The Zuehls

Say "cheese" Lily!

2011-09-08T20:47:00.003-05:00

Lily has quite a few signs that she uses these days. Eat, more, please, thank you, water, grapes, cookie, and a few others. While we were at my mom's house, she was playing with my sunglasses and we told her to say "cheese" as my sister snapped a picture...so she did! In ASL. Hahaha! I love my daughter. Sorry the sign is blurry, it is made by putting palms together and rubbing in a twisting motion.

I love these people. :)

2011-09-08T20:38:00.000-05:00

Jake's Glorious Garden

2011-08-05T12:33:00.004-05:00

This is the 2nd year we have a had a garden and I must say, Jake has quite the green thumb. I can't take any credit for it, he quite literally does all the work. This year we had corn, yellow squash, okra, bell peppers, japanese cucumbers, red potatoes, japanese sweet potatoes, green beans, and roma tomatoes.

We're still getting more okra and cucumbers than we know what to do with! We've recently started pickling it to use up our massive quantity.
Our romas didn't do very well, this heat was just a bit much this year. We're not that interested in them anyway so Jake doesn't plan on growing any this fall or next year.
We've had about 80 cucumbers so far. We've given MANY of them away to friends and family.
Our potato harvest wasn't quite as good this season as last. We're not sure why so Jake is going to try something different this fall. Fingerlings!
Our squash was a bit overwhelming. Jake had 8 plants and we had enough squash to feed the neighborhood.

Green beans were a bust. We got a handful of them and later heard that they don't love the heat so scratch that for next year.

Jacob is getting the fall garden ready. On the list for planting are kale, ground cherries, potatoes, pie pumpkins, japanese pumpkins, and japanese radishes.

Family Vacation 2011

2011-08-04T23:08:00.006-05:00

This year, Jake and I decided it was time to take a family vacation together. We took an Eastern Caribbean cruise to the Bahamas and Key West. We LOVED our time on the beaches and being together.

Lily's life jacket was a bit snug and she was NOT a fan.Key lime pie in Key West. We also tried some fried conch and it was SO good.
Lily was anything but afraid of a hermit crab a little girl found. She got a hold of it and we weren't sure she was going to let go--ever. Probably a bit traumatizing for the crab.
It's out of focus but I love this face. I think it expresses exactly how we all felt about being on vacation.

Lillian turns ONE!

2011-08-04T22:50:00.003-05:00

I realize I'm 3 months late on...well, EVERYTHING. Our little baby became a big toddler girl what seemed like overnight. She's such a sweet, happy, funny little girl and we can't believe how quickly the year went. What an amazing adventure we have had (and will continue to have)!

1000 Cranes, 1 Wish for Japan

2011-03-18T19:23:00.002-05:00

I have started a fundraiser to help with relief efforts in Japan. Please join me in my efforts!

An ancient Japanese legend promises that anyone who folds a thousand origami cranes will be granted a wish by a crane. For each $1 donation, we will fold a crane and write your name on it. When we reach 1000, we will send the cranes to Sendai City and donate all of the money to aid the relief efforts.

Cash or checks can be mailed to:
1000 Cranes, 1 Wish for Japan
c/o Miyoshi Zuehl
10730 Potranco Rd. Suite 122
San Antonio, TX 78251

Checks will have to be made out to Miyoshi Zuehl until another solution can be found. We are considering accepting credit card payments but are hesitant because of the extra costs incurred.

Donations of origami paper can also be made to the same address. If anyone would like to assist, please contact me. I'd like to get a flyer, etc. made up to email to family and friends. If anyone is talented with graphic design and wants to help in that way, let me know! SPREAD THE WORD!

For latest updates or contact info, see the facebook page:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/1000-Cranes-1-Wish-for-Japan/174776532569598?sk=wall

Hi! I'm back...hopefully.

2011-03-14T23:47:00.002-05:00

Yup, I dropped off the face of the blogging world. Lily is 10 months old and I think I'm ready to get back to at least reading blogs again. Today, I found this gem on my friend's blog and had to share. Too funny not to! Thanks, Jill!
11 Lessons for Those Contemplating Having Children

My friend just posted this to her blog....it's so funny I had to post it to mine.

Lesson 1

1. Go to the grocery store.
2. Arrange to have your salary paid directly to their head office.
3. Go home.
4. Pick up the paper.
5. Read it for the last time.

Lesson 2

Before you finally go ahead and have children, find a couple who already are parents and berate them about their...

1. Methods of discipline.
2. Lack of patience.
3. Appallingly low tolerance levels.
4. Allowing their children to run wild.
5. Suggest ways in which they might improve their child's breastfeeding, sleep habits, toilet training, table manners, and overall behavior.
Enjoy it because it will be the last time in your life you will have all the answers.

Lesson 3

A really good way to discover how the nights might feel...

1. Get home from work and immediately begin walking around the living room from 5PM to 10PM carrying a wet bag weighing approximately 8-12 pounds, with a radio turned to static (or some other obnoxious sound) playing loudly. (Eat cold food with one hand for dinner)
2. At 10PM, put the bag gently down, set the alarm for midnight, and go to sleep.
3. Get up at 12 and walk around the living room again, with the bag, until 1AM.
4. Set the alarm for 3AM.
5. As you can't get back to sleep, get up at 2AM and make a drink and watch an infomercial.
6. Go to bed at 2:45AM.
7. Get up at 3AM when the alarm goes off.
8. Sing songs quietly in the dark until 4AM.
9. Get up. Make breakfast. Get ready for work and go to work (work hard and be productive)
Repeat steps 1-9 each night. Keep this up for 3-5 years. Look cheerful and together.

Lesson 4

Can you stand the mess children make? To find out...

1. Smear peanut butter onto the sofa and jam onto the curtains.
2. Hide a piece of raw chicken behind the stereo and leave it there all summer.
3. Stick your fingers in the flower bed.
4. Then rub them on the clean walls.
5. Take your favorite book, photo album, etc. Wreck it.
6. Spill milk on your new pillows. Cover the stains with crayons. How does that look?

Lesson 5

Dressing small children is not as easy as it seems.

1. Buy an octopus and a small bag made out of loose mesh.
2. Attempt to put the octopus into the bag so that none of the arms hang out.
Time allowed for this - all morning.

Lesson 6

Forget the BMW and buy a mini-van. And don't think that you can leave it out in the driveway spotless and shining. Family cars don't look like that.

1. Buy a chocolate ice cream cone and put it in the glove compartment.
Leave it there.
2. Get a dime. Stick it in the CD player.
3. Take a family size package of chocolate cookies. Mash them into the back seat. Sprinkle cheerios all over the floor, then smash them with your foot.
4. Run a garden rake along both sides of the car.

Lesson 7

Go to the local grocery store. Take with you the closest thing you can find to a pre-school child. (A full-grown goat is an excellent choice). If you intend to have more than one child, then definitely take more than one goat. Buy your week's groceries without letting the goats out of your sight. Pay for everything the goat eats or destroys. Until you can easily accomplish this, do not even contemplate having children.

Lesson 8

1. Hollow out a melon.
2. Make a small hole in the side.
3. Suspend it from the ceiling and swing it from side to side.
4. Now get a bowl of soggy Cheerios and attempt to spoon them into the swaying melon by pretending to be an airplane.
5. Continue until half the Cheerios are gone.
6. Tip half into your lap. The other half, just throw up in the air.
You are now ready to feed a nine- month-old baby.

Lesson 9

Learn the names of every character from Sesame Street , Barney, Disney, the Teletubbies, and Pokemon. Watch nothing else on TV but PBS, the Disney channel or Noggin for at least five years. (I know, you're thinking What's 'Noggin'?) Exactly the point.

Lesson 10

Make a recording of Fran Drescher (The Nanny) saying 'mommy' repeatedly. (Important: no more than a four second delay between each 'mommy'; occasional crescendo to the level of a supersonic jet is required). Play this tape in your car everywhere you go for the next four years. You are now ready to take a long trip with a toddler.

Lesson 11

Start talking to an adult of your choice. Have someone else continually tug on your skirt hem, shirt- sleeve, or elbow while playing the 'mommy' tape made from Lesson 10 above. You are now ready to have a conversation with an adult while there is a child in the room.
**This is all very tongue in cheek; anyone who is parent will say 'it's all worth it!' Share it with your friends, both those who do and don't have kids. I guarantee they'll get a chuckle out of it. Remember, a sense of humor is one of the most important things you'll need when you become a parent!**

Hello, my name is Miyoshi and I am your new travel agent!

2011-02-08T19:20:00.002-06:00

At the end of last year I was kinda itching for something to do. Don't get me wrong, Lillian keeps me plenty busy (especially now that she is crawling!!!) but I wanted something to DO that gave me a little more structure or a little play money or a little fulfillment in a way that I haven't found since I retired 1.5 years ago. ;)

So, I joined a travel agency and am now booking everything for single air tickets to family Disney cruises to Hawaiian vacations!

If you are ever planning travel and would like someone to take the hassle off your hands, let me know! I'd be glad to help and believe it or not, you don't pay me! That's right, I find you the best deals I can and get you your vacation at the same price or better than what you're finding and you don't have to pay me. What's better than customer service from someone you know and skipping the hassle of shopping around?

Now, if you like to do the shopping yourself, I won't be offended, but try my website too. Our prices are guaranteed just like the big guys so take a look!

adventuretravelsavings.com

I can't wait to plan your next adventure!

Zuehl/Nelson/Maness Family Picture

2010-12-27T22:45:00.002-06:00

This year for Christmas we got the WHOLE FAMILY together so we had to take the opportunity to take a big family picture. I think it went well! Even poor, cranky, teething Lily was looking at the camera. :)

Merry Christmas!

2010-12-21T22:27:00.002-06:00

I hope everyone is enjoying this Christmas season and wish you all the best for 2011!

Lily is 6 months old!

2010-11-07T17:44:00.003-06:00

We can't believe how quickly 6 months has gone by. We feel incredibly blessed to have this little girl in our lives. Lillian is a happy, sweet girl and she brings so much joy to our lives. Being a parent gets more and more fun every day.

Trunk-or-Treat!

2010-10-25T14:50:00.004-05:00

We Zuehls aren't big into Halloween but our family dressed up for the church Trunk-or-Treat this past Saturday. Here's the proof:

I had to put together some accessories for our costumes. I couldn't find a normal straw hat so a straw cowboy hat had to do! We filled our "honey" bucket with Bit-O-Honey and I made a bouquet for Lily to hold.

Our little bumble bee holding her flowers. She kept trying to eat the flowers which, I suppose, was appropriate for a little bumble bee. :)

Lily's first tooth!

2010-10-20T13:58:00.004-05:00

Today I tried to get a picture of the tooth Lily cut a couple weeks ago. It started out happy and fun but this is how it ended up...

...not so happy about taking a picture.

...eventually I got a shot.

...couldn't get much of a close-up but there you have it!
Now you've also seen how strong willed Lily can be. As Brad Paisley said: "I'm gonna get my payback if (s)he's anything like me." :)

2010 Author's Luncheon

2010-10-18T16:52:00.002-05:00

Today I had the joy of going to the 2010 Author's Luncheon. Alton Brown was the headlining author but after arriving I found out that Frank Deford was also there! I was SUPER excited to meet these two people and they were both so nice. It was an adventure I will never forget. :)

Traveling Dogs

2010-10-04T18:52:00.003-05:00

Yuki made it into a competition on Animal Planet!
Vote for her as the best "traveling dog" by going to this link and voting for her...

http://animal.discovery.com/the-spot/battle-breeds/traveling-dogs/

You can vote multiple times by refreshing the page. :) Round 1 end next Monday so keep voting and let's hope she makes it to round 2!

Lillian's growing like a weed!

2010-09-17T16:27:00.003-05:00

Our little girl is over 4 months old now and, of course, we have plenty of pictures to share. :)
Late summer in Texas means the weather is beginning to get better. We've been busy with visitors and introducing Lily to new things. Hopefully we'll soon have some real adventures to share...ones where we get to leave home. ;)

Eh?

Happy Girl

Bath Time!

Today goes to Jacob.

2010-08-23T10:30:00.003-05:00

If you know Jacob, you know he's a worker bee. He works very hard as an engineer to keep our little family housed, fed, clothed and happy. I'm thankful every day for him and especially thankful that his hard work allows me to stay home with our little Lillian.

This past week he was working extra hard to prepare for a series of presentations today. In fact, he had to work until late in the evening a few days, a full day Saturday and even had to work from home Saturday evening and Sunday. Today the madness ends. :)

Thanks for all your hard work, Jake! Good luck! I love you!

The JOY of our lives.

2010-08-02T16:49:00.005-05:00

I know you don't care if I say anything. You're just going to look at the pictures anyway, so here they are. Needless to say, Shanny and Mom came to visit Lillian. :)

Happy, happy, baby.

The rewards of motherhood

2010-07-09T17:00:00.003-05:00

Lily has (very) recently started smiling. After nearly 9 weeks, I was VERY ready to see her smile at me and not just in her sleep. She does it nearly every time I touch her nose and for the first time playing peek-a-boo today! LOVE IT.

My Perfect Life

2010-06-28T20:30:00.002-05:00

When you have this, what more can you ask for?

One Month Young

2010-06-22T14:30:00.002-05:00

My little baby is growing up quickly. In actuality she is 7 weeks old tomorrow and I'm just THAT behind in life. :) This picture was taken on her 1 month birthday while my dad was visiting. More pictures to come of our adventure to WI/MI and everything else that's keeping me occupied.

Lillian's First Photo Shoot

2010-05-18T15:05:00.004-05:00

Prepare yourself for picture overload...

These are a few of my favorite things...

2010-05-17T16:41:00.002-05:00

At least that's what Jake would say.

Here's Jake enjoying a cuddle with his little girl, checking out cafe racers on the laptop while watching the F1 race in Monaco this weekend. That's a pretty good life. :)

The announcement you've been waiting for!

2010-05-10T13:45:00.005-05:00

Lillian Miyako Zuehl arrived on May 6, 2010 at 2:20pm.
8lbs 3oz and 20.5 inches long!

Proud Daddy

Happy Momma

Where can you see more pictures, you ask? Oh, right here...

If it smells good...

2010-05-04T15:27:00.002-05:00

Does it taste good, too? Yuki tested the theory on our snapdragons. :)

Our garden is coming along very nicely, don't you think? Everything's growing like mad. Our beans are starting to climb the corn and the corn... well, it has certainly surpassed the Wisconsin rule of "knee high by the 4th of July" don't you think? Our potatoes and tomatoes are even beginning to bloom!

As for the baby news, we're still "patiently" waiting. Check back soon--only 8 days until she's due!

Another nursery update and a weekend "out"

2010-04-25T19:07:00.006-05:00

Alright, so here it is. A few people wanted to see it all put together with the bedding, etc. I think it's turned out quite lovely. I'll be spending quite a bit of time in that room so I'm glad I like it! :)

This little girl already has too many clothes... they nearly fill the entire closet! (this is just half the closet...) Little girls' clothes are just too hard to resist! Thank to everyone who has contributed to the madness. :)

On Saturday, Jake and I decided we needed to really utilize our last few weekends of just us. So we loaded up the pup and went out to Castroville. We picked up "breakfast" at Haby's Bakery and went out to the park. Jake brought his fishing pole, I brought my camera and Yuki brought, well... nothing. She was just ready to run!
It was a perfect day to be out. This week is Fiesta in San Antonio so everyone's been downtown, leaving the rest of San Antonio pretty quiet. We had a great time taking in the sun and scenery.
Jake and I got a picture of the two of us and I realized I look bigger than I feel... I guess that's alright since I only have 2 weeks left.

We're putting this coming weekend to good use too! We'll be celebrating our 5th anniversary so stay tuned!

It's Raining, It's Pouring!

2010-04-15T16:52:00.004-05:00

So what do you do when it's raining all day and your husband is gone? Crafts, of course!

I saw "taggies" at a craft fair this fall and decided that I'd rather make one than spend the $15 (or however much they were charging) for one. And so I did. It's not perfect but for my first shot, I don't think I did too badly! ...And I don't think Lillian will mind. :)

I also wanted to make a matching set consisting of a sling, diaper case and wipes case.

This project was started long, long ago, and just never got finished...until yesterday! A double thickness receiving blanket and matching burp cloths.

Last, but not least, a car seat cover. OK, I made this one over a week ago but hadn't gotten to posting about it.

Ta-da! I think the nesting bug has arrived. More to come soon!

Giveaway!

2010-04-14T12:45:00.002-05:00

My friend, Marcie, is a photographer in Utah County. She guest blogged here recently:

http://notesfromaveryredkitchen.blogspot.com/2010/04/photography-tips-and-giveaway.html

...and is doing another fantastic giveaway! Check out her tips and also her photography!

http://www.jesseephotography.com/

Baby Shower

2010-04-13T17:11:00.003-05:00

These lovely ladies threw a baby shower for me this past Saturday. It was lovely and so sweet of so many people to come! It's hard to believe that we've only been here about 11 months and yet I felt surrounded by very loving friends.

We played a "guess how big Miyoshi's belly is" type of game. Most of the ladies were within a few inches of being right, I was quite impressed.

I would post the million pictures of presents but we'd be here for ages. Thanks to everyone who came and to my wonderful mother-in-law and sister-in-laws that sent gifts too! We're feeling a bit more prepared and Lillian will certainly be a well dressed girl thanks to all of you.

Now we just wait another 4 weeks-ish to meet her! Could be sooner though, I had contractions on Saturday night after the party and am already starting to dilate! Could mean nothing at all though so don't hold your breath, I'm trying not to. :)

How does your garden grow?

2010-04-12T20:24:00.003-05:00

Well, we put in a garden this year and we're beginning to see progress! We've planted corn, yellow squash, green beans (with the 3 sisters method), soy beans, tomatoes, yellow onions, russet and red potatoes, green onions, basil, cilantro and strawberries.

As you can see, we're already enjoying the "fruits of our labors" when it comes to the strawberries. We've had 2 that are ripe so far... this was the first. We cut it in half and even gave a sliver to Yuki so we could all celebrate together. :) We're strange, I know.

The next one was ripe the next day, much to Jake's enjoyment. Below is a picture of the rest of the garden a week or two ago. The potatoes are in the foreground with the corn behind them, the soy beans behind that and the tomatoes under the milk gallons. The yellow onions are along the right side. I'm not sure if the beans and squash were sprouted at this point but they are surrounding the corn. The theory? Plant the corn first, then when they are a few inches tall, you plant the green beans so they can climb up the corn. Then, the squash takes up the space unused by the corn and beans and since they all have different soil requirements it doesn't drain the soil of nutrients! Ta-da! hopefully it works!

Funny "Outtakes"

2010-03-30T14:40:00.003-05:00

So, I just had to share these too...

Maternity Pictures

2010-03-30T14:17:00.004-05:00

My friend, Christy, came over last night to take some maternity pictures for us. Thanks, Christy, I love them!

Happy Birthday, Jacob!

2010-03-28T11:32:00.006-05:00

For Jake's birthday, we headed out to the Old Alsatian Steakhouse and Ristorante for dinner. The meal was FANTASTIC. It's out in Castroville (for anyone who lives here in San Antonio) and was well worth the 18 minute drive out there. I think this may turn into one of our favorite places here in Texas. We're already planning to go back for our anniversary next month. :)

We started with calamari that was perfectly cooked...crispy on the outside but lacking any chewiness inside. :) Jake had the french onion soup and applewood pork and I had the valencia salad (AMAZING) and filet mignon. Jake was in love with his pork and claims it's the best pork he's ever had... I agree, it was pretty amazing. I was quite impressed with my meal as well. To top it off, we had 2 scrumptious desserts: lemon cheesecake and creme brulee. Again, excellent.

By the time we left (there was a party there so we were there a little longer than normal and they comped our desserts!) we were feeling quite euphoric. It was the perfect pick for dinner and was definitely one of the best meals we've ever enjoyed.

Lastly, during our fantastic dinner, we picked a name for the ever-growing-baby-bump above! Well, for the baby causing the bump...

***

Ladies and Gentlemen, may we present

Lillian Miyako Zuehl!

See you in 6 weeks or so. :)

Nursery Update!

2010-03-27T18:28:00.004-05:00

We have all the furniture assembled and in the nursery now. We bought a recliner today--and got a great deal on it! Our adventure was getting it home in the Camry...

Now we just need to hang a few pictures and decorations!

If we could decide on a name, it might make the decorating process easier... (hint, hint, Jacob)

Yuki's Portrait

2010-03-02T17:13:00.004-06:00

I thought I'd take Yuki's 3rd birthday (yesterday) as an opportunity to show off my pup and my new camera. You've seen a few pictures from it but nothing truly beautiful. Well, here you go. What a patient dog, I couldn't ask for better...and what a wonderful camera.

Happy 3rd Birthday!

Progression of the Nursery

2010-02-14T16:11:00.008-06:00

For those of you (Shannon) who are curious about what the nursery is looking like and what all our loooong hours have turned into:

We let Yuki choose the colors. ;)

Before:

Primed with chalk lines:

Painted:

Chair rail and crown moulding painted:

Everything's up!

Finished!

My lovely painting outfit and 27 week bump (last week):

I wouldn't do it again next week, but the last 2 weekends of hard work have been WORTH IT. Jake and I are quite proud of our accomplishment... especially Jake's skills cutting all the trim and moulding!

Jake also put up the new ceiling fan you see in all the pictures. It's much nicer than the previous one and he got it for a STEAL--$20! Nice job!

If you can't quite tell, the color on the top is a very pale yellow.

By popular demand...

2010-01-27T15:18:00.001-06:00

This isn't the greatest picture, I had to use the self timer... but here you go! This is what 25 weeks looks like!

January 2010 and a visit from the Zuehls "up nort"

2010-01-27T14:57:00.004-06:00

Jake's parents, Barb and Richard, came down to escape the Wisconsin Winter Weather for a week. The weather cooperated and we toured all around San Antonio with them. We visited the Botanical Gardens, the Alamo and a couple of the Missions, visited Zuehl, TX and went out to eat at countless places! Barb and I also did a good deal of shopping around town--Thanks again!!

Can you see a bump? I can!

We're pretty sure the 70 degree weather beat staying home. Ya'll come back now, ya hear? :)

Christmas 2009

2010-01-27T14:41:00.004-06:00

Sorry it has been so long... prepare for a lot of pictures!

Mom and Shanny came for our first Texas Christmas! We had a lot of fun going to Sea World, frying our Turkey, and being together. We had a lot of beautiful weather to enjoy, too.

Jake rigged up a few boards to keep himself safe from the hot oil and Yuki enjoyed the smell of the cooking turkey. We enjoyed the taste of the fried turkey!

Yuki loved sharing the leftover turkey! She was quite hesitant to take a bite but got a few good pieces.

Yummmm!

I accidentally deleted all of my pictures of the tree, so I only have the few Mom or Shanny took... here's what it looked like.

P.S. A lot of those presents were for the baby. :)

Halloween and Thanksgiving

2010-01-02T14:32:00.006-06:00

For Thanksgiving, we went home to WI, so Yuki had to fly for the first time. She got a lot of attention during our layovers!

While we were in WI, our friends the Noltemeyers (from Madison), came to visit so we toured them around town and we stopped at Cedar Crest to take a picture with the cow.

For Halloween, Yuki was a bumble bee! She's was a good sport...mostly because she got to meet all the kids.

100th Post--It's a GIRL!

2009-12-07T16:55:00.003-06:00

Well, I had to use my 100th post for something truly wonderful...

We had our 17 week ultrasound this past week and we're having a girl! She was thoroughly checked out and is healthy and squirming.

I've had several requests for belly pictures... I'm sorry, there just isn't really much to show off.

We're still deciding on a name but we'll keep you posted. I also have lots of wonderful pictures to put up of our latest adventures. :)

News Segment

2009-10-30T07:12:00.002-05:00

So, I don't love it, but hey, whatever. At least I got to complain to someone!
I feel like they made me look a bit emotional and desperate about it. I don't have a feeling of impending death or anything, geez!
Not much I can do about the editing though. :)
Anyway, that's that.

http://www.woai.com/mediacenter/local.aspx?articleID=757823

P.S. I'm still looking for the vaccine.

Two posts in one day, I know, I'm BIG TIME.

2009-10-28T19:13:00.003-05:00

So, I wrote an email to the local news station on Monday and turned out they liked what I had to say. So I got an email and a card in my door to call the reporter today while I was out running errands. I called and they wanted to interview me for a story. What does the story have to do with? Well... it has a bit to do with this:

Yep, I'm pregnant. 12 weeks, in fact. This ultrasound was from week 9 so it's "outdated" but you get the idea. The baby (SINGULAR) is due May 12, 2010. Excited? Yeah, we are too.

Back to the story... the interview is about the shortage of seasonal flu vaccinations and the fact that even "high risk" people aren't able to get the vaccination. I had made a lot of phone calls on Monday to try to track one down... nothing. So I sent the email and "got heard". So there you have it! Tomorrow night at 10pm on WOAI. You just might see me! If you're not in SA, try the website Friday morning. :)

Yeah, I live in South Central Texas.

2009-10-28T11:33:00.003-05:00

It's October 28th and I just turned the heat on. :) Love it. And honestly, by the weekend, we'll probably need the A/C again.

Sorry to brag, but the weather is just GORGEOUS here. At the moment it's a little cloudy but we're (finally!) able to go out and sit in the backyard before the sun goes down. We can play fetch with Yuki, do yardwork without the threat of heat exhaustion... the list just goes on.

So while I'm enjoying my "spring" and you're stuck in "early winter" just remember that when you're summer rolls around, I'm already living in Hades.

So I'm going to enjoy this for a couple months, ok?

**additional note**

So, after writing this post, I went out to run some errands and HAD to have the A/C on. No 2 ways around it.

The heat in the house hasn't kicked on all day, I'm betting it won't until long after we're in bed.

Fall Trip to Utah

2009-10-19T15:16:00.004-05:00

I just got back on Saturday from a wonderful week in Utah! (pictures are out of order)

I had the joy of going to visit Brad and Becca and their new baby, Jane! (Becca took a picture of Jane and I but I don't have it yet so imagine an adorable baby in my arms)
Becca and I took Jane and Buster (their dog) up Provo Canyon for a nice, long walk.
The leaves in the Canyon were changing, BEAUTIFUL!

Thursday, I went to visit the Booher family. Jon and I have been friends from our Freshman year of High School. We had a great time eating and laughing together and I laughed so hard I cried! I wish I had a picture with everyone that was there...

On Wednesday, Mika and I went out shopping, etc. The last time we were together was at her wedding reception over 2 years ago. I can't believe how quickly time goes by!

Tuesday was temple day with Aarika! We went to Salt Lake and before our session, I got to meet her lovely parents over lunch! The Salt Lake Temple was AMAZING. We even got a mini tour. I'm so glad I had a chance to go while I was visiting, I had always wanted to go before we moved but it just never happened. Thanks for being my temple buddy, Aarika!

Tuesday night, Brad, Becca, Mika, Kenton and I all went out to my favorite Thai place in Payton. It's a small mom and pop place and we were the only ones there that night! Great food and great friends made for a great night.

This was Monday when Becca and I went up the canyon. It was a beautiful day to be out for a walk.

Other highlights:

Earlier on Thursday I also met up with BriAnna on campus and walked around. It was quite a strange feeling to be back. There's a sense of not belonging and yet belonging at the same time. After that I went back to Independent Study (now at the Morris Center--weird!) to see Justin who is now Dr. Johansen--CONGRATULATIONS! He is now the director of IS and we had a great chat. There were a few other familiar faces still there and I'm glad I went.

Becca taught me some jewelry making basics--Thanks! We ate at all my favorite places including Cafe Rio, Sai Savanah, The Italian Place, Zupas, fresh bread and honey butter from campus and a tasty pie from Village Inn. What is it about food when you're visiting a place?!

The biggest highlight would, of course, be being able to spend so much time with Brad, Becca and Jane. It was great to see them again, even though it has only been a year since our last vacation together. Jake was quite sad that he missed out on all the fun. Next time... :)

Until then, I love and miss you all already!
Brad and Becca, thanks for having me! I know I messed up your schedules and way of life--thanks for being such gracious hosts.

An extra special thanks goes to Jake for not only funding my trip, but for his hard work while I was gone. I left one heck of a disaster at home and came home to a perfectly clean house. Oh how I love my husband! P.S. he bought a motorcycle while I was gone... update to come.

Sea World Adventure

2009-09-20T20:08:00.002-05:00

Jake works for Southwest Research Institute here in San Antonio and for their annual summer picnic, we all went to Sea World! $8 per person with lunch and a 2nd visit included...not bad!
We had a great day but my legs are quite tired today.

We got to meet some of the Budweiser Clydesdales that live there... that's me and Bud. We're friends now.

Jake, on the other hand, made friends with a 4 year old Alligator!

My favorite part of the day was the shows, of course. We went to "Believe" with Shamu and "Viva" with the dolphins, belugas, acrobats and synchronized swimmers!

Lets just say, I'm a big fan of Sea World and I feel very lucky to live 7 minutes away! We'll definitely be back. Thanks SwRI!

Labor Day 2009

2009-09-11T20:15:00.003-05:00

This year for Labor Day Jacob and I, along with plenty of friends, went out to shoot a few guns! We had a blast (no pun intended). Thanks to the Trees for taking us out and the Kauers for coming up with a great idea! I can now say I feel much more confidant that (if I had a handgun) I would be able to defend myself with some accuracy and without causing injury to myself. :) My favorite? 9mm. Jake's favorite? 45 caliber. So what will we buy? Good question, haven't figured that out quite yet. In the mean time, enjoy some pictures!

Jake and the one gun we actually own. I shot it for the first time that day, but Jake makes it look much better. I actually look like I know what I'm doing...maybe. So Daddy, you proud? :)

A Lovely Lime Filled Friday

2009-08-29T12:53:00.013-05:00

So, this recipe for Key Lime Pie was a big hit at our ward's pie night yesterday so I thought I would share. It's courtesy of one of my LEAST favorite chefs on Food Network but I must say, the man knows what he's doing... Emeril. I made a few of my own changes though, sorry big guy. So without further adieu, here's MY version:

Key Lime Pie (<---if you want the original, click here) Ingredients:

1 graham cracker pie crust
1/4 cup granulated sugar
6 oz (or so) of heavy whipping cream
2 (14-ounce) cans condensed milk
1 cup key lime or regular lime juice (took me about 32 key limes, but it was worth it)
2 whole eggs
1 tablespoon lime zest

Directions:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

Combine the condensed milk, lime juice, and eggs. Whisk until well blended and place the filling in the pie shell. Bake in the oven for 15 minutes and allow to chill in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours. (The center will still be very soft, don't worry, it will set up!)

Use approx 1/4 cup sugar and whipping cream to make whipped cream topping. Just before serving, spread whipped cream and sprinkle with lime zest. Serve!

Where does the time go?

2009-08-18T15:19:00.003-05:00

I can't believe we've been in SA for 3 months already! Time flies. We've done so many fun things this summer, the last of which was our trip to AZ for a baby blessing! It was a 14 hour drive so I went a little crazy with the camera at times but I promise not to overwhelm you.

Sniff, sniff, sniff, PURGE. Sniff, sniff, sniff, PURGE. Yuki's favorite road trip activity. She's a well traveled dog... UT to WI, WI to MD, WI to TX, TX to AZ...and all the states in between!

You know you're in TX when cattle outnumber cars and people. I've had 3 occasions lately (2 within the city) when I was driving and saw cattle chillin' dangerously close to the road. Curious suckers.

This one took special interest in us. I was starting to wonder if I had ticked it off.

And THIS is the reason we went to AZ! To see my "almost" family. Maybe that's "might as well be" family. Anyway, we welcomed baby Victor at a shower and attended the blessing. We also got a taste of our well missed Cafe Rio while we were there. Yummmm. We had such a blast visiting and can't wait to see everyone again.

My friend Marcie

2009-08-07T10:22:00.003-05:00

I met Marcie back in the days of Independent Study... a long, long time ago, in a far away land. ;)
Well, she's having a photography contest and the prize is a mini-photo session with her!
So click HERE to go to her website! The person with the most visits from their blog wins, so please check her out from mine! Thanks, friends!
Now go there and look at her beautiful work (and ADORABLE kids)!

If you tell people you're not busy, you will soon find yourself VERY busy.

2009-07-26T23:33:00.003-05:00

As previously mentioned, I'm a stay at home wife. I do a lot during the day, and we've had visitors lately but I wouldn't call myself busy. At least I didn't... until today. We've have been in SA for 9 weeks today and we've been going to church every week. We were quite surprised that at 7 weeks we hadn't received callings (assignments within our congregation) yet. So on the 7th week, we were pulled aside before the start of Sunday school. I was asked to be a teacher in Primary for the "Valiant 9" group (sunday school for 9 year olds). I had also volunteered the week before to help with some Relief Society activities in the fall (the LDS women's group). So I though that between those two, I'd be pretty busy and happy. I did tell Jake that I didn't think my Primary calling would last very long, I just had that feeling. Well, I taught for the first time today and had a VERY busy day of church. Why? well... this morning at 9am (church is at 2:30pm) we had a visitor. I admit, I was still in bed (we were up late and hey, don't judge me, we don't have kids yet! i'm taking every opportunity i can!) when our neighbor (who is also a church high councilman) gave Jake some interesting news. Jake came upstairs and I asked who it was... this is how the rest of that conversation went:
Jake: Chris K.
Me: Oh, what did he want?
Jake: I don't want to tell you.
Me: What is it? (really concerned that I did something wrong)
Jake: I don't want to tell you.
Me: Tell me!
Jake: They are asking you to be the seminary teacher. (seminary is early morning scripture study, every weekday for high school age kids)
Me: ?!?!?!?!? (but relieved that I didn't do something wrong)
So there it is friends! I'm in way over my head, I'm going to be super busy, but I'm sure I'll be learning a lot.
P.S. I totally called it. I KNEW I was going to be the seminary teacher at some point--i've been saying that since H.S. I didn't think it would be this soon though! There were signs though, and in retrospect, I should have known this was coming.
P.P.S. When seminary starts in the fall, they are going to release me from my primary calling. Phew! I had a great time today but I'm not sure I'd want to be teaching 6 of 7 days each week!

I need HELP!

2009-07-16T14:02:00.002-05:00

For the past week or so I've been trying to set up a meal plan. Not happening. I just can't figure out how to start maybe. So, for all you wise women who know how to do this stuff, how do i start??

I've made lists of the meals we like. I have a great recipe program that will tell me what I need to buy for the week but how do I make the best use of what I buy and our leftovers? Do I plan beef weeks and chicken weeks? Do I just freeze what we have leftover (for lunches, etc)? I've seen shows that utilize cooking beef for one dinner and using part and then using what's already done during the rest of the week in other dishes.

I need a strategy and I'm open to suggestions.

For those of you who do this, does it really save much money?

May and June 2009

2009-06-30T19:38:00.004-05:00

I thought it was about time that I update our blog and include some pictures.
These pictures take us back to WI during the week we moved. Our last weekend in WI was spent at the cabin. Turns out that Jake liked Legos growing up as much (or more) than I did. It also turns out that, like my mom, Barb kept all of them. ALL OF THEM. All 4 GLORIOUS boxes of Legos. So, after everyone else went home and Jake and I were watching "How I Met Your Mother" Season 2 (Thanks, again, Brad and Becca!) I busted out all 4 boxes and started building. This is what my night looked like:

After saying our goodbyes in WI, we drove down to my Dad's and then to Josh and Randi's in OK city. We went out to dinner with them in a downpour, then out to a movie.

Our first weekend in TX, we joined up with Rob and Aarika for a night at the Rodeo. Well, it was a bull riding competition. We felt a little out of place without boots and hats so we're going to work on our wardrobe for the next time. The bulls were moving very fast so I got video but no real pictures... this one turned out kinda interesting though.

A few weekends later, Rob, Aarika, Jake and I headed to Padre Island for a little camping. Sleeping on the sand and letting the sound of waves lull you to sleep...not as great as it sounds. On the plus side, the next day was beautiful and the wind was blowing enough to keep us cool. We had a great time!

Part of our beach adventure was seeing a few Portugese Man-O-Wars (on the sand, not in the water, gratefully). I also found the sand dollar in the first picture. I threw it back and a couple hours later, Jake found it again. What are the chances?

This last weekend was the last one that Rob and Aarika would be here so we went out to lunch at Pappadeaux... fantastic food. Fantastic friends. We'll miss you! Can't wait fr you to move back for good! :)

I'm a stay-at-home-wife and I'm ok with that.

2009-06-10T16:42:00.003-05:00

Lately, it's been interesting to see and hear the reactions of people (some that I would have considered friends) when they heard that I was "retiring" from work when we moved to TX.
I've seen eye rolls a plenty, shaking heads, and some confused looks too.

Today, I was contemplating my situations (while doing a lot of laundry and surfing the internet).
It's not that I didn't enjoy working, I really did.
It's not that I don't like money, I really do.
Why did I retire? I wasn't HAPPY.

So, now I'm spending my days at home, doing laundry (currently not cooking b/c of a lack of refrigerator but that will resume shortly), paying bills, waiting for the Sears delivery team, washing and cleaning out my car, oh and also doing fun things too. :)
I'm fully aware that I have no children and that I'm not currently as busy as a stay-at-home mom but does that really make me a "drain on society"?
I've been at the temple every week since we moved, this week, I'm helping to clean it. I've signed up on every volunteer list at church, and I'm trying to decide how to volunteer my time.
I can't say that I have to logistics of being a stay-at-home-wife down yet and I don't have my schedule worked out but I'm working on it.

So what's my problem? I think I'm living it up! I don't have a problem!
But a few others apparently do...
Maybe I should care less what other people think but why do people have to have such strong opinions about what I'm doing (or not doing)?
This article- "would you respect a stay-at-home-wife?" is just an example. The actual articles aren't bad, but as a note, Jake and I didn't decide to do this as a "status symbol" by any means. We're not rollin' in it by any stretch, but we're comfortable and happy.
Happy... there's that crazy word again.

I will say this, my LDS friends have been the most accepting of my new station in life. Thank you. Maybe it's because it's not too far fetched for a stay-at-home-mom to understand. That leads me to my next point... this isn't going to last forever. Someday, I hope to be the incredibly busy stay-at-home-MOM. I had a couple women at church make comments along the lines of "how nice would that be?" to each other. 1. I'm not trying to make you jealous. 2. How nice would it be to be a MOM?! moms-I envy YOU. There, are we even now?

I don't know that this post has a point or if I just wanted to rant. I don't feel like I'm taking women back into the dark ages by not working and I don't feel like I'm wasting my education, and I certainly don't think I'm a drain on society. In my opinion I'm giving back to my community, I'm leaving a job available for someone who might NEED the money (not just want it to buy new furniture--which I do want...), and I'm happier and more energetic at the end of the day. Oh, and my back doesn't hurt. When was the last time I could say that?

Someday (maybe sooner, maybe later) I might go back to work. Maybe part time... or maybe I'll just volunteer more. Either way, I'll be doing what's best for my little family and my sanity--so just keep your head shaking and eye-rolling to yourself, ok?

Time for an update? Yes, I do believe so.

2009-06-08T11:36:00.003-05:00

So, what have we been up to...

We arrived in San Antonio two weeks ago yesterday (it seems like longer than that).
we hit the jackpot on memorial day at Sears. They were having the normal memorial day sales but it was also tax-free weekend! (on energy-star appliances)
Today, they delivered my washer and dryer! (image below)
So I'm doing my first load as we speak!
If you're counting, yes that was 2 weeks before we got them. Because of the fantastic savings over memorial day weekend, EVERYONE was buying new appliances so they were out of stock on just about everything. Our fridge will finally come this Friday!

What else?
The first week was full of the normal boring crap like getting internet, cable, alarm system, driver's license, car registration, etc all set up. I won't bore you with the details.

Last week, Jake started work! Orientation sounds like it was a bit boring but he's now moved in to his office and even started a little research on Friday. With new emissions standards deadlines coming up, a lot of research needs to be done to set up the on board diagnostic systems in diesel engines (in Jake's case). So that's what he'll be collaborating on...if I got that right.

After a solid first week without getting fired, we wanted to do something exciting for the weekend so we headed out with Rob and Aarika to six Flags Fiesta Texas! We spent 7 hot but very fun hours there on Saturday and came home successfully un-burned! If you know me, you know I don't ride roller coasters and I HATE the feeling of falling. Well, I'm usually game for the water rides so I thought "the Tornado" looked like a fun time. It wasn't until I was walking up the stairs with the others and our 4 man tube that I realized what I was in for. Aarika and I paused to look inside the drop as a group was coming down...bad idea. Panic set in. I didn't want to do it. Seriously. I started looking at the drop and realized that I had to climb 3 flights of stairs to equal the drop! Not cool. (the image below is of the same ride at a different Six Flags park)

So, we wait in line until the very top, the last 5 minutes or so went about like this:
M to J: I don't think I can do it.
J to M: You're ok, you'll be fine.
M to J: No, I'm not. I can't do it.
J to M: You're ok, you'll be fine.
M to J: I'm going back down.
J to M: (jokingly) You'll throw off the balance! You'll be fine.
M to J: I don't care! I'm going back down...

repeat about 5 times
Want to know what happened?
I rode it. I shut my eyes all the way down. I held on for dear life all the while wondering if it was worth it.
Worth what?
Well, Jake convinced me to go when he agreed to let me buy the new Palm Pre if I did. Yup, I rode the Tornado to buy a cell phone. Don't laugh, it's an awesome phone and yes, Jake essentially paid $200 for me to ride ONE ride with him. I hope it was worth it! lol

All in all, we're having a great time in Texas. Our ward is great (although church begins at 2:30 which means you get home just in time for dinner and feel like you wasted your morning). everyone has been incredibly helpful and friendly and we're looking forward to being a little more settled in! We're also looking forward to visitors! (hint, hint)

We're alive, I promise.

2009-06-05T11:37:00.001-05:00

We're here (in San Antonio) and having a great time. We're busy, of course so I've been neglecting the blog. Better updates to follow, I promise.

Madison, Columbus, DC, Detroit, Grand Rapids, Crivitz, Two Rivers, Port Washington, Madsion

2009-05-19T13:38:00.004-05:00

Jake and I got back from our whirlwind vacation yesterday. We saw everyone, ate a lot, drove a lot and had a lot of fun. We are so grateful that we were able to say goodbye to our family and friends. If we missed you, we're very sorry (we were on a VERY restricted schedule). Here are a few highlights...

Washington, D.C. with Erika and Aarika was a lot of fun, they both took turns showing us around and how to work the Metro. They're not quite the same as the Japanese subways system...

Breakfast with the Burtons! So fun, we miss you!

Shanny, this one is for you. We found it and sure enough, it was next to Dumbo and the restrooms. Too funny.

When we got to the cabin at the end of our trip, Barb had everything decked out and ready for a graduation party. Jake enjoyed his cake, very much.

Thanks to everyone who let us crash at their house and shared their lives with us. We love you all!

HE PASSED!

2009-05-08T15:07:00.003-05:00

Congratulations go to Jacob today!
He passed his thesis defense, thus culminating his graduate school experience!
I'm so very proud.

The picture is Jake holding his thesis and his signed declaration that he completed his studies.

"vacation"

2009-05-06T22:19:00.004-05:00

When Friday evening comes this week, Jake and I will have a couple significant things to celebrate!
I will have finished my last day of work at UPA and Jake will have defended his thesis. (Yippee!)
Then, the "fun" can really begin. We're touring from WI to OH to MD to MI and back to WI to say goodbye to our family and friends before we leave to TX. It's going to be a whirlwind but we're excited.I love this picture.
We're going to miss all our goober nephews. We'll have pictures of the other 3 after next week!

the things that I love. love. love.

2009-04-29T20:19:00.003-05:00

room temperature milk.
yuki.
sleep.
pictures.
family.
japanese food.
japan.
turquoise.
lavender.
shoes.
old friends, aka, family.
melon.
white.
fruit.
traveling.
beaches.
tylenol.
calla lilies.
baking.

you know what i love more than all of those combined?
my best friend, jake.
he's awfully good to me.
happy 4th anniversary.

I'm losing my mind.

2009-04-28T20:13:00.007-05:00

Seriously, I didn't know how busy life could really get.
Remember in HS when you thought you were really busy because you had to stay up til 2am doing stats homework or when you were planning a wedding and there was a million things to book/make/send and you felt like it was never going to end? How about college finals week and you just weren't sure you were going to get the grade you wanted without REALLY NAILING the final so you skipped every fun event including dates and you drove yourself mad "learning" things you'd never use?
Yeah, I feel like that again. All of those... all at once.

Don't get me wrong, I don't want to sound ungrateful. In fact, that's the last thing I want to do... Trust me, I know we've been SERIOUSLY blessed and I'm very excited for all the upcoming changes. At the moment, however, I think I might lose my mind. The stacks of papers to sign just keep getting taller and the negotiations just seem unending. Oh and there's always another fee to pay. Then the "new" car isn't working so well and Jake's thesis is due this Friday.

The up side?
WE'RE BUYING A HOUSE!!! Jake has a great, stable job, we're going on "vacation" soon, we're about to celebrate our 4th anniversary, we're healthy, we don't have to pack our stuff ourselves, our Camry is still running and dependable... This week I find that I'm literally counting my blessings in order to stay sane.

I know our blessings outnumber our trials but, sometimes, the trials just scream a little louder than the blessings cheer, don't they?

Sorry you had to listen to me vent.
"just keep swimming, just keep swimming..."

Our New Home!

2009-04-19T09:12:00.003-05:00

It's official. We found one! The contract is in and the sellers seem as serious as we are so pray that nothing goes wrong in the next month--we close May 25th.
I know you all want to see pictures so you can check out this link with our realtor's office or this one with the seller's has a virtual tour. Don't worry, we negotiated and didn't pay the asking price for it--we successfully stuck to our budget and are quite happy with ourselves!

The house is FANTASTIC! New scraped wood flooring in the enormous living room, crown moulding in many of the rooms, a great pantry, very nice master suite... just great. Oh, and the yard... it's on a slop so it currently has 3 tiers. We're thinking of making the middle one the garden and the bottom one has an enormous shed. It's a little big and in a funny spot but hey, that's not permanent! And, if we do keep it, it's a LOT of storage. The back of our house currently butts up to a green belt that, for a number of reasons, probably won't be built on for a while, so for now we have 2 neighbors. The neighborhood looks great, and seems very safe. It also has a community pool, tennis court, playground and park.

We went to dinner at Jake's new boss' house on Friday night and we got talking about her yard. Turns out she has lemon, orange and grapefruit trees that all thrive! She also has avocados coming up and she's heard that mangoes do well too! I'm thrilled. We're excited to get our garden in and hopefully catch the fall planting season.

Ok, enough about that for now. Now I need some good deals on furniture. lol

Done.

2009-04-14T20:54:00.002-05:00

Done. We met with the prosecutor today. How did it go? I went.
Our $361 citation for mistreating an animal was knocked down to $77 for letting an animal trespass (poop on someone else's lawn).
The other option was to go to court, actually go before a Judge, etc.
We would have gone with that option but our court date would be the same week we're moving or later. So, I guess I'm guilty of letting my dog trespass.
I still don't like the outcome but hey, what do you do?

More hair! Or less... actually.

2009-04-05T21:58:00.003-05:00

So, as you probably read, Jake had a birthday. We went "home" to Two Rivers last weekend to celebrate and go out to dinner with the family. After my recent haircut, Jake decided he wanted to "mix it up" too (as much as a guy can). So, above is the result for both of us! Below is Jake's before and after.

Before:

After:
What do you think? Personally, I like it short. Now I guess it's Yuki's turn!

Goal:

2009-04-01T18:59:00.002-05:00

It's that time of year...bathing suit season.

Normally, not a big deal. This year? Hmmmm.
OK, I know I'm only 26 and I'm a healthy weight but in the last year or two I've noticed that my body isn't quite the same as it used to be.
I don't walk to class like I used to, or play on intramural sports teams or much else, for that matter. Who knew I would "miss" walking up those ridiculous BYU hills?
Well, I'm doing something about it. Some friends and I are doing a 6 week challenge to lose weight. My goal is 10 lbs but I'll be happy with 6 (and some muscle gain).
Jake and I are going to walk with Yuki in the morning for 20-30 minutes and we're going to make use of our apartment complex's gym more often as well.
I'm also going to be drinking more water. I hate plain water. Seriously. Luckily, I have Culligan water at work that's pretty good so I'll have no excuse there.
Next, snacking. I have no real problem with snacking except at work. Eating really isn't a problem for me at home or on the weekends, I'm just not a very hungry person... except at work. So I need to change my snacking habit from "junk" aka chocolate to fruits, etc. I love fruit so this shouldn't be a big deal either.
I'm not trying to make this any harder than it needs to be or it just won't happen.
I start "officially" on Friday, April 10 so I should be approximately 10 lbs lighter by May 22, just before we leave to TX!

You know, this would be a good time to start another challenge... http://hundredpushups.com/

I'll keep you updated! (and I promise the next post will be more interesting)

Big Day!

2009-03-26T21:40:00.004-05:00

So, tomorrow marks the day that something wonderful happened. My wonderful best friend, Jacob, was born 27 years ago tomorrow. (Thanks, Barb, for your hard work!) It's his golden birthday (27 on the 27th) and since you already have your presents and we're having dinner with your family tomorrow, there's not much left to do except:

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, JACOB!!!

Oh, and I love you. Thanks for all the hard work you've put into school so we could have a better life. Thanks for always being there for me and always being there for Yuki, too. Thanks for being my best friend, my favorite travel buddy, my sweetheart, my everything. I couldn't imagine life without you! I hope you have a fantastic day to commemorate your 27 years of growth, learning and life.

Love always,

Miyoshi

Haircut!

2009-03-21T22:29:00.002-05:00

As promised, here are the pictures.
BEFORE:
AFTER:
So I guess I went with jaw length? I'm really liking it and it's a lot easier to "do" than I thought it was going to be!
OH, and if anyone needs a good hair stylist in Madison, I definitely have one. She listened to everything I said, it was AMAZING. She asked questions, she was precise and she was very kind. An I think she did a pretty good job too! :) Thanks Jenny! And thanks to Katelyn for the recommendation!

Breathe deeply...

2009-03-20T19:17:00.002-05:00

I'm doing it... tomorrow. I'm cutting off my hair. I'm a little shocked and a lot nervous. I wasn't planning on going until next week at the earliest but, as fate would have it, my new* hair girl had a cancellation tomorrow and I forced myself to say "yes" to taking it. The poor receptionist probably thought I was nuts. "TOMORROW?! Uhhh... Uhhh... Ok. Yeah, Ok. Tomorrow at 1:30."

So there it is. It's going to happen AND SOON. Oh, and the votes are definitely for going short. It's been pretty tied up so I'm going to see what the stylist says and let her have some freedom. I'll post pictures soon. Wish me luck?

*Tyson, I'm sorry. I had to take the plunge and although I've always loved the beautiful cuts and color you've given me, you're just too far away right now. And someday, I have to move to TX and face the reality of a new hairdresser anyway. Sorry. sorry.

P.S. If anyone in Columbus needs a fantastic hairdresser, I have one and LOVE his work. He's kinda spendy but worth every penny.

HELP!

2009-03-05T22:01:00.002-06:00

I've been contemplating my next hair cut for quite some time...

I'd like to cut my hair off but I kinda like my hair... and I know what I can and can't do with it. That said, it's a bit boring. So, since we'll be moving into the heat, I COULD take it shorter. What do you think? Am I giving up ease by cutting it? (remember, I DO have to straighten this thick mane) Will I lose too much versatility? Will I look stupid with short hair? Will I look older? Younger? Do I want to look older or younger?!

I need serious hair advice.
Take the poll, help me out... ------>

5... 4... 3... 2... 1...

2009-03-03T17:51:00.002-06:00

The first five people to respond to this post will get something made by me! My choice. For you. This offer does have some restrictions and limitations:

1. I make no guarantees that you will like what I make!
2. What I create will be just for you.
3. It'll be done this year. That gives me a good nine-ish months to get it done!
4. You have no clue what it's going to be. Who knows? Not you, that's for sure!
5. I reserve the right to do something extremely strange/fun/silly

The catch? Oh, the catch is that you must repost this on your blog and offer the same to the first 5 people who do the same on your blog. Last but not least, be sure to post a picture of what you get when you get it!

P.S. If you're good at reading the fine print, you just might win out... I have to do 10 of these to be an honest person... so if you didn't make the top 5, you're still in!

Didn't you know? I mistreat animals. (this is going to be a long one)

2009-02-22T21:38:00.003-06:00

The Plan:
Friday night at the Kohl's Center in Green Bay was the annual boat show. Jake's dad is shopping around for a new pontoon boat and asked Jake if he'd accompany him to help make the choice.
I had returned from Japan about 22 hours before we left (mistake #1). We thought that since we'd be driving all the way to Green Bay, we may as well go up to the cabin for the night. The next day we would bring Jake's mom back to Two Rivers, we'd pick up a few things and be back in Madison by early evening on Saturday. Perfect.

Problem 1:
We arrive at the boat show (after a 3ish hour drive) around 6. We find a GREAT parking spot, say goodbye to Yuki who we have to leave behind and we're off to scout of boats! Don't worry, we left Yuki with a pillow, down blanket, and we made it EXTRA warm before we left.
The boat show ended at 8 but we found a boat we thought we'd like... Jake and Richard began the negotiating process and Barb and I hung out in the next boat over. Eventually, Barb and I were bored and we were thinking we should go out to the car and check on our dogs. We parked in separate parking lots so Barb walked with me until I could show her where my car was parked. Much to my surprise, as we neared the car there was a police car, tow truck and Animal Control car parked there!
After we recovered from a little of the shock, we came to understand that "several people" had made complaints about Yuki being in the car and they were there, just about to open up my car, and impound her. The animal control lady (I don't think she's an officer by any stretch of the word) said that I was getting a warning from her and a citation from the police officer for mistreating my dog. She said that the outside temperature was 17 degrees and the inside temperature of the care was 16 degrees (we'll get back to this part later). I quickly opened the car, Yuki came to me right away, very excited and happy. I picked her up, warm. Belly warm, paws warm, tongue warm (and vigorously licking). The officer asks for my identification and goes back to his car.
Animal control lady proceeds to flash her light in Yuki's face and say "She looks fine now!" several times. Then, she tries to make small talk. Ergh. She tells us that she tried to have us paged at the concert going on in the arena behind us because they all assumed that we were there (coming back to this too). She tells us that as a rule, if it's below freezing you shouldn't have your dog out and points out the ordinance that I have violated and says I can call if I have any questions. The officer returns with my ID and my citation. Are you ready? $361. No joke. Oh and just to put a cherry on it, "I'm not going to write you up for this but your license expired in December." WHAT?!! I checked, it's true and I went to the DMV this morning to get a Wisconsin license that I'll have for 4 months.
Everything winds down, Yuki is obviously fine and as wiggly and lovey and excited as normal. they leave, I sit in my car and wait. And wait.... finally, Jake and his dad come out of the Kohl's Center. No way to sugar coat this one! Gulp...

The facts:
I am married to an engineer, he's going to be my star witness. Yes, if I don't want to plead guilty to "mistreating animals" then I may have to go to court. I've never had a ticket before, I've never even had detention and I have to go to court?!
We'd like to adopt other dogs in the future, from shelters and whatnot, but this can't possibly look good on an application, just another reason I'm not admitting any sort of guilt by going forward and paying my citation.
Back to the facts...
Jake's taken a few thermodynamics classes in his time and I'd like to think I've learned a few things from him taking classes too, so let's revisit a few things.
16 degrees in the car? I think not. It's not possible that even a poorly insulated car would be colder inside than out. So how did she decide this? We're pretty sure we know but we need to call to verify. We think she used an infrared thermometer to obtain her "average" temp. The problem is that she never got INTO my car! Remember? I had to open the car... So, she had to have shot "through" the glass. Alas, this is an impossible task. Infrared thermometers measure surface temperature so she was really taking the average temperature of my windows. Thanks! but not helpful.
Secondly, why assume I'm in the concert? If you had my license plate # and my name (if you paged me, you had my name), look me up in the database and call my phone! Funny how the oldest technology is the one that got completely left out. Oh wait, so did common sense and I think that's a little older.

The cause:
Why did I end up in this situation? It's not REALLY because I left my dog in the car...people do that all the time. I would understand better if it were hot out but cold? Yuki LOVES the cold and she's an animal, she's not a child. She was fine.
Back to the "why". I have a WHITE hyperactive dog who loves people a little too much. She jumps around in the car drawing tons of attention to herself and because she's small everyone assumes she's a weakling. Trust me, SHE'S NOT. Also, when she's excited, she shakes. This is VERY different from shivering, she does that occasionally too but she also shakes when she's anxious, nervous and like in this case, excited to see people walking around the car, maybe coming up the windows(?).

The experiment:
Jake and I are scientists when it comes down to it. We like facts and we like proof. We're both big fans of graphs and excel. Animal Control didn't know who they were messing with. So, like the scientists we are, we recreated the scene. We even made sure we were driving for approximately the same amount of time BEFORE running the experiment so everything in the car would have reached the approximately same temperature. We bought a thermometer, grabbed a flashlight and went to work. We accounted for more wind and a 3 degree warmer night, and Jake's going to calculate Yuki's energy expenditure so we know how much body heat she was producing. We tediously took internal and external temperatures every 15 minutes for 3.25 hours. What did we find?
HA! after 3.25 hours (longer than Yuki was in the car and in slightly worse conditions) the internal temperature had dropped to just below freezing. ABSOLUTELY NOT 16 degrees. What a joke. I realize that 32 degrees is still chilly but the car was not at that temperature the entire duration, and I emphasize YUKI was FINE.

Conclusion:
Jake and I are vigorously preparing our defense. We are NOT animal abusers. We love our dog, she's great. She's very well cared for, always groomed, always fed, she has a park pass, obedience classes, a warm queen size bed that she shares with us. SHE IS NOT MISTREATED and I refuse to have this citation on my record. I treated my dog like a dog by leaving her in the car. I didn't mistreat her by putting her in a stroller and attempting to slip her into the boat show! My dog knows she's not human and I'm quite proud of that. Apparently Animal Control and I have different opinions on what cruelty to animals really is.
I think the real reason I was given the citation (since everyone there saw that my dog was fine) was because they went through all the trouble of being there for "45 minutes" trying to open my car and have to pay a locksmith for not doing anything. Guess what? It's not MY fault you wasted your time.

End note:
If you know us, you know we take very good care of Yuki. Don't bother leaving a message trying to convince me otherwise, I'm not messing around. Plenty of people have big opinions on this topic and I get that but don't force feed me yours when I've done my homework.

The ASPCA posted this little tidbit on their website. We found it during our research.
"Never leave your dog or cat alone in a car during cold weather. A car can act as a refrigerator in the winter, holding in the cold and causing the animal to freeze to death."
We're going to be writing them a lengthy letter proving otherwise. Sorry ASPCA, I used to think you were a credible source for information. Didn't your mom teach you not to tell lies?

So that's the story. I'll let you know how it ends.

Something about style.

2009-02-20T04:22:00.003-06:00

So, you might not know this but Jake does...all too well. I have an incredible nack for going shopping and (without seeing price tags) falling in love with the most expensive option. It happens with everything from clothes to appliances. I don't know what it is, really, I just do it.
I've always wondered where I got it from and during my trip to Japan, I figured it out.
I got it from my Oji-chan (grandpa). True. Story.
My mom, Oba-chan (grandma) and I had a lot of time together over the week so I heard a lot of stories and we went through a lot of clothes and items my Oji-chan kept. Seriously, this guy had a lot of clothes. Ok, you have to understand, I have a double length closet all to myself, jam packed, plus my "off season" clothes in storage bins under my bed. I have a lot of clothes, ain't no denyin'. BUT, my Oji-chan? He seriously had me beat. Every suit was immaculately folded and in it's original box (yeah, they came in beautiful, stackable, take up even more room boxes). I haven't seen that many suits in one closet EVER. And shirts? Perfectly pressed and in sealed plastic, just as if they were new. I think you're getting the idea.
Well, what does this have to do with me? Turns out a lot of those shirts and suits were custom. If they weren't custom, they were a big spendy labels. How about an Oscar de la Renta trench coat? Burberry glasses? Credor watch with crocodile band?
Apparently I was too young to realize it but turns out the man had some seriously style!
Don't worry, you're not going to catch me with any of those labels any time soon but the next time I drool over something fabulous and way out of my price range, I'll think of him.

P.S. It's 4:30am and I've been up for 2 hours, I've eaten "breakfast" (which would have been dinner on Japan time) and now I'm starting to feel tired again (we're coming up on 8pm Japan time). Jet lag is a beast, a very mean and ugly beast.

A LOVING woman and an AMAZING man

2009-02-08T13:19:00.018-06:00

Recently, Jacob and I have had the unfortunate opportunity to do some reflection and mourning. Jacob's wonderful grandma Etta passed 2 weeks ago. I've been meaning to write about her for days now but now I'm feeling more motivated.

Etta Pearl Zuehl, mother of 1, grandmother of 6 and great grandmother of 5. EVERYONE loved grandma Etta, she had a sweet smile and a sweet tooth, always offering chocolate to those who came to visit. She always greeted you with outstretched arms, ready for a warm embrace and gentle kiss. Grandma Etta dearly loved her growing family and was enormously proud of each and every member. Grandma Etta also loved her garden and the birds that it attracted. She grew more than she could ever have consumed and frequently gave away the produce she so loving grew. Her generous spirit was displayed every day of her long life and is what many friends will remember best. Infrequently upset or impatient, grandma smiled and laughed regularly and was very content with her simple life. She will be immensely missed. We love you grandma!

Yesterday, I received news from my mother, who is currently in Japan, that my grandfather has also passed. Because of our proximity, I have never had the opportunity to know my grandparents the way that many of you may know yours. That, however, doesn't mean that proximity has ever been able to affect the amount of love I feel for them. Our language barrier has also made our visits difficult but my grandfather always made his love known to me by buying me things and my grandmother by cooking me things. Being Japanese, they are not very touchy people so I can honestly say that I remember hugging them only a handful of times. Given all of this, I still have a lot to say about my grandparents, especially my Oji-chan (grandpa), right now.

Susumu Murakami, father of 2, grandfather of 4. Oji-chan was a highly respected man for his incredible work ethic. Oji-chan was a strong businessman and good provider for his family. He was always interested in world affairs and keeping up with technology. Although he could be strict and particular man, he also knew how to have a good time and was a frequent story teller. Oji-chan had a very sharp mind and could remember details very well, he treasured his time with his grandchildren and the memories he had of their visits.

As I continue to contemplate my loss, I have found many ways in which I am similar to my Oji-chan. Some of my traits are undeniably from him. I know that my interest in journalism and business can be credited to my Oji-chan as well as my constant desire for precision.

There are many things that I would like to learn from grandma Etta and Oji-chan. Although they are gone from this earth, I can still learn from their examples and treasure my time with them.

Grandma Etta, I'd like to be as kind as you. I'd like to smile as often as you did and be as generous too. I'd like to learn your gardening skills and be as loving and supportive of Jacob as you were of Roger. Most of all, I'd like to learn to be content with what I have, to be thankful each day for all that God has given me and not be concerned with the "stuff" of life. Thank you for your example.

Oji-chan, I'd like to be as driven as you. I'd like to be as generous and sharp minded, always wanting to be a better version of myself. I'd like to be as well read and knowledgable as you and certainly, as brave. I hope I can be as adventurous as you and take in all that the world has to offer me. Thank you for your example.

My funny husband.

2009-02-04T20:15:00.002-06:00

Today Jake and I had to go to the dentist. Having only one car, I take him back to school before returning to work. Today we stopped at Perkins for lunch (because our favorite Mexican place wasn't open yet) and had breakfast. We got to talking about moving and the people we need and want to see before we leave. We talked about the way people ask Jake and I (separately or together) if I have a job lined up in Texas and how the WAY they ask it is kinda strange sometimes. This led to our next conversation...

In Texas, you have to have 600 hours to get your state license as a manicurist. I have 300. I would like to go back to school to get the additional 300 hours. Hours cost money.
I would also like to take a few other classes at, say, a community college about photography and photoshop and lots of random things. Fun, right? Perpetual learning? yes.

My solution: (this may not actually be verbatim but very close to it)
J: "I don't mind you LEARNING, I mind paying for the learning"
M: "I could get a job." (Jake raises and eyebrow) "In 2 months of working I can pay for 6 weeks of school. OR, in 2 weeks of working YOU can pay for 6 weeks of school!" (I thought this was brilliant!)
J: "I have to make money to pay for other things." (yeah, yeah....)
M: "K, so what if I work part-time to pay for going to school part time?"
J: "That sounds alright. As long as you keep up with the cooking and cleaning too." (dead serious face, then cracks a smile)

HA! funny man. He was kidding, btw. If you know us, that's pretty funny stuff.
I have a great husband who doesn't mind eating leftovers or "fending for himself" most days and does at least half of the cleaning himself. He's probably one of the few men on earth who could get away with saying something like that. Love him. Funny, funny man.

Remember this?

2009-01-15T21:41:00.003-06:00

Well, the one at my church building has come down. It's been overdue though so I'm not surprised... I guess my days in the BYU spotlight are over!
So I'm asking you... if you still have one up in your ward building and all the paper thingies are pulled off, I'd like to have one.
True story... I DON'T HAVE ONE.
Then at least I can scan it and save it for my posterity (or something like that, right). I'd love you forever if you did!

The Joy of Home Buying

2009-01-06T18:55:00.003-06:00

So, to all you who have "grown up" before us and have been so privileged to own a home I asking advice... Hey, even if you haven't bought a home, you probably have some great advice so chime in whenever you'd like!

The problem: We know what we want but we don't know what we want but don't know about. Get it? We also don't know what we may be forgetting or haven't thought of in regards to negatives and downfalls...

Please help? I'm including a list of things we WANT in a house, take a look and tell me what you think!

Cul de Sac/Back to open

All Appliances

15 min or less to SWRI

Big Backyard

No tub in master bath

Close to Grocery store

Big Kitchen

2+ car garage

Library/Dining/Bonus Room

Large Breakfast Nook

Kitchen w/island

Shed

Storage areas

Mature Trees

Less expensive house in more expensive neighborhood

Fenced yard

Ceiling fans

Patio

Gas

P.S. basements are non-existent in Texas so don't bother suggesting anything to do with that, bummer, right?

Christmas 2008

2009-01-01T13:47:00.003-06:00

We had a very snowy Christmas this year in Wisconsin but we filled it with family and friends and made it FANTASTIC!

Yuki had a lot of fun running through the snow but she turned herself into a bit of a snow-pup. She could barely walk with all the balls of snow getting caught in her fur...gradually turning into a body suit. She loved being out, regardless of the cold.

My mom and sister also came to WI which was so much fun. All of Jake's siblings were home for at least part of the break and although it got a little loud at times, it was so fun to see everyone--especially the 5 nephews all together. What fun!

I hope you all had a Merry Christmas and have a WONDERFUL 2009!

It's begining to look a lot like...

2008-12-25T12:35:00.002-06:00

Texas?

Indeed, Jake got an offer from Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) in San Antonio! So, this Christmas we are celebrating the new job and our last wintery white Christmas (at least for a little while). Of course, we will miss our family and friends but we're looking forward to our new adventure. Oh, and MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

October Rally Race

2008-12-21T15:58:00.012-06:00

This is Jacob writing my first blog post. I'm an engineer and Miyoshi is a communications major, so any writing I would do would be much worse than Miyoshi's. So, this is all the intro you get: These pictures are from the rally race in Upper Michigan we went to with our friends Jesse and Laura.

Christmas!

2008-12-01T22:25:00.003-06:00

So, it's that time of year again... I'm getting ready to send out Christmas cards and I know a lot of you have moved. Please either comment on this post (I won't publish your address), e-mail me or write me a note on facebook and I'll send away! Merry Christmas!

HIVES!!!

2008-11-06T19:23:00.002-06:00

As promised, here are pictures of my hives. These were taken at 2 different times. First, they showed up pretty harmlessly on my elbow so I called the nurse and went in at 2:00. The Dr. said "It's just a weird immune response" and I went home. When I got home I found my new "necklace" spreading from shoulder to shoulder. I called the nurse and she said "come back in" so I went to urgent care 8:00pm. By the time I got to urgent care my new jewelry had faded (but I was smart enough to take pictures!!!). When I got home and was changing into my pjs I found all the rest of it... Fantastic!

The good news is that with a little claritin and hydrocortisone cream I'm feeling much better.

Tagged!!!

2008-11-06T13:00:00.009-06:00

I was tagged by BriAnna to list 7 strange/unique/whatever things about me... Here goes!

1. Strange: I have been sick for going on two weeks and yesterday I broke out in hives. I'm not talking about a little splotch here, a little one there. We're talking about all over, red and itchy. (photos to follow) The doctor says it's an immune response to my virus, I call it extremely annoying. A bit intriguing though, yes?

2. Strange: I have been living in Madison, WI for over a year and have recently felt the urge to return to Utah. When Jake and I started looking for post-Master's Degree type jobs and thought of moving to Texas I actually uttered the words "If we're moving that far away anyway, is there anything in Utah." Never would have expected that from me.

3. Unique: I work in a podiatry clinic. It's quite the adventure from day to day. Exciting/irritating people (luckily only in 15-30 minute increments so you don't have to suffer too long). I never went to school for anything medically related but here I am taking xrays, scanning people for orthotics, scheduling surgeries and taping feet... among other things.

4. Whatever: I love McDonald's hamburgers, Wendy's frosties, Burger King fries and Steak'n'Shake honey mustard and dream of someday having a restaurant that sells all of those things in perfect fast food symphony.

5. Whatever: I would love to own a bakery. Minus the wake up at 2 in the morning to start preparing part. Baking tasty pies, cookies, pastries, etc. What could be better? Oh and I want to learn the art of the Japanese cake...oh so tasty!

6. Unique: Because I grew up as an "Air Force brat" I've moved 10 times but only within 3 countries and 5 states. Japan (twice), Korea, Utah (twice), Texas, Colorado (twice), Ohio (twice), Wisconsin (only once unless you count the summer after we got hitched). And if Jake and I move to Texas I can rack up another "twice"!

7. Whatever: I love my engineer husband for many many reasons but I love him a lot more for the wonderful things he has taught me and introduced me to. One of which is Formula 1. I never thought I'd be the girl who watched racing (don't get ahead of yourself, F1 is pretty much it) but alas, I dare say I love it. So much drama at 200+ mph! OK, any more and Jake's going to laugh at me.

I tag Abby, Amber, Kris, Aarika, and Sarah. (some of those have a double meaning, ha ha ha! get to work!)

3.5 years of fun!

2008-10-29T21:10:00.006-05:00

So, tomorrow marks 3.5 years of marriage for Jake and I. I was flipping through my digital pictures and saw a file of pictures I "stole" from my mother-in-law's computer not too long ago. I didn't know they existed and it was fun to find them. So, I thought I would share them with you!

Fun right? There were lots more, don't be offended if you didn't show up in them...
Oh and Jake...
I LOVE YOU!
Thanks for all your hard work, especially the last month. I know you've been juggling a lot of things and I'm proud of you! Thank you for being my support, my comfort and my best friend.

Chicago

2008-10-13T21:59:00.003-05:00

Jacob and I went down to Chicago this past weekend to visit my friend Anna and her boyfriend John. We had a blast! We've been to Chicago a time or two before but there are several things we still have never done. This weekend we rode the Metra into town and saw the bean. I was quite excited about it, call me silly if you'd like. Anyway, here are a few pictures!

A few years ago, Jake and I were talking about buying a house with lots of land (hypothetically). I decided that if we had a big yard we should have a goat to eat the grass. Well, Mika convinced me NOT to go with a goat as they are a bit of a handful. Jake and I decided that pygmy sheep would be the way to go. Well, this weekend while we were in Chicago, WIRED was having an exhibit an part of it was this sheep... yeah, it "eats" grass. Apparently I don't need sheep, I just need this one! Check out the six legs.

The Winds of Change are Blowing

2008-10-08T20:18:00.006-05:00

Winter is quickly approaching in Madison, the weather is cooling off and the boats are in. I'm not ready for another record snow fall so it better not happen. NOT A FAN. Jacob has been working diligently on his research and has started looking for jobs and interviewing with a few of our prospects. You'll notice that a few are located in Wisconsin or even colder places... like Canada. As I already mentioned, I'm NOT a fan of all this snow so we'll have to see how this goes.
On a side note, I found a jacket I want that I'm VERY convinced will keep me warmer this winter, I think Jake needs the men's version too.

It's nice and toasty and high quality and has a wind resisting layer. (The wind is the real problem and the reason my trusty Columbia just isn't cutting it in the Midwest). Anyway, they're a bit spendy so they may be our only Xmas gifts to each other but at least we'll live through the frigid months to live to see another year. Ok, I digress... jobs.

So, the hunt is on.
Above is a short version of the prospects. There are more. Many more...
Jake's "short list" was over 50 companies long. No joke.
He obviously hasn't applied to them all but we've come to realize that we have a lot of options, maybe too many options. So I'm asking YOU, where should we go and WHY? (Please choose from our list as places like "Hawaii" aren't quite plausible at the moment (and would be a waste of the jackets I desperately want).
Here's the list of cities:
Columbus, OH (my hometown)
Milwaukee, WI
Minneapolis, MN
Detroit, MI
San Antonio, TX
Kohler, WI
Memphis, TN
Manitowoc, WI (right next to Jake's hometown)
Beloit, WI
Ann Arbor. MI
Dayton, OH
Waukegan, IL (close to Chicago ish)

Already, I've talked too much... your turn.

The end of summer...

2008-09-28T21:58:00.002-05:00

One of the foods Jake and I love most during the summer is sweet corn. The corn is all gone for the season but we definitely took advantage of the availability this year. Yummmm. Yuki's a big fan too.

Blaha Wedding

2008-09-28T21:50:00.003-05:00

At the end of August Jacob and I had the opportunity to be in/attend the Blaha wedding. Jacob was asked to be a groomsman by his friend Brian who was the best man in our wedding. It was beautiful to say the least.

Jake, the studly groomsman.

Jake's boutonnière.

The four of us at the reception.
Congratulations, Brian and Bobbie!

My DREAM house

2008-09-05T20:35:00.003-05:00

Ok, I have NO IDEA what the inside looks like but this is it. 5000 square feet of heaven.

I want it.

What Becca missed about the bestest trip ever

2008-09-05T20:05:00.005-05:00

Recently, Jake and I went on a fantastic trip with our very dear friends, Brad and Becca. Their blog (link at right) covered nearly the entire trip... nearly. Let's see what we can come up with!

This was the morning after Brad and Becca's arrival. Becca was gracious enough to do the honors of puling out the rest of Jake's stitches. Yea!!

The cute couple riding the Gator... Jake and I were on the 4-wheelers, don't worry, we switched shortly after so they could have some fun too! We found a field of soy beans and a plot of land that I want to own... someday.

Again, the cute couple one night by the fire. No "bear hugs" for Becca though.

We picked the PERFECT day to go for a kayak and canoe ride. The water was perfect and the weather was beautiful!

Hanging out in Sturgeon Bay by a Maritime museum downtown.

After our tour of Wisconsin, we headed down to Chicago where we went to the Sears Tower. Very cool, even for me and I'm terrified of heights. This was the day Jake and I realized that he's better as the driver and I as the navigator. Oooh! And we had some seriously thick Chicago style pizza! Where are you pictures of that, Becca?

The next day, Becca introduced me to the heavenly treat that is the "double chocolate chip frappuchino with whipped cream" (no coffee involved) from Starbucks. Yum. I'll think of you every time I have one.

We had a FANTASTIC time on our trip and are SO glad Brad and Becca came to see us. There is nothing better in life than having such wonderful family and friends... or friends that may as well be family. We love and miss you guys!

222,222!

2008-08-17T21:40:00.002-05:00

My very trusty Toyota Camry hit a big milestone this week. I bought my car at 111,000 miles or so and have put a loving 111,000 or so on since then. I love my little car, it runs great and I'm hoping we'll be able to post at 333,333 miles! (yes, we plan to run it till it dies and we're happy about that.)

A view from my umbrella

2008-08-17T21:34:00.003-05:00

The day after Jake received his stitches and was told to refrain from any such activity for a few days we were out in the rain for one of the last Frisbee games. I sat huddled under my very cute umbrella on a borrowed blanket trying to keep myself, Yuki, the blanket and my purse dry. I wasn't all that successful. As you can tell, Jake was excited to be an non-compliant patient, even if it was raining.

Oops!

2008-08-07T12:14:00.002-05:00

So, blogger was offline when I posted last and Jake noticed that although I had written and ending to the post, it wasn't online and all our friends were left wondering what happened to Yuki. Sorry! Here's the rest of the story:
I asked Jake to go online and see what help he could find or call the vet, he said "you do it" sat on the floor with us and starts squeezing Yuki's stomach trying to do a doggy version of the Heimlich to no avail. Finally, he sticks his finger down her throat and a moment or two later she stops her choaking motions and is interested in smelling Jake's wound. I know she's ok. Jake says he felt his finger go past her sphincter so he must have pushed the bit down her throat. She ate some yogurt and an ice cube and I breathed a deep sigh of relief that it was over.
The End. Sorry to leave you hanging.
P.S. The original ending was much better, I'm apparently having a bit of writer's block.

Not for the faint of heart...

2008-08-05T18:01:00.004-05:00

I got a lovely call at work today from Jacob. He told me he split open his arm and that some guy named Ralph was taking him to St. Mary's Emergency Room. WHAT?! yeah...
So, of course I said I was on my way, told all the girls at work that I had to go to the ER and ran out the door (leaving the patient I had a physical therapy running on). On the way I had the sense of mind to call our insurance to find out if St. Mary's was ok... it wasn't. So, in the end I pick Jake up curbside at St. Mary's say a quick thank you to the people who brought him there and run him to Meriter's ER a couple blocks away. When we get there he gets triaged and within an hour and forty five minutes he's all stitched up. I was calm once again and Jake was whole once again.

What did he do? He was working at the ERC (engine research center) and he was tightening a pipe fitting onto a "big coolant system thing (weighing around 30 lbs)." It, along with all its sharp blades, slipped off the table and smashed into his arm.

How bad was it? He sliced completely through the layers of his skin but all his muscle was intact. No major vessels, no tendons, nothing. He didn't even bleed that badly but it definitely required stitches.

What did it look like?
Take a look for yourself... the only shot of the actually injury is a bit blurry, sorry. You'll get the idea.

Oh yeah, and then to top it all off, we got home and were finally relaxing when Yuki comes up to us and is acting funny. Turns out she's choking on something and is really struggling. I have NO idea what to do, I hit her back but nothing happens, I check her mouth like you learn in CPR classes but I can't see or feel anything. I stick my finger down her throat to see if I can feel anything, NOTHING IS WORKING. Her tongue is staying pink though so I know she's getting oxygen. Haven't I had enough today?!

I love my husband because...

2008-06-29T23:41:00.003-05:00

Jacob aways turns into my guinea pig, my back-up plan, my go-to guy, and my favorite "volunteer". Recently I volunteered him as one of the Priesthood leaders for Girl's Camp and we stayed a full 24 hours at Governor Dodge State Park with 70 teenage girls. Jake played the part of American Idol Judge, Iron Chef Judge, fire builder, blessing giver, leftover eater and entertainer (see the dancing picture above). I love my husband because he takes every task I give him and makes it enjoyable, never complains about the embarrassing situations and then lets me do it to him all over again just a few days or weeks later. I think he wins the award for sportsmanship, hands down. Jacob, I know you never read this blog but just in case... thank you for being you, I love you very much.

My dog is the illegitimate child of...

2008-06-20T23:22:00.003-05:00

Boober Fraggle.

Lately, when Yuki's hair falls down, all I can think of is how much she looks like this:

Father's Day Weekend

2008-06-20T23:02:00.005-05:00

For Father's Day we headed up to Two Rivers. Erika and her 3 boys were in town visiting and we wanted to see them while they were here.

We loved spending time with the family and seeing all of our nephews together! It's amazing how quickly they grow up.

So, while we were home, Jake took Yuki on her usual walks. He even took her on runs down the beach two of the mornings. As usual, she didn't want to have anything to do with the water. On Saturday afternoon, Jake and Yuki went on a walk to the river. Because of all the rain and flooding, all the rivers have been exceptionally swollen, muddy, and filled with all sorts of particulate (usually seeds, grasses and the like). Yuki had been out to the river before and had no problem walking out on the outlet pipe. As they turned around to walk back, Jake called Yuki and she took one leap onto what she must have thought was solid ground. Unfortunately, for me, the "ground" was the muddy water of the river. I walked out the door to see them coming back and noticed that she looked a little skinnier than normal. As they got closer, I noticed that she looked a little less white than normal. In the end, she and I spent a lot of quality time in the tub trying to get out the hundreds of bits in her very fine, very thick hair.

I know she didn't mean to cause me so much trouble but at the time I really wanted to strangle her! Don't worry, she's alive and well.

Ultimate Frisbee

2008-06-20T22:53:00.002-05:00

Jake joined a Frisbee team with some of the men and women of our ward. They play twice a week and Jake has really enjoyed the activity. Yuki and I go to the Wednesday games to cheer him on. I must say I'm quite proud of his Frisbee skills!

When the cat's away...

2008-06-20T22:13:00.003-05:00

Jake went camping with Brian, Jesse and Joe a couple weeks ago. This meant that I was in charge of taking Yuki out so she wouldn't misbehave during the day. Apparently, I wasn't very successful. Although she had no potty accidents, I did come to this a few days that week.

She got out all her toys, then got under the bed and pulled out all of her clothes and and spread both across the living room. Her favorite outfit to "play" with? Her bee costume... I think there's something about the fuzziness or antennae.

Wisconsin Weather Drama

2008-06-11T22:17:00.002-05:00

Well, I'm sure you all caught bits of it on the news. Wisconsin was hit this past weekend by some seriously damaging weather. Jacob and I were at Target when a girl came over the speakers to say "the national weather service has issued a tornado warning. Please move to the center of the store and stay away from the windows." We didn't take her very seriously... the tornado siren had already been going off for maybe half an hour and we were in "the boy who cried wolf" mode by this point. Plus, we were shopping for umbrellas and had an entire array of them out on the floor so my engineer husband could check the tensile strength of all the shafts (no he didn't break them, I just wanted to use a big word). We successfully found new umbrellas and by the time we got our groceries picked out a man told us it was safe to leave... Later in the weekend we had rain, rain, more rain, rain, and oh yeah, RAIN. Luckily, we sit on a bit of a hill so the rain went away from our apartment and into out garage where there were 2 storm drains (it's still quite muddy down there). A lot of homes nearby weren't as lucky and suffered quite a bit of damage. My dad, in his great wisdom, gave us a weather radio for Christmas. There are 2 little lights, one orange and one red. One of them was on the entire weekend, I kid you not. At one point there were so many warnings and watches issued that on weather.com there was actually a scrolling function to see them all. We are under yet another flood watch for the next 2 days but hopefully we'll make it through this one without the same amount of damage. FEMA was visiting the area today to assess damages and we're all hoping that all the people without flood insurance will be able to get some assistance to fix up their homes. So, I wish I could tell you I had pictures but I don't. if you want to see a few slideshows, there are plenty at this site channel3000.com but these 2 links connect you to two pictures taken by someone at our complex which then got posted into the aforementioned slideshows.

http://www.channel3000.com/slideshow/16539832/detail.htmlindex.html?currentSlide=66&taf=c3k

http://www.channel3000.com/slideshow/16539832/detail.htmlindex.html?currentSlide=67&taf=c3k

And yes, those are the beginnings of funnel clouds. We didn't even know we were that close to the action!

Rob and Aarika's Wedding

2008-05-31T23:15:00.004-05:00

This past Friday we went to the Branham wedding reception in Illinois. It was beautiful and we were so glad to see Rob again and very glad to meet Aarika. We're so happy for you and hope we'll get to see more of you soon!