Welp, this past weekend was a busy one! But wonderful.... to be with my husband again after a long week of not seeing him at all, was great!

First we started off with a BLACKHAWKS game with Rachele and Nicholas! Aside from the annoying New Jersey fans behind us, it was good game! Although I wasn't able to tuned out the girl behind me that knew everyone by their first name on the Devil's team & talked about every single play... I still was able to enjoy the game! It was a close game until the very end.... Thankfully ended up winning right at the end of the game, but if they play a little better offense, they could have won by more than just 1 point. But it was nice to hang out with Rachele and Nicholas again!..... next time guys........ MI RANCHITO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I can't wait!

Then Saturday afternoon, it was time to head down to Layafette, IN to stay at a hotel with some couples and their kids from church. Matt and I left in the early afternoon and took our time getting down there. Matt gave me a little mini-"tour" of Layafette... showing me where Purdue is (since i have never been down there!).... showing me where he stays when he goes down there for classes/ conferences and where his bachelor party was. We then met everyone at the hotel for some swimming and some dinner! It was fun hanging out with those kids. To see their energy and fun they have in the pool is just so cute! Some kids were even in there for 3 hours straight! (as you can see from Taylor's hands below... she got VERY wrinkley from being in there so long!) It's interesting to see how different kids are. Some are scared, some are daring and some are just happy to splash their feet in the water! =) We ordered pizza, queso dip and had some other great food! Defiitely not a good weekend for dieting!

(Taylor's really wrinkley hands.... with Matt being funny in the background!)

(Just a really cute photo of Taylor with her wrinkley hands again!)

(Me "Jen Jen" & Taylor "Tay Tay")

(Some of the little kids that we were with.... and NO, it wasn't birth control really.... it actually makes me excited to have kids some day!)

(Oh... sweet baby Tessa and me!)

(2 of the DeYoung girls and me!)

(Awww......)

(Crazy girls!)

(Aaron, not looking & Tiffany being cute as usual!)

(I "learned" how to play poker... and yes, we played with Equal, Sugars, Splenda & Sweet-n-Low)

Then it was off to the Children's Museum in Indianapolis (an hour drive) for the day! I invited Taylor to ride along with us for that hour and of course when Tiffany saw that Taylor was going with us... she wanted to also! So we adopted 2 little girls for the car ride to Indy. It was nice! Two very talkative girls at the beginning turned into 1 sleeping girl and 1 zoned into her DS girl about 15 minutes into the car ride! But it was a nice change of pace for Matt and I, having some youngens in the car with us!

The Children's Museum was fun. It was pretty big and had a good variety of stuff for the kids to see! Matt and I decided to go off on our own for a little bit and just see it all in a little more faster pace than it would be with some kids with us (in hopes that we would meet up with some other people later!) But we actually only saw maybe 2 of the other families throughout our time there. So, once we were done, we left and "toured" Indianapolis a little bit. Again, I don't remember the last time I was there (I think it was when i was quite young!)... so we drove around a little bit and then we ended up driving to the Indianapolis Speedway... something that Matt wanted to see (and I guess me too a little bit!)

(Chihuli -sp?- sculpture at the Indianapolis Children's Museum)

(Matt is just a BIG KID!)

(Matt and I in the mirror section!)

(The Batmobile! Supposedly the one they used in some movies!)

And that was our weekend in a nutshell!

But the fun didn't stop when the weekend was over! Tuesday I had my day off and went shopping to Michigan City with my wonderful friend Stephanie and we had a great time... whether was good... little bit of rain, but enough to keep people away from the outlet mall! And when I was shopping I got a call from Matt with some wonderful news! His cousin Eric and his wife Laura had their baby, a boy! I just love the name! Evan Levi.... how adorable! I can't wait to go see the little guy! Congratulations you guys! And to little Lily too! =) I'm sure she's be a wonderful big sister!

Hope you all are having a good week....

A little bit of everything!

Well, as you can tell by how many posts I have done in the last couple of weeks... there is A LOT GOING ON in our lives... haha... (can you sense the sarcasm?)

Even though nothing new, fun, or exciting has been happening....
We both have been keeping busy though!!

Time Spent Apart (tear)
Matt has been working quite a bit.... he has been able to pick up some overtime here and there and actually this week he is down south the whole week doing his spring surveying! And it looks like part/most of next week he will be gone too! =( I will say that I am getting a little more used to him being gone for longer periods of time. Not that I like it, but I think I'm accepting and handling it a little bit better.

Work for me on the other hand.... has been slow, but busy, but boring. It's a job. I really want to love my job, but I just don't. But this week has been pretty good. My boss is gone on vacation, so in addition to my normal weekly tasks, I was in charge of sending the papers to press and also working on a 12 page paper that gets printed monthly. That has kept me busy most of the week!
And since Matt was working out of town all this week, I extended some hospitality to my friend Renee to come and sleep over this week! She lived in Lowell and works in Manteno, so staying in Grant Park helps he cut her commute time. It has been nice to have around. Last night we actually watched Nicholas and Rachele's wedding video she brought along... I got to see Matt make his wonderful speech. He's so cute! Also, I am taking advantage of going out for dinner and meeting up with some friends while Matt's gone! Last night I got to hang out with the wonderful Amanda Plowman and tonight I get to see two college friends, Jessica & Kristen! Jessica just got engaged and getting married in July! So I can't wait to hear all about her wedding plans!

A Not So Ordianary Weekend
Tomorrow Matt will be home! I'm so excited to see him!
I'm also excited because this weekend is a very UN- ORDINARY weekend! (is that even a word?)For what seems to be the LOOOONGest time, we have had tickets for tomorrow night's 's game with Nicholas and Rachele! So that will be fun!

Then another fun and exciting thing is that on Saturday to Sunday we are going down to Layfette and Indianapolis with a group from church and we are staying overnight in a hotel, and then going to the Children's Museum of Indianapolis! Which I have heard great things about it! So I'm looking forward to that! =) I'll have to tell you about how it was when we get back! Like I said, we are going with a group of people from churches, all of them are couples with kids, except for us! But they are all super cool and I know that we will have a great time!

"I feel the need... the need for speed!"
And we finally booked Matt's wedding present from me! Richard Petty Driving Experience! He will be doing(Richard Petty Driving Experience). He will be doing it at the Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet on May 24 in the afternoon! I hope he's as excited as I am for him! I hope I'll be able to get some good photos and hopefully borrow someone's video camera to record it too! =)

my hubby is amazing!!!!!!!

I am so blessed to have a handy husband!!!!
Look what he made me (us!)....


Last night when I got home from taking pictures for the musical "The Music Man" at Illiana Christian... I came home to find this awesome piece of furniture all set up in our living room! Yes, I knew Matt was making it... he worked on it all last weekend/this week... i even helped paint the pieces all black, but for some reason, i didn't realize how WONDERFUL it would look. I just couldn't picture it in real life from what sketches he made of it!!! I really like it and man, did we save some money!!!! (i'm cheap... that's wonderful!) As for decorating it... it needs some help, but for right now there are just DVD's all set up on the shelves, but sooner or later, I will actually decorate inside them.... putting the femine touch on then a little bit more! =)

more to come later!

things are underway...

What a good weekend! Friday night was the Fireman's Fish Fry here in Grant Park. Matt had to work there so I got some stuff done at home and then met up with Renee for some drinks and then Matt and some other firemen met us up there after they were done cleaning up!!!!

Saturday night we were finally able to get together with Erika & Darrin! We went over to there house for dinner! We had a great time... just sitting and chatting!

Welp... things are underway for getting the house ready for my OPEN HOUSE Vendor Party!!! I spent the day organizing and throwing away crap that I'm just holding onto for really no reason! There is just something (in my mom's word) CLEANSING about it! It really makes me feel happy and good when I am able to get rid of stuff. Now Matt on the other hand... not so good at getting rid of things.... but that's ok.... as long as it's not in my way!! Haha.... but I have organized my business hanging files... getting rid of old contracts and order forms that just aren't necessary to keep anymore. I went through my old credit card bills and organized them and put them in envelopes to hide away where i don't have to see them for years!Ahh... what a GREAT FEELING!!!!!

Matt spent part of the day making an entertainment center that I am just so thrilled about! He is a little more than 1/2 way done with it and I can't wait til it's done! He has been great and is hoping to have it done by Saturday's OPEN HOUSE! Right now as you'll see in the photo below it just is MDF right now, but he is going to jazz it up with some fancier trim... after I paint most of it black for the insides!!!

(My man hard at work!)

(Part of the entertainment center - the shelves before I painted 'em black!)

But back to my OPEN HOUSE! I will be having 8 different vendors here in a "not so large" home... with the party lasting from 9am-2pm hoping that that will give people a good enough time frame to work with on a Saturday! =) I'm not sure how it will work with a bunch of women in this small house... but it will be fun! (I hope! haha) I am excited for a lot of the girls/ladies to see our house for the first time! Especially some friends that haven't seen it yet!!! I will be putting different people in different rooms of the house.... really leaving only the bathroom & basement open! There will be Tupperware, Pampered Chef, Premier Design Jewelry, children's books, BeautiControl, Avon, Mary Kay, & Signature Homestyles!!!! I can't wait!! YEAH!

Hope you all had a great weekend!

let's see....
not much has been happening the last couple weeks..... so not much to write about.
(sorry, we don't lead very exciting lives!)

Matt has been working quite a bit... over time here and there and then he was out of town for 2 nights this week for a class at Purdue. And soon will be his busy season with the spring coming up.... so he'll be out of town quite a bit more.

Don't you feel great when you have time to organize and clean stuff that you have been wanting to but not really motivated to do when you get home from work? Well, I felt that way Wednesday! With my day off, I was able to organize closets that i have been wanting to go through since I moved all my stuff into the house. I cleaned in places that were bugging me and that i knew i wanted to get a head start on with my OPEN HOUSE coming up next Saturday.

this weekend is looking good!! tonight is the fireman's FISH FRY (not that i'd go to it, b/c i hate fish).... but I am meeting up Renee at the bar for some drinks!! And hopefully more people will join us later! =) Then Saturday we FINALLY get to get together with Erika & Darrin Schultz!! We have been trying to get our schedules to work out since we got back from our honeymoon! So it will be great to see them again! Then Sunday... well, some NAPS will probably sound good right about then!! =)

This past week, there were a lot of ups and downs. With the exciting news that Camryn was doing much better after the doctor had opened up her incision more and her heart started beating on its own and coming off the lung machine to Wednesday morning, getting a phone call that Camryn had taken a turn for the worse. And then getting the news that she had passed away in the arms of Patti and TJ on Wednesday morning. With all the wake/funeral things that went on this week.... I have learned so much from Patti and TJ. Through this trial in their lives, they have been such WITNESSES of how you can truly have comfort and PEACE in the words of our faithful HEAVENLY FATHER. I can't speak for everyone else, but PERSONALLY, I know that because of their strength and faith in Christ, it helped me get through that day a whole lot easier! I have no idea what they are going through, I won't pretend to. I am just so grateful that God gave me the chance to go over to Patti & TJ's house that day before she went into the hospital. I was able to take many priceless photos of her that I KNOW Patti and TJ will cherish forever. Besides that... all I can do is be there for them, whenever and for whatever they need!

Besides from the funeral that was on Saturday, we did go out for dinner on Friday night for "Valentine's Day!" Dinner at BW3's and then to Walmart! A very romantic night! Haha.... but really, anything with Matt is special to me!

Until next time.... (time to do some dishes..... =\)

Constantly Praying.....

Well, since I last wrote on our blog, A LOT of things have happened. So, brace yourself, I think this is going to be a LOOOONG one!!!! I'm just going to down a list:

1. Just about a week after Camryn was born, my cousin Patti and her husband TJ had to take Camryn to the emergency room. Ended up finding out that she had hypotherma because she had a very narrow (if not closed aorta) and they needed to get her help very quickly. They were sent to Comer Children's Hospital up in Chicago, the best place for her to be at really! Patti and TJ have been through a lot through the past 2 weeks they have been at the hospital.... the ups and downs of Camryn taking a step forward and then two steps back are finally taking a toll on them. I have absolutely NO CLUE whatsoever of what they are going through, I don't have kids, I've never been in any situation that is like theirs at all! I feel helpless, but what i do know is that one thing will help tremendously... and that is prayer. The power of pray and the power of our amazing, loving, wonderful Savior is truly incredible! And because we as Christians know who is in total control and how the power of prayer can help, that has been what we have been doing. It's been amazing to me how many people are praying for this little baby, just over 3 weeks old. People that don't even know Patti, TJ, or Camryn are just pleading with God to bring this baby back to good health. Matt and I's church has put it on the prayer chain, and I'm pretty positive that many more churches have done the same thing. I think about the 3 of them constantly, as well as many other people I'm sure! As it stands right now.... Camryn's heart really needs to get stronger for them to take her off the heart lung machine. She is getting to the point where she really shouldn't be on it that much longer. So, they have said the word transplant, so we will see where it goes from here!

Here are two photos I took of her a couple of days after she came home and only two days before she was rushed to the hospital.... I am SO happy that I took my camera that day and tried my hand at baby photography (b/c really that's the first time I've done that!). These photos are very precious to me, for many different reasons!

She truly is an amazing, precious gift from God.
She has touched MANY hearts and lives in the just the
3 weeks she has been alive so far!

Awwww.... BIG YAWN! So adorable!

2. There has been another baby born into our lives! Nathan & Leah Prairie had a baby girl on Saturday night, Dehlia Grace weighing 8 lbs. 13 oz. and stretching 22 in. long. Matt and I went to go see her last night! She is precious and adorable! I forgot that I had my camera in my purse, so I didn't take any photos, but maybe I'll be able to get copies of the ones that Nathan took?? (huh Nathan?)

3. So, on a totally different subject than the 2 previous things...... WORK has been going pretty well for both Matt and I. This winter Matt has actually been quite busy, I think I'm safe to say a lot busier than any winters in a long time! He has been randomly been out of town some nights during the week... but thankfully it has slowed down a little bit since the craziness of Rockford and the train derailment! Just in time for me to have a little time to him before his crazy SPRING schedule starts! But then hey, maybe I'll get a lot of work done around the house and with business stuff! As for me and work, well, I'm still working 4 days a week... and that seems to be working out pretty well. Not that I'm really doing with the day that I thought I would be doing... but I am getting errands done, cleaning the house, baking different desserts/cookies for co-workers (looong story... but the jist of that is, b/c i have off one day a week, they think that i should make them desserts every week... so i'm taking 'em up on it and i'm learning to bake different things!) but then i do do some business work too!

4. This weekend is Valentine's Day.... wow... that kinda creeped up! I can't believe it's the middle of February already! Wow! Soon we will be married 4 months! WOW... time just flies by when you're having fun I guess!

We do have plans for Valentine's Day! Yeah! It's not the most romantic thing, but I am quite excited about it because I have never been to .... THE AUTO SHOW!!! I'm not sure that Matt is all that excited about it (he'd probably be just as happy at home, on the couch watching a movie), but since I was able to get free tickets, I'm excited to go for the first time..... and with Matt especially!!!!

5. I want to say that there is something that I'm missing, but not too much else BIG has happened.... some little things like:
- I had my church papers transferred over to Faith Reformed in Kankakee so that I am a member now at Matt's church.
- Our living is coming along.... i was able to buy new lamps & some shelf decorations
- Warm weather is hopefully coming soon! We have been having glimpses of wonderful weather, so hopefully that will stick around!

I think that's all for now! I hope you all have a wonderful week!
Please keep Camryn, Patti & TJ in your prayers....