Update

Wow! I thought I'd be much better at keeping this updated, but apparently not. Oh well. Here's the run down of what I've completed since my last update:

**We got our refund from buying our house. One of the things that we did with the money was pay off one of our credit cards. This is the credit card that we used when we first got married. We are down to only one credit card now, and it feels great!

**I've made a lot of new recipes since moving to the house, but I'm only counting meals (no deserts!). So, I made a stuffed pumpkin for our housewarming party. I got the recipe from one of my mom's magazines and it was a hit! I will definitely save the recipe and use it again in the fall.

**I have not had as much time to read as usual, but I've finished a couple books since my last post. I read Only Emma and Everything on a Waffle. Both are from my classroom library. Only Emma was okay, but I really enjoyed Everything on a Waffle. I might even read it aloud to my class this year. As far as adult books go, I've read The Wedding Season (it was okay, but I totally hated the ending), Look Me in the Eye (pretty good and it really helped me understand children with asperger's a little bit more), My Most Excellent Year (very good), and Sarah's Song (it was okay, but very cheesy).

**Brad and I chose two children from the "Stars of Hope" program at church. We went to Target right away and bought the presents. Both were little boys. It was so much fun picking out clothes and toys for the boys!

**I sent a card to our friend, Hannah, from small group. She's had a difficult year and I was just thinking about her and wanted her to know. I also sent a card to my best friend from high school, Melissa. Mel and I don't talk much anymore, but I still consider her one of my best friends. Whenever we get together it's like we were never apart, we pick up right where we left off. It's so comfortable with her, and I love that.

**I contacted an old friend that I've lost touch with. My friend from high school, Jessica. We used to be really good friends, but through high school and after we just kind of lost touch. Her husband is serving in Iraq and I texted her one day when Brad was working in Springfield because I thought we'd both be husband-less for the night. It was so nice hanging out with her again. It really made me realize how much I cherish her friendship. She has grown so much, and I really feel like I can learn a lot from her. Just talking with her was very challenging and inspiring. I'm so glad that I texted her!

Catching Up

Wow! I have really been neglectful! Things have been so crazy, I haven't updated in the longest time. Here's a quick run-down of what I've accomplished since my last update:

*Brad and I officially bought a house. We closed on September 4th and moved in that weekend. We have gotten so much done on the house already and are still working hard to get even more done. If I was making my 101 list now it would look very different because there would be a lot of projects that I want to do around the house! So far we've painted our bedroom, the downstairs bathroom, the living room/dining room, and the kitchen. We're also putting up wainscoting in the scrapbook room downstairs and painting it this week. Brad's done a lot of work on the yard, too, trimming bushes and powerwashing. It looks great! We're having a House Warming Party next Sunday so I hope that the house is ready! Along with buying a house we bought new living room furniture--a couch, a love seat, and a chair. We're still looking for a coffee table and some lamps, but we really love our furniture!

*This month Brad and I have eaten at a bunch of new restaurants. For his birthday, we ate at Wildfire. I got the petite fillet mignon and Brad got the crabcake-crusted trout. We both loved our food. And for desert we had caramel apple pie--it was delicious! The server was very nice and the manager even came over and introduced himself to us--overall, a great experience! The next day we ate at La Dulche Vida with his mom, brothers, and sister-in-law. It's a little Italian restaurant and the food was great. I had cheese ravioli, and it was probably the best that I'd ever had! The week before we went to Gordon Biersch Brewery with our small group. I didn't like that one as much as the others, but it was still okay.

*Of course, I finished several books, including: The Undomestic Goddess (okay, but not as good as I was expecting), Size 12 is Not Fat (pretty good), The Truth About Forever (loved it), Second Helpings (just okay, but I'll probably read the rest in the series anyway), and The Wedding Season (I liked it all the way until the ending). Overall, nice, light books but only one that I really loved. I also finished another book from my classroom library, called Just Emma. It was a cute book, but I'm not sure if anyone in my class this year will really enjoy it. Fall is my favorite time to read. I love curling up in a blanket with a good book so hopefully I will get a lot more reading done!

*This week I made Mexican Chicken. It's a recipe I got from one of the new teacher's at school. It was so delicious! Just marinate chicken in taco seasoning, bake and add salsa and cheese the last 10 minutes or so of baking. It was yummy, and I think it will become a regular at our house!

Brad and I spent a weekend at a hotel in Orland the week before school started. It was so perfect. We got to just relax and not do anything. We watched TV, ate pizza, and slept it. It was the perfect weekend. I am so glad that we got to do that, and I would love to do it more often!

I think that's about it for now. I've been very busy, but still trying to keep up with my list. Hopefully, I'll get back on track with posting so it's not so long!

Write a Letter

Well, another month has come and gone. This month I chose to write a letter to my friend, Anne. I have worked with Anne for the past two years. She teaches next door to me,and I don't know where I would be without her! I'm constantly popping in and asking her questions or just being nosey and looking at what she's doing to see if I can copy her. I don't know what I would do with her! I am so glad to be working with such wonderful teachers, and Anne is a huge part of that awesome team!

Of course, I've also finished some books. I read The Poisonwood Bible. It took me forever to read, but in the end it turned out to be really good. The book is about a family that goes to be missionaries in Africa. The dad made me really mad because he went there with the intention to "fix" the people there. He tried to change everything they did. It was neat to see how his family overcame his attitude, though, and what became of them once they left Africa. Very good book, I highly recommend it. I also read Twilight. I started this book several months ago, but just couldn't get into it. I picked it back up this week, though, in order to complete a challenge for my online book club. I am so glad that I did! While I found the beginning very slow, I really enjoyed the end. I now understand what all the hype is about and I cannot wait to read the rest of the books in the series!

I've Been Busy!

Well, here I am again, trying to catch up on my list! I've actually completed a lot. I'm going to try to catch you up on what has been going on.

First, Brad and I are buying a house! It all kind of happened a lot faster than we were expecting, but we are so excited! It's about a mile away from our apartment--only two blocks from my school. It's an adorable two story cape cod. We just fell in love with it! We had our inspection last week and everything seems to be going well. If everything stays on schedule we will be closing on September 4th--my birthday! Probably the best birthday present I've ever gotten! So, needless to say, that means that I'm working on the "Save enough money for a down payment on a house" and "buy a house" tasks!

I've also been doing a lot in the health/fitness category. I've started keeping track of all of the meals that I eat. I found this great website: www.sparkpeople.com. It's an awesome place that gives me meal plans and counts my calories, fat, protein, carbs, etc. It also gives me workout routines so that I can stay on track to lose the weight that I want! Not only have I been keeping track of my meals daily and working out 4-5 times a week, but I've also cooked two new meals: Cajun Chicken Caesar Salad and BLT Salad. The Cajun Chicken salad was okay. I think that we needed to marinate the chicken a while longer because it didn't taste very "cajun." However, I really liked the BLT salad. It tasted just like a real BLT! I found that recipe in my Hungry Girl cookbook. I have a couple more that I'm hoping to try soon, too. I'm really enjoying trying new recipes--especially healthy ones that taste yummy! Oh yeah, I also went to the Farmer's Market for the first time. Actually, I've gone a couple times now. I tried our local Farmer's Market, but they didn't really have a lot of food (go figure--we live in a FARM town!). So, my mom and I took my nieces to the one in Orland. I got lots of yummy fruits and vegetables. My favorite was the green beans--they were so fresh! My mom and I have kind of made it a tradition now, that we take the girls on Fridays and go to the Farmer's Market.

Of course, I've finished some books, too. I read Summer Sisters (very good!), Clementine's Letter (from my classroom library--I love Clementine!), Can You Keep A Secret (also very good--I would love to see this book as a movie), The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, and Sloppy Firsts (to be honest, I was a little disappointed with this book because it came to highly recommended, but that's okay). I haven't gotten as much reading done lately as I would like because we've been so busy with house stuff--and now I'm starting to work in my classroom, but I'm still taking time whenever I can to get things done!

Last, Brad and I went to see the new Harry Potter movie at Hollywood Boulevard a couple of weekends ago. It was pretty good. I love that theater because it's so cozy. It was Brad's first time there and he really enjoyed it. We haven't been able to spend as much time together as normal because he started his job and he typically has to travel about an hour to get to his store. However, we like to take walks to look at the house and talk about what we want to do to it. So, we've been making the most of our time together!

Catching Up

Wow! I haven't updated in a while! Let's see if I can catch up from the last post...

First, I wrote a letter to my friend, Erica. Erica and I have been friends since freshman year of college. We lived on the same floor-- 3rd Timmer and bonded instantly. I feel like Erica has been my one constant since I was in college. She has stood by me no matter what. She has listened to me complain--about friends, about school, about Brad, about work, about everything! I can always count on her to know when I need some encouragement--even though we live almost four hours apart! Erica is definitely one of my closest friends!

I have also started keeping track of the food that I eat in an attempt to lose some weight. I found this great website, called Spark People and it gives me meal plans to choose from. I've been picking ones that look good and then changing certain parts to foods that I enjoy or have around the apartment. The first two days were really rough--I felt hungry all the time, but now I'm feeling better and actually enjoying it. Hopefully I will see some good results, too!

Brad started his job as a pharmacist on Monday so now I really have to make it a priority to stay home one night a week with him. But we've really been enjoying the time together. Our friends got Brad this game, called Mah Jong for his graduation. We really love it and have been trying to play it. We've also been watching ER and NCIS.

Of course, I've read a bunch of books since my last post, too. I finished Lock and Key, Wicked, The Importance of Being Kennedy, Along for the Ride, and Pretty in Plaid. I enjoyed all of them even though they're very different from each other. Most of them were easy reads, but Wicked was quite long, and very different from the musical!

Well, I think that's about everything for now. Hopefully I'll post more updates soon!

Catching Up

I've completed a lot of tasks since the last time I updated. Let's see if I can catch up. First, I finished a bunch of books. I re-read Little Women. I first read this book when I was in high school, and I am so glad I re-read it now! I loved it! I just loved seeing how each of the girls grew into their own person and what happened to the family. After I finished the book, Brad and I watched the movie. The movie is definitely not as good as the book, but still a favorite.

I also finished reading The Last Lecture and Barefoot. Both very good books. The Last Lecture was very inspirational. Lots of thoughts on how to live life and just keep living it to the fullest.

Brad and I have been spending a lot of time together. Last weekend we went to Michigan to see some friends and last night we played Yahtzee and sat on the couch and watched a movie. I think it's been a while since we did that, and it was really nice. I think that sometimes we get so busy and forget to make time for each other, but I'm really glad that I made that a priority in this challenge because I always enjoy our time together.

Visit Doug and Carrie in Wisconsin and Read 50 Books in 1 Year

On Thursday I finished reading this book. It was an okay book. A memoir about the woman's life when she was laid-off. I don't usually read memoirs, but this one was funny and light. I didn't find it as funny as what I had heard, but I will still probably read her other books.

I also completed the "Visit Doug and Carrie in Wisconsin" task. Brad and I went to visit them this past weekend. We had a lot of fun. Friday we spent the day at Carrie's parents' boat. It was the perfect day to go boating, very relaxing. I got some reading done while we were on the boat. Saturday we went to the Milwaukee County Zoo. It was a beautiful zoo and we were able to go through most of it. Brad and I both had a fun time and are very glad that we went. We hope to be able to go back and visit them again.