Michigan Weather

If you have ever wanted to know what Michigan weather is like, today (Saturday, April 25) was a great example. It started out with the sun shining in the windows as we woke up. Of course, Parker was up before the crack of dawn, so sleeping in wasn't really an option, but it was sure nice to see the sun peeking through the blinds.
We ate breakfast, got dressed, and headed outside. By 9am, it was already quite warm out. I put on a pair of shorts and a tank top!! It had been in the 80s for the last couple days. Parker played basketball on his hoop, and Halle and Bailey played together.

I pulled all the weeds and dead plants around the house. There were a ton!! I didn't think I was going to do it all morning long, so I didn't put any gloves on, and my hands got all torn up. I even got a huge splinter in my thumb. (I didn't take a picture of it, but just know it was a huge)I worked hard so that hopefully flowers will bloom and the landscaping will look nice.

By noon, the clouds starting rolling in, and right when I was finished working, raindrops started to fall. I got all my mess cleaned up and walked in the house, and about 2 seconds later it started to downpour.

It rained and rained!! We had a decent thrunderstorm and it was quite windy. We think it might have hailed for a few minutes too!!

Since our day was kinda ruined because of the rain, we decided to go shopping and out to dinner. As we were driving down a main highway to the mall we wanted to go to, we saw a ton of downed power lines and tree branches down. There were 5-6 power line poles that had snapped right in half and we lying on the ground. One power pole was smashed into the front a building.All the businesses for about 10-15 miles were closed due to power outages and all the stop lights were

We ate dinner at "On the Border", which is now one of our favorite mexican restaurants. We ate way too many chips and salsa. Why are they so addicting?

When we left the restaurant it was downpouring in sheets. I couldn't believe how hard the rain was coming down. Our car was really close to the door, so Brad and Halle ran to get in, and then Brad was going to bring me and Parker an umbrella. They were outside maybe 7 seconds and were completely drenched...They both looked like they had taken a shower in the clothes. Their hair was soaked and their clothes were soaked all the way through!! Parker and I ended up running to the car a few minutes later when the rain died down a little, so we didn't get as soaked as them, but we got pretty wet!

Once we left the mall, the rain had stopped, but it had cooled way down. We didn't get any more wet though (thank goodness).

It was a typical Michigan day- sunny, warm, cloudy, thunderstorm, windy, rainy, hailing, cool. The only thing we were missing was "snow", which I wouldn't have been surprised if it had snowed. It's Michigan...Anything's possible!

I missed my 100th post!

A while back I came across a fun blog and thought I would use the idea to celebrate my 100th post. Well, I kind of missed my 100th! I was so busy posting about our trip to Florida, I passed it without noticing. Technically, I'm at 107 now, but I thought I would post it anyways. So, Happy 100th post!!! I can't believe I have written over 100 posts on my blog! Woo-hoo for me! I thought I would do this fun list of 100 things to do during your lifetime that I found on Jessica's blog. Everything that I have done is bolded.

1. Started your own blog (in 2008)
2. Slept under the stars (gotta give Lake Ann Baptist Camp credit for this one)
3. Played in a band (Church youth group band)
4. Visited Hawaii (would love to go anytime now...hint hint Brad)
5. Watched a meteor shower (well, if shooting stars count)
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland (Disney World)
8. Climbed a mountain (In Europe)
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo (no, but I've played a TON of piano solos- they're almost the same maybe)
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris (would love too someday...hint hint Brad)
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch (as long as crafts/baking/decorating counts)
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning (thanks to Red Knapp's (most recently))
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty (would really love to go to NYC soon...hint hint Brad)
18. Grown your own vegetables (when I was a kid)
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France (was in France, but didn't see the Mona Lisa)
20. Slept on an overnight train (been on a train, but not overnight)
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb (my husband used to own sheep, but it was before I came into the picture-thank goodness)
26. Gone skinny dipping (yeah right- I can barely handle what I look like in a bathing suit, none the less naked)
27. Run a Marathon (does a 5K count?)
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice (with Brad too!)
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run (Does hitting one on the Wii baseball game count?)
32. Been on a cruise (only dinner cruises- Sr. High school banquet)
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person ( Love It!)
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community (even ate at one of their restaurants- super good food)
36. Taught yourself a new language (does understanding Parker's babbling count for anything)
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied (I need to work on it, because I should be content with what I have)
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted (Allyson and I had our portraits painted at Cedar Point when we were kids)
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling (does using a snorkel in a pool count?)
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie (Does 12th grade English class homemade movies count?)
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business (B & K Cleaning)
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies (no, but I sure do love to buy them!)
62. Gone whale watching (how about dolphin watching?)
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check (thank heavens for our bank's Bounce Protection program)
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy ("Bald-headed"-my Cabbage Patch baby doll, where are you?)
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar (does Foie Gras count?-It's a delicacy-Goose Liver--I wouldn't recommend it)
72. Pieced a quilt (would really like to learn how to quilt)
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone (no, but really messed up my knee during basketball season)
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car (nope- they seem to always be used)
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper (I might have during Basketball season in High School)
85. Read the entire Bible (I really want to though)
)86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury (thankfully everytime I've been called for Jury Duty, I have never had to go)
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one (2 to be exact)
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee
100. Read an entire book in one day

Hopefully by my 200th post I will be able to check off a few more of these 100 things to do.
I've so enjoyed blogging and look forward to all the new memories that will happen in my next 100 posts. I love all my blogging friends (all 2 of you who actually read mine) and hope to make some new blogger friends as well.
Happy 100!! (Technically, 107!!)

So, I'm Twittering Now

I have no idea why I decided to up and join Twitter, only for the sake of saying I did so, I guess. I had no clue what it was even all about, even though approximately a million different people on television and here in the blogging world talked about it all the time. "Catch me on Twitter", "See what I've got to say on Twitter", and so forth. Well, I finally signed up the other day. I figured, although I am totally confused, I would rather be a part of it now, than look stupid 3 years from now, when I'm the only person left who doesn't "twitter." That's usually the case. I'm always a couple years behind on everything...Facebook, blogging, text messaging, reading the Twilight series, etc.
I am now a part this world. I must admit that I really do not have any time to spend on yet another website daily, but it's kind of cool to see what celebs are doing at any given moment, and so I catch myself spending 10 minutes here, 10 minutes there, throughout the day watching Twitter. My life isn't very exciting, so my headline is pretty "blah", but I did have Julianne Hough from "Dancing with the Stars" choose to follow me!! Maybe she sees potential in my twitter that I have yet to notice.
Anyways, if you have a twitter, let me know, and I will follow you.
Have a Twitterific Day!!

Is it too late for an Easter post?

(I know, I know. Easter was over a week ago and I am just now posting about it. Oh well, I'm a little behind, obviously)

Easter, for us this year, was extremely weird and different. Most years, our Easter dresses and suits are bought, we have colored Easter eggs, and I have the kids' baskets full. We go to church, sing the traditional Easter songs, and have a nice meal with the family afterwards.

Since we didn't get home from our trip until the evening before Easter Sunday, I was quite behind (seems to be a theme in my life lately). Plus, we have been doing church at home with the family, so we weren't even sure we were going to a service somewhere.

Brad and I ran out to Meijer at about 11pm Saturday night to get a few goodies for the kids. They both got so much stuff from Florida, but I thought it would be nice to have at least a little something in their baskets. Brad had gone out earlier in the day to get some candy and only was able to find a few things. Everything was picked over. We really didn't find much, but did get Parker the movie Bolt, and Halle some sidewalk chalk and a new jump rope.

Since we didn't dye any eggs this year, Brad and I filled 50 plastic eggs with candy and money and hid them all around our apartment downstairs.

The kids were excited to open up their treats in their baskets in the morning, and Halle had a lot of fun searching for eggs. Parker only did it for about 3 minutes before he was begging to watch Bolt.

We all put on nice shirts (not our typical dresses and suits) and had church with the family at home.

My parents invited us over for a brunch, so we headed there after our service. My parents made egg casserole, french toast casserole, muffins, fruit, toast, etc. It was all very good!

In the afternoon, we took the kids over to a park and let them play.

Although our Easter was a lot different from previous years, we still were reminded of the celebration of Easter and it's importance. Of all other stories in the Bible, this one is the most important. We should be celebrating Easter everyday, not just one day a year. Easter is a good reminder of the greatness of God, to overcome death, even death on a cross, and make a way for all of us to spend eternity with Him in heaven.

Goodbye Florida

Goodbye Florida!!
Today, we left Florida to come back home. We were super sad to say goodbye to the warm, sunny weather, but were excited to see Brad and Parker. We missed them alot!!

Our first flight didn't leave until 11:55 am, so we were able to sleep in a little, have a nice breakfast, and then make our way to the airport, which was only 3 minutes away.

I hadn't read but maybe 20 pages of a book the entire week I was there, but I finally got hooked on a book last night in the hotel, and ended up reading the entire thing during our first flight.

Unfortunately, we had a 3.5 hour layover in Cleveland. It was extremely boring! Our concourse was empty for the majority of our layover, so Halle did kart-wheels down the corridors and I slept. We so badly wanted to get home!!

We finally made it back to MI about 6:30 pm!!

Brad, Todd, Scott, Parker, and Preston all came to pick us up (we had two cars).
It was nice to be back home and give Brad and Parker hugs and kisses.

Parker in his new outfit!

Florida Day # 7

Florida Day # 7
Our last full day in Florida

Do we really have to say goodbye to this?

We spent the morning packing up our suitcases and making sure everything was ready to leave around noon. Then we headed off to Marineland.

Marineland is a place right on the ocean where you can watch, touch, feed, and even swim with dolphins. We had talked about possibly swimming with dolphins all week long, but we didn't realize that you needed a reservation weeks in advance to do so, plus it's SUPER expensive.

We stopped by Marineland yesterday to check it all out and ended up only being able to get in the "Touch and Feed" class, and the only time available was Friday morning.

Once we got there, we were given some time to go and watch the dolphins just swim around.

Then Jess, Hal, and I all went in to touch and feed the dolphin. We weren't allowed to take a camera or a phone in with us, so I couldn't get any close up pics.

We got to spend about 8-10 minutes with the dolphins. We played with "Chubby", who was a 40 year old male dolphin. They waved to us, made noises, and did a bunch of jumps which got us soaking wet. It was a lot of fun!!!

After that, we headed back to the resort to pick up Dad and head out. We ended up stopping at a flea market right outside of Orlando for a hour or so. All the girls got Coach purses!! Mom even bought 2!!

We stayed until the flea market shut down (around 3:30-4pm) and then we went on to Tampa. We got to our hotel, cleaned up a little, and then headed to a huge, nice mall that was right around the corner.

We ate dinner at The Cheesecake Factory and then shopped at the mall the rest of the evening. I got myself a pair of jeans, a sweatshirt (I knew I was coming back to cold temps) and got Brad a few things.

It was sad to know it was our last day in Florida, but we crammed a lot in and made it a very nice last day!

Florida Day # 6

Florida Day # 6- April 9, 2009

This was a house right on the ocean that Jessica and I just loved!! It was HUGE, but looked really comfy and inviting. We really wanted to see what the inside looked like.
After shopping at a few boutiques in the morning, we headed back to the resort for one last day of the beach. Jess, Mom, and I all got new bathing suits while shopping!!
We ate lunch at the Ocean Cafe at the resort before heading to the ocean.

This was our view of the pool from the Cafe.

Mom, Hal, and Dad waiting to eat lunch.

Back at the ocean- Our favorite place to be! Jessica got brave enough to get in the cold water and play in the waves with Halle and Dad. I didn't! I'm not one for cold water, unless I'm super hot!

The wind really picked up a few hours later, so Jess, Hal and I all headed to the pool to swim. Halle hadn't gotten a chance to go down the slide yet, so she wanted to make sure she did it before we left.

Halle went down about 500 times!! She loved it!

I actually got in the pool. It helped that it was heated!!

Before we went back up to the room, we got in the hot tub. It was wonderful! That's my kind of swimming.

Tonight, being our last night at the resort, we decided to get dressed up for dinner. Our reservations weren't until 8:30pm at the Atlantic Grille (the other restaurant at the resort).

Halle in front of the dolphin fountain

It was quite chilly and windy

At dinner. The restaurant had only 8 entrees to choose from, none of which was anything I really liked. So, I "stepped out of my box" (as Halle put it) and ordered the salmon. It was actually pretty good. It had a strawberry bbq glaze on it.

It was a nice, last day at the resort. Tomorrow we head back across the state to Tampa.

Florida Day # 5

Florida Day # 5- April 8, 2009

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAD!!!

It was my dad's 61st birthday today! Unfortunately, we missed his party, but we did get to talk to him for a little bit!

This was our view from our apartment!! It was cloudy the morning I took this, but when the sun was shining, it was very pretty!!
Today we spent the afternoon down at the beach. We ran into a fun beach store (back towards St. Augustine-there was nothing in Palm Coast) in the morning, and then met Dad at the beach around noon. In the evening, we headed to the outlet mall in St. Augustine. We ate dinner at Ruby Tuesday and shopped the evening away. There were tons of stores!! Lots of designer outlet stores, which was cool- Juicy Couture, Coach, Dooney & Bourke, etc.

Halle talking to Brad while shopping
After the stores closed, we headed back to our resort. We missed American Idol, but we heard Scott got booted. I liked him, but he really wasn't the greatest singer. I could listen to him play the piano forever though.