Turkey Day

This week was a wonderful break from school! I got home on Tuesday and had a nice dinner at Applebee's with Adam and then watched Family Stone. My mom got home from conferences and dad got home and we all just hung out and relaxed! Wednesday, mom and I went shopping and got a lot of Christmas gifts bought! I came back home and hung out with Adam. Then, Thursday morning, Diet Coke 2 Liters were on sale at Meijers, so Adam and I were sent out at 6am to save 70 cents[top left picture]!!! Then, Adam and I left to go to his house for Thanksgiving. My parents headed out shortly after to join us. We had a lovely meal with Adam's parents, G-ma Schlusler, and my family. We stayed and just talked and relaxed for the evening. I spent the night there and then went to Somerset with Adam and his mom. We left after the mad rush and just shopped and 'peope watched'!! After we got home, we finished with the Christmas decorations at his house, then went back to my house for another Thanksgiving meal!! We ate a delicious meal and then hung out!! Saturday, Adam and I hung out and went shopping, yes again, with my parents - - - got more presents!! Then, we drove back to Lapeer to spend the night there. We went to Adam's church (where my parents were married) and then had a nice lunch! We hung out at his house, and then back to mine. Early this morning, Michelle and I headed back out to come back to school :-\ . It was such a wonderful break from school . . . I didnt do ANY of my homework. . . oops! I cant wait til Christmas vacation =) I hope you all enjoyed the holiday as much as I did!!!

Random Weekend

This weekend, rather spur of the moment, I made the decision to come home!! Adam's dad could not go to the last home Michigan game, so he invited me! I had to work my BUTT off this week to get all my work done, but I made it!! I came home Friday after classes (with curly hair) and just hung out. Saturday, Adam and I left fairly early to get to the game. I wore

• 2 under armors,
• 2 tshirts,
• a sweatshirt,
• my North Face,
• rain jacket,
• 2 pair of socks,
• leggings,
• jeans,
• hat, and
• gloves

...and was STILL freezing!! We got to the game and it was freezing rain, then started to snow, then back to hailing!! We decided, since Michigan is having a rather 'off' season that we would leave!! As we were leaving, it started to rain harder!! I dont think I have ever walked a mile so fast!! We were SOAKING wet and full out ran at least 5 blocks! So heavy because we were soaked down to the lowest layer!! We went out to eat and then back to my house to warm up!! Sunday, we woke up and went to see the Childrens Orphanage Choir (soo cute) then it was about time to head back. It was sad with winter starting and everything!! The next 9 days til Turkey Day Break will fly =)

Home for the Weekend!

I know it seems as though I never have class, but on Friday, classes were canceled so Michelle and I decided to come home Thursday after classes! Trust me. . . I do have classes, and plenty of them, but I take advantage of the times I don't! I was dropping Michelle off and met Adam at the same spot. He told me he had something for me, so I went to get in his car. He gave me a box wrapped in silver paper with a pink bow on top. I was anxious to see what it was! I got it open and it was a beautiful heart shaped necklace with diamonds outlining it! It is SO gorgeous! I LOVE IT [didn't he do fantastic?!]!! We got to my house and hung out for the night, while my mom, dad, and Adam heard me ask nearly 1000 times, "Did you guys know I got a new necklace?!" I went to school with mom on Friday and then hung out with Adam for the weekend! We went to Lapeer on Saturday to hang out with his family and then they came over for dinner. Sunday, we went to Bedside Baptist and relaxed all afternoon. Such a lovely weekend!! I cherish the times I am able to come home (in a few months, I wont be able to come home whenever I want :( ). I cant wait to be able to go home next and show off my necklace some more!!!

Weekend at Home

This past weekend, my friend Michelle and I decided to go home because we didn't have classes on Friday. We left Thursday about 1 when I got out of class and were home by 6pm!! It was so nice!! Adam picked me up and we went straight to my house to get in the Jeep with my parents and head to dinner with Sharon. We got home just in time for Greys (thankfully) and then hung out for the night. Adam woke up early in the morning to go to class and then I got back in bed and watched tv with my mom! We woke up and got ready and then took an online test then headed out for the day. We ran a few errands, went to a few appointments, but started the day off with lunch at the new Sonic. It was such a fun afternoon. When Adam was out of class, he headed over for the weekend. On Friday, Adam was so excited to go to the opening night of High School Musical 3, so I decided I should probably go along with him (hahahahaha, right!). I loved it!! We ran into a bit of a dilema at the theatre, going to West at 10pm on the weekend = not good idea!! There was a HUGE fight... 10 state trooper, township, and county cars all loaded with teens going to jail! Adam and I were SO scared!! The whole drive home, we saw more and more cop cars going to the theatre to take more to the bars. Just crazy!! The whole time we were watching the movie there were kids taking pictures, running in and out, talking, calling people on their cell phones, throwing candy, etc. I still loved the movie!! Then, Saturday, Adam and I met his mom and dad to go to Ann Arbor. We got down there and ate at Zingerman's Deli for a delicious lunch!! Adam and his dad went to the U of M vs. MSU game and his mom and I went shopping all afternoon! We headed home after a loss for one of Adams teams and a victory for the other! Sunday, after church mom made a delicious lunch and then we just hung out and did homework. It was such a relaxing weekend - - - I am so blessed to be able to come home and enjoy the time with my family and friends!!

SOLD

I thought I would be sad when I found out that my Sunfire sold, but really, the day has come and I am happy to let some other person enjoy it as much as I did!! It was such a great car, excellent gas milegae, and pretty good driving, not top of the line, but did me good!! Hope the next person loves it as much as I did :-)

Fall Break

Friday Night:
I got dropped off in East Lansing about 8pm. Adam picked me up and we went to my house for the weekend. When we got home, my mom and dad had a fire ready outside, so we sat outside and talked with them for quite some time. It was such a beautiful night!! We came inside and had wonderful cheesy potato soup. Shortly after, we all went to bed to get a good nights rest for our big day on Saturday.
Saturday:
Adam and I woke up and found mom and dad had made a splendid breakfast. We had pancakes, sausage, eggs . . . the whole nine yards! After breakfast, we had a nice little photo shoot {see above} before we headed off to the U of M game. We drove down to Ann Arbor, watched U of M stink it up but had a blast! It was so much fun!! I had never been there, and of course Adam had, so he showed me around and answered all 81 questions. After the game, we went to Buffalo Wild Wings and ate yummy chicken! We met mom and dad at the movie theater to watch Fireproof. That was a cute movie!! After the movie, we went back to my house and hung out and then went to bed.
Sunday:
We all woke up and got ready for church. We went to first service, then while mom and dad were in Sunday school, Adam and I went to the mall to waste time. There, we ran into Mr and Mrs. Rockwell! That was a nice surprise - - - Adam talked law with Mr. Rockwell and I helped Mrs. Rockwell pick out new jewelry. We went back to church for a leader appreciation lunch. Wasn't that a blast?! After lunch, we had another photo shoot {see below}!! We came inside and started to do homework, but I got sick! I had a fever, stomach ache, head ache, the whole deal. I rested all day while Adam did his homework! Sunday night, we watched our usual shows and then went to sleep.
Monday:
Mom and dad went to work and Adam left shortly after to make it back in time for class. I woke up and felt horrible!! I looked and my tonsils were touching in the back of my throat! Then, I went downstairs and started my homework. I did homework ALL day and then went to East Lansing to pick Adam up from his first Law Midterm. I got soooo lost around that campus . . . lets just say its no Olivet Naz!! After I picked Adam up, we went to his apartment and hung out with Amy for a while. We ordered pizza and just relaxed!! It was such a fun night just hanging out! About midnight, I drove back home and went to sleep!
Tuesday:
I woke up and did more homework. Then, I packed and got ready to head out. Mom came home from school early and we talked for a while. We left about 5:30 and got to school about 9 (IL time) and settled back in here. I miss being at home and with everyone! Cant wait until the next time :-)

Michigan, On A Whim

This weekend, spur of the moment, my roommate Marisa and I decided to come home! We had been trying to make plans all week about going to MI, but they kept falling through. Marisa plays softball here at Olivet and when she got out of practice at 6pm, she came home and we went to McDonalds for dinner. There, we decided to go back to our apartment, shower and get on the road for our 5 hour trip to MI! We got on the road about 7pm and got to East Lansing to pick up Adam about midnight! From there, we drove to my house and met Eric and hung out for the weekend! We had such a blast hanging out, relaxing, not sleeping, watching movies, etc! Honestly, this is what college is about!! :-)

While we were home, my dad and I took my little red Sunfire up to Bedell's Car Lot to sell it. It was sort of sad dropping it off, but when I was driving the old gilappy[sp?], it reminded me how much I LOVE my new car!!

Chicago

This past weekend, Mom and Dad came down to Bourbonnais to see my new apartment and see me!  They were both working the day I moved in, so I just loaded my car and drove myself down here!  They wanted to get a picture of where I was living, so since they had a long weekend, they came down!  It was so nice to see them and we enjoyed our time together so much.  Friday night they arrived and we got a pizza and ate that while hanging out in their hotel room.  Then, we went and sat in the hot tub and gave my dad a lesson or two on correct strokes!  Saturday morning, we woke up and headed to Monee to catch the train into Chicago.  We went to the city for the day and just shopped and looked around.  We were pooped, but kept missing the train!!  Sunday, Dad went to the National Speed Boat competition while Mom and I ran errands and got groceries.  It was so nice having them in town.  I will sure miss them this semester!

Teacher Bag

Isn't this cute?!  While I was in Kansas, my water spilled ALL over the inside of my bag.  I was so sad and although it wasn't ruined, I was determined to get this bag I have always wanted!!  I feel as though I am now "official"!!

Old Oak 619 #2

This is our study!  We have all four desks in one room as well as all four of our dressers.  Andrea and Brittany have their closets in this room.  It is where we will all spend most of our time!! 

This is our bedroom.  We have all four beds bunked, 2 and 2.  I am on the top bunk on the right side.  Marisa has her closet in this room!  I have a feeling we wont be in there too long!

This is our family room, kitchen, and dining room.  We have a nice sized kitchen/dining room this year which will be nice for those who cook!   Our family room is HUGE!! We have a great big tv with a great big wrap around couch!  It is a lovely place to go and relax!

This is our bathroom.  It is at least twice the size of last years!!  The shower head is REALLY low though, its for little people!!

Finally, this is our pantry.  It is right when you walk in the door to our apartment.  It is a HUGE walk in closet... also the closet for my clothes!!  (Its the benefit of moving in last!!)  Its okay, I could live out of my car for 3 months if i had to!

It looks as if it is going to be a fun year!  All my roommates are very nice and seem pretty easy going!! It should be a great last semester here at Olivet (even with my 27 credit hours!!)

Carry On Bag

I had 10 boxes of 10 markers (yes, that is 100 markers), 10 packs of 6 erasers (yep, 60 erasers), and 2 8-pocket nylon card storer (?)... When I was going through security, they scanned my bag 6 times thinking "Why in the world does this kid have 100 markers?!"  Yes, my bag was VERY heavy!! :-)  What I do for my mom!!

Dawson's Dynamos

{Left to right, top to bottom}

{{Jimmy, Sydney, Chance, Nina, Sam, Sarah, Savannah, Sean, Mitch, Megan, Mallory, Jocilyn, Jensen, Jennifer, Emma, Derke, Caitlyn, Brian, Ben, and Antonio}}

This is my class I will be student teaching with!! Aren't they adorable!?  I am SO excited :-)

Teacher and Class

This is my host teacher, Mrs. Dawson!  I am so excited to work with her!  She has been teaching for 31 years and has lots of great ideas!  She is very fun and does lots of interactive activities with the students. I cant wait to learn from her!

This is my class!  I will be working with these 21 adorable students for 16 weeks starting in January!  I am so excited to get to know these kids and help prepare them for 6th grade!!

Ms. Dawson's Classroom

This is the classroom I will be spending many hours come January!  Over this past week, I have already spend many hours helping set up this wonderful classroom!  So excited!! :-)

Christa McAuliffe Elementary School

Christa McAuliffe Elementary School is where I will be doing my Student Teaching starting in January! It is such a beautiful school.  It is about 20 years old, but you would NEVER know!  They have a 'pod' set up to accommodate all the teachers with a supply room in the middle.  They have ALL of the technology you could imagine in every single classroom!!  Outside, they have 4 different playground sets along with huge fields for kickball, soccer, baseball, etc.  The kids love it!  On the perimeter of one side, they have gardens that the students take care of.  They have the Principals garden (grow his favorite things), pizza garden (grow pizza toppings), etc.  It is such a great way to teach children responsibility, plant life, etc! 

Their theme is "Reach for the Stars" because of the Astronaut, Christa McAuliffe

Kansas

To whoever thinks that Kansas is flat with corn fields everywhere... 4 different roads in Kansas that are CLEARLY not flat with corn!! :-)

Maggie

This is little Maggie Moo, Aunt Kay and Uncle Deans dog.  She is so sweet!! It is so fun to be around a dog again! I forgot how much life they bring to a house!  Maggie gets so hyper and just laps the house, until you get in her way!! Also, Maggie hates to have her paws touched, so I would grab them and just hold on and she would go nuts!! She would try to bite me and when I didn't let go, she bit herself!!  She is funny!

Crate and Barrel

Aunt Kay works at Crate and Barrel in Kansas and works with the design team.  She got to do two displays which turned out BEAUTIFUL!!  She is so talented!! She even wrote the sign above the little round table display!  We will have tons of fun come December!!

Peach Pie

Mom and I had an idea to make a Peach custard pie . . . this is how it turned out!  You'll just have to trust me when I say it tasted WAY better than it looked!  While we were eating pie, Dad decided to make some coffee.  Lets just say that didn't turn out well either!  The platter in front of the coffee stuff didn't survive the move.  Mom was very sad!  She just looked at it . . .  After the grieving session was over, we went to Tropical Smoothie Cafe for a wonderful summer treat!  That made her feel better!  While I was in Kansas, Aunt Kay and I looked high and low for a replacement platter . . . no such luck!

Mamma Mia

For my moms birthday, I got her tickets to our favorite Broadway show. . . Mamma Mia!  Gay got Aunt Kathy tickets for Mothers Day and we got Mrs. Rockwell to join us!  Mamma Mia came to Grand Rapids during the week, so we decided to go Saturday, Aug 2.  It was SUCH a great time!  Mrs. Rockwell, mom and I met Aunt Kathy and Gay in Lansing at the outdoor mall and ate a wonderful lunch at Bravo!  It was delicious!!  We then continued our drive to Grand Rapids just in time to get in our seats take a few pictures then enjoy the play.  It was such a FANTASTIC cast!  It was the best production of Mamma Mia I have seen... and trust me, I have seen it enough to know!!  After the play came to an end ( :-( ) we all went to the bathroom and took pictures.  We were about the last people in the theatre when Mrs. Rockwell said, "Thats Pepper" (a character in the play)!  We were SO excited and made Mrs. Rockwell go ask him. . . when he said it was him, she asked him to come talk to us!  He was such a nice guy . . .so normal and kind!  I felt like I was meeting a superstar!!  The same cast is going to Chicago in September, so we are planning on going again!! After the play, we went to an authentic Mexican place for dinner and then headed home for the night, of course jamming to the soundtrack (which is about wore out!!)

Happy Birthday, Mom!!

Cedar Point

Finally arriving to Cedar Point!!  Adam and I left my house at 8am to arrive at Cedar Point by 11!  We were both so excited to ride all the rides and enjoy the beautiful day in Sandusky, Ohio.

Adam, our tickets, our food ( :-) ), and us getting ready to head out!

#1- Magnum

We decided to start our day with something small, but thrilling. . . lots of fun and got us warmed up!

#2- Top Thrill Dragster

Adam and I were in line for a while and started to get nervous (even though I had already been on it 4 times) but it was GREAT!! 17 seconds total. . . 0-120 mph in under 3 seconds and goes straight up and down 1/2 mile into the sky!  

#3- Mean Streak

Very jerky, but no line!!

Cedar Point

#4- Gemeni

Fun ride, real short line!  Our blue car won the race, too!

#5- Millenium Force

Awesome ride!  Just a great ride all in all

#6- Power Tower

Short line and just a time filler really!

#7- Raptor

Sweet ride . . . lots of fun kicking the sky!

#8- MaXair

Good lesson of faith. . . looking directly at the ground while very high in the air, held in by a strap!

Cedar Point

#9 - Wicked Twister

Fun ride. . . short line!!

#10- Disaster Transport

Inside ride ~ wanted a break from the sun!

#11- Maverick

Brand new ride, long line but AWESOME

#12- Top Thrill Dragster

Had to do it again!

#13- Millenium Force

So fun at night, but when we got done, all the workers were laughing at us because we had gnats ALL over us. . . up our arms, hair, eyebrows, shirt, etc!!

What a F-A-N-T-A-S-T-I-C day!!  So much fun :-)

Fun Summer Friday

I was chatting online with my cousin Gay early this evening and just talking about what was going on and catching up.  No later than 10 minutes into our conversation, we had set up to meet tonight and have dinner and whatnot! 

Gay and Aunt Kathy (my bad!) came up from Detroit to meet mom, Mrs. Rockwell, and myself at Bar Louie!! We absolutely love that place... frequent goers!  We knew all of the waiters and just laughed the entire night! We sat outside and ate appetizers for about 2 hours!  We had such a fun time . . . but didn't want the night to end, so... 

We went to the Banana Boat (the ice cream place)!  They serve ridiculously huge servings of ice cream... like a junior (which we all got) is 3 monstrous scoops of ice cream!  None of us finished ours because we had just eaten so much at Bar Louie, but enjoyed each others company.

I love last minute plans... almost as much as I love summer fun!! :-)

Fireflies

Last night, Adam, mom, dad and I went to get ice cream at the Banana Boat.  When we got home, mom wanted to have a fire, so dad got it all started up.  We somehow got to talking about fireflies when I had mentioned that I had never caught one!  Adam and I ran inside to get a Mason jar and out we went running and catching fireflies!! It was SO fun!! The first one I caught, well attempted to, I squished in the lid when I was closing the top!!  Oops!! The second one, I successfully got in the container, but when I lifted the lid to give him some air, I squashed that one between the lid too!! At this point I was starting to lose faith in my firefly catching abilities!! So Adam, being the professional that he is, took the jar and caught me a firefly (and was successful all the way around!)  After I had one living firefly, I was content!  We sat around the fire for a while then called it a night!! Firefly catching isnt as easy as its cracked up to be!! 

Golf

For Fathers Day last year . . . and this year, I gave my golfing father a 'coupon' that said I would go golfing with him!  He was so excited last year when he got it, but I never went with him - - - so I thought I would give it a try this year, telling him it expired in 364 days, so last years was exempt!  So I thought I woulud actually give him his gift this year. . . 

This morning

Me - "Whatcha doing today Dad?"

Dad- "Oh, I dont know, what are you doing?"

Me- "Going golfing with you?!"

Dad- {lights up} "REALLY?! I have to run a few errands, I will be right back. . .  DONT CHANGE YOUR MIND!"

A few hours later, there we are. . . out on the golf course with my new clubs from Aunt Kathy!

I hope he enjoyed it!! :-)

Car

Remember when I ran into a wire last October??  Well, you cant tell anymore!!  My amazing Uncle Dean came into town for the Estate Sale and when he had a free minute, he fixed my car!!  He did an AMAZING job!! You cant even tell there was a HUGE dent there!!  He also fixed my passenger side lock because it wouldn't work with the clicker or the button . . . it had to be personally locked or unlocked!  When he was finished, he called me outside (and at this point, I didn't even know he was working on my car) so I go out and there is my car. . . perfect!! The first thing I said was, "Thats impressive!!"  I was  - - - still am, so excited!!

Estate Sale

G-Dog sold his house this summer when he was home and we had the huge job of cleaning it and selling everything in the house!!  We worked like dogs getting ready for the garage sale which was the last weekend in June.  We just got rid of junk at that sale. . . but after that was over, it was time to switch gears and get ready for the big Ken Daly Estate Sale! Aunt Kay and Uncle Dean came in to help with the sale which was a huge help and the Schluslers really helped by doing a little of everything!  It was 3 days long and we put about 15 days into setting up, pricing, staging, etc!  The sale was a success and was worth it to help out G-Dog!  He already went back to AZ which made us all sad, but he is enjoying the HOT weather! We miss him already! 

College Friends

A few weeks ago, my friend Jennifer came to visit me from Chicago.  I was so excited to see her since it had been about 2 months since we left school!  She came up on a Wednesday night and stayed until Sunday afternoon!  We had so much fun being crazy together!  Thursday, we just hung out, relaxed a bit and had a fire with smores at night (see pictures above).  Friday, we woke up and drove to Fenton to the lake.  We stopped by Quiznos to get lunch and then off to lay in the sun!!  Saturday, we went shopping and just hung out around good ole Flint Town!!  Sunday, we woke up and went to church and then Jennifer had to leave and get back home for the Cubs game!!  It was so nice to see her and hang out with her all weekend!! :-)

No Blogs

Shortly after I got home from school, my wireless stopped connecting on my computer . . . hence the lack of blogs this summer!! I just let it sit for a while hoping my brother could fix it when he was home, but he didn't come home!  I called Linksys about 2 weeks ago to have them fix it but after an hour on the phone with them, they told me to call Dell.  I get on the phone and call Dell and speak with a very nice lady and she gives it her best shot for over 2 hours!!!  She can't figure out the problem . . . so she transfers me! I am on the phone with another nice guy for over an hour when he finally finds the problem!! Phew, my internet works again!!  I shut my computer off at night and in the morning when I went to turn it back on. . . it doesn't work again!!  I let it sit for another week because I didn't want to call and talk to Dell for another 3 hours, but today, I figured it was about time!! I was only on the phone for 10 minutes and the wonderful woman got it to work!! I  shut my computer off and it STILL works!!! YAY!!!