In January James enrolled for Citizen's Police Academy. I had received an email about the course, and Susan and I thought that it was perfect for James. Even though the email stated that it was for Ball State students only, we figured James should still apply. We received an email about a week later saying that James had been accepted!
The course lasted for ten weeks, and it started on Superbowl Sunday (and it was at the same time!). As dedicated as James is to football, he still went to the class even though attendance to each session was not mandatory. During this course he was able to shoot a gun, get tazed, and learn about the Ball State Campus Police Department. He thoroughly enjoyed it.
Last night was his "graduation". He was one of the few people who had perfect attendance! We had a very nice dinner, which was catered by Johnny Carino's. We had a nice time talking to other people from the class. They gave him a completion certificate, and they gave him a coin ( like most cops and all military carry).
Following the graduation ceremony, we went over to Susan's house. We arrived there earlier than expected, and we surprised a surprise party! We had a nice time eating cupcakes, and we even ate some KFC. We had a lot of fun playing cards!
I"m very proud of James for being very dedicated. One more week of the school semester. Pray I pass!
Monday, May 2, 2011
Monday, April 25, 2011
Easter
Yesterday was Easter, and it was a busy day! We had two delicious Easter meals, and we had a lot of fun! James and I had a great time, and we loved being able to see both sides of our families in one day for a holiday! Since James and I spend last Easter with his family, we decided to start this Easter holiday with mine. We are trying to ensure that both of our families feel included, and we are alternating each holiday with the other family every year.
Since we started the holiday with my side of the family, we were there from Friday-Sunday. On Friday all of us played Euchre, which was very enjoyable! I had never seen my grandparents play any form of cards before. On Saturday my brother went to Prom! He was definitely excited, and he looked very nice in his tuxedo. It definitely reminded James and I of our Prom memories, which led to a fun conversation!!
Matt had Madelynn on Saturday, but since he was at the Prom, Mom and I decided to take Madelynn to visit the Easter bunny at the mall. This outing went a lot smoother than the other one. When she sat on the Easter bunny's lap, she looked so cute! However, she was more interested in feeling the bunny's coat than smiling at the camera. Mom and I were able to grab something to eat, and we had a great time on our girl's night out!
On Easter Sunday James and I went to church with Grandma, Grandpa, and Madelynn! We were worried that Madelynn would not be able to come with us, but she was! It was nice to be able to go to Plainfield because we rarely go there. Following church we gathered at my Uncle Ron and Aunt Penny's house. We had a great feast, and enjoyed every minute of it.
We then arrived in Muncie to have an Easter dinner. We met Kelly and Aaron's new puppy, Duke! He is so cute. We were able to have a rainy Easter egg hunt. Unfortunately, James and I had to come home early because I had an exam today! I had studied very little over the weekend because of the holiday, but I knew that I needed to. I ended up doing well on the exam!
We found out today that poor Kendall has broken her collar bone; Kelly said it would take three weeks to heal. She's such a strong little trooper! Next week is Finals week. I calculated that I need to get a 65% on my Final in my hardest class in order to pass, which is nice! Everyone have a great week!
Since we started the holiday with my side of the family, we were there from Friday-Sunday. On Friday all of us played Euchre, which was very enjoyable! I had never seen my grandparents play any form of cards before. On Saturday my brother went to Prom! He was definitely excited, and he looked very nice in his tuxedo. It definitely reminded James and I of our Prom memories, which led to a fun conversation!!
Matt had Madelynn on Saturday, but since he was at the Prom, Mom and I decided to take Madelynn to visit the Easter bunny at the mall. This outing went a lot smoother than the other one. When she sat on the Easter bunny's lap, she looked so cute! However, she was more interested in feeling the bunny's coat than smiling at the camera. Mom and I were able to grab something to eat, and we had a great time on our girl's night out!
On Easter Sunday James and I went to church with Grandma, Grandpa, and Madelynn! We were worried that Madelynn would not be able to come with us, but she was! It was nice to be able to go to Plainfield because we rarely go there. Following church we gathered at my Uncle Ron and Aunt Penny's house. We had a great feast, and enjoyed every minute of it.
We then arrived in Muncie to have an Easter dinner. We met Kelly and Aaron's new puppy, Duke! He is so cute. We were able to have a rainy Easter egg hunt. Unfortunately, James and I had to come home early because I had an exam today! I had studied very little over the weekend because of the holiday, but I knew that I needed to. I ended up doing well on the exam!
We found out today that poor Kendall has broken her collar bone; Kelly said it would take three weeks to heal. She's such a strong little trooper! Next week is Finals week. I calculated that I need to get a 65% on my Final in my hardest class in order to pass, which is nice! Everyone have a great week!
Thursday, April 21, 2011
For your entertainment....
Here is a video of Sunny attempting to bury one of her treats on our bed. As you will see, she is not very successful. = )
Sunday, April 17, 2011
An Amazing Weekend!
James and I had a great weekend! We were able to spend time with both of our families; we had a lot of fun. It was a nice relaxing weekend before Finals Week (which is in two weeks!!!)
We started the weekend with my family. Since James works in Indianapolis, we usually spend Thursday through Saturday there at my grandparent's home. When we arrived on Thursday, we discovered that Madelynn was there! I was very excited to see her because she's growing up too quickly! I feel like I'm missing it! I took her outside for a little bit, so she could sit on the grass. However, she didn't like the feeling of grass very much. She definitely knows to smile for a camera, so I was able to get some good pictures of her. On Friday, my mom and I went shopping for Madelynn's Easter dress. My Uncle Ron and Aunt Penny came over to see everyone. It was nice to see them because it had been a while since I had.
On Saturday James and I made our way back to Muncie. We had a nice dinner over at Susan's to celebrate her birthday! We've started having our "Sunday dinners" again, which I love! I think it's great that we're able to just relax and hang out. We're considering moving them to Saturday's, so we don't have the relaxing evening ruined by the approaching Monday. Once dinner was over, we began to start playing cards. I really wanted James to learn how to play Euchre, but I had given up hope that he would want to learn. Euchre is a pretty complex game, and it takes a while to learn the strategy behind it. However, he did an amazing job! He did great, and he said that he will play again.
We started the weekend with my family. Since James works in Indianapolis, we usually spend Thursday through Saturday there at my grandparent's home. When we arrived on Thursday, we discovered that Madelynn was there! I was very excited to see her because she's growing up too quickly! I feel like I'm missing it! I took her outside for a little bit, so she could sit on the grass. However, she didn't like the feeling of grass very much. She definitely knows to smile for a camera, so I was able to get some good pictures of her. On Friday, my mom and I went shopping for Madelynn's Easter dress. My Uncle Ron and Aunt Penny came over to see everyone. It was nice to see them because it had been a while since I had.
On Saturday James and I made our way back to Muncie. We had a nice dinner over at Susan's to celebrate her birthday! We've started having our "Sunday dinners" again, which I love! I think it's great that we're able to just relax and hang out. We're considering moving them to Saturday's, so we don't have the relaxing evening ruined by the approaching Monday. Once dinner was over, we began to start playing cards. I really wanted James to learn how to play Euchre, but I had given up hope that he would want to learn. Euchre is a pretty complex game, and it takes a while to learn the strategy behind it. However, he did an amazing job! He did great, and he said that he will play again.
An Occasion
On Friday my mom and I were able to take Madelynn shopping!! It was the first time that we were able to take her somewhere without one of her parents coming too. We went out to get her an Easter dress. It turned into quite an event. We ran into many mishaps along the way. I believe the number one issue was the fact that we didn't pack her diaper bag, and we trusted someone else to put in all of the necessary items.
We went to Target to find her a cute dress, which we did! I told mom that she needed to have some sort of a headband, and she agreed. However, Target was out of them. We drove to Walmart on a quest for headbands. We quickly found them, when things began to go bad. When we were shopping at the store, we discovered that Madelynn had gone number one through her clothes. We raced to the nearest bathroom only to discover that there was not A) a spare outfit or B) wipes! We improvised and made it work; we were done shopping, so we just decided it was a good time to head home. When I strapped her into her car seat, I discovered that she only had one sock on! We had misplaced one!
On the car ride home, Madelynn began to cry for her bottle. I took off the top of the formula container only to discover that it was unopened. This might not be a big deal to a mom to open a formula container in a moving vehicle, but to a mere aunt with no children, it was a huge deal! I was envisioning me opening the container, and it going everywhere! I cautiously opened it, and I didn't spill any. It was pretty complicated to pour out the right amount of water and put in the formula without spilling any. I'm sure with practice, I will be fine. However, I was pretty nervous. As soon as Madelynn received her bottle, she stopped crying and everything calmed down. My mom even found her sock in her blanket!
When we arrived back at my grandparent's house, we had to put the dress on her. We were too excited to wait for Easter. She looked absolutely adorable!
Monday, March 14, 2011
Mustard Seeds and Mountains
Since James is staying in Indy for part of the week because of the location of his job, I'm all by myself. I thought it was an opportune time to write.
We returned from the mission trip on Sunday, and it was awesome! We went to West Virginia, and we stayed in Northfork. I even picked up a hint of a southern accent; unfortunately, I'm sure I will lose it in less than a week. Some of the highlights included us watching a man shoot an extremely loud gun. I learned how to sand a ceiling. I also practiced my skills at painting trim. I even helped Kristen learn how to play Euchre, which my Dad taught me. I love playing, but I always have issues finding three other people to play. Since we were in the South, we all quoted "O Brother, Where Art Thou?". We didn't have any cell phone service or internet, so I began to get homesick for James towards the end of the week. On our way home, we stopped in Charleston and rested.
James and I were excited to see each other. We went over to his parent's house to hang out for a little bit. We were able to hang out with the Gnap children, and we actually watched, "O Brother, Where Art Thou?". The next day James and I took Sunny for a walk to Muncie Central. We let her off the leash, and she loved it!! Here's the video, but it doesn't truly show how quickly she ran!
We returned from the mission trip on Sunday, and it was awesome! We went to West Virginia, and we stayed in Northfork. I even picked up a hint of a southern accent; unfortunately, I'm sure I will lose it in less than a week. Some of the highlights included us watching a man shoot an extremely loud gun. I learned how to sand a ceiling. I also practiced my skills at painting trim. I even helped Kristen learn how to play Euchre, which my Dad taught me. I love playing, but I always have issues finding three other people to play. Since we were in the South, we all quoted "O Brother, Where Art Thou?". We didn't have any cell phone service or internet, so I began to get homesick for James towards the end of the week. On our way home, we stopped in Charleston and rested.
James and I were excited to see each other. We went over to his parent's house to hang out for a little bit. We were able to hang out with the Gnap children, and we actually watched, "O Brother, Where Art Thou?". The next day James and I took Sunny for a walk to Muncie Central. We let her off the leash, and she loved it!! Here's the video, but it doesn't truly show how quickly she ran!
Saturday, March 5, 2011
I Will Worship While I'm Waiting
As this month approached, James and I realized the seriousness of our economic situation. We were praying to God to show us the direction we needed to go. We wanted to follow God's path, but I was personally showing weakness. I began wondering when God was going to show us His way. James kept saying that God would provide, but I kept saying, "When!" While I was having these thoughts, I watched the movie "Fireproof". I had seen the movie before, but this time I heard a song in it that I had not caught before. (As a side note: If you have not seen "Fireproof", I completely recommend it!!! The movie is awesome. If you live near me, I can loan it to you) The song is called, "While I'm Waiting". For those who have not heard the song, the song is about waiting on the Lord. Some of the lines are:
"I will move ahead, bold and confident
Taking every step in obedience
While I'm waiting
I will serve You
While I'm waiting
I will worship
While I'm waiting
I will not faint
I'll be running the race
Even while I wait "
Can you say, "Ouch!". Well, I was quickly reminded of the big picture, "God is in control. He will demonstrate His wonders in ways that I can't imagine. " My attitude completely changed! Even when I can't see God's immediate plan, I must hold fast and worship Him. This song was definitely an inspiration to me, and I encourage everyone to listen to it. Here is the link to youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bb7TSGptd3Y
Well, God has provided for us!!! James has a job, and he will still be able to go to school. Through all of our relatives, James and I received the help we needed to get us through! My dad's family (Dad, Jackie, and Colten) were able to come and visit us in the process of helping us out!! Without both of our family's help, we wouldn't have made it through!! God provided a way for us. Jim's job is in Indianapolis, which gives me an excuse to go see my family!!!! God worked everything out perfectly in ways that no one could have ever predicted.
I'm going on a mission trip this week, so let's hope it goes well. I'm packed and ready to go; I'll be returning on Saturday.
"I will move ahead, bold and confident
Taking every step in obedience
While I'm waiting
I will serve You
While I'm waiting
I will worship
While I'm waiting
I will not faint
I'll be running the race
Even while I wait "
Can you say, "Ouch!". Well, I was quickly reminded of the big picture, "God is in control. He will demonstrate His wonders in ways that I can't imagine. " My attitude completely changed! Even when I can't see God's immediate plan, I must hold fast and worship Him. This song was definitely an inspiration to me, and I encourage everyone to listen to it. Here is the link to youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bb7TSGptd3Y
Well, God has provided for us!!! James has a job, and he will still be able to go to school. Through all of our relatives, James and I received the help we needed to get us through! My dad's family (Dad, Jackie, and Colten) were able to come and visit us in the process of helping us out!! Without both of our family's help, we wouldn't have made it through!! God provided a way for us. Jim's job is in Indianapolis, which gives me an excuse to go see my family!!!! God worked everything out perfectly in ways that no one could have ever predicted.
I'm going on a mission trip this week, so let's hope it goes well. I'm packed and ready to go; I'll be returning on Saturday.
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