From one sport to the next...

Guess what sport it is??
Now that softball is over, we needed another sport to work on. Marcus hopes to play in the church basketball league this fall/winter (last season he was only able to make it to one game before having to quit, this year he has higher hopes!) So, we went out and bought a basketball and hit up the park across the street.

Heck yes, slam dunk!!

He actually is still pretty good...leftover skills from his ballin' days. Well...I guess anyone is "pretty good" when they're playing against me...we played 21...and he won...21 to...... 0. haha.

Jonny Lang!

Last night we saw Jonny Lang at Ravinia! If you don't know who he is, I encourage you to "google" him. He is such a great musician (and quite attractive as well). ;) We had a blast. We were both so exhausted from our crazy week so we left right after he was done and didn't stay for the other guy playing. :) This was the first time we went to Ravinia without bringing dinner. We did this for two reasons: one, because we couldn't get there early enough because Marcus worked until 6:30. Two, because at concerts where it's someone really famous, there isn't much seating if you don't get there early! So, we didn't even bring a blanket or chairs or anything, knowing that we wouldn't find a spot anyway (plus, we knew we'd want to stand up close!) When we got there we began checking out the restaraunts at Ravinia, but didn't find anything that looked good or affordable. So, we decided to just get a pretzel and lemonade at a little stand and planned to go out to our fave, Rhapsody Cafe, afterward. Well, we got to Rhapsody too late after the concert and it was closed. We just went tonight instead! :) It was a two-night date night! I am sooooo looking forward to the long, relaxing weekend ahead. Like I've said in previous posts, this month has been nuts, so I hope to rest up!

Oops. While typing this I just realized I left my leftovers at the table at Rhapsody. Grr. I always do that! :)

Yes, I'm Still Here

I must say it comforts me to see that almost everyone on my "fave blogs" list has taken a blogging hiatus just like me! Things have been nuts lately! School has started and while that is back in full swing, I'm happy to report that come next week, the rest of life will slow down a bit. Perfect timing. :)

School has begun and I'm still feeling things out...this class seems overall pretty good. Of course, I totally miss my class from last year as they were the greatest class a teacher could ask for! I'm sure this class will be good too, as soon as I get to know them better! :)

I hope you are all doing well. I, for one, am going to hit the hay. I am totally exhausted from the nonstop action of this week...er, month. :)

SWISH 'ER THO-ME!

Heehee, only a Sox fan would understand my heading! It is my new slogan that I will put on a sign next game we go to...last night I thought of it too late and the sign making station was already closed.

We got to hit up another Sox game last night, this time with our friends, Ovi and Esti. It was really fun. We tailgated beforehand, which was a first for us. For some reason we were all somewhat sleepy, but nevertheless, we had a blast. The Sox won (of course) and I can't wait to go again sometime! :)


Hey Esti, what's that character on your shirt? ;)

Good seats again- almost the same place as the last game we went to.

Ovi took a good pic with his long arm.

Quentin hit a home run! (Probably to commemorate his biggest fan's home run that was scored at Saturday's Moody Softball League game) :)

Birthdays Part Two

Today was Avery's first birthday party! It was so fun to see her. Even if she's still a peanut, she is definitely acting older!

Here she is opening the clothes we got her...

Julie made these adorable cupcakes and cookies! Way to go, Julie!

Asher was having fun with all of his relatives, but I managed to get this shot of him.

Gotta love the smashed cake event that takes place at all first birthdays!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, AVERY JANE, WE LOVE YOU!!

Birthdays Part One

Today we had the first birthday celebration of the weekend. We have another tomorrow. It was Malachi's and Kayleigh's birthdays! I can't believe how old they are getting! Kayleigh's half of the party was "princess" and Malachi's was "batman". They were both so sweet and cute at their party.


Okay, the angle of this pic is weird, I have a small head and a huge arm. Oh well, look at Kayleigh anyway. :)They got this cool scooter vehicle thingy. It was totally fun.


Even Marcus liked it!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, Malachi and Kayleigh! We love you!

Date Night at the Botanical Gardens

After a busy week of getting up early, working hard, and then meetings at school in the evenings, as well as various other events, Marcus and I came to the conclusion that we really didn't see each other this week. So, in an effort to combat that reality, he decided to take me out to the Botanical Gardens tonight. Last summer we rode our bikes there, but most of it was closed, so I didn't get to see much. Other than that, I had never been there. It was a gorgeous night, and it was so thoughtful of him to come up with something out of the ordinary for us to do. We ended the night with a stop at one of our favorite restaurants, Rhapsody Cafe, for chocolate cake and coffee. What a fun evening!




A crane! It was so pretty and peaceful.






We came home to this huge grasshopper on our apartment door. This pic doesn't show you the size, but I'd say it was at least two inches long. It was pretty cool.

VBS recap

Wow, what a week! Each year I am amazed at how much VBS teaches me about myself. I don't mean this to be a cheesy post, but honestly, I seem to often do so much reflection during VBS and am in awe of what God teaches me. For starters, I have been blessed to continue to learn about God's gifting in each of His believers. It is so neat to see how God brings people together in just the right way to get certain jobs done. During VBS I have been on such a high as I have been able to see my vision and dreams for life mold into that of God's. About a month ago in Sunday School we did a spiritual gifts lesson and I found out (I should've known??) that I am gifted in administration. Now, ever since I have been working in the school system, I have known that I absolutely would not want to be a principal or administration of any sort in education. But, it's been cool to see how God has used that gift in the ministry arena for me, as well as get me excited for my grad program so I can continue to learn about how to use that gift for Him. This week I've really been reflecting on where God is leading me, both career-wise and location-wise and I am excited to see where He directs Marcus and me in the next few years.

Here are a few pics from VBS...
Every time I've been able to sneak in and take a peek at Malachi and Kayleigh, they are always laughing and smiling and totally participating. So cute!

Although on the way to VBS today Kayleigh was reassuring me that "Today is the last one. It's almost done," when we were walking out to the car afterward she said to me, "I'm going to coming to PowerLab tomorrow." Sorry darling, it's over. :)

Fun games with "Mr. Kyle"...



Haha, the zany scientists were a riot...

VBS - almost done

Tomorrow I will try to make sure and take some pics of VBS to post. Today we had 260 kids. Holy smokes! I've been having a lot of fun getting to spend about an hour and a half of solid downtime with Malachi and Kayleigh each day in the car. They are pretty funny kids. I'm going to copy Julie here and put a kid quote in my blog (except it's not my kid??)...those of you who are from Chicago know the little short stop lights that are at the end of many exits right before you get onto an interstate around here. They usually have a sign that says "Wait here for green". Well, yesterday we were waiting for the green and the Malachi says about the stoplight (which is no higher than my car window) "Look at that little stoplight! It's pretty cute, huh?" and then Kayleigh responds, "Malachi, you're pretty cute." haha. Gotta love sibling love. Kayleigh also informed me today that while she and I are "snoods" (yes, from the classic computer game from our college days), Malachi is a "genius". (FYI: When asked if she knew what a genius is, she could not say.) :)Kayleigh ready to go in my car...all decked out in pink for her birthday!

Malachi having a chipper morning. This was yesterday. Today he was not so chipper...until I called him a "crankypants" and then he totally cracked up and was happy the rest of the day.

P.S. -Julie, if you're reading this, I know I made a grammatical error in my last comment on your blog, but I don't know if it's possible to edit comments?? :)

Some New Things

Sorry it's been awhile! Things have been very hectic. I know posts are pretty boring without pics, so maybe I'll add a random one, but this post is mainly going to be information. :)

1. VBS This week has been VBS at church. I praise God for all the kids He's bringing to Moody each day. Yesterday we had 247 and today it was 251. We are so excited! This year I am the Elementary Director, which meant a lot of work beforehand, but now that it's here, I just go with the flow and make sure everything that is supposed to be happening is happening. I love this administration side of things and although I am a teacher by profession, I really feel in my element when organizing and administrating programs like this. I am blessed by awesome volunteers and directors! I've also had the privilege of taking Erica's two oldest kids with me and since they're on my way to church, it works out great. I've been out of the house each day by 7:00 which is exhausting, yet getting me ready for school-- which starts soon!
2 Work Prep This week I've also been prepping for school. Both Monday and today I've had team meetings for about 4 hours in the evenings. It's overwhelming to think about how much we have to do before school starts. That being said, I am totally excited for this new year, I just wish I had a little bit more time to get ready for it! My room is nowhere near set up...
3. India Prep Sunday night was our first meeting to discuss our mission trip to India. The meeting lasted six hours and was GREAT! We got to meet and get to know our team a little bit and go over lots of logistics. We will be meeting a few times a month until we leave in order to plan more and get to know each other more. I am very excited and know that this will also keep me pretty busy this fall. We will be in India January 1-14. Please pray for us as we begin to raise support. It is a very expensive trip, but we are trusting in God to provide.
4. Grad School ...well, I start on the 27th. I've received all of my books EXCEPT the two I need to do homework in by the 27th. Go figure! I'm really excited for this as well. I was a little disappointed when Marcus decided that he is no longer doing the program with me, but I know that he is following God's leading, and I trust him to make good decisions.
5. Softball This past weekend we lost our first game. :( We've been having a great (undefeated) season, but we lost to the other team who is also undefeated. We play them again next week, so maybe we have a chance to win?? We'll see. It's been such a fun summer with softball again and I'm glad we've been able to play this summer.

Alrighty...sorry if this was a boring post, but I have been meaning to update people with some things in my life and I kind of like how a blog allows for me to compose a few less emails. Although I guess that is a little impersonal, eh? Well, you do what you can when you're busy. :)

Life before School...

Well...since SOMEBODY got on my case about not updating my blog, here I am sans pics and any exciting info! I've been chilling this week living up my last calm week before chaos starts.
Monday: Met with principal to discuss India trip in January. Accomplished with mediocre success. Continued to work in my room and set things up. Wow, I've got a long way to go!
Tuesday: Met with dear friend Rob to discuss grad school for Marcus. Please pray for him as he just cannot decide what to do. Was excited for yoga, then it was canceled. Cleaned the apartment and went to Erica's to hang (no pun intended...okay, yes it was) for awhile. Fun times and good conversation.
Wednesday: Yummy breakfast at Panera with hubster, dropped Marcus off at work, taught a horn lesson, and then up to Julie's for the day. We ran some errands for Avery's first birthday (she is one on Friday!!) and then went out to Panera for lunch. Yes, I went there twice in one day. Gotta love it! We hung out, I cut her friend's hair, and headed home. Fun times with her and her darling chitlins. Currently, dinner is cooking and the gang is waiting to go see movies: Dan and Marcus will go off to Batman and Britt and I will hit up Mamma Mia! (YES I get to see it AGAIN!!!) :)

Okay...the rest of my week is somewhat uneventful, thank you very much, so don't expect another posting too soon!

:)