2013 Boersma Christmas Card

I went a little overboard with the kind of card we sent out this year, and therefore, could only afford to send 100 (and truthfully I should have kept it under 75...or been less picky about the cards on Shutterfly. And this year THEY OFFERED A SHIMMER FINISH...just stop). Anyway, I still wanted to share our Christmas letter with everyone on our blog. We've had a pretty bomb 2013...

"Come and behold Him, born the King of Angels..."

2013 was filled with excitement and stress; highs and lows; growth and change...and a lot of fun packed in between! We love spending time with family, especially now that our youngest siblings also call Ames 'home.' Opening our home to host parties with friends; college kids with their laundry; and connection group gatherings has continued to be one of our greatest joys as homeowners (as well as a great way to occasionally practice our patience!) Highlights from 2013 were..

January: Josh pushes snow. Mollie coaches Ames High Winter cheerleading. A friend moves into our spare bedroom for a few weeks. We buy new living room furniture! Mollie finally learns to sew thanks to her mother-and-sister-in-law.

February: Mollie coaches cheerleaders at State Wrestling for the first time (scary!). Josh plans for BLC's 13th summer. We babysit our niece and nephew overnight for the first time. We continue to love attending church at Cornerstone.

March: Chemical applications start for Josh. Mollie begins volunteering at Informed Choices (a pro-life medical clinic in Ames). We re-watch the entire series of How I Met Your Mother for the 5th time, starting with Season 1.

April: Mollie continues to enjoy working for 'her' realtor at Century 21. Josh has some equipment/warranty problems with Dixie Chopper. We spend a lot of time with our new connection group friends! Mollie still loves Pinterest.

May: Josh buys a new pellet gun with money from his 25th birthday. Mollie's sister 'moves in' for the summer. It rains 20" in less than a month and mowing is crazy! We have a lot of summer weddings to attend.

June: Josh's brother (and employee) leaves for a mission trip to Africa during the busiest part of the season. Josh works 80+ hours a week! Mollie re-paints the kitchen and dining room. We celebrate our third anniversary on June 19th!

July: Mollie road-trips with friends to Colorado for a wedding. The summer drought of 2013 begins. Josh buys Mollie an iPad as a 'five-months-early' birthday present. Mollie coaches at cheer camp and loves using her new iPad!

August: Josh works on the 'Man Cave' in the attic above the garage. The drought gets worse. A friend moves back into our spare bedroom for a few months and Mollie's sister moves into an apartment. We buy an acreage!!!!!!!!!!

September: Mollie decorates 422 13th St. for fall! Josh mows and treats his irrigated accounts but loses revenue due to the drought. Mollie gets her tonsils out and doesn't leave the house for two weeks. We make plans for fixing up our 'farm.'

October: We close on our acreage and the hard work begins. Our parents, siblings, and many friends stop by to offer their help with clean-up. Work for BLC explodes and Josh is very busy again! Mollie starts writing this Christmas letter.

November: We have 50+ people contact us with interest in renting our acreage! Mollie starts her cheer coaching season. Josh loves working at our new 'farm.' We host Thanksgiving for Mollie's side of the family. Josh prepares to push snow.

December: Mollie's Christmas decorating reaches new extremes (eight trees!). We host the 5th annual ThanksChristmas (a tradition our Salt Company friends started while we were all in college). We travel all over Iowa celebrating Christmas with both sides of the family. Josh can't stop watching Home Alone...Mollie can't stop glittering things...

All in all, we are thankful that God's timing is perfect in everything...and ours isn't. Josh had his fair share of stress and equipment problems scattered throughout the season, but we've survived another year as small-business owners. We are thankful that God has provided abundantly more than we deserve...even during a drought year! How great is our God?!

It's no secret; we're a little Christmas-obsessed (okay not a little...a lot). As we prepare to spend our 5th Christmas together, we've realized that the month of December has gradually spiraled out of control. For each of us growing up, Christmas revolved around Luke Chapter 2 and the wonder of the real Christmas story. Josh hardly remembers doing anything 'Santa' at his house...and Mollie's favorite family tradition was (and still is!) attending the Christmas Eve service. We love starting our own traditions; watching Hallmark movies; throwing parties; and celebrating old traditions with family...but we've found ourselves straying from what really matters at Christmastime. Those fun, cozy, tasty, Christmassy things are all wonderful (and help make this time of year so special!) But it's time for us to drop everything and...

"Come let us adore Him, Christ the Lord."

Time for Another...Acreage Update!

Where did November go? I'm sorry, is it really DECEMBER FIFTH TODAY?!

No. No. No.

We knew this was going to happen. We had mentally prepared ourselves for months for how crazy this farmhouse monstrosity would be. But there is just no amount of planning and organizing that can prepare someone for a December like the one we're about to have. I'm admitting defeat.

I should have started my Christmas shopping and crafting in August. Because at this rate, none of you will be getting presents, and our letters won't arrive in your mailboxes until January. Seriously.

I knew it was a good idea to start writing our Christmas letter in September! I KNEW IT!

So the house...where do I begin...storm windows are up on the outside and there is plastic on all the windows inside. Bathroom is in the process of being torn apart and put back together again. Fun Fact: We currently have a nice little 'laundry chute' from the main level to the basement, in the form of a rotten hole in the bathroom floor! That probably freaked you out a little and made you question our sanity (like you have been for the past two months)...never fear. My husband is Josh Boersma. And a rotten bathroom floor is nbd.

Josh replaced some pipes in the basement. Our plumber/heating/cooling guy ran ducts/vents upstairs to the three bedrooms that didn't have heat, and fixed a laundry list of other small things. The propane tank is filled! The water softener is on and operating correctly! Kitchen cupboards are up and the kitchen is FINISHED. Parlor is FINISHED. Two out of three upstairs bedrooms are FINISHED. Landing/Stairway is FINISHED. That felt good...here's what's left.

Bathroom re-do. Front entrance re-do. Final coat of paint in the 'Great Room' (aka the living and dining room...). Final coat of black paint on ALL floors (so excited for this part). Priming/painting/finishing the third upstairs bedroom. Rolling out living room carpet. And a final cleaning sweep of the entire place. I'd say the end is in sight, but my husband isn't exactly feeling that way today (the impending snow storm, his lack of extra helpers, and the hole in the bathroom floor are a perfect recipe for high blood pressure).

We're meeting with our favorite renter candidate today at the farm and praying that we will have a signed lease very soon! With that part off our 'plate' I think we would be able to enjoy the remaining work at the farmhouse a lot more.

My farmhouse projects are at a standstill until more 'stuff' is ready to be painted. So in the meantime, I'm attempting to keep our finances, house, and schedules organized. Oh, and make plans for hosting the annual ThanksChristmas party. :) I tried meal planning last night but realized that I'll be gone for supper for about 8 nights during the next two weeks (thanks to a busy cheer schedule). So instead of planning meals into my Google Calendar, I inserted a shopping trip to Fareway tomorrow night after the basketball game to buy more frozen pizza. Yes folks...tomorrow night at 8pm, my schedule reads, 'Pay monthly bills' and 'Grocery trip to Fareway'. I gave it a good effort though, right?

And a midst all the shopping and spending and farmhouse craziness and Christmas insanity I have managed to get a Nativity in almost every room of our house, and plastered every chalkboard surface with Christmas Hymn's and verses...because I WILL NOT let this season slip away, and forget to give GLORY TO THE NEWBORN KING!

Stay tuned for more 422 13th St. Christmas magic. ;)

MmB

#imabirthdayprincess

It seems completely inappropriate that I haven't gotten around to blogging about one of my favorite things in life...MY BIRTHDAY...until December 2nd, but better late than never, right? Here are a few highlights from my birthday week celebration AND and a small update on what we accomplished at the house during that week.

Monday of birthday week was celebrated by going shopping for my birthday present with Jamie. She bought me this adorable pillow that looks perfect on our magical Christmas bed. I ended the evening with a visit from my BFF Nikki and a bottle of Prairie Moon wine...the perfect way to kick off birthday week.

On Tuesday I got to see some friends at Connection Group, which was fun, but missed Josh being there because he was working. I like having a birthday week because people start to forget when my actual birthday is, give up, and just wish me happy birthday all week long. This has been part of my master plan from the beginning.

On Wednesday THIS arrived at the office for me which was a surprise for a couple of reasons...1) It was Wednesday and technically not my birthday and 2) Jamie has no money and she STILL sent me flowers. What-a-sis. 

Thursday was extra-fun because my best-friend-since-2nd-grade-Erryn and her husband Sean came up to Ames for our annual birthday celebration supper. I had grand plans to take them to The Cafe, but when the wait was 45 minutes, we ended up where we always do...Hickory Park. :) Erryn's birthday is on the 18th, so we've made a big deal about our birthday's since our first sleepover in 2nd grade when I had Erryn over but she left at 8:00pm because she didn't want to spend the night. Which was actually some sort of weird foreshadowing because with their hectic work/school schedules, Erryn and Sean usually like to end our dinner dates by 8pm so they can get home and get to bed. ;) It was a great night and we need to fit them into our schedules more!

Aaaaaaaand Friday. The grand finale. My dad called me at 7am to sing Happy birthday; Josh's dad texted the words, 'Have a fantabulous day' (hahahaha Vern); Nikki and Peter Seehusen BOTH called to sing Happy Birthday over the phone in it's entirety (note: neither are known for their singing talents, so this was pretty special); everyone at C21 wished me happy birthday, cheerleaders wished me happy birthday, my fellow cheer coaches/friends got me a Starbucks gift card, my boss Tami got me a scarf (she knows me so well); a voicemail from G'ma Junice; and to really make the day, JOSH BOUGHT ME FLOWERS!!! My husband has never gotten me flowers in the three and a half years that we have been married, so this was a big deal. In fact, when Stacey brought them back to my desk she said, 'Are they from Josh?' and I said, 'Oh no they have to be from my parents, Josh doesn't buy me flowers,' and SURPRISE! He even specifically asked for a hydrangea to be in the bouquet because he knows that's my favorite flower. :)

My birthday present from Josh this year was an iPad in July and a car that came a couple weeks after my birthday...both of which were totally over-the-top, undeserved, and wonderful because I have a husband who goes all out, or would say it's not worth doing at all. This is a pretty good example of that. ;)

We went to Old Chicago for birthday supper and then to the movie About Time which was REALLY GOOD! Josh even liked it...probably because of the touching father-son twist at the end. It wasn't what I expected for a romantic-comedy, but it was still really good.

Just when you thought birthday week ended on Friday...just kidding! We partied hard all weekend long. And the partying hard consisted of guilting as many people as possible into helping work at the farm in honor of my birthday. :) Nikki and Kate got up early on a rainy Saturday morning to come help paint, along with both my mother and father-in law and Jamie. We primed 'The Great Room' together in the morning and Kurt and Jill joined in the fun during the afternoon. I reward everyone with Casey's pizza when they come help, so let me know if you're interested...I'm convinced that at this point, we are the ones keeping the doors open at Casey's in Huxley we've ordered so much pizza in the past month. 

Saturday night was birthday celebration with the Boersma side thanks to Vern and Applebee's. My sister-in-law crocheted me a red infinity scarf and hat and Vern and Patti gave me money for the brown boots I bought back in September as my early birthday gift from them. ;) 

Sunday meant more work at the farm finishing trim on the bedrooms upstairs, and touching up places where we missed in the stairway. My parents visited both of my G'mas that day and swung back through Ames for my final birthday supper and presents at Noodles and Company. I got a serving bowl that matches my Christmas dishes and Sarah Palin's new book about Christmas...which I am planning to crack open today. :)

Of course I love getting presents and feeling special during my birthday week...but the most special gift this year has been all the help we've been getting at the farm from friends, and especially our family. Both sets of parents have been RELENTLESS in coming every weekend to help. There hasn't been a single weekend since October 18th that we haven't had one or both sets of parents helping on Saturday or Sunday or both...which is pretty amazing. Our siblings have all pitched in to help and people keep congratulating us on how great the place is looking and how much work we've accomplished and it's totally NOT US. We wouldn't have 1/4 of the work on this farmhouse done if it weren't for our families...I know I am in the minority when it comes to the amazing relationship I have with my in-laws but that's become even more clear in the past couple months. So this is just one big THANK YOU FAMILY. We are so blessed and so thankful for ALL OF YOU.

Here's what upstairs bedroom #1 looked like after birthday week...

MmB

This Old House - Acreage Update 2

Lest you think we haven't gotten anything accomplished in the past few weeks due to my lack of documenting everything via blog, think again!

Since I posted this update, the house has really started to transform. Josh has finished insulating and drywalling the third bedroom upstairs; he's patched drywall in a number of other spots; and he tore apart the front entrance area to open things up a little more. I get regular picture texts from him on days when he is working at the house with updates and questions about what I think.. On Monday during the mini-blizzard, I got a text proclaiming, "I'm saving the farm!"

Oh good. I was worried.

A few weekends ago I gathered both sides of parents for a work day...my dad did a number on the garage while my mom, Josh's mom, and I primed the kitchen, cupboards, and the first upstairs bedroom. The next day Jamie, her friend Natalina, my friend Andrea, and I set to work and got the upstairs landing, stairway, and second bedroom primed. When things start looking great, staying motivated is a little easier. I met Josh's mom at the farm last Monday and we were able to prime the entire Parlor in one night (this is a LOT when you're priming everything from the trim to the walls to the ceiling)!

Today Josh is mudding the new drywall upstairs and starting on the BIG room we have left. The cracks and some drywall need to be patched in the living and dining room, and it's the only room where we haven't made any progress (since ripping out the carpet back in October). I've decided I'm going to force people to start calling it 'The Great Room'...this house is so big and there are so many rooms, people get confused about which room I'm talking about...seriously!

I've learned in the past month that it's not very profitable for me to go out to the farm on week nights. Once I get done with work and cheer practice, I only have an hour or two available to work. Hauling all the paint and supplies and dirtying brushes isn't really worth it if I'm only able to devote a few hours to painting. I like long working weekends where I can make a lot of progress (with help from friends and family!) in order to stay caught up to everything Josh is accomplishing during the week days. His list is quite a bit longer than mine...all that's left for me is a frenzy of painting and cleaning!

Josh has been great about balancing all the different parts of his life that are requiring a lot of the "hard work." He's finished fertilizing and started preparing for snow removal...BLC, check! He's started clearing out and organizing our garage to make sure our 'new' car will fit, along with leaf blowing and mulching...422 13th St, check! And he's prioritized everything that needs to happen with the farm and is gradually crossing things off our long list...Farmhouse, check!

Here are some 'before' and 'after' pictures of some of the spaces where I feel confident enough to start taking pictures. The rest of the 'before' pictures I have will shock you...but I'm saving those until I have 'after' pictures to compare them to...

AFTER: Thanks dad!!! :)

BEFORE

AFTER: Thanks mom and Patti!!! :)

BEFORE

AFTER: Thanks Jamie, Natalina, and Andrea!!! :)

Confession

I have a confession to make.

I'm not as organized as you think I am. In fact...after three and a half years of marriage, there are still things about our household, finances, calendars etc. that are just a downright mess.

This came to my attention yesterday, specifically when I was FINALLY added as a member of Josh's business bank account...I just never got around to it. So even though it was a pain in the butt that I couldn't sign checks, it was just easier to put off going to Veridian with a member of the account and signing a paper.

Another thing...Josh and I went to the dentist this week for the first time in three. years. I never really got around to scheduling that either. I had the same dentist in my hometown since the age of 3...and who knows about Josh. The whole thing was just easier to ignore.

I'm ashamed.

And I started thinking.

Marriage 101, counseling with Pastor's, and chatting with married couples prior to marriage doesn't prepare you to just magically *KNOW* all of the 'extra' stuff that goes into marriage and RUNNING A FREAKING HOUSE. And by 'running a house' I mean suddenly handling laundry for two; extra messes made by this new person who is now living with you; dishes and schedules x2; doctor appointments; oil changes and vehicles in the shop; family events (both sides!); meals; planning trips; and paying bills...in my case this also grew to include designing BLC marketing materials, ordering BLC clothes for Josh and employees, paying bills, and attempting QuickBooks and invoicing.

I went from "Apartment Living-College-Girl" to "Married-Housewife-Of-Business-Owner" essentially overnight...and two months post-wedding added "Homeowner" and "Landlord" to that list. Along with all of this, I was in college for the first six months of our marriage...which made it even HARDER to transition into all this 'Married Life' stuff.

WHO IS PREPARED FOR THAT?! Is anyone?! Was it just me?!

I am STILL catching up on getting our life organized...and all this stuff takes consistent organization in order to keep things from unraveling. I'd love to tell you that I know exactly where the titles to our three vehicles are. But I don't. Ohmygosh just typing that is mortifying.

I read a blog last week about a mom  of four who has her entire house organized into a giant binder. Everything from doctor's phone numbers to paint swatches for every color in her house, from coupons to Christmas lists. It was humbling. And also infuriating.

I suck.

Sure we were prepared for the normal 'married-stuff' that everyone was shoving down our throats like, "Good communication is key," and "Josh needs to be a leader," and "Mollie read Proverbs 31," but where was all the good advice about how to combine bank accounts? Or how to change my legal name? Or how to go grocery shopping for a husband who only likes chips and frozen pizza?!

Disclaimer: Pinterest didn't exist when we got married, so all this meal-planning-calendar, weekly-cleaning-schedule jibberish was completely foreign to me until about a year ago...at which point I decided that 'stuff' was just for people who are, like, moms or something. I'm still working on all this noise. Just whatever about it.

I didn't find pointers for that crap in ANY of the 'Saving Yourselves for Marriage' books we were bludgeoned with. Here's something...All those well-meaning adults who insisted on talking about our purity should have taken a break from that ridiculous 'sex talk' and just talked to us about how the freak we're supposed to get a pre-approval letter to buy a house...or secure a private insurance plan...or how I'm supposed to get a new social security card...and then they should have explained that we would need a filing cabinet for All The Stuff.

Of course everything in this entire post seems like common sense now...but I was 21 when we got married...and things like mortgages, car shopping, insurance, and cleaning up after a BOY were all very foreign, scary, and annoying things. And taking care of all this EXTRA STUFF that no one warns you about requires an insane amount of meticulous organization...that even I am not capable of.

So there you have it. I'm an unorganized freak. Our life is in shambles.

Okay not really...

But sort of...

And in case you forgot how adorable we are...

Acreage Update

On October 18th, we closed on our farm. Not everything went as smoothly as planned (ie: the outbuildings and the house were still 30% full of the previous owner's junk...even though he had promised to have it cleaned out...but we're over that). We found some SWEET stuff even though it took a little extra time and effort and we're working diligently to have the place ready for renters starting January 1st.

We now own an investment property "and a half" if you count the renter we have in our basement. ;)

My parents came down on the 18th. My mom and I went to Target to pick up cleaning supplies then came home and constructed our 'Game Plan' for the next morning. Our goal was to be out. the door. by 8am.

On Saturday morning we were fresh-faced and excited. We swung through the Starbucks drive-through so I could treat my mom to some coffee as a 'thanks-in-advance-for-helping-us-with-this-ridiculous-project' and you'll never believe what happened. THE CAR IN FRONT OF US PAID FOR OUR COFFEE! We pulled up to the window and the lady read the wrong order, but then corrected herself saying, "Oh never mind, the car in front of you paid for your order this morning." My heart stopped and I literally almost cried with happiness over some silly free coffee. By the time we pulled forward, the car in front of us was long gone and I had no way of signaling our happiness and gratitude via dramatic waving from my driver's seat. It was an awesome start to our morning. The short time that followed was filled with planning and a little silent reflecting on all the blessings God has given us...my mom and I were in my car HEADED TO OUR FARM. Is this even real life?! How a cup of free Starbucks was capable of causing me to pause and be thankful, I'm not sure...and it's a little ridiculous. But thanks whoever was in the car in front of us at 8:13am on Saturday, October 19th, and thanks be to God for His provision, allowing us to buy our dream acreage, even during a drought year!

My parents had never seen the inside of the farmhouse in person before, but they had visited the property earlier this summer. Sadly, Josh had to go to work blowing out irrigation systems before the first hard freeze, and I'm not sure he knew what 'we Keil's' were capable of. ;)

Day 1: We emptied kitchen cupboards, bathroom cupboards, closets in every room and the hallway, moved furniture (what was left is being sent to Leftovers!), Shop-Vacced every wall, window, floor, cleaned fixtures, hauled junk to the dumpster, burn pile, and the "treasures" to my car. We spent some time outside picking up garbage and junk around the property. We rolled up the remnant carpet in the upstairs bedrooms and tossed it out the windows. We tore up the carpet on the upstairs landing and down the stairs...and THEN Josh got there. #keilfaminaction 

I'm pretty proud of everything we accomplished! Josh finished ripping up the carpet downstairs while my dad spent most of his time on the ground ripping up tack strips (bless his heart). Turns out my dad can tear anything apart...it's the handy-man fixing part he's not a master at. ;)

We were all exhausted by 6:30. And all of our feet hurt. It was a 'we're just ordering a pizza' kind of night and I think we were all in bed by 10:30pm! And here's the reason we fell in love with this place...

Day 2: Our goal was to be out the door by 9am. We hit Starbucks on the way out of town again and worked on our strategy during our 15-minute drive to the acreage (have I mentioned its PERFECT location?!) We rescued my old, beautiful doors from the barn and wiped them down. We brought a bird-poop-covered dining room table up from the barn and wiped that down with an AMAZING mixture of dish soap, vinegar, and baking soda...the thing looks like NEW! We pulled out all of our appliances to wipe and vacuumed behind them. We pulled the refrigerator apart and I wiped down the inside (with our special cleaning concoction) while my mom wiped down all the shelves. I Shop Vacced cupboards, we wiped down four cute wooden chairs the seller left for us, and my mom wiped down the washer. We carried 100 Mason jars up from the basement and my dad was helpful carrying other junk up from the basement and to the dumpster. Then he spent most of the day walking around, observing the house, and making really great discoveries for how we can replace trim, hide ugly things with some leftover paneling we found, and replacing some stained ceiling tiles with new ones. Josh weed whacked around most of the trees at the front of the property and down the lane...he also did some weed whacking around the house...which in itself made the place look 1,000 times better!

I'll post pictures of all of this once we get a little farther along. ;)

Josh's friend Tommy stopped by to take a look at our washer and dryer and run some 'diagnostic testing' on our appliances. :) The washer passed and once the dryer got cleaned out, it passed inspection too. They hauled them outside, tore them apart, figured something out, and then brought them back in. All I know is that I've been washing rags while I'm out there and they both work great now!

Our friends Ben and Tom stopped out for a couple hours, which I was thrilled about. These two are true farm boys, and can accomplish more in an hour of their time (if they're not distracted with climbing windmills) than most humans can accomplish in an entire afternoon. They hauled our giant pile of carpet down to the burn pile and started work on cleaning up junk and brush around our little shed. 

I'm not sure I'll ever get tired of snapping pictures during every sunset...they're pretty every night! 

Day's 3 - 7: Josh and his brother spent a lot of time at the farm last week setting some mouse traps (yes there WAS a mouse problem, but I think our cleaning frenzy did a good job of taking care of most of that...he's only caught two!), filling cracks in the foundation, and more endless weed whacking. Josh also found a pocked door hidden in the walls in the living room! Jamie and I came out and did a pretty decent job of emptying the corn crib and barn of junk and sorting everything into 'Keep,' 'Burn,' 'Dumpster,' and 'Scrap Metal.' The four of us worked together to move a big metal gas tank and a metal fed bin (excuse my lack of farm-girl terminology...I don't care what that thing is called, I just know it's ugly and needs to go) to our scrap metal pile...I'm thrilled both of those large things are out of sight for possible tenants driving by with interest.

Day 8: Josh and I woke up on Saturday tired, but excited to get to our farm and start working more on the inside of the farmhouse. Josh continued weed whacking and I started puttying cracks in the first bedroom upstairs. Josh joined me, and we finished that bedroom together. Because it was a nice day and apparently we have a hard time working inside, we went outside to keep working on cleaning the outbuildings and sorting the junk. ;) 

I also wanted the barn to be cleaned and arranged in certain spots so it would be ready for pictures that night...Here's another one from our farm photo shoot...I'm IN LOVE with these pictures!!!

Day 9: We got a late start since we went to late church...but we were in serious need of some sleep...so it's whatever. We have to ease into this 'farm life' thing...it's a lot of hard work! :) Josh and I filled the cracks in the second bedroom upstairs, finished the hallway and the stair way, and also filled cracks in what I'm calling 'The Parlor'...it's the front room on the main level and is quickly becoming my favorite room. It's right off the front entrance, but it has that secret pocket door, a stained glass window, and another pretty door separating it from the foyer entrance. It could be a bedroom, a play room, an office, or... a 'Parlor.' :) I can hardly wait to get my hands on a can of gray paint so I can go. to town. Josh sanded the putty in the first bedroom upstairs and we couldn't stand being inside any more. Josh moved some logs, I kept compiling and organizing my 'wood-that-would-be-good-for-crafting-a-Pinterest-sign pile' and we called it quits when it got too dark to see in the barn. ;)

It might not seem like much, but brace yourselves for when I post the before and after pictures. The process is slightly less enjoyable because we're working with a strict deadline in order to get the place rented in time for turnover...but I think so far we're doing a decent job of balancing the duties in our 'real life' with the work we have left to accomplish out at the farm. Certain things have had to be cut out and some of our time and energy has had to be redirected, but our priorities are straight where it counts...we keep telling ourselves 'we'll have time for that after January 1st.' :)

If you feel like painting...or chopping down a tree...or burning a GIANT pile of crap...or raking out a barn...lemme know. I can hook. you. uuuuup. ;)

MmB

Fall Feelings

Falling Pt. 1
Falling Pt. 2
Falling Pt. 3

Before the Christmas season completely takes over our house and our hearts, I have a few more fun fall things I wanted to share...

I made this wreath for my mom, but then I decided to keep it for a couple months because it matches my backdoor so well...and my mom won't be using it until spring. :) Is anyone else obsessed with making these fabric rosettes? I just used every scrap of cloth I had and spent an entire day hot gluing and rolling fabric.

422 13th St. is hosting Thanksgiving for my side of the family for the second time...and I'm shocked at how excited Josh is. Although the 'hospitality bug' seems to be 'my' thing...he gets weirdly possessive and excited about holding gatherings and festivities at our house, especially during the holidays. Sometimes he'll randomly say, "So what's the set-up going to be for the tables at Thanksgiving?" or, "Wouldn't it be great if the weather was like this for Thanksgiving so we could have people be around our table outside?!" 

Since we only host every couple of years due to bouncing around with both sides of the family (and because we begrudgingly share the hosting duties :), I'm going alllll out in a Pinterest, burlap, brown paper, crafty, glittery, adorable-place-setting frenzy. And when hosting a gathering for people who aren't all under the age of 26, Facebook cannot be used as an appropriate invitation system. So I whipped up some super cute (and CHEAP) Thanksgiving invites. I found my inspiration invite on Pinterest and then re-made it myself using Microsoft Publisher. I printed these in color on card stock, snipped a little piece of burlap, and tied twine in a bow around the invitation. Sometimes the burlappy-country-woodsy theme is too much for me, so I sprinkled a little gold glitter inside the envelope to balance that out. I heard it was a real hit with the husbands who were on the receiving-end of this invite. :) 

I was also pretty proud of the little leaves I free-handed with magic marker on the envelopes...

Because I used things I already had, I'm just going to go ahead and say these were free to make. BUT If I had to guess, I'd say each one cost less than a $1 to make...and that includes postage. Boom.

I forgot to include this picture during the fall tour of our house...but even our bathrooms get a little Autumn glam! I'm telling you...printing your favorite pictures from Pinterest and putting them in frames throughout the house is the best way I've found to cheaply add a little touch of 'fall' in every room. Even if that picture sits on the back of the toilet. ;)

We had some adorable (if I do say so myself) fall pictures taken at our acreage on Saturday by the amazing Lori Mortensen of Le Photo Design. She was fast (which Josh appreciated) and took some amazing pictures (which I appreciated). Call her the next time you need someone to take pictures for anything. I'm dying to see the rest, but for now she's just teased us with this...

Here's the link to her Facebook page so you can 'like' it...and we even made the cover photo!!! ;)

MmB

Tonsillectomy - Part 2

Tonsillectomy - Part 1

On September 26th, I had my tonsils out. And thus began the most annoying two weeks of my life. Behold, the unabridged tale of my tonsillectomy.

My mom came down on the Wednesday night before surgery, helped make my 'Last Supper' (tacos), and took me to the hospital at 6am for my surgery on Thursday. I've never had a 'real' surgery before and was excited about my grippy hospital socks. As the nurse wheeled me down the hallway to surgery I waved to my doctor and my nurses like I was in a parade, because it sort of felt like a parade with everyone standing around watching me wheel by. It's obvious to me when you feel like you're in a parade, you wave like a beauty queen on the back of a convertible (even if you are in an ugly hospital cap and gown wearing no make-up). I would do it right now if the opportunity presented itself. They assumed I'd already gotten a little 'buzz' from the anesthesiologist...I assured them, "No, this is how I normally am."

After moving from the hospital bed to the operating table, I recall asking the anesthesiologist how really fat people fit on the skinny table. I'm not sure if he had started anything in my IV at this point, but the last thing I remember was the doctor answering, "The human skeleton fits on this table, some people just lop over the sides a little bit." I'm glad I remembered this conversation when I woke up.

I have near perfect vision, so waking up was the weirdest thing everrr.  My eyes were wide open but everything was blurry, and I remember thinking, "Is this how Jamie feels all the time?" I also remember being rolled back to my room and specifically asking for our friend Jonas, who is on staff at the hospital. The nurse called for him and left a voicemail and I remember thinking, "Yay! I will have visitors in my room!"

I don't remember the timing of things, but after they wheeled me back to the room, everyone was telling me I needed to DRINK WATER and I wanted to PUNCH THEM IN THE FACE. The doctor used some incredible numbing spray on my throat (I woke up with a '0' or '1' pain level and everyone was shocked) but I literally couldn't swallow. I couldn't feel the muscles in my throat, and when my mom gave me little drips of water, I felt like I was drowning and I choked and sputtered over one little drip.

It was ridiculous and annoying.

My favorite doctor came in and said, "Just give it a few more minutes and try drinking again in a little bit." Why thank you for understanding my plight, Dr. Griffith. So I napped for a while and kept trying to swallow. One minute I couldn't, and the next minute I woke up and announced to my mom, "I just swallowed!" It was so weird.

If you're in the Ames area and in need of an ENT, I would HIGHLY recommend Dr. Griffith. He spent plenty of time explaining everything and talking to me during appointments and was a rockstar surgeon. I was actually excited to see him at my follow-up yesterday because he's like a nice G'pa...with a better fashion sense.

I had an issue with nausea while I was in the hospital (and the next two days while I was home before my mom called FirstNurse and demanded nausea medicine), so it's a good thing I'm a boss at avoiding throwing up at. all. costs. Seriously, this has been a character trait of mine since childhood. It takes a lot of  focus, but I made it through my entire recovery without throwing up! Thinking about throwing up early in my recovery was absolutely terrifying because my throat looked like a war zone...and I did NOT want to find out what might happen if I gave in and puked.

I took my first round of pain medicine, relaxed, napped, attempted to text Josh, Jonas, and accidentally sent a few texts to Caleb thinking he was Josh while I was waking up and couldn't see. Woops. I think around noon I was able to get dressed and was wheeled out to the car to start the trek home.

We live two blocks from the hospital. I fell in love with the location of our house all over again on September 26th.

This was my set-up once I got home. These items didn't leave my side for two weeks. Notice the pretty pink barf bucket...I didn't let that baby out of my sight (even though I never needed it :).

These are the beautiful fall flowers Josh's parents sent me on Thursday afternoon when I was home and still feeling great!

The first 48 hours were a breeze. I ate some soft things, we watched Christmas movies and napped, my mom kept my house clean and made Josh's lunches in the morning. She ran to get medicine and other supplies I required from Target and even kept the laundry caught up. It's possible she was going a little overboard with helping because she desperately wants to be invited back for weeks at a time when we have babies...and I would say after this experience, I'll keep her at our house for as long as she'll stay.

Josh said, "If your mom is here doing all of this stuff, shouldn't we, like, pay her or something?" Forgive him and his 'business-owner' mindset. He can't help it. :)

We had heard from friends who had tonsils out as adults, that days three and four were the hardest...so my mom felt okay heading home on Sunday while Josh could be with me and Patti was planning to come on Monday.

As it turns out, the four days my mom was here were the four easiest days of my whole recovery. Part of that is because she is my mom, and part of that is because the hardest part of recovery hadn't 'hit' yet. Sunday night through Friday night were. the. worst. I didn't leave my bed except to shower and fill my princess cup with more water. I didn't feel like watching movies or working on scrapbooking or sewing projects or even talking or texting. I laid in my bed all. day. long. Josh felt helpless and I slept right through him leaving in the morning and coming home in the evening.

I wouldn't have made it through without this trusty cup:

I was consistently ready for my pain medicine an hour early, which was not good. I had to take some medicine in between for 'breakthrough' pain and that medicine was a joke. It didn't work at all. Moms are great, but they are sticklers for staying on schedule during things like this...husbands are great because when you come into their room in the middle of the night crying because you need your pain medicine 45 minutes early and you can't even open your mouth to explain anything because your throat hurts so bad, they just get up and give you what you want, no questions asked. :)

They might also surprise you when you send them to Target for more medicine and come home with THIS!

Once I started feeling better I watched a lot of Gilmore Girls, finally started and finished our vacation scrapbook from last year, organized every closet in our house, and lost 15 pounds as of today. I was glad I had my personal nurse Kylie on speed dial and texted her throat-picture-updates daily. I stayed on pain medicine every four hours (around the clock) for 12 days and last Tuesday woke up and decided to stop so I could FINALLY get out of the house to drive and get back to work. My throat bled a little last Friday when I sneezed for the first time since my surgery, but other than that it's been smooth sailing.

The doctor said I won't feel 'normal' again for a week or two because my body is still repairing the scabs at the back of my throat and fighting off germs. This probably explains why I came home on Monday and felt like I had been hit by a truck and took a two hour nap. And also why after working a long day and going to D6 Dance practice yesterday, I slept for 11 hours last night.

And now, the picture I promised...

iPhones take excellent pictures, don't they?!

MmB

Falling...............Pt. 3

Now that fall finally happened on the OUTside of our house with leaves changing and cooler temperatures, I'm excited to share a few more of my fall decorating ideas.

The fall festival my hometown has every year happened two days after my tonsillectomy in September. I was heartbroken at first...But I used my recovery as leverage to talk my dad (who was home alone while my mom was down taking care of me) into buying me all of my outdoor fall supplies. I had 'mentally prepared' him about going shopping for me the week before, so he had an idea of what I needed.

My dad called me on Saturday while he was at the pumpkin sale to ask exactly what I wanted and to discuss prices. I told him I definitely wanted a mum and he told me what the color options were (he was nervous about getting the wrong color, so I tried to be laid back about it, but I'm in LOVE with the color he picked! ;) The huge mum you see in my pictures only cost me $10. At Wal-Mart and Hy-Vee where I've seen mums comparable to this size, they are between $20 and $30...sometimes shopping in Manson is SUCH a great deal. Here's a tip: I would encourage shopping in smaller towns and at smaller apple orchards, rather than buying your pumpkins at stores in the 'big city.' 

This is the same reason I refuse to get my hair 'did' by anyone besides by my bestie Erin Hood in Manson at her salon. Seriously...$60 bucks for full color, a trim, AND a 15-minute tan...just shut up. BTW, I'm in love with my new fall hair...

My throat hurt, but we continued to discuss the sizes of pumpkins and prices. I told my dad I wanted a variation of pumpkin sizes, five orange, and three or four white. He was very specific and tried to describe the size of the pumpkins on his end. I felt bad sending him to the fall festival alone, plus I just knew he was being awkward wandering around the sale with me on the phone trying to decide what to get...so I wrapped up the phone call and hoped for the best.

I didn't know this until three days ago when I was in Manson to pick up my fall goodies, but my father preceded to get eight of THE biggest pumpkins I've ever seen. Bless it.

You'll notice the ginormity of these pumpkins in all my pictures. My dad got quite a bang for my buck I would say, as I compared prices for everything I got in Manson to prices in Ames and realized I would have easily spent more than $100 on everything  you see outside my house. Instead I got all of this for $40.

I also found out later, that because of their size and where the fall sale was located this year, my dad had to back up the van and take multiple trips with a small red wagon to load all of these pumpkins in the vehicle...then turn around and unload them in the garage. Bless his little heart.

So while my mom was down taking care of me, my dad was home lugging a couple hundred pounds of pumpkins around, and this is my finished product:

Sometimes I think I need my parents more now than when I was in college. This weekend they're headed down to Ames armed with a shop-vac and supplies to start clean-up on our acreage. #spoileddaughter

In case you missed what the INside of our house looks like...you can see all my decorating ideas and shopping tips here and here. 

MmB

Tonsillectomy - Part 1

It's been 10 days since my tonsillectomy and last night Josh proclaimed, "Wow, it's like you're a real person again. You're walking around and eating and everything!"

Last night it took me about 45 minutes to eat three Little Ceasar's bread sticks because of all the chewing that was involved...but they. were. delightful. It was literally like tasting heaven after a diet that only consisted of pain medicine, some noodles, Popsicles, and broth for the past ten days. I'm actually not kidding...I did not eat ANYTHING 'real' for 10 entire days...so you can imagine my depression to find that I've only lost about 10 pounds. Totally lame. But some good motivation for the elliptical once I'm feeling better!

The past couple months when I would inform people about my tonsillectomy, family and friends immediately asked, "WHY are you getting those out now?!" Let me explain...

My tonsils, specifically my right one, have been a problem for some time. Let me paint you a word picture...My tonsil had big holes in it where food and gunk would get stuck. The right one also ached constantly...not necessarily like a 'sore throat'...but an achiness that was just always there. I went to my regular doctor, who referred me to the Ear Nose and Throat Doctor, who used his head-flashlight to take a five-second look into my throat and said, "Yep those need to come out." He went on to explain that when I had mono, my tonsils got really swollen. Then after I was better, (brace yourself for another word picture) my tonsils were like a fat person who lost a lot of weight but had leftover wavy skin flaps everywhere...just lovely.

So this was my thought process:

1. If the doctor says they need to come out, they probably should. I know that's not reason enough for everyone, but it's usually reason enough for me.

2. Unless you've been living under a rock, you are probably somewhat informed about what is happening in this country concerning health care. I figured it was a good idea to get this done while I still can...with the rock star insurance we pay up the butt for we have now before it's too late.

3. I could put this off for a few years until I'm older and...we have kids running around that need to be dropped off at school and soccer and dance and sleepovers and doctor appointments and they need to be fed and bathed and potty trained and fed and bathed and I can't do any of it because I'm dead to the world for 10+ days after a tonsillectomy...

...yea I figured now would be as good of a time as any.

Beware, my next post will feature a post-tonsillectomy picture of my tonsil-less throat. It's pretty awesome. And gross. Soooo awesome and gross. All my visitors have either seen this picture, or seen it in real-time and the only person who was really bothered by it was Josh's brother Caleb. I even showed my boss! But view at your own risk. :)

I woke up at noon today and all I've done is shower, wash a pan, and get the mail...and I'm exhausted. It's just ridiculous.

MmB

Fall...............ing Pt. 2

In case you missed part one here it is.

I'll start with a picture of my favorite part of our house...

Our dining room! I love how much fall charm is packed into this corner. I've had the table cloth, the glittery pumpkins and little candles that are on our table for the past three years. They were all picked up at Wal-Mart the day before we hosted our first Thanksgiving. :) Which also meant they were on SUPER sale since usually most fall decor has disappeared from store shelves by November 1st.

Again, I just cut off some burlap and frayed the edges to make a table-runner. The center-piece is a pretty and long tea-light candle holder that I picked up at Leftovers (more on this in another blog...basically Leftovers is an indoor 'garage sale' where people donate their stuff and then other people come to shop, buy the stuff, and everything we make goes toward sponsoring kids in Africa). It adds just enough height but it's small enough that I don't have to move it off the table every time we have people over.

They're kind of hard to see in this picture, but I collect glasses and bottles and jars of all sizes and shapes, and then cover them with twine. If you missed my enthralling tutorial on how easy and cheap it is to wrap bottles with twine, here it is. I spaced them out all over the house and filled them with coffee beans. I put tea lights in every jar so when they're lit, it warms the coffee beans a little and smells like heaven in the house (thanks Pinterest).

The brown wicker pumpkins I have scattered all over the house were found last year at Target at the One Spot for $3/each...and every time they were re-stocked, I bought a couple more. I think I ended up with six or seven.

I get out my dried hydrangeas in March and leave them up around our house until November. They add some 'bigness' to every background, and I love how poofy and hearty they are. I've had them for about three years, and I literally throw them in a box and put them in the basement during the winter. When I get them back out they shed some petals on the carpet while I rearrange them...but end up looking great.

I've somehow ended up with six of the exact same garland from Hobby Lobby, and they were all bought during different years! It's been easier to add to my collection a little over time, and I'm thrilled that Hobby Lobby keeps their decor consistent and I can almost always count on what they will have each season. I get these garlands for $12.99, but use my 40% off coupon on top of that...it kills me that the 'real-looking' garlands can be so expensive, but I don't think these ones look too 'fakey'.

My tonsils came out nine days ago, and I had dreams of blogging to my hearts content, but all I've been able to accomplish is finishing the last paragraph of this post that's been in my drafts for more than two weeks. Throat. Still. Hurts. Immensely. But I'll save the gory details of that experience for another blog.

MmB

Fall...............ing Pt. 1

I don't think anyone will be offended by me posting about my fall decor now that the temperature has dropped and we're headed toward the end of September. But then again, I thought it was completely acceptable to decorate on Monday, September 2nd, and I had an army of Facebook friends who disagreed.

But of course, the day I've decided to write about fall it's going to be 89 degrees.

Iowa, sometimes you suck a little. But I won't let you ruin my writing mood today.

Each year for the past three fall seasons that I've decorated 422 13th St, I've opened my fall totes and felt like I was always missing a little something. Like I could use an extra garland here, a wreath there, a candle here, a fall picture there...but this year it finally happened. I cracked open my impeccably organized (if I do say so myself) fall totes and TA-DAA! I had everything I needed to create a little cozy fall wonderland.

Okay except one tiny thing. Burlap is blowing up my Pinterest, so I did decide I needed some of that. You'll notice it everywhere in my pictures. When something isn't up to my decorating standards, I just cut off a hunk of burlap and it instantly looks better.

As of today, I have only spent $12 on four yards of burlap to add to my leafy Autumnal decor collection. Ps, plain burlap is always $3.99/yard at JoAnn Fabrics and if you have the JoAnn app, you can use a coupon once a week for 40% off any full-priced item (sometimes I feel like the angels in heaven applaud me for figuring stuff like this out).

Anyway, I thought I'd share some of my secrets for where I find my 'goods' and when/where to hunt for the best sales, lest you think I've spent a fortune on decorating. I'm writing this blog like I'm some sort of authority on the subject of seasonal home decor (which you and I both know I'm not), but it seems like people ask me about our house a lot. So here you go...

I scored all my Scrabble letters from Josh's mom when she was cleaning out an old house. I use them for everything! And like I said, I add small scraps of burlap under everything to give my decorations a little more texture and backdrop instead of the plain gray counter top.

My leaf dishes stacked by the sink and holding our house numbers were all found for $1 at the One Spot at Target last year. They're great for hosting Thanksgiving and fall parties because they hold candy, veggies, dip, and all kinds of snacks.

I prefer to keep our fridge clutter-free, but I like this pumpkin patch picture of Josh and me from two falls ago...I also have a 'Fall Checklist' that I'll add to the fridge once I get it printed.

The lanterns on top of our refrigerator also came from the Target One Spot for $3/each. They hold votive candles inside, and I love their look. I'll admit, the 'B' pumpkin was a splurge and I had to stalk Hobby Lobby for months a couple years ago to find the 'B' I wanted. I finally got this pumpkin for about $12 (using my 40% off coupon). The biggest score was that when I came home, Josh noticed it and said he liked it. #purejoy

My chalkboard and old windows set-up in our living room are just a collection of things because I needed to hide some cords and take up space. I move those windows all over our house to use as backgrounds for whatever I need. My chalkboard was a gift from Josh's parents for my birthday last year, and I love it. I just Pinterested 'Fall Quotes' and found this: 'Light breeze, colorful leaves, bare trees, it must be Autumn.' 

The big picture frame by the windows are just my favorite fall pictures from Pinterest printed in color, cut out, and laid in a collage using a frame I just happened to have. People comment on it all the time and ask where I got it which is hilarious because it really was that easy, folks. A lot of fall bang for $0.

I find my canvas prints at a little store in downtown Fort Dodge called 'Real Deals on Home Decor.' A canvas print like the sunset one in this picture costs between $7 and $9 (depending on the size), and I usually have an email coupon...so they're even cheaper! Side note: Josh also LOVES these, and because of the barn scenery scattered around our house, he doesn't even mind that I have so many! ;)

From September to November I have mugs and cider always on our counter. Having it out makes it easy for guests to fill a mug with water, warm it up in the microwave, and then add their favorite flavor of cider. It's a cheap and fun fall snack, plus it's a cute little 'display' on our counter.

I like to keep our kitchen island simple since it's such a high-traffic spot. I found my candle-wreath years ago at Target when they were clearancing their fall stuff  at 70% off. I've found there are good deals to be had if you are patient enough to wait and DIG through all the broken and weird decorations. I added an orange candle that was a gift and chopped a square of burlap for a mini-runner.

Attention: Mollie Boersma's way of decorating is probably not a recommended method. I'm fairly certain the burlap isn't even cut evenly. But then again, maybe that just adds to the look? I was in a hurry and I like instant gratification when I'm decorating. If it's too much work it's probably not worth it. ;)

MmB

What-a Weekend

Today I got home from work around 3:00 and didn't have anything on my schedule for my ENTIRE EVENING.

This rarely happens.

Leggings, moccasins, and an Iowa State hoodie were on my bod by 3:11. I'm currently drinking my third cup of cider. I've been on Pinterest for the majority of the afternoon. The windows are open and it's 68 degrees in our house. I think the only thing that could have made this afternoon better was if Josh was home to share it with me, but he's not much for Pinterest or cider, so it's probably best I've been enjoying my house fall wonderland in solitude.

We're coming down from a highly exhausting, yet insanely fun weekend. Josh's mom turns 50 this month, so I was elected to plan a big-birthday weekend at Haven 23, an adorable cabin at Twin Lakes Christian Center (where we surprised Josh's dad last year on his 50th). Patti had no idea until Friday morning that we were all gathering at the cabin to celebrate for the weekend, and once she arrived on Friday afternoon, Jillynn (Josh's sister) and I had even more exciting news to share.

After many years of dating, (and being part of the Boersma clan longer than I have!), Josh's brother, Nathan informed Jill and me last Tuesday that he wanted to ask Hannah to marry him while we were away for the weekend at camp!!! He had the ring and wanted to set up the proposal at the Round Barn at TLCC. Since he and Hannah would be coming to camp at the same time, he needed help with the set-up. He requested the round barn with some lights, a path, and candles...and we ran with it. :)

So Jill and I scrambled to add tea lights, candles, a quilt, wedding magazines, a video camera, and white lights to our looooong list of things to remember to bring to the lake for the weekend. Turns out planning a weekend like this is MUCH harder when the Queen Mother of the family is out of the planning process.

Here's a little peek of what the proposal looked like. :)

So we get another sister and have a wedding to plan. Too fun.

Weekend activities included a walk around the lake, firepitting, eating waaaaay too much, canoeing, shopping, golfing, and relaxing in our cabin, and just a lot of great family time. :)

Best quote of the weekend was when Nathan casually said, 'I love kayaking and proposing,' while we were loading up stating our favorite parts of the weekend.

Here are some other highlights...

We took some family pics on Friday night in an attempt to keep Nathan and Hannah in nice clothes leading up to the proposal instead of sweats. This part of our plan ultimately failed because Hannah ended up changing before the proposal anyway (and who can blame her...it was a 'hoodies and sweats' kind of weekend).

Josh enjoyed hot-tubbing in the whirlpool at the cabin. Even though he wished one of his brothers would have joined him like last year...

He didn't fit into the Instagram box, but Vern is actually sitting on toilet beside the tub chatting with the boys. No worries, everyone was wearing shorts and Vern was not going to the bathroom...I think last year this led to a pretty decent 'life discussion' that Josh is so notorious for having with his dad. Glad this tub provides our family with so many memories?

Brecken caught this frog all by himself while the guys spent Saturday morning golfing.

And while the boys golfed at the Twin Lakes Country Club, the girls spent the morning shopping in Fort Dodge. We are always shocked at the amazing deals to be had, and Patti found some great tall brown boots, a gray cardigan, and a rusty old wheel barrow that Vern was thrilled to have traveling home with them. I was just happy it was a successful shopping trip for the birthday girl. I told Vern in advance that I was responsible for planning, but not responsible for what said birthday girl might spend during our activities. :)

Besides some shopping, we spent part of our morning at Studio Fusion making fun bowls and plates together. The girls think that place might even be worth a trip back someday...and we're excited to see how our creations turn out! 

I had some fun comparing the picture we took at Haven two years ago to the one we took this year and I'm still trying to decide if we specifically look 'older'...Josh and I both think we've gotten a little better with age, but who really knows?

And I don't know about you, but I think we might have a current front-runner for the 2013 Boersma Christmas card picture.

MmB

Three. Years.

Josh and I have been married now for three and a half years, and yes, we are still naturally this cute.

OKAY FINE that's a lie...we did do this but Nikki didn't have her phone out...so we re-enacted the moment on command. Still adorable. Whatever.

We also decided that a convertible Mustang is the only truly sensible car for our future family.

No?

Touche.

So we've been noticing a trend in married couples our age. They're getting divorced right around the THREE YEAR mark. Which is terrifying...especially since the other observation that goes along with this is that it's the wife who goes completely berserk. I've had this conversation with friends and family, and they seem to be noticing the same thing.

I can think of three 'wild and crazy' things I've done so far during our third year of marriage. 1. Painted the kitchen gray because on a Monday I decided I was done with it being tan and red...and by Saturday it was gray. 2. Told Josh I want a small, black cross tattoo behind my right ear, to which he dramatically replied, "Oh great. This is how it starts...it's been three years and you're about to go crazy." And 3. Back in April I dyed my hair dark brown, and I'm thinking about doing it again.

I really live life on the edge.

But seriously...Three years. Wife goes crazy. Couple gets divorced. Absolute heartbreak.

No one's marriage is perfect. In fact, just last week Josh and I had a day-long fight via text about nothing important. Seeing young marriages all around us fail for the dumbest reasons tends to put things in perspective so we went on a date to B-Dubs and made up (thanks for the gift card mom and dad). Sharing 24 boneless wings can pretty much fix anything. And yes, judge us for using text messaging, but it's been our preferred arguing method since our dating college days...it also leads to more convenient arguing during work hours and while people are living with us so we can have our 'discussion' in silence via text message from across the room while watching a movie and carrying on with guests. #dysfunctional

I think this sort of thing used to be called 'The Seven Year Itch' but not for my generation, no no...apparently my generation is only willing to work at something for three years before giving up. So now it's down to being a Three Year Itch. Does anyone else see this happening and think it's ridiculous?! THERE ARE STILL WEDDING PICTURES HANGING ON OUR WALL FOR GOODNESS SAKE! 

Staying married is easy. Step one: Get married...........................................there is no step two. You are married TO. THE. SAME. PERSON. until you die. 

Sometimes your husband will get annoyed at you for not washing his pants when he had an entire weekend to himself to do his laundry, but he didn't remember, and that is apparently your fault. An easy solution to this would be to buy more pants, but said husband wishes to only own one pair of pants.

Sometimes your wife will bump into your trailer with her Ford Focus and now there are some permanent scuff marks on the back of her bumper, but it was early in the morning and there was nothing on the trailer, so it was hard to see, okay?! Either way, these arguments are not grounds for divorce. They're grounds for a shopping trip to Kohl's and...probably not a new car because that wife doesn't seem like a very good driver...but just be nice to her because she didn't mean to run into that trailer that one time.

The worst part about all of this is that these 10 couples I'm thinking about are all believers. Why is there even a place for divorce in the church? Why is it even an option? ARE THESE PEOPLE NOT READING THE BOOKS I GIVE THEM FOR THEIR SHOWERS AND WEDDING PRESENTS?! Yes, in my old age I've become that lame. Books for wedding gifts...it's like I'm 46.

**Two favorites: This Momentary Marriage by Jon Piper and Created to be His HelpMeet by some hippie woman that I can't remember her name right now. Google it...okay fine, I just Googled it and the author is Debi Pearl.**

This post didn't really have a point...except that I needed a social media outlet for venting because I'm annoyed. I'm annoyed at dumb girls who think they missed out on some sort of Noah-from-the-Notebook fairy tale because there's something better out there than what they have. That fantasy only applies if you think you're as gorg as Allie Hamilton, and chances are you're not because that movie isn't real life and no one wears that much lipstick anymore anyway. 

Disclaimer: The Notebook is a classic and one of my faves, but that part where she goes on and on and ON about being a bird? It's totally weird and I could have done without it.

All seven of you who read this blog have my permission to PUNCH ME IN THE FACE if you ever think I might be starting to lose it. I'm being so serious.

Fall in love. Plan a Pinterest wedding. TAKE VOWS. And shut up. 

Please step into my fairy tale for a moment and meet my version of Noah Calhoun.

I just can't even.

MmB

**I realize there are extenuating circumstances where divorce might be the only option like abuse, etc. I don't want to judge situations I don't know anything about, I just see Satan attacking marriages every single day and it's sad and scary...so these are my thoughts. If you have thoughts, you should start a blog and I would promise to read it.**