Fridays Are One of My Favorite Things

I am quite aware that my blog has been a little 'slow' lately. We are definitely in the doldrums of winter. I don't know if it is this way everywhere else, but up here it seems like after all the holiday excitement is over, winter just drags on and on.... Your mind starts playing tricks on you. Will it ever warm up again? Is it really true that I used to walk this road in sandals and short sleeves and actually feel hot? What does grass look like again...I think I forgot?! And, to add to the 'doldrumminess' of the season (if I may presume upon my esteemed audience to make up a word), Jordan is ever so busy with his schoolwork. May seems so far away! So, I just haven't felt very interesting lately. I am really struggling to come up with things to post that are not only worth anyone's reading, but even worth my taking the time to write! Haha! Not that I usually do write anything worth reading, I guess, but I know that my Mom will read it, so I want to make sure it's worth her reading! ;) However, I am no where near being ready to give up on blogging altogether; I enjoy having a creative outlet that I can share with my friends and family. Lately, I have been trying to think of something to spur me on to writing again, and then I came upon an idea. I'm going to post about some of my favorite things once every week. And, since Fridays are one of my favorite days of the week (and it conveniently starts with an 'f'), I will do it on Fridays. My format and tone may change from one week to the next, but overall I am just hoping to give myself something to post about on a regular basis that might actually elicit some response from you regarding your favorite things relating to the topic that I write about. This Friday can be my first attempt. Since Valentines' Day was just yesterday, I think I will share some of my favorite things about Valentines' Day.

One of the best things about Valentines' Day is that it is very much dominated by a distinct color scheme: red and pink. To me, this is a wonderful thing because my favorite color is pink, and, therefore, over half of my wardrobe consists of that color. Other holidays are sometimes a challenge for me to try to dress up for, but Valentines' Day is no problem! So, Valentines' Day is a good excuse for me to wear pink and to enjoy seeing it on other people as they make an effort to wear my favoritest color.

Another thing I love about Valentines' Day is that almost everything about it is pretty. Roses, hearts, lace, satin, candles, reds, pinks, etc. It just thrills my girlish soul!

I simply cannot think of Valentines' Day without mentally associating it with another favorite things: CHOCOLATE! :) What a wonderful concept to have a holiday that is celebrated by the giving of chocolate of my! Valentines' Day definitely competes with Christmastime when it comes to the wonderful goodies that stock the shelves at the store!

Valentines' Day is also a favorite with me simply because of all the fun memories I associate with that holiday. When we were growing up, my sisters and I took Valentines' Day pretty seriously. We didn't go out and buy the little Valentines with the perforated edges that you could find at any old store. Oh, no; we made our Valentines from the best that we could find in our stash of construction paper. Mom even let us use old scraps of wall paper and paper doilies to embellish them with! I wonder if she still has any of those fabulous creations we did?! Of course, Julie's were always the best, but Jessica and I made a valiant effort at creating beautiful Valentines too! I hope that someday we will all live close enough to one another that we can get together around a table with all our 'supplies' and build Valentines again!

Favorite Things Friday

It is hard to write my Favorite Things Friday post today. So many bittersweet feelings are in my heart today!

Last night we got to spend time with one of our very 'favoritest' families here at Northland, the Woods. Jordan has been working for Bobby for the last three years, which is how we got to know them. Bobby & Robin have been such good friends to us, as well as wonderful examples in their godly marriage and parenthood! God has really blessed Northland by bringing the Woods here, and we feel especially privileged to have been able to get to know them so well! Their three children have become our favorite kids to babysit...ever! Jordan and I have had so many fun times playing with them! After spending time with the kids, we usually exchange stories with each other about all the adorable things they said or did! :) It's almost strange to think of how little they were when we first started to get to know them...the twins were barely a year old, and Cotter was two...and now Cotter is signed up for T-Ball and will be going to Kindergarten this fall, and the twins are growing and learning so much every day! Caeleigh used to be so afraid of Jordan, she would cry and cry when he held her! So one day when we were there with them, we just sat down together with Caeleigh and Jordan held her until she finally stopped crying, and ever since then she has loved her Uncle Jordan! :) We usually babysit the kids together, so Jordan plays with the boys (he likes playing sports with them and showing them the right way to throw and stuff like that...or they just play Playstation) and I'll play 'girlie' things with Caeleigh. We have really enjoyed watching their personalities develop. Cotter likes to be the 'big' boy, fast and strong and tall and all those kinds of things! Caeden likes to goof off and make everyone laugh, but then he also loves working on puzzles and anything that requires some 'figuring out.' Caeleigh is such a girl! She loves to pretend she is a princess, or to take care of her babies, or to 'make a meal' in her little 'kitchen.' Oh, we're going to really miss those kiddos!!!! I am trying to console myself with Bobby & Robin's promise to let us know when they come through Des Moines on their way to visit family down south!! I'm definitely going to be holding them to that! ;)

Favorite Things Friday

Almost didn't get around to Favorite Things today! :P I'll have to post a synopsis of how my day went later...it ended up being one of those days that looked like everything was going to go perfectly and then suddenly went upside-down! Anyway, it's all working out in the end, so that's good! :)

I just have a few random Favorites for today:

One of my favorite things about our backyard is this tree that's right next to our deck. The berries are so pretty!

Another favorite thing about our house that I just wanted to mention is the heating vent located right under the kitchen sink. My feet stay nice and warm while I wash the dishes! :)

I also must mention my laundry chute as a favorite thing today! I feel a sort-of childish fascination with it, and a little bit of a thrill every time I throw something down there!

A big favorite of the day is being able to do laundry in my own house with my own machines! Yes, we finally found a set to buy this afternoon, and Jordan got them hooked up this evening. Hurray!

And this is my favorite picture from this past week. I forgot to mention that we bought this truck almost two weeks ago (I know, can you believe I would leave out such an important detail of our lives?!). It's a '79 Dodge (I posted that for any random males who might be interested in that stat...sorry, but that's about all I know about it!). It's a great old truck, and Jordan claims that it has officially ushered us into Iowegian redneck-hood. Well, maybe him, anyway! Haha! I do think it's pretty tough and rugged-looking - a good fit for my tough, rugged man! ;)

Favorite Things Friday

So, since Halloween fell on a Friday this year, I think it is only fitting that I talk about favorites that have to do with Halloween. :)

My favorite Halloween costume was my clown costume. I guess Mom would have to help me out with how old I was when I wore it. Maybe 4 or 5? I remember there was a HUGE bow and lots of make-up!

Candy corn has always been one of my favorites. It's so yummy. It tastes like Halloween. Plus, it's a very easy fall decor. Throw a little candy corn in a dish, and the room is instantly autumnized. ;) If it wasn't for Halloween, I'm afraid that candy corn would be skipped altogether by the stores since the commercial Christmas holiday seems to be creeping ever earlier in the year. So one of my favorite things about Halloween is that it makes candy corn fashionable.

As long as we're talking about candy corn, I might as well admit that another favorite about Halloween is the abundance of candy in general! Even as I type, I have a whole bag of it sitting on my desk next to me that I got from the over-abundance that was at the kid's "Fall Party" at church Wednesday night. :)

I must admit, though, that I do have some non-favorites associated with this holiday...probably even more so than any other holiday. I really don't like the scary masks, costumes, movies, shows, stories, and other things associated with Halloween. I know some people can get a good laugh out of them, but my vivid imagination just won't let me take it that light-heartedly! I think it would be fun to dress up in a costume (I'd choose the princess one for sure!) and go to a Halloween party, but the possibility of meeting up with a goblin totally spooks me out...even if I know that one of my good friends is behind the mask! I'm one of those kids who was actually scared of the Easter Bunny walking around the grocery store handing out candy! So, I guess I'll stay in tonight. Hopefully any trick-or-treaters knocking on our door will be cutesie, and not grotesque! Maybe I'll actually get some packing done!

Favorite Things Friday

The year is almost done! I have enjoyed doing my favorite things posts; they have definitely forced me to be creative at times! :)

I figured that a series of posts about my favorite things would not be complete if I did not devote one of the posts to my favorite color!

...And that would be PINK!

I like it because it is a sweet and pretty color, but can also be bright and fun. :)

Favorite Things Friday

Yes it’s Friday again! And I have such wonderful favorites today!

My absolute favorite thing about today is that Jordan is coming home!! This past week Jordan was down at Faith Baptist Theological Seminary in Ankeny, IA, taking a Hebrew block class. It was our first real time apart from each other, and I missed him so much!!! I am really thankful he was able to go down there and take the class, though, even though it meant we had to be apart for a week! Jordan said the professor, Dr. John Hartog, III was awesome and so was the class! I am so glad that he was able to enjoy it…Hebrew does not seem to me like it could possibly be very enjoyable at all, so I guess Dr. Hartog must be a really good teacher!! :D Jordan is also making progress in his job hunt down there, and we are trusting God to lead us to the exact job and location He wants for us! These are exciting times, though uncertain! Overall, Jordan’s week spent at Faith has helped to build our excitement for next year! Hmmm…I think I may have strayed from my topic a little because what I was originally talking about was how excited I was that this is the day Jordan comes home! He probably won’t be home until late tonight, so somehow I need to contain my excitement for several more hours! I will abstain from getting too sappy on you all today…so let’s just say that I am elated, enraptured, euphoric, exhilarated, rapturous, rhapsodic, exultant, jubilant, enthusiastic, excited, thrilled, blissful, delighted, glad, happy, joyful, and tickled (to name a few emotions I am feeling) at the thought of Jordan’s return home tonight!

Another favorite thing today is surprises!!! :) I love surprises (except not scary ones, Jordan!)! As I was walking to work this morning, I passed by Apartment building ‘A’ and my good friend Dr. Corey was just coming out at that moment so we walked up to the Founder’s Center together. He works in an office close by Jordan’s, so he asked me about where Jordan was this week, etc., and then casually mentioned that there was a white package that had been sitting outside Jordan’s office door for a couple days. All of our personal mail along with Jordan’s ‘work’ mail gets delivered to Jordan’s office, so it occurred to me that I should probably check to see what all we had gotten over the course of the week. (Not being the responsible one in our relationship, it had not yet occurred to me that we had mail piling up anywhere! Haha!) Plus, my curiosity was piqued at the mention of the white package. I tried to keep myself from getting too excited by thinking it was probably something related to Jordan’s work and not actually a ‘fun’ package. ;) But, when I got up there (and Dr. Corey kindly unlocked Jordan’s office for me so I could get all the envelopes that had been shoved under the door), I found that the white package actually was a ‘fun’ package and addressed to me!!!!! I was thrilled! I don’t even remember the rest of the walk to my office…I think I floated! Heehee! ;) As soon as I got to my desk I started ripping into that package and found all sorts of fun goodies that Jordan’s mom and sisters had packed for me (dark chocolates – my favorite! – some dark chocolate-flavored Altoids, a couple candles, a nail buffer, some coffee, and such encouraging sweet notes that totally made me almost start crying)!! Now, I know they had sent the package with hopes of my getting it earlier this week, but really, it worked out so perfectly, because it was such a wonderful surprise and just the right thing to get me through my last long day without Jordan!! “Thank you” just doesn’t really say it all!!! Girls, that was such a wonderful thoughtful thing to do…I am so blessed!!

And my last favorite thing today is sister time! The week had started to feel so long, and a trip to the city was just what I needed! Yesterday afternoon I took off work and drove to Green Bay for some sister time with Julie! She drove up as soon as she was out of school and we met for supper at the Olive Garden at 5. After we were done eating, we spent a few hours doing some serious shopping! It was such a wonderful time to relax and just enjoy ourselves! Of course, the food and shopping were so good, but the time of sister talk was priceless and so uplifting for my sagging spirits! We parted ways a little after 9, but then we both called Jess about the same time! So, after about 20 minutes of trial and error (and a call to the AllTell guy), Jess finally figured out how to get all three of us in a conference call!!! :) SO FUN!! There are very few things that are ‘more favorite’ than sister time! ;)

Favorite Things Friday

What is it about mail that makes it so special? One of my favorite things is to see an envelope...or better yet, a PACKAGE...addressed to me!! This week has been great for that since I had a birthday on Sunday! :) I've gotten several cards, and then today I received TWO packages, one from each of my sisters!! Thanks, girls!! :)

I actually have more than one "favorite" to talk about today! ;)

Another favorite of mine is when Jordan takes a day off work and we just spend it hanging out together. Today we both had the day off, which was so fun! We ran some errands in the morning and then went to Panera Bread for lunch (another big favorite of mine!!!) - thanks so much Mom & Dad Horak for the gift card!! In the afternoon, we went to the Raccoon River Park with Macy and walked the trails around the Raccoon River for over two hours! It was such a beautiful day and it was wonderful to spend the time outside together talking and laughing at Macy. ;)

Favorite Things Friday

I love our motorcycle!

When Jordan first wanted to get a motorcycle, I was totally against it. When I was a teenager, one of our neighbors had a motorcycle and he would come by the house once or twice every summer to give us kids rides. I hated it! Riding the motorcycle just scared me so much, that it wasn’t even fun for me! I remember I would try to find something to do in my room in hopes that Mom would forget to call me down to get a ride. Unfortunately, she never forgot! Haha! ;) So, when Jordan was wanting to get a motorcycle, all I could think of were those terrifying rides from my teenage years…and I really had no desire to get a motorcycle for ourselves that we could ride anytime. That didn’t sound even one bit appealing to me! Then, last year about this time, we went to the Norway City-Wide Garage Sales. We walked past one house that had a beautiful black Suzuki Volusia sitting in the front lawn with a “For Sale” sign on it. For the first time in my life, I wanted a motorcycle! That bike looked so sleek and powerful; I could just imagine myself sitting in the passenger’s seat behind Jordan cruising down the road on that bike! I begged Jordan to go talk to the owner about it, but being the wise man that he is (and not given to impulsive decisions like me!), Jordan said we should ‘shop around’ a little more. That bike was definitely what gave motorcycles a foothold in my heart! ;) After that, I gladly looked at page after page of motorcycles on the internet with Jordan! When we finally bought our motorcycle, I could hardly wait for the day that I would get to ride it! We only got to ride it for about a month and a half before the weather got to be too cold. Then, all winter long, I just ached to be back on the motorcycle! It was a lot like the feeling that I used to get as a kid after we had put our boat away for the winter. Except, back then, I would mostly feel that way only when driving past lakes, but with a motorcycle, you can feel it on any stretch of road! Finally, we have our motorcycle out again for the summer. We have taken a couple rides on it (unfortunately, we have not had very many nice days yet this year!), and I just revel in the feeling of being on the motorcycle again! I love the sound of our motorcycle, it is so deep and throaty! And riding it…I cannot even describe it to you, but there is something so exciting about being on the back of that bike with nothing between you and the world and the wind whipping all around you. I know, some of you are thinking that motorcycles are so dangerous. That was a big one for me to get over, too. But, we do take all the precautions (helmets, leather, etc.), and Jordan drives responsibly. We talked about the safety issue, and Jordan reminded me (a little in jest) that God is sovereign; but you know it is actually true! My keeping Jordan off of a motorcycle is not going to keep him ‘safe’! So, as long as he is not being an idiot on his bike, I am now completely fine with our owning a motorcycle. :)

Wow, I kinda rambled on this one! For all of you who actually stayed with me through this whole post, thank you for putting up with my long-typedness! ;) I have really enjoyed talking about my favorite things every Friday! It’s definitely been a fun thing to add to my blogging habit! :)

Favorite Things Friday

The following is in honor of Jessica's birthday this past week. Enjoy!

• Her dimple under her eye (see picture)
• She’s got the baby-of-the-family-syndrome bad! …But who would want it to be any different? Well, okay, maybe we did want it to be different when she came home from her first trip to Junior Camp. It was pretty obvious (by both sight and smell…and the suitcase full of clean clothes) that she had only done minimal clothes-changes and maybe one shower the entire week. But she reassured us that she had swam in the lake every day, so it was okay (though our noses still suggested otherwise)! I’m sure if she’d been an older sibling she would have been much more responsible.
• She’s very trusting (probably as a result of the baby-of-the-family-syndrome). For example, we were shopping at the mall when Jess was pretty little and she lost her purse containing her little savings of cash (I think it was like $20 or something extravagant like that). Mom was pretty worried about finding that little purse, but Jess was quite unconcerned: “Don’t worry, Mom; I have my name on it.” And, sure enough, some elderly gentleman had picked the purse up and returned it to the mall office where we retrieved it later, with the money still inside. Now she’s much more discerning…except where her brother-in-law is concerned!
• Jess was a funny little kid when we were growing up. She went along with anything. Some of my favorite memories revolve around the hours that we girls would spend playing Barbies. Jessica’s Barbie characters were always very interesting. She would usually have at least one ‘crazy’ person in her Barbie family that would keep us in stitches! Jess always wanted to keep Julie and I happy so that we would let her ‘in’ on all the ‘cool’ stuff we were doing as ‘grown up’ girls. One day in particular, I remember we were all working on our school work together and Julie and I were having so much fun making Jess do things for us and poor Jess was completely clueless to our manipulations! “Jess, can you get me a new pen?” “Jess, my pencil needs to be sharpened” “Jess, can you change the tape? I’m getting tired of listening to this one.” Etc., etc., etc. I think a big reason she was so willing to do all these things for us was because she simply didn’t want to be working on her school work. ;) So, Julie and I finally asked her to go outside and get Josie (our Golden Retriever) and bring her in. If I remember correctly, Jess did protest a little at that idea; but being infected with the baby-of-the-family-syndrome, she finally went out and got the dog to make us happy. No sooner did she get Josie in the house and get herself busy with schoolwork again, but Mom came down! As soon as Mom saw Josie, she wanted to know who brought the dog in the house and then she sent poor unfortunate Jess (who was now in trouble with Mom for goofing off when she was supposed to be working on school) to take Josie (who was all too happy to be getting so much attention) back outside! Julie and I kept working diligently on our school stuff (Are you kidding? Of course we didn’t tell Mom it was OUR idea to bring Josie into the house!).
• Another favorite thing about Jess is her voice. She has a great talent for singing…which she mostly puts on display when she is either in the bathroom (where the acoustics apparently bring the best out in her voice) or in the basement (where she must sing at the top of her lungs in order to keep the scary monsters from coming out of the shadows to stuff her in a bag and hand her over to a mean scary bear that has been haunting her dreams since she was 2). She has two especially notable vocal talents: yodeling (demonstrated here) and laughing like Gertie on Oklahoma! (you know, that girl who tries to steal Curly and has that really annoying loud laugh).
• Since Jess was the baby-of-the-family, the rest of us kids did our very best to exploit her position. We usually did that by having her be the one to ask Dad those questions that would be a definite ‘No’ if any of the rest of us asked them. Picture this: little girl clad in a long flannel nightie approaching her daddy who was sitting in ‘his chair’ (I mean, seriously, who could resist?!) while the rest of us kids were huddled just around the corner where we could hear what transpired…. “Daddy, can we get a horse?” …The answer was still “No.”
• One last favorite thing. If Jess can’t figure out what to say, she just smiles. Smiling must be her favorite. Maybe she can post about that on her blog.

Favorite Things Friday

One of my favorite things is Google. I know, that sounds kinda weird (and very geeky). But, seriously, I am constantly fascinated by all the cool ideas those people have! Google has a tradition of celebrating April Fool's Day by announcing outlandish 'new' products and services. Last year they introduced their Google TiSP (Toilet Internet Service Provider) and I got a good laugh out of that...especially when I found out that someone believed it! This year, my favorite Google hoax was probably the Google Wake-Up Kit.

Here's one more little bit of Google humor (or should I say ‘geek humor’?!)…. Go to http://www.google.com/ and type “Find Chuck Norris” in the search box. Then, click the “I’m Feeling Lucky” button and see what the result is!!!

Favorite Things Friday

This Friday-Saturday I am going to be gone to a Ladies' Retreat! I'm really looking forward to it (Jess & Julia will be there too! Of course, I'll blog about it all when I get back, Mom & Jules!), but I'm going to be missing Jordan a lot!! So, for my "Favorite Things" post today, I thought I would feature my favorite boy, my wonderful husband Jordan! :)

That Man of Mine

1. Who is your man? Jordan Paul Horak

2. How long have you been married? 3 years, 2 months, and 3 days

3. How long did you date? About 13 months

4. How old is your man? 25

5. Who eats more? Jordan does…with the possible exception of when there is chocolate involved…. ;)

6. Who said "I love you" first? Jordan did…I will never forget that day! We were in the Daily Grind, and it was the last week of camp the summer we were counselors at Northland. The following weekend, we went to each other’s houses to meet each other’s families and then he went back up to Northland to prepare for a semester of traveling on a ministry team. That day, I did not think that I was ready to start using that phrase in our relationship; I was still shell-shocked that I was even dating someone, I think, and wanted to buy some time before committing to a really serious relationship! Haha!! But, over the course of the next few months, as Jordan and I continued to get to know each other long-distance through phone calls and letter writing, I began to realize that I did love him! I was so excited to tell him, but decided to wait until he got back from traveling so I could say it in person. So, I told Jordan that I loved him on the night of the Christmas concert at Northland…almost four months after him!

7. Who is taller? He is, and I can wear any height of heels that I want to without being in danger of being taller than my man…unless I were to find some 9” platform shoes, maybe…. ;)

8. Who sings better? Neither of us are really great singers, I’m afraid.

9. Who is smarter? Definitely Jordan; although I got a higher GPA in college! ;)

10. Who does the laundry? Hahahaha! Ahem, sorry about the little outburst there…it was just the momentary image of Jordan doing our laundry…. I do it. Although, in all fairness, Jordan does know how to do laundry; it’s just been a few years.

11. Who takes out the garbage? He does, mostly.

12. Who sleeps on the right side of the bed (facing from the head of the bed to the foot)? Jordan does

13. Who manages the finances? Thankfully, Jordan does!!! That is a job I would rather not be involved in! I usually don’t even open my paycheck stub when it comes in the mail…it just doesn’t even matter to me because I know it’s all being handled, and I have everything I need and then some!

14. Who is better with the computer? Probably Jordan. But I know more about HTML and cool stuff like blogging. ;)

15. Who mows the lawn? No lawn to mow! One of the blessings of renting an apartment!

16. Who cooks dinner? I do, unless we’re grilling! :)

17. Who drives when you are together? Not me! I would rather not drive, and happily give up the wheel to whomever I am with!

18. Who pays when you go out? He does! (He’s such a gentleman! Heehee!)

19. Who is most stubborn? Let’s just say it’s not a pretty sight when we get into a stubbornness-showdown, always in good jest, of course! ;)

20. Whose parents do you see the most? We try to keep it as even as possible!

21. Who asked who out? Not long after we’d been introduced, Jordan asked me out to the Rec Hall on a sort-of unofficial date to have some pizza for supper one evening. My girlfriends all told me that meant he was really serious which totally freaked me out, but I was too shy to break off the ‘date’ at that point. We ended up talking for over 5 hours!! Haha! I still remember how stiff I was when we finally got up and he walked me back to the dorm!

22. Who proposed? He did, of course! The rest of that story is here

23. Who is more sensitive? Definitely me.

24. Who has more friends? I suppose he does, but I probably have more ‘close’ friends

25. Who has more siblings? Jordan has one more sibling than I do.

26. Who wears the pants in the family? Jordan definitely does…no question!

27. How did you meet? Well, we ‘unofficially’ met in the Dining Hall at Northland sometime during the first few days of the fall semester. I was just leaving the ‘drink line’ and balancing my full glass of water, my plate, and my silverware all in one hand as I meandered through the crowd. Then, some guy who happened to be standing close by said, “That’s pretty impressive for a freshman.” I was too shy to really say anything…I don’t think I even met his gaze. I just smiled and continued on my way. Later on, Jordan mentioned that conversation to me and I was like, “That was you?!” We were officially introduced by a guy named Jeremy Rice (I would love to know whatever happened to him!). Jeremy was Jordan’s roommate and my extension leader and for whatever reason he felt like Jordan and I needed to meet! So, on the last night of the Revival Services (about this time of year, come to think of it!) of my freshman year of college, we were introduced to each other by Jeremy outside the south entrance of the Gym. After that, I just happened to see Jordan around quite a bit…. And the rest is history! ;)

Favorite Things Friday

My favorite kind of ice cream is Blue Bunny Bunny Tracks!

This creamy vanilla ice cream comes loaded with your favorite goodies - chocolate-covered peanuts, peanut butter-filled chocolate bunnies, a thick chocolate fudge ribbon and a peanut butter caramel ribbon for a delicious ice cream treat!

When I was in highschool, I had a bowl of Bunny Tracks at least twice a week, I think. Sometimes more, probably! Mom was so nice to keep some in the freezer at all times. ;) There's just something about the combination of chocolate and peanut butter that I just love! It's amazing that I didn't weigh 200 pounds by the time I went to college! Haha! :D

Of course, buying Blue Bunny ice cream is so expensive, which is a huge bummer. I've hardly had any Bunny Tracks since I left home. We usually just buy the Great Value brand at Wal-Mart and add our own toppings. I try to make it exciting by giving my sundae creations special names (my favorite is "Turtle-icious" and Jordan's is "Peanut Butter Lover's Delight"). :) But, a little while ago I stumbled across a great coupon that gets me Blue Bunny ice cream for $1 off! In our grocery store, that brings it down into a competetive price range with Great Value! Yay! So, we've been enjoying Bunny Tracks (maybe a little too much!) lately...and trying to branch out to try some other really good flavors too. But, Bunny Tracks will always be my favorite favorite ice cream! ;)

Oh, and if you're wondering about that coupon, click here. You can keep printing it off and using it until October 31st! :)

Favorite Things Friday

I love houses!

Whenever we drive anywhere, my eyes are constantly scanning all the homes we pass. During the day, I love looking at the designs of the houses, imagining which one I would choose if I were able to buy any house I wanted. If it's dark outside, I'm hoping they'll have their lights on and their shades open, so I can see inside. Is that bad? :| Heeehee! I like getting a glimpse of how people decorate. I always feel a little clueless about home decor, so it's fun to see what other people are doing. My only other inspiration usually comes from Pottery Barn (I'm so original!)! ;) So, one of my favorite things is house-peeping!

Favorite Things Friday

Puppies are one of my favorite things.

Seriously, though, who doesn't love a puppy?! All cute and cuddly and furry and energetic and curious and chewy and playful...!

But the 'favoritism' reaches a whole new level when the puppy actually belongs to you!!!

So, allow me to introduce you to our new puppy, Macy!! The pictures below are the only ones we have of her so far. She's almost 4 weeks old, so we don't have her yet. We probably won't have her for another 3 or 4 weeks (such a long time!). She's the white and black one in the pictures below. Isn't she a cutie?!?!? She's an English Cocker Spaniel and comes from a long line of great hunting dogs. That's the main reason we are getting her, because Jordan wants a hunting dog since he's planning to do a lot of hunting now that we're living in IA. We've both been wanting to get a dog for a long time, but when we were living at Northland dogs weren't allowed in our apartment. :( So, after lots of waiting and research, we decided this is the best kind of dog for us. (Well, actually, Jordan has done most of the work of researching...I pretty much just care about how cute she is and how sweet she is! Haha!) She won't get to be very big, so she'll be great for the apartment. And her temperament is supposed to be very sweet friendly, which will make her a great companion. And English Cocker Spaniels are notorious for their intelligence and hunting instincts, so she'll be great for Jordan to hunt with!!

So, we're really excited and can hardly wait to have Macy here with us! Of course, it'll be an adjustment, but I suppose it's about time us 'kids' decided to take on a little bit of responsibility! Haha! ;) Be looking for Macy to make regular appearances on our blog from now on! :D

Macy, three weeks old

Macy cuddling with the other puppies.

Favorite Things Friday

I love the 4th of July!!!

I have three favorite holidays: Christmas, New Year's, and the 4th of July. They rotate in favoriteness depending on the time of year. ;)

Parties, fireworks, time with family, patriotism, friends, fun, fried chicken, flag tag, food, outdoor games, dry ice bombs...lots of things come to mind with the 4th of July! I'm looking forward to an exciting day that will include all those things! :)

Hope you all have some exciting things planned to celebrate our nation's independence!!! Happy 4th of July!!

Favorite Things Friday

One of my favorite things is looking at wedding pictures. It doesn’t matter whose wedding it is, I just love looking through the pictures! Of course, I do find special pleasure in looking at the pictures of someone I know. ;) There is something so sweet and intriguing about looking at each of the participants in the wedding, noticing the pretty dresses and carefully arranged hair and observing the sentiments in their eyes. A bride on her wedding day is a fascinating person. By the end of the day she is transformed. She has no idea what her married life will be, but she hardly thinks beyond this hour’s happiness. She bestows glowing smiles, warm hugs, and sweet kisses upon her wedding guests while her thoughts are only of her groom and her love for him. Every wedding is different, which makes them even more intriguing. Colors, fabrics, dresses, flowers, themes, music, choice of attendants, order of ceremony, etc.; these all contribute to the charm of a wedding. So, if you happen to post your wedding pictures somewhere that I can get to them, I can guarantee you that I will sit here at my computer and click through all 752 of them!! :)

Favorite Things Friday

One of my favorite things since I found out that I’m pregnant has been the weekly emails that I signed up for on babycenter.com. I look so forward to them each week! It is so intriguing to see the ways in which our baby will be developing each new week. This week (according to my email), our baby’s hands and feet will be forming. Our baby’s eyelids are starting to appear over the eyes (which already have some color!) and the tip of the baby’s nose is starting to poke out a little bit. Most of our baby’s major organs have begun to develop to some extent. It’s incredible how quickly they change – our baby doubled in size last week and is now a half-inch long! :) And I’m amazed how all the ‘information’ for what the baby will look like, etc. was all stored in that original single tiny cell!

"For You formed my inward parts;
You knitted me together in my mother’s womb.
I praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are Your works;
my soul knows it very well.
My frame was not hidden from You,when I was being made in secret,
intricately woven in the depths of the earth.
Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in Your book were written, every one of them,
the days that were formed for me,
when as yet there was none of them."

~Psalm 139:13-16

Favorite Things Friday

My favorite game to play is Rook.

When Jordan and I were dating, he taught me the game Rook and we played it with other couples in the Daily Grind probably once or twice a week. It was so fun to learn the strategy of the game and to develop an effective partnership with Jordan (since of course we were pretty much always on the same team). Jordan was so funny to play with because he was so confident, even when he had a terrible hand. I loved it when I played the right card at the perfect moment and he just looked at me like, “We just took them!” :) During Jordan’s freshman year (before I came), he became friends with an upperclassman who was really good at Rook. Jordan and him were an unbeatable team. So, Jordan had learned a lot of the tricks (Haha! No pun intended! I didn't notice it till I proof-read, and then decided to leave it in 'cause it's kinda funny!) of the game by the time I showed up his sophomore year. I always felt like laughing when he would win the kitty because without fail he would say things like, “Oh, this is not good” or he’d look at me and say, “I hope you’ve got a good hand.” But most of the time he was totally bluffing and he would take all the tricks! Then, if someone on the other team won the kitty, Jordan would sabotage them with things like, “Didn’t get what you’re looking for, huh” or “You didn’t get as much trump as you were hoping…that’s because I have it.” Of course, you have to imagine Jordan saying these things…it doesn’t come out as good in print. He’s definitely mastered the art of trash-talking! We almost always won our games! Although, I remember one time when I was visiting Jordan’s family, and Jordan, Luke, and I decided to play Rook. The game is a little different when you play it with 3 people (normally you play with 4), but I got the hang of it all right. The great part was that at the end, I won!! I kept the score sheet (in spite of much persecution to force it from my hand!) and just came across it the other day – somewhat crumpled – in a little-used pocket of my suitcase! Those were such fun days! Unfortunately, over the last few years, Rook players seem to be a dying breed…especially amongst females…and we have had a really hard time finding other couples to play with. I keep my ears open though…maybe someday we will get to break out those Rook cards with someone for some healthy competition again!