Things we've been up to recently:
-Saturday Morning Farmer's Market
-Toddler Story-Time at the library
-A visit to the local Apple Orchard/Pumpkin Farm
-Lots of walks and trips to the park
-MOPS
-Mom's Morning Out
-Taking Lillia to swimming lessons
-Celebrating Brandon's 30th Birthday!
Other Stuff
-I am now 23 weeks along in my pregnancy
-Lillia turns 4 on Thursday!!!!
-We have family coming this weekend and next weekend and I couldn't be more thrilled!
-Lawson will be 21 months old tomorrow!
-I started buying a few Christmas presents already! Anyone else?
-Thirty-One's Fall Catalog is fantastic! Take a look....you will find yourself wanting to place an order! (And then call me and I'll get you set up!)
-Panera's Autumn Squash Soup is the BEST!!!! I just discovered it last week and am DYING for another bowl! It's just that good! Go out and get yourself some today! You won't be disappointed!
Monday, September 30, 2013
Good Bye Kansas, Hello Illinois (Part 3)
We've been in our house not quite 2 months and as of last night, every box is unpacked and put away! After Lillia and Lawson came to join us from Omaha, the progress slowed down a bit! We had their rooms all set up for when the arrived and they haven't really skipped a beat! I have asked Lillia if she likes living in Illinois and she says she really likes our house, which makes me glad!
I am feeling more settled.....it helps to have all our decor up around the house and I'm no longer wondering where certain things are or if they are still packed up. The next big thing to tackle on the to-do list is yardwork! The landscaping is TERRIBLE and we have lots of weeds! And once this task is complete, I will feel like we have truly made this house our own. (Not sure if this will be on the fall list or the spring list, though!) I wish I had my camera and could upload some pics of the rest of the house, but it got left in Ames on a recent trip, so that will have to wait.
We are getting into a fall routine and learning our way around town. I joined a MOPS group and am looking forward to making some friendships with moms at the same life stage as me. Lillia started swimming lessons and is getting more comfortable in the water each time she goes. And every Thursday morning I have a mom's morning out...our new church offers this service, free of charge! I drop off the kiddos at church and then have 2 1/2 hours all to myself! (I usually just go back home and clean house!) They enjoy going to class and telling me all about it when I pick them up.
So, that about sums up the move, now that we're settled! We love to have visitors! So come and see us and we'll show you a good time! We've found a great Mexican restaurant that I'm pretty sure will become our version of El Azteca! ;) And a nice little Thai place that is just scrumptious! There's always something going on in town, and always fun shops to check out. (Bonus.....we're about 25 miles from a Tanger Outlet Mall!) So let me know when you'd like to book a room at the Fischer B&B!
I am feeling more settled.....it helps to have all our decor up around the house and I'm no longer wondering where certain things are or if they are still packed up. The next big thing to tackle on the to-do list is yardwork! The landscaping is TERRIBLE and we have lots of weeds! And once this task is complete, I will feel like we have truly made this house our own. (Not sure if this will be on the fall list or the spring list, though!) I wish I had my camera and could upload some pics of the rest of the house, but it got left in Ames on a recent trip, so that will have to wait.
We are getting into a fall routine and learning our way around town. I joined a MOPS group and am looking forward to making some friendships with moms at the same life stage as me. Lillia started swimming lessons and is getting more comfortable in the water each time she goes. And every Thursday morning I have a mom's morning out...our new church offers this service, free of charge! I drop off the kiddos at church and then have 2 1/2 hours all to myself! (I usually just go back home and clean house!) They enjoy going to class and telling me all about it when I pick them up.
So, that about sums up the move, now that we're settled! We love to have visitors! So come and see us and we'll show you a good time! We've found a great Mexican restaurant that I'm pretty sure will become our version of El Azteca! ;) And a nice little Thai place that is just scrumptious! There's always something going on in town, and always fun shops to check out. (Bonus.....we're about 25 miles from a Tanger Outlet Mall!) So let me know when you'd like to book a room at the Fischer B&B!
Thursday, August 29, 2013
Good Bye Kansas, Hello Illinois (Part 2)
This move to Illinois, although meant to be a short term thing, is more difficult for me than the last one. We are MUCH further from our family and friends and I feel more isolated. We got used to being able to go home (either to Ames or Omaha) for weekend trips and we loved having visitors as often as they came! Here, we're not going to enjoy the frequency of either of those things. It's almost 6 hours to Ames and almost 8 hours to Omaha....can't just decide to be spontaneous and have Brandon take off a few hours early from work to be to either place by supper time!
Thankfully we do know one couple here in Champaign, which helps me a lot! Nate and Lina have been a great help to show us around town and help me not feel so alone. I don't know what I would do without Lina here!
But I already miss things. I miss certain stores that I loved shopping at....I miss certain restaurants that we frequented in KC....and I miss certain people too! I asked Lillia if she liked living in Illinois and she said she missed her Olathe house and playing in the basement. Our house in Kansas had a finished basement, here it's unfinished and not really set up yet. She doesn't like going down there (partly because it's cold on her feet, which can easily be fixed by putting on socks!)
So, this move is harder for me. But I know that it can help refine me. It's a good move for our family, for Brandon's career. It's answer to prayer for Lina, for God to bring a good friend into her life as this is a challenging move to Champaign for her too.
So, if you're going to Trader Joe's or Super Target or Jason's Deli, think of me, and be thankful you have that where you live.....because those are just a few of the establishments that are missing in my neck of the woods! (Katie Euken, how do you do it.....with NO Target in Muscatine?!)
Back to the move itself.....
We surprised the kids in Omaha and stayed for a few days and got to enjoy time with the family. Even Brett and Caitlyn came for a visit! We taught Lawson how to eat sweet corn and he loved it! :)
After spending a few days in Omaha with the kids, we were finally cleared to close on the house and we made the LONG (to us) drive to Champaign.
My parents stopped on their way home from a family wedding in Michigan and helped for a few days. We were so grateful for their handy work! Then they left us to it and we tried to make quick work of unpacking boxes and getting as much done as possible before the munchkins returned!
The first room finished was Lillia's room.
And we've slowly been making progress since....
Thankfully we do know one couple here in Champaign, which helps me a lot! Nate and Lina have been a great help to show us around town and help me not feel so alone. I don't know what I would do without Lina here!
But I already miss things. I miss certain stores that I loved shopping at....I miss certain restaurants that we frequented in KC....and I miss certain people too! I asked Lillia if she liked living in Illinois and she said she missed her Olathe house and playing in the basement. Our house in Kansas had a finished basement, here it's unfinished and not really set up yet. She doesn't like going down there (partly because it's cold on her feet, which can easily be fixed by putting on socks!)
So, this move is harder for me. But I know that it can help refine me. It's a good move for our family, for Brandon's career. It's answer to prayer for Lina, for God to bring a good friend into her life as this is a challenging move to Champaign for her too.
So, if you're going to Trader Joe's or Super Target or Jason's Deli, think of me, and be thankful you have that where you live.....because those are just a few of the establishments that are missing in my neck of the woods! (Katie Euken, how do you do it.....with NO Target in Muscatine?!)
Back to the move itself.....
We surprised the kids in Omaha and stayed for a few days and got to enjoy time with the family. Even Brett and Caitlyn came for a visit! We taught Lawson how to eat sweet corn and he loved it! :)
After spending a few days in Omaha with the kids, we were finally cleared to close on the house and we made the LONG (to us) drive to Champaign.
My parents stopped on their way home from a family wedding in Michigan and helped for a few days. We were so grateful for their handy work! Then they left us to it and we tried to make quick work of unpacking boxes and getting as much done as possible before the munchkins returned!
The first room finished was Lillia's room.
And we've slowly been making progress since....
Wednesday, August 28, 2013
Good Bye Kansas, Hello Illinois (Part 1)
It's been 3 weeks since we moved into our new house in Illinois, but it's been about 4 weeks since we moved out of our Kansas house! We had a few bumps along the way, with our closing being delayed and being "homeless" for about 5 days, but thankfully it all got worked out.
After all our things got packed up in the big moving truck, Brandon and I cleaned up the house, making it sparkly for the new owners. I looked just like I remembered it did when we first walked into it 2 years ago. However, the outside looked a bit fresher with a new paint job and some updated landscaping.
Then it was time to leave the keys and drive away for the last time. We had no where to go, since we were no longer closing on our Illinois house the next day, so we decided to have a "date night," even though we were both grubby from cleaning and sweating. But hey, we had no kids! So off to get Thai food and see a movie we went!
Turns out we ended up going to Omaha the following day, as our closing was delayed yet again. So we got to spend some unplanned time with the Fischers and with the kiddos before the craziness of starting a new life in Illinois began! More to come....
After all our things got packed up in the big moving truck, Brandon and I cleaned up the house, making it sparkly for the new owners. I looked just like I remembered it did when we first walked into it 2 years ago. However, the outside looked a bit fresher with a new paint job and some updated landscaping.
Then it was time to leave the keys and drive away for the last time. We had no where to go, since we were no longer closing on our Illinois house the next day, so we decided to have a "date night," even though we were both grubby from cleaning and sweating. But hey, we had no kids! So off to get Thai food and see a movie we went!
Turns out we ended up going to Omaha the following day, as our closing was delayed yet again. So we got to spend some unplanned time with the Fischers and with the kiddos before the craziness of starting a new life in Illinois began! More to come....
Wednesday, July 17, 2013
Before the big move....A {little} Fischer update
We've been having fun filling up our days before our big move from Kansas to Illinois!
The first week of July we traveled to Nebraska to see the Fischers, make an appearance at a family reunion, and go to Island Oasis Water Park in Grand Island! We had a fun time and sure tuckered out the kids!
A few days after returning home from Nebraska my mom came to town for a few days. We went swimming in our neighborhood pool, ate out, got ice cream almost every day, and took the kids to Deanna Rose Children's Farmstead. We had a great "last horrah" with gramma in Kansas!
Then the Fischers came to town for their last Kansas trip! Once again we went swimming, ate out, enjoyed ice cream, and went to the farmstead. What fun! The kids (and I!) took a long nap after all our company!
Now we are about 2 weeks away from moving and are trying to take advantage of the time we have left. We plan on going to the pool and spending time with friends as much as we can. Hard to believe our time in Kansas is quickly coming to an end! But we are looking forward to the new adventure that is ahead in Illinois!
And, if you're still reading this post....
What do the following have in common?
-I unashamedly admit to eating cookies for breakfast
-I have to take a nap almost every afternooon
-I am in bed by 8:30 almost every night
-And as of a few days ago I can't button my favorite pair of shorts (probably from all those cookies)
Have a guess? (You're right!)
I am 12 weeks pregnant with baby #3! Due the end of January.
So we will have three babies, born in 3 different states!
Now to just get over/past this all-day sickness.....
The first week of July we traveled to Nebraska to see the Fischers, make an appearance at a family reunion, and go to Island Oasis Water Park in Grand Island! We had a fun time and sure tuckered out the kids!
Then the Fischers came to town for their last Kansas trip! Once again we went swimming, ate out, enjoyed ice cream, and went to the farmstead. What fun! The kids (and I!) took a long nap after all our company!
Now we are about 2 weeks away from moving and are trying to take advantage of the time we have left. We plan on going to the pool and spending time with friends as much as we can. Hard to believe our time in Kansas is quickly coming to an end! But we are looking forward to the new adventure that is ahead in Illinois!
And, if you're still reading this post....
What do the following have in common?
-I unashamedly admit to eating cookies for breakfast
-I have to take a nap almost every afternooon
-I am in bed by 8:30 almost every night
-And as of a few days ago I can't button my favorite pair of shorts (probably from all those cookies)
Have a guess? (You're right!)
I am 12 weeks pregnant with baby #3! Due the end of January.
So we will have three babies, born in 3 different states!
Now to just get over/past this all-day sickness.....
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