Blizzard

Yesterday we had a blizzard. It wasn't the first one this year and I doubt it will be the last. Instead of complain about how ready I am for spring, I decided to enjoy the coziness of being inside our little house... listening to pandora, scratching the kittens, drinking creamer with a little bit of coffee, reading on my Nook...
And, being very thankful that this weather didn't strike this coming Friday because my hubby and I are headed to Minnesota for a birthday party of a very special little boy!

1-26-14 blizzard snap shots

Our Bathroom

When we first walked through our house when we were contemplating buying it, Aaron immediately had a vision of taking out the wall between two bedrooms to make one large master bedroom and in one of the bedroom's closets, adding a master bath. I nodded in agreement, but honestly, it seemed like a lot of work. After all, I thought our house would be just fine without the remodeling.
It was a lot of work. Aaron (with the help of his brothers, dad, and myself) would come home from his job and work well into the evening . I can remember wondering, on those hot 90+ degree summer days, if it was worth it.

But, it was worth it! When we have company it is so nice to not have to all share one bathroom.
I am a neutral/earth colors kind of girl...so I kind of went out of my comfort zone in painting it gold with red. I like it though! I also am a fan of the bronze accessories...they do not show water marks as much as silver.

Student Teaching 2nd Grade

I'll blog later about the kids and what made me love my second graders so much. But right now, I want to write a little bit about what, I think, can make any student teaching experience go wonderfully or go terribly. The cooperating teacher.
When I first got my student teaching information about what grade I would be in as well as what teacher I would have, I instantly went onto my future school's website and looked her up.
As I scrolled through the information of her, I gulped. My teacher had been on countless professional organizations, she was past president of the school's education association, she had been to numerous professional conferences, she was a ND teacher of the year finalist...
Oh man, I thought to myself on that February day in 2013, this teacher is awesome and with her experience, I'm going to look so bad at teaching. 
I quickly messaged my sister-in-law, inquiring about if she knew the teacher I had. She replied back,
"You'll love her! Both of my older boys had her and they absolutely loved her."
Well, that's a good sign, I thought again to myself. I don't know about other student teaching candidates but for me, I couldn't help but feel nervous and get those "bad student teaching experience" thoughts. After all, August to December was a long time.
Wrong.
It was the shortest three months of my life, I think. From the start my teacher was welcoming, she knew how to boost my confidence, and she gave me praise on the things I was doing well as well as on things I could improve on. It made me realize that that is exactly how I want to teach my future students. Although I was a 23 year old and my kids will be 8 year olds, the concept is still the same. Encouragement is so important.
And with that, I think I learned more in those three months than I did in four years of college. Ha!

A sample of the cards I got from my kiddos. I miss them!

Guest Bathroom

Little by little our house is coming together! I am so happy we took 'before' pictures because it really shows us how far we've come. I'm also very happy that the main level of our house is in the final stretch of being completely done/remodeled! More before/after pictures to come.

I think the bathroom was the room I was most excited to redo. The bathroom before we re-did it made me think of something that would be in an asylum. Not very cozy or welcoming...at all!

After tearing all the old appliances out (except for the shower), removing the vent fan, re-texturing, re-painting, putting in new flooring, and adding a few decorative touches...this is our after:

Berry/Banana Smoothie

This afternoon I made a mixed berry/banana smoothie. I think the recipe I found is a keeper.

• 1 cup frozen berries
• 1 cup cream
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 banana
• 10 ice cubes

So tasty and creamy! 10/10 on my scale

Ninja!

Every time we go over to my in-laws place, I drool over their blender. So, after some research, I invested in one this afternoon. 

A Ninja! 

And what a great time to invest in one, too! Jeremy, one of our friends from college, is here visiting on his way out west to start his job so I've been busy making iced drinks. He also used to work at a coffee shop so he gave us some good tips on how to make coffee drinks. 

I don't have that much experience with blenders, but this one crushes ice cubes amazingly. I am impressed! On a scale of 1 to 5, I would definitely give it a 5.

Now, I think I will spend some time searching on pinterest for some blended food/drinks to make!

Sunday Afternoon

The temperature here was 44 degrees, or so my car told us.
With that kind of weather, you just can't not be outside enjoying it! So, my hubby and I trudged to our back garage, hauled down our bicycles, pumped the flat wheels full of air, and slipped and slid down the slushy streets for about an hour bike ride. Being outside getting exercise felt amazing!

Here, Aaron demonstrates how to properly carry his bike back to the garage.

Thankfully, it is supposed to be nice out this whole next week. Hopefully the streets and sidewalks will dry up a bit so it'll be easier bike riding!

A Little Decor

Today I made the trek to Bismarck to see my grandma! We ate at Cracker Barrel and I was able to stop in at Hobby Lobby quick to get some decor for our living room console table. I think Hobby Lobby may be my new favorite store. 

Here 'tis!

(Complete with a cat for extra decoration!)

Newest Chalk Paint Project

Last week as I was sitting on my computer in the living room, oohing and aahing over chalk painted furniture online, I looked over at our end tables. Why not try to chalk paint them? 

So, on Monday my old roommate came and visited Aaron and I and was able to stop at the chalk paint store in Bismarck on her way here! She picked up the colors Coco and Old White for me. 

And so, on Tuesday, I began my project with one of the end tables.

I painted it with two coats of Coco. 

I then dry brushed the Old White over top.

I then took sand paper and sanded parts of it to make it look weathered.

Lastly, I mixed the dark wax and the light wax together and waxed it. 

The last step is buffing it tomorrow.

I'm still learning how to do the distressed look, but, I'm happy with it!

Thea and George

A more detailed introduction to our family felines - Thea and George.

Here is Thea:

• She loves soft fabrics. A few nights ago we found her in the guest bathroom kneading, with her two front paws, the soft new rugs we put in there. Today, I was wrapped in a soft brown blanket and she spent about 20 minutes kneading the blanket on my lap. 
• Her most recent form of fun is unraveling the toilet paper from the roll. I was not too thrilled when I stepped out of the shower and there was toilet paper strewn all over the floor. A half hour later I found her doing the same thing with the guest bathroom toilet paper! The bathroom doors are now shut at all times.
• Thea is not a fan of dogs. My step-sister and her family stayed with us a few nights ago and had their dog with them. Thea was found underneath the couch the whole evening with her ears pinned back, occasionally growling at the friendly dog. Cabela, the dog, found her so intriguing! 

Here is George:

• Every time the fridge or a cupboard door is opened in the kitchen, you will find George making a B-line for that opening. 
• He loves to hide under the bed and jump at feet every time someone walks by. I cannot say we enjoy it as much as he does. He also loves to nibble on bare toes for some odd reason. In the morning when we let the two cats into our bedroom, he'll head straight for our toes to nibble on them. So weird! (And yes, we do feed them!)
• George loves to angle in front of whoever is walking, whether it be down the hall or down the stairs. There have been some pretty close calls when I have been juggling a hamper down the stairs and he decides to angle in front of me! Unfortunately, this has caused him to be stepped on a few times.

Although these two can get to be a little much at times, they are the reason for countless laughs in our house and they really do love us. If there is a free lap, they will be on it. If there is a movie playing, they will be curled up on our chests watching it with us. Wherever we are, they are. 

-65

Today I woke up and there was this notification on my phone.

All I noticed when I read it was the insane temperature of -65. 

A tropical vacation sure sounds nice right now! 

But since that is not an option, I am very thankful for the warm house we live in and the hot food being prepared (by my hubby) for lunch today. Looks like Fleischkuekle is on the menu! 

It is kind of like a meat pie with dough wrapped around it. It's a German dish that is very popular in this area.

After that, I may get out my Nook and hopefully find a good book to read! It's been awhile since I've found a good, engrossing book. 

well...

I was messing around with the labels on my posts and must have accidentally deleted a bunch of my posts that had the label 'family' on them. Very frustrating! So if you are wondering where the last few posts went, that's where.

ANYWAYS, here is a shortened version of what I blogged about today but it, too, got deleted: I plan on doing some more chalk painting! The two end tables in our living room as well as the Hoosier cabinet we will be getting from my in-laws do not match. I like things to match. So, I found this chalk painting idea on pinterest {below}. May try to give it a go next week!