Safe

Scary: my brother was involved in a car-truck accident last night. A reckless, careless "friend" of his hit the driver's side of my brother's truck last night while Ben was in it. The other kid's car is totaled...air bags deployed, front end completely smashed in, windshield shattered. Ben's truck sustained major damage to the side panel, but thankfully no one was hurt.

A little extra speed, a few seconds either way and the end result could have been much different. Seeing both vehicles today brought tears to my eyes, just thinking about what might have happened.

The fact is he's safe, they're all safe and I'm so very thankful. The incident proves that God works in mysterious ways and His timing is always perfect.

In other news: I accomplished a lot today. I got up, did the dishes and tackled a major project - cleaning/organizing our big walk-in closet. Took me almost three hours to haul everything out into the living room then sift through to see what could be sent to St. Vincent DePaul, what needed to be tossed/recycled, and what things we were keeping.

I re-organized the shelves and got everything off the floor, which is where things seem to end up when we're in a hurry. I found three of Mark's "missing" ties under a pile of papers and also uncovered some family photos I thought were lost. It feels so good to have the project done because it means that when (if?) we move, there will be that much less to go through.

Sometimes I look around our apartment and feel sick looking at all the "stuff" we have. Ugh. Big cleaning projects definately make me think twice about buying when I'm at the store. Do I really need this new picture frame? Nah. How about this candle? Nope. This Dvd? Nuh-uh. I think it's important that we all take some time to step back and look at our lives...throw out what we don't need and keep what really matters.

I'm feeling pretty good about my cleaning lately. On Weds. I cleaned out and re-organized our junk drawers. Yup that's right we have more than one. Or should I say had? We're down to one again, with the other drawers organized and nicely housing our spatulas and spoons as they should.

It's amazing some of the junk Mark keeps. Seriously there were reciepts in that drawer from 2006! I also found like 60 pens...just when I was about to go to Wal-Mart to pick up a pack! Pens seem to disappear in our house...though I've now found where they go...the junk drawer!

Anyway, the next project to tackle is our computer room. This room is really challenging because it's where we're keeping all of our wedding gifts that we're unable to use right now (because they're for when we have a house...ie garden hose, new towels and pots/pans etc). The room isn't exactly messy...it's cluttered. My goal is to try to find a way to organize it so it looks nicer and also to go through our papers and try to weed out things we don't need to save.

I also want to go through Mark's clothes and donate the shirts/pants that he doesn't want or doesn't wear anymore. I did this with my own part of the closet and dresser drawers a few months ago when my Grandpa was in the hospital and I needed something to keep my mind off his health issues. I tried to get Mark to do it then, but he's so weird about holding on to that stuff. He has shirts that he wore in 8th grade! He's going to have to do it though because when (if?) we move, I am not taking those outdated, waaaaaaaay too small clothes of his with us!

Ok, enough about my cleaning/organizing. Actually, I'm going to sign off and go scrub the floor. Mark went golfing and out to eat/to bars with some of his buddies so it's a good time to do the floors because he's gone. Whenever he's home he manages to dirty it up right away!

Later...

Movie Talkers & Other Stuff

I'm not a fan of those "movie talker" people. You know who I mean...the ones who immediately begin talking in loud whispers the moment the open credits begin. They're completely silent as they wait for the movie to start, then when the previews start its like someone flipped a switch and they go into talk mode.

I went with my mom last night to see Mamma Mia! and we absolutely loved it. Except for the movie talkers, of course. After we admonished the two ladies (yup...in their late 50's and still talking their way through movies) with several choruses of "Shhhhhh!" and "Quiet." They got the hint. Kind of.

During one slower song, the chatting resumed. Thankfully, my mom whipped out one of her famous you'd-better-knock-it-off-or-else looks and they quieted for good. I just don't understand how some people can be so rude.

Oh well, the movie was good. Very funny, but I could tell my mom was crying at some parts especially where Meryl Streep sings that song about her daughter growing up. My mom was probably thinking back to my wedding day.

She told me that all that morning she was having flashbacks to when I was born, when I was young, etc. I'm sure pretty emotional for her. Hopefully I've proven that even though I'm married, I still love to spend time with my family. Seriously, my mom is one of my best friends. We talk on the phone at least once a day and go shopping, to movies etc. all the time. We're going to play Bingo tomorrow at the fair! I'm pretty excited for that.

This weekend will be really busy with the fair and Demolition Derby on Monday. I'm sure I'll be filming it again. My brother and some of his friends, plus my cousin Eric and a couple of my friends from high school are all in it so Ben has me record the whole thing on his camcorder so they can get together later and watch it.

We're sending a package out today to our nephew, Craig, who is serving in the Army. He's been stationed in Germany for several years, but was deployed a few months ago to Afghanistan where he helps run convoys. It's his birthday on Sunday, so I'm hoping and praying he can find a few moments to relax, though I know a soldier's job is never done. We're so proud of him!

Our other nephew Troy has been at Basic Training (Air Force) for a little over two weeks now. He called home to his girlfriend who reported to me that so far things are going fine, the food is good and the time is going by pretty quickly. I'm glad to hear that...I worry about him so much, but we're also so very proud of him.

Our service men and women are out there fighting for our freedom and liberties and there is no more important job in my eyes.

Well, I seem to have gotten a bit off track. Just to review the less of this blog post is A) Don't talk during movies. B) More importantly...support our troops!

Ciao.

The Definition of "Cool"

Sometimes, when I'm doing my normal thing - grocery shopping, housework, paying bills, getting gas, buying stamps - I have this urge to prove that I am still "cool."

Today I felt very un-cool as I walked in to pay our electric bill. This morning I got up, did a load of dishes and threw on a t-shirt and jeans so I could quickly go to the bank, pay the bill, run to the post office and swing by work to pick up some things. My intent was to be gone no longer than 45 minutes, so I could make it back home and get all my cleaning done before 2 p.m.

To say the least, I looked frumpy. My hair was dirty, I wore very little make-up and grungy clothes...so un-cool. The bored teenage girl behind the counter at the utility place had her eyebrow and lip pierced. She was wearing a cute top, had on those stylish new jeans and bright red nail polish. Oh, and her hair looked clean. She definitely beat me on the cool factor.

Just as I was feeling very "ugh" I remembered my cool-ness weapon...my tattoo! At the time I got it, I definitely didn't have "cool" on my mind - I had simply been dreaming about getting for two years and felt it was the right time. Now it's my secret weapon to proving to the world that yes, I am an old (23...not too old right?) married woman with bills and a job and responsibility...but I'm still capable of coolness.

I flashed my wrist at the bored cashier and smiled as she looked appreciatively at my stars tattoo. Ha! How's that for cool?

WiNe tAsTiNg

Today I played hooky from work (just the afternoon and I already put in extra hours throughout the week) because Mark had off and he wanted to tour a winery. I know, right? Sounds like "rich person" thing to do. Anyway, it turned out to be really, really fun!

We made the long drive to Algoma's von Stiehl Winery. First we did the tour of the winery which included getting to see the "caverns" where the wine is processed and the bottling room. Then we each got to sample eight different types of wine! All this for only $3.75 per person!

Some of the wines were amazing, some not so. We're not really wine drinkers, so we weren't really sure if we'd like anything but it turned out we each found two that we really liked.

Here's a list of some of the ones we tried: Sparkling Muscat, Oktoberfest, Wisconsin Cranberry, Niagara, Crimson Royale, Cherry Kirsche, Cherry Blush, and Raspberry. Mark tried a couple others includine one that is cured in an oak barrel. (The cure the wines either in stainless steel vats or in hand-crafted oak barrels.) He said it tasted sort of "woody."

Even though they were just tiny tastes and not full glasses, we drank them quickly and in succession...and I hadn't eaten breakfast or lunch yet. Add into the equation the fact that I don't drink much/often and I ended up feeling a bit tipsy. Mark was laughing at me the whole time. Luckily he's much bigger than I am so that wine didn't phase him a bit because someone still had to drive home!

We decided to buy a few bottles and hit the road. $77 later....



We bought some of it as gifts. One wine (not pictured) is a wedding gift while one of the Oktoberfest ones will go to Mark's parents.

Anyway, we headed out in search of some food to fill my "winey" stomach. As we were leaving, we couldn't help but notice the beach (Lake Michigan) and heard it calling our name. So we made a quick pit stop.

To get our feet wet....


...and write our names in the sand.


After we were good and sandy, we headed back toward Green Bay to eat at the Titled Kilt. Definately a man's restaurant. Every waitress wears a kilt and a very cleavage showing shirt. Good food, though.

Since I was feeling much more stable on my feet after the food, Mark suggested making a quick stop at Oneida Casino. It was fine with me, but I warned him (yet again) that I suck at gambling and quickly lose money. He knew.

I managed to play for about 20 minutes with $20 before losing it all. He, of course, played Black Jack and Roulette and had much better luck. All in all we ended up losing $30 I think.

I guess it turned out to be a pretty expensive day, with gas figured in, but it was worth it to spend some time together. We think of these little outings as a luxury thing that we surely won't be doing once we have children. I guess we just want to take advantage of our time together before we add the joy of babies to our family. That joy will happen soon if I have anything to say about...and I do.

Anyway, tomorrow is my cousin's Bridal Shower/Bachelorette Party and I'm super excited to spend time with her and the other bridesmaids. I'm just so happy for her! She stood up in our wedding and having her there meant so much to me, I'm thrilled that I can return the favor by standing up in hers!

Ok, the Packers are playing and Mark would like me to watch it with him soooooo ta ta!

I Struggle....

...with this blog because I feel that so many of the other wonderful blogs I read are filled with such inspiring and beautiful words...mine simply don't compare.

I'm mean, seriously how many times can one stand to read about an argument Mark and I had? Or any of the other mundane things that fill up my life?

You know what I realized? Every single blog that I read is written by someone with children! Perhaps that's what's missing from my blog...child-like innocence and cute anecdotes?

Maybe I should hold off on this blogging business till I have something "real" to write about....hmmm...something to ponder. In the meantime, I'll try to liven up this blog with some cute niece/nephew sayings.

•At a recent family party, several of my nieces and nephews were swimming in a pool and became very excited when the neighbor began combining the land next door. The kids rushed out of the pool to watch the big machinery.

My godson Jade (nearly 3) began squealing, "Candy! Candy!"
Apparently he's been to one too many parades.

•Speaking of parades, my second cousin Grant, 3, sat with us at a parade a few weeks ago. He enjoyed dancing as the bands played and kept busy catching candy. He wasn't, however, thrilled with the firetrucks or their sirens.

"Those things," he said pointing with one hand while his other attempted to cover his ears. "are not fun."

•"Where do babies come from?" my 5-year-old nephew Trent asked me one day.
"Where do you think they come from?" I asked.
"I dunno...the sandbox?" - Trent
"Yup, of course that's where."

blah

Yikes! It's been a long time since I posted! I really want to do a lengthy post about Relay for Life, which we participated in on Friday/Saturday, and all the other fun stuff we did over the weekend but I'm simply too distracted to do that now.

Mark and I have had a very stressful fighting time. We're lashing out at eachother for no reason it seems. Last night he was very angry and said (paraphrasing) "Well if we're making eachother so unhappy, why are we together?"

Ugh. It broke my heart. This sucks, really it does. We're talking and trying to get to the root of our arguments so we can hopefully stop having them all together, but it's slow going.

It seems we get on this really bad streak where all we do is fight, then we're really good for a while...it keeps flipping back and forth like that.

I don't really even remember what we started fighting about. I think a lot of it has to do with wanting to get a house and move forward with our plans for a family, but we're feeling kind of stuck with that.

Blah. Oh well, I'm sure we'll be fine. I promise to post some real stuff soon.

FaCeLiFt

My blog got a facelift. Again. Sorry, I simply love to play around with this stuff. This blog will be getting lots and lots of facelifts 'til I decide to be bored with changing it!

Not much new. Went shopping and to a movie with my mom for her birthday and I'm getting things ready for our Relay for Life walk tomorrow.

I've been feeling a bit down. Just frustrated with certain things at work and a few things going on between Mark and I. Doesn't help that I'm starting to feel that restlessness again...that feeling of "wanting something more." I was able to smash that feeling down for a month or so but it's starting to creep back up.

I feel like I want/need something...a house? A baby? A puppy? Something...anything to look forward to. Ugh. It's a sickening feeling to know that I should be so happy with the way my life is (husband, loving family, etc.) but to still wish for more.

It also doesn't help that I'm upset with a friend who volunteers for overtime (even though her family doesn't need the money) and in turn ends up not spending much time with her young kids. Frustrates me because I would do anything to have a baby and I see her taking her children for granted. Doesn't she realize how quickly they grow? That soon they'll be out of that fun baby stage, and into the teenage years where they'll probably want nothing to do with her?

Sigh. Makes me think "if I were her..." But I guess we can't do that because it's unfair to judge other people's decisions. For all I know she could have a really good reason for wanting the overtime. Maybe she's planning a vacation to Disneyland and wants to save up extra money...could be.

Ah, well. This post was pretty pointless but it did help to relieve some of the tension I've been feeling. It's hard for me to share this restless feeling with Mark because he simply doesn't feel it. He's perfectly happy with the way things are and doesn't see the need for change. I guess I'd better do some reflection and pray for peace of mind where all this is concerned. In the meantime, I hope all you out in blogger-land have a wonderful weekend...I know mine will be busy, busy!

Back in the Swing of Things

Wow! We had such an amazingly fun night last night...to tell you the truth I'm surprised I'm up already at 7:45 a.m.!

Last night, we had sky box seats (courtesy of Les Stumpf Ford) for the Timber Rattlers game in Appleton. The group consisted of me, Mark, brother/sisters-in-law Randy, Kris, Dave, Amy, Mary and Dave and my bestest Jenny and her fiancee Jake. We had such a great time...lots of beer, nachos, and popcorn as well as a little baseball watching. We had our picture taken with the Rattler mascot and were able to see a 9-2 Rattler win! I will definitely have to post pics later!

After the game we stopped for drinks at one of our favorite bars, Jeanne's, and got way more than we'd bargained for. My brother and sister in law know the owners very well so we're always treated to drinks on the house at some point. It just happened to be Amy's birthday...sooo we ended up each doing four or five shots! Eeek!

I decided to stop drinking around midnight and switched to water because I really didn't want to feel icky today, plus sometimes it's just as fun to watch the other guys having a good time. Mark and Randy didn't stop, however and are definitely paying for it today.

I'm so glad that Mark forced me to go along. I'm not a big drinker and actually prefer to stay home knitting/reading/cleaning/baking/watching tv etc. But after last night I feel so alive! It's so great to be able to go out and have a good time, share laughs, create memories.... it's been a long time since I've gone out. Probably since my bachelorette party last year! It's not something I enjoy that often, but I'm glad for the opportunity to kick up my heels and have fun because I know we won't be doing that crazy stuff when we have little ones.

Anyway it's great to get back into the swing of things...I fear I was becoming a little too antisocial. Easy to do when you're content to be at home. Till next time.... Party on Dudes!

To Serve and Protect

While our vacation was very relaxing, we ended up having a very busy weekend that's left me feeling just as tired and run-down as I was before we went away!

On Saturday we were in a miniature bowling competition with a bunch of my aunts and uncles...it was so fun! I've never done anything like that before but it turns out I'm a good mini-bowler! We played three games (teams) and I ended up with a 260, a 248 and a 198. The last game wasn't so good, but it was still fun. Nancy, my aunt's partner, ended up bowling a perfect 300 game!

After bowling we went home for an hour or two then headed to my brother/sister-in-law's house for a going away party for our nephew Troy who left for Basic Training yesterday. They had a corn roast and the younger nieces and nephews went swimming. It was great to catch up with everyone again, but there was a sadness about it in knowing that everything is changing with Troy leaving. On a bright note, my other nephew Craig - who is stationed with the Army in Afghanistan - was able to email home and send some pictures.

When Mark and I were ready to leave the party I gave Troy a big hug and told him to promise me that he'd stay safe. He told me not to cry and asked me to take care of our Godson Jade while he's gone. I barely made it to the car before I started bawling. Troy and I have gotten very close over the years - I'm going to miss our little talks so much!

After we got home, I sent him a Facebook message telling him that even though I broke my end of the deal (crying) he'd better not break his (staying safe.) He messaged back, which was wonderful. I miss him so much already. The good news is, he'll be back from Basic in six weeks. The bad news is he'll be around for a short time (a few weeks) and then he'll get his placement and be gone for however long, only able to come home for holidays every now and then.

Don't get me wrong, I am so very proud of both my servicemen nephews...it's just so hard to watch them go. I know that without the willingness of thousands of young men and women to protect and serve our country I cannot even imagine where we'd be. Both Troy and Craig believe so much in what they're doing - the work and service they are doing for our country.

It kills me to hear people spouting anger and resentment against the War, our President, or the American Troops fighting for our country. Reality: Supporting the troops means supporting the War. The service men and women in the Army, Air Force, Navy etc. truly believe in the cause and know they are doing what's best for the safety of our country. Saying that the war is pointless or whatever, is a slap in the face to our soldiers. Yes, I pray for peace but I also pray that our country will continue to have the foresight to help other countries in need. It's so important to our future.

Anyway, suffice it to say I'm very proud of my nephews and miss them terribly.

Yesterday we went to a local parade and party and spent a lot of time in the sun. Don't worry, we wore lots of sunscreen. It was a very long, exhausting weekend and it was very, very hard to get up for work this morning! We've got another busy week coming up - we're going to a Timber Rattlers game on Tuesday (box seats thru Mark's work), and Wednesday I'm going with my dad to donate blood, Thursday is my mom's birthday so we're going to run to Appleton for shopping/lunch/movie (Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants II), and Friday night/Saturday morning is the Relay for Life Cancer Walk! Through fundraisers, our team has tallied more than $850! On Saturday, there's a Gospel Festival in a nearby village that my mom and I always go to and on Sunday Mark has his work golf outing and my aunts are having a party at their house. Whew! I'm tired just thinking about all we're going to be doing. Oh well...we'd better take advantage - summer is almost over!!

Hope everyone has a very sunny day!

8-8-08 .... and Vacation!

Wisconsin Dells ~ Mt. Olympus 2008

Even though I'm so very tired and have tons of laundry to do, I wanted to sneak in a quick post mainly because its 8/08/08! I look forward to this day of "same numbers" every year! How fun!



I'm thinking that my mom is a little sad today...right after Mark and I got married she told me we should start trying to have a baby so that I could deliver on 8/8/08 because she thought that would be a great day for a birthday. Sorry mom! Lol.



Well, we just got back from our wonderful vacation. We had so much fun! I'll post a few pics for now and do more of a post tomorrow because I really need to get those chlorine-soaked clothes in the washer and Mark needs a nap...big time! For now enjoy the pics!



Mark got pulled up on stage during the Tommy Bartlett Show to help with a trick!

Me at the Moose Jaw...yum!

~Pirates Cove Mini Golf...love those waterfalls!~

Successful Tourney, Vacation, Wedding Bands

Volleyball

Well, we survived the volleyball tournament. It was a busy, but very rewarding weekend and everything went very well considering it was our first year running the tournament. We spent the entire day Saturday setting up the nets, poles and courts. It really takes a lot more organization and planning than I ever would have guessed to set up!

After a long, sweaty, sunburny day we headed home to shower and get ready to go back to the church grounds to enjoy the picnic. We grabbed some supper (our only meal of the day because we were so busy) and shared a couple of drinks with the other committee members.

Sunday we were up early so we could get things ready. The first groups started showing up around 9:15 a.m. as we had the first matches scheduled for 10 a.m. The brackets all worked out well and everyone seemed to have fun with their match-ups. We were so happy that all the teams showed up! (Some of them hadn't paid in advance as they were supposed to and all of a sudden rain was forecasted so we were worried some wouldn't show.)

In between our running around to keep the teams and matches on schedule, we were able to spend time family who stopped by to watch the tournament...and of course taste some yummy food! The championship match got underway around 4:30 p.m. just as storm clouds started rolling in from the West. Thankfully, the teams were able to finish up their match and we got the nets and poles down with about 30 seconds to spare before the thunder, lighting and pouring rain hit.

We had a very successful tournament, with close to $600 raised in entry fees and approximately $90 raised in water and Gatorade sales. We also had a couple teams donate their prize winnings back to the church and of course most of the teams ate/drank/participated in the silent auction/had kids play games etc. so they were donating money to the church. That's the whole point of the tournament - to get people on the grounds, spending money. Looks like it was a very successful picnic overall!

I'm sure we'll run the tournament again next year, now that we've got our feet wet and have a taste for what it takes to get things organized. It was a nice experience and felt great to be giving back to the church - we had lots of thanks and compliments from players, so that encourages us all the more to do it next year! Here's some pics....

We had 10 teams in Class B and three teams in Class C....

Mark enjoying a walking taco during a quick break from his running around!

Randy and Kris' team.

Vacation

We not only had a busy weekend, but Mark's had a busy couple weeks at work with EAA in Oshkosh. He's had so many rentals to get organized and lots of stress with it. He put in more than 50 hours last week and went in this morning to work at 6 a.m. I've had my usual stresses with work and long hours, so we're super excited to be going on vacation!!!

We leave Wednesday morning for Wisconsin Dells and will stay till late Friday. I can't wait to relax and spend time with my hubby! The Dells are very special to us - we went there to celebrate "One Year Till we Get Married," we stayed for a weekend for the "Brother/Sister Outing" last year and we went there on our honeymoon. Now we're going in early celebration of "One Year of Marriage" We also hope it will be our last vacation just the two of us. (Wink, wink.)

Wedding Bands

Though things have been fine with us lately - very little fighting - I was a little upset to learn (as I was getting ready this morning) that he "forgot" to wear his wedding ring to work today. Argh. It may be a stupid little thing, but it bothers me. He "forgot" twice last week and a couple more times over the last two months.

Mark takes his ring off before bed because too often he was sleeping on his hand and cut off circulation to his ring finger! I'm fine with that and give him a little reminder to put in on every morning when he kisses me goodbye before work. I reminded him this morning and he said he would grab it...but there it was on his nightstand when I got up for work!

If he had a job, say, in a factory or working on a farm where it would get very dirty or be very dangerous for him to wear the ring I wouldn't mind if he didn't. The fact is, he works as a Rental Agent at a Car Dealership and does nothing dangerous or dirty unless you count occasionally scrubbing bugs off cars. So, I think he should wear it every day not only as an expression of our love but as a reminder of the promise we made to each other.

I rarely take my ring off...in fact I think the last time I did was when we went white water rafting and I didn't want to worry about losing it. That turned out to be a mistake though, because apparently I've developed a habit of "adjusting" my ring with my thumb and that day every time I went to do that and remembered my ring was gone I got a little panicky. Anyway, point is - he should be wearing that ring. I'm going to have a chat with him about it though I'm sure he'll get all defensive and accuse me of making a big deal out of nothing. Oh well.

Hope you all have a great week..I'm sure I won't be posting until Saturday or so when I'll (maybe) share some pics from our fun vacation! Ciao!