Needed to take a break from work on this Friday afternoon...As I write this, snow is lightly falling outside - almost as if we are inside of a snow globe. I am anxiously awaiting the Christmas decorations to go up in Downtown Bismarck - that just makes the view from the office all the better during the cold winter months...
Jay & I have been laying low for the most part over the last couple of weeks. I, as you probably know, have a new bedtime usually around 9:00-9:30 p.m., if not earlier on some nights. I seem to be snapping out of the fatigued/sleepiness a bit, though, which is nice. Other than that, despite a few bad days at the end of last week/last weekend, my pregnancy nausea also has gone away for the most part. I know I'm lucky if I'm already through the worst of it this time around! We still have about a week and a half before we hear the baby's heartbeat and I'm trying not to think about it too much - otherwise, I get too anxious for that appointment! I like to keep up-to-date with how big the baby is and what happens each week with it by checking out a couple of online sources as well as books/magazines. The whole development of the baby aspect really fascinates me. From what I have read right now the baby is around 1.5-2.0 inches long, or the size of a medium shrimp, as one site put it!! My friend Missy, who is due at the end of March, tells me that the food/size of baby comparisons continue on throughout the pregnancy - I believe she said her baby is the size of a banana this week! :)
The beagles have been giving us some good practice of getting up in the middle of the night. For some reason, they have been getting up 2-3 times/night wanting to go outside. What's funny about this (well not as funny in the middle of the night) is that they won't go out of the doggy door on their own (even though Jerz, and probably Bailey, know how to get out of it) - so there we are letting our dogs out the doggy door every time they go out!! They will come back in the door- mostly with the promise of a t-r-e-a-t if they do. Anyway, in about 6 months, I told Jay - one of us will be up with the baby and the other one letting the dogs out all night anyway - so we might as well get used to it now!!
As of last weekend, we are the proud new owners of a (used) treadmill and a (new) snowblower. The purchase of the snowblower pretty much guarantees that it will not snow enough to use it the rest of the winter!! ;) Jay is eager to try it out, but I think the snow we are getting today will only accumulate up to possibly 2 inches or so. Don't be surprised if he has it out anyway - trying it out in what's left of our big snow drift in front of the house! :)
The Broncos keep finding ways to win...
This week I had two evenings "out" which was nice. Wednesday was my friend Heidi's birthday but Missy and I joined her for supper at The Bistro on Tuesday evening. The food was great and we had a blast talking and catching up. We had not gone out anywwhere together since the end of summer. On Wednesday, after volleyball a few of us went up to Paradiso. We stayed and talked for a couple hours! I had myself a virgin pina colada and decided that in this economy that virgin drinks are the way to go!! Almost cheaper than pop!!
This weekend we get some "practice" with child care as we are babysitting Ran and Julie's kids overnight at our house Saturday evening into Sunday morning! Should be a fun time - and we hope the kids have fun too! Our house is not very child-friendly yet (no toys, etc) but it own't be long until it is! Ran and Julie are thankfully going to provide some games/movies, etc so taht we can keep the kids entertained!!
Other than that, life is going along pretty normally. We eat, sleep, work, have some fun and get up and do it all over again!
Hope everyone has a great weekend! Thanksgiving is coming soon - yay!!
Friday, November 21, 2008
Monday, November 10, 2008
The last couple of weeks....
Well, I realize that I have been remiss in my "duties" to update our blog lately. I will blame it on the fact that we don't have internet at home, at least not yet!
Since the last time I posted...here are some highlights and lowlights: Again, sorry no pictures, I keep forgetting to bring the cord that connects our camera to the computer so I can post some pictures on here...
HIGHLIGHTS:
1. Pumpkin carving and Halloween. The day before Halloween we went over tho Lyndsey and Nick's to help them get ready for their big Halloween party. We all got into some pumpkin carving. Jay did a Broncos pumpkin (of course) and Nick and Lyndsey had a bunch of Twins stensils for the pumpkins. They all turned out well and it was fun to get into the spirit of Halloween! (Again, I have pictures - will have to post them later).
As for Halloween night, we had some neices and nephews up trick-or-treating and then we went to Nick and Lyndsey's party. Payton was a bride and Sydney was Princess Belle. Taylor was Hannah Montana, Landon was Spider Man and Lexie was a ladybug. Jay was a Ghostbuster and I was a vampire. Quite the combination! Pretty much everyone at the party got into the spirit of the holiday and dressed up. Including two individuals who came into the part with their witch costumes completely covering their faces. It took quite awhile to figure out who they were. In the end it was revealed that it was Ran and Julie! They "won" 1st place in the costume contest and deserved it - they had us tricked for quite awhile!
2. The weather. Well at least up to about mid-week last week. The weekend of Halloween it got up over 70 degrees, which is unheard of around here! Also, post-blizzard, we have some pretty nice scenery with the frosted trees and snow on the ground (to cover up most of the ugly brown bare ground and trees).
3. The view of the wildlife from our house. (Which, as of now, consists of lots of pheasants at around their feeding time). Also the nightly view of the city from our house - it's just cool to see the lights of town come on every evening through our living room windows. So peaceful!
4. Broncos victory. What a great comeback win for the Broncos last Thursday night! I napped through the part of the game where they were not playing well and woke up in time to see the big comeback!
5. Grandmas. On Nov. 3, my grandma turned 86. We had a nice family birthday party for her at the community room at the new apartment complex she lives in. On Nov. 6, Jay's grandma turned 85. We got to visit her on Sunday morning and got to share some good news with her. She seemed to be in good spirits (she also had some other family visitors who were going to have lunch with her at the nursing home that morning). We shared our good news with my grandma later that evening, when she was out for supper at our house. About 45 minutes after my grandma got home, I got a phone call from my cousin - apparently my grandma got on the phone as soon as she got home to spread the news to the rest of the family! Too funny!
6. GOOD NEWS! Sometime in mid-June next year Jay and I are expecting our first baby!! We have told family and a few close friends so far (probably the same people that are reading this). The pregnancy is going on 9 weeks along, so it's still early, but we decided to share the news anyway. And, if my grandma has anything to do with it, most of Bismarck should know the news by the end of today! :)
Also - to see & hear the reactions of the family members has been fun! We had Syndey and Payton tell Chris & Val and Ryan & Raumi on Saturday night. (Sydney first asked me if I had a puppy in my belly). Telling Mike & Sandy and Lyndsey & Nick in person was also fun. They were all smiles. Grandma Schaff didn't get too worked up but was happy about the news. My mom started crying, which in turn made me cry. And of course the rest of the family was happy. Lots of hugs and congratulations!
I also have to thank Val G. for the little windbreaker Denver Bronsos onsie that she has been saving all these years! It is so cute - and the perfect first baby gift! Just in time for the little one to wear next fall/winter during the football season - boy or girl!
LOWLIGHTS: (Although I shouldn't focus on the negative...but there's just a few)
1. Poorly installed front door. Before the blizzard hit, an inch of driving rain pounded us on Wednesday evening. Our front door was apparently not well-installed and a ton of water leaked in through the bottom of the door. Jay was up until about 4:00am that night (until it quit raining) soaking up the water with towels and then drying them. Good news is that we got it fixed (knock on wood).
2. The weather. I don't mind snow but that rain storm and blizzard caused some havoc with the door and the dogs had a hard time with it too. Next time, I'll take the snow without the wind please!!
3. Direct TV satellite installers. It took them coming out 3 times to our place to get it installed right. And a whole lot of phone calls from Jay to get them to take care of it!
That's all for lowlights! For now, we're enjoying sharing our good news with family and friends! We are cautiously excited, and we hope and pray that everything will continue to go well! Our next appointment won't be until the week after Thanksgiving, when we will get to hear the heartbeat for the first time!! In the meantime, we have about 7 months until this little June bug arrives, and I'm sure we will not realize how fast the time will go!
Since the last time I posted...here are some highlights and lowlights: Again, sorry no pictures, I keep forgetting to bring the cord that connects our camera to the computer so I can post some pictures on here...
HIGHLIGHTS:
1. Pumpkin carving and Halloween. The day before Halloween we went over tho Lyndsey and Nick's to help them get ready for their big Halloween party. We all got into some pumpkin carving. Jay did a Broncos pumpkin (of course) and Nick and Lyndsey had a bunch of Twins stensils for the pumpkins. They all turned out well and it was fun to get into the spirit of Halloween! (Again, I have pictures - will have to post them later).
As for Halloween night, we had some neices and nephews up trick-or-treating and then we went to Nick and Lyndsey's party. Payton was a bride and Sydney was Princess Belle. Taylor was Hannah Montana, Landon was Spider Man and Lexie was a ladybug. Jay was a Ghostbuster and I was a vampire. Quite the combination! Pretty much everyone at the party got into the spirit of the holiday and dressed up. Including two individuals who came into the part with their witch costumes completely covering their faces. It took quite awhile to figure out who they were. In the end it was revealed that it was Ran and Julie! They "won" 1st place in the costume contest and deserved it - they had us tricked for quite awhile!
2. The weather. Well at least up to about mid-week last week. The weekend of Halloween it got up over 70 degrees, which is unheard of around here! Also, post-blizzard, we have some pretty nice scenery with the frosted trees and snow on the ground (to cover up most of the ugly brown bare ground and trees).
3. The view of the wildlife from our house. (Which, as of now, consists of lots of pheasants at around their feeding time). Also the nightly view of the city from our house - it's just cool to see the lights of town come on every evening through our living room windows. So peaceful!
4. Broncos victory. What a great comeback win for the Broncos last Thursday night! I napped through the part of the game where they were not playing well and woke up in time to see the big comeback!
5. Grandmas. On Nov. 3, my grandma turned 86. We had a nice family birthday party for her at the community room at the new apartment complex she lives in. On Nov. 6, Jay's grandma turned 85. We got to visit her on Sunday morning and got to share some good news with her. She seemed to be in good spirits (she also had some other family visitors who were going to have lunch with her at the nursing home that morning). We shared our good news with my grandma later that evening, when she was out for supper at our house. About 45 minutes after my grandma got home, I got a phone call from my cousin - apparently my grandma got on the phone as soon as she got home to spread the news to the rest of the family! Too funny!
6. GOOD NEWS! Sometime in mid-June next year Jay and I are expecting our first baby!! We have told family and a few close friends so far (probably the same people that are reading this). The pregnancy is going on 9 weeks along, so it's still early, but we decided to share the news anyway. And, if my grandma has anything to do with it, most of Bismarck should know the news by the end of today! :)
Also - to see & hear the reactions of the family members has been fun! We had Syndey and Payton tell Chris & Val and Ryan & Raumi on Saturday night. (Sydney first asked me if I had a puppy in my belly). Telling Mike & Sandy and Lyndsey & Nick in person was also fun. They were all smiles. Grandma Schaff didn't get too worked up but was happy about the news. My mom started crying, which in turn made me cry. And of course the rest of the family was happy. Lots of hugs and congratulations!
I also have to thank Val G. for the little windbreaker Denver Bronsos onsie that she has been saving all these years! It is so cute - and the perfect first baby gift! Just in time for the little one to wear next fall/winter during the football season - boy or girl!
LOWLIGHTS: (Although I shouldn't focus on the negative...but there's just a few)
1. Poorly installed front door. Before the blizzard hit, an inch of driving rain pounded us on Wednesday evening. Our front door was apparently not well-installed and a ton of water leaked in through the bottom of the door. Jay was up until about 4:00am that night (until it quit raining) soaking up the water with towels and then drying them. Good news is that we got it fixed (knock on wood).
2. The weather. I don't mind snow but that rain storm and blizzard caused some havoc with the door and the dogs had a hard time with it too. Next time, I'll take the snow without the wind please!!
3. Direct TV satellite installers. It took them coming out 3 times to our place to get it installed right. And a whole lot of phone calls from Jay to get them to take care of it!
That's all for lowlights! For now, we're enjoying sharing our good news with family and friends! We are cautiously excited, and we hope and pray that everything will continue to go well! Our next appointment won't be until the week after Thanksgiving, when we will get to hear the heartbeat for the first time!! In the meantime, we have about 7 months until this little June bug arrives, and I'm sure we will not realize how fast the time will go!
Monday, October 27, 2008
Settling In
Well we have really started to settle into our new home after a little over a week. The beagles are adjusting pretty well for the most part. They still hate their doggy door so we may be replacing it with a little more user-friendly type of dog door. They don't seem to mind their little doggy area of the garage where we keep them when we leave the house. They do have the two old couches from the trailer though - so I think they like those.
We continue to slowly unpack things at our house. Key word - slowly. We seem to be able to spend money on the house at a very rapid rate, however. Seriously, buy stock in Lowes, Target and Walmart. We are almost single-handedly keeping those places open! ;) All part of home-ownership, I realize!
Last Sunday, we went to the T Wolves/Nuggets game at the Civic Center, which was fun! We have some pictures from it but with the camera we have now, they didn't turn out very good (any sort of motion and less than bright lighting usually causes blurry pictures). Hmmm...think it's time to invest in a new camera - this one is about 6 years old I think!
Last week Monday I had my first trial as an attorney at this law firm - and it went pretty well overall. We were able to get our clients to agree on about 90% of everything before hand so the issues were limited at trial, which helped. I'm definitely getting some good experience in front of judges lately! Exciting and nerve-wracking all at once!
This Saturday we went to Taylor's v-ball game at the Y. There was a time during one of the games where the other team kept serving at Taylor and she kept hitting it back over and scoring on them. Jay said if he were coaching the other team he would have called a "time out" and told her not to serve to Taylor. He also explained to me that it was that "Gerving domination" showing through!! Maybe just a little bit of a proud uncle shining through already!
In other news, we have purchased our Halloween costumes! Those of you going to Nick & Lyndsey's on Friday evening will see what they are then...otherwise, you'll just have to come trick-or-treating at our house to see what we came up with!
Today marks Bailey's "2nd birthday" with us! In other words, 2 years ago today is when we adopted Bailey from the pound! Since we don't know how old she is or what her birthday is, we consider our day of adoption her birthday! She still has issues with people she doesn't know (gets scared and goes to hide whenever people come over) and we've had our challenges with her over the years, but I can't imagine life without the little squirt!
Other than that, it's just another "manic Monday" and the start of another work week. Jay and I have been carpooling to and from work each day, taking turns dropping each other off. It seems to work quite well and we're saving on gas money overall by not having to drive the Durango except on special occasions. Plus, that gives us probably 30 minutes of quality time talking to each other while we drive with each other each day! ;)
Have a great week everyone!!
We continue to slowly unpack things at our house. Key word - slowly. We seem to be able to spend money on the house at a very rapid rate, however. Seriously, buy stock in Lowes, Target and Walmart. We are almost single-handedly keeping those places open! ;) All part of home-ownership, I realize!
Last Sunday, we went to the T Wolves/Nuggets game at the Civic Center, which was fun! We have some pictures from it but with the camera we have now, they didn't turn out very good (any sort of motion and less than bright lighting usually causes blurry pictures). Hmmm...think it's time to invest in a new camera - this one is about 6 years old I think!
Last week Monday I had my first trial as an attorney at this law firm - and it went pretty well overall. We were able to get our clients to agree on about 90% of everything before hand so the issues were limited at trial, which helped. I'm definitely getting some good experience in front of judges lately! Exciting and nerve-wracking all at once!
This Saturday we went to Taylor's v-ball game at the Y. There was a time during one of the games where the other team kept serving at Taylor and she kept hitting it back over and scoring on them. Jay said if he were coaching the other team he would have called a "time out" and told her not to serve to Taylor. He also explained to me that it was that "Gerving domination" showing through!! Maybe just a little bit of a proud uncle shining through already!
In other news, we have purchased our Halloween costumes! Those of you going to Nick & Lyndsey's on Friday evening will see what they are then...otherwise, you'll just have to come trick-or-treating at our house to see what we came up with!
Today marks Bailey's "2nd birthday" with us! In other words, 2 years ago today is when we adopted Bailey from the pound! Since we don't know how old she is or what her birthday is, we consider our day of adoption her birthday! She still has issues with people she doesn't know (gets scared and goes to hide whenever people come over) and we've had our challenges with her over the years, but I can't imagine life without the little squirt!
Other than that, it's just another "manic Monday" and the start of another work week. Jay and I have been carpooling to and from work each day, taking turns dropping each other off. It seems to work quite well and we're saving on gas money overall by not having to drive the Durango except on special occasions. Plus, that gives us probably 30 minutes of quality time talking to each other while we drive with each other each day! ;)
Have a great week everyone!!
Monday, October 20, 2008
Moved in...and it feels so good!
We did accomplish the task of moving into our new home this past Friday (which happened to be Jersey's 6th birthday - lucky dog gets a new house for her birthday). With the help of friends and family the moving in process went incredibly quickly and smoothly. We couldn't have asked for better weather as well! We really appreciate everyone's help!
Now...the unpacking part might take awhile!! However, on Saturday my mom and Val W. came over and helped me unpack and put away everything in the kitchen, which was such a huge help to us! Jay got stuck with putting things together that day - which I could tell he thoroughly enjoyed. Just ask him about how much he likes putting together the barstools I bought! ;)
The beagles made it out to the house for the first time on Saturday evening. The first couple hours consisted of them sniffing the place up & down until their little noses just about fell off! Bailey had to have a couple "time-outs" in the kennel to get her settled down but we survived the first night. On Sunday they really started to settle in - until we had to leave them for the first time in the garage while we went to the Timberwolves/Nuggets exhibition game at the Civic Center last night. Overall, they are doing a good job adjusting though which is nice. We were a bit worried about the transition for them and how they would behave!
We will continue to try to get everything put away and then will make plans for a proper housewarming party sometime soon! :)
For now, we feel very happy and blessed to be able to be in our beautiful new home!
Now...the unpacking part might take awhile!! However, on Saturday my mom and Val W. came over and helped me unpack and put away everything in the kitchen, which was such a huge help to us! Jay got stuck with putting things together that day - which I could tell he thoroughly enjoyed. Just ask him about how much he likes putting together the barstools I bought! ;)
The beagles made it out to the house for the first time on Saturday evening. The first couple hours consisted of them sniffing the place up & down until their little noses just about fell off! Bailey had to have a couple "time-outs" in the kennel to get her settled down but we survived the first night. On Sunday they really started to settle in - until we had to leave them for the first time in the garage while we went to the Timberwolves/Nuggets exhibition game at the Civic Center last night. Overall, they are doing a good job adjusting though which is nice. We were a bit worried about the transition for them and how they would behave!
We will continue to try to get everything put away and then will make plans for a proper housewarming party sometime soon! :)
For now, we feel very happy and blessed to be able to be in our beautiful new home!
Sunday, October 12, 2008
T Minus 5 Days
Just a few pictures as we head into the last week before moving into the house...
We're set for closing on Friday at 11:00am. We'll start moving in that afternoon/evening. Let the moving and unpacking festivities begin! :)Have a great week everyone!
Friday, October 10, 2008
One week to go!
Well we have one week go to until we close and move into the new house!
I have posted some pictures below from last night. As you can see, some more flooring was done along with other work. Things are going on schedule, which is great!
Laundry room:
I have posted some pictures below from last night. As you can see, some more flooring was done along with other work. Things are going on schedule, which is great!
Laundry room:
Guest bath:
Living room fireplace (obviously top of the mantle and the cap piece for the bumpout weren't in yet):
Master bath:
As we were leaving last night, our cabinet guys were starting on the crown moulding on the cabinets:
When we arrived home (Mom, Dad, Jay and I), I opened the door to find that the beagles had pulled off yet another canine caper. This time, they absolutely blew up the garbage at my parents' house!! I had to take pictures - there was no major damage done but it was quite a mess to clean up! Those dang dogs!
Other than that, we are just SO ready for this work week to be over!! Jay will leave later this afternoon to go pheasant hunting in GU. My dad is leaving as well to go to Pollock for pheasant hunting and fishing for about a week. My mom is going with Tom to Minneapolis today. So, I will be home alone for most of the evening, though my aunt will be coming to stay later on in the evening. I plan on spending some time this evening vegging out and getting caught up on Days episodes that I have DVR'd! ;) I'm sure the beagles will be more than happy to join me - they are the ones that have to watch Days after all! ;)
I may post a few more pictures of the house that I saved on our computer at home at some point. I'm going out today to meet with a window covering guy to get an estimate on some blinds, etc. I am pretty sure that our cabinet guys finished up their work last night so I may have more pictures of the completed work as well to post later on today!
We're excited about our big day next week (and a little nervous about the whole thing). I know we'll have lots of help moving and putting things away!
Let the countdown to the weekend begin! T minus 9 hours...
Monday, October 6, 2008
Mad Dash
Hello to all...just a quick post on house updates as they occur...
This past weekend, Jay, Tom, Dad and I managed to finish the hardwood flooring in the master bedroom and a few rows down the hallway with the flooring we had available to us. We are happy to say, the flooring installation for us is now over - with the guys from the flooring store set to finish it up this week.
Here are a few pictures of the bedroom that we finished:
This past weekend, Jay, Tom, Dad and I managed to finish the hardwood flooring in the master bedroom and a few rows down the hallway with the flooring we had available to us. We are happy to say, the flooring installation for us is now over - with the guys from the flooring store set to finish it up this week.
Here are a few pictures of the bedroom that we finished:
My dad also had to get a picture of me using the miter saw. Jay said any dad would be proud to see his daughter using power tools like that. I think he was right!
"Nothing to it" :)As for the rest of the week - it's a mad dash to the completion of work on the house. All flooring should be in by the end of the week. The whirlpool tub should be tiled as well. The cabinets and fireplace mantle, etc also are scheduled to be done this week. Our exterior pillars should be done in the next couple days. Baseboard trim, the rest of the lighting and plumbing fixtures, and other odds and ends should also be done this week or early next week. October 17th is still a possibility for the closing/moving in date, but we might just make it in by the skin of our teeth.
A lot of things hinge on whether the ONE part for the whirlpool tub arrived today. That's what it comes down to. One part! This is the part that has supposedly been on it's way for weeks now. I'll believe it when I see it!
I'm hoping that any pictures I post at the end of this week or weekend show this week-long flurry of activity that is supposed to happen. We'll cross our fingers and hold our breath until then....
Besides the house...yikes, work is kicking my butt right now! I just keep saying, wake me up in two weeks. Tomorrow I have a Supreme Court argument. It's probably best we're very busy with house stuff or I would probably be way more nervous than I am right now! I have gotten the opportunity to argue in front of the Supreme court here in ND once before, when I interned with the State's Attorney's office in 2005, but it's been almost 3 years. Then, I have my first trial on my own (since working for this firm) scheduled for Oct. 20th! I may be a bit anti-social until my two big court dates and this house stuff is done!
Have a great week everyone - I'm done with my break and gearing up for a few more hours of preparation for tomorrow!
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