Odds and Ends

So it seems that recently I have had a lot of random things to write about, but none of them are significant enough to write a whole post about them. So here are some of the random things from the last couple of weeks...

1.) I have a love-hate relationship with the nursery. I am very thankful that our church has a nursery where I can drop my kiddo off and go to the service knowing that Ev will be just fine and well taken care of. HOWEVER, the nursery seems to be where Ev picks up all his illnesses and then shares them with us. :) Of course, this is nobody's fault- it's just the nature of the beast. This leads us to #2...

2.) My family has been sick. VERY sick. Ev had some nasty diapers for a few days and I didn't think much of it because he is teething, and sometimes that happens when he is teething. Apparently this was much different. The diapers were just a foreshadowing of what was to come! Tyler came down with the stomach flu Sunday night, and then Ev and I got it the next day, and my sister, Marissa, (who is staying with us for a little while) came down with it the day after that. I would just like to say it was not fun. At all. I was more sore from throwing up than I was from doing Insanity last week. But we are healthy now!! :)

3.) My sister is staying with us! (And I feel really bad that we got her sick!) But it has been SO FUN having her here! I actually have someone to watch chick-flicks with! Not to mention she has volunteered to watch Everett many times already. I have such a sweet sister. :)

4.) Matt, Marissa's fiance, came to visit when Marissa came! It was so fun getting to spend time with him. And, Tyler was finally able to meet Matt! It seems that all the other times that I have been able to see Matt, Tyler has had to stay home for school or other things. We had great fun!

5.) Everett has started saying new words. Some of them include: "Oh my!" (that one gets me every time! :)) "Whaaaaaat?", some of his friend's names like Lilly, Owie, and Leah (I promise we work on saying all his friends names- some are just easier to say. :)) and "Scooobydooobydoo!" (only that one sounds more like gibberish). I just love hearing my little boy talk!

6.) I have not had a Mountain Dew in over 48 hours...and no I am NOT pregnant. The stomach flu will change you...at least for a time. :)

7.) I'm excited that my family is coming out to visit! My Mom and Dad are bringing out a truck with all of Marissa's stuff soon! I can't wait to see them! Everett is very excited about seeing his "Papa" and "Bamba." (That's as close as we can get to "Grandma.") :)

8.) I have had so much fun with the volleyball girls! We have had a great time and I'm really proud of how quickly the newer girls are catching on to everything. Ahhh, I just love volleyball and I'm so thankful that God has given me the oppertunity to work with Becky (the head coach) and the girls. 

9.) I LOVE FALL! It's my favorite season! I can't wait to start decorating the house for fall! I promised myself I would wait until at LEAST September! Not to mention that Starbucks will get their Pumpkin Spice Lattes again soon. Oh yum!

Anyway, that's about all of my random ramblings. Hopefully I didn't drive you nuts with my frequent topic changes! :)
Hope you all have a special day!

Why I've Been MIA...

Well folks, I feel like I should explain why I haven't posted in so long...yet realistically I realize that you all don't sit on the edge of your seat just waiting for me to write a new post...and therefore there is no need for me to explain why I've been MIA...BUT...I will tell you anyways! Haha!

Life has been a little busy...no I mean crazy. But a good kind of crazy. I'm not usually one to go on about how hectic my life is--frankly because I don't feel like my life is all that wild. But lately, it's kind of been nuts!

Here's the scoop. School is starting back up again, which means volleyball and football are starting back up. (JOY!! :)) (No, really...for real joy- I'm actually very excited about volleyball.) So basically this week I have had volleyball from 8-12:30 in the morning, we switch Ev over to the "other" parent, and then Tyler has football from 12:30-4. This week, Tyler has also been mowing lawns 3 evenings a week (getting home around 10:15 every night) and he will be mowing all day Saturday. (He and his friend Ray have their own mowing business.) And next week, school starts! I will be teaching choir 2 days a week for 2.5 hours each day, then coaching Junior High volleyball during their PE time every afternoon and then go on to HS volleyball practice after school is over. Tyler will be teaching full time, plus coaching, plus mowing...There are some other things that are going on as well, but I thought this was getting a little tedious. :)

So, I tell you all of this not to have you pity me or anything like that. No. Not at all. Our family has enjoyed 3 months of SLOWNESS and RELAXATION this summer. We have had more than our fair share of downtime. Please understand, I am NOT complaining. 

What I am saying, is that all of the slowness that suddenly turned into business has made me realize the importance of priorities.
 Example: Is it SUPER important that right now, at this very moment, there is a pile of dirty dishes in the sink that have been set aside for another time so that I could talk to my hubby this evening for more than just 5 minutes at a time? Or, should I have spent my downtime this afternoon frantically cleaning up Everett's room and sacrifice the time I got to spend tickling him and reading him books? Or, should I purposely set my alarm later tomorrow morning so I can sleep in a little bit longer rather than spending time with the Lord...simply because I think I deserve it after such a grueling week? Priorities.

In my naive state, I would like to think that if my schedule had transitioned from boring to frantic a little more smoothly I might not be struggling with getting my priorities right. :) But that's just me always thinking the best of myself- HA! (How unbiblical.) :)

Anyway, that's why I've been away for a little bit. I've been getting my priorities straight. :) Have a great Friday everybody!

Fantasy Football...who knew it was so SERIOUS?!

Over the last couple of years Tyler and I have gotten into Fantasy Football. Let me rephrase this, TYLER has gone nuts over Fantasy Football and I have finally become more familiar with Fantasy Football. This year we are both in a family league and a friends league...which basically means I'll be more confused than normal. 

Let me explain a little bit about this for those of you who aren't familiar with FanFB (fantasy football). You have a bunch of people in a league...these people are called coaches. Each coach drafts real live football players for their team. You can pick any player from any team to make up your personal football team. (For example, I can draft Peyton Manning as my quarterback and Arian Foster for my runningback even though they are on different football teams.) Each week you decide which players you want to play and which ones you want to bench. The players that you decide to play accumulate points based on their performance in games. You win if your team gets the most points. (Duh.) 

Anyway, Tyler LOVES FanFB. He researches players for his team months in advance. He has spread sheets that he makes for each round of the draft. He participates in practice drafts online just for fun. He makes out spreadsheets comparing players and their individual stats to best determine who he needs for his team and in what round he should draft the player. He also runs numbers for hours to determine who the luckiest coach is versus the most skilled coach. He takes this very seriously. It's one of his summer hobbies.

And then, there's me.

I am NOT skilled in any way, shape, or form concerning FanFB...much to the consternation of my husband.  I tend to draft with my heart instead of my head...a big FanFB "no, no" if you believe certain people. For example, last year on our draft night with our friends in the first round I took Antonio Gates. Yes, for those of you who are FanFB buffs, I took a tight end...in the first round...SO SUE ME! Then to make my team even more solid I took Eddie Royal in the second round! :) And to make my team AWESOME I took a second string quarterback in the FIFTH round!! None other than TIM TEBOW!! Booyah! (See what I mean about drafting with my heart and not my head?) 

Well, this year, as I already mentioned, we are in two leagues. One is with our family and then other is with our friends. (My friends FanFB team name is MegaMen, and my family FanFB team name is Megadomination. Yes, my teams are already on their way to GREATNESS!)

Anyway, this summer Tyler has taken it upon himself to teach me "the ways" of FanFB. Really? I thought I had the hang of this. Guess not.
I have been called into the kitchen on numerous occasions to read this or that article on "The How To's of Drafting." (Summary: Don't pick who you want, pick who will win.") I have been subjected to many talks which involve player evaluations and drafting order abnormalities. (Summary: Tight ends should never be taken in the first round.) And then after much coaching by my husband, I was left to try out my new and improved drafting skills. 

Now, to really help you understand how excited Tyler gets about FanFB I need to tell you about Draft Day. We had our friends league draft last night. Tyler hooked up our computer to the TV screen so that everyone can see who they are drafting. And of course, there is food...which for us, required a trip to the grocery store. For those of you who know Tyler well, you know that he isn't keen on making small talk with total strangers. We were in the store and I couldn't believe my ears! Tyler was talking to random people!! One person commented on how cute Everett was, and I was about to jump in and say something so Tyler didn't have to, and lo and behold--Tyler starts yapping away!! I couldn't believe it! He even talked to the cashier for a while! I'm walking out of the store completely dumbfounded! I asked him, "Do you realize you just talked to about 5 complete strangers in there??" Tyler says, "Nothing can get me down on Draft Day!" Hahaha!! I just about died laughing. So yesterday evening everyone came over after church and we began the draft. I felt somewhat nervous and apprehensive...what if I forgot all of my training??  What if I had a relapse and went for a tight end too soon?  Eventually, the draft was well underway and I realized that no one had given me any weird looks...come to think of it, there had been no collective gasps brought on from one of my draft choices from anyone in the room...I MUST HAVE DONE OK!!! Granted, my draft looked nothing like the well thought out and planned draft like that of my husband's, but I resisted the urge to draft with my heart. In essence, my draft was successful!

So, I feel like I should take this moment to give a shout out to a few very special people who have made my drafting experience successful. First, to you, NFL.com. Without you I would have never been able to read about how abysmal my first draft was, and I would have never learned how to overcome my fear of drafting people whose names I can't even pronounce correctly. Second, I would like to thank my husband, for without your support I would have never been able to pass by Tim Tebow for my draft. (Seriously, I actually didn't draft Timmy this year!) And lastly, I would like to thank you, Mom. (Because that's what everyone does after they've done something AWESOME!) :)

Frames Around the Word Art Board

  I had mentioned in a previous post that I was going to add stuff to the wall around the word art board because the word art board looked kind of "abrupt". It's almost painful in contrast to the wall. :)  See...(look below)

 So Tyler and I went to several garage sales on Saturday and low and behold, I found some stuff to hang around the board. I was SO excited when I found these frames with the pictures in them. They only required a little bit of fixing up and I got all of them for only $3!!! I LOVE finding cute stuff for cheap! :)
All I did was add a little white paint to the frames that were somewhat dinged up and gave all of them a thorough cleaning.

Now Everett's room is finally complete! (About a year after we moved into this house! lol) That is, it's complete until I find something else to putter around with. :)

Reason to be Joyful: My Sister is Coming to Idaho!

I know that I usually have a list of reasons why I am joyful, but this week there is one very SPECIAL reason that I wanted to focus on. So here it goes...

Ever since Tyler and I moved out to Idaho after we got married I have been trying to convince both sides of our family that they need to move out here too. Of course, they all have their own lives, houses, and jobs where they are at, but those things are all minor, right? :) We even tried to sweeten the deal by adding a grandson to the mix! I've been rather persistent about this whole thing I can assure you. I'm sure it's almost gotten to be annoying. :) But anyway...

My younger sister, Marissa, just graduated from nursing school in May and I thought it would be perfect for her to get a job as a nurse in Twin Falls. I tried convincing her of this for MONTHS. Even before she graduated from college I was constantly talking up Twin Falls and how fun it would be if we lived in the same town. She was always very sweet and very patient with me as I insisted, YET AGAIN, that the Lord's will for her life was out in Idaho. And yet, for some reason, she just didn't seem convinced. Try as I might, she applied in Colorado for nursing jobs! (Insert exasperation here!! :)) Maybe it had something to do with the fact that most of our family lives in Colorado, or that she is familiar with the area, or could maybe live at home until she got married (since she is getting married in less than a year)...who knows. In my mind, none of those reasons could possibly trump coming out to Twin Falls to be with ME! Haha!

Well, a little while ago, Marissa told me she was planning on applying at St. Luke's in Twin Falls! I was SO excited! (Which is the understatement of the year.) You should have heard me on the phone trying to contain my excitement. 

 To make a long story short, I am so grateful to Melissa Fenderson for being willing to look into hiring Marissa at St. Luke's! So, it's official! Marissa is moving out to Twin Falls, Idaho in a little less than 3 weeks...to be with me. (Ok, so maybe not to be with me, but that's how I see it.) :) I couldn't be more PUMPED to have her move here! It'll be the first time that we have had family live IN TOWN since we moved here. I must admit that having family around is something I will NEVER take for grated again.

So, MOM AND DAD, and MOM AND DAD SCHAFFER, it's your turn! Come on out to the blessed land of Twin Falls, Idaho! :) (Don't worry, I've been house hunting for you guys and I already have some house options for you....I'll be in touch.) :)

For now, I will simply glory in the fact that my "little" sister (who is 4 years younger than me, but 5 inches taller...) is coming to live in the same town as me.
 (FIST PUMP!!) Booyah!

*New* Craft- Word Board for Everett's Room

This craft was inspired by Pinterest, but I modified it a little bit. I had seen a bunch of different ways to make word signs and I had seen a ton of websites selling word phrases that stick to walls. I really liked the word phrases, but they seemed a little expensive, and some of the crafts seemed REALLY tedious, so I decided to try doing it my own way. 
I decided to use the saying: "Loved you yesterday, love you still. Always have, always will." I thought it was the perfect for my little boy's room.  So here is how I made it:

I used a painters canvas (again)... :) Apparently, I can't do a craft without using painters canvas and Mod Podge. :) I used two coats of paint on the canvas.

 I used my Cricut to cut all of the letters out. There were certain words that I wanted emphasized so I did those letters in a different color of scrapbook paper.

 This is a picture of the second coat of paint. I also painted the sides twice.

 Before I started Mod Podging I laid out all of the letters to make sure that I got them straight and spaced out how I wanted them.

 Then I put a coat of Mod Podge down and placed the letters for the first word. I found that if I removed all of the letters to Mod Podge, I couldn't space them correctly and might have run out of room on the canvas. So I did the letters one word at a time. Also, if you do the whole thing at once, the Mod Podge will dry too fast for you to get the letters down in time. You also want to make sure to smooth out all of the air bubbles that sometimes pop up as you go along.

 After I was finished attaching all of the letters, I let the Mod Podge dry. Once it was completely dry, I put another coat of Mod Podge over the top of the letters. I found it's important to use a light touch, or it is easy to snag the corners of the letters.

 Here is the finished sign hanging in Everett's room! I'm planning on adding some other things to make the sign a little less "abrupt" on the wall, if you know what I mean. :) But that will be for my next craft...whenever I get around to it. :)

Hope you all are having a fantastic week! :) Thanks for reading!