hurry hurry!!!

I have to write this quick since I am at work and it is uber crazy here, today is the last day of the reading program and like 400 kids and parents are here to see the bubble juggler (I'm so jealous) and get their last prizes!! I'm leaving early today so me and Derek can see a movie this afternoon, so I'm trying to get everything done here at work for the ladies so I can leave on time! I'm coming back this evening to work the older kids party at the library, which I have done for the last four years, I look forward to it all summer!

Derek is at home painting our living room, I'm so excited to have it done...it will look so nice!

I go to Chicago tomorrow!!!!!! We are leaving really early tomorrow! I'm sooooooooooooooo excited!!!


I will write more when I get back from Chicago, by then I will have more to write about and hopefully have time to write it all.


Until next time,

The Love Birds

Paint

We decided last week that we wanted to paint our dining room and living room. Derek has this week off so we figured we couldn't find a better time to get it all done. I'm excited and also scared! I grew up with constant projects that took up weeks and weekends of our time, and I guess I was sorta enjoying the break from that. :) I will be glad to get the rooms freshened up though, I will be even more excited when it's all done and I can decorate our newly painted house!! :) I'm so happy derek is doing all the non fun parts of painting, all the prep work and moving the furniture. It will be interesting to see how it all turns out! :) I get sorta stressed when my house is a mess and I have a feeling it will be a disaster area this week, between paint, laundry that needs folded, furniture every where and most likely a kitchen that will need cleaned I will be feeling the walls closing in on me and I will probably start getting really snippy with derek.....*sigh* I will try to see the light at the end of the tunnel which is my trip to Chicago, if I can have every thing some what done and cleaned up by then I will be able to enjoy my trip....of course I would enjoy it either way but it will make coming home a lot easier!


I have like five days until my trip to Chicago!!!!!!!!! I made a list of things I would like to buy while I'm there, but mostly I just am excited to walk around and see the sites. I will be taking alot of pictures to share on my blog, but not so many that I look like a tourist! :)



Until next time,

The Love Birds

Weekend

Derek ran a race in Berne this morning and now we are crashed on the couch watching "the chronicles of Riddick" What a good Saturday ;)


I just wanted to let every one know that I won't be posting anything until next week. I won't have much time today or tomorrow. But keep checking my blog, I might have something fun next week for everyone!! :) I'm a big gift giver so I've been thinking of some way I can bring that into my blog and so I will be giving away a gift this next week!! I'm excited about it so I hope every one gets a chance to see it!


I will just let you all spend the weekend wondering about it...build the excitement up a little bit!


Until next time,

The Love Birds

Chicago

I'm going to my favorite city ever, Chi-town, The windy city, CHICAGO! (Derek fondly refers to it as hell hole, but we didn't ask him did we!?)

I have been to Chicago a couple times, all times have been fond memerios for me, I went for the first time with my family, and then my friend, now sister-in-law, lindsay went to school there and a bunch of us went up to see her, and then my mom took me and my sister for my 17th birthday to see the broadway play Wicked, which is a whole wonderful story of it's own, then lindsay got married and I got to go back and stay with her and her husband for a couple days, on that trip they quizzed me on directions in the city and finding my way around, which I'm glad they did otherwise I would have got lost on my next and last trip to Chicago. My aunt had never went to Chicago so my mom and I decided that just wouldn't do and planned an all girls trip with the purpose of getting my cousin her first ever American Girl doll. It was a fun trip and we all had a blast walking around like we owned the place. It's been at least two years since I was there last and now we are going back, this time is a little different....this time I'm married!!!!! :)


Needless to say I am very excited about the upcoming trip that will take place in a week and one day!! I will definitely be counting down the days! :)


Until next time,

The Love Birds

Books

With working at the library I get to browse through hundreds of books almost every day, sometimes making me never wanting to see one again and sometimes making me wish I could read them all!

I love finding a book that makes me want sit for hours reading it and that I can really get into the characters and even when I put it down I'm thinking about it and wondering what will happen! Those books are few, but I found one that I just finished that had all these things! It is called "The Time Traveler's Wife". The book is being made into a movie, which is how I found out about the book, I saw the trailer and decided I really wanted to see the movie but when I found out it was a book I decided I wouldn't watch it until I had read the book! Let me tell you I'm glad I did! There is something about books that are made into movie, while sometimes the movie captures enough of the heart to make it enjoyable to watch in most cases the book is always better than the movie!

Take Ella Enchanted for example, I have read the book at least five times, LOVE the book! It's sort of a retelling of the Cinderella story but with new twists, the book sucks you into the life of Ella who is under a fairy's "gift" , which is more like a curse, of obience. Which is bothersome but not terrible until she falls in love with the prince and is torn between loving him or bringing danger to the one she loves...with a curse like ella's if any enemies found out about it she could be ordered to kill her beloved and not be able to say no. Ok you can see that I love this book, well I was thrilled when the movie was released but greatly disappionted when I actually saw it. So much was taken out and the whole heart and courage of the characters were lost in Hollywoods take of this cherished story.

So you see why I wanted to read the Time Travelers wife before the movie, I wanted to see what the story was about, why they wanted to make a movie about it...I didn't want to miss out on a story that could be great by watching a watered down version of it. So I read the book, and loved it! Now I have high hopes for the movie, I'm hoping this is an exception to the rule. Needless to say I will be at the theatre ready to defend the book and hopefully enjoy a movie that captures everything I loved about the book.

If you need a good summer read than please take my advice and read "The Time Traveler's Wife". It was written very well and kept my attention, which is hard to do. And if you get done and didn't love it, read "Ella Enchanted" I haven't found someone who didn't love that book, its a definite favorite!


Until next time,

The Love Birds

That time of year

Well it's that time of year again...the time when all the creative people in Bluffton come out of the woodwork and show off all their skills and accomplishments and us lowly noncreative people go and eat food that is guaranteed to make us fat and applaud their many good works. It's 4-H season!


Now so every one doesn't think I'm bashing on the wonderful 4-h people I want to clear up that I think it's amazing what some of these kids can do, and I'm really only jealous I didn't get all the creative juices they did! I actually know a couple wonderfully talented girls who awe me with their projects the last couple years, The Zoll girls are my inspiration to be creative. Gracie with her cakes, Tenley with scrapbooking and this year horses and gardening! I can't wait to see the projects and brag to any one in ear shot that I know them!! :) I live wonderfully through other people...so far its worked out pretty good!


At least one night this week Derek and I will drive down to the park and walk around looking at all the animals (much to Dereks distaste) and projects, eat an ice cream cone (or two) and possibly get dinner...all in all partake in the ritual of small town Indiana! I love Bluffton.


Until next time,

The Love Birds

Firecracker Race, Fourth of July weekend

We all headed up to Fort Wayne on July 4th to watch Derek, Bernie and Ryan run the Firecracker race. The guys had a good time and ran a pretty good race. It was a really early race. which I wasn't terribly thrilled about but I supported my husband and went and I'm glad I got to see him run! I'm so proud of him for deciding to train for the marathon. We have learned so much about the running world and it has been nice to experience what Bernie and Laurissa do almost every weekend. The joke of the day was that derek had to fight nature to run the race. :) hence why there is a picture of a raccoon with the rest!

Will keep you updated on all the marathon training and whatnot!


Until next time,

The Love Birds

Summer is almost over and yet I feel like it has slipped by and I missed it completely! I have two more weeks of my summer work schedule and then I will go back to my old schedule of afternoons, by then it will be august and hopefully I will be able to enjoy the last month of summer.....I guess I could always say my summer is until September...make my own calender! :)

This fall there is a good chance (like 99.9 %) that I will be working mornings instead of afternoons at work!!!!! I am so excited, while I hate to get up in the morning I will definitely enjoy having my afternoons completely free! I probably will change the days I work along with the hours...but we have a month to figure it all out since the fall schedule starts in September! But there is the possibility I will work Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday mornings until noon...I would love to have a four day weekend! I'm crossing my fingers that this is what my schedule will be...please cross your fingers with me! :)


They have yet to do a full shut down at Crown, so Derek is still on a on-off weeks. Doesn't look like we will be getting away then either, at least not just us two...we might go camping with the Zolls and Dalrymples in August, which would be fun. We all have a good time together and it would be nice to get away even if we are camping and there is no hot tub...we would be out of Bluffton and doing something different with our time!

I need to post pictures on my blog but haven't yet,....tonight I promise!! :) again my goal is to find more time to write on this blog...to keep my dear family and friends entertained and enlightened to my everyday happenings! :)


I'm at work and hoping to get some reading in...what a better place to read than at work at the library! I have one more book to read for the Summer Reading Program and then I will be done...I can't believe I have done as much as I have so I don't want to slack on the last book! I have two weeks, surely I can finish a book by then.....again crossing my fingers!


Until next time,

The Love Birds

Sunday

It's Sunday morning at the Smith home and we are getting ready to go to church! I play today, which should be interesting since I haven't touched a piano since last Sunday! We'll see how it goes.... Derek is almost ready, I've been ready since like 9....I like having extra time to just sit or get together stuff without rushing! And I get to write on my blog :)

We are eating lunch at my parents house, my grandparents from Ohio are in for the day so we are going to get to see them and get a free meal....bonus!!!! :)

Well walking out the door now...wish me luck playing!


Until next time,

The Love Birds

July randomness

So I've been a slacker lately with my blog! It's hard to find time to sit and write, when I finally do sit down for the day the last thing I want to do is open my laptop up...I want to talk to Derek or just sit in a comfortable silence.

July so far has gone good...we are of course only a week into it but still I'm holding out hope that this will be a great month! We celebrated the Fourth in our usual fashion, a party at the Smiths and watching fireworks on their front lawn! I have such fond memories of the fourth of July through the years, especially the year Bluffton had monstrous amounts of rain and it flooded and the smiths lost power to their house right in the middle of the party...kids screaming, adults looking for candles and everyone continuing to eat after the shock of it all! What fun we had, it seems those years were easier for everyone, maybe its because I was younger and didn't notice the troubles..I wish I didn't notice them now, I guess when you are an adult and have your own worries you know how to spot other peoples! Like God gives us radars so we know when to comfort those and encourage because we ourselves know how it feels.....Just my thoughts!!


I'm hoping we can go on a vacation this month. Really I don't care were we go as long as I don't have to clean or cook that much and there has to be a hot tub!!! :) I just feel like getting away for a couple days to recharge and just get away from every day life and enjoy some stress free moments with my husband!

I don't want anyone to think we are in trouble or anything or things are stressful...It's just life....We are happy and enjoying our time but every now and then things get you down, whether they are your own troubles or those of others! It always seems like you can have one bad day or one upsetting moment in the week and the rest be perfectly fine but you still go back to the moment and remember it more than the good....why do we do that? Maybe you don't have this problem, I seem to...remember things I did wrong but forget all the wonderful moments that I had....hmmmmm, I'm working on it! :)


On a lighter note.....I'm going to be an Aunt again!!!!!!!!!!! YES!! Lindsay is expecting another baby this coming Febuary!! We are all sooooooooooooooooo excited for her and John-Thomas! I have to remind myself that I want to wait for kids, but its hard when you see micah and now lindsay is going to have that whole cute pregnant look....of course the morning sickness that Lindsay has been going through is a good reminder to wait a while to get pregnant! :) Thanks lindsay for going through this to keep me from doing the same, your a real trooper ;)



Until next time,

The Love Birds

This was my first attempt at cake decorating. I made this cake for my cousin Betsy's 18th birthday, for my first go at it I was really happy with how it turned out and I'm pretty sure Betsy liked it too!





Until next time,

The Love Birds