I Celebrate the Day....

The Christmas spirit is full swing in me! I love decorating the house and attending the numorus holiday parties. This month I have attended 9 Christmas parties and 2 graduation parties. I love it. I think I get my party nature from my mother. Just tell me what to bring and I will be there attitude certiantly comes from her. Now sharing new and daring recipes at the party came from my dad! Tonight's party I will be breaking out a new and old recipie. I have a standard bean dip that I take with me EVERYWHERE! People love it. I love it. It has cream cheese in it. That's why it's so popular. I still say there isn't anything you CAN'T put cream cheese with. I challange anyone to change my mind!



I have been able to dodge the negitive attitudes of the Scrooges that come into our office. I have not let the unaturally hot for this time of year weather get me down. I have been keeping a cough just a cough so that I won't be totally sick for the holidays. I have found an awesome new Christmas song that helps me to ward off the negitive energy so many people have around this holiday. The song is called " I Celebrate the Day" by Relient K. I really like it because it reminds me why I celebrate Christmas day. I celebrate the day so I could one day pray for You to save my life

RELIENT K LYRICS

"I Celebrate The Day"

And with this Christmas wish is missed

The point I could convey

If only I could find the words to say

to let You know how much You've touched my life

Because here is where You're finding me, in the exact same place as New Year's eve

And from a lack of my persistency

We're less than half as close as I want to be

And the first time

That You opened Your eyes

Did You realize that You would be my Savior

And the first breath that left Your lips

Did You know that it would change this world forever

And so this Christmas I'll compare the things I felt in prior years

To what this midnight made so clear

That You have come to meet me hereTo look back and think that

This baby would one day save me

In the hope that what You did

That you were born so I might live

To look back and think that

This baby would one day save me

And I, I celebrate the day

That You were born to die

So I could one day pray for You to save my life

I pray that the Christmas season will touch you the same way!

Check out our Christmas House...

Yea for Christmas! I decorated the house yesterday. Our tree is a little Charlie Brown esk. Carl INSISTED that "Dewight" the Christmas gnome greet everyone at the door! I am the one that gave Dewight the accent of a drunk Englishman.

While I was decorating Tilly was quietly watching warmly in her blanket.

I love my husband

I don't say it enough! I love Carl Jonathon Hanke. He really is something. Here is just a little run down of Carl....my perception of him!

Name: Carl Jonathon Hanke

My Nicknames for Carl: Babe, Baby, lover, babycakes...oops...only Steven can call you that!

Hair color: dirty blonde

Eye color: Blue

I like when Carl wears: Jeans and a t-shirt with his white Pumas...so cute!

I hate when Carl wears: His Boy Scout uniform shorts on normal days

Carl goes to bed at: around 11:30 to midnight

Carl starts his day at: around 8 to 9:30 AM

Carl has too much: facial hair

And not enough: actual hair on his head....he is sporting a mohawk

Carl likes when I cook: hamburgers, baked ziti, casseroles

Carl's favorite dish that his mom makes: beef strognoff

Carl doesn't like to eat: lamb or sushi (my favorites!!!)

Some of Carl's favorite pasttimes are: frisbee golf, boy scouts, Wesley , making music.

Carl's least favorite things to do: dishes, shopping, going to class.

Carl is best at: playing instruments; mostly drums and guitar

Now you know.

Take This Job and Shove It!!

I am having a REALLY hard time working today.

It's not that it's a BAD day or anything. I just want to be doing something else other than sitting at a computer pushing paper in an avacado green room. It's a gorgous day outside, all of my friends are on thier way in town for Homecoming and I am stuck in the office while they call to say they are minutes away and ready to play. This sucks. Being an adult sucks sometimes.

I want to take back all the moments in my childhood that I whined about wishing to being older! Why didn't my parents tell me that THIS is what I had to look forward to!?!?! I should of never complained about being bored. Now I sit in my office and WISH I could go outside and play. I am talking about playing on the playground kind of play. You know that stuff that you aren't "allowed" to do anymore once you hit a certian age because it's not appropriate. I am realizing more and more that I think most people have kids so that they can have an excuse to go to the park and swing or play in the sandbox again. Can I do those things without having a kid and not risk looking creepy?

I will just have to keep my innerchild inside a little longer until Carl and I decide to have kids.

Ready for Halloween

Thanks Mom and Dad for the wonderful Halloween package. It inspired me to decorate the house. Tilly loves her snakes!!! Just check out the pictures below.

Cold Front. Coming Through!

Yeah for the cooler weather. Tilly looks so adorable in her pink hoodie. She loves to wear it too!

The Only Mole I like is the One that Starts with Guaca!

Being a homeowner is proving to be a challenge. I miss those days when you can call the landlord to fix it. Here is a list of the homeowner issues we have faced since May 2007.

1. Moles

2. Water Heater Burst (the day we moved in)

3. Roaches

4. Moles

5. New Lawn Mower broke

6. Weeds

7. both toilets need gutting (Cassie and I have fixed one....one to go)

8. Garage door randomly goes up

9. Moles

10. Short in electrical system

11. Giant hole in the ceiling of the garage

12. Moles

Do you see the reoccurring problem here. Moles. Tilly loves them but they are tearing the heck out of our backyard! At least Tilly is getting exercise!!!

Even in all these challanges being a homeowner really is much better than being a renter. At least when something goes wrong and it doesn't get fixed I can only be mad at myself instead of a crappy landlord.

Side Note: I never even thought I would be married or a homeowner by the time I was 25!!!! Sure we are poor but it is all worth it!

Marriage

I can't believe it. Carl and I have been married for almost 5 months! Some days it's my biggest challenge and others it feels like we've been married for years.

Marriage is certianly an adjustment! I have heard that the first year is the hardest. Well, we are almost half way through and it has been challenging.

Since Carl is still in school are schedules don't allow us for a lot of one on one time. I usually scramble to get home to make dinner in time for Carl to go to Wesley. We have also had to adjust to sleeping in the same bed. He likes to roll himself in the comforter and I like the topsheet (something Carl had never seen before) with a fan directed at my face. He blames me for cronic sore throat due to the fan being in his face. This is the worst of it folks so it's not bad at all. In fact it's rather lovely.

I love cooking for someone. We have both GREATLY reduced our fast food intake. I haven't lost any weight but I feel better. I am even cooking Carl red meat!!!! That has been interesting. I have only really screwed up once. I used stew meat for stir fry....I didn't know that stew meat was the toughest part of the cow!!!! Carl was a trooper and ate it up the first night...however the leftovers never made it to his belly.

I love having Carl here. Once we got engaged it was SO hard to say goodnight. I hated that he had to leave me. Don't get me wrong I am capable of being home by myself but it's nice to have him at home. I don't have to worry so much.

I am finally used to Hanke. That was very surreal to write for the first 4 months. Now it is habit. I don't even think twice while I sign checks. It is still a little weird though. A name you had for 25 years is now gone. Weird.

All in all I totally reccommend marriage to anyone who desires it. It rocks!

By the way Tilly is going to be Snow White for Halloween.....