Daily Journal and Fishing

Summertime is getting away from me! It's the middle of August and it already feels like fall in the U.P. The tips of many of the maples are just beginning to change. Perhaps next month I'll get back to more regular blogging.
Jeff went fishing overnight on Monday with my cousin Tom. It was my first night alone in our new house and I survived to tell the tale. Or lack of a tale. It was a peaceful night, thank goodness. Of course, I had Adrian to protect me, he was pretty excited to go to sleep in our room. He's been sleeping in there more often than not lately but he generally starts out in his own room. I enjoyed a few evening hours alone and devoured the rest of the birthday cake. Kidding. Actually, I'm serious and it was good.

I thought the guys had good luck fishing when Jeff brought home a cooler of salmon weighing 20-something lbs, but apparently they didn't do well at all for that area. I guess they'll just have to go again! Tom is coming over for supper tonight to enjoy some of that fish.
Last night, I had a few ladies over for craft night (you know, since I finally have the space to do that). I had pinned this journal calendar a while back--yeah I think all of my projects for craft night come from Pinterest--and started on it last night.

I didn't actually read the post on Design Sponge until I was about halfway through making the calendar so mine is a little different. I didn't have enough index cards so I mixed them in with colored cardstock and I decided to leave out the month dividers for now. I'll probably just keep the current date at the front and file it to the back each day. I also used both sides of each card since the cardstock is thicker than the notcards; there wouldn't have been enough room for 366 cards. (Dont' forget Leap Day!) I'm excited to have this since I like to journal, in theory, I just don't always remember to do it. This way, I can quickly jot down something from my day and be able to look back each year. How fun!

Lighter than Air

 Whew! We have been crazy busy lately, just like I said we would be. I don't think I even realized the amount of time to relax that we would not have. We successfully moved into our house on the hottest day of the summer. Maybe I'm exaggerating a bit, but we don't see the 90's too terribly often in the U.P. We spent all of last week packing up our hot, hot apartment and with the help of few strong men, we were able to get everything moved after we closed on Thursday evening. I was so giddy that day, I can't believe we waited this long to get a house!

The previous owners were at the closing and they were telling us about the changes made to the house over the years (the women who owned it had lived here for 40-something years). It was so fun to find out why the bathroom is so big (it was once a small bedroom) and why the entry way is such a funny shape (part of it was once a bathroom). I wish I had remembered to ask what kind of floors are under the dining room carpet (we're using it as a living room, but you can tell there is another floor underneath). We also had a nice little surprise when they told us they left an a/c unit in the garage, I had assumed that we wouldn't be getting a/c for a few weeks if we had it at all this summer. Boy am I glad they left it! It has been in the 80's and 90's the last few days while we've been unpacking.

We still have a few boxes here and there, waiting to be unpacked, but for the most part, we are moved in. Let me tell you, moving with a 2-year-old and a baby is a total joke. I was ready to rip my hair out while we were packing (in our 85 degree apartment). If Adrian wasn't unpacking then Isaac was needing attention. And now, I feel like we're getting close to having everything in its place, but I keep getting interrupted by a 2-year-old that quickly discovered the joy of having a deck. And a yard! And space to ride his cars! Luckily, Jeff is switching schedules so he just happened to have 6 days off starting on the day we closed. By the time he goes back to work tomorrow, I'll be able to enjoy that yard as well.

Anyways, back to Thursday. What a crazy, wonderful day! Here is the best part as told by Jeff:

"Thursday, at 3:30, Heidi and I closed on our first house with our RE/MAX agent, Gina. After going to check out our newly purchased home we went back to our apartment to get cleaning supplies. I knew it was going to be a long night so I wanted some fresh-brewed Holiday gas station coffee; as I was there, I noticed a group of people standing outside and a Suburban with a wicker hot air balloon basket hanging off the back. Since I'm a Howell native (home of the Michigan Challenge Balloonfest) I asked them if they had ever flown at the balloonfest in Howell. They replied by saying, "Yes, we actually live in Howell," and they were actually in the U.P. vacationing and giving balloon rides. I told them that my wife and I grew up in Howell. They then invited us to launch a balloon at the football field across the highway. After going back to the apartment I told Heidi about our invitation. After getting to the balloon launch site and meeting the other people who were helping launch the balloon, I found out that several of them RE/MAX agents and the balloon was a RE/MAX balloon, the same company that helped me find my first home!"

It was quite the experience. Most definitely worth delaying house-cleaning! I was holding Isaac in the front pack so I missed out on the helping part, but I was able to get quite a few pictures. We just can't get over the crazy coincidence. Plus, Jeff said that helping launch a balloon was sort of on his bucket list so that's pretty sweet that he was able to fulfill that.

Funny that I never thought about how hot it would be standing next to one of these giants as it's filling up (they use a fan at first and once it's opened up enough they switch to the burner). Jeff said at certain times it felt like the ropes were going to melt.

 There was a boy with special needs at the launch and I had thought he was family member to one of the crew and that was the reason he was there. He was asking questions about everyone there and seemed kind of nervous but since I had just met him, I wasn't sure if that was his usual manner. As it happens, the balloon ride was for him! He went up with the pilot and his dad who was a RE/MAX agent. Just as they were about to lift off, they had to coax him into the basket. He was afraid the flames would burn him.

After they floated off I was honestly torn between cleaning our house or chasing the balloon. We ended up cleaning the house, but what a day!

Downstate Rundown

Wednesday: Surprised Dad. Or tried to. Amanda, Kaitlin, and Gretchen were expected and Jen showed up to my dad's surprise. We were hiding out at Lassila's (we didn't actually get in until 10) but I heard that Jen's kids met my dad at the end of the driveway when he came home from work. Fun! Later, as everyone was sitting around visiting he asked if Jeff and Heidi were here too. This obviously wasn't rehearsed because everyone fell completely silent which was a dead giveaway. Ha! Oh well, it was so much fun to get most of the family in town for the weekend.

Thursday: Woke up to go garage saleing with my mom and sisters but got a stomachache a half hour before they were supposed to pick me up. So weird since I never get stomachaches. I thought I was sick but I felt completely fine after a few hours and they happened to be at a nearby garage sale so I met up with them then. We stopped at Panera Bread for lunch and then went on our merry way. Spent the rest of the evening with my family since Jeff's mom was working.

Friday: Basically a repeat of Thursday but no stomachache (yay!) and meeting at Leo's for lunch.

I spy my former boss.

My mom made spaghetti for supper and I bought some spaghetti squash for everyone to try. I think everyone who tried it liked it. Woohoo! I love when that happens!

Not sure if I should say this or not but Adrian is sitting next to me insisting that the above picture is Grandma and Papa. In case you're confused too, this is actually his Uncle Mark and Auntie Jen.

Saturday: We spent the morning with Lassila's where Jeff made smoothies yet again. He dug out the long lost forgotten blender while we were there and now everyone's hooked on smoothies.

That evening, we had a 60th birthday party for my dad. Totally looks like I'm about to lose my hold on Isaac here, sorry buddy. I'll blame it on the awkwardly close camera. I meant to get a better picture later but it never happened.

We were able to meet Isaac's newest cousins.

Aria and Isaac. Not pictured, a sweet little boy cousin who was born a month after my little dude.

Sunday: Mother's Day! We were up late every night and by the time we got home on Saturday night I was ridiculously exhausted. The congregation is building a new church this year and our previous church sold so for now they are renting a local (unused) school and having services at two separate times on Sunday morning. We had planned to go to the 8:30 service but we didn't even wake up until 9 so we ended up going for 11:30. Afterwards, we headed to Kensington where we had a delicious grilled lunch prepared by my father-in-law. We also made it to the farm. I've been wanting to take Adrian but it never worked out during other trips.

We made a quick stop at my mom and dad's to say "good-bye" before finished off the evening on the back deck back at the Lassila's.

Adrian walked around with these goggles for the longest time. They go with a workbench and tools that he loves to play with.

It was a really great Mother's Day!

If you're still reading at this point, have a fantastic weekend!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

We enjoyed a wonderful week-and-a-half downstate with both sides of the family for Christmas. Our computer was with us, but I never took the time to blog. My sisters Amanda and Jennifer were also in town (with their families, of course). In that time, we did some shopping, threw a surprise birthday party for my brother Dan, got spoiled with some new gadgets, and even sneaked in a day date. Unfortunately, my camera didn't make the return trip with us so I don't actually have pictures of any of the above at this time.
Today, we are taking it easy and trying to find our groove again. Whatever that means for us. I have plenty to do and Adrian is currently throwing a fit. He slept till 9:30 today, but I don't think he's quite 'caught up' with his sleep yet after such a busy week.
This picture was our Christmas card this year--if you're local, and I don't have your address, it's still coming to you! They finally arrived the day we left so I passed out a lot of them at church on Christmas and sent out what I could. BTW, I emailed Snapfish, telling them how irritated I was with the 3 weeks it took to receive my cards and they refunded my order.

Happy New Year to you and yours!

Happy Thursday! I've been busy with sewing projects for Etsy, trying to squeeze that in with everything else that I do around here. Like making tortillas (we've been eating a lot of Mexican, you know) of course, sometimes Jeff helps...And Adrian:

Chicken enchiladas are in the oven so I'm taking a minute to post! I want to be glued to my sewing machine right now but I have a little kiddo to love on so that really only happens when he's sleeping. It is a beautiful day so I'm planning to sneak out to the park with Adrian after supper. (Jeff started a workout program so he may want to do that while we're gone and out of the way!)

So far this week:

We filed our taxes!
Jeff had a sore throat that has now been passed to Adrian and myself
Adrian has been unusually crabby--probably because he was getting sick
I am exhausted--also due to this sore throat stuff
I've been to the chiropractor. My tailbone has been out of place for over 2 years now and I'm finally getting it back to normal! Adrian gets scared every time we go, I think he believes the doctor is hurting me. He did better today than he has in past appointments, I think he would have been fine if he wasn't feeling sick.
We tried parsnips for the first time. Exciting right? They are in season so I gave them a try. I roasted them with olive oil, salt, pepper, and thyme. They were okay, similar in taste to pumpkin seeds, oddly enough.
Adrian and I went sledding early in the week, he loves it! Snow in his face though, not so much!
I went to bible class by myself because my boys weren't feeling well. I had to work in the kitchen and some of the other ladies on my committee couldn't make it so I didn't want to miss it.
I was an auntie one more time! My sister Sara had a baby girl--oh wait, that was last week. Close enough!
Adrian clomped around in his boots. A lot. He can't put them on by himself so he is always asking me for 'hep, hep.'
I fixed a problem with our computer. It has been heating up very quickly when it's open and the fan is constantly blowing. Last night, I had it on for about an hour and it was so hot it felt like it could burn my skin! I checked hp's website and after downloading updated BIOS (whatever that is) it has stayed cool.
Adrian has played in his johnny jump-up. Yeah, I'm serious. I keep it under the couch so it's handy if babies come to visit. He found it one day last week and he keeps asking me to put him in it. He jumps and spins. What a nut!
I was told that I may inherit 5 million dollars from a 'relative' in some republic. I just needed to send him all my personal information to get things started. That was on a facebook friend request.
I neglected my blog. I'm hope you noticed. I think I'll be back tomorrow. Maybe once I wake in the morning I'll remember whether or not I made anything this week.

I want to blog...

Really, I do! It's just that this time of year gets so busy! Like today, I ran to Goodwill to find a tree stand (I found one for $1!), and met a friend at the salon so I could watch her little guy while she was getting her hair cut (and so I could get my bangs trimmed). Then we went to the dome to walk, then I had to pick up groceries, and then I had to bring a sippie cup back to the store to see if the crack on the top was covered under the one year warranty (it wasn't). By the time I got home, it was the middle of the afternoon and I was starving. Plus, I had only done half of the running that I had planned. Of course, considering the time, I had to start making supper (a frankensteined version of broccoli cheese soup, still in the process as I type).
 I am a bit disappointed that I forgot to pick up more thread today in my hurry to get home and eat. I started sewing Adrian's teepee last night and got as far as I could before running out of thread. I am so excited to get it put together! I wasn't going to put a window on it but, now I think I will. I wouldn't want to miss Adrian's sweet little face peeking out! I plan to put a cover over the hole that will Velcro closed. I can't wait to show you the finished product!
A little update on Adrian: he is doing much better! He finally stopped throwing up, I'm still not sure what the was all about. Have you ever heard of kids throwing up when they are teething? I haven't but maybe some do? Either way, I've been giving him Camilia and it has been working great! He has at least two molars pushing their way up, poor buddy! Also, I think dairy might be the cause of his eczema. Bummer!! I noticed that the entire week he was sick, his skin was so smooth even though I hadn't put lotion or shea butter on him. Coincidentally, he hadn't had any dairy all week. Now that he's back on dairy, his skin is all scaly again. At least I know what is causing it now!

So sorry, what is this, the third post without a photo? Sadly, I have not taken a single picture this month. I will work on that!

just a quick 'hello!'

So you don't think I quit my blog or anything, I've been up north for the past week and gave myself a break from blogging. I have something to share for Feature Me Friday but I've been keeping busy today so I'll show you tomorrow! I made a list of things to get done this weekend and I'm on a roll. I made it pretty manageable so I would actually stick to it. The idea of making lists sounds fabulous but my follow through can be kind of pathetic. Check back tomorrow to see what I've been up to!

Happy November!

Adrian wouldn't eat the leftover breakfast casserole that I tried to give him for lunch but he gobbled down the spaghetti I made for him. He was ready to lick the plate and I'm sure he would have had he thought of that!





I didn't mean to completely neglect my blog last week, it just sort of happened. We were out of town for the weekend and by the end of the week Adrian and I had nasty colds going on. In fact, I thought I had gotten the flu after I lost my breakfast on Saturday morning. Thankfully, I did not. I drank an (natural) energy drink to help with my cold but I chugged it down and immediately felt nauseous. I won't be doing that again. Still, it made me think of my mom. I don't remember her getting sick all that often but, then as a kid, I probably wouldn't have noticed unless she was in bed all day. The truth is, she probably did get sick but she still had to take care of all of us kids! I guess it takes being a parent to truly appreciate all my Mom has done!

Our weekend downstate was wonderful. It's awesome to be able to see both of our families in the same trip but on the other hand, I hate that we always have to divide our time. I think I'd have to be there for months in order for it to feel long enough. As it is, even a long weekend (nearly 5 days) felt super fast. I'll post pictures tomorrow. On a related note, we will be downstate for Christmas! Jeff has been telling me that there is a good chance that he'll be able to get a few days off but I didn't want to believe it until he knew for sure. He came home the other day with the great news! I'm already dreading all the running around but I know it will be worth it if we get to see our families for Christmas!

Speaking of Christmas, I've been saying for months that I want to have our Christmas shopping done by Thanksgiving and I finally ordered the first thing! I've seen tee pees a few times on various blogs and I remember my sister Jen talking about how cool it would be to make one for her kids. As I was browsing on Amazon for ideas for Adrian I saw a tee pee and flew over to fabric.com to see if they had any patterns. They do! The one I ordered says it's big enough for one kid and an adult. I'm so excited to make it and give it Adrian! He is always crawling into the tiniest spaces to play so I know he's going to love it!

We're home for a while

Oh man, I have some serious catching up to do on here. At least I'm not the only one slacking with posting this summer, I've noticed a lot of other bloggers have taken some time off to enjoy the summer heat!


I feel like summer is FLYing by, we've been pretty busy with trips nearly every other weekend. If I'm not cleaning up from one trip, I'm getting ready for the next! Trying to do all the normal stuff in between feels like too much when I should be outside enjoying the lake! We did enjoy it for a short time this weekend when we were camping with my family. Adrian LOVES the water. Even before Lake Superior warmed up (and it's really warm this year!) he didn't mind the cold and loved to splash and throw rocks. And eat rocks. Whatever. He was a pretty good camper, I just wasn't a very good relaxer.


He's walking like crazy now and has gotten better even over the weekend, getting his balance on uneven ground, and figuring out how to squat down and pick things up and be able to stand up again. I have a hard time with camping and letting him get dirty. I should really get over it. The few times that I did were much more enjoyable. Adrian would walk around and fall down and crawl in the dust and he would be as happy as can be. And it all washes off in the end right?? That's what I keep telling myself anyways. Everyone keeps saying that this stage is the hardest, particularly when camping. I sure hope they're right! It's easier when he's walking more and not seeing every. single. rock. on the ground.


It was so nice to hang out with my family for a few days. I just wish everyone could have been there! (Two of my brothers and two of my sisters didn't make it.) I'm not sure if this will be an annual camping trip or not but I sure hope it happens more often than it has in the past!



I had a family picture to post but upon reviewing, I decided not to because of the other reason I haven't posted. The one weekend we were home, I had an abscessed tooth. It was a miserable few days. We still don't know for sure how it happened. It was my front tooth so the dentist thinks it was from some sort of trauma to that particular area. I did get bumped there by Adrian the day before it started to hurt but that may have only been the 'trigger' that set it off. It may have been caused by braces in the first place since teeth get shifted around and sometimes the root dies. So weird, that tooth may have been dead for years and I had no idea since it never turned grey. Until it started to hurt. And oh boy, does it hurt. I've heard people complain about abscessed teeth in the past but I had no idea what they were talking about. I was basically stuck on the couch for a few days because I was absolutely exhausted from the infection. My face swelled up like a balloon, I looked like I belonged in Whoville. Of course, I knew nothing about this sort of thing so by the time I realized what it was, the weekend had arrived so I waited until Monday to see a dentist. I was referred to a specialist and lucky for me, they were able to get me in for a root canal that afternoon. The first dentist thought I would have to wait weeks to get in. I'm so thankful it's all behind me now and I'm back to normal! So, going back to my first comment about the family picture, I still didn't have my normal smile back so I look kind of goofy.

Other than that, our other excitement is car trouble. We've been trying to sell our car as a step to getting out of debt (I'm pretty sure I've mentioned this before). We had a buyer, a very patient buyer at that, but we ran into a lot of problems trying to sell it. Looking back, I'm thankful that we weren't able to sell it so easily because Jeff's truck broke down. That would have been the only vehicle we owned for at least a few weeks. After a few trips back and forth from the Copper Country, the truck is finally back in our parking lot. What a pain that was considering it broke down at the camp and he only had a day or two each week to get up there and work on it.

In case you were wondering, I can run 6 miles! Woohoo! I never knew that was possible!

Enjoy the rest of this beautiful evening!

Catching up...just not right now

I realize I've been away from my blog for a while, there's some serious slacking going on here. I plan to post a bit more next week since a few things have been going on around here. And nothing is really that spectacular but it's kind of the reason I've been away. (That's my story and I'm sticking to it!) We'll be busy this weekend so I won't be posting then. So, here are a few pictures of Little A to hold you over until then:

Sweet Summertime

We are in the midst of a heat wave right now. I keep asking myself, are we still in the U.P?? It is super humid as well. If you'll notice the background in this picture, it's been hazy for the last few days:


This boy was covered in sand head-to-toe by the time we left the beach!
Adrian and I were downstate for most of last week. A friend of mine was heading down with her baby so she asked if we would come along. I'm sure it made the trip a little easier to have another driver! As I reread what I just wrote I have to chuckle, we ended up taking my car. So I guess we just went down on her suggestion! :) I went garage saling on Thursday with my mom (and Larissa and Jeanie) and then again on Friday with Jeff's mom (and Jenny and Katie). I had decent luck both times, even passed up a few bigger items because I didn't have room to get them back home. Unfortunately, I did not find a single piece of clothing for Adrian. I guess that's okay, I think I'm all set until spring. He still needs winter gear and a few pairs of blue jeans would be nice. There are still plenty of garage sales to be had!


On Saturday, I was able to go out to breakfast with Kayla and Ashley. I was quite delighted that Ashley asked her younger sister Stephanie to come as well. We have never really hung out but she is the sweetest girl and it was so nice to be able to visit with her! Old Navy had their annual flip-flop sale on Saturday as well so I rushed over there before heading to IHOP. They were $1 a pair! I was tempted to stock up for the next few years...and I could have if they actually had my size in the colors I was looking for!
Now we are back home sweating our buns off. I was excited to go grocery shopping today just to enjoy some AC for a couple hours! My poor Adrian is so sweaty all the time, hopefully he'll make it through the summer. Luckily, we live right across the street from an [inland] lake so I'm sure we'll be spending many of our days there! And hopefully these past few days haven't been a preview of what the next 3 months will bring!

(I forgot the camera at home when I went downstate, these pictures are from Monday. It was a high of 89--actually reached 95--so we stayed out of the house as long as we could!)

I just might win an award

For the most sporadic blogger.

You know somethin? I feel better when I have an excuse for not blogging. I feel like I've been so busy lately. And yet, somehow, I still feel as though I have nothing to show for it. Instead of boring you with the mundane things, I'll just tell you that I've been working on Etsy stuff (and not enough) and trying to get ready for my in-laws to arrive in a few days. (Yes! We have family coming for Thanksgiving!)

I've been working on my ornaments for Circle Boutique in our spare bedroom and it is absolutely turned upside-down. I'm hoping to get it turned right-side-up before Wednesday evening. Or just WednesDAY, I need to find out when they will be here!

If you haven't checked out our shop on Etsy, take a look! My Mom, my sisters Sara, Emily and Amanda, and myself opened up Circle Boutique a few weeks ago. We are filling it with handmade baby items, mittens, pre-made scrapbooked albums, ornaments, and so much more to come! I know I have a whole list of items I plan to make in the future so check it often to see the latest items!

Home Again

The past weekend found us downstate yet again. We were able to see all of both sides of the family somehow, although with some it was a longer than others. (I think I saw Dave for a total of 20 minutes.)

And again, I heard a few more people mention that they read my blog. Now if I could just get these people to comment ON HERE. I'm so curious to see all who pay attention to me!

That's all for now, just wanted you all to know that I was not intentionally taking a break from blogging. (We just returned home last night.)

Farm Country

I seem to have taken an unintentional break from blogging! I guess I've been a little busy, just not for as long as I've been gone!

Jeff and I were able to make it to Minnesota's farm country to visit my sisters Jen and Sara and their families. We were able to see this little guy for the first time:



And this little lady happened to have a birthday when we were there:



As usual, I was not very good about taking out my camera, I always kick myself for that. It's so fun to see the kids growing up, they change so much in the time that we don't see them! Nikayda and Will are going into second grade this fall (is that right?) It feels like just yesterday that I was tying up the phone line to tell all my friends that Nikayda was "expected" and my Mom hadn't even finished calling all of her family!

Pretty soon I'll be saying "it feels like just yesterday when [insert name] was born," talking about my own child!

Sorry 'bout that

Whew! I hadn't expected my posts to be this far between, but so be it.
Christmas was wonderful (I know it probably feels like an eternity ago by now). We were able to go downstate despite losing a car. It was the usual hectic Christmas Eve running from one party to the next but I'm so glad we didn't have to miss out! It was so nice to see everyone from both sides of the family. I was actually supposed to go/come down next weekend again to see Eric and Shannon and their twins. And Evan of course! But, I don't think I'll have a ride and I have a hard time trusting just anyone if the roads happen to be bad. Jeff and I will probably go down in early February so we can see Brad and Larissa's baby at the same time. I figure that otherwise I'll just want to come down again and that starts getting expensive ya know?
We got out first heat bill when we returned after Christmas, what a nice surprise. I'm not sure if I've mentioned it before but our apartment isn't insulated very well so it is very cold. Our landlord actually came right out and said, just the other day, "that's why I'm not charging you very much rent" in regards to our heat bill. Well gee, thanks. Needless to say, we will be looking for a new place to live in the very near future because we're actually paying more for our apartment here (including heat) than we did downstate and that place was MUCH nicer! It's kind of brutal that we'll have to pack up and move again, it feels like we just got done with that, but I know it will save us money in the long run so we may as well get started looking!

I'm feeling lucky

I regret to say that my posts will be few and far between until we get a new computer and Internet hook-up at home.
Imagine this:
Your cruising along at 55 miles per hour on an undivided highway. There is no one in front of you, you have a clear view of the icy road ahead. Out of nowhere, it seems, a white pickup comes barreling out of the opposing traffic and starts heading for the guardrail. Right in front of you. It's only about 20 yards away, and you know this old tank your driving isn't going to stop in time. Not on these roads. You are completely helpless. You brace yourself for the crash. It is so powerful, yet you feel no pain. Your view is suddenly blocked when your airbags explode sending a horrible burning smell into the air. You feel your car twist around without actually seeing it. A scream pierces the air and you suddenly realize that it comes from your own mouth. Your car, mercifully, comes to a stop. You jump out, unsure of what to do next. Looking across the highway, you see a girl in a white pickup banging on her window and yelling, it takes a moment to realize that she can't get out. You run across and open her door and finally hear her voice, she's yelling "I need a phone! Does anyone have a phone?!" You run back to your car saying "yeah, it's in my purse!" Or course, by the time you extract it from your mangled car, someone else has already helped her. You glance in the direction you've come and see the flashing lights of the police, ambulance, and fire trucks. All racing in your direction. The thought crosses your mind that you should call the police.
Oh wait, someone already did.
Now imagine that was me.
I am so lucky to have survived. I hate to sound so dramatic but really, not many people can walk away from a head-on collision with nothing more than a bruised knee and a small cut on their shin. Especially when the bed of the truck that they just ran into held cinder blocks, one of which landed on the windshield. There are times like this when you know that God truly is watching over you.
On another note, the other driver had a revoked license. She wasn't even supposed to be on the road, and was apparently arrested.
We still haven't had a chance to look at the car. It was our '93 Intrepid, so other than the inconvenience of being out of a car, it wasn't a real big loss.

I've been feeling so lucky these past couple of days! Let's all count our blessings this holiday season!

Finally!

I've been trying to post for over a week but everytime I signed it it showed "adult filter blocked" at the library. Talk about frustrating! I thought I kept everything PG on here...I might have to review my posts.

And a week later...She finally returns!

I'd like to say that the reason I haven't blogged in a week is because I've been so busy getting ready to move. But that would make me a liar. I had intentions of doing that. Does that count? Actually this is what I did this week:

Monday: Went to Mom and Dad's for supper. I even went to the library before with the littlest ones and Mom. I went to Paul and Paula's afterward to see Grandma Ginger whom I hadn't seen since...I can't remember, sometime before St. Johns. She's been staying at the camp in the U.P. like every summer. I hadn't realized how much had happened over the summer until she was asking me every other sentence what in the world I was talking about!

Tuesday: Clipped coupons and scoured the store ads for the week. I am so slow at this, I literally set aside a night to make my grocery list!

Wednesday: Went grocery shopping with aforementioned list. Scored a free toothbrush and toothpaste at Walgreens. Threw in a few other necessities and my total was 20 cents after coupons and register rewards (from a previous trip). I hit up Meijer and spent my life savings because alas, I can't seem to be able to save money with coupons there. The good deals are all at the drugstores! I also spent over a half hour in line behind a guy that wanted a certain wine that wasn't on the shelf. HALF AN HOUR. What was I thinking.

Thursday/Today: Made beef enchiladas with the chicken enchilada recipe in the family cookbook. Didn't have bouillon so I used beef broth in place of the water. I swear, I'm always missing something! It turned out good anyhow. I also made oatmeal caramalitas from the same cookbook. Mmmmm they smell good! Darn it, they're not for me! If you go to church Saturday night you can eat them there.

Anyway, back to my original excuse. The biggest reason I'm not posting regularly is my computer. Honest. You should see my face every time I look at it. Absolutely disgusted. It's so slow, I can't upload pictures. And what could be worse than a post with no pictures? Oh yeah. Fifty posts with no pictures.

Make that five with the rate a post.