my big day

i dont really feel old, but my drivers licence would probably disagree with me on that one... (yes, that is my actual drivers licence photo). when i woke up this morning, which felt like every other morning, there was one big difference: i am now 31 years old. i still feel like i'm pretty young yet, and i'm sure that i am. 31 isnt that old, i say that now, but when i was 25 years old, 31 sure seemed old!

anyway, birthdays arent as big of a deal as you get older, i didnt want any sort of birthday party or anything, instead i just wanted a fun evening with my wife. and thats exactly what we did! we got to do a few of my favorite things: we wondered around a used movie store for about a half hour (and diana didnt even complain once- certainly a birthday gift from her!), then we went to my favorite place to eat: the chinese buffet! yum, i love me some sneaky! then we went to go see a really good movie! after the movie we even went and got ice cream together. now thats a great birthday to me! we got to do everything i wanted to do, and diana really enjoyed herself too (granted, that might be mostly due to the ice cream at the end of the night...)

out late

the other night diana went out with some friends from work for dessert and left her little old nasty dog behind! poco was rather impatient for her to return and he waited here by the door constantly looking at it for her to return. he was whimpering for about an hour, waiting for his mom to get home! poor thing. when diana did finally come home he shrieked and yelped with joy for about five minutes! what a crazy dog, huh?
(i'm always looking for an excuse to post pictures of our dog poco, so be sure to check these out: 1, 2, 3)

me vs. the weeds

well, tuesday came and so i headed back to mom and david's in south bend to get back to work! i packed up my stuff and got there bright and early ready to get some work done. soon after i got there i went straight to work: this time there was a bit of lawn work to do! i spent the next two days in a wrestling grudge match with some pretty big weeds! by the time it was over, i'm pretty sure i won... i think. actually, my sweat might have been enough to drowned them anyway! the overgrown plants that had invaded the landscaping around the garage was sent packing! we layed down some mulch and made some great plans of where we go from there. a lot was taken care of, and next time its back inside to get crackin' on that bathroom remodeling!
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along the way

every once in a while diana and i will try a new place to eat. this time we tried a strange little polish buffet place called warsaw inn, and they even had a live accordion player there. how's that for atmosphere?
anyway, the fun part of it wasnt necessarily the musician who was there (but he was actually pretty good), rather just the time spent with diana talking about life, the universe, and everything. when we hang out around the house we sometimes get in a rut of doing our own thing, she reads her magazines and i play on the computer, or we get sucked into watching some tv or something. its nice every once in a while to just get out and experience something a little different and new. granted, a different restaurant isnt that new, but it was fun going someplace different and even the drive trying to find the place was fun. its those little moments that i often forget to enjoy so it was a good reminder to me that i get to have all these fun little moments along the way with my best friend!

hacienda fiesta

after a long three days of working hard and getting a few projects at the house in shape, diana's mom and david invited us to go out to dinner with them before we headed home. diana and i, never ones to pass of good food, kindly obliged. and wouldnt you know it, they took us to one of my favorite restaurants ever: hacienda!!! (they've got the greatest salsa this side of nacogdoches) they dont have any of those here by us, so its a rare treat to go there.
we had a wonderful time there, it was the perfect end to a really fun visit. diana got to spend some much needed time with friends and family, and i was able to get a great start on the summer projects at their house! we will certainly have to do it again soon- how does tuesday sound?

smooth sailing

one of the staple of going to mom and david's house is the boat ride. you almost cant go there without one! well, we were there for four days, so we got quite a few! the girls went on a lot more than i did since i was busy working all day around the house, but the girls got to enjoy swimming and many boat rides (they did a lot of shopping too...). its always a peaceful and relaxing time going out on the water. one of the times i even put on a bathing suit and we went to the middle of the lake and jumped in off the boat! we swam and splashed around for a while, but then i called it quits. diana and barbara were not done yet, the opted to swim the rest of the way back to the dock- which was more than half way across the lake! yikes! diana sure is an excellent swimmer, she made it the whole way without any floaties or fins on her feet.
by the way, doesnt diana look so beautiful in this picture?!? careful, thats MY wife, mister!
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bathroom teardown

i really didnt want to go back to stocking shelves on the late shift at the local grocery store this summer. the first summer i did it wasn't too bad, but last summer stocking shelves i wanted to gouge my eyes out from boredom. i made the promise at the end of last summer that i wasnt going to do that again, and so i didnt. but then what do i do? thats the question i was asking myself last time we were at mom and davids place. david answered 'well, why dont you work for me? we have tons of jobs around the house that are too big for me to do alone, i could use the extra set of hands'. well now, that sounds like a great idea! so i took him up on his offer and began helping out soon after. this weekend we were at their place for an extended stay so i could help for a few days. monday morning i got to work! they have a couple bathrooms that they have been needing to redo, due to water damage and the like, so i began cleaning them out. david had already started and gotten all the fixtures out of there, i took over from there and tore it down to the studs. it was hard work, but i was happy to do it! that week i cleared out the two bathrooms, cleaned and (partially) organized the garage, and began tearing out some of the overgrown shrubs, plants, and weeds that they wanted removed. it was really hard work- i think i sweat off about three gallons of sweat a day, but it felt really good to have accomplished so much! i'll be back next week for more!

deal em, pardner!

one of my favorite parts of getting together with family is game time! (i'm pretty sure i get that from my mother...) almost every day we were there we gathered around the table to play some cards! usually we would play my favorite game, phase 10, but we also mixed it up some times with a little skip-bo. everyone had a good time playing, well a good time until they were way behind, then some people *cough* diana *cough* decided that they didnt like the game anymore and wanted to be done with it... after some coaxing, we all continued the game and had a bunch of fun!

everyone's invited

diana and i planned for a nice long weekend at her mom and david's house. we got there sunday after church and soon found out that everyone else had been invited too! aunt gayle and uncle denny spent the weekend there, and soon after we arrived grandma and bill came by, and so did barbara, their dad, grandma allen, and miranda and levi- oh my! what we thought would be just a simple sunday afternoon turned into a huge get together, and we all had a blast! david grilled up some hamburgers and brats and all of us enjoyed the good food and the good weather! some of the girls went into the water and swam for a bit, and we all took turns going for rides around the lake on the boat. it was really cool to see everyone together- it felt like there should have been a holiday or something to celebrate, considering all the family that was around, but it was just all of us celebrating a beautiful summer weekend!
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family outlet

since papa had the week off, he and mom decided to invite us to michigan city with them to do a little shopping at the outlet mall there. we joined them in the late morning and wandered around the mall for a few hours with them, picking out clothing for a pretty good price. papa and mom were very generous and gave us a little something to spend while we were there- diana was really excited about that! for her that means new clothes! while mom and diana were checking out the deals, papa and i got to sit down at an outdoor table and have a really great conversation. we talked about life, the universe, and everything. i always love it when papa and i can have a good deep honest conversation- thats what a good dad is for, right? well, thats why my dad is such a good one!
after the shopping was done we went and had a great dinner together and we all ate too much. now that sounds like a perfect day to me!

lawn talk

since the plans for sunday fell through, i went over to aaron and jeffry lee's place to see them on monday. it was good to see them again and just chill. we didnt really do anything, we grabbed a few chairs and sat out in the lawn for a few hours talking about everything from cars (their choice) to movies (my choice!). poco enjoyed the time by wandering around the yard searching out new smells!
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sandy 4th

sunday morning we joined the family for a hot service at the sandy pines chapel. when we got back the kids stopped by to cause a ruckus (which am always up for!) as the day went on the girls went to the beach (again), and i made a quick drive home to check on the dog and let him out in the back yard for a run. when i got back everyone was just getting back from the water. the preparations were now underway for the big grill out that mom and dad were planning! they had the whole gang of their friends over and everything. the guys had said that they might come out to sandy pines as well, but that didnt exactly pan out, so instead i invited freddie and his mom (who also has a place out at sandy pines) to join us for the grill out. they accepted and we were delighted that they joined us! it was really cool to spend some time with just freddie (ok, i guess it wasnt just him since his mom was there too...) and just hang out. i hope they felt comfortable and had a good time, because we sure did!
that night we joined the kids for the 4th of july fireworks that they always have out at sandy pines. it was great because this year, unlike last year, the kids stayed right by us and enjoyed the fireworks with us on our blanket! there were many oohs and aahs and bangs! aves made sure she had ear plugs this time so she wouldnt be so scared of the loud ones!
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taste of pizza

saturday night we went to allegan for some pizza. diana and i went with mom and dad and four of their friends to the pizza hut in allegan. it was a good time just hanging out together there. we so rarely get to see anyone at sandy pines, so its always a treat when we can spend some time chatting with them. after we ate we all walked down the street to the downtown square to see what was going on. there was a little festival or something going on, a sort of 'taste of allegan' type thing. we wandered around a bit, and ended up going into some of the little second hand shops along the way. i even found some good cds at one of the shops for only fifty cents each- not too bad for some new music (and by new i mean 90's bands, so its not really new at all...)!

candy collecting

one of the highlights of the 4th of july weekend at sandy pines is the afternoon parade. papa and i headed over to get a spot to watch, with jill, tim and the kids soon joining us. mom and diana had been at the beach on the other side of the lake, so they just decided to watch it from there and head right back to their important duties of soaking up the sun! the kids had planned ahead and each of them came with a big bag ready to fill it up with the candy that the passing floats would throw. as they waved at the passing parade and collected their candy, the kids were constantly pestered by some of the adults (i'm looking at you adam!) for some of their sweet loot! by the end of it they had left with almost a pound of candy each- now thats a good parade!
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4th flea

somehow i convinced diana to get up on time saturday morning. forgoing sleep is not something that she does very willingly, so i was very grateful! we got to sandy pines in time to join everyone on the way to the flea market. they have these about three or four times through out the summer and i just love them! i always have, going all the way back to when i was about 10 and i would tag along with mom and dad and often my cousin jeff to see what kind of junk people were trying to get rid of that week. well, that tradition is alive and well in the jill's three kids! i walked with bubba around the flea market and he kept pulling me forward. the booth he wanted to get to was at the end of the circle, so he really wanted to get there fast! i, as his uncle, would of course go as slowly as possible, often stopping to look at things that i knew he wouldnt like at all 'hey bub, check out this water softener kit!' 'uncle mark, can we PLEASE go!'
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friday night (first sequence)

diana and i headed up to grand rapids for the 4th of july weekend. we got there friday evening and met up with the guys. jeffry lee had organized a huge get together to watch a movie together at jill's house. we got there and chatted with everyone for a bit then we headed into the house to watch the movie. the strange thing though was that jill was not going to stick around to watch the movie. it was a scary one and she doesnt like those kind of movies. it just so happens that diana doesnt like them either, so the two of them went out together and got to chat for a bit while the rest of us watched the movie. it was a really crappy movie, but it was still a good time! its always a strange treat to hang out with brains and keith together. brains is a very manic, say whats on his mind, find-a-good-laugh-in-everything kind of guy, while keith is about the exact opposite of that... then you throw freddie and jeffry lee into that mix? oh man. no matter how you slice it, thats going to be a good night! in the past, a variation of this combo has often ended with jeffry lee tearing off his shirt, hulk style...

finally!

i've been wanting it for years, saying i will get get the internet soon. i figured that if i say im getting it enough, it might actually someday happen. well, today is someday!!! diana and i decided it was time to take the plunge and finally get the internet at the house. i am very thankful, thats for sure. no more 8 hour long visits to panera bread or mcdonalds, mooching off of them for their free wi-fi. how we have it for ourselves! there has been much rejoicing around here, thats for sure! now when someone asks if i have an email address or if i have a facebook page i dont have to sheepishly answer them 'well, i dont have the internet, so...'. now i can actually update this blog without having to free up the whole evening and lugging my computer to a restaurant and getting dozens of strange looks! all is now well with the world...

handy man

since i've got so much free time on my hands, i have been trying to fix the place up a bit. that means that i get to pull out my tools and pretend to be good with them! really, i am not much of a fix-it guy, which is a bit surprising because my dad is the do-it-yourself guru! on a saturday afternoon to relax, he will go wander the halls of home depot! i wish i had gotten some of that from him, but instead i am relegated to just trying my best. which sometimes leads to failure...
some of the stuff i've been able to take care of (with a reasonable amount of success). the other side of the duplex had some wiring issues with a few light switches that no longer worked. i went over there with my tool belt on (ok, i dont actually have a tool belt, but i did stuff them into my pockets!) and replace the broken switches in the second bedroom and the bathroom. both were fairly simple and surprisingly successful! also there was a pretty big leak in the bathtub faucet. i tried my best, i took it apart, stared at it, and put it back together. i was flabbergasted that that didnt work! i decided to take my dad's advice: 'son, when it comes to plumbing- call a professional! its not worth the headache'. wise words papa, wise words! i got a plumber over and he took a look, ran to get some parts, and was done within an hour. amazing! another project i wanted to tackle was changing all the light switches and sockets in our bedroom. i had planned on doing that back when we repainted before i got married, but never got around to it. i had all the stuff already purchased, waiting for me to do it, so i finally did. it went pretty well with only one electrical shortage, blowing the fuse. is that burning i smell?!? turned out that one of the sockets was touching the metal box, so it short circuited the whole place... oops. i then wrapped it in many layers of electrical tape, and all was fixed!
all in all, i was pretty proud of myself! now i just need to do some painting and the place will look brand new. ish.

sister's keeper

we always love it when sis comes and visits!!! barbara, our semi-regular house guest came by and we had a blast! diana really wanted to go shopping, but since i'm not much fun in that regard, she was ecstatic that her sister came over. we went down to the mall in merrillville and grabbed a bite to eat, then the girls flew like a whirlwind through the mall! i opted to chill out at the borders in the mall and just sit back and thumb through a stargate sg-1 novel (it was stargate sg-1 book 13 called 'hydra' for those who are interested. which i'm sure is everyone...). about three hours later they came back with bags in each hand! we headed back home and chilled out for the night, ordered pizza and watched a movie- it was a ton of fun!
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my biggest fan

its summer time, and that means i have plenty of time to work on my 'honey do' list. there are a bunch of things that i have been needing to do around the house but have claimed i am too busy to do. well, i'm not too busy now! the first project on the list was the ceiling fan in the bathroom. it went out a little while ago and it needed replacing. i was a bit worried about this project because the house is really old and the fan looked like it was an original from when this place was first built. i figured there was no way we could find a replacement that would fit right. looks like i was wrong! i went to the local hardware store and checked out their selection. i found one that i thought would fit in the huge hole in our ceiling. it turned out that the one i bought is actually the exact same one that was installed in there already! really, ceiling fan makers? there hasnt been any new technological advances in the past 45 years?!? i was shocked- i put the new fan next to the old one and it is literally the exact same- its even got the same colored wires and housing unit! wow! this job turned out to be pretty simple after all! it took me a while to realize that it was going to be that simple, and i of course made it harder than it had to be...
find out more (with pictures!) here.

teacher becomes the student

one of the annoyances of being a teacher is that i too have to be a student. in order to get a teaching licence, i have to take some college courses. well, i dont have the time to go to class three days a week for a whole semester, so instead i enrolled in a one week course that has class monday through friday from 8:00 am till 5:00 pm. i get my class credits and am done in five days! hurray!
i did one of these last summer too. they arent too hard and actually have very little homework, so i cant complain too much (though i will...). this one was about keeping order in the classroom, so there were actually quite a few good ideas that i am going to be able to use this coming school year. begrudgingly i must admit that it was worth while and i gained a bit from it. shoot.

a lake break

soon after school got out we went to go visit diana's family! we were only able to stay for one day, but diana was really excited to take advantage of the warm weather and lay out in the sun at the lake. we enjoyed the lazy afternoon together, and in the evening her mom and david had some friends over for a tasty grill out. it was a great time together, and fortunately the massive amounts of rain didnt come until after we had enjoyed the lake and had our food. we are both looking forward to going again soon to spend time with family. diana's excited about more time in the sun too (me, not so much...)
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dye hair, dye!

now that summer vacation has begun, its time to have some fun! one of the things i like to do during summer vacation is play around a little with my appearance. i dont feel like i can do too much during the year, wanting to look professional and all, but with summer comes a new look! in the past i have shaved off different parts of my facial hair for something different, but this time i figured i would take advantage of the fact that i have a wife who is a hair stylist!

we went in the day after school got out and she gave me a faux-hawk and bleached me blonde! when i first saw that my gray hair was replaced by bright blonde i was quite shocked! now that i've had a bit of time to get used to it, it actually looks quite normal. diana has taken a shining to it as well, so we will see if maybe this, or at least a more muted form of it, continues through the fall...

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goodbye ali

with another school year finished, one teacher is leaving us this year. ali, the science teacher and a good friend, is moving to oregon. its where she is originally from, and where her new husband jeremy is from too. i guess when they got married it was only a matter of time before they got the itch to move back closer to family. diana and i were just hoping that it wouldnt be six months after they got married... she felt the same pull that i did when i left salt lake city: her sisters started having babies and wanted to be there to see them grow up. i did the same, once jill and timmy had bubba, i knew it was time to move closer to home (granted, i'm still two hours away, but thats a bit better than twenty five hours away...).
after school got out diana and i invited ali out for lunch to see her one last time. we hung out with her and jeremy a few times and were looking forward to having another couple as close friends, but the draw of nieces is just too strong! i cant blame her, but we will miss her. good luck, ali and jeremy!