Rain, rain

A mailbox in place and our 4 acres of land in the background before we broke ground.

It so happens that rain does not make for the best building-your-house-weather. It also so happens that we are building a house during a summer that is producing a record amount of June rainfall. That was not exactly in the plans when we dug the hole for our house the end of May;) Nevertheless we are starting to make progress again after not much getting done in June. On the 3rd Derek, his dad and friends (who graciously sacrificed their day off) poured the footings for our house. Next on the agenda is the basement walls and from there hopefully things will start to move right along! We are hopeful to be in the house by this winter. Now whether that means Christmas or Valentine's Day or St. Patty's depends on a variety of factors that I probably don't even understand. Prayers are appreciated as we continue on this little adventure!

To the Dells..

Because Derek and I like to travel and make memories we headed up to Wisconsin Dells mid January for a three day trip. My Grandpa has a time share at Christmas mountain village that we were able to enjoy and I was excited for the time away from work. I still love being a nurse, but it is good to have some time away too. Christmas Mountain Village is beautiful...in the winter especially because of all the lights, decorations, pine trees, snow and cozy cabins. I told Derek I wouldn't mind trading our duplex for one of the little cabins...then again the kitchen wasn't very conducive to real life....(counter space anyone?), but the fireplace sure was cozy!

So we went to Kalahari's indoor waterpark (Derek's pick) and had a great time...the only thing that would've  been better is if it was summer so we could be outside in the sun. We tried all the rides, well Derek tried all the rides and I refused to go on the slide that is basically a huge drop off that ends in a wedgie. There was a surfing pool where you could attempt to surf. It was actually really fun until you wiped out on your board and got washed/drug away by the wave....by the way there is a reason that people wear a wetsuit while surfing.

We also got to do a little skiing at the resort on Tuesday which was their free lift ticket day. It was ok, but we have realized it's not our favorite thing to do anymore;) Hot chocolate and popcorn afterwards made up for the cold afternoon on the slopes. That night we went into town and went to a soup and sandwich cafe and then enjoyed the hot tub back at the resort. We had a nice time away from everyday life and had a great time together:) I'll have to upload the pictures sometime, but for now you just get the narrative version.

A Letter to our nieces

 

On January 13th I became an aunt to you sweet little twin girls. I remember when your mama called and said she was expecting and that it was Twins! I was so excited! You see your Mom and Dad had been in and out of doctors offices, hoping and praying for your conception. Every month we prayed that she could have a baby. You have a strong mama the way she waited and kept hoping. Sometimes I would doubt or wonder when the time would come, but the hot summer day she let us know we were so full of hope and joy! The due date was April the 18th. In the heat of the summer it felt like springtime would never come and so the waiting began. In November we were invited to your gender reveal party. I was sure it was going to be a little boy and girl, but when the balloons popped there was pink everywhere which meant two girls! The weekend after Christmas your mom, dad and uncle Derek and I headed to Indiana for the Frank Christmas. We had a good time with family and threw your Mom a baby shower complete with cupcakes, a diaper cake and all things pink and little. For one of the games we had to race to see how fast we could diaper a baby. Little did we know you two would be in diapers in just a few short weeks. The next day (Dec 28th) we left Indiana and piled the back of the car full of baby gifts. There almost wasn't room for Aunt Emily and Uncle Derek ;) Your mom was good about putting her feet up and resting in the car. She had mentioned that she had an appointment in the morning before work. I think I told her to let me know how it went, but I didn't think too much about it since it was routine. The next day at her appointment they decided your mom needed to be admitted for full bedrest with monitoring since her cervix was shortened to a .4 (not sure what all that means, but it wasn't good). That was a very scary thing for us to hear. I think your mom was around 24 weeks, that was too soon for you peanuts to be born. I barely slept that night. It seemed we had come so far yet here we were teetering on the edge of the unknown. This was a great test in faith in God and caused us to run to Him in prayer. I imagined that there would be at least a couple months ahead of us to hang out with your Mom and Dad in the hospital trying to pass the time, but you surprised us yet again when a couple weeks later your mom's water broke signaling to the world that you were on your way! Derek called me at work to tell me that your mom was going in for a Cesarean and that you would be born within the hour. I looked at the calendar....January 13th it said...this will be their birthday I thought to myself. It was all I could do to focus the rest of my shift. I was praying to God that you would be born full of life and he has answered our prayers. It's true you two are SO full of life, kicking, scrunching up your faces, making diaper changes difficult with your squirming and letting out little cries if your sleep is disturbed. Now your living with only the assistance of a feeding tube, a little oxygen and of course lots of love from your parents and family. We love you Addison and Natalie you are a sweet reminder of God's faithfulness.

Christmas catch-up

Christmas has obviously come and gone and I'm still here trying to figure out if we're really halfway through January and if I should take down the Christmas cards that are taped to our door. My family Christmas was a few days before Christmas and the kids actually went outside to play. It was a very weird thing after opening gifts and watching the kids out on the driveway riding bikes and pushing around toy mowers, but I was so glad they could since it turned icey cold soon after. We played games, ate lots of food and exchanged gifts. Every year we draw names among the siblings and try to keep it a secret. I drew Tiffany's name and she guessed that I had her right away. It must not have been very inconspicuous of me to text her a picture and ask her if she liked a certain item.......and then follow it up with "I'm asking for someone else". Yeah, I'll have to work on that for next years drawing.

 On Christmas morning Derek and I went to church with my parents and then we came home and he made a delicious brunch for us. We both remembered that last year we had picked something to make a Christmas tradition.....but neither of us could remember what it was...it must not have been a very good idea ;) We didn't exchange gifts between ourselves since we chose to go to Wisconsin for a few days and ski for our gift to each other. We are definitely a couple who prefers "experiences" over a material item. 

Little Jesse got Fritz a bathrobe that matches his:)

In other news Tiffany is engaged and I'm so excited for her and Jesse. They make a darling couple and I'm sure their May wedding will be here before we know it.....but until then January it is:)

Fall before Winter

Fall still comes before Winter even in the blogging world so alas I thought I should get that covered before Christmas comes:) This fall we kept up with our pumpkin carving tradition although I was hesitant at first. Or maybe the more accurate word is "lazy". For some reason pumpkin carving makes my arms so tired from sawing through the tough pumpkin skin with a little carving knife. I'm thinking an electric knife may be the way to go next year:) Tired arm or not I still love having a lit up pumpkin on my front porch even if no one can figure out what it is that I carved;)

Derek carved a coffee mug with steam coming out the top.

I carved a Nurse. Can you see the nurse hat, eyes mouth and stethoscope?

 Derek and I headed to Matthiessen state park on a beautiful October day. We went there this past spring and decided to go back this fall for some pretty autumn hiking.

Another fall necessity....fire roasted doughnuts!

Now that I've got a bit of our fall blogged, winter can officially commence.....ha! I do believe it's already been winter for a few weeks or so now.....so I suppose I should stop making pumpkin bars and pumpkin pie and pumpkin bread and move on to Christmas baking :)

My 24th and a case of Poison Ivy

On October 4th I turned 24 and it didn't really feel much different than the year before or the year before that? Could this mean I'm getting old...I don't like to think so;) Derek once again spoiled me. He is always going out of his way to make me feel special and loved and my birthday was no exception. Since my birthday is in October it can range in a variety of temperatures. I've had the rainy/misty birthday....the Indian summer hot birthday....the "I think it might snow" birthday. This year it was a "chilly winds" birthday. Derek and I wanted to take bikes out on the constitution trail, but even the thought of that made me want to burrow in a heating blanket. So we changed plans and went to Barnes and Noble for some cozy book reading. I'm not sure if it was Derek's favorite thing, but I can get lost in a book in 1.5 seconds no problem. After that we did some shopping and then went out to eat at Medici's in Normal. I loved the atmosphere at the restaurant and the food was good too. Then we found a little cupcake shop where I picked out a snicker's cupcake. Overall it was a good day and we took our bikes out a different day :) A few days after my birthday I started noticing that I had a lot of bumps on my feet and legs that looked suspiciously like poison ivy. We had recently been out in the timber, but I remembered showering right after so I was sure this wasn't it. Was I ever wrong. Within a few days it had spread over my body making me want to crawl out of my skin. It was the worst in the night by far. Sleep wasn't an option unless medicated with benadryl...which really only made me groggy. I remember looking at all these mom's with newborns posting pics on instagram of late night feedings and I'm thinking, "hey I'll get up with your baby and you can go back to sleep since I'm up anyway". Granted I'm sure said moms would not like someone with poison ivy holding their child. Anyway I finally called the Doctor and got a prescription for a steroid cream that seems to be working good. Needless to say I've been extra cautious since then when we are at wiener roasts or anywhere near the woods for that matter. Gotta love the country ;)

J&K Married!

                            

Wedding days always appear to go somewhat in the same fashion. You have the getting ready, the pictures, the bride looking gorgeous and the ceremony. I would argue though that there is always a few little things that set every wedding apart and this wedding was no exception. We got ready that morning and I was introduced to fake eye lashes....for the first time ever. I was somewhat hesitant when the makeup ladies whipped out the glue....I was wondering if it was a permanent thing there for a minute. After much reassuring and many a layer of I don't know what I had new eyelashes. I may or may not have texted Derek to let him know that he should not be alarmed if I look Egyptian. Anywho after all the fluff and getting into our dresses in walks one of the groomsmen with wet hair....wet shoulder length hair that is. He was wondering what to do with it for pictures since pictures were starting in about 15 minutes. Let's just say about 5 women descended on him with blow driers, straighteners, gel and hairspray. It was a funny sight, but we got the job done and I am now further convinced men should have short hair ;) Pictures commenced and it was an absolutely gorgeous September day.
                                     
Before we knew it it was time for the ceremony to start. Katy looked beautiful and I was so happy to be able to be apart of her day. From there we went to 5-points in Washington for the reception. We were all hungry and couldn't wait to eat;) It almost felt like a highschool reunion and was so fun to reconnect with people we hadn't seen for awhile.
                                           
Katy and I have been friends since middle school and have been through thick and thin together. I am especially grateful for her friendship and that she is always willing to lend a listening ear and that no time is too late or early to text her. We wish both of you the best in your marriage!