January Finale

Well, January has been pretty uneventful, and relaxing for us. As you can see from the picture to the left, we have spent most of our time lounging around. (This picture also shows how BIG Buster is getting already!) The holidays were fun, but they were exhausting, and it has been nice to not have to do anything, or be anywhere at any certain time.
So, being that we haven't really done anything, this blog is actually going to probably be pretty boring and short. haha.



Last week, when I went out to start my car before work, this is what I saw. Austyn had left to get on the bus while I was in the shower, so he didn't get a chance to tell me goodbye the way he wanted to apparently. So, he decided to write it on my car. I thought this was so cute, and very sweet, and had to get a picture. He is such a sweet kid and so thoughtful, (most of the time :) ) I just love him.
Also, that amount of snow on my car is the most snowfall we have had in over 2 weeks. It has been pretty "warm" (for this time of the year) and quite sunny and pleasant. It's not that good for business where I work, since we plow in the winter, but other than that factor, I have NO complaints on the sunshine, now melting and little mid-winter heat wave. Now, its back to reality though. This week has been very cold and gloomy, still no snow though. Personally, I would rather have the snow, than single digit temperatures. Oh well, spring will be here soon, I hope!

And lastly, this Friday, Jan. 29th, Austyn and some of his classmates were offered the opportunity to sing the National Anthem at the NMU hockey game. He was pretty excited about it all week, practicing and such. On Friday, he was a little upset that we couldn't find his Wildcats shirt, but... we were able to come up with a wildcats paw tattoo, that he sported on his face to show his team spirit. He did get a little nervous when we got there, I think when it finally hit him on what was going on and how many people he would be singing in front of. They all did really well though, and I was proud of him. I took a picture, but I was in the wrong spot, and only got their backs, and they didn't turn the lights on, and so its really dark and hard to see. So, instead, I put up a picture that Austyn took during the game. He took quite a few good ones, but I figured this was good. It was a good game, they played Alaska, and it ended up going into overtime, which still resulted in a tie. So, they did a shoot out, and NMU won!! It was very exciting and a great ending.

Speaking of endings, I don't know how great this is, but I think I am about finished with this entry. So, I hope you have enjoyed this most recent peak into our mostly non-eventful life, and hope all is well with everyone. Maybe next time I will have something a little more exciting to post for you. :)

Goodbye 2009, Welcome 2010

Happy Holidays everyone. We had a busy and exhausting, but fun, holiday season. There was so much going on with family, friends, company parties, shopping and travel, I don't really know where to begin.
We had several different Christmas celebrations to attend this year. They were all fun, and we had the opportunities to see lots of family that we haven't seen in a while. First, we had Austyn's holiday program for school. The theme was Christmas around the world. They did songs from around the world, and it was pretty interesting. Austyn even had a solo speaking part, which he was very excited for, and he did an excellent job.




On Christmas Eve Eve, we went to Dewey and Susan's for a family get together, since Ethan and Angela were up, and we would be gone for the Christmas weekend. It was very relaxing, and nice to see everyone together. The dinner was delicious, although, so were the appetizers, which everyone was filling up on before dinner. All in all, everything turned out nicely, except that I forgot to bring the camera, so I didn't get any pictures.
We did our little family Christmas on Christmas Eve, since we planned on leaving that afternoon to head downstate to see my mom. Austyn was soooo excited, that he could not get to sleep that night, he finally did around 1 a.m, but did not sleep for long. He was up and about at 4:30 a.m. and knocking on the bedroom door at 6. We told him he needed to wait until 7, because we needed our sleep for the drive later on. I remember being that age and the anticipation, so it must have killed him to have to wait another hour. :) I think the wait paid off though, as he described this Christmas as the best Christmas "of his entire life". What an accomplishment for us to be able to pull that off. I think the Wii that we got him was the deciding factor for him this year. We figured it would be fun for everyone, but we really had no idea just how much fun it was going to be. We have all spent the majority of our time playing the wii and are thoroughly enjoying every second of it, except in the morning when we wake up very sore. Andrew really gets into the bowling, and I really like the tennis. Austyn just likes all of them I think, but he seems particulary fond of the pool.

My Dad and Connie came over for Christmas Eve morning before we left. I made breakfast for everyone, then we exchanged gifts. Austyn got the wii sports package from them, which he was really excited about. We all took turns checking out the games. That thing really is fun for the whole family.

Early that afternoon, we started our journey to Traverse City for rest of the holiday weekend. My brother Chad and his wife Libby were home for Christmas from Louisiana. They are expecting their first child in March, and its probably the last time I will get to see Chad before he goes to Afganistan. So it was very nice to be able to spend some time with them. My mom always does a theme for the Christmas tree, and this year it was Dr. Suess. I think she pulled it off quite nicely, as the tree could not have been any more lop sided or weird looking than it was. The dinner was awesome, and there was plenty of food for everyone. We spent the evening playing cards and catching up. It was really nice to have all of the kids together for Christmas. I wish I could have gotten a picture, but my battery died on my camera. :(

For NYE, Andrew and I decided to stay home and enjoy a quiet evening to ring in the New Year. So, I invited my dad and Connie over to join us, and made a bunch of snacks. We just hung out playing games, playing the wii (of course), eating and relaxing. It was a lot of fun, and really nice to be home and not out and about at all the parties and stuff for once. For New Years Day, Dewey and Susan came over to have a late breakfast with us, and watch Andrew play the wii. I am telling you, I don't think that thing ever gets any rest, except when we sleep. It is just way too much fun. Later that day, we went into town to do some shopping, have a little lunch and go to a movie. Kind of a date afternoon I guess you could say. Then on Saturday, we headed to the bridge to pick up Austyn from his week long visit with his dad. We are glad to have him home, and now he is joining us with the addiction to the wii.
All in all it was busy, but fun and relaxing. It was nice to see everyone and have a chance to catch up. Now its time to clean up, get back to work, and lose all the weight we gained from all the delicious meals!! :)