The Case of the Missing Keys

Thanks for the comments on the apartment pics! I think it's pretty cute, too! (-: I got the rug at Target, fyi. (-:

So one of Mark's quirks (he has very few (-; ) is that he is slightly obsessive compulsive when it comes to his keys. Like if they aren't in his pocket, he HAS to find them and return them to his pocket immediately or all hell breaks loose.

I, on the other hand, keep my keys in the general vicinity of the doorway, which means: my purse, the ottoman, the bathroom, the floor by the door, the kitchen... really, they could be anywhere in the apartment, but it usually never takes more than 2-3 minutes to find them. (Hmmm.... Think of all the time I could save if I put them in the same place every time!) (-:

Well, yesterday, we ended up driving each other's cars and then riding together and so the keys switched hands/purse/rooms/cars multiple times. Yesterday was a crazy day for me. I worked at my full time job from 7:20 am until about 12:15 pm, came home for a little over an hour and did some cleaning/laundry, and then went to my part time job from 2:00 to 6:00. After that mark and I went together the dog park, and then we finally went home.

So, finally, I'm home, worn out, trying to eat some food, and veg out on the couch for a few minutes. And then it happens.

Mark can't find his keys. (suspense music building)

We have one set located that I had sitting by me on the couch. But one set was missing. So, borderline freaking out starts happening. Mark starts turning things upside down looking for the keys. I looked (like literally, I looked on each side of me, didn't find them, and continued eating). I suggest to mark lots of places they could be (including the bathroom, kitchen, floor by the door, etc etc.)

Frantic searching continues all throughout the house.

I suggest he looks in both cars - perhaps when we rode together they were there. He goes outside and searches the cars.

He comes back, more frantic, and getting frustrated because I'm not helping. I respond that I will gladly help him look when I am done eating, but I want a few minutes to relax. Keep in mind we weren't planning on going anywhere that night. (I'm downplaying that exchange between the two of us... it was a tense moment).

So he keeps looking, and I finish eating. 

Mark goes to look in the bathroom. Then I hear the jingling of keys, and I think, praise heaven, he's FINALLY found them. But, the look on Mark's face when he walked back into the living room would lead a person to think otherwise. Totally dejected, frustrated, and not happy.

He slowly walks into the living room, looking very sad. He then puts both of his hands into both of his pockets, and pulls out BOTH SETS OF KEYS.

Yes, folks, he had them in his pocket the whole time. 

And then he proceeded to apologize and I just started laughing. Because in a moment like that, all you can do is laugh.

~Kathryn

Our Apartment and A Craft

Okay - here's the deal. I'm having a REALLY hard time figuring out how to upload photos and put tem in a particular place in the blog. So it will be a little bit of a hodge podge but that's okay. Here is our apartment! This post will show the living room!

This first photo is what I call my "fancy poodle lady" drawing that is above the TV in the living. I pretend it's me and Miguel. (-:


This photo is looking at the front door. Lots of browns and blues. That's Brinkley by the front door.



Here is the nearby corner... TV - this is our only TV... fyi... no cable. Ha. and our little wicker basket that we keep Brinkley's toys in. (-:

Okay - here is my favorite wall. I found this vase at a very unique furntirue store and I LOVE the peacock feathers. I just love it.

Isn't it beautiful? And here's the whole wall. The painting is Coffee Art - the local artist uses espresso as her paint. My friend and I made the pillows to match the ottoman.

And here's a more front view of it. And there's Miguel in front of the couch. He's REALLY good at sneaking into most pictures.

So that is our living area. Other areas to come.

So.... last weekend Mark and I went to my grandmother's house. While we were there we went to an antique store and I found an AWESOME bench. It was not in great shape, but lots of polish, TLC, and some woodglue later, this is what it looks like: (PS - this was only $45!)

So I got this brilliant idea to make a pillow. So I found the perfect fabric at Hobby Lobby after going to several decor stores and not finding a pillow I liked. Here is the fabric below:

So, I haven't really ever made a pillow by myself. I was so proud of myself, hand sewing this pillow... doing all the measurements. I wanted it to be a good size for the bench. Well, I apparently didn't take into consideration that the pillow would shrink significantly whenever I put stuffing in it. So the big pillow project turned into the midget, doll pillow project. Check this out:

So, it looks pretty small on the bench. Good thing I got enough fabric to make another one. Ha.

So, now you have a sneak peak into our home. I hope you enjoyed it! (-:

ALSO, I LOVE YOUR COMMENTS. It's hard for me to know if anyone reads or cares - and your recent comments have been very encouraging. Thank you very much - keep them coming! (-:

~Kathryn

A Clean Home is a Happy Home...

Well, hello! I've been thinking a lot lately about the cleanliness (or lack thereof) of our apartment. I'm the kind of person that gets really stressed out if things aren't where they are supposed to, or when there's a lot of clutter, or if things are left undone.

Mark, on the other hand, could not care less about cleanliness. Thankfully, he is very willing to work to help keep things clean, but we have different standards of cleanliness.

Like if something of his is in the middle of the floor, I might pick it up to have him put it away, and he will promptly go and like lay it in a corner. And then I will either ask him (ever so nicely) to put it away for real, or I will give an exasperated sigh and pick it up myself and put it away. So this is a work in progress.

But once things are finally put away, there's still the level of deep cleaning. I don't think I ever really learned how to deep clean. I have so many questions about deep cleaning.

Like how do you really keep your stove clean? And like all that nasty crumb stuff that gets stuck in tiny crevices? How does a person get that out? Do you have to use some sort of razor edge thing? Edges drive me crazy - how do keep them clean?

I did finally figure out the problem I always had when cleaning my sinks - they always had water spots. Then I realized if I dried them thoroughly with a cloth that wouldn't happen - it only took like 5 years to learn that.

So I thought, well, surely it can't be that much money to get a house cleaner to come once a month.

Okay so I was wrong. Way too expensive. (At least for now on our budget, but I have every intention of hiring one once there is a bigger house and kiddos).

So for now, it's up to me, (and Mark) to learn how to clean better. I wish there were classes somewhere. I'm thinking about switching to all natural cleaners as well (vinegar/water).

Anyone have any luck with this? Any good cleaning tips? Anyone want to come clean my apartment?

~Kathryn

Kathryn, The Israelite

So, we have our car (YAY), but it needs a little work (BOO!). No surprise, we figured it would, since it was so cheap. It's at our honda guy right now getting checked out and should be fixed up later this week, or closer to being fixed up.

Since the whole marriage thing, (-: I am in charge of the finances. I am the budget conscience, organized one of the two of us, so it only makes cents (ha ha) that I do the budget. Well, that's all great and everything, but it's a little stressful, let me tell ya. I always did my own budgeting, but it's much harder when you have to account for two people spending money. It is definitely taking some adjusting.

With us having a car payment for the first time (YUCK), and fixing it up, and bills, I have to admit I let myself get quite anxious and worried over the weekend. I was second guessing our purchase (which we prayed together about), and just overwhelmed at our pile of debt, including student loans and car payments, etc. I was really letting it get to me... what if this, what if that, what if we don't have enough money to pay everything off on time? (side note: the situation is really not that bad, but I let it get to worst case scenario status is my mind)

Then it hit me: I was acting like an Israelite. You remember how in scripture the Israelites saw God do miraculous things. Like, seriously, the SAW MIRACLES. And then it seemed like no time until they were making false gods and worshipping them. Where was their faith? Didn't they remember the Lord and trust Him? Well, folks, that's how I was acting.

I have seen the Lord do so many incredible things for my finances over the years. I remember one time I needed a timing belt change on a car and I didn't have the money and then, seriously, a random $250ish dollar check showed up in the mail that was from a college I had attended. They had tried to give me a refund for like two years but somehow couldn't find my mailing address. Talk about the Lord's provision. The Lord has ALWAYS provided EVERYTHING I need. Why would he stop now?

Father, thank You for Your constant provision. Please grow my faith and trust in You so that I do not doubt your provision. Thank you for being our Provider.

Matthew 6:
25"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? 26Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?
28"And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' 32For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

~Kathryn

NEW CAR!!!!

Okay. So we have a new car. Remember how the old car exploded? Well, it did. So we bought a new one yesterday. WOO!!!!

I found the car on Craigslist. It's a 2000 Honda Civic EX. It's a five speed (YAY!) and a four door (DOUBLE YAY!). It's pretty much exactly what we wanted. It has 143,500 miles on it, slightly higher than what I was shooting for (120,000), BUT, it's a five speed so it should make it to around 300,000 if we treat it right. It has tinted windows, so that's cool.

The car was in Ft. Worth. Sooo..... last night at 6:00, Mark, me, Brinkley, and Miguel loaded up in the Accord and headed to Ft. Worth. We got to the guy's house at like 10:20. We drove the car, did the song and dance, and went to a hotel that was pet friendly in Denton and stayed a few hours. Literally. We got there around midnight and slept and mark got up and left around 3:40. I slept until 6:00. Did I mention I am incredibly tired today? Because I am.

The guy was apparently really into sound systems so there is a huge subwoofer in the trunk. It's really funny. It's like I'm driving a pimp mobile. I can really get the bass going it I want to. (-:

So we are hoping to get it in to our Honda repair guy in the next week for an oil change and so he can check it all out.

So we are very excited and hoping to hear a good report from the Honda guy. We only paid $3500. for it, so if we have to put some money in it, it's okay. yay! okay well... i guess that's all for now!

bye!

~Kathryn

Awwww

Tonight was my brother's wedding. It was so beautiful and it was very sweet. The flower girl didn't quite make it down the aisle, but the bride did, so that's all that mattered.

I love weddings. and not because I love being all mushy and celebrating love, but I love the fellowship. At weddings all kinds of people come out of the woodwork that you don't usually get to see. It's so neat to freely chat with family and friends. I wish there were weddings like every weekend. Or just that my family lived closer, then I could hang out with them. It really is really cool.

It's also a good reminder of priorities. I really like weddings.

And the free food isn't bad, either. (-:

I am glad this one's over, though. It's like now life is back to normal. yay! (-:

Brinkley's pre-test is tomorrow and his big time test is next week. We're hoping for a pass! But we'll see.... (-:

PS - the thunder and lightning tonight was pretty fabulous. I LOVE thunder and lightning. It reminds me of that Caedmon's Call song, "Masquerade".

Bye!

~Kathryn

Bed and Breakfast Photos and Update

Well, folks, life is ALMOST back to normal. And let me tell ya, it couldn't get back to normal fast enough. These way too packed weeks are way too much for me to handle. Don't get me wrong, I love having a good time and spending time with friends, but sometimes I just need some time to CHILL.

The wedding went absolutely perfectly. It was so meaningful to have almost everyone that is close to me there. We would have loved to have been able to have more people, but it was so nice seeing all of my family. 

We stayed at the CUTEST Bed and Breakfast. I'm trying to get some pictures of it, but not all of them are large enough to show. Here is PART of the front of the Bed and Breakfast:

Here is a TINY pic of our bedroom. I loved the picture above the bed. It had a dog laying on a bed and the title was "master bedroom". It was so precious.

Here is the library in the bed and breakfast:

 

Here is the living room in our suite:

The photos don't really do it justice. Everything was so beautiful and the breakfast was just wonderful! We had a very fun, relaxing time and definitely plan on going back as soon as we can! (-:

Now that my wedding is over - my brother's wedding is in SIX DAYS!!! Crazy! I'm playing/singing in it so I need to practice.

That's all for now~

Kathryn