an evening in kalamazoo

In celebration of a friend's birthday, we headed up to Kalamazoo, MI for a concert.

The band is called NeedtoBreathe, and we've been fans of theirs for a couple years, so we were very excited to go along.

First thing we did was head to Kalamazoo Beer Exchange for food and drinks.

The boys in the group consider themselves to be "beer aficionados," so this place was right up their alley. The restaurant had tons of different beers to choose from, and it was run like the stock exchange: the cost of each particular beer changed according to how many were being sold at the time.

The mac and cheese was not my favorite. I should've known that Gouda is not a good cheese to put into macaroni. Ty enjoyed his burger though. And I got to enjoy the after-effects of that burger whenever he burped during the concert. I swear that burger stuck with him much longer than it should have.

We had a good time at the restaurant and stayed for several hours.

Then after a quick walk through downtown Kalamazoo, we headed over to the theater for the concert.

The concert was amazing, and the entire show (including opening acts) was about 4 hours long. We had such a good time! It was a great way to celebrate a good friend's birthday.

the hustler?

After a long day of work, I pull in the driveway this evening to see my husband talking with some strange man on the porch.

My first thought was that he was from a certain religious community (that shall remain nameless) and he was trying to convert us.

I figured Ty would give the usual, "Yes, we already have a church..." spiel and the man would be on his way.

But as I was putting my car in park, there he was at the front of my car, urging me to get out so he could show me the newest, most miraculous cleaner on the market.

He then proceeded to show me how the cleaner could clean my car, the oil off our driveway, the sharpie off a towel, the window on our front door (which will then not streak or smudge), etc. 

And of course it could also clean the carpets, the shower, the stove, the toilets, stains on the laundry, and all that.

And this one bottle of concentrated solution, when mixed with water, could make you like a billion bottles of cleaner, which should last you years and years and you'd never have to buy another bottle of cleaner again.

Blah. Blah. Blah.

Now...I'm usually one of the most skeptical people out there when it comes to stuff like this.

But I was pretty impressed by this man's demonstration.

And Ty was very obviously excited about it...standing on the deck, grinning like the Cheshire Cat.

So I gave in and said we could get a bottle.

As soon as we got inside, Ty began mixing his new concoction, and my skepticism began to set in.

"I bet he had a special bottle of cleaner. Ours won't be as good. It's not going to work and we just wasted (an undisclosed amount of money.)

But Ty got to work dispelling my concerns. The stove is now spotless (no more grease.)

The shower looks much better.

The microwave hasn't looked like this in ages.

And this next one was what really did it for me:

In our area, we have a problem with rust in the water. 

There has been this ugly rust ring at the bottom of our bathroom sink for the longest time that I cannot get rid of.

Not even a Magic Eraser could take care of that sucker.

But look!

IT'S GONE!

And so is my skepticism.

And my guilt at buying a cleaning product from a door-to-door salesman.

So I thought we had been hustled, but now I'm thinking maybe we should buy stock in this cleaner.

**If you'd like to try it, please contact us. We'll mix you one bottle for (an undisclosed amount of money.)

Couples who dress alike...

...will stay together forever.

Oh at least that's what I say.

I was getting ready for church yesterday, and put on my black argyle sweater.

Next thing I know, Ty pulls HIS black argyle sweater out of the closet not knowing I was already putting mine on.

I immediately got super excited, and he realized what he had done.

Then he tried to put his sweater away!

Oh no, no.

For some reason, Ty absolutely hates to match me.

I think it's cute.

So I put on my best pouty face and convinced him to wear it.

And it worked!

The best part was when his buddy and buddy's wife noticed at church.

Ty had to make sure they knew that he was forced.

I think they secretly thought it was adorable.

Success!

I might be the luckiest girl alive...

because this was my view from the couch the other night.

Yes it's blurry, but that is my man.

Vacuuming.

In his ugly slippers.

AND BOXERS.

Don't get too excited ladies...because he's all mine :)

my secret life dream

I love my job.

Like, seriously love.

I look forward to getting up in the morning and going to work.

It's never boring, and I feel good about what I do at the end of the day.

And I've worked really hard to get to where I'm at right now.

But I also have another possible dream for my life that I don't talk about much at all.

This dream would take place in the {near-ish} future. 

There are two components of this dream.

Number 1:

Be a stay at home mom.

I love the idea of having kids and getting to be there for ALL their milestones.

I want to create daily routines with them, like rocking in the rocking chair in the morning, folding their little clothes at nap time, running errands with a baby strapped to me in one of those swaddle-thingies, noon-time walks in the stroller, cleaning the house while a sleeping baby lies in the swing, plenty of time to marvel at each new stage of their lives, meeting Daddy outside when he comes home from work, etc.

I was blessed enough that my Mom was able to stay home with me for the majority of my childhood, and those are precious moments that I remember and cherish. I'd love to have that with my kids.

At this point in my life, I don't want to have kids yet because I don't want to think about sending them to daycare, or some other babysitter who will get to "steal" all those precious moments that I want to be the one to experience. At this 25-year-old moment, my brain thinks, "Why have kids if we're going to be away from them all the time?" (Not that there's anything wrong with working parents...I'll likely be one as well...this is just my opinion at this moment.) And that is my main reason for wanting to wait awhile before starting a family. I'm hoping that my opinion on that will eventually change, because as I said, I enjoy what I do now.

But to be totally honest, just thinking about being a stay at home mom makes me smile.

Number 2:

Have some sort of "crafty business" that I run out of my home.

I realize that I will probably never be able to be a stay at home mom just because of monetary reasons.

IF I were ever blessed enough to be able to do that, I'd feel terrible about not bringing in any kind of income.

Yes, I'd try to do my best to SAVE money for my family, but I'd also like to contribute as well.

This is where my "crafty business" would come in.

I'd like to think that I can be crafty.

And I'd like to think that other people could enjoy the crafty things I might make.

I'd love to have some kind of Etsy store or something like that, where I can make things, and people could buy them.

The only detail I haven't come up with would be what to make.

Jewelry?

source

Signs?

source

Wreathes?

source

I'm not sure. 

I just know I would love making things.

And having people like those things enough to buy them would be even better!

Do I think that this secret dream of mine (being a stay at home mom with a crafty home business) will ever come true?

97% sure it never will.

And I will be 100% content if it never does, because I will know it's not meant to be.

But that doesn't mean that I can't think about it, right?

xoxo, wife.

{dear husband}

Thank you.

You've been absolutely amazing the past few weeks.

A very challenging student was moved into my classroom from the other Kindergarten classroom because it was thought that I would be better able to handle him than his original teacher.

That proved to be wrong in the beginning.

But you've been there every step of the way.

You've hugged me when I've come home crying because of how much he scares my other students, who I consider my babies.

You've listened to the countless stories of him hitting me, throwing chairs at me, using classroom supplies as weapons, throwing things at the other kids, etc.

You've tried to help me come up with different things to try with him.

You've tried to help me figure this kid out.

You've brought me flowers on more than one occasion, when you've known it was a rough day.

You calmed me down when I said those awful words that I still cannot believe came out of my mouth: "I hate him...I hate him."

You helped me to realize that there is a reason this little boy does these things, and I just need to figure out why, and help him overcome.

You've texted me throughout my day to check in on how he's doing, and shared my disappointment when he's been sent home for yet again becoming violent.

And most importantly to me: the other night at our Bible study, when giving prayer requests at the end, you asked our friends to pray for me. That God would give me patience and understanding in this situation I've been put in, and that He would bring me through this.

You have no idea how much that meant to me.

I realize that my problems with this boy have dominated much of our conversations these past few weeks.

I realize that my mood has been affected.

I realize that I'm so exhausted after dealing with him all day that I don't want to do anything else besides lay on the couch and mope...or complain about how I cannot figure this kid out. 

But I want you to know that I appreciate your help, concern, interest, and prayers.

You've helped me to realize that perhaps this little boy has been given to me for a reason.

My view of him has changed this past week.

I don't hate him anymore.

On the contrary, I now love him.

I've begun to actually consider him my student.

I'm invested in him.

I NEED him to be successful.

And I'm learning that I'll do whatever it takes to help him.

And I owe that attitude change to you.

Thank you.

And I love you.

xoxo, wife.

family reunion 2012

Every other year, Ty's family has a huge family reunion over Labor Day weekend. 

There's about 100 people there from all over the country, and I really only know about 15 of their names...ok, maybe 18.

Anyway, here are some highlights from this year's reunion.

Canoe ride, courtesy of the Hubs. He didn't even make me row at all! (But complained the whole time about me not rowing...) 

This was a huge hit on Saturday. After you climbed to the top, there was a zip line to ride. Did I attempt this? What do YOU think? Yeah, right. My sister-in-law did though...and may have made a fool out of herself in the process. Yet another reason to keep my feet planted firmly on the ground. :) 

Every year there's an auction to offset some of the costs of lodging and food at the 3 day reunion. This is the item Ty bid on and won for himself. (Benjamin was the "founding member" of this family, so they call themselves the 'Tribe of Benjamin.') His plan is to hang this in the Man Cave.

Maybe not quite as cool, but this is the item I won in the auction.

The family hires these two amazing Amish cooks for the weekend, and they make some killer food for us. My favorite part of the weekend is always the homemade pretzels and cheese. I can't even describe how fantastic theses are. I think everyone gains the "Family Fifteen" during these reunions.

 WHAT?! Is that my husband? In an apron? Washing the dishes?

Had to document this one for posterity. :)

Trying to do my best "not impressed" look like McKayla Maroney. Don't know what I'm talking about?

Must mean you didn't watch the Olympics. Go google it.

Am I allowed to have favorite family members from the Hub's side?

No?

Ok, then I don't.

But IF I did...these guys would be it.

(Sister-in-law, brother-in-law, niece, husband, & nephew.)

Apparently, there was something in the family water last year, because this reunion had LOTS of new babies! This isn't even all of them!

And maybe I'm biased, but I think my niece might have been the cutest one there!

Look at those eyes!

Love baby Lydia!

Here's the official family photo of just our immediate family. 

So that was Family Reunion 2012. And it was really only half of it. 

I left early so I could come home and get some work done.

To sum up the reunion this year, I would say:

Lots of laughter,

Lots of food,

Lots of humidity,

Lots of games,

Lots of love.

xoxo, wife.