how about a real blog post

Feel like I haven't done a real blog post all month...but as luck would have it we are back to business as usual (aka: random crap)

We bought our very first brand new piece of living room furniture Saturday evening.

Exhibit A: lovely brown microfiber sofa from Menards. We saved big money, we saved big money because we shopped Menards. Who knew Menards had living room furniture?







My car is in the shop because in the late fall, Jarrett clipped the front of it with the tractor axle. He claims we both learned a valuable lesson, mine being -- don't park so close to the tractor. To that I say, pssssshhhhh! At any rate, I have a sweet loaner ride for the time being. A minivan.



Exhibit B & C: it's sweet because it comes equipped with a tape deck! 


 

Olivia, Olivia, Olivia. What can I say about Olivia?

Sometimes she is full of sass. Exhibit D: 

But most of the time, she is a lovely little girl with an outstanding personality. She is funny, smart, kind, & helpful. She is working hard for the money these days. Earning her keep - busting her hump to get her allowance. She is full of big hugs for me these days. I can't get enough of them. She was Peacebuilder for the week in her classroom. Which evidently is a major award. Way to go Liv!

Rachel, Rachel, Rachel. What can I say about Rachel?

Also full of sass somedays - Exhibit E:

She has had a cold the past week that seems to just linger on. Hopefully she will be back at 100% in the very near future. But in other news, she recently had her pre-school screening & did AWESOME! She knew & told them all of her letters & colors. I'm so proud of this little lady. I kept comparing last year's screening & she was just so stinkin shy last year. She has long since came out of that shell.

And the Jar.

Also full of sass - Exhibit F

This is the face he makes when I question his handiness. We definitely shouldn't go into a furniture moving business together. Our marriage wouldn't survive a few more couch moves.

As for myself, I'm also full of sass somedays. Last week was no exception. But we are all doing well.



1 for us 15 for her

Miss Snooki has been a part of our family for 1 whole year. That's 15 in cat years. She is still quite a snuggler. She isn't scared of people. She plays with the girls. She sleeps with Olivia for a little while each night. The rest of the time she is perched on the back of our loveseat (see below).
Snooki is great. She isn't high maintenance at all. She rarely makes any noise at all. She loves to eat, particularly Meow Mix. And she is kind of crazy because she will just cry at her dish or get all under your feet if she can see any part of the bottom of her food dish. She is on her way to be chubby gal. I love her.

#FEBPHOTOADAY -- day 23

day 23 -- your shoes. Mah bowlin shoes to be exact.





- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

#FEBPHOTOADAY -- Day 22

Day 22 -- Where you Work

{glorious isn't it?}

#FEBPHOTOADAY -- Day 21

Day 21 -- A Favorite Photo of Me

{no explanation needed, but here it is: 2nd best day of my life. Rachel is born & Olivia meeting her for the first time. My life is full & complete. And this is the best picture of me ever.}

#FEBPHOTOADAY -- Day 18, 19, 20

Day 18 -- Drink

Day 19 -- Something you Hate to do

{folding/sorting socks}

Day 20 -- Handwriting

#FEBPHOTOADAY -- Day 17

Day 17 -- Time

{8:45 - this time every day I pull into the parking lot at work}

Lou's self-portraits

This girl played with my new phone & took these self portraits. She's pretty awesome.

Olivia = Liva Lou = Lou = Loubie Lou

#FEBPHOTOADAY -- Day 16

Day 16 -- new

{my valentine's day present from the Jar-O}

#FEBPHOTOADAY -- Day 15

Day 15 -- phone

{a screen shot from my new iPhone, what what}

#FEBPHOTOADAY -- Day 14

 

Day 14 --- HEART

{Rachel's face --- she was nervous about making the heart good}

Valentine's Day - what I have learned

Marriage = hard work, no?

No, Jarrett doesn't think about me every moment of every day. Being fair, I don't think about him every moment of every day either. Why should I expect him to do that for me, if I don't do that for him.

But he does call me or text me when my favorite song is on the radio & I do the same for him. It's just the way we are. No, it isn't perfect. It never will be.

But is it fun? Yes. Does it make me happy more often than sad? Absolutely. Does he rub my stinky feet at the end of a long day? Yes. Does he get me a glass of water when I am laying in bed almost every single night? Yes. Do I listen to & try to learn more about things he is passionate about: politics, trucks, tractors, farming, etc? You bet your sweet ass I do. Do we laugh together? All the time.

Marriage is a work in progress. You plan your wedding for about a year to 6 months, generally speaking. Then you are thrown into marriage. And you have to live with a boy. You know that expression the honeymoon is over? Truer words have never been spoken. News flash: Dating/Courtship relationships are SO MUCH DIFFERENT THAN MARRIAGE.

Marriage = Life. You don't know all the answers. But if you work together, you can have happiness.

And why??? Because we love each other. We love our little family. We often laugh & tease that we are both just making the best of a bad situation. That isn't entirely true, but it kind of is. Marriage ain't no cake-walk. If it was easy, the divorce rate would be much much lower, my friends.

True love for me is defined by actions:

• he fixed my favorite pair of boots with gorilla glue when the heel broke.
• he holds the puke bucket for me & doesn't make any fuss about it.
• he has bought tampons for me.
• he listens, even if he has no clue on earth what I am talking about, he still listens.
• he cares.
• he takes great offense if someone hurts my feelings.
• he cooks dinner.
• he catches me off guard, buying a CD for me & leaving it on the driver's seat.
• he says I am beautiful even if I don't feel beautiful.
• he laughs at me & with me, quite often.

If it ain't broke, don't try to fix it. We have got a good thing going on.

So, that is what I have learned from my almost 10 years of marriage. And Bob Marley ain't no fool. This is so true.

He’s not perfect. You aren’t either, and the two of you will never be perfect.

But if he can make you laugh at least once, causes you to think twice, and if he admits to being human and making mistakes, hold onto him and give him the most you can.

He isn’t going to quote poetry, he’s not thinking about you every moment, but he will give you a part of him that he knows you could break. Don’t hurt him, don’t change him, and don’t expect more than he can give.

Smile when he makes you happy. Yell when he makes you mad. Miss him when he’s not there. Love hard when there is love to be had. Because perfect people don’t exist, but there’s always one guy that is perfect for you!!

Jarrett isn't perfect. But he is perfect for me.

#FEBPHOTOADAY -- Day 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 (I fail)

Day 8 - no picture

{the sun did not shine all day}

Day 9 - Front Door

{oddly enough, even though i have an extreme fear of birds, the valance over my front door has crows on it}

Day 10 - Self Portrait

{nothing too fancy here - just taken with my brand spankin new iPhone - what what}

Day 11 - Makes me Happy

{these girls make me insanely happy}

Day 12 - inside my closet

{complete w/ wonky hanger flipped up from tearing today's shirt off the hanger} 

Day 13 - Blue.

{I do not like the color blue. I searched my house for something blue. Olivia loves the color blue, so her book bag is blue.}

#FEBPHOTOADAY -- Day 7

Day 7 -- Button(s) on my phone at work. Pretty awesome. Especially at this time, none of the lights are on.

Luke Bryan, Jason Aldean, & Tight Jeans - Oh My!

Saturday night was one of the best nights of my entire life. Oh mah word - did I have fun!!!

Luke Bryan - AMAZING!
Jason Aldean - AMAZING!

Natalie Totten - ONE SATISFIED CUSTOMER!

Oh mah goodness - the booty shakin' & tight jeans!!! Oh & they sang too. They put on such a great show. I am more a Luke Bryan fan than a Jason Aldean fan. Jarrett the opposite. We each thought there was no way the other could top our favorite, but we were pleasantly surprised. The whole show was great! We missed all but 1 of Lauren Alaina's songs - between you & me, that was a good thing.

Our seats were great! We were in the upper section but towards the lower part of the upper section. We were even with the side of the stage so we had a great view of all of the action. Not as great as my friend Kim, but still great!

I haven't been to a concert at Assembly Hall since 2000's Anger Management Tour - Limp Bizkit & Eminem. It was a little different atmosphere, to say the least.Who am I kidding, I haven't been to a concert since then too.

Anyhoohah......(that was for you, Laura)

Here are some pictures for your viewing pleasure, enjoy!