“We grow neither better nor worse as we get old, but more like ourselves” May Lamberton Becker

Friday, July 27, 2012

The Summer Months

Just to warn you, this is a bit of a read! I'm a terrible blogger, because I can't seem to keep it updated.

Since I am a teacher, my summer differs from the rest of the world, or the real world I suppose. I have been on summer vacation as of May 25th, and I'd like to fill you in on what we've been up to.

May

Right after work on May 25th, I raced back to our West Lafayette apartment. I helped my mom and Chad finish cleaning and packing up the cars. We moved out of an apartment and away from Purdue for the last time. That day we finished moving into our house in Mentone. A few minutes, seconds maybe, after unloading the cars I decided it was time to pick up my puppy. Our Husky baby that we of course named Mackey. He is has Purdue parents = he is a Purdue dog.

Mackey at 5 1/2 weeks about 8 pounds

That same evening, boy what an exhausting day it was, I had an interview with Tippecanoe Valley Middle School for a seventh grade resource room position. Finally that night Chad and I crashed into our very own home.

June

June 2nd we had a house warming party for about 30 people. Boy was I stressed leading up to that. I believe a week is not enough time after moving to be ready for that many people in your house. However, it ended up being great, and we had a lot of fun with our friends and family who were able to make it.

Monday June 4th I was woken up by a very strange phone call. The principal from Argos Elementary called to ask me to come in to talk about a moderate sever classroom. My confusion started when he said Argos, as I had never applied there. Mr. Richter the former principal of the Valley Middle School had given him my name. I also do not have a sever license, but I thought, "What the heck, why not go talk about it." Side note: The next day I was turned down by Valley, for the second time but who is counting. That week I went to Argos and without ever applying or interviewing, he offered me the job. Starting in August I'll be a moderate/severe teacher.

We also spent the month remodeling Chad's home office. We filled the cracks in the paneling, sanded the walls, painted, put in hardwood floor, put on new trim, and installed new blinds. The room doesn't look like it belongs in our 70's themed house, but we will slowly update the rest of the rooms to look more like us.

Before

After

July

July 1st Chad and I flew to Atlanta where he started training for his job. I stayed with him for his first week there, and we had  lot of fun. We saw Coldplay in concert Monday. Wednesday we went downtown to the Atlanta Aquarium and saw 4th of July fireworks. Friday we had a party at the hotel pool with the others in his training program. Saturday we went to a fondue restaurant downtown, and Sunday I flew home.

Chad came home for a week last week. He worked from home in his new office, and we all loved having him back. We went to Chicago to visit college friends for the weekend, and Sunday Chad flew back to Atlanta.
Camera vs. 3 iPhones in front of Cheesecake Factory

Since then I have been setting the house up, cleaning, decorating, etc. I have gone into my classroom to work, and I have spent a lot of time with my parents. I also have been training Mackey and spending most of my time and energy on him. Here is another picture of my fur baby just so you all see how much he has grown.

Mackey 14 weeks 24 pounds

Friday, May 11, 2012

Our Dream Come True

A week ago today Chad and I bought our, well my, dream home. For anyone who doesn't know the story, it's a pretty neat one...

In October, 2010 my parents bought a house after 28 years of marriage while renting. The house is in quaint Mentone with 18 acres surrounding the house. It was built in the 1800's, and they loved the old style of the house. It was their dream, and God blessed them in an unreal way. 
The house this spring
The next door house looked very cute and perfect with only a small field in between. I pointed out their kitchen window and said, "I would love to live there someday."


Fast forward to January 1, 2012!
The trustees of the estate show up in my parent's yard and tell us that they will be selling the house soon and asked if we would like to tour it. As Chad and I were supposed to be walking out the door to a family Christmas, we run next door and walk through the house. My parents, oldest brother, Chad, and I all thought it was PERFECT! By February we had made an offer, and they had accepted it. From February until May we worked back and forth between the bank, the insurance company, and the sellers. Then finally last weekend we closed on Friday and had the keys after the estate auction on Saturday. Every step I took through the house I fell more in love with it. I have imagined raising my future children time and time again in our new home.

Our homestead


In two weeks Chad and I will move away from West Lafayette for good and into our amazing house with our amazing next door neighbors. I believe God has some big plans for our family being next door to my parents. We can't wait for the exciting times to come. We are so blessed, and we thank God every day for what we have.

Sunday, April 22, 2012

My first big DIY project!

Sometimes I get a strong urge to be crafty and thrifty. One time I decided to strip a dresser that had two layers of ugly paint jobs and re-finish it. I managed to work for a couple hours and realized it would take more like a couple weeks to finish the project. I gave up quickly.

Well, a month ago I was just starting my spring break, and I decided I needed to be productive. We had a small round dining table that was $18 from a consignment store and a set of four chairs that did not match the table. This was fine for our small college apartment, but since we are moving into our very own house I wanted something more elegant. I decided to paint the whole dining set to match and to look like what a homeowner would have instead of what a college student would have. As of today I finished the last two coats of pain on the last chair, and I decided to post the results with a step-by-step tutorial by the-farthest-thing-from-a-DIY-expert.

Here is the before picture. The dark finish table and the light finish chair.
What I used: 
-Several different grades of sand paper (about $10) 
-A gallon of Kilz original primer ($20) 
-A gallon of satin finish wall and trim paint ($20) 
-About 15 cheap small sponge brushes from Wal-Mart ($3) 
-4 seat cushions from Wal-Mart ($20)


    I started with 60 grain sand paper on the table and sanded the top until the finish came off. Then I used 100 grain sand paper to smooth it out. I unscrewed the base from the top and primed the top with two coats and sanded with 150 grain sand paper after each coat.

    Then I put the top aside for later. I sanded down each half of the base. I had to glue a crack in one of halves and let it dry over night. I put two coats of primer on each half of the base and put two coats of paint on with sanding (150 grain) in between each coat of primer and paint. After the base was done I screwed it all back together. After it was screwed back together I put five coats of pain on while lightly sanding in between each with 150 grain and 200 grain sand paper. The table is done!


    At that point I repeated the process with the chairs. I sanded the finish off, which was much more difficult/awkward with spindle chairs. I used two coats of primer and two coats of paint while sanding drips and blemishes in between in coat. One of the chair spindles had broken, so I also glued that back together and let sit over night. Here is the finished product with only two of the chairs. But all four chairs are done now!!
    My Dining Set

    The chairs took the most time and were the trickiest. I hope the pain holds up long term. I eventually will put another coat of paint on the table top and then put a sealant over it to keep it glossy and stain free.It was an extremely time consuming project, but I'm so happy with my result. Tips to anyone considering trying this- don't expect each step to be done in a day. Wait until a time in your life that you have some extra time and do it the right way. :)


    Sunday, April 15, 2012

    Fabulous Life of a Teacher

    As I get ready to finish my first year of teaching, I have been thinking of the memorable moments and quotes that I do not want to forget. Some are from student teaching days, and some are from my first year of my very rewarding career.
    • For a 6 year old, Miss Vanlaningham was a challenge. So for a semester, he called me Miss Van-lady-ham.
    • In my last week of student teaching I was given a giant card spelled extremely phonetically. "happy grachurashun day" For those of you who don't frequently read 1st grade writing.... "happened graduation day."
    • "11 is my favorite number. You can't write it backwards." 7 year old
    • "Thanksgiving is like a party, but there is no disco ball." 7 year old
    • "I went to a birthday party, and there were sprinkles that you could throw in the air and on the floor." 7 year old
    • In my secondary student teaching, I had a 7th grader that all the other teachers had written off. He tried to be lazy and defiant, but I never gave up on him. On the back of my evaluation, he wrote, "Bye Miss V. We will miss you." I knew for a few weeks, he knew I cared. 
    • Also in my secondary student teaching a 7th grade girl wrote me a message on my evaluation as well. Something like, "I hope you get the job. You would be a good teacher. I will pray for you." Warms my hear to think about it. Good thing she thought I "would be" a good teacher if I decided to be someday, even though I was already student teaching. :)
    • Two third graders, boy and girl, asked me if I used to be a tomboy when I was young. I admitted that I had, and they continued to discuss the issue between themselves. Then I hear from the boy as serious as can be, "I have never been a tomgirl." One of the times I had to stifle my laughter in front of the kiddos. 

    As a teacher who has worked with a wide range of students with varying ages and abilities, I am truly blessed. I love my chosen career, and I can't wait to continue it when I move back to Kosciusko. Now we will see what God has in store for me. Back to the general ed setting which I have not been in since college? Or in the special ed setting which can be heartbreaking, uplifting, emotional, exhausting, rewarding, and intense. Please say a prayer for me as I work to find a new job in the area.


    Monday, April 9, 2012

    The next few months

    Here is a list of important dates/events that are getting ready to take place. 
    April 29-May 3 is Chad's last ever finals week.
    May 4th we close on our house.

    May 5th is the estate auction at the house. And after the auction we get the keys!!
    May 6th is cleaning day and moving a few things from my parents' house to our house.
    May 12th is Chad's Purdue University graduation ceremony! Yay Chad!
    May 25th is the last day of school for TSC, and that will conclude my first year of teaching. Yay Me!
    Memorial Day weekend is the final move from West Lafayette to Mentone.
    The first weekend of June is our house warming party/introduce our city friends to the Egg Festival. 
    June 11 is our 1 year anniversary
    July 2 Chad starts his job training in Atlanta

    For anyone who read all of them, thank you! These are all very important and exciting for us, and we can't wait for all the excitement to begin!

    Monday, April 2, 2012

    Loving this spring weather

    My dad once told me that God gave us winter to so that we would appreciate spring more. 

    I think he was right. New life, birds chirping, warm sun... it all makes for something beautiful to appreciate. Yesterday I was truly able to be outside and enjoy the spring weather. 

    Chad and I had a fun activity filled Sunday. We got some friends together and played disc golf out at Ross Hills Park. I did pretty well until hole 17. I ended up 10 over par. Chad had his best run at the course and ended at 1 under par. Todd, Michael D., and Spencer were with us in the fun.Then about two hours later we all met up again, and this time with Michael C. to play ultimate frisbee with a church group. We were able to get 2 1/2 games in before the intramural field's lights went out. It was a wonderful way to end my spring break.

    Moral of this story?
    Being outside to enjoy God's creation with amazing friends... That is what spring is all about.

    Thursday, March 29, 2012

    Life gets busy

    So I set up my blogger profile. Started posting a few thoughts.... Then I quit logging in completely after the first week. I had decided I wanted to keep up with this and let my family and friends know what Chad and I are up to. 
    So here it goes... Take Two
    Life Update:
    I'm finishing up my first year of teaching, and have an interview lined up for a full time position next year. Keep your fingers crossed and prayers flowing. 

    Chad is finishing up his college career here in God's country, Purdue University. We are all so proud of him as he gets ready to start his career at Teradata. He will be training for 5 months, and he will be in and out of Atlanta, GA; San Diego, CA; and Mentone, IN. After that he will travel to companies around the country from Monday to Thursday and be in Mentone from Thursday night to Sunday. Good luck Chad!

    We are getting ready to close on a house in Mentone next to my parents' house. We are so excited to be home owners and move to a permanent location. No more apartment life!