Monthly Archives: August 2009

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Freezer, Faux Hawk, Make Up…..Excitement or Boredom?

August 30, 2009 – 11:00 pm

First, I have to say that I’ve turned the heat on 4 times so far this week. The HEAT. In AUGUST. The boys are wearing winter PJ’s. We’re wearing jeans, socks, sweaters and sweatshirts. In AUGUST.

We bought a new freezer chest for the house. Which means I get to buy more groceries. I get to stock up. This excites me greatly. I immediately texted Sara & Jackie (who also have a second freezer) while in the check out lane at Home Depot paying for my new toy. They were totally excited for me. Yes people, these are the things that excite us these days. And yes, I went grocery shopping today, not because I needed to, but because I wanted to stock up on frozen stuff.

Because of the crazy weather this week we’re feeling a bit stir crazy. Brady & Tyler brought me hair goop and asked me to make their hair pretty. Then they proceeded to put my make up on their face. They did it out of boredom. But it led to excitement. For all of us.

PS…This blog post is really about nothing. Sort of like Seinfeld. A show about nothing. This is a post about nothing. But I had to post something….it’s almost been a week. At least it ends with cute pictures.

By Kristi | Posted in Uncategorized | Comments (4)

The First Day of the Rest of Their Lives

August 24, 2009 – 10:07 pm

And I’m not talking about their wedding day either.  I’m talking about Aaron & Jenn’s first day of work.  At their first “real” job.  You know how it goes.  They graduated from college.  They are married.  They had some fun this summer.  They moved to Michigan.  Then today, August 24, 2009, they both started their careers.  Minus those holidays or vacations their employers will give them, they will now work every day of the rest of their lives until retirement.  Nice thought, huh?  LOL.  Of course maybe one of them will be a stay at home mom (or dad), but we know that’s also a job (and does not have many vacations or holidays!)

So, setting alarms, fighting rush hour traffic, packing lunches, wearing dress clothes, having performance reviews and dealing with workplace issues will now be a regular part of their lives.  Oh what fun!

You may think I’m crazy for taking pictures of them as they rushed off to work this morning, but I didn’t have to ask them.  They knew.  They expected it.  They saved 1 minute of morning time to accommodate my camera habit.

Also, as an update, they have been living with us for a few weeks now and so far we all still love each other.  They are weighing their options of renting versus buying and checking out areas of the city.  Until then, we are happy to have them staying with us.  And I’m not saying that because they’ve offered free babysitting services either.

Aaron is working for Price Waterhouse Coopers Accounting Firm.  He’s taking the 4th part of his CPA this weekend (he passed the first 3 parts!!).  And Jenn used her Public Health degree to land a job as a Research Coordinator for a Physician at the University of Michigan.

Check out Jenn styling in her new clothes below. Jenn & I went on a 6 hour shopping spree together on Saturday! Alone! We had a riot. And we both spent $$$. On clothes. For ourselves!! Jenn needed work duds. And I needed nothing, but had fun acting like I did. (Notice her camera habit also!)

In case you think I’m really crazy for taking pictures of them as they drove away, I should tell you that it was Brady & Tyler that ran to the front door and opened it to wave goodbye to them. I just happened to have my camera still in my hands. Seriously! Do you think they’d be that happy waving goodbye to ME?

By Kristi | Posted in Uncategorized | Comments (11)

Short Getaway

August 20, 2009 – 11:15 pm

Dave & I just spent 3 days on Mackinaw Island.  We were invited by a Congressman to spend three days with approximately 20 other couples.  I guess I’m not going to list all of the politicians names on this blog for their privacy and because I get lots of spam when I have specific names or locations listed on here.  But, it was a unique experience.  I literally spent 3 days with a few well-known politicians and their spouses.  They seem like celebrities to me, but really they are just normal people.  Nice people too.     

We stayed at the Grand Hotel.  The owner of the Grand Hotel took us on a boat ride on his yacht, which was really neat.  And then we had lunch at his house.  He has an amazing house!  Extremely unique.  His wife is a artist/painter, so you can imagine the creativity she has within the house.

Let’s see, we rented horses to ride around.  We had a 3 hour bike tour (in the rain).  We danced.  We ate and ate and ate.  Oh, and I slept 9.5 hours one night.  I’ve been averaging 6 hours of sleep for nearly a month now because I stay up till the wee hours working on pictures, so this was a huge treat for me.

For those of you out of state or unfamiliar with the Island, it’s the only state road/highway in the country that does not allow motorized vehicles.  The only way to get around on the Island is by horse or bike.  The Island’s hotels are generally only open 6 months of the year.  There are only 500 residents on the Island, yet 15,000 guests visit each day during the 6 month season.  The Grand Hotel was built in 1887 and has an incredible history, as does the Island.  I could go on and on with all the statistics I learned about the Island. I haven’t been there since I was a kid and I suppose the rich history didn’t interest me as much then as it does now.

I brought my camera and had lots of intentions on getting some great shots, but I ended up leaving in the hotel each time we went away.  I guess I just needed a break from being attached to it so much lately from working so much.  So, here’s all you get.  A picture of the bridge from the Ferry on our way over to the Island.  And a picture on the “taxi” (aka, the horse & carriage) on the way to hotel.  Notice all the bikes along the road and the other horse & carriage.  

Oh….what did Brady & Tyler do, you ask?  Well, Aaron & Jenn had their first experience in parenting.  They stayed here with the boys for the full 3 days/2 nights.  Thank, guys!!!  They survived and all 4 of them were smiling when we got home.  

By Kristi | Posted in Uncategorized | Comments (2)

24 Hours of Family Fun

August 15, 2009 – 11:26 pm

The boys & I woke up early on Friday morning.  A plan came into my head.  Instantly.  Within 1 hour & 15 minutes we were packed and on the road to Grand Rapids to visit my family.  If you know me, you know that I’m a planner, so this unexpected trip without hours of packing & planning was rare for me, yet also exciting.  

First up, we went directly to the beach on Lake Michigan in Holland with my mom (she had the day off) and my two nephews, Nathan & Braydon.  What a perfect weather day in Michigan!

Then, we spent the evening with Mom & Mark and Grandma & Grandpa Terpstra. We celebrated Mark’s birthday and we all sat outside watching a turkey in a deep fryer for 1.5 hours. We had a great visit, but I didn’t grab my camera, so no pics!

Then when we woke up this morning we went to my nephew, Brett’s football scrimmage. It was fun to watch him play. He’s really good and loves sports. He’s a freshman at Caledonia High School this year. He has #21 jersey on…..and running in the middle of this first picture.

Then, I went out to lunch with Troy and my nephews. And then this afternoon we went to my sister Jennifer’s house for my niece Hailey and newphew Brian’s birthday party.   Wow, that was a lot of activity fit into just 24 hours….we spent lots of time with…..let me count…..12 different family members at 4 different “functions” in just a little over 24 hours. The boys are fast asleep in bed early tonight, completely pooped out.  Me, I’m exhausted, but felt the need to stay up late and blog since it’s been awhile since my last post.

By Kristi | Posted in Uncategorized | Comments (2)

Uncle Brady & Uncle Tyler

August 7, 2009 – 5:30 pm

Did you realize Brady & Tyler were uncles?  It’s so much fun to have Aubrey and her family back in Utah.  I really, really missed being able to visit with them on our trips to Utah and the kids never got to play together.   So, here’s some quick snaps of Brady & Tyler with Annika, Landon & Luke from our trip.  Love the ones of Brady & Tyler with their arms around Landon & trying to kiss him.  

PS….Luke is the only one properly dressed for the Utah heat.  

By Kristi | Posted in Uncategorized | Comments (2)