Oh what does a husband do on his day off???

Dan has been very busy at work and has not had a day off the whole month of November. He has worked 10+ hour days, a couple 5:30 AM jobs (remember the Monday snow storm) and some last minute night jobs. We can't complain, when there is work to do we make more money… right?

Well… Dan informs me Tuesday night after playing volleyball at church (10 PM) that he has the day off on Wednesday. He is THRILLED!!! Me- I am happy for him but considered, just for a second, taking the day off too so we can relax together. I decided against that and wanted Dan to enjoy his day doing WHATEVER he wanted.

So… what does Dan want to do??? I thought to my self on the way home from work… Maybe he washed the 3 dishes that I had left in the sink- a pot, a mixing bowl and a cookie sheet. I didn't expect, just hoped.

Let me tell you what I found when I came home from work.

The garbage out

His bench cleaned off (where he stores shoes, jackets, hats, gloves, old work schedules, everything he uses EVER)

The bed made

2 loads of laundry folded/put away (2 small loads, but still 2 loads!)

A lightbulb put in the hall light (that burned out the night before)

Sidewalks & driveway snowblowed/shovelled

And the kicker… THE BASEMENT CLEAN!!!

* storage containers closed, boxes stacked up, garbage emptied, stocked the fridge with water bottles, old 12-pack boxes condensed and gone, our work supplies neatly piled against the wall, I know I am forgetting something but it was spotless. In fact, I was on the phone when I first saw it all and about fell over. (I know you don't care about our basement clean, but when I am usually tripping on all of our stuff and it isn't there to fall over, it's a big deal!)

What does a wife think when the house is clean and she didn't do it… My first thought: "That was so good of him! This really helps my stress levels."

Then…

1- What does he want?

2- He must really be sick of me whining about everything I have to do (whining/complaining/venting… whatever you want to call it.)

3- He really wants my craft stuff OUT of the baby's room and into the basement (so we can get the crib and dresser and I won't be nearly as stressed.)

4- What did he do?

5- I must really be neglecting things that it bothered him enough to do it

6- He must have REALLY not wanted to do the dishes (that were still in the sink)

Push comes to shove, he did it all and the only thing he had to say was "it didn't take as long as I thought it would."

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

As we crawl into bed that night, he says to me, "Can I tell you something and you promise you won't be mad." I asked him if it was mean, I expected something like "you've really let yourself go since your belly has gotten bigger" or "you smell" or something odd like this (which he wouldn't say, but it had been a long day. I didn't know what I could handle.)

"With my $50 tip from last week, I went out and bought a new video game."

How could I argue?

Monday Mornings...

So here goes...

The weekends are always TOO short, and as always I dread Monday mornings. This week, Monday hit me like a storm and ALMOST took me out.

5:30 AM- Dan had an early early morning job so he was up, he looks out the window in the kitchen "Oh crap!" I of course panic in the bed and get up. We had 2 inches of snow that we had NO idea was coming (yes- we are the idiots that watch football or TiVo-ed things at night as opposed to the news...)

I had to move my car for Dan to get the work van out (he would have done it, but I was up anyway) so I just decided to shovel. The snow just kept coming down, so I had no idea when it may stop. After 40 minutes of shoveling & spreading salt (thinking how strange it must look for a pregnant woman to be doing this in her sweats at 5:45 AM), I decided I should put the lawn mower to the back of the garage and move our new snowblower out, so it is easily accessible for Dan when he came home from work. I decided that we should make sure it is all ready with oil and gas, so I found the instruction manual and did a little light reading. 1 hour later I was in the shower, and after all of that was only 5 minutes late for work.

Sadly, it stopped snowing and the sun came out. The snow pretty much melted, so my 1 hour + of hard work was not all that necessary. Kind of a let down.

THEN- to make it better... One of my friends at work stopped in my classroom to chat. She tells me she can see the baby (pretty much anyone can by now) and asks if I have put on some weight. WELL, OF COURSE I HAVE!!! I kindly joke back that my belly is a little bigger than usual. She then proceeds to question if I have put on weight other places, I said "Yeah, I'm sure my butt is a little bigger" She then points out my face is a little rounder, maybe my thighs, etc. I kindly ended the conversation and went on with my day. Who tells a pregnant woman she is fat all over????

I am NOT looking for compliments here, but I thought this would be a good lead in to show you that I am not all that fat, but I am showing. I went to the doctor last week (27 weeks) and I am measuring 26 1/2 cm (that's 1/2 of a cm smaller than the books estimate at this point. That's not a totally accurate estimate but it made me feel good I wasn't like 30+ cm!)***October 30th, 24 weeks (I think)******This picture is 27 weeks, All maternity clothes just because they are SO COMFORTABLE!***

I survived the Monday and the Tuesday & Wednesday and thank goodness it is a long 4 day weekend! I so needed it! :)

Have a great Thanksgiving Day!

Still our little man... October 19th

Ultrasound #2

Our baby is still a boy! We went for a second ultrasound so they could get some better pictures of the baby's heart and lower spine. It was great because we had to go to the other office and the ultrasound tech didn't know exactly why we were getting another ultrasound so she did a VERY THOROUGH ultrasound. We were in there for at least 45 minutes and she just took picture after picture. It was GREAT!
At one point I asked what a 69% and a 91% meant, she explained that the baby's head circumference is in the 69 percentile and the diameter (Left to Right) was in the 91st. I think we may have a big baby on our hands... at least his head is big.

After all of the measurements, the computer calculated our baby weighed 1.2 lbs and is in the 88 percentile for a baby at 22 weeks. (or, that the baby is measuring about 6 days big but that's not enough to change the due date.)

A couple pictures...

This is a front view of the baby's face... you can see his eye lid pretty well (on his Left eye) so it's kind of cool. :)Oh... And my belly is bigger-much bigger! When I download more pictures I will post that too!

Camping in October...

Dan and I both grew up "camping" but have not been since we've been married. We've always kind of talked about it, but never actually did it. We decided it was this year or maybe never... we have a baby on the way and if we don't know what we're doing, it's probably not a good idea to bring kids into the mix. It was a great refresher/learning experience for us.


Thank goodness for nice weather (well, not too cold) and no bugs. We will definitely go again! (Of course, with people who know what they're doing- we're not pros yet. Thanks Hatch's!)

Utah Part 3- The Guys

Just to be fair to Dan's trip to Utah, I thought I should include some of the highlights.

His (our) friend P-Math (Paul Matheson) picked us up from the airport. We went to Lost Hermanos in Provo and then ended up at his house to play ping pong and HALO (yes, they have HALO anywhere...)

P-Math served his mission in Wisconsin and he would come over quite regularly for a meal and a good old-fashioned butt-kicking in ping pong. He is also one of our good friends that helped us move into our house 2 years ago and joined our PAINTING PARTY! I love having friends that are willing to help with the things you really HATE to do (or that you just really stink at doing-like painting for us.)

Dan spent the majority of his trip in Logan Utah for his work conference. He said that he learned a lot of good things and never went hungry. One of the highlights- They had a belly dancer show for the entertainment and Indian Food (that was not very good) on the last night. The weird thing- one of the belly dancers was a presenter for the conference (or a Harris Research owner- or something), just kind of odd that she would want to share her "hobby" with the Chem Dry Franchise owners who were there.

Also... Dan decided to take the stage on Kereoke night and sang "Baby Got Back" for $100 ChemDry dollars. Dan is the first to admit he is not a singer... so I am sure it was well worth the $100. :) He was pretty proud though.

After the conference was done, we saw his (our) friend Coriander (Cory Anderson) who also served a mission in Wosconsin. He went home just a couple months ago so it was fun to see him. At one point we tried to hook him up with one of my sisters, but he's a football player and that took priority when he got home.

The last day... Dan HAD to get some frisbee golf in so he met up with Mike Plum, another missionary from Wisconsin.

It's kind of nice... I go to Utah to see my friends and family, he has friends there too! He doesn't mind the yearly road trip (or flight if we're lucky) to go see everyone. We both had a great trip and were sad to leave! We will be back soon!

One Year Ago...

I could write pages on how our life was different one year ago, but last night I was reminded of how we spent our Saturday night exactly one year ago...

Our neighbors were having a Halloween party. The street was full of cars, they had games set up in the back yard, a bonfire in the back, and some loud music. It was not an obnoxious party, but it was not the type of party Dan and I would attend. I think we were coming home from a friend's house and were looking forward to a peaceful night's sleep. Assuming the party was ending soon, we had no reason to suspect differently.

5 AM... the doorbell rings. A minute later, the doorbell rings again. Dan wakes up and says "I think the doorbell rang." We were SO CONFUSED! We put our robes on, walked to the door and sure enough, some poor drunk soul was standing on our front porch wanting to come in. Dan (through the closed, locked door) tried to convince him he had the wrong house, but there was no hope for this guy. After 10 minutes of back and forth conversation, Dan finally told him to leave or we would call the cops-I was already on the phone in the back room. The guy's only response "Good, they will come sort this out."

Long story short... The cops came, the guy asked the cop to light his cigarette with a money clip and the cops happily escorted him home-somewhere on the East Side. An hour later we were left to go back to bed and attempt to sleep. This experience haunted me for nights, weeks, even months. Luckily I can laugh about this now.

I was reminded of this last night.... We were coming home from playing games with friends and 2 friends of our neighbors were walking outside in costume. They invited us over to join the party. It was late, but I told Dan he should go over just to take a picture for the blog-he declined. We got ready for bed, enjoyed a long peaceful night's sleep and had a great Sunday Day!

Surprise! Utah Part 2

Like I mentioned... We went to Los Hermanos on Tuesday for lunch and when I talked to my friend Susan that night she asked if I would be up for Los Hermanos on Thursday when we hung out (we had a busy day planned... maternity massages, shopping, afternoon naps as we watched "Jon and Kate Plus 8" and out to dinner.)
The answer... Of Course!

I should have been just a little suspicious. It's a good thing the baby seems to be "sucking my brains out" and it went right over my head!Manda and Susan planned a surprise shower for me and the baby! They sent invites out the week before and we all met at Los Hermanos in Pleasant Grove/Lindon Utah. (A couple friends couldn't make it-they live too far away.) Susan, Me, Miriam, Manda and Aimee were all there and we enjoyed DELICIOUS food, UNLIMITED salsa and chips and some frozen, non-alcoholic drinks! I LOVE!

Our little man got some new things, some of his only things since I mostly had girl things I had picked up along the way. He got a BYU hat, hooded towel, picture frame, a picture frame for the fridge, and a gift card. For me-cinnamon bears and a Willow Tree statue. It was great!

I should have picked up on the surprise... I called my friend Kristen who lives in Logan on Monday night, 10 PM her time and asked if I could come visit her Tuesday night late. When we got there, she had a little sweat suit for the baby all wrapped up! It had Music notes & and guitar on it, I told Dan it is the Baby's Guitar Hero Outfit. Luckily I am not that bright...
It was really great to visit Kristen and Jake and see their apartment! They got married in May, and of course we missed the wedding but I'm so glad they are still in Utah so I can visit! (Kristen and I were roommates in college.)

Also, we visited our friends the Larsen's in Centerville. This is our family away from home, always giving us a place to hang out for the weekends, a Sunday meal, and even filled in for my mom when she couldn't be there (like when I had my kidney stone removed- she came to the hospital when I woke up and then took me out to Cafe Rio for Lunch.)
Kris made our Little Man a hooded towel with sports balls on it. It is great because it will fit him as he gets a little bigger. We visited with her and Wayne and then watched movies on their projector. What a nice RELAXING night!
Dan went Frisbee golfing in the morning and Kris and I just hung out and talked. It was great!

Luckily I packed a 15 lb. tool set from my Dad for Miriam, so I had room to pack all of the extra things we were given (and the things I bought along the way.) We had a great trip!

*** I think I still need to post all of the great things Dan did while he was in Utah... That will be next!***

THANKSGIVING PANTS Utah Part 1

The real reason we go to Utah... FOOD
Dan and I arrived in Utah on Tuesday late morning. By Tuesday night we had visited Los Hermanos and Tucanos, 2 of my favorite restaurants, and on Wednesday for lunch- Cafe Rio.

Dan was there for work but Tucanos is his ALL TIME favorite restaurant. (Side note- at our wedding shower, we played the bubble gum game where they ask me ask me all of these questions about Dan and if I get the answer wrong, I have to put another piece of Bubblicious Bubble Gum in my mouth. They asked me what Dan's favorite place to eat was and I had NO idea... Sad to say, I added another piece of bubble gum to my already full mouth.)

So, Tuesday night we went to Tucanos in Salt Lake City with Dan's aunt Tina. The food was delicous, just like always, and we came out with FULL STOMACHS. I took a picture of Dan and noticed he was still wearing his sweats he put on at 4:30 AM when we left our house. I was wearing my first pair of maternity pants (I figured they would be more comfortable sitting on the plane all day.) We are SO CLASSY, but who cares! We needed somewhere to put the food-hence the Thanksgiving Pants!

***Friends Episode: The Rumor (with Brad Pitt)

Joey: (entering, wearing the maternity pants from earlier) All right where’s that turkey!

Phoebe: Joey! Those are my maternity pants!

Joey: Not now! These are my Thanksgiving pants!

The Baby...

Dan felt the baby move last night for the first time!!! We got back from vacation late Sunday night, and our whole trip I have been trying to get Dan to feel the baby. His strong movements seem to be so sporadic up until last night. :)

So that is the exciting news! I will blog about our vacation in the next couple days. At this point we are just trying to catch up on EVERYTHING, in addition to stay on top of everything we have going on this week. How long until the weekend?

Life's little victories...

This is our Baby!!! We had our ultrasound yesterday morning. It was scheduled on Tuesday (we leave to go to Utah next week and I needed to know before we went) so both Dan and I had to leave work to make the appointment and then go back to work. It ended up being a bigger pain than I had expected but I JUST COULDN'T HANDLE THE SUSPENSE. It was totally worth it, I think Dan would agree.

I was quite convinced it was a girl, and little by little I was convincing Dan that it was in fact a girl. I think Thursday night I asked him why he thought it was a girl and he said "Because they are definitely running out of boys." He wasn't sad, just resigned to the reality.

The last week was very interesting for me... I started to have dreams that we went to the doctor and they said girl, but we both really thought boy so we decided to go neutral (and it ended up being a boy) and then I had dreams we wouldn't be able to find out. It was just bizarre. And then, Friday morning I woke up and had this thought, "It is going to be a boy."

So I'm driving to the appointment and realized I should be prepared for any "unsuspected" news that we might get... for example "There are two!!!" or "There are only 8 toes" (and other more serious things than that. ) I just decided to be prepared and ready for anything.

We get to the appointment, we walk into the dark ultrasound room, the woman starts up the machine and we saw the baby!!! It was amazing! He was all curled up, like most babies are. But then he started MOVING like crazy and the tech could not get some of the measurements, (which is ok, because we get a re-check in 3 1/2 weeks at my next appointment.) She measured everything she could, everything was normal and healthy. (She did not count the toes, but I'm assuming there are 10...)
My favorite picture is this one because you can see the long legs stretched out.So, as she's showing us everything she finally gets a view "inbetween the legs." She points to something and says "It's a boy!" I turned to Dan, his hands go up in the air like the PACKERS just got a touchdown. I just looked at him in amazement- total disbelief.
At the end, when she was wrapping up, I asked her if I could see the p**** one more time-I didn't quite believe it. She found it, took a picture and printed it for us. :) Our poor son... this could be the #1 picture we show potential women 20+ years down the road...

Long story short, I am so excited about having a boy-still a little shocked but SO EXCITED!!! Dan tells me he has a lot to teach me about boys, which is an understatement.

He "put the stem on the apple" and couldn't be prouder. As we're walking out he says... "I'm going to have a Jack." (I told him Jack is still under discussion, but we'll save it for another day.)

It's all Baby...

I am officially 17 weeks tomorrow! Very exciting, but the baby bump/extra rolls around the midsection- not so exciting. It just kind of appeared in the last week. I don't show much when I'm wearing normal clothes, but the SPANDEX yoga pants can give you an accurate picture.I am experiencing some minor aches, particularly when I have a rough night of sleep. I attribute it to round ligament pains. Basically "Everything is growing, the ligaments are stretching." You've got to love hearing that all the time. :)

I decided the Wii Fit board and I would be friends again, 3-4 times a week. I keep reading that a little light exercise will give me energy, maybe even relieve some of the lower back pain. It worked on Monday, let's see if it will work tomorrow. We have a date 5:30 AM.

As for Dan. He is getting excited, he may not admit it but he is excited. He has even started to give me a little bit of sympathy. "What can I do to help?" is his common request as I am whining myself to sleep. He is always there to give a little back rub, turn the TV down way low at night (so it's almost on mute), and has been very good to give me a little extra space on the bed so I can be more comfortable.

We go to the doctor next week and will schedule the big ULTRASOUND then. I can't wait to find out the sex of the baby. For some reason, I think we are having a girl, but Dan tells me that's just because I want a girl. A lot of our friends are having boys, so my rational is "They must be running out of boys." Dan doesn't think it works like that. We shall see...

The perfect picture...

I was at the local "Home Depot" getting some keys made & some other odds and ends, AND I saw the most beautiful thing. A yellow butterfly, the size of my hand. BUT, it was stuck in the corner of the front window. I was in a hurry, like I always am, and decided to take a moment to "smell the roses." So, I watched the butterfly for at least a minute, it was really trying to break free but it was STUCK. I decided I would take a picture and then set it free (because I have seen on the discovery channel how to hold a butterfly without hurting it's wings-so I am a pro.)

HOWEVER... THE OPPORTUNITY PASSED!!! Our camera from time to time says "Memory Card Error" and I start and restart the camera at least 10 times until it does not have the error message. This has been going as long as I can remember, it is just totally random and has NOTHING to do with the memory card. I had tried everything.

So here I am, standing by the carts at "Home Depot" watching this butterfly, starting and restarting my camera for at least 10 minutes. It still says "Memory Card Error." Finally, I GIVE UP! I was so angry I decided to just save the butterfly, which did not cooperate, so I finally just left.

Yes, I am fully aware that I am the idiot. However, I irrationally tell Dan that I am buying a new camera and he kindly says "Did you ever call the company?" (This is usually my role in the relationship- calling to solve problems, get things for free, calmly discussing with businesses how they have let me down as the customer.) He got them on the phone, the company said to send the camera in for free and they would fix it! This camera is 5 years old! I was amazed. Plus they said they would fix the memory card door that I had taped shut since I dropped it in NC in January. I was pretty impressed!

So... long story short... Our camera was in the shop until this week. Sorry for the lack of posts. The camera came back today and I could not be happier, it's like a brand new camera!

Here is the picture I should have taken, if we didn't have a reject camera... You'll just have to imagine the Home Depot Window behind it. :)

We Wii??? Part 2

I must say, Summer has not been kind. I have been working long days so I can have Friday's off, and my Friday's just seem to fly by... cleaning, shopping, running errands, visiting friends, you name it. I have sadly found very little time to play the Wii, or my Wii Fit. :(

I went on today and... I gained 1 pound. I am still in the normal range but do you know what that 1 lb does to me???
My friend the Wii Fit board asks me, "What is the reason for your recent weight gain?"I clicked on the "I don't know tab" and it asked me if I was sure that I didn't know. Well, I know but they don't give me the option...

I am pregnant!

I am 13 weeks today. I go back to the Doctor in 1 week for a check up and we are going to hear the heartbeat! We are so excited!
I am feeling good. A week and a half ago, I would have said great! Lately I have been tired, kind of emotional and a little high maintenance/whiny (according to Dan.) I just keep reminding him that it could be worse... (He has been very good to me- doing the laundry, dishes, making the bed, all the little things I need. Today he even "supervised" my dad putting in a new toilet!)

Tomorrow is the day I tell my students, and my co-workers. I would love to avoid the attention for just a little longer, but it has to come out. Sooner or later my belly is going to pop, and when it does I will be sure to post it.

For now just imagine my little "mii" working hard, living life, and having fun!

Nauvoo, the City Beautiful

Last weekend, Dan and I went to Nauvoo with some friends from church. We had a great time... we got to see the pageant, visit some of the restored houses, eat at the smorgasbord, and somehow we found time to relax in the AIR CONDITIONING!

The most wonderful thing... we got to see and go inside the temple we were married at.
Happy 3 1/2 year Anniversary to us! (Well, on August 11th)

My Hero(es)

Ever since I was a little girl, my dad has been my hero. He was/is the best... painted our nails, fixed our bikes, built us the coolest pioneer house and swing set, took piano lessons so he could help us girls play piano, took us for car rides, cut down a HUGE Christmas Tree every year and decorated it with all of our ornaments ... He taught us things... like how to check our oil, vacuum our bedroom (taking a wood brush to the edges to get all of the dirt/dust), how to paint with his cool car paint tools at work, even how to drive a car at age 12- even if it was in the middle of a field. The list could go on and on...

This weekend Dan and I took a road trip with some friends to Nauvoo Illinois. We were on our way there and I really wanted some cheese and crackers, which was not cut yet. I told Dan how my dad ALWAYS had his big pocket knife with him, and we would cut cheese, tomatoes, fruit, everything in the car as we traveled. Anything we needed. At that moment, Dan dug in his pocket and found his knife just like it (that my dad gave him for Christmas). IT WAS SO GREAT!!! I knew I had married THE MAN!!! (Of course I knew this long ago... but at this moment I just knew he is the ONLY ONE FOR ME!!!)

Now, no one will ever replace my dad. But, Dan sure does a good job of filling in the holes when my dad is not around. He fixes things, carries the heavy things wherever I need them, helps with the dishes and the laundry, puts up with my insanities, the noise in the morning, everything. He is the best. :)

Note Dan's cool Hawiian Shirt from Michelle & Scott, he just happened to wear it this day... It made me smile. :)

Bowling

We went bowling last week with 4 and 5 year olds. Kids are hilarious!!! Of course I don't catch these on video, but these are my favorites...

The little boy that forgets what lane we bowl on... we are on 19, he wanders down to 22!!! I run after him. This is the same boy who bowls my first ball in the 10th frame, thank goodness for bumpers!

The little girl who walked up to the lane, holding the ball in a bear hug at her chest. She drops the ball and it slowly, slowly, slowly makes it down to the pins.

And then we have the shot-putter... One of the stronger boys takes the ball and literally throws the ball OVERHAND down the lane. Quite a THUD.

The best part... no smashed toes, no broken fingers, and the kids really loved it. If you have a 4 year old (or even a 3 year old) I highly recommend planning a bowling night- it is a blast.

I am a teacher and any pictures I take can be used only for school use, but this video is pretty cute. (Shhhhhh, don't tell)


Yes, it would have been much better if he had gotten a spare... but still pretty entertaining.

I had to write subtitles because I don't know how to edit the sound- I say the child's name a couple too many times. I will know for next time.

Happy 4th of July (a little late...)

Our day off together... What to do, what to do...Dan started his day nice and early (he left our house by 5:30 AM) to meet up with my dad and his friend Dan to go fishing. Me... I slept in until 9 AM, which is VERY good for me. I woke up, caught up on a little TV, ate a little breakfast, and went to lie down back in bed, until I got a great idea!
Dan was going to be fishing alone at about 10 AM when the other guys went home to be with their family, so I called Dan and asked him if he wanted me for a fishing buddy. Expecting an "I'm ok, I'll just be out a little longer," he said "That would be great, when can you be here?" I was SO excited! I made it out to the little lake house and climbed on the boat and enjoyed 2 hours of relaxing in the sun, fishing my little heart out-all without touching a worm or a fish. I caught at least 7-8 fish, all of them were too little to keep though. As you can see, Dan caught the big fish of the day- 26 inch Northern (the other Dan caught a 25 inch, but apparently they have to be 26 inches to keep.) They also caught some little perch and blue gill. We enjoyed our fish for a memorable 4th of July feast!
I guess we were anti festive and did not attend a parade, but we did watch the fireworks at a friends house. It was a wonderful, relaxing day. I love holidays.

We Wii???

2008 brought about one goal, that I did just because "everyone else was doing it" at work- weight loss. I just wanted to be healthier, make better eating choices rather than my usual chocolate chip cookie, mini candybar in the afternoon, and ice cream at night. To set a goal, I said "I want to lose 10 lbs" by whenever... no end date.

January 2008- We started Weigh-in Wednesdays at work, along with a detailed food journal to write down every little bite of food we eat... Not as easy as it sounds. February/March 2008- Decided to add working out to the schedule: 2 morning bike rides (as I watched episodes of the Biggest Loser from our DVR) April- I joined an ultimate frisbee league with Dan! It was only 6 weeks long, but I loved it! For about 3 weeks I thought I was in shape and decided to go on a run once a week- 1.8 miles took me over 20 minutes (I blame the hill, but still pretty pathetic)
May 21st, Release day of Wii Fit- I find myself at the local Walmart at 6 AM looking for the Wii Fit. Luckily they had one! I was so excited! So excited, that I hid it in my car (so no one would try to steal it from my back seat) as I worked all day, taught piano all night. 8 PM, Dan & I finally got it going. :) I LOVE, I LOVE!
To date: I have lost 20 lbs- CRAZY- and I attribute it all to my Wii Fit. The morning bike rides and even once a week jogs have been replaced with a good old body test, light aerobic workout, and some strength training or Yoga.

Friends that have dared to try (from left to right) Dan Hatch, Manda, Dan, Me (in the red), Marcia, Diane (Dan's mom), and Tara HatchThis is my FAVORITE work out- the Advanced Aerobics. It's a 5 minute routine that shows me and all of my mii friends on stage for an audience to watch! It's great!

If you ever want to try it out, let me know. We will Wii!

Summer Begins...

Happy Summer! I'm sure everyone is excited about the warmer weather, the sun staying out late, summer vacations, and all of the other wonderful things summer brings.

In Wisconsin, it rains.

Marcia's graduation party was rained out. The party moved inside.
Some found something to do outside.

Dan & my cousin Jeff diving for a frisbee... nobody got it.

The youth at the party...

Even with all the rain, the party was a BLAST! Luckily, our basement was dry when we got home.
I hope the rest of you Wisconsinites are dry too! Hang in there for just a couple more days.

What to do with empty space...

As summer neared, I was thinking of all of these great things we could do with our little back porch. I finally decided we should invest in a nice storage bench so we could store all of our lawn mowing shoes, odds & ends, sporting equipment, and have a place to sit if we needed. That was the day I came home and Dan had bought me something thoughtful.

He went to Lowe's a couple days before for some work stuff and saw this swinging chair. He took the measurements, came home and measured between our two doors, decided it would fit with both doors open, and then went back and bought it. He even set it up on his Sunday afternoon while I was at a presidency meeting (I think I even told the ladies at the meeting he was probably home playing video games... way to give him credit.)

Well, this is my favorite way to spend just a couple minutes of down time. Last night we read the newspaper together and just talked. It was just cooling down from a warm day and it was SO relaxing.

Sometimes Dan's ideas turn out to be my favorite things. And the tennis shoes and other crap that gets left out- oh well!

I am a BLOGGER...

Today is the day... I have had our blog for a couple of months, but I decided officially starting my blog was a great Jury Duty Waiting Area activity.

Since I started our blog, I often find myself thinking about things I should blog about: How much I hate dandelions, our Ultimate Frisbee League, important family events, the joys (and frustrations) of owning a home, just to name a few.

But, today I found some good pictures to share. Enjoy!

Dan and our Brother-in-law Scott getting ready to go Paintballing (in UTAH.) Obviously the camoflague was a little on the small side... only a little. :)

What about ROCK BAND? Anybody else a fan? We go all the way to Utah to jam with our friends Susan & James (and their family.) It was a blast.

And finally, Dan and our nephew Micah at Miriam's Wedding. Just clowning around.

Our blog will never be the most exciting blog to read, but maybe you will find humor in our pictures, stories, or just thoughts on life.