Random life observations.

Laugh with me

2009-11-03T13:24:00.003-05:00

Interesting stats

2009-07-29T16:48:00.001-04:00

According to LifeWay Research, the top reasons young adults are dropping out of church these days:

1. They simply want a break from church (27%);

2. They felt church members are judgmental and/or hypocritical (26%);

3. They moved to college and didn't find another church (25%);

4. They have work responsibilities that keep them from attending (23%);

5. They moved too far from church (22%);

6. They just got too busy, even though they’d still like to attend (22%);

7. They didn’t feel connected to the church in the first place (20%);

8. They disagreed with the church’s political/social stance (18%);

9. They decided to spend more time with friends (17%);

10. They were just going to church to please their parents (17%).

(Thanks for sending along cousin Chad. These are interesting, slightly depressing and good food for thought.)

Sliding Rock & Mint Mango Mojitos

2009-07-23T18:27:00.005-04:00

Up through the Pisgah Mountain is the Davidson River featuring the NC-famous Sliding Rock. Although not caught on camera, I did go down - yeah for me. The water was FREEZING so I let the boys go another time to take a picture.

The Davidson River also has a number of waterfalls. This one was specifically popular with kids looking to cool off in the freezing water.

Mint mojitos after a wonderful afternoon!

The Lost Sea

2009-07-22T21:53:00.005-04:00

After our trip to Big Creek, we kept driving to Ten Mile, TN to visit Zac's grandparent's and their cabin on Watts Bar Lake. On Wednesday morning, we drove to Sweetwater, TN to tour the "Lost Sea" - the world's largest under ground lake. Zac and cousin Ben in the tunnel into the caverns.

Great Smokey Mountains National Park

2009-07-22T19:47:00.006-04:00

On Tuesday morning we drove just over the NC/TN border into the Great Smokey Mountains National Park to the Big Creek area. Big Creek includes campgrounds, hiking and some pretty good river walking. The reason for the trip was the famous Midnight Hole - a collection of big rocks perfect for jumping into the (freezing cold) water below. A few natural water falls were also found on the trail.

In the mountains, the air temperature was just about 70 degrees - the water - as you can imagine was quite cold. Aster didn't seem to mind.

Zac didn't seem to mind, but quote "holy crap, that was so so so cold". Both dog and man shivered like babies afterwards.

Looked like paradise in the mountains - with blue water all the way to the bottom.

Nature dog - back at it!

Dupont State Forest

2009-07-20T18:50:00.005-04:00

Dupont State Forest, the largest in NC, boasts some of the state's best waterfalls. Today, we hiked up to Triple Falls and Hooker Falls. On the way down the mountain we grabbed some fresh S. Carolina peaches in Hendersonville. Good day all around.

On a side note, Aster Pup woke up last night vomiting on the bed. Yeah, that sucked. Zac managed to catch a large portion of the dog barf in his HANDS (gross!) but we had to change sheets around 1:30 a.m.. Another round of barf at 6:30 and then at 10 a.m. - the pup looked so hangdog through the morning it was sad to watch. After a low-key day at the house and a small bowl of rice and chicken, he seems to have snapped back. Hopefully nature-dog will be back at it in the morning so we can hike up to Big Creek and continue on to Tennessee.

Black Balsam

2009-07-19T17:06:00.007-04:00

Black Balsam, one of many, many sections of mountain off the Blue Ridge Parkway was our first vacation adventure. Up to an elevation of about 5,000 feet, the views were amazing! Obviously, the pictures speak for themselves.

One of many places just to watch the clouds go by. Uncle John & Aunt Marty to the left - our expert tour guides.

Zac and Aster (nature dog) - who loved every minute of it!

The climb up the mountain and across the ridges included sandy trails, wooded areas as well as sparkly rocks like this one. The rocks and all other sandy/dirty areas sparked with minerals. I'm not sure if the picture does it justice, but the whole ridge top sparkled as if it were dusted with glitter.

Vacation Day 1

2009-07-19T11:01:00.002-04:00

The drive to North Carolina went well yesterday. Leaving at 7:30 a.m. put us in N.C. around 4:30 in the afternoon. The drive was beautiful through OH, WVa, Va, TN, NC. Aster pup appreciated the anti-nausea medicine and did well through the trip. He most especially enjoyed when I sat in the back seat with him so he could sit on my lap and stare our the front window. We figured that since they don't exactly design back seats to help dogs from sliding back and forth through the winding mountain highway, he would at least like something to hold on to.

Vacation ...4 days and counting

2009-07-14T08:16:00.002-04:00

Zac, Aster and I leave for our trip to North Carolina in 4 days!! I promise to TRY and start this blog back up while we're relaxing in the mountains. ; )

What do you do?

2009-05-29T14:35:00.002-04:00

I often don't know how to answer the question when my family or friends ask what I "do" at work. This video is a bit extreme, but oh, so true.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wac3aGn5twc

And the agency-client relationship, so true.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R2a8TRSgzZY

Blog Loser

2009-05-22T08:40:00.002-04:00

To the one person out there (LeAnna) who actually checks my blog....I do apologize. Been so busy at work that I haven't had time for much social media of any kind. Hopefully some day soon I'll pick it back up. Don't loose hope. : )

Tulsa

2009-03-21T13:15:00.002-04:00

We arrived in Tulsa around 10 a.m. this morning after a rather painless 15-hour drive. Not bad, a bit of rain, but it wasn't terrible.

We're relaxing now, but I can't help but wonder why this sign kept popping up on the Oklahoma Turnpike - "Don't drive into smoke." Seriously, there was a sign every 10 miles or so. I could understand maybe "don't drive into tornado" but what the heck?

Trying

2009-03-19T08:07:00.002-04:00

Trying to get ready for vacation. Trying to pack. Trying to detach from my work responsibilities. Trying to delegate. Trying to be okay with leaving Aster for a week. Trying to prepare myself for a 15-hour car ride. Trying to figure out what the weather is like in Tulsa.

Insulation

2009-03-02T08:54:00.006-05:00

Pictures are actually backwards - this was the finished project.
R-49 - almost 2 feet of insulation!It's fiberglass, but felt like cotton.

20 bags that expand to 8x their size when agitated in the machine.

Levi's job - slice, stuff, wait. Slice, stuff, wait.

Getting the edges first.

This past week, was home improvement at its best. On Thursday night, Zac installed four mini-cans in the dining room. Finally there will be enough light to actually see your food! On Friday, Zac began prepping the attic for the blown-in insulation and finished it up with his brother's help on Saturday. Prep work was the most time consuming because it involved crawling around in the low spaces of the attic to install the soffit vents...not his favorite part of the weekend. On Sunday, we rented the AtticCat fiberglass insulation blower for Home Depot and bought 20 bags of insulation. That part of the process went surprisingly smooth and quick - 15 bags in 2 hours. We ended up not even needing all 20, so we even got some $$ back.

The sunroom seems warmer already! hooray!

Big Nick, Little Lucy

2009-02-27T15:04:00.002-05:00

I can't help but share this picture with the world. That is my big brother...and that his his little doggie. Manly, huh?

Lazy Sunday

2009-02-23T12:38:00.002-05:00

Yesterday, I enjoyed a wonderful lazy Sunday. In the morning, I went to church and then came home around the same time that Zac got home from his band show overnighter. He was feeling a little under the weather, so we spent most of the day on the couch. After a brisk walk with Aster after lunch, I stopped by the library to check my email and grab a few books. My afternoon was spent reading The Lucky One by Nicholas Sparks. I love his books because they are so entertaining and I got sucked in right away. The rest of the day was spent on the couch with Aster sleeping on my lap just reading. With the snow falling outside, it was the perfect thing to do on a cold winter Sunday.

My Boys

2009-02-20T08:31:00.002-05:00

Lake, rivers and a whole lot of digging.

2009-02-17T09:12:00.001-05:00

Due to the recent melt-down, we now have a lake in our back yard which extends over to the side of our house. In addition to a bunch of other back yard issues, our dear neighbor (not his fault, he just moved in) has bricks stacked up on his side of the fence to keep the water from running through his yard to the drain. Great. And because said lake is putting so much pressure on our foundation, we also have a million little rivers running all over our basement floor. Awesome.

Last week Zac called the city of Stow and the engineer came out to access our situation. From just poking around, he doesn't think that we have the required 2-acres of fall to have the city fix our drain problem on their dime. But he said that a survey team would come back out in the spring to verify, and then he would work with us to set up a plan to fix our problem. Not the answer we were looking for, but its progress. So all you friends and family out there, bring you shovels because this very well may be the summer of dig. ; )

To combat the basement rivers, Zac and I are having a handful of basement waterproofing companies come out to give estimates and advice on what to do. We've got everybody from Ohio Waterproofing to an independent contractor who might be able to work with Zac to do it. We'll see what our best options are to get a dry basement and not break the bank.

Oh the joys of home ownership! It may be expensive and stressful, but we wouldn't trade it for the world.

Chasing Chariots Show

2009-02-16T12:24:00.002-05:00

"I'll be up in the gym just workin' on my fitness..."

2009-02-12T08:01:00.002-05:00

I'm not really sure how the rest of that annoying Fergie song goes, but I've got that part stuck in my head because I joined a gym. (For real!) I've been wanting to start a workout routine for some time, but I just couldn't find the motivation to work out at home and the weather has made it fairly impossible to do much on the road. So last Saturday, I signed up for an 18-month membership at FitWorks in Stow-Kent. Of course I didn't go in looking to lock myself into a contract, but they make it so expensive to do a month-to-month membership that it was my best option to sign up and pre-pay for the entire time.

Its my goal to work out three days a week and participate in the yoga/pilates classes in addition to that. Zac is not convinced that I'll stick to it, but I'm going to show him! Right now, my arms/back/chest hurt so bad that I can barely brush my hair, but it feels great to actually do something again!

Baby Girl Whitmire ... Katelyn Elizabeth

2009-02-11T08:12:00.003-05:00

I have a niece! Stats 7lbs 13oz 21 inches long, arrived on 2/9/09 at 5:16pm.
Zac and I can't wait until March for our trip to Tulsa to see our niece and nephew (and Sarah & Noah, too.)

(p.s. Sarah made me delete the picture of her! haha...)

My dog, the genius

2009-02-02T11:08:00.003-05:00

What are we supposed to do on a cold winter night in Ohio?
Make home movies of course.

Aster's vocabulary also includes "popcicles", "Where's Zac", and a number of other treats and commands. : )

Ode to a snowplow driver

2009-01-29T17:34:00.003-05:00

For as much as I've been complaining about the weather lately, if it weren't for these guys...I'd be going NOWHERE! Have you ever seen the snowplow drivers in a tiered line (five or six trucks!) one behind the other plowing the entire 4-lane highway? It's quite impressive. For all those plow drivers out there - THANK YOU! If I have to go to work in a blizzard (darn you school teachers!!) at least the roads have been cleared (sort of).

Happy Birthday!

2009-01-23T11:37:00.002-05:00

Seems like just yesterday we brought him home.

Tonight, for dinner, we're going to make banana pancakes and let him have some! (because bananas are his fav!)

facebook

2009-01-22T08:49:00.001-05:00

I've been a member of facebook since 2003. And, I'd like to think I was one of the first adapters of this new technology. (Yes, I'm that cool.) So why did I just yesterday realize that they've added an instant messaging function to the site? Man...I'm so out of the loop.

Aster the Disaster

2009-01-19T11:35:00.005-05:00

Our dog, although extremely well-behaved and generally not destructive, has had some "puppy moments" in first year of life. A fine example occurred this Sunday when we came home from church to find that he had eaten half of a full bag of Twizzlers Pull-n-Peel. Now, I'm a big fan of candy, so I know where he's coming from, but that's a LOT of heavy sugar for little doggie stomach. He did have a sugar high, and then a pretty big sugar-low but managed through the day just fine. Crazy dog.

But that's not all. Over the past year, he has eaten
- An almost-full bag of yogurt raisins.
- An ant trap (not eaten per say, but fully chewed to oblivion)
- Red Apple-Cinnamon Votive Candle (yes, they come out just as they go in.)
- Frozen poop cookies (no, these are not treats you buy at the store, rather real poop found in the back yard!) Gross.

He's also managed to destroy:
- 2 area rugs and a handful of throw rugs during the house-training and teething stages.
- 1 Novel, 2 magazines and any other piece of paper he can get a hold of
- At least 6 pairs of shoes
- Jackson's Batman-Scooby toy
- Numerous stuffed animals and other dog toys

But how could we possibly be upset when our dog is this cute? And, hey, he's just a puppy. : )

Note: All destruction occurred due to owner's lack of proper doggie proofing, and in no way should be blamed on the puppy.

Ouch, that hurts.

2009-01-14T08:31:00.003-05:00

Observation: being a grown-up, sometimes sucks.
Yeah, we can do whatever we want. Stay out as late as we want and all that fun stuff. But ... we also have to pay our bills. Specifically, our completely outrageous heating/gas bill. I know it's been a cold winter and I know we could have a better insulated house, but this past month's Dominion bill blew my mind. Almost $300 dollars for a 1200-sq. foot house. Ouch.
Step 1: Pay the damn bill.
Step 2: Insulate the attic.
Step 3: Close off the sunroom with an energy-efficient door.
Step 4: Set our thermostat a few degrees lower. (Hello wool socks)
Step 5: Install new exterior doors that are better insulated.
Step 6: Cry like a baby because we've just spent our entire tax refund.

Being a grown-up is overrated.

Surprise!

2009-01-14T08:00:00.006-05:00

This past weekend, we threw a surprise retirement party for my Dad at Silver Park in Alliance. He had no idea we had been planning for months! It was fun having this party in a log cabin in the middle of a snow storm. Thank goodness it had a furnace, plus a fireplace. Conrats Dad - we're glad you finally get to rest. Now, get a job! haha

Opening some gifts. Boy, did the Frank family
have some tricks up their sleeves!

The cake ... John Deere of course.

Cutest dog in the whole word.

The family, minus Laura & Blair who are in Louisiana.

Chili, chili and more chili. Perfect for a snowy, winter night.

Spinach Pasta Toss

2009-01-09T14:31:00.003-05:00

Total Time:
20 min

Makes:
6 servings, 1 cup each

What You Need

2 cups rotini or penne pasta, uncooked

1/2 lb. hot or mild Italian sausage, casing removed

1 pkg. (6 oz.) baby spinach leaves (7 cups)

1 can (14-1/2 oz.) Italian-style diced tomatoes, undrained

1 cup KRAFT Shredded Low-Moisture Part-Skim Mozzarella Cheese

2 Tbsp. KRAFT Grated Parmesan Cheese

Make It

COOK pasta as directed on package.

MEANWHILE, crumble meat into large deep skillet. Cook on medium-high heat 10 to 12 min. or until cooked through, stirring occasionally; drain. Add spinach and tomatoes; cook 2 min. or until spinach is wilted, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat; cover to keep warm.

DRAIN pasta. Add to skillet along with the cheeses; toss lightly.

YUM! Throw some frozen garlic bread in the oven and you've got dinner in 20 minutes!

Top 10 Things to do when the weather is BLA in Ohio

2009-01-08T16:14:00.000-05:00

10. ) Clean the basement, spare room, etc. (you will get a strange sense of accomplishment)
9. ) Weeds Season 3 DVD Marathon (or any other show)
8. ) Dress up like an Eskimo and play with your dog in the backyard
7.) Make soup and/or chili so the warm smell fills the house
6. ) Make a flavored Snow cone (if you dare)
5. ) Burn lots of candles (I seriously think it warms your house)
4. ) Sleep on the couch with lots of blankets
3. ) Buy cool new clothes on the internet and wait for Fedex to deliver
2. ) Bubble bath with lots of bubbles
1. ) Have sexy time (aka practice making babies) under the covers

Show at Musica

2009-01-05T08:54:00.004-05:00

After Christmas, Zac's band played a show at Musica in Akron. A pretty decent turnout considering it was the Sunday after Christmas and most people in Akron are too cheap to pay $10 to see 5 bands.

I'm not sure if Aster was mad that he wasn't allowed to go or that I made him wear that "awesome" sweatshirt.

Christmas

2009-01-05T08:50:00.003-05:00

Christmas Day at my Parent's house.

Uncle Steven with his buddy Aster.

Cousin doggies.

My new Moonsparkle perfume from Zac.

The past few weeks

2008-12-29T08:38:00.002-05:00

The past few weeks have flown by. The bathroom is almost finished - still waiting on trim to be put up to post the FINAL pics.

Baby Annabelle in her Anderson wig.

Celebrating Zac's 31st birthday with a bottle of his
fav wine and a strawberry cake.

Aster the Disaster watching the night traffic and
guarding us from the boogie man.

First Christmas in our new house!

More Bathroom Pictures ... almost there

2008-12-10T07:57:00.002-05:00

After trying to get Zac to be serous in one of these pictures, I finally gave up.
The final plumbing ... sink drain (only three trips to the home depot).

Plumbers crack

Aster the pup - who has gotten tired of our bathroom project, which is distracting us from spending quality time playing catch and cuddling on the couch, has taken to doing his business in the living room and eating my shoes to show us how unhappy he is.

Zac being silly again while applying the second coat (and second color) of paint.

Family

2008-12-08T12:44:00.002-05:00

To celebrate my parent's 30th anniversary, THEY took us out to brunch at this old historical place in North Canton. Yummy brunch buffet. My mom even re-proposed to my dad with a new wedding ring (since he lost his over 25 years ago). And now, since my dad is retired, he has no excuse not to wear it! : )
Left to right: Zac, Carrie, Nick, Suzanne, Mom, Dad, Sarah & Steven. Missing from the photo: Laura & Blair who live in Louisiana

One Republic

2008-12-02T12:53:00.002-05:00

Last night, Zac and I, along with some friends, went to the One Republic concert at EJ Thomas Hall. They played with three other bands and the show was really good. Most notable to me was the base player for One Republic. The scrawny, emo rocker kid started the concert playing the base guitar. A few songs into the set, he busts out a cello. Yes, a cello - the classical string instrument you see old ladies playing in an orchestra. The way the band incorporated the classical instrument into their overall sound was really cool. Props to the cello kid (Brent Kutzle), he was awesome.

Renovation Day 4 & 5: More Drywall & Tile

2008-11-30T12:06:00.003-05:00

Seeing our inspiration come to life.

It's an intricate process, but my favorite part by far.

Renovation Day 3: Thanksgiving

2008-11-30T12:01:00.004-05:00

A little bit of this...

... and a little bit of that. No rest when you've only got

one bathroom and 5 days.

Renovation Day 2: Plumbing, Electric, Insulation, Drywall

2008-11-30T11:54:00.004-05:00

"Here Zac, let me show you how it's done." - Aster

Plumbing - enough said.

New recessed lighting, new fan, insulation

Renovation Day 1: Destruction

2008-11-30T11:42:00.003-05:00

Zac's brother Levi helping out.

The madness begins ... Just imagine the craziness and frustration that comes with gutting our ONLY bathroom!

The awesomeness of the web

2008-11-24T13:10:00.002-05:00

As we've been planning our bathroom renovation, Zac and I have been using the internet for inspiration, installation research, product information, shopping, etc. Yes, we've also been to Lowe's, Home Depot, the Tile Shop and other stores about a billion times already, but nothing has been as helpful as the web. Example: we found a really cool glass tile in at a dealer - the dealer wanted $34/square foot - we found it on a website for $11 with free shipping. We knew what kind of vanity we wanted, but couldn't find a store that carried anything remotely close. But after searching online, I found a website who carried one I liked (Sam's club, of all places!). The problem was that that certain vanity came with a granite top, which we didn't need, so I used the product name and searched in Google until I found a store who sold the vanity without a top and who would ship it to a local retailer for pick up. And after finding a coupon code online for free shipping and $20-off, I feel like we actually got a good deal.

So basically, the moral of the story is this: don't always trust what you see or what they tell you in stores. Do your research to make sure you're getting the best price possible. For those retailers who know what customer service is - kudos - we'll continue to shop with you. For those retailers who don't give us (the bearded rocker and his wife) the time of day - good riddance!

So You Think You Can ... So You Think You Can Dance

2008-11-19T16:50:00.002-05:00

Two weekends ago, my friend Steph and I went to Pittsburgh to watch "So You Think You Can Dance" Live! Go ahead, make fun...but this is one of my favorite shows on TV and we had a blast!

Bearded snow dog

2008-11-18T08:09:00.003-05:00

Thank goodness Aster isn't a wuss about the snow like he is when it rains. So far he loves to go out side and push the snow around with his face, getting a big wet beard. It will be funny to see what happens when it gets high enough to touch his belly where he has no hair. brrr!

Pirates ... arg!

2008-11-17T10:07:00.002-05:00

This weekend, we went to our friend Jackson's 4th birthday party. One of his presents was a box full of costumes and dress up stuff. Like 4-year-olds, Zac and I had fun acting like pirates. You know what pirates do? They get tattoos...more on that later.

It's renovation time

2008-11-11T14:15:00.003-05:00

After living in our house for a little over 7 months, Zac and I have decided to embark on our first big renovation. Of course, when we moved in, we (meaning Zac) painted, we had the floors done, we cleaned and raked the leaves, but nothing major.
Our only bathroom is out dated, slightly gross and totally not our style. Time for an upgrade! While we originally wanted to do the entire shower in glass tile, we had to gut check because it's really expensive. So instead, we're highlighting with this cool mosaic glass (that we found for a great deal on the internet) and using it as our overall inspiration. *** If anyone wants to come and help over the week of Thanksgiving - we'll feed you (leftovers). ***

Congratulations!

2008-10-31T16:07:00.001-04:00

Congratulations to our friends Jacob & Alicia who welcomed their first baby boy, Isaiah into the world on Thursday. And double-congrats to Alicia who did it all-natural! crazy!

Oh yes ...

2008-10-28T08:25:00.002-04:00

... we are those people who dress their dog up for halloween. While I was at the store searching for the things I needed for MY bumblebee costume, I found this doggie version for 6 bucks! Surprisingly, Aster didn't seem to mind too much. I think that's because he didn't know how funny he looked!

Top 10

2008-10-24T13:20:00.000-04:00

Top 10 reasons to have a dog
10.) Unlike kids, they don't talk back
9.) When you come home after a long, maybe bad day, doggie is always excited to see you
8.) They make us get off our butts and take walks
7.) They cock their heads and look at you like, "what the F are you talking about crazy person?"
6.) Doggies don't care if you walk around the house naked (I honestly don't think they notice)
5.) They make that noise between a bark, a yawn, and a whine when they want your attention, it is so cute
4.) When you throw something, they bring it back. Husbands don't do that.
3.) They're smart and can truly understand what we are saying..."cookie", "do your business", etc
2.) Doggie kisses
1.) Doggies love their people no matter what - and that feels awesome

Fall Fun

2008-10-21T12:30:00.006-04:00

We love to take walks in the park and we love that our dog does too.

And he loves to eat sticks....seriously eat them, not just chew. He's crazy.

Leaves. Lots, and lots of leaves. This is just the first dump. Yikes!

Birthday Party in Style

2008-10-21T12:17:00.004-04:00

For Grandpa Ball's 80th birthday party - we partied in style. This past Saturday, Zac's family piled in a limo (sweet) and had a traveling dinner in Cleveland. Pier W on the west side and Johnny's downtown. YUM!

Grandpa refused a birthday cake at the restaurant because there were pies waiting back at the house. Instead, he got a lone candle. Clever server indeed.

Uncle John and Aunt Marty after a few glasses of wine!

Well, you know

The Birthday boy

Uncle Wendell, the master planner.

Make Me Super

2008-10-20T16:06:00.004-04:00

Makemesuper.com - must go. It's too funny!
http://www.makemesuper.com/r.php?i=2_0daa3-130352-f-Carrie

the mom thing

2008-10-20T11:56:00.003-04:00

Below is an excerpt from my cousin Chad's monthly prayer letter. This excerpt, written by Eva, is about her first experiences as a mom. I thought it was beautiful.

"Nine days after the official due date, we FINALLY went into labor - late Friday night. I was a little bit nervous, but mostly excited because I knew that the next time we’d be home there would be THREE of us! Around 8 Saturday morning my doctor came into our delivery room and said that we needed to do a C-section. Every time I had a contraction the baby's heart rate would drop real low (it is normally between 120 and 140 - it would drop all the way down to 60). I was disappointed that we weren’t able to have a “normal” birth and pretty scared about what was to come next – but I wanted to do whatever it took to deliver a healthy baby.

So, we ended up having an emergency C-section. Minus throwing up the chocolate ice cream I had earlier that night all over Chad, the surgery was a success and at 8:41am, Brooklynn Taylor Frank was born. She was perfectly healthy, weighing 6 pounds 15 ounces, and was 20 inches long. (Afterward the doctor said it was a good thing he did the C-section - her umbilical cord was wrapped around her neck AND the cord was real thin. If she would have been born normally her cord might have torn on her way out...)

It’s crazy how quickly Brooklynn stole my heart. When I was in the operating room all strapped down to the table, I couldn't see what was going on during the surgery because there was this huge hospital sheet in the way. But since I was awake for the whole thing (they just numb you from the stomach down), I could still at least hear everything. I will never forget the instant that I heard her first cry – I started to cry myself because I was so immediately and overwhelmingly in love. It makes me tear up just thinking about it now. I didn't know it was possible to love someone so much - all in that very first second (without even seeing her!). I was nervous about being a mom. I didn't know if I'd know what to do...or how to feel...but, it turns out that this is by far the greatest thing I have ever done! I love being a mom...and I'm absolutely crazy about Brooklynn....

I’ve always heard people say that being a parent allows you to relate to God on a whole new level. Now, just a couple weeks into it, I’m beginning to see what they mean. I would do ANYTHING for that little girl. But, what really blows my mind is that these feelings are still just a fraction of the way that God feels about us. He loves us more than I can ever really know. I’m so thankful that He’s given me the opportunity to have a baby and experience Him in a whole new way."

1 year

2008-10-16T09:02:00.000-04:00

Yesterday was my 1-year anniversary of working at hfa. Time flies when you're constantly busy! Overall, I'm really liking my job. Some days, I feel like having a nervous breakdown, others it's all good. Let's hope today is one of the good ones.

Doggies

2008-10-13T10:09:00.003-04:00

So the last few weeks have been pretty crazy. To add to the chaos, Zac and I have been thinking about getting another dog. There are so many dogs out there that need fostered and adopted, we definitely don't want to buy from a pet store this time. I've been doing some searching on the internet, and found a dog that we really liked, but after further thinking about it, we decided we probably won't adopt that one. He was really skittish an I'm afraid we wouldn't have enough time to devote to training and being with him. But on the happy side, I went in to Petsmart on Saturday and ... what do you know...Paws and Prayers rescue had a bunch of dogs outside and there was one in particular who I fell in love with. The girl said she just found him on the side of the street a few days ago. They're still checking to make sure no one is looking for him and they'll take him to the vet, but I hope we hear from them soon. The dog they call Scruffy would make a great buddy for Aster. : )

I'm off work today, but not necessarily on vacation. I've got one appointment after another. Hey, at least it's going to be a beautiful day.

The latest

2008-10-06T12:14:00.001-04:00

Yes. I am a pathetic blogger. I blame it on my bad habit of never remembering to bring my camera. A blog posting without pictures just isn't the same. That's my excuse and I'm sticking to it.

So anyway over the past few weeks...

We visited cousin Chad, Eva and baby Brookelynn introducing them to the wonderfulness of Swenson's. The baby is the cutest little thing...too bad I had a head cold so I refused to hold her so I wouldn't infect with my germies.

Zac and I helped my dad put a new roof on the barn. Well, Zac helped, I watched and grilled hot dogs for lunch. I also helped my sister create some doohickys for her 6th-grade class. Too hard to explain...but the end product included hot glue, nails and big nuts from my dad's hardware collection. fun times.

Zac had two shows in the past few weeks. The first was for the Veteran's at the Cuyahoga Falls Riverfront. There was a good turnout, but when the wind really started to blow, I think it made people nervous. This was the same night as the big wind storms. Our trees and yard came out okay. Aster the disaster had a great time dragging the sticks all over the yard. Crazy dog.

Last night, Zac's band had their CD release party at Musica. They did awesome. But most notably, I had one of those aha moments where I am reminded why I am madly in love with my husband. The details are too mushy, but in short....he's awesome.

Family news update

2008-09-15T16:49:00.003-04:00

Some recent family news ...

1. Cousin Lauren is heading to South Korea in the next month or so to teach English to 6-13-year-olds as part of the TEFL program.

2. Chad & Eva had their daughter, Brooklynn this past Saturday. Congratulations!

3. Laura and Blair survived the recent hurricanes without much drama in Louisiana. Now if they can just keep their dog and cat from killing each other, they'll be good to go.

4. 71 days and counting until Don Frank retires. Hallelujah!

5. Aster is still cute. Even when he's wet, tired and covered in river mud.

Friends & Babies

2008-09-12T12:45:00.005-04:00

It makes me feel rather old when I hold my BFF from high school's baby! I'm I really a grown up? yuck!

Daisy is adorable ... and Kassie if you read this,

don't forget you suck at burping and I rock!

Jenn, don't be expecting us to follow in

your baby-making footsteps any time soon!

Perk #45 of working at hfa: Client Entertainment

2008-09-12T12:30:00.003-04:00

Part of being a good account service person is building relationships with our clients. To help us do this, hfa purchases season tickets to just about every local event, sport, concert, etc. and tells us to go out and have fun. Just so happens that my client & friend enjoys pretty much the same kind of stuff I do. And her husband is like Zac's muscially-talented, motorcycle-aspiring, long-lost twin brother. Fun times had by all.

Switchfoot lead singer out in the stands right next to us

Entertaining my client ... ha! fun!

Note the wristband ... VIP!

Chasing Chariots - upcoming shows

2008-09-08T09:11:00.005-04:00

Zac's band has two upcoming shows.

What: Welcome Home Vets Concert
When: Sunday, September 14
Where: Cuyahoga Falls - Falls River Square Amphitheater
Time: 3:30 p.m.
Cost: Free

What: Chasing Chariots CD Release Party
with Special Guest All The Day Holiday
When: Sunday, October 5
Where: Musica - Akron, Ohio
Time: 6:30 p.m.
Cost: Pre-sale $10 - includes a copy of the EP

More information: call me or visit myspace.com/chasingchariots

Cutest dog ever

2008-08-17T14:03:00.002-04:00

Tired doggie after getting a hair cut.

How dare we mess with his morning nap routine?

All "smiles" while watching Zac's band play outside.

Rock & Roll ... suggestions please

2008-08-13T17:10:00.004-04:00

Zac's band is currently on tour this week. Right now they're somewhere in Indiana. Where? I dunno...check their myspace.com/chasingchariots. Below is a pic they took while hanging out before a show. I'd like to open up the blogosphere for suggestions on what Zac's thought bubble (caption) would be for this picture. Please respond. You'll make my day. The winner's caption will be photoshop-ed in and reposted at a later date.

A day on the boat

2008-08-12T07:41:00.003-04:00

This past Sunday, I drove up to Sandusky with my mom to hang out on Aunt Elaine & Uncle Chip's boat. Its not often that I get a chance to chill out, get some sun, relax, etc. Well I guess you could say I chilled ... got sun, not so much. 70 degrees, partly sunny and WINDY! In AUGUST! But it was great to see the family and hang out ... some place other than home.

Jayne and Mom braving the freezing waters since we
begged Chip to take us out.

Me and Jan trying to stay warm and dry as
we drive back to the dock while a storm rolls in.

The four sisters.

Aster's new cousin

2008-08-11T10:52:00.002-04:00

Nick & Suzanne's little puppy, Lucy. Adorable. Can't wait til she get's "bigger" so she can play tough with Aster. Right now I think she too closely resembles Aster's chew toy!

Sweet

2008-08-06T07:26:00.002-04:00

Dinner at Hibachi, $20. Carmel-Apple Martini, $8. Girls night out while our husbands act like 15-year-olds at the Radiohead concert. Priceless.

Little E pics

2008-08-05T07:21:00.002-04:00

Sarah and Noah finally got internet at the house so they were able to send some semi-recent pics of little E.

At the house before making the long drive to Tulsa

Cuteness

big client presentation...

2008-07-30T08:10:00.003-04:00

for work today. I hate them. They make me nervous and I forget to breath and talk too fast. ugh...kill me.

1/2 Fridays - yeah!

2008-07-26T15:20:00.004-04:00

We're doing a summer flex-time test at work. Meaning, I come in an hour earlier Monday-Thursday so I only have to work 1/2-day on Friday. I'm a morning person, so not a bad deal. So far so good. This Friday afternoon, my parents were also off work too, so they drove up and met me in Akron. We got lunch at Swensons (yum!) and took it to the Gorge. As Gorge-first-timers, they were impressed with it's coolness. And of course, my 1/2-day was also used spending some quality time with my doggie. It's also no secret that my parents are big softies when it comes to "gran-puppy."

Mom, me and Aster under on of the big rock outcroppings.

Aster loves hiking as much as we do.

Don Frank, the big softie.

Weekend update ... finally!

2008-07-24T07:19:00.003-04:00

So, I've finally had a chance to post an update on the crazy wedding weekend. Everything went fabulously. The brides were beautiful, I managed to smile nice for TWO sets of wedding photos, and it was great to see friends and family for both!

Fuzz and I as we get ready in the bridal room at the Chapel

The trio together again!

Sarah' lookin' like a princess with the sisters
(I think I won the prize for best tan in this group!)

Hanging out with sister Laura who was able to
come home from the army base for the wedding.

Me and Zac after a long wedding weekend.

(Note the gross "gills"from craning my neck for this pic! ewe!)

2 Years!

2008-07-16T07:21:00.002-04:00

Zac and I celebrated our 2-year anniversary yesterday, July 15. (Well...I wouldn't exactly call bbq chicken on the grill, playing with the dog and watching the final disc of the 3rd season of Weeds a celebration, but it was perfect for us.) Time sure does fly! It seems like this past year has gone especially fast. Maybe it had something to do with buying a house, moving, changing jobs and getting a baby ... oops, I mean dog. haha

Also, congratulations to my cousin Todd and his wife, Sarah, who gave birth to their son, Carter yesterday as well. Can't wait to meet him!

I'm thankful because today is my Friday, meaning I'm off work on Thursday and Friday for "vacation." I can't exactly call it vacation because it's really just prep for Wedding Weekend Extravaganza. That's right....my friend Bethany's (Fuzz) wedding is on Friday night and sister Sarah's wedding is on Saturday. Two dresses...two weddings...two parties - here we go! Should be a crazy weekend, guaranteed to be a fun time!

Cuyahoga Valley

2008-07-11T16:22:00.004-04:00

Sometimes I just really, really love where I live. Besides our sweet new house, I'm talking about the general region in which we live... the Cuyahoga Valley. Within a 15 minute drive, we are able to go hiking, biking, river-walking and rock climbing in dozens of different locations. cool.

River-walking, basically consists of finding a low-spot in the river and walking among the rocks, fallen trees, small waterfalls, etc. Probably my most favorite valley activity. And last night, we took the pup for his first river-walk at Blue Hen Falls. I think he was in doggie heaven out in the woods (without a leash) sniffing, drinking and exploring the river bed. I wish our camera wasn't so junky so we could've gotten better photos.

Trying to get Aster to pose for a picture ... next to impossible, of course.

A foot print left by a lady walking ahead of us. She left the print in the soft "dinge" on the rock bottom, about 5 inches below the surface.

Aster-pup gettin' his river-walk on. Seriously, he loves nature as much as we do!

Generations

2008-07-07T08:34:00.003-04:00

We've had two family reunions in the past two weeks. The first, the Dalsky side was at my parent's house...meaning we got to bring Aster to meet the family. He had a chance to play at the farm and hang out with Blue & Pepper.

Sarah trying to steal my dog...and Steven saying "no way!"

Generations of doggy too. Pepper, who is almost 15 years old and Aster, who is only 5 months! Aster gave ol' Pepper a good run for his money!

Mom with her gran-puppy.

life

2008-06-24T16:15:00.000-04:00

The past few week at work have been a whirlwind. My accounts are definitely keeping me on my toes. If I tried to explain, I would probably bore and/or confuse most people, but I'll just say this... between photo shoots out of town, final art releases, constant changes, budgets and estimates and misc. "stuff" that no one wants to deal with - I'm exhausted.

Don't get me wrong. I love it. Almost every minute of it. Wouldn't trade it ... well, maybe for the ultimate dream job of new fruit roll-up flavor testing expert.

addendum to previous post

2008-06-19T14:06:00.003-04:00

Baby Cameron (Chris & Andrea Durfee). Babies, babies, everywhere!!!

Babies!

2008-06-11T16:16:00.003-04:00

Babies, babies everywhere! No, I it's not making me want to have one now, but it's really making me look forward to having one in the future. (all my friends and family who constantly tease me about having babies, I can hear you thinking right now.) So anyway, two of my friends have recently had babies in the past two weeks, and one more any day now. What an exciting time!

Also, three of my cousins-in-law (who are all married to three brothers) are also pregnant at the same time. How ironic and awesome!

My friend Jenn P is due in a few months (that one makes me feel like a real grown up because she's my age!) Another friend is having her first later this year. And...there is one more secret pregnancy that I'm not sure is public knowledge yet, so I can't say. Whew - exciting!

This past weekend we took dinner over to our friends who recently had their second son. Ten days old and such a little cutie! Side note - Zac held little Evan like a champ - he's gonna be a great dad!

But with all these babies around, I'm more than happy to wait my turn. And, being an aunt or "aunt" is way cool, too.

Happy Birthday...

2008-06-11T16:11:00.004-04:00

To Steph!

What is more fun that posting funny pictures of your friends on your blog? Nothing ... well, except maybe Jack's "poopy face" in this picture.

Puppy's first haircut

2008-06-03T13:29:00.003-04:00

okay, okay ... I know I'm being a big dork blogging about my dog all of the time, but seriously, he is so cute ... work with me here.

Aster is a cocker spaniel / cavalier king charles spaniel mix, which means he's a big black furry fur-ball. He was starting to get pretty shaggy and I could barely see his eyes, so it was time for a haircut. The ladies at the Celebrity Pet place were really nice and gave Aster a sweet new doo. And, they said he was the sweetest dog and a very good client while getting groomed.

Before

After - wow look at those eyebrows!

For those of you who have met my doggie, you know that he has a very sweet temperament. And for the most part he doesn't bark or chew too excessively on stuff around the house. But sometimes, for who knows what reason, the crazy Aster comes out to play. He runs around the house with boundless energy, snaps like a snapping turtle, puppy barks at you, and gets the crazy eyes (see below). A constant source of entertainment, he is.

Happy Birthday....

2008-05-30T08:29:00.003-04:00

... to my nephew, Ethan Micah Whitmire! Little E was born one year ago...seems like just yesterday. Well, to me anyway. Sarah & Noah might feel like it's been a long year taking care of little buddy every day. Sadly, no recent pics to post, but hopefully we'll have some new ones after his b-day party on Sunday.

Sarah's Bridal Shower

2008-05-22T10:34:00.002-04:00

We had Sarah's bridal shower this past Sunday. Everything was great - and some of the guests did dress up in 50's attire - super fun! The "I Love Lucy" theme was a hit and everything came together nicely.

Mom & guests enjoying the gift opening

Sisters 4 life

Last bridal shower for mom to throw ever! Yeah!

Dog's best friends

2008-05-19T11:45:00.002-04:00

We have the perfect relationship with our friends, the Jabbours. They have kids, we don't. We get to spend time with them and live vicariously through their child-raising experiences. We have a puppy, they don't. Their kids get to spend time with our puppy and wear each other out, but ultimately Aster goes home with us at the end of the night and the Jabbour boys sleep in their own beds.

The other day, Steph and I went to the park with her two boys and my puppy. The boys got dirty...big surprise! Upon returning to their house, it was bath time for the boys. Jackson, who is almost 4, invited the puppy to share his bath. Sure, why not!

These pictures weren't worthy enough to be posted to Steph's blog, but I couldn't help myself. ; )

Drumroll please.... after pics!

2008-05-16T08:02:00.003-04:00

Still not done yet, but Zac has made good progress on the painting. We still have closet doors, bathroom, kitchen & sunroom to paint. But, it's coming together nicely.

Living room & entry (see, no closet door!) With sleepy boys.

Another angle of the living room showing the yellow wall.

Our bedroom

Spare bedroom. The green looks a little bright in this picture, but when we get some stuff on the walls, I think it will simmer down.

Hallway

Check out the before Pics from the April post for a real idea of just how far we've come. : )

Mother's Day Weekend

2008-05-15T08:34:00.002-04:00

Mother's Day weekend was fun. We took Aster to the dog park in Stow for the first time. It's an old swimming lake that they fenced in and separated for large/small dogs. He was in doggie heaven, lots of other dogs to play with and balls everywhere! He was too chicken to go into the water, but maybe next time. Oh, and we also found out that he's not the quickest dog in the bunch. He loved to chase a toy fox terrier/beagle but had no chance of keeping up. "Wiggles" just wasn't made for speed. It was quite comical.

On Sunday we had the Frank & Hall families over for a BBQ. With the rainy weather outside, we maxed out our interior seating, but it was fun. A few Hall pics below to share with Sarah, Noah & Ethan in Tulsa.

Grill Mc-Masterson

Blonde Levi

Classic Grandpa bunny-ears

Sleepy boys after a long day of family time

Puppy's first shower

2008-05-06T08:15:00.002-04:00

No words needed to describe this situation. Surprisingly he still loves us. ; )

Ode to Spring!

2008-05-02T08:27:00.002-04:00

What are you supposed to blog about when you don't have any new information to share, nothing to complain about, and no interesting pictures to post? How about this....thank GOD spring is here! I love when the sun comes up about the same time I'm waking up - and stays up until almost 9 p.m. When everything smells like a mix between growing grass, flowering trees and the first BBQs of the season. ahh..heaven! Or when you can go outside with bare feet and not be cold. And take the pup for a walk (if of course he wishes to walk on the leash that day) without winter hats, gloves & scarves!

I guess I do have a few funny pictures to share from sister Sarah's graduation on Sunday:

Dad listening to the Cavs game while "observing" graduation. : ) Aster the pup - who stole the show!

Aunt Anne who tried to steal the pup!

Classic example of Aster not wishing to walk on the leash.

But how can you be upset with a face like this?!?!

My puppy is awesome

2008-04-24T09:58:00.000-04:00

When Aster yawns my heart melts a little. If anyone else bit my toe, I'd probably be ticked. The fact that he already "fits" into our house, is adorable. When he lays on his back and his ears flap out, he looks like a mix between Chewbacca and Yoda. As soon as I find my camera I'll upload a pic.

(dis)Aster

2008-04-21T12:23:00.004-04:00

We got a puppy!

Zac and I have been wanting a dog ... for pretty much forever. We made ourselves wait until we had the house with the backyard. But now that we're fairly settled in, we couldn't help but start looking. And well, you know how that goes ... you look and then you fall in love. We originally went to the Akron humane society and met a few dogs, but they were all fully grown and set in their ways. Plus, we really didn't want to miss out on the cute puppy phase, even though that comes with all the other not-so-cute puppy-isms.

He's a cocker spaniel / cavalier king charles spaniel aka black fuzzy furball. Zac came up with his name as we were playing with him at the store, "We could call him Aster, short for (dis)Aster, cause he's a puppy!"

At Steph's house to show the boys their new friend

Chillin' on the couch

Sleepy puppy

Zac being a trouble-maker (don't worry, he only sniffed it)

Is it Friday yet?

2008-04-17T09:24:00.000-04:00

So sorry I have been a terrible blogger recently. This past weekend we moved into our new house. YEAH! You'd think that after being married for less than two years, we wouldn't yet have accumulated that much stuff - wrong!! Between misc. junk in closets, clothes & shoes, guitar and drum stuff, craft and painting supplies, tools, kitchen, and on and on - we had a lot of stuff! I've purged and organized, but we're still trying to find a place for all of the stuff in the new house. What a task! My new goal is to over time add new furniture that helps cleverly store our belongings.

On another note, we are no longer able to access free wireless internet at the house. booo! You see, at the condo, we turned on the mac and like magic we picked up someone's unprotected wireless signal. No such luck at the new house. So, we're waiting to see what the other bills are like before investing in overly-priced internet access. Plus, we're right down the street from the Stow Library - so we can always go there if necessary.

Finally, I'm working on creating my sister's bridal shower invites. I had a brilliant plan, now I just need to find the time to make it happen. I think I'm going to have to enlist the help of a nice graphic artist friend at work. My photoshop skills are so rusty it aint even funny!

More pics of the house to come. You'll be amazed at the transformation!

Painting

2008-04-10T07:56:00.003-04:00

This is the week of paint. Each night after work, Zac and I go to the house and ... paint. Well, more accurately, Zac paints and I watch or try to help in any way I can. You see, I have many skills, but precision and neatness are not really my thing. So I do as much as I can, but ultimately Zac gets ticked at the way I do things or I get frustrated at his snail pace. Good times. : )

We've had plenty of issues in this process. Dirty walls. Peeling paint. Weird orange dots. Poor prior paint jobs. More peeling paint. Yuck.

The issue we're now having is paint color. Weeks before we closed on the house, we toiled over paint colors since every inch needed to be refreshed. I think we brought home just about every swatch from the depot. We thought about it. We made pictures. We cut the swatches out individually and made a diagram. After pretending to be interior designers, we finally settled on a color scheme. All well and good, right? Not so much. We're finally getting color on the walls and it doesn't feel quite right. Either the colors we picked don't seem true to swatch - or on the walls, they just don't feel right. As a significant investment in time and money we're a bit frustrated. But hey, you can always repaint. Yeah right. Not in this lifetime. Let's just hope it starts to grow on us.

More house clean-up

2008-04-06T20:25:00.002-04:00

This weekend we spent a lot of time over at the house removing wallpaper borders, prepping for paint and cleaning up the back yard. I never got a before pic. But just imagine this: Over two years of Oak leaves trapped within a chain-link fence + mucky water issues in the far corner. Fun times. We've now got at least 40-50 huge trash bags filled with yard waste to be picked up by the garbage men 5-bags at time each week.

My parents are pretty awesome. They've spent the past two weekends helping us with the yard clean-up. And they're not the only ones, my sister and bff-Jack also made guest appearances last weekend. They've got mad skills.

Zac said something to me tonight as we were driving home from dinner with my parents. Side note - dinner which they treated US to, after THEY helped with the crazy yard work all day - and my dad's birthday is this week. Seems like we should have been the ones to treat to dinner, but that's just how they roll. Anyway, as we were driving home, Zac said that he was really learning a lot from my parents over the past few weeks about what it means to be good parents. I can be so short and snotty to my mom, but then when I need her, she's always there. And my dad, he's just like the nicest guy ever and knows just about everything. They've been nothing but the bested role models my whole life and it means a lot that Zac sees that too.

Giant Eagle Newsletter

2008-04-03T08:52:00.005-04:00

If you happen to be out and about this weekend and you shop at Giant Eagle, make sure to take a moment to pick up the first-ever Giant Eagle Private Brand Newsletter called g.

My colleagues and I at hfa have been hard at work over the past few months to concept, write, design and take this newsletter to final art. (Yes, I am a little proud of my team.) As the first issue, this was a definite learning experience for working with a major grocery retailer. Future issues to include more recipes, health and time-saving tips, coupons and more.

You will find the newsletter either at the front of the store (by the circulars) or at checkout. Enjoy!

Before pics

2008-04-01T18:58:00.005-04:00

Kitchen cleanup

Living Room after carpet removal

The front outside

Dining room w/ carpet

Living room with carpet

Bedroom 1 with carpet

Bedroom 1 without carpet - yuck!

Whirlwind of God's Goodness

2008-03-31T21:32:00.003-04:00

The past few days have been a whirlwind of activity. After some last minute craziness, we did take possession of the house on Friday. Saturday and Sunday were spent installing door knobs, garage doors, cleaning up the yard (a big task!), cleaning up the inside, moving appliances, and on and on... The next few weeks are going to be a lot of work, but we're really excited and can't wait to move in asap. Today, we decided to have the wood floors refinished, which will set our schedule back almost a week, but in the end, we'll have some sweet matching floors throughout!

So getting keyed sucks. My car, the beautify blue Jetta, who fell victim to random acts of key violence recently, is scheduled to get fixed in a few weeks (after the move). I'm finally past my "Why me?" rage and have moved on to a more subdued dislike for all trouble-making teenagers. (Sorry, if I'm totally stereotyping, but I can't help it right now.) I am thankful for my laser blue transportation even though it needs a bandaid and a new paint job.

The other large and looming thing that has been stressing me out lately: Portage County. Finally resolved! We went to court today and everything is OKAY! Yeah! We are so relieved and thankful that it's finally over. I don't think I have ever breathed such a sigh of relief.

Zac was taking some "before" pictures of the house tonight, so hopefully I'll be able to post tomorrow. I think the transformation is going to be pretty amazing! : ) Thanks to all our friends and family who've helped with the work so far. The leaves would have been overwhelming without all the hands to help out!

Taps

2008-03-28T08:01:00.002-04:00

Sister Laura, who is in active duty at Fort Polk, Louisiana turns 19 in a few weeks! Crazy, I know. She is currently on funeral detail which means that when there is a military funeral in Louisiana or East Texas she travels to do the ceremony. Her job is to play taps! Ugh? Don't worry, its prerecorded so just has to pretend. (Thanks for the update Mom.)

I should have known better ...

2008-03-27T16:57:00.003-04:00

Okay, so I should have known better than to jinx myself. A previous blog headline like "Our house ... Finally" was just asking for it. We've hit a snag in the house closing. Nothing that will ruin everything, it's just going to set us back some days. Something that should have been taken care of before today - didn't. So now we wait ... some more. And me, the impatient control freak cannot take it anymore!!
I would explain more, but I'll just get even more mad at all the legal mumbo jumbo it takes to buy a house, especially from HUD. Friends, just please be praying that God gives us patience!

A few things I am thankful for...

2008-03-25T16:36:00.004-04:00

1. Good, good friends to have lunch with, share life with, and to laugh with. (is that proper grammar?)

2. Car insurance. Because without it, I would have to pay the full amount to have my car fixed because the stupid teenagers in my neighborhood with nothing better to do, decided it would be fun to key my car (three separate times) in the middle of the night.

3. Kreiger's Market in the Falls. You can always count on Kreiger's to have fresh, reasonably priced produce and healthy food products even in the middle of winter. Can you say chips & salsa?

4. Family. No explanation necessary. They're just cool people.

Our house ... finally!

2008-03-24T10:56:00.002-04:00

It's finally official! We're scheduled to sign the last of the papers this Thursday, and transfer on Friday. Yeah!!
So this means that we will be able to get into our house this weekend and begin doing all the things on the long list of things to do before moving in. Oh fun things like install new furnace, dry the place out, wash and clean everything, paint every paintable surface, clean gutters, rake leaves, install garage door opener, light fixtures, seal windows and doors, rip up carpet, and on and on and on...
But we're not complaining - we're actually super-excited to be doing all this. Zac and I have been planning and window shopping for months now, and it will be fun to finally get in, get dirty and make this little house a home!

Washer & Dryer

2008-03-19T18:14:00.003-04:00

So since we're buying a house, that also means that we need to buy a washer & dryer. great. So anyway, I've been doing my research because this is a significant purchase and we've decided that since we've got to buy all appliances for the house here is where we want to spend our money. Luckily, we got a free fridge from someone who knows someone, and found a used stove on Craigslist for $200. I've convinced Zac to let me make the W&D decision because... seriously ... when's the last time he's done a load of laundry from start to finish?

I had myself pretty well convinced that I wanted the Whirlpool Cabrio (top loader with no agitator), but after hearing a bunch of bad reviews first hand, I've changed my mind. So, now I'm back to deciding between the many front load sets out there. Any suggestions?

Here's what matters to me. 1. Get the job done - make dirty stuff clean. 2. Be efficient - water & electricity are expensive. 3. Quality - I want this purchase to last for a long, long time.

On a side note - to all those people out there who spend an extra $400 to get the "Arctic blue" or "Glacier Mist" colored machines that are exactly the same as their white counterparts ... you're crazy.

Weeds

2008-03-17T17:23:00.004-04:00

A few months ago a friend from work recommended that Zac & I rent the Showtime series Weeds on dvd. So for the past few weeks, every time we'd go to Family Video, we checked to see if it's there. Normally, no luck seeing as there is only one copy of each disc in the store.

This weekend we finally got lucky. We were able to rent season 1 (both discs) and the first disc of season 2 for $1 each (5-days). So all afternoon on Sunday we sat on the couch watching episode after episode because we got sucked in and couldn't stop!! Seriously this show is one of the best I've watched ... ever. It's got an engaging mix of humor, drama, heart-wrenching truth, and social stigma. In summary: Southern-Cal widow sells weed to support her family and maintain living status.

I recommend it to all of my movie-watching friends out there. But one note of caution. If minor language and/or pot humor offends you, this might not be your thing.

Chasing Chariots @ Musica

2008-03-13T18:30:00.002-04:00

Mark you calendars! Zac's band, Chasing Chariots will be playing at local venue, Musica, next Saturday - March 22nd. Show starts at 6:30 and they are the 1st band. Cover is $7. Musica offers a unique atmosphere, with great sound. Tasty, adult drinks & coffee will be for sale in addition to the cover. Hope to see you there!

Snap, Crackle, Pop!

2008-03-10T10:04:00.005-04:00

"Carrie, what did you do this weekend," you may ask. Well, my answer would have to be, NOTHING! Since the skies dumped over a foot of snow beginning Friday at noon and continuing all day Saturday, Zac's band show was canceled for the weekend. What I had hoped would turn out to be a romantic snowed-in weekend, was so NOT.

You see, when two people (named Zac and Carrie) are stuck in a very small condo with nothing good on TV, nothing good to eat, and nothing to do - patience is short, tempers flare and boredom makes it all ten times worse.

I am not the type of person who likes to be constrained. And when I'm told that I can't do something, I want to do it even more. When common sense tells me I can't run my Saturday errands because it's a friggin' blizzard, I get ticked. "Snap." - When Zac's bored, he gets ansy. When he gets ansy, his patience fizzles. "Crackle."

Add to the equation not having our parking lot plowed until 6 p.m. SUNDAY evening. Over a foot of snow + 2-wheel drive truck + 2 cranky people = POP!

If it weren't for our Jabbour intervention on Sunday, I don't know if we would have made it. Thank God for good, good friends, meatless chili, random Jackson comments, the Wii, and Eli hugs.

Choosing

2008-03-04T18:10:00.002-05:00

Wow, buying a house is serious business. Searching, searching and then finally finding the one we want. Can we afford it? The bidding process. When, oh when are they going to accept our offer?!?! Falling more in love with the house day by day. Falling in love with the idea of OWNING a house. Finally having our bid accepted. YEAH! Paperwork out the wazoo. Not able to sleep because we're so excited! Talking to the mortgage guy. Calling the utility people (not fun). Scheduling inspections. Mind war between second-guesses and gut feelings. More paperwork. Leaving work early for this and that. Signatures, lots of signatures. More signatures.

But some day soon ... maybe even as soon as March 15th ... we'll sign the last paper and 3669 Elm will belong to the Halls. Well ... in 30 years when we pay off our mortgage. : )