying!!
Knitting news... I have completed the back and the front left panal of the baby sweater I am attempting to knit. I am getting a little bit faster, but I am still pretty slow. At least my stitches appear to be even. My first project (a little hat) wasn't completely horrible (but far from gift worthy), and best of all, I learned a few things from it, so that's the important thing.
The LCMS NYG is this weekend in Orlando! All the hard work and planning will finally come to fruition. I pray that the kids have a wonderful, faith building, friendship making, inspiring time! Keep us all in your prayers! We are leaving Friday evening and having a night of fun at (appropriatly) Fun Spot before the gathering starts on Saturday afternoon. I've never been go-carting before, so I'm sure that will be an experience!
All in all, this has started out to be a fabulous week! Hope yours is going just as well!
Wednesday, July 11, 2007
Sometimes you have to wonder........
Well, a bit of bad news. The St. Paul administration building was broken into and robbed the Monday night. The culprit took loose cash and stole Nick's laptop. It unfortunatly gets worse - the computer guys at church didn't have his laptop connected to the server, so ALL of his hours and hours of work were lost. Needless to say, it wasn't a great day yesterday. So, last night I tried to make things a little better. I made a manly man's meal of meatball subs and we watched a movie. We also prayed for the safe return of the computer.
This morning when Nick got to work, he was greeted and then sent down to the police station. Why you ask? Well, it turns out that the robber (aka idiot boy) was caught trying to break into the middle school building last night. Hitting up the same spot two nights in a row! That's smart. Doesn't this dude watch Cops? It sounds like it was quite exciting, though. The superintendant was called out at 1:30 this morning and there were 6 units, a canine unit, and a helicopter! That would have been a sight to see. Despite finding Nick's laptop bag, on him, idiot boy said it was his "friend" that hit up the admin building the night before. Riiiigghhhtttt. That's why Nick had to go down town - to identify the bag.
Unfortunately, the computer was not in the bag, but perhaps there is still a gleaming ray of hope that we will get it back.
P.S. This upstanding citizen has a record. He was caught breaking into another church in town not too long ago. What a winner. Someone made the comment, "Isn't that like a straight ticket to hell? That's like mugging a nun or something!" I thought that was pretty funny.
Ah, speaking of God working in mysterious ways, my sister is going to come home to my mom and dad! At long last, our countless prayers have been answered (at least partially). She was recently diagosed with fibromyalgia (where your muscles just hurt all over for no apparent reason), and this was the straw that broke the camel's back. I am so thankful, and will continue to pray for all since it is going to be a long hard road for all physically, emotionally, and financially. Please keep everyone in your prayers!
I do have to report some happy news, though. It can't all be depressing or deep! I am getting close to finishing my first knitting project! Picture to come soon..... :)
Knitting, although much more tedious than crochet, is way too cool and I can't wait to get better and better!
This morning when Nick got to work, he was greeted and then sent down to the police station. Why you ask? Well, it turns out that the robber (aka idiot boy) was caught trying to break into the middle school building last night. Hitting up the same spot two nights in a row! That's smart. Doesn't this dude watch Cops? It sounds like it was quite exciting, though. The superintendant was called out at 1:30 this morning and there were 6 units, a canine unit, and a helicopter! That would have been a sight to see. Despite finding Nick's laptop bag, on him, idiot boy said it was his "friend" that hit up the admin building the night before. Riiiigghhhtttt. That's why Nick had to go down town - to identify the bag.
Unfortunately, the computer was not in the bag, but perhaps there is still a gleaming ray of hope that we will get it back.
P.S. This upstanding citizen has a record. He was caught breaking into another church in town not too long ago. What a winner. Someone made the comment, "Isn't that like a straight ticket to hell? That's like mugging a nun or something!" I thought that was pretty funny.
Ah, speaking of God working in mysterious ways, my sister is going to come home to my mom and dad! At long last, our countless prayers have been answered (at least partially). She was recently diagosed with fibromyalgia (where your muscles just hurt all over for no apparent reason), and this was the straw that broke the camel's back. I am so thankful, and will continue to pray for all since it is going to be a long hard road for all physically, emotionally, and financially. Please keep everyone in your prayers!
I do have to report some happy news, though. It can't all be depressing or deep! I am getting close to finishing my first knitting project! Picture to come soon..... :)
Knitting, although much more tedious than crochet, is way too cool and I can't wait to get better and better!
Thursday, July 05, 2007
Taking the bad with the good.....
Sometimes life is unfair and you just don't understand why. That is what happened to me this past weekend. Per my previous post, I had planned to go to Texas to see my dear friend, Jonathan, get married. Well, I didn't get further than the Tampa airport. It was all the joys of going to the airport and on a trip without the end result making all the hassle worth it - pack, check and double check I have everything, drive to the airport during rush-hour malfunction junction traffic, airport parking, airport transit, SECURITY, delays, sitting alone waiting for hours reading a book that is not so good (For Planets and Kings by Ethan Canin did not float my boat. I kept reading hoping there would be this great ending and I would understand the point of the book, but, alas, the ending did no more for me than the beginning or middle). All this only to find out that I will miss my connecting flight and they have no other flights to San Angelo until 6 the following evening. Great just great.
Disappointed and upset doesn't even begin to describe what I felt. After calming myself down, and touching base with the people I needed to, I had to trust that God's knowledge is much greater than mine and I must continue to trust in Him. I did receive word and some great pictures from Kim, and it seems to have been beautiful and wonderful - for that I am thankful.
So what do you do when life hands you lemons.... I called up Julianna and we went shopping - she had to get some cool duds for her upcoming speaking event. She was able to find some great outfits and bargains for the NYG and work, too! We then headed home and I made grilled chicken with vegi kabobs and baked potatoes (yum!). Another friend who was baching it this weekend while his wife was out of town came over as well, and after dinner we all played a rousing game of Apples to Apples. Let me tell you, if you haven't played this, you should grab some friends and try it out. FUN and Funny!
I have also learned the two basic knit stitches courtesy of Julianna. I've done multiple rows, and it doesn't look extremely atrocious! How exciting! It's going to take lots of practice and learning how to read a pattern before I can make some socks, but I'll eventually get there.
For the 4th, we hopped on over to the Space Coast to see our dear friends, Dave and Sonya, who's recent call to Faith Lutheran Church brought them closer to us. It was so great to see them! We went to eat dinner on the 3rd, and woke up in the morning to drink coffee and chat. Sonya and I went to lay by the pool in between the rain showers and read while the boys played PS2. We got around about 1 and headed to the park for lunch - hot dogs, hamburgers, chips, and coke for $1. That's right, $1. Pretty awesome if you ask me! After that, we drove around, toured the church, went to Target (they had an AMAZING clearance section, and I found some great deals! 2 pairs of cropped pants for work, a cute skirt I can dress up or down, a nice white button-up dress shirt, and a cute t-shirt all for $40.) Not bad, not bad at all!
**Side note: Is it just me, or do you find that after HS your closet slowly but surely migrates to Target and clearance items? Currently, about 80% of the clothes in my closet are one of those two things.**
But, I digress...After that excitement, we went home, and watched some Mythbusters and Food Network while Dave worked on his home-made pasta we had for dinner (it was awesome!). We then trucked it down to the city park where they had a great symphony orchestra and a fireworks display. We played Phase 10 and ate funnel cakes and cotton candy that Sonya insisted on because it was "holiday food". :) Early this morning we came back for another exciting day at work.
So, all in all, I can't complain. Despite the bad this week, there was lots of good, too. Blessings to all for a great weekend!
Disappointed and upset doesn't even begin to describe what I felt. After calming myself down, and touching base with the people I needed to, I had to trust that God's knowledge is much greater than mine and I must continue to trust in Him. I did receive word and some great pictures from Kim, and it seems to have been beautiful and wonderful - for that I am thankful.
So what do you do when life hands you lemons.... I called up Julianna and we went shopping - she had to get some cool duds for her upcoming speaking event. She was able to find some great outfits and bargains for the NYG and work, too! We then headed home and I made grilled chicken with vegi kabobs and baked potatoes (yum!). Another friend who was baching it this weekend while his wife was out of town came over as well, and after dinner we all played a rousing game of Apples to Apples. Let me tell you, if you haven't played this, you should grab some friends and try it out. FUN and Funny!
I have also learned the two basic knit stitches courtesy of Julianna. I've done multiple rows, and it doesn't look extremely atrocious! How exciting! It's going to take lots of practice and learning how to read a pattern before I can make some socks, but I'll eventually get there.
For the 4th, we hopped on over to the Space Coast to see our dear friends, Dave and Sonya, who's recent call to Faith Lutheran Church brought them closer to us. It was so great to see them! We went to eat dinner on the 3rd, and woke up in the morning to drink coffee and chat. Sonya and I went to lay by the pool in between the rain showers and read while the boys played PS2. We got around about 1 and headed to the park for lunch - hot dogs, hamburgers, chips, and coke for $1. That's right, $1. Pretty awesome if you ask me! After that, we drove around, toured the church, went to Target (they had an AMAZING clearance section, and I found some great deals! 2 pairs of cropped pants for work, a cute skirt I can dress up or down, a nice white button-up dress shirt, and a cute t-shirt all for $40.) Not bad, not bad at all!
**Side note: Is it just me, or do you find that after HS your closet slowly but surely migrates to Target and clearance items? Currently, about 80% of the clothes in my closet are one of those two things.**
But, I digress...After that excitement, we went home, and watched some Mythbusters and Food Network while Dave worked on his home-made pasta we had for dinner (it was awesome!). We then trucked it down to the city park where they had a great symphony orchestra and a fireworks display. We played Phase 10 and ate funnel cakes and cotton candy that Sonya insisted on because it was "holiday food". :) Early this morning we came back for another exciting day at work.
So, all in all, I can't complain. Despite the bad this week, there was lots of good, too. Blessings to all for a great weekend!
Friday, June 29, 2007
Another Quick Trip to the Homeland
That's right folks, in a mere 12 hours I will be back in the homeland (Texas for those of you who don't "get" the whole "I'm proud to be from Texas and even though I no longer live there I will ALWAYS be from there" thing). It will be the quickest, yet most expensive trip that I have ever made there. I leave Friday night and return Sunday evening.
What's the occasion, you ask? My good friend from HS, who was also an usher in my wedding, is getting married tomorrow! I can't miss that! My wonderful husband consented without even a bit of hesitation to let me come. Sometimes I wonder how I got so lucky. I will miss you this weekend!
Here we are by the Eden Fire Truck a few weeks ago at Kim's wedding. (Everyone now, "awwwwwww".)
Anyway, enough of that. I am excited to see my grandparents who felt rather neglected, I must admit, at Kim's wedding since we only saw them for a couple of hours. Not that this trip will be legnthy by any means, but at least we will have a little time to chat.
Last night Julianna came over, ate dinner with us, and played sequence with us. Wow, what a way to celebrate your birthday, huh? Sorry we aren't more exciting, J! We did get her a new "friend" - Ivy, but I will let her tell you all about that. House plant (who we decided to name "Lindsay"), you will be happy to know, is still at our rehab facility working towards a full and healthy recovery. She was in pretty bad shape when she first came to us, but she is doing much better.
In the book arena, I finished The Wedding by Nicholas Sparks. A++ If you want a feel good book with a great ending, this is something for you. I have tried to start "For Kings and Planets" by Ethan Canin, but it is not going well so far. It's slow to start, and it has been really dark with a sad sort of feeling thus far. I brought a backup for my travels - just in case this one really gets stinky.
The most exciting news I have lately is that I have decided that I am going to learn how to knit! Yes, I know this may not be that exciting for most, but in my world this is super! I can't wait to learn how to hone my mad skills and make a pair of socks. I have been seeing all of these awesome knitted socks, and just have to learn. I think I've mastered (well gotten pretty good at) crochet, and now I want to start this venture. My ultimate goal is to make myself a sweater. Now, I know that visions of really awful Christmas sweaters are floating through your head right now, but I am talking about something cute and modern. Something that people will not know is "homemade". That will be the true test. Something like the top one (the bottom one is a tinsey bit ugly):
I'm getting way ahead of myself, though. Must slow down, and contain myself. The learning will tentatively commence next Saturday after an afternoon of shopping with Julianna. She, as you may have guess, will be the teacher, and I her pupil.
Welp, that's about it for now. So-long for now, and have a fantastic weekend.
Keep me in your prayers as I travel.....
What's the occasion, you ask? My good friend from HS, who was also an usher in my wedding, is getting married tomorrow! I can't miss that! My wonderful husband consented without even a bit of hesitation to let me come. Sometimes I wonder how I got so lucky. I will miss you this weekend!
Here we are by the Eden Fire Truck a few weeks ago at Kim's wedding. (Everyone now, "awwwwwww".)
Anyway, enough of that. I am excited to see my grandparents who felt rather neglected, I must admit, at Kim's wedding since we only saw them for a couple of hours. Not that this trip will be legnthy by any means, but at least we will have a little time to chat.
Last night Julianna came over, ate dinner with us, and played sequence with us. Wow, what a way to celebrate your birthday, huh? Sorry we aren't more exciting, J! We did get her a new "friend" - Ivy, but I will let her tell you all about that. House plant (who we decided to name "Lindsay"), you will be happy to know, is still at our rehab facility working towards a full and healthy recovery. She was in pretty bad shape when she first came to us, but she is doing much better.
In the book arena, I finished The Wedding by Nicholas Sparks. A++ If you want a feel good book with a great ending, this is something for you. I have tried to start "For Kings and Planets" by Ethan Canin, but it is not going well so far. It's slow to start, and it has been really dark with a sad sort of feeling thus far. I brought a backup for my travels - just in case this one really gets stinky.
The most exciting news I have lately is that I have decided that I am going to learn how to knit! Yes, I know this may not be that exciting for most, but in my world this is super! I can't wait to learn how to hone my mad skills and make a pair of socks. I have been seeing all of these awesome knitted socks, and just have to learn. I think I've mastered (well gotten pretty good at) crochet, and now I want to start this venture. My ultimate goal is to make myself a sweater. Now, I know that visions of really awful Christmas sweaters are floating through your head right now, but I am talking about something cute and modern. Something that people will not know is "homemade". That will be the true test. Something like the top one (the bottom one is a tinsey bit ugly):
I'm getting way ahead of myself, though. Must slow down, and contain myself. The learning will tentatively commence next Saturday after an afternoon of shopping with Julianna. She, as you may have guess, will be the teacher, and I her pupil.
Welp, that's about it for now. So-long for now, and have a fantastic weekend.
Keep me in your prayers as I travel.....
Friday, June 22, 2007
Book and Weekend Stuff
Just as I have promised, I will give my book review:
True Believer by Nicholas Sparks- great book, and then I found that it had a sequal. So, of course, I had to see what happened next even though the book had a fine enough conclusion by itself.
At First Sight by Nicholas Sparks- the sequal to True Believer. Let me just tell you this, it was really good too, but in a different way. If you don't want to end up bawling, stop at True Believer and make up your own happily ever after ending. For drama and emotion, continue reading on. Want to know how much? Let's just say that it takes A LOT for me to cry. Especially over a book.
Other exciting news is that I finally completed my baby afghan. It turned out really cute after all. Now I just have to find someone to give it to, or wait two years to see if I have a girl. Sometime, if I get a chance, I will post a picture of said blankey. It's mostly 5 dc shells and puffs with the exception of part of the edging that is 7 rows of sc. It really added a lot. I like it. My next project is a cute little tote bag. Julianna, I'm going to try out some of the crazy yarn you gave me - the second hand-me-downs. :)
In other exciting news, Nick and I are going to the beach tomorrow! Fantastic! The tragedy is that this is the first time this summer we have been. I am going to bring along my new Nicholas Sparks book that I just started - The Wedding. The way I have been reading lately, I'll probably have it finished before the weekend is over. I must be rubbing off on Nick, because he has started his second book. Of course (for anyone who knows him you could have guessed) they are Tom Clancey. Books for a man's man. Naturally.... :)
On Sunday we are going to see Evan Almighty with what ever HS youth show up to see it with us. Nick and I are Office addicts and love Steve Carell, so I'm really looking forward to the movie. I hope it's good!
My final source of excitement is that I will be making a dessert for our Bible Study group on Sunday, and I'm trying out a new recipe from www.kraftfoods.com. It's a lemon cake with a coolwhip/ coconut frosting cleaverly called "Cool Lemon Coconut and Sour Cream Cake". I think I might top with some rasberries. If you are ever in a cooking slump, that websight is awesome. It's free to set up an account and you can save your favorite recipes in your recipe box for future reference. They will also send you a weekly email with themed recipes for the week. For example, the week of the Super Bowl, they had all these great appetizer and dip recipes. The recipes are simple enough and don't use any crazy ingredients. It's what I like to call "normal people cooking". If you are any kind of foodie like I am, you understand what I mean. :)If anyone tries it out, let me know what you think of it.
Anyway, those are my exciting weekend plans. I hope you all have a great one!
True Believer by Nicholas Sparks- great book, and then I found that it had a sequal. So, of course, I had to see what happened next even though the book had a fine enough conclusion by itself.
At First Sight by Nicholas Sparks- the sequal to True Believer. Let me just tell you this, it was really good too, but in a different way. If you don't want to end up bawling, stop at True Believer and make up your own happily ever after ending. For drama and emotion, continue reading on. Want to know how much? Let's just say that it takes A LOT for me to cry. Especially over a book.
Other exciting news is that I finally completed my baby afghan. It turned out really cute after all. Now I just have to find someone to give it to, or wait two years to see if I have a girl. Sometime, if I get a chance, I will post a picture of said blankey. It's mostly 5 dc shells and puffs with the exception of part of the edging that is 7 rows of sc. It really added a lot. I like it. My next project is a cute little tote bag. Julianna, I'm going to try out some of the crazy yarn you gave me - the second hand-me-downs. :)
In other exciting news, Nick and I are going to the beach tomorrow! Fantastic! The tragedy is that this is the first time this summer we have been. I am going to bring along my new Nicholas Sparks book that I just started - The Wedding. The way I have been reading lately, I'll probably have it finished before the weekend is over. I must be rubbing off on Nick, because he has started his second book. Of course (for anyone who knows him you could have guessed) they are Tom Clancey. Books for a man's man. Naturally.... :)
On Sunday we are going to see Evan Almighty with what ever HS youth show up to see it with us. Nick and I are Office addicts and love Steve Carell, so I'm really looking forward to the movie. I hope it's good!
My final source of excitement is that I will be making a dessert for our Bible Study group on Sunday, and I'm trying out a new recipe from www.kraftfoods.com. It's a lemon cake with a coolwhip/ coconut frosting cleaverly called "Cool Lemon Coconut and Sour Cream Cake". I think I might top with some rasberries. If you are ever in a cooking slump, that websight is awesome. It's free to set up an account and you can save your favorite recipes in your recipe box for future reference. They will also send you a weekly email with themed recipes for the week. For example, the week of the Super Bowl, they had all these great appetizer and dip recipes. The recipes are simple enough and don't use any crazy ingredients. It's what I like to call "normal people cooking". If you are any kind of foodie like I am, you understand what I mean. :)If anyone tries it out, let me know what you think of it.
Anyway, those are my exciting weekend plans. I hope you all have a great one!
Thursday, June 14, 2007
Reading for fun?
Yeah, that's right -- for fun. I almost forgot what that was. In case you are looking for a good book to read, here are the 6 I have read so far this summer - they are diverse (hey I like to mix it up sometimes):
The Yada Yada Prayer Group by Neta Johnson - courtsey of my pastor's wife; about a hodge podge group of women the meet a a conference and somehow continue to grow and help eachother despite all of their differences. (It's a series, so I have like 6 more of these to read...sometime)I give it 3 out of 5 stars ***
Postmortem by Patricial Cornwell - courtsey of mom; a CSI type mystery that is very entertaining, exciting, and keeps you guessing until the last few pages. 4 Stars ****
A Bend in the Road by Nicholas Sparks - another one from mom; Wow! What a great book. It's a love story, but not your traditional one. Follows the life of a man looking for the hit and run killer of his deceased wife as he raises his son. Execellent! 5 stars *****
The Englisher and The Bretheren by Beverly Lewis - I picked up and started reading The Englisher without knowing that it was the second book in a series (Annie's People), so you may want to start with the first book in the series. They were both a good read. I decided on these to get me in the mood for Amish country. These tell you a lot about the Amish culture and religion. I found them interesting. I love books that are fiction, but you still learn a lot from them. 4 stars ****
True Believer by Nicholas Sparks - in process - I liked A Bend in the Road so much I wanted to read some of his other books. I'm only on Chapter 5 right now, but so far, so good. I'll let you know it's final rating when I'm done.
So, as you can see, I have been really poductive lately. Worthless, actually. Once I get into a good book it is really hard for me to put it down. It's addicting, for sure.
Anyone else have any good reccomendations for me? I'd love to hear about them.
I am also trying to finish up my baby blanket I have been working on (on and off) for the past 4 or 5 months. Hopefully I can get that tackled soon.
The Yada Yada Prayer Group by Neta Johnson - courtsey of my pastor's wife; about a hodge podge group of women the meet a a conference and somehow continue to grow and help eachother despite all of their differences. (It's a series, so I have like 6 more of these to read...sometime)I give it 3 out of 5 stars ***
Postmortem by Patricial Cornwell - courtsey of mom; a CSI type mystery that is very entertaining, exciting, and keeps you guessing until the last few pages. 4 Stars ****
A Bend in the Road by Nicholas Sparks - another one from mom; Wow! What a great book. It's a love story, but not your traditional one. Follows the life of a man looking for the hit and run killer of his deceased wife as he raises his son. Execellent! 5 stars *****
The Englisher and The Bretheren by Beverly Lewis - I picked up and started reading The Englisher without knowing that it was the second book in a series (Annie's People), so you may want to start with the first book in the series. They were both a good read. I decided on these to get me in the mood for Amish country. These tell you a lot about the Amish culture and religion. I found them interesting. I love books that are fiction, but you still learn a lot from them. 4 stars ****
True Believer by Nicholas Sparks - in process - I liked A Bend in the Road so much I wanted to read some of his other books. I'm only on Chapter 5 right now, but so far, so good. I'll let you know it's final rating when I'm done.
So, as you can see, I have been really poductive lately. Worthless, actually. Once I get into a good book it is really hard for me to put it down. It's addicting, for sure.
Anyone else have any good reccomendations for me? I'd love to hear about them.
I am also trying to finish up my baby blanket I have been working on (on and off) for the past 4 or 5 months. Hopefully I can get that tackled soon.
Wednesday, June 13, 2007
I gave in
O.k. my lovely blog made me create a google account, so I finally did it. There was no other way to post, so I caved. It has just been so long, I needed to do it.
So here is an update on what has been going on with me the past few months:
Finished school for the spring - and the best part is that I'm out all summer!!!! Gloria Dios! I have been enjoying the time off thoroughly. I am on my 6th book of reading for fun - I almost forgot what that was like.
In mid May I took a trip to Texas to visit my mommy and daddy. It was so good to see them. One day dad and I took a trip to the Witchita Mountains about an hour north of where they live. It was absolutely beautiful. The hike up the 2270 mountain took about 1 hour to the top and 40 minutes back down. Here are a couple shots of the hike:
View from the top
Part of the hiking trail
Later that week, we drove down to my old home-town to celebrate my best friend from high school's wedding. It was a great time, and we did end up getting Kim and Chad hitched. :)
Me and the bride
The Fam
It was a fun time had by all. It was sort of strange to see some people I haven't seen in years. It's funny how some people change so much you can hardly believe it, and how others haven't changed a bit.
Monday, Nick and I got home from my grandparents' 70th wedding anniversary/ family reunion in Indiana. I'll save that experience and pictures for my next post since this one is getting rather lengthy.
Ah it feels good to be back in the saddle. Sorry to my two loyal fans. I will try to post more regularly now....
So here is an update on what has been going on with me the past few months:
Finished school for the spring - and the best part is that I'm out all summer!!!! Gloria Dios! I have been enjoying the time off thoroughly. I am on my 6th book of reading for fun - I almost forgot what that was like.
In mid May I took a trip to Texas to visit my mommy and daddy. It was so good to see them. One day dad and I took a trip to the Witchita Mountains about an hour north of where they live. It was absolutely beautiful. The hike up the 2270 mountain took about 1 hour to the top and 40 minutes back down. Here are a couple shots of the hike:
View from the top
Part of the hiking trail
Later that week, we drove down to my old home-town to celebrate my best friend from high school's wedding. It was a great time, and we did end up getting Kim and Chad hitched. :)
Me and the bride
The Fam
It was a fun time had by all. It was sort of strange to see some people I haven't seen in years. It's funny how some people change so much you can hardly believe it, and how others haven't changed a bit.
Monday, Nick and I got home from my grandparents' 70th wedding anniversary/ family reunion in Indiana. I'll save that experience and pictures for my next post since this one is getting rather lengthy.
Ah it feels good to be back in the saddle. Sorry to my two loyal fans. I will try to post more regularly now....
Friday, February 09, 2007
I'm Weird
So, at the request of my good pal Julianna, I will confess to you 6 things that are down right strange about me. You may or may not know that:
1)Babies frighten me. I've never really been around very small children much which is probably why I don't know how to behave around them. That and the "you don't want to get pregnant and ruin your life" speech we all heard when we were in high school. Maybe the negative connotation got to me. Yeah, I'll probably make a terrible Mom. Thank goodness they'll at least have Nick. :) **As a side note, yesterday was the very first time - ever- I have felt the want to have a baby, so maybe I'm having a break through of some kind.
2)I have a budget, an excel spreadsheet for all expenses during the month (with formulas), an amortization schedule for all of our loans with a targeted payoff date (I created in excel), balance my check book to the penny, and plan to do a complete analysis of how the budget worked out for the year making any modifications I feel are necessary. - I'm a teensy bit anal about finances.
3)I have a dwarf thumb. Tis true. Fortunately for me this tiny freak of nature isn't really noticeable. In other words, I don't have people come up and comment on the wondrously small size of my phalange.
4)I love my job. I get to work with data and create reports and learn cool new things with excel and access and other databases. Nick thinks I'm insane.
5) I have never permed, died, highlighted, etc. my hair, and I didn't get my ears pierced until I was 21. My hair-do is frighteningly similar to the hair-do I had in the second grade. Risk averse. Maybe.
6)I'm a younger version of the crazy old cat lady. I love my cat, crocheting, and cooking.
So top that! :)
1)Babies frighten me. I've never really been around very small children much which is probably why I don't know how to behave around them. That and the "you don't want to get pregnant and ruin your life" speech we all heard when we were in high school. Maybe the negative connotation got to me. Yeah, I'll probably make a terrible Mom. Thank goodness they'll at least have Nick. :) **As a side note, yesterday was the very first time - ever- I have felt the want to have a baby, so maybe I'm having a break through of some kind.
2)I have a budget, an excel spreadsheet for all expenses during the month (with formulas), an amortization schedule for all of our loans with a targeted payoff date (I created in excel), balance my check book to the penny, and plan to do a complete analysis of how the budget worked out for the year making any modifications I feel are necessary. - I'm a teensy bit anal about finances.
3)I have a dwarf thumb. Tis true. Fortunately for me this tiny freak of nature isn't really noticeable. In other words, I don't have people come up and comment on the wondrously small size of my phalange.
4)I love my job. I get to work with data and create reports and learn cool new things with excel and access and other databases. Nick thinks I'm insane.
5) I have never permed, died, highlighted, etc. my hair, and I didn't get my ears pierced until I was 21. My hair-do is frighteningly similar to the hair-do I had in the second grade. Risk averse. Maybe.
6)I'm a younger version of the crazy old cat lady. I love my cat, crocheting, and cooking.
So top that! :)
Monday, January 22, 2007
Update.....a little late
To the one person who reads my blog, I apologize for my lack of recent posts. :)It's been a busy time, that's for sure. Christmas was glorious. We got to go to Missouri and spend it with all of the Moss'. The weather was grand and relatively mild for that time of the year - glad we're not there now, though! I got to cook lots and relax and not do much of anything. We got to go to a college friend's wedding as well and see lots of people we haven't seen in a while.
Now it's back to the old grind stone again, but it's not so bad. Classes have started for me yet again, but I think I'll be o.k. It'll be a lot of work (I have a 20 page term paper in one of my classes, and between the two, 4 group projects....I loathe group projects).
Work continues to go well. I will have my first review in my new position this coming month. I am anticipating a good one. I am learning so much it's unbelievable! My boss is really a good leader. I have been able to learn and grow so much with his help. I feel blessed for sure with a great family, church, and job. I really can't complain.
Well, I wanted to leave you with a couple pictues from Christmas. Enjoy!and I hope your 2007 is going well so far.
Now it's back to the old grind stone again, but it's not so bad. Classes have started for me yet again, but I think I'll be o.k. It'll be a lot of work (I have a 20 page term paper in one of my classes, and between the two, 4 group projects....I loathe group projects).
Work continues to go well. I will have my first review in my new position this coming month. I am anticipating a good one. I am learning so much it's unbelievable! My boss is really a good leader. I have been able to learn and grow so much with his help. I feel blessed for sure with a great family, church, and job. I really can't complain.
Well, I wanted to leave you with a couple pictues from Christmas. Enjoy!and I hope your 2007 is going well so far.
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