life lately - end of july 2014 edition

I always plan on doing a five for Friday post - but I always think about it on Thursday, and when I think of it again, it's Saturday. So five for Thursday!

5. Tomorrow's my last day of summer school! I taught five 1st and 2nd graders. I wouldn't have minded it too much except the attendance was really up and down. One day I had two students...other times I had all five - I never knew who would show up. So that part was a little frustrating. But I did learn a lot and if I do it next summer, I know some things I would tweak and change from this year. 

4. Hubby's working nights and some weird hours. There was an unplanned outage at the plant he works at, something to do with the boiler, so I really haven't seen much of him. I really am not caring for this outage stuff! But, I guess it's all part of the job.

3. My sister, Elizabeth, is coming to visit this weekend! She'll be here tonight. We plan on heading to Medora tomorrow! We're headed there with my sister-in-law and her boys so that'll be fun! 0% chance of rain! Great for the musical!

2. Now that summer school is coming to a close, I've been kind of getting my classroom set up for fall. Only three {three?!?} more weeks until school starts! I'm so thankful for the other two kindergarten teachers - they've been so helpful this summer. As a 1st year teacher, I am grateful. 

1.  Our cats' newest form of fun {and newest form of entertainment for us} is chasing flies. They are not afraid to leap from couch to couch in order to catch a flying fly. They've also had to brush up on their sneaking skills. What a life house cats have!

throwback saturday

Today I was looking through some picture folders I have on my computer and came across this photo. It cracks me up. Especially the little boy on the left just waitin' in his dads arms. Aside from that, I wonder what us three sisters are telling my then brand-new husband?

a wedding gift

I am terrible {absolutely terrible} at names. I have noticed this about myself when we moved to a new community. Granted, not knowing anyone can be a bit overwhelming. After a year I still find myself describing people when I talk about them so Aaron knows who I'm talking about. {My hubby is excellent at names I might add.}

But it's kinda funny, I can look around our house at all the shower gifts and wedding gifts we received last year and know exactly who gave it to us and what they wrote on their card. It's kind of nice, you know, being able to think about Sharon when I use the ove-gloves or Raelynn when I use the tupperware or Nancy and Jenna when I use the nesting bowls or mom when I use the knives or Annie and Jeremy when we use our glasses, or Don and Eileen when I use a coaster in our living room...I could continue but I won't! But what I will say is I honestly appreciated every gift we received.

This post is about a drawing we got from my sisters and it left me drooling over all of this artists' drawings. Karmel Timmons draws horses and the way she gets every detail is amazing. The drawing started off in our living room, but then I decided to move it into our bedroom above our bed. It just seemed more intimate there. {p.s. the rustic frame was built by my brother-in-law, Blair.}

This drawing is called True Romance.

I am excited to announce that as of today I now own two of her drawings. The wedding gift from Elizabeth and Kristin sparked a love so deep for these drawings that I decided to start collecting them. They are beautiful, much like horses are. So folks, here is the newest Karmel Timmons drawing to take up residence in our home. {I decided to splurge a little bit from my summer school earnings!} 

This is a lithograph print and it's called Sisters.

To see more of her artwork click here. You'll love them!

Another Weekend in the Books

Today as we were driving home from our weekend trip, I thought to myself how full this summer has been. We've been busy, but oh it's been wonderful. And to think, there's still about a month left until school starts!
This last Saturday was the reunion for my mom's dad's side of the family. It was fun to see everyone again - I just wish I would have taken more pictures.
But you know, sometimes one picture of an event can allow you to remember the event as a whole. Here is our weekend in a nut shell.

Zane with Auntie Dot

We had so much fun with our nephew, Zane. As always, we wish he and his family lived a bit closer to the ND/MN states! But, we sure do enjoy the visits when they do head this way!

Here I am, getting some love from Kolby. My pup, Kizer, was busy chipmunk hunting. Below - Aaron and Zane. Zane loved the fourwheeler. Next summer he'll be driving himself! (just kidding - but seriously, he already knows how to turn the key and push the button to start it!)

The theme of the family reunion was "Christmas in July". It was a fun theme, and so much thought went into it! Above is a picture of a few cousins singing Christmas carols but with their own lyrics. The afternoon was spent eating, chatting, auctioning, and reminiscing. 

After the reunion Aaron and I headed to his parents place for the night. His parents weren't home, which was a bummer, but it sure was nice to be there and spend the evening roaming around Aaron's old stomping grounds. The above picture I snapped of their barn. I love big red barns. 

It was a beautiful evening for a walk. I couldn't help but snap some pictures of the North Dakota scenery. I love it here, I really do.

On Sunday we drove Aaron's grandparents to our church meeting. After meeting was a potluck, which was scrumptious, but we also got a ride down the James river. It was fun!

Now onto another full week of engineering for Aaron and teaching for me!

Life Lately

Garage Floor: CHECK

I like to be involved in the house projects with my husband - it's such a great feeling knowing we achieved something together.

I must admit, though, I did not help much with this project. So a big thanks to my father-in-law and brothers-in-law! They have been such a huge help - I don't think this house moving/remodeling/basement building/garage adding endeavor could have been possible without them. (Or at the very least, it would have been pretty difficult!)

Here, folks, is the future home to: 

Felix the G6 and....

well, one of Aaron's pickups!

Characters in this photo: Myron, Aaron, neighbor Ed

Past Few Weeks

Where did the last few weeks go?! They honestly feel like a blur...but a fantastic type of blur.
It's not very often that my sister from Idaho, my sister from Minnesota, and my step-sister from Wyoming are all at the same place, at the same time. There were so many highlights from the past two weeks that I could mention, but I think I'll let the pictures do the talkin'.
Pictures are more fun to look at, anyway!

Chelsey and Archer stayed with us before Medora. On our way to Medora, we got a flat tire - in the pouring rain. Hence the second picture!

Pitchfork Fondue - Musical - Sightseeing

One of my top favorite places to visit.

Lake Days

Spending some time at the beach.

On the pontoon

Minnesota sunset

And in between all that throw in a parade, an awesome firework show, delicious food, good chats, and hilarious laughs. What great summer weeks.