Fit is Go

For the past year or so, we have been living life happily with no car payments. Our cars were no where near new, but we felt that they were fairly reliable and safe. Well, Ted drives around 30,000 miles a year for work. We took his car in on Thursday for what we thought was a small oil leak. Apparently, there is no such thing as "small". They guys told us there were many things needing to be replaced at a cost of at least $1500. Who wants to pay that for an old car??? Not us!

So, we spent every minute since Thursday in our search. It ended today with our new (used) Honda Fit! Only 8,000 miles and combined MPG of 35. Not too bad for a guy who does nothing but drive for his job. Yay for mileage reimbur

All Dressed Up with No Place to Go!

Nolan got his first tie. Cute, huh?

Blogging Slacker

I am so glad that it is spring! We have been playing outside for HOURS every day! Walking or biking to the park has taken up much of that time. We also love our little cul-de-sac. I know I've mentioned it, but there are 11 kids under the age of 10. Of course, all are girls except Nolan and #12 who will be born in April. We couldn't be luckier! We spend much of our time wandering around outside until someone comes out to play. Here are just a few pictures of our recent activities.

Hiking

Biking

Playing in the sand

Playing with trucks

Nolan's First Haircut.

Before

After
With friends at the park

Riding Horses...
...at our friend's birthday party!
Playing with Papa and Grandma
Ted and Nathan (across the street) playing with the Nerf Machine Gun.
(100 continuous rounds! Go Nathan!)
And just being cute!

Thanks for catching up with us! Did I mention how much I am LOVING spring???

New Paint

When my dear parents were here a couple of weeks ago, there was no easy going vacation for them. As soon as they got here, they went to work beautifying my house. My mom painted all the trim inside of the house and the front door. My dad scraped all the exterior paint, caulked the wood, washed it, and painted the entire non-brick front. Thanks so much Mom and Dad!

I picked out the colors and we even changed the main exterior paint 3 times before finally just leaving it like this. I am not sold on the colors together, or even the wall color alone. But, they did a wonderful job and it is painted nicely and protected from the elements. We aren't changing it anytime soon, (Dad isn't coming back in the near future. :) Ha ha ha!)but please tell me your honest opinions. Thanks again Mom and Dad. We miss you and can't wait to see you again!

Happy Anniversary

Wow-4 years. The first 3 felt like regular years, but since having Nolan, I think I measure in weeks or months instead of hours and days. Time is just flying so quickly!

I was trying to think of something to write about for our anniversary, but I've done what I like about Ted, our "story", and many of the things we've been through in our marriage. I decided that I would try to think of 3 things that I've learned since marrying Ted.

1. Compromise means truly more than just Ted compromising to give me what I want. I get mad because I think that he won't compromise enough, but that is only because I am rarely willing to budge. It is a big work in progress, but I am trying to appreciate his opinions, individuality, and let go of some things that I truly need to stop trying to control.

2. It isn't all about love. Faced with some big hurdles in the beginning of our marriage, we went forth on faith and love for each other. There is WAY more to marriage and living together than just fluffy love stuff. I've learned that loving him doesn't always make it easy to like him. And also, I don't need to be madly in love with him everyday to have a happy marriage. Those days really are nice, though.

3. I really love living with Ted. It is so nice to know that after whatever our days bring, we end up together in the same bed. I love that I don't have to worry about what I am going to do each weekend or who I am going to hang out with. I have a built-in buddy. He actually always likes being with me, too. It isn't always easy to have a permanent roommate, but who else will ask me to play Schmear, or Tick, or Cribbage at 10:00 at night? Or watch recorded House, Chuck, and NCIS episodes with me?

I know that the list of things learned, things I am trying hard to learn, and things that will be taught for years to come doesn't end here. I am glad that I have my best friend to share all this with. I love you so much, Ted. Happy Anniversary!