Wednesday, January 30, 2008
New Year.. New Layout?
Thought I'd spice things up a bit but I'm not sure if I'm wild about the new template. Thoughts?
Monday, January 28, 2008
Give Me a Raspberry Beret (the kind you find at a secondhand store)
I.... don't know what to write about. I have an unfortunate case of blogger's block, which I find a bit disturbing. This blog is not for the purpose of making up creative stories, it's to fill you in on our life. To go an entire week and not have a thing to write about is.... well, quite pathetic really.
(1 minute)
(2 minutes)
(ate my lunch and pondered)
(20 minutes later): It's back!
Saturday night was Ryan's birthday. The plan was to celebrate his birth by eating at In the Raw. Michael and I, being the huge fans that we are, spent quite a bit of time getting ready for the celebration. We arrived at the restaurant to find 600 eyes staring at us (because that is what you DO at In the Raw: watch and judge, watch and judge). Unfortunately, none of those eyes were recognizable and we quickly learned that the party had moved to Tsunami. Don't get me wrong, I LIKE Tsunami, but it is no In the Raw. We got back in the car, listened to the great hits of Mix 96 (my new favorite radio station--to be discussed in a bit) and soon found out the restaurant had changed yet again to Outback. Talk about a 3rd place finisher. I told Michael I was waiting for the final call letting us know we were to meet at the Braum's drive-through. Oh well, the dinner was fun and it was good to hang out with Michael's work friends.
We ran a few (fun) errands on Saturday and enjoyed the "warmer" weather. I decided that I don't mind running errands if they are on our own time. For example, we decide to go grocery shopping because we want to cook a glorious meal. THAT is fun. However, we decide to go grocery shopping because the only food in the cupboard is tuna in a can--THAT is not fun.
Due to the ridiculous amount of things we did on Saturday: Pottery Barn, Restoration Hardware, Banana Republic, IO Metro, and Outback (I'm exhausted just thinking about it.... and I hope you're catching the sarcasm), we decided we should stay in our pajamas until 5:30p on Sunday. It was great! Steve and Kait came over for a bit and then we went to our Dave Ramsey class.
My last topic and then I shall sign off-- Mix 96. I recently put together a Communications budget for the church, which included a pretty large strategic marketing campaign for 2008. One of the requests the budget and finance committee had before they would grant the money was that I meet with some of the radio and tv advertising managers so that I might get a better feel of cost and demographics. The radio manager I met with kept talking about Mix 96 and what a great demographic it would be for the church. She described it as women in their thirties with children. I decided to give it a listen on my way home from work and had a goofy grin on my face the entire time. Apparently I have advanced 10 years in age and Thumbs is an official child. Seriously though, how can you not smile when Prince's "Raspberry Beret" hits the airwaves or Bon Jovi's "Living on a Prayer" blasts through the speakers? I am officially hooked and proud of it. Give me a fanny pack and some mom jeans and I'm all set. Ok that last sentence was a joke--I'm going to give a big HELL NO to both.
Tonight Michael and I are going to watch the OSU/OU basketball game with our new neighbors--the husband works with Michael. I do believe we'll all be sporting bright orange. On Friday we'll be heading towards StL! It's been awhile since I've been there and I'm looking forward to seeing everyone. Hopefully the weather will be a little warmer than last time--yeesh.
It's almost February, which is a short month and then BAM! We're into March, which is SO CLOSE to April, and that just happens to be one month away from warmer weather. It's basically right around the corner... :)
(1 minute)
(2 minutes)
(ate my lunch and pondered)
(20 minutes later): It's back!
Saturday night was Ryan's birthday. The plan was to celebrate his birth by eating at In the Raw. Michael and I, being the huge fans that we are, spent quite a bit of time getting ready for the celebration. We arrived at the restaurant to find 600 eyes staring at us (because that is what you DO at In the Raw: watch and judge, watch and judge). Unfortunately, none of those eyes were recognizable and we quickly learned that the party had moved to Tsunami. Don't get me wrong, I LIKE Tsunami, but it is no In the Raw. We got back in the car, listened to the great hits of Mix 96 (my new favorite radio station--to be discussed in a bit) and soon found out the restaurant had changed yet again to Outback. Talk about a 3rd place finisher. I told Michael I was waiting for the final call letting us know we were to meet at the Braum's drive-through. Oh well, the dinner was fun and it was good to hang out with Michael's work friends.
We ran a few (fun) errands on Saturday and enjoyed the "warmer" weather. I decided that I don't mind running errands if they are on our own time. For example, we decide to go grocery shopping because we want to cook a glorious meal. THAT is fun. However, we decide to go grocery shopping because the only food in the cupboard is tuna in a can--THAT is not fun.
Due to the ridiculous amount of things we did on Saturday: Pottery Barn, Restoration Hardware, Banana Republic, IO Metro, and Outback (I'm exhausted just thinking about it.... and I hope you're catching the sarcasm), we decided we should stay in our pajamas until 5:30p on Sunday. It was great! Steve and Kait came over for a bit and then we went to our Dave Ramsey class.
My last topic and then I shall sign off-- Mix 96. I recently put together a Communications budget for the church, which included a pretty large strategic marketing campaign for 2008. One of the requests the budget and finance committee had before they would grant the money was that I meet with some of the radio and tv advertising managers so that I might get a better feel of cost and demographics. The radio manager I met with kept talking about Mix 96 and what a great demographic it would be for the church. She described it as women in their thirties with children. I decided to give it a listen on my way home from work and had a goofy grin on my face the entire time. Apparently I have advanced 10 years in age and Thumbs is an official child. Seriously though, how can you not smile when Prince's "Raspberry Beret" hits the airwaves or Bon Jovi's "Living on a Prayer" blasts through the speakers? I am officially hooked and proud of it. Give me a fanny pack and some mom jeans and I'm all set. Ok that last sentence was a joke--I'm going to give a big HELL NO to both.
Tonight Michael and I are going to watch the OSU/OU basketball game with our new neighbors--the husband works with Michael. I do believe we'll all be sporting bright orange. On Friday we'll be heading towards StL! It's been awhile since I've been there and I'm looking forward to seeing everyone. Hopefully the weather will be a little warmer than last time--yeesh.
It's almost February, which is a short month and then BAM! We're into March, which is SO CLOSE to April, and that just happens to be one month away from warmer weather. It's basically right around the corner... :)
Monday, January 21, 2008
Home... Sweet, sweet home.
Dad took approx. 250 shots of our house this weekend and I am posting all of them! Only kidding, I narrowed them down quite a bit (and still came up with quite a few). Let the tour begin!
Front of our home:
Back of our home:
Entryway:
Breakfast area:
Kitchen:
Living Room:
I think this is my favorite "detail" of the house:
I love our coffee table (and also my mom who apparently learned hand gestures from Bob Dole):
Master bedroom:
Master cat:
Entry to master bathroom:
Master bathroom:
Michael and I picked out the mirrors and hung them ourselves!
Extra bedroom:
Office:
2nd bathroom:
We hung 2 pictures in this bathroom: a manatee and an ostrich. Yes, I am weird. And yes, Michael is the best:
We love our new home!! We have hung 3 pictures so the walls are still pretty bare but we will get to that eventually!!
Front of our home:
Back of our home:
Entryway:
Breakfast area:
Kitchen:
Living Room:
I think this is my favorite "detail" of the house:
I love our coffee table (and also my mom who apparently learned hand gestures from Bob Dole):
Master bedroom:
Master cat:
Entry to master bathroom:
Master bathroom:
Michael and I picked out the mirrors and hung them ourselves!
Extra bedroom:
Office:
2nd bathroom:
We hung 2 pictures in this bathroom: a manatee and an ostrich. Yes, I am weird. And yes, Michael is the best:
We love our new home!! We have hung 3 pictures so the walls are still pretty bare but we will get to that eventually!!
Thursday, January 17, 2008
Pronounced: Shellfish
I am what they call a "selfish blogger." And I use the word "they" so that my statement sounds formal and world reknown but in actuality I just made it up...
I have a few friends who blog. Most have children and the others are quite the opposite and still go out on the weekends. I check each blog every day and get VERY disappointed if there are not at least 3 new posts each week. Recently I realized, who am I to get frustrated at them when I'm lucky if I blog once every 2 weeks?! And I have zero kids to take care of and zero chance of going to a bar this weekend. I do believe the two relate--I have no kids and no crazy antics, therefore I have nothing to write about. So while they are busy doing things that are either beyond or behind me, I expect a somewhat formal update on their life. And I want it NOW (stomps foot)!
Moving on! Pictures of the house will be posted ASAP! Mom and pops are coming to visit us on Saturday to see the "finished product." We still have a lot of pictures to hang, etc., but for all practical purposes, we're done. And we're proud. And we want them to see our house and be proud of us. That being said, our camera's flash is as puny as my bicep and takes lousy indoor pictures. I'm afraid if we post the pictures our camera has produced, everyone will think we live in a cave/dungeon/under a rock and visitors will be few and far between. Or if they do decide to make the trek they might bring flashlights and/or night-vision goggles. To cure this problem, we have asked our parents to please bring a camera so that we might document our new abode properly and give it the respect it deserves.
Speaking of respect, I have even more respect for Michael after last night. We went to j-life and hung out with our miniature friends (6th and 7th graders) and then afterwards came home and Michael hung the curtains in the living room. I think they look smashing and he is hot when he uses a power drill. :)
We have a busy (but exciting!) few days ahead of us. We are going out to dinner with Anna and Gary tonight (haven't seen them since the wedding!) and then Kait and Steve are coming over tomorrow night. Saturday we'll be with the parents and then (sadly) it's already Sunday and the weekend is almost over! We started a new class last Sunday night: Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University. It's a 13-week study that is supposed to help couples get their finances in check. We're excited to learn how stupid we are with our money. Ha. You know when you're watching a movie and it's a super awkward part so your insides get kind of squeamish and you're just wanting it to be over as fast as possible so you can feel better? I think that's how we're going to feel for the duration of this class. He lays things out there and doesn't really care if it makes you feel uncomfortable (because he and you BOTH know what you're doing with your money is stupid). But it's good to hear nonetheless. I'll keep you updated if Michael and I become millionaires in the next few years thanks to Dave.
Next post will probably not occur for a week (if I'm being honest) and will include pictures--hooray! And a special thanks to all of the bloggers out there who post often and entertain me throughout my work day. It's a tough job but someone needs to do it (please)! :)
I have a few friends who blog. Most have children and the others are quite the opposite and still go out on the weekends. I check each blog every day and get VERY disappointed if there are not at least 3 new posts each week. Recently I realized, who am I to get frustrated at them when I'm lucky if I blog once every 2 weeks?! And I have zero kids to take care of and zero chance of going to a bar this weekend. I do believe the two relate--I have no kids and no crazy antics, therefore I have nothing to write about. So while they are busy doing things that are either beyond or behind me, I expect a somewhat formal update on their life. And I want it NOW (stomps foot)!
Moving on! Pictures of the house will be posted ASAP! Mom and pops are coming to visit us on Saturday to see the "finished product." We still have a lot of pictures to hang, etc., but for all practical purposes, we're done. And we're proud. And we want them to see our house and be proud of us. That being said, our camera's flash is as puny as my bicep and takes lousy indoor pictures. I'm afraid if we post the pictures our camera has produced, everyone will think we live in a cave/dungeon/under a rock and visitors will be few and far between. Or if they do decide to make the trek they might bring flashlights and/or night-vision goggles. To cure this problem, we have asked our parents to please bring a camera so that we might document our new abode properly and give it the respect it deserves.
Speaking of respect, I have even more respect for Michael after last night. We went to j-life and hung out with our miniature friends (6th and 7th graders) and then afterwards came home and Michael hung the curtains in the living room. I think they look smashing and he is hot when he uses a power drill. :)
We have a busy (but exciting!) few days ahead of us. We are going out to dinner with Anna and Gary tonight (haven't seen them since the wedding!) and then Kait and Steve are coming over tomorrow night. Saturday we'll be with the parents and then (sadly) it's already Sunday and the weekend is almost over! We started a new class last Sunday night: Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University. It's a 13-week study that is supposed to help couples get their finances in check. We're excited to learn how stupid we are with our money. Ha. You know when you're watching a movie and it's a super awkward part so your insides get kind of squeamish and you're just wanting it to be over as fast as possible so you can feel better? I think that's how we're going to feel for the duration of this class. He lays things out there and doesn't really care if it makes you feel uncomfortable (because he and you BOTH know what you're doing with your money is stupid). But it's good to hear nonetheless. I'll keep you updated if Michael and I become millionaires in the next few years thanks to Dave.
Next post will probably not occur for a week (if I'm being honest) and will include pictures--hooray! And a special thanks to all of the bloggers out there who post often and entertain me throughout my work day. It's a tough job but someone needs to do it (please)! :)
Tuesday, January 8, 2008
It's been a CRAZY year and we're only one week in!
I have decided that I am one enormous oxymoron. I'm ok with this fact except I can't help but notice that the second part of the word is MORON and that makes me feel a bit sheepish. I won't make a list of my oddities (because there IS such thing as self-preservation) but I have noticed lately that I get as much excitement out of crazy, chaotic moments as I do when it is completely quiet and the biggest weight on my shoulders is whether I should go to bed early or stay up 30 minutes longer and finish my book. Shouldn't a person be one or the other--is it possible to truly enjoy both moments equally?
The point is, in the past 2.5 months I have done the following:
-Married Michael
-Traveled to Maui, Hawaii
-Unpacked 40 bajillion boxes of wedding gifts
-Sent 40 bajillion thank you notes
-Celebrated Thanksgiving with Michael's family
-Bought a house
-Selected a lender for our home
-Celebrated Christmas with my family
-Celebrated New Years with Kait/Steve and Myers/Karen
-Changed aforementioned lender to NEW lender due to first lender's inability to do their job correctly
-Closed on a home
-Packed 80 bajillon boxes
-Moved into new home
That, my friends, is A LOT of stuff to happen in 75 days. And while there have been a few freakouts/breakdowns, I have enjoyed it IMMENSELY. So my question is, how can I enjoy all of the above nonsense and at the same time LOVE the fact that we took naps on the beach in Maui or that I am perfectly capable of sitting on the (new!) sofa and staring at our fireplace (I call it zoning) for ridiculous amounts of time? Interesting.
Pictures are to come soon but we did have quite the excitement last week with our house closing. After a huge headache on Wednesday of finding out we would NOT be able to close on Friday, we switched lenders, were re-re-re-approved (I say that because we'd already been approved twice by the previous lender) and were still able to close on Friday. Both sets of parents arrived on Friday night and we spent the weekend moving into our new home!! It is crazy that we have a garage, backyard, and neighbors that all have multiple children... all very surreal. Mom compared our street to Wisteria Lane but I am praying that is not the case. Cheaters, killers, and tornadoes--feel free to bypass 110th street and head on over to California, Vegas, or Kansas!
Michael and I made 2 New Year's resolutions: read the entire Bible and workout more. I am keeping my fingers crossed that we will be able to keep up with both of them for both our spiritual and physical health's sake!
It's been an exciting few months but I think the pace is about to slow down. We already have many weekends booked due to Mardi Gras, baby showers, trips to visit friends, Bachelorette parties, weddings, etc., but at least we have those 5 days of the week where we can come home and just BE. I guess it IS good that I love a chaotic mess as much as I love a book in bed because that appears to be the life of the Haynes' for quite some time.
As with every new year, I sit back (on our new couch), reflect on the previous year and wonder how it flew by so fast. For example, at this time last year I was newly engaged and thought life couldn't get any better, Kaitlin and Summer were happily dating their own Steves, and Melissa was a glowing newlywed. Fast forward 12 months and I am now married with a brand new house, Kait and Summer are both engaged, and Melissa recently brought Maddilyn Rose into the world. WOW. I can't decide to laugh or cry about the huge happenings that are occurring so often in the lives of myself and my friends. And to think this is just the beginning...
Here's to a great year--It's going to be fabulous!
The point is, in the past 2.5 months I have done the following:
-Married Michael
-Traveled to Maui, Hawaii
-Unpacked 40 bajillion boxes of wedding gifts
-Sent 40 bajillion thank you notes
-Celebrated Thanksgiving with Michael's family
-Bought a house
-Selected a lender for our home
-Celebrated Christmas with my family
-Celebrated New Years with Kait/Steve and Myers/Karen
-Changed aforementioned lender to NEW lender due to first lender's inability to do their job correctly
-Closed on a home
-Packed 80 bajillon boxes
-Moved into new home
That, my friends, is A LOT of stuff to happen in 75 days. And while there have been a few freakouts/breakdowns, I have enjoyed it IMMENSELY. So my question is, how can I enjoy all of the above nonsense and at the same time LOVE the fact that we took naps on the beach in Maui or that I am perfectly capable of sitting on the (new!) sofa and staring at our fireplace (I call it zoning) for ridiculous amounts of time? Interesting.
Pictures are to come soon but we did have quite the excitement last week with our house closing. After a huge headache on Wednesday of finding out we would NOT be able to close on Friday, we switched lenders, were re-re-re-approved (I say that because we'd already been approved twice by the previous lender) and were still able to close on Friday. Both sets of parents arrived on Friday night and we spent the weekend moving into our new home!! It is crazy that we have a garage, backyard, and neighbors that all have multiple children... all very surreal. Mom compared our street to Wisteria Lane but I am praying that is not the case. Cheaters, killers, and tornadoes--feel free to bypass 110th street and head on over to California, Vegas, or Kansas!
Michael and I made 2 New Year's resolutions: read the entire Bible and workout more. I am keeping my fingers crossed that we will be able to keep up with both of them for both our spiritual and physical health's sake!
It's been an exciting few months but I think the pace is about to slow down. We already have many weekends booked due to Mardi Gras, baby showers, trips to visit friends, Bachelorette parties, weddings, etc., but at least we have those 5 days of the week where we can come home and just BE. I guess it IS good that I love a chaotic mess as much as I love a book in bed because that appears to be the life of the Haynes' for quite some time.
As with every new year, I sit back (on our new couch), reflect on the previous year and wonder how it flew by so fast. For example, at this time last year I was newly engaged and thought life couldn't get any better, Kaitlin and Summer were happily dating their own Steves, and Melissa was a glowing newlywed. Fast forward 12 months and I am now married with a brand new house, Kait and Summer are both engaged, and Melissa recently brought Maddilyn Rose into the world. WOW. I can't decide to laugh or cry about the huge happenings that are occurring so often in the lives of myself and my friends. And to think this is just the beginning...
Here's to a great year--It's going to be fabulous!
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