Thanksgiving was great! It was nice to visit with family and friends that I haven't seen for three months. The drive up was pretty uneventful; Atalie and I rotated driving (of course I had to drive through St. Louis and Chicago!) and spent tuesday night at Atalie's younger sister Brittany's new apartment in Kalamazoo. I drove over to Okemos the next morning and the two of them went up to GR. We both spent Thanksgiving day with our separate families and Mr. A dropped Atalie off in Okemos later in the evening (Thanks!). Following an early morning on Black Friday we drove to GR and spent the evening hanging out with two of Atalie's high school friends. Saturday we relaxed and spent time with her family and watched the Lakers beat North Dakota! Saturday night we spent visiting with our GV friends which was great fun and then went to bed only to get up early Sunday for the drive back. I drove all but the last 100 miles, which passed quickly due to Atalie reading out loud to us. We made it here in record time (with only going five over) 10 hours, 45 minutes, including 30 minutes for stops. The car obviously survived but we definitely should check into getting the cruise control fixed...
Glad to get back in the swing of things, but we miss everyone back home! See you in 3 weeks!
11.27.2007
11.15.2007
Getting in the swing of things
Now that I've been in Missouri for about a month, I'm starting to get a little routine going. Of course it's only temporary since I'll be planning on getting a job in a few months, but in the meantime, life seems to be falling into place.
Our apartment is slowly coming along, as I've gotten basically everything put away and cleaned up, and the maintenance guy has been over a couple times to get some things taken care of like the patchy tiling in the bathroom, yellow blinds, and the gap under our front door letting in a nasty draft. Things should be even better around here after we pick up a few more belongings when we visit Michigan next week, and when we have our futon replaced. Have we told you about that yet??? The darn $600 futon got a major crack in it for no reason less than 3 months after receiving it, and after we called them out on it, they told us to wait 3-4 weeks before we could get it fixed since they're "totally out" of our specific futon. That month is running out and I do believe I had better hear from them soon....
Aside of that, I've been enjoying my time off of school getting a lot of reading done- mostly murder mysteries- and I recently started exercising again. I tried aerobic kickboxing at first, but after nearly throwing up and dying of lack of oxygen, I decided to start out smaller with some yoga. Today (about 3 weeks later) I tried the kickboxing DVD again, and I did a lot better! I definitely notice the difference the yoga has made in my muscle strength and flexibility!!! (Although I felt like I'd nearly throw up again- best to wait a while after eating before doing extensive exercise, I suppose. haha)
I've also been hanging out with Patrick and his friends on the weekends. Last Saturday, we went to a cowboy bar for one of our pal's b-day. I rode the mechanical bull there!!! I was pretty nervous, but after watching a couple of our party members give it a try, I decided to have a go. There's a guy who operates it and he'll adjust the skill level for each person, so it wasn't nearly as scary as I thought. Still didn't stay on very long though! Haha- as soon as we get some pictures from our friends, I'll have to post one!
In the meantime, we just got a pic from one of our friend's Halloween party, so here we are as Jack and Jill! It might be hard to see, but we smeared black eye shadow on us and put bandaids on to simulate injuries from falling down a hill, Patrick had gauze wrapped around his broken crown under the hat, and we don't have our dented pail with us in the picture either. But hopefully you can tell that we put together a good couple's costume! :)
Our apartment is slowly coming along, as I've gotten basically everything put away and cleaned up, and the maintenance guy has been over a couple times to get some things taken care of like the patchy tiling in the bathroom, yellow blinds, and the gap under our front door letting in a nasty draft. Things should be even better around here after we pick up a few more belongings when we visit Michigan next week, and when we have our futon replaced. Have we told you about that yet??? The darn $600 futon got a major crack in it for no reason less than 3 months after receiving it, and after we called them out on it, they told us to wait 3-4 weeks before we could get it fixed since they're "totally out" of our specific futon. That month is running out and I do believe I had better hear from them soon....
Aside of that, I've been enjoying my time off of school getting a lot of reading done- mostly murder mysteries- and I recently started exercising again. I tried aerobic kickboxing at first, but after nearly throwing up and dying of lack of oxygen, I decided to start out smaller with some yoga. Today (about 3 weeks later) I tried the kickboxing DVD again, and I did a lot better! I definitely notice the difference the yoga has made in my muscle strength and flexibility!!! (Although I felt like I'd nearly throw up again- best to wait a while after eating before doing extensive exercise, I suppose. haha)
I've also been hanging out with Patrick and his friends on the weekends. Last Saturday, we went to a cowboy bar for one of our pal's b-day. I rode the mechanical bull there!!! I was pretty nervous, but after watching a couple of our party members give it a try, I decided to have a go. There's a guy who operates it and he'll adjust the skill level for each person, so it wasn't nearly as scary as I thought. Still didn't stay on very long though! Haha- as soon as we get some pictures from our friends, I'll have to post one!
In the meantime, we just got a pic from one of our friend's Halloween party, so here we are as Jack and Jill! It might be hard to see, but we smeared black eye shadow on us and put bandaids on to simulate injuries from falling down a hill, Patrick had gauze wrapped around his broken crown under the hat, and we don't have our dented pail with us in the picture either. But hopefully you can tell that we put together a good couple's costume! :)
11.09.2007
Crappy Day
So as Patrick pointed out to me, men and women react to disappointing situations in quite different ways: men get mad, women get sad. Hence his venting in the previous post, which is very focused on the situation. And, hence the way I'm acting. It's quite pathetic really: I was completely excited to go hiking this weekend to try out my new gear, get outside, and spend some quality time with Patrick. It's a reasonable thing to be disappointed about, except instead of just leaving it to being upset that I can't go now, I sprawled out on the bed like a mope, haven't changed out of my pajamas, started an argument with Patrick for blaming our misfortunes on hunters which might offend some people we know, and am sort of determined to do nothing today now. I kind of start making everything bad, and to boot, I later accidentally squirted lotion up the sleeve of my shirt too. That didn't help!
So basically, I wanted to tell everyone sorry that you all have to deal with an immature, miserable couple who could learn how to control their disappointment in a way where they don't blame everyone else or don't turn everything into a rain cloud following them around all day- both methods that could potentially make a crappy situation more crappy. (Although, this is starting to sound like advice that most people really could use now that I think about it. Maybe I could spin this whole thing to sound like a parable or a fable instead: Take home the lesson everybody!)
Sooooo, hopefully Patrick and I have both gotten a little of that out of our systems now. Tune in later for the return to our more cheerful and grown-up style of updating from Missouri. :)
So basically, I wanted to tell everyone sorry that you all have to deal with an immature, miserable couple who could learn how to control their disappointment in a way where they don't blame everyone else or don't turn everything into a rain cloud following them around all day- both methods that could potentially make a crappy situation more crappy. (Although, this is starting to sound like advice that most people really could use now that I think about it. Maybe I could spin this whole thing to sound like a parable or a fable instead: Take home the lesson everybody!)
Sooooo, hopefully Patrick and I have both gotten a little of that out of our systems now. Tune in later for the return to our more cheerful and grown-up style of updating from Missouri. :)
Long live Bambi!!
Caution: The following is in no way meant to send offense to hunters we know, just the ones that took over our state forest this weekend.
Begin rant.
Springfield is full of trigger happy alcoholics who love shooting their guns and drinking beers whilst freezing their tails off waiting for that prize buck which, much to their dismay, usually never shows up. I suppose their in it for the thrill of the hunt, yes, sitting in the same spot all day long maybe seeing one doe (correct me if I'm wrong, please). These so called "hunters" have full reign of state forests which is where Atalie and I wanted to go camping this weekend and the Dept. of Conservation is only giving camping permits to hunters because opening day is tomorrow.
I hope Bambi kicks some tail in the upcoming month and the hunters, who probably couldn't hit the side of a barn if they tried-especially after drinking a six-pack, go home empty handed.
Rant over.
Begin rant.
Springfield is full of trigger happy alcoholics who love shooting their guns and drinking beers whilst freezing their tails off waiting for that prize buck which, much to their dismay, usually never shows up. I suppose their in it for the thrill of the hunt, yes, sitting in the same spot all day long maybe seeing one doe (correct me if I'm wrong, please). These so called "hunters" have full reign of state forests which is where Atalie and I wanted to go camping this weekend and the Dept. of Conservation is only giving camping permits to hunters because opening day is tomorrow.
I hope Bambi kicks some tail in the upcoming month and the hunters, who probably couldn't hit the side of a barn if they tried-especially after drinking a six-pack, go home empty handed.
Rant over.
11.01.2007
Happy Belated Halloween!
Hey everybody! Hope you all had a nice Halloween. Patrick and I didn't do too much the night of, but we did carve pumpkins a few days in advance in anticipation of the holiday. Last week Wednesday is when we got started, and although I normally do a simple but cute smiley face, we opted to print off some more complex stencils from the internet. Problem was, the more detailed designs don't turn out so well when all you have to work with is a steak knife.
[Atalie working on prosthetics...]
Patrick decided to quit cutting his out before he got too far, figuring we could pick up some of the smaller pumpkin saws meant for carving out more intricate patterns. I, however, was stubbornly set on finishing mine, which explains why my witch riding a broom had a missing foot, hat brim, nose and only half a broomstick when I was done with her. I managed to mend her up enough to look decent when lit up, but by the next morning, her prosthetic parts fell off again, and by night the whole design fell out of the pumpkin, leaving a giant gaping hole in the front. (It's ok if you laugh- we did too.)
After buying some pumpkin saws over the weekend, Patrick was able to finish carving out his cat, and I began a ghost on a new pumpkin with much more success. Both looked quite good afterwards, especially lit up! Unfortunately, because Patrick's had been cut up a half week earlier than my new one, his didn't quite last to see Halloween night, on account of daily hair and fungal growth. But with a handy camera, you all can still see them all in their glory!
[Atalie working on prosthetics...]Patrick decided to quit cutting his out before he got too far, figuring we could pick up some of the smaller pumpkin saws meant for carving out more intricate patterns. I, however, was stubbornly set on finishing mine, which explains why my witch riding a broom had a missing foot, hat brim, nose and only half a broomstick when I was done with her. I managed to mend her up enough to look decent when lit up, but by the next morning, her prosthetic parts fell off again, and by night the whole design fell out of the pumpkin, leaving a giant gaping hole in the front. (It's ok if you laugh- we did too.)
After buying some pumpkin saws over the weekend, Patrick was able to finish carving out his cat, and I began a ghost on a new pumpkin with much more success. Both looked quite good afterwards, especially lit up! Unfortunately, because Patrick's had been cut up a half week earlier than my new one, his didn't quite last to see Halloween night, on account of daily hair and fungal growth. But with a handy camera, you all can still see them all in their glory!
10.29.2007
Don't huff Goo Gone
Atalie has now been here for a little over a week and most of her things are now put away. She worked diligently all last week and the place is becoming more organized and homey! By far, the worst thing to take care of was removing the adhesive from the price stickers on the dish set. It took 3 or 4 hours just to get all the goo off of the accessory ice cream bowls!!! (And that’s even with letting them soak in hot soapy water and using Goo Gone).
There are still a few projects to be done such as painting the TV stand, putting new photos in the picture frames and organizing albums, sorting paperwork that’s askew in the office, signing up for internet/cable, and finding a coffee table. But since Atalie is waiting to start working until the beginning of the new year, those things will eventually be done in her free time.
Meanwhile, Patrick’s been busy on the weekdays with work and school as usual, although the two of us went out this past Tuesday night for his friend’s 24th b-day. Atalie met a couple more of Patrick’s Missouri posse, and felt pretty comfortable with them right away so it was a fun time. We refrained from going camping with some of the group over the weekend though, as we needed to complete a few errands, but with the arrival of a new backpack we ordered online for Atalie, we anticipate a hiking trip very soon. We just need to get her some hiking boots first, then we’re good to go!
As for this week, we might be doing something special for our 5 year anniversary one of these nights. It’s crazy to think that the two of us have been together that long! We’ll let you know what we decide to do!
10.22.2007
Atalie Arrives!
Painted by Mom A.!
Atalie arrived Thursday around 7pm CST (for those of you in MI)! Patrick had just gotten done driving for a day-long field trip to Rolla, MO with a Geography class and was busy getting some quick groceries and dinner with Kat when Atalie called announcing their arrival. After some hugs and greetings the rental van got emptied straight into the previously clean dining room. We all watched a bit of TV and then headed to bed.
Friday began with breakfast at the Pancake and Waffle House on S. Campbell followed by trips to Goodwill, Mama Jean’s Natural Market, and Salvation Army. We ate dinner at Garbo’s Pizzeria (yum!) and then headed to Andy’s Frozen Custard to get some dessert. That evening we watched Transformers and ate popcorn (Mom is the master of popcorn)!
We went to breakfast again on Saturday, this time at Ziggie’s, followed by more shopping at Cosmic Fish (a hippie-ish store) and a couple of grocery stores (this city is full of medium sized supermarkets that don’t always contain everything you want at one). Mom and Dad were generous and paid to fill up our cupboards with food for the next couple of weeks! They also helped pick out two pumpkins so we can have some jack-o-lanterns at the apartment for Halloween.
While we put the groceries away in the apartment, Mom and Dad explored the flea market and found a cute nightstand for $20 to bring back to us to use as a TV stand. Our DVDs fit perfectly in the drawers and the bamboo wood styling on it fits pretty well with the slightly Oriental feel of some of our other home accessories and decorations. One of our projects this week is to paint it black to match our furniture. Later on, we made a nice sit-down dinner at the apartment, consisting of chicken pesto pizza and strawberry cucumber salad, with leftover frozen custard for dessert. The evening was finished off by gathering on the futon for another movie.
At the early hour of 6-something in the morning, Mom and Dad woke up us younglings to fix them a pancake breakfast before they hit the road back to Grand Rapids. It was great to have them visit and be able to see the apartment but Atalie was sad to see them go and misses them already. Spirits were brightened by going back to sleep for a few more hours, and spending the afternoon at Target and Lowe's to get a few little things for the apartment. Finally Patrick was forced to work on his homework while Atalie prepared dinner and began a book.
Meanwhile, the apartment is a mess from all of the unpacked boxes, but with the two of us together, it already feels more homey! Atalie has her work ahead of her this week though!
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