anni

Still doing some catch up...

January brought the first big end to a chapter or our lives together.  We had to put our chocolate lab, Anni down.  Cancer was taking over her life and she wasn't doing well at all.  

I could say a TON about this dog.  I could tell you about how she was our first "baby".  We got her while we were dating in college. I could tell you about the 3 hour drive to pick her out, and then again, to pick her up in eastern Kansas. I have a picture of her riding in my lap and cuddling into my chest on that day we drove her home. I could tell you about the night that Dave put my engagement ring on her collar and had her run down the driveway to welcome me off a long shift at work.  I could tell you about how we were so afraid how she'd respond to us bringing our first baby home, and we laid baby Taylor beside her all the time. I could tell you stories about how she ran away all the time, owned the neighborhood and always showed up at Papa and Nana's house, after going for swims.  I could tell you about the pack of frozen steaks, wrapped in plastic, that she ate off the counter, completely...multiple times.  Or the 6 inch subway sandwiches or other plates of food, she ate within seconds of someone getting up to use the restroom during lunch.  And I could tell you about the countless times the mailman or UPS man rang the doorbell during nap time and her bark woke all of my sleeping children up.  I could tell you how safe she made us feel and how well she protected our house and how she loved to play ball and go swimming.

 

If you've seen Marley and Me.  I'll just tell you that is our life with our dog. Completely and perfectly.  It started with just the 3 of us.  And she welcomed all 3 of our babies home.  She was a crazy dog, who got worse and worse behaved with the less and less attention she got, but she loved us well.  And regardless of how many times I threatened to find her a new home, the day we had to say goodbye was so very hard.  It was hard watching our kiddos say goodbye to their first dog. 

But the Lord provided the perfect day for us.  School was cancelled because of low temperatures. So instead of Dave taking her off alone, we all went together.  It made it hard that way, but it made it way better that way too.  We got great closure and we were able to spend the entire day together. God knew what our hearts needed. 

After goodbyes and tears.  We headed to Build-a-Bear to pick out a dog that looked just like Anni.

They each got to put a heart inside her. And they named her Anni, and picked out a leash and brush. 

And on our way out we stopped at the photobooth for a keepsake. 

She was a good good dog.  Some people don't understand that connection when a dog is a member of your family.  But some of you know and you totally get it. 

She was part of the original "us".  The kids always counted her in as a member of the family.

She's definitely been missed and our kids are certain she is running happy and free in heaven.

9 years together.

We celebrated our 9th anniversary almost 3 months ago on January 8th.

 We had been sick, sick, sick.  Pretty much how our entire winter has been, starting back at Halloween.  We didn't know all week if we'd make it out or not.  But my mom was coming to watch the kids and we sure didn't want to waste this chance to get away.

Our local Premier group had a black dress event scheduled for the same weekend, so we decided it would make a good excuse to get dressed up and have a fun night out together.  

I had all intentions to go shopping for both of us the week before. Fancy events don't come too often in our glamorous life, so neither of us had anything to wear.  Getting fancy in the middle of winter is kind of hard for gals...don't ya think?  What to wear on your legs and the right shoes and a dress that covers enough to look winterish. 

 And then we got sick. There was no energy to go shopping and we found ourselves still not having anything to wear the day before.  And we still didn't even know if we felt well enough to go.  But the one thing we did know was that we were leaving our house, and getting a hotel room regardless.  Even if we laid in bed sick all day, my mom was coming and we were going to be OUT OF THERE!  

We ended up deciding to go and it all came together in the end.  A quick stop at JCP to get a dress shirt for Dave, tights and shoes for me.  I don't wear heels...EVER!  But I bought heels.  It's kind of impossible to dress up fancy in a black dress without them.  Dave started out borrowing his dad's suit...one that he thought looked black.  I'm glad I spotted it before we left, because it was definitely navy blue, not black.  So luckily he found a black suit in the back of the closet he forgot he had.

 

We almost didn't make it to the event.  We checked into our hotel, both not really full of energy.  Dave was zoned into the Chiefs game and waited till the last minute to get ready. Normally, for guys, this is okay.  But he realized very late that the shirt he bought had been folded up in a box, and probably needed to be ironed.  PROBABLY.  Ha!  We do not iron anything in our house.  But there was no getting around this, and it took forever.  Then he put it on and although he had just gotten measured for it a few hours before, it didn't even come close to fitting.  He couldn't move his arms, couldn't button the top buttons.  He was pretty much a hot mess.  He put his pants on and they wouldn't button either.  He obviously grew since the last time he wore them.  So his pants were rigged closed, he was miserable in his shirt, we had to watch YouTube to know how to tie a tie, and then when it was time to go, he informed me that the red coat I had laid out with all of our bags, he thought was my moms and he set it aside.  So it was 20 degrees outside and I had a short sleeve dress on and no coat.  We finally made it to the event over an hour late.

Afterwards, the blizzard had begun.  I love snow.  It was so fun being out together and trying to find a place to eat dinner at 10pm, walking in heels through snow filled parking lots and sliding all over the road to get where we were going. We ended up at Outback for steak, lobster and cheese fries.  Latest dinner ever and one of the best!

I loved the beautiful snowy view from our room. 

But the best part, besides the awesome hotel room from Priceline for $55 was rolling over in bed the next morning and reaching for a phone and seeing we had both slept in till 10:15 am.

Happy Anniversary to us.

One of these years we WILL be somewhere warm for our anniversary!  God willing, we will.

We'd love to go back to Cabo, where we spent our honeymoon.  And we always said we'd do it for our 10th year.  But now that's already next year.  Geez, life flys by.

So we shall see.

But give me a hotel room, a night away, no parent responsibilities, and my handsome hubby...even if it's 30 miles down the road, I'm a happy happy gal.  Cabo or not.

another update on Sydney

How about an update on our niece, Sydney?  I know some of you have been following and praying and I haven't done a very good job of updating.

She's home!!!  The last I told you the transplant was done, and she moved out of ICU back to her normal room.  They waited and waited for the cells to reproduce and they did!!!  

And after 40 days in the hospital she made it home! She'll be in isolation at home for 100 days, since her body has no ability to fight off infections until her immune system strengthens.   Please keep praying for her complete recovery. 

And now check this out...

 This is a billboard along on the side of the most traveled highway in Michigan!

I cannot even fathom being 9 years old, fighting cancer for the 2nd time and then seeing your face on a huge billboard.  We hear she was super excited! And we're so thankful the story God has written for her is inspiring others and making a difference.

You can still follow along as her parents update her Caringbridge page .

And how about a huge PRAISE!!  After all of the bone marrow drives that went on to help find Sydney a donor match back in October and November, we got word that one of the college students from Tabor (where are sweet friends held a drive in honor of Sydney) was called to be a match for someone!!!  Such awesome news! I trust completely that God is using Sydney's life and story to do a good work and fulfill his purposes.

winter

In true Kansas fashion, how about a blog post with snow pictures, on a day that our high is supposed to be 75 degrees.

Have I told you I love winter?  Okay, I have, I know. 

I love that while winter is cold, it's cozy and warm.  Winter means comfort food and cozy blankets.  And sweatpants and warm drinks. It means beautiful snow and snow days.

And sometimes it means there is no place to go and nothing to do other than relax, cozy up and stay warm.  Being the homebody I am, this is just up my alley.

The only thing I don't like about winter is that my poor hubby has to work outside in it.  He wears layers upon layers upon layers of clothes.  The kids have fun counting how many pieces of clothing he takes off when he comes home.  His only chance all day long to warm up is a 30 minute lunch in the warmth of a fast food restaurant.

BUT, the positive side is that if it's snowy or the temperatures are entirely too cold to be working in it all day....he is home with us!  So pretty much every snow day the kids have, Dave is home too! 

I know, I know, I have it good.  I'm thankful.  And it's just one more reason on my list of why I love winter.

The kids have loved playing in the snow this year. Even little Gavin.  He loves the snow!

Normally, our sledding consists of sleds being tied behind the 4 wheeler and we take over the streets of the neighborhood and the nearby field.  But this year we found a hill also.

Having neighbor friends to go sledding with makes it even more fun.

 

 

Any one wanna put bets down on a March snowstorm?

10 things

I'm still here.  I promise.  I've not intentionally quit blogging.  It just hasn't happened.
I definitely miss it.  So while things may be a little sleepy here on the blog, I promise it's not dead.

The last year or 2, my blogging has gotten slower and slower. Ha, you've noticed haven't you?
Pretty par for the course considering most other aspects of my life in the last 2 years also.  Seems my theme lately is just trying to stay afloat. I don't mean that in a totally depressing, overwhelming way.  I just mean that life kind of just caught up to me.  I guess after baby #3??  A lot changed in the last 2 years. And I can't really even explain, or pin point what's different. It's just different.  And I'm learning to be okay with that.  I'm learning what I can and can't do...and learning to be content with the things I can't get to.

And I'm thankful for Instagram to record quick bits of our days and capture memories that I sometimes don't have time to record here.

So how about a quick list of some random updates...

1.  Tomorrow will start day 1 of no pop.  I knew this day was coming, but I have to work up to it. Ya know, like get in as many as I can and savor every last drop and mentally prepare for the day that I have to say goodbye. I can't just go cold turkey one day.  I just love Pepsi too much.  But today is the day.  The last drops of pop are gone from our house and we committed to not buying more.
I can do this!

2.  We're going on another free cruise through Premier!  I worked to earn it free for both Dave and I.  And then the night we had to make our final decision by midnight about whether we were actually going...we decided at 11:45pm, after going back and forth on the decision.  The 7 day cruise is free, but we still have to get there.  And we so badly wanted to spend a few days in New York City since that's where the boat is leaving from.  It's always humbling when you come to reality of just not being able to do it all.  But after transferring all our Southwest points from this summer into one account, getting one of our tickets super cheap, and cutting out all the days we had planned to spend in NYC, we decided to go for it!  We're pretty pumped about 7 days on a boat, just the 2 of us.  We might be the most excited about getting some extra sleep.

3. While everyone else is complaining about the winter...I don't mind it.  Actually I love winter.  And with long ones like this I move from LOVING it...to not minding it.  It definitely helps that my kids don't mind playing in the cold.  All 3 of them will still spend hours outside (many times with neighbor friends) even on the coldest days.

4.  Dave says we are burning our last fire of the season because we're out of wood.  SO, in that case.  Spring can come. Because a big reason I love winter is our wood-burning stove and the cozy warm fires that are constantly going.  It cracks me up to read posts from others about wearing layers of clothes, being wrapped in blankets and just freezing their booties off even at home...while we sit here in short sleeves with my sweat pants pulled up into shorts.

5. We jumped on the band wagon with all the Wichita State Shocker fans?  Are you on it too?  I bleed purple, but it's fun to have another Kansas team to cheer for too.  We're all together pretty excited about the tournament coming up!  Looks like we'll be trying to catch tournament games while we're on the boat or in airports...like we did a few years ago. 

6. Speaking of basketball, I coached Taylor's first basketball team in December and January.  It was so much fun!  Dave and I have both loved coaching the kids' teams.  So far, 2 seasons of indoor soccer, 1 season of outdoor soccer, 1 season of t-ball and and season of basketball.

7.  In case you were wondering if we ever heard from the Amazing Race people..nope.  Oh, did I ever even tell you that we auditioned?  We did.  And just in our usual fashion, we debated all day long and went at the very last minute.  Going at the last minute means you don't have time to find a sitter for the kids.  So they got to come along.  And we really had no clue what they'd do when it was our turn.  All we knew is we had 1 minute to tell them why they should pick us. Our kids waited in line for an hour and a half with us.  When we got very near to the front, we spotted Dave's cousin Terry (who was there for the hockey game) and he tried to take the kids with them, only the big kids would go.  So we still weren't sure what we'd do with Gavin when it was our turn.  We ended up putting him at our feet, below the line of the camera, and he just stared up at us during our interview.  It was fun.  We were glad to say we actually did it, instead of just talking about it and wishing we would have.

8. I love this mason jar.  I know it's funny, but I drink water soooo much better when I have something fun to drink it out of.  And a drop of Wild Orange or Lemon essential oils helps too. But then Gavin decided to push it off the counter because it was in his way. Pretty typical of him, but this is the first time the object has been glass.
I was so sad.  This was right after he poured an entire bottle of real maple syrup into his bowl of cereal, and relocated a few things that didn't belong to him into the fish aquarium.  But he's so darn cute.

9.  I saw this on Pinterest and decided it had my name all over it.

10. Do you watch the Oscars?  I never have until this year.  My sister was here after she got to spend the weekend at Whatever Craft Weekend.  And considering we only see her a few times a year, it was weird having her in town but not with us.  But we were thankful she spent an extra day with us and helped us celebrate Mason's birthday.
She and her best friend are all about the Oscars and try to watch all of the best picture nominees.  So Dave and I sat through all the red carpet stuff and then the awards show.  I've never been a huge Ellen fan but I thought she was amazing! And now Dave and I have a list of movies we want to see.  Captain Phillips is the only one we've seen so far, which was very good!  But this is what I really want to see right now...

Hopefully I'll be back soon.  We had a March Madness birthday party I'll hopefully get to post soon.
Thanks for sticking around despite my absence.