Memory Lane

So, I was going to update the blog today and realized I have no pictures to add, so I went through old pictures of us and decided to post a mini walk down memory lane. It was fun for me, maybe it will be fun for others. Who knows! This first picture is of us on our first anniversary. I love this picture. Dan had created notes for me and he took me around to every spot that meaningful to us from when we were dating and he read me the notes at each one. They were of all the things he was thinking at that moment, like our first walk together, our first dance, our first kiss, etc. It was so romantic. This is a fun memory!
I'm pretty sure this picture was taken before we were married, but it was so funny, I just had to add it. This was the picture that was going to make its debut on his groom's cake, but he decided not to have one. I can't say that I was upset about that.
Camdyn Malia's birthday! She was and is so precious! This was such a fun time for us! We love our little niece!
This picture was taken at on our trip to St. Charles. I just loved Dan's pearl snap shirt. I always said I wanted to marry a cowboy!
Isn't this a cute picture? My little cousin took this picture at Christmas 2006. She was only three and we didn't think she would actually get our faces, so we just cheesed it up. But then it turned out to be a cute one!

Anyway, that's all I have for memory lane today. I just wanted to share some cute photos. I'll have some current ones for the next update. Here's what's been going on lately: Dan is almost done with basketball season and he is actually glad about that. When you have three nights of games a week, it gets to be a little draining. He is also looking forward to spring break. And I have been getting busier and busier with both jobs. I did start a ladies Bible study with one of the coach's wives this past Sunday. It is a Beth Moore study called Breaking Free and I am very excited about it. The first one went so well and the ladies are all so nice. I'll let you know what I am learning. This weekend we'll be going to Manhattan and Topeka. It will be our first weekend out of town since Christmas! So I'll give you all an update after that! That's about all for now.

Bored at work

So, it's Saturday and I'm at the flower shop and I'm bored. And I've only been here 20 minutes. That's sad. Anyway, I was checking out my friend Laurel's blog and she had copied a quiz from one of her friends. So I decided to copy it from her to fill my time. So here it is.

1. WHAT COLOR ARE YOUR KITCHEN PLATES? Light green and cream. According to my father in law, they are perfect for giants. They are really huge!
2. WHAT BOOK ARE YOU READING NOW? I just finished This Present Darkness by Frank Peretti. It will change your prayer life!
3. WHAT IS ON YOUR MOUSE PAD? We don't have a mouse pad. Plus we both use our laptops now instead of our desktop.
4. FAVORITE BOARD GAME? I love Sequence! And it's not a board game, but I love Mexican Train Dominoes too.
5. LEAST FAVORITE SMELLS? That's a tough one. I'm sensitive to smells, so a lot of things.
6. WHAT IS THE FIRST THING YOU THINK OF WHEN YOU WAKE UP IN THE MORNING? It's a tie: How much I hate my cat who has woken me up because she wants fed OR that I'm hungry!
7. FAVORITE COLOR? Yellow or Pink in general. To wear: black, white, or pink
8. LEAST FAVORITE COLOR? I don't think I have one.
9. HOW MANY RINGS UNTIL YOU ANSWER THE PHONE? Our home phone: two My cell phone: depends on who's calling!
10. FUTURE CHILD'S NAME? I like James or Elle. Dan doesn't like either, so that's that.
11. CHOCOLATE OR VANILLA? Vanilla
12. DO YOU LIKE TO DRIVE FAST? I always drive at least four-five miles over the speed limit, but not much more, especially since the time I almost got a ticket for going about nine over.
13. DO YOU SLEEP WITH A STUFFED ANIMAL? I wish I could say no, but Zach(my leopard)makes an occasional appearance.
14. DO YOU LIKE THUNDERSTORMS? I absolutely love thunderstorms!
15. WHAT WAS YOUR FIRST CAR? A maroon 1985 Dodge Charger with a hatchback... loved that car!
16. WHAT IS YOUR SIGN? Virgo
17. DO YOU EAT THE STEMS OF BROCCOLI? Sure.
18. IF YOU COULD HAVE ANY JOB WHAT WOULD IT BE? Well, I think if Big Brothers Big Sisters keeps going well, it could be my dream job. Growing up, I always had visions of owning a cafe that was also a teen hang out at night. Weird, huh?
19. IF YOU COULD HAVE ANY COLOR HAIR, WHAT WOULD IT BE? I love being a brunette.
20. IS THE GLASS HALF FULL OR HALF EMPTY? If I were completely honest, I would say half empty, but I really am trying to be more positive.
21. FAVORITE MOVIE? I don't know, any romantic comedy with a happy ending.
22. DO YOU TYPE WITH YOUR FINGERS ON THE RIGHT KEYS? There shouldn't be any other way to type.
23. WHAT'S UNDER YOUR BED? Luggage.
24. FAVORITE SPORTS TO WATCH? I watch what Dan watches, but I would say, football is more enjoyable than basketball on t.v. Basketball is more enjoyable in person.
25. YOUR SINGLE BIGGEST INTENSE PAIN? Picking up after a grown man. Get my drift?
26. KETCHUP OR MUSTARD? Ketchup. And Mustard.
27. HAMBURGER OR HOT DOG? Hot dog.
28. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE SEASON? Summer, most definitely. Along with spring and fall, but not winter.
29. THE BEST PLACE YOU HAVE EVER BEEN? As far as memories, either Myrtle Beach or New Jersey. But just for physical beauty, Alaska or Canada.
30. WHAT SCREEN SAVER IS ON YOUR COMPUTER RIGHT NOW? I don't know.
31. FAVORITE FAST FOOD? Taco Bell, hands down. I hate anyone who gets to have it whenever they want. Stupid Phillipsburg!
32. WHAT IS YOUR BIRTH NAME? Courtney Denae Russell
33. ANY NICKNAMES? Usually just Court, but if you ask my sister, it is Corky!

Well, that took up 20 minutes of my time, only 2 hours and 20 minutes more!

Caution: Mushy Moment Ahead

I was just sitting home by myself for the second night in a row(last night due to h.s. b-ball games, tonight due to K-State game) and I was thinking about how much I love my husband. I know that is so cheesy, right? Well, I just think that being public about how much you love your spouse is really not such a bad thing. Now, let me clarify: making out in public is bad. But showing subtle affection or talking about your love and respect for your spouse is good. So many times, I won't talk about Dan or will only talk about the negative because I don't want to appear mushy or like we're still young and in love. But... we are still young and in love. And I hope that when we're fifty, people will look at us and see that we're "young" and in love! Dan is my better half. I really mean that. All the things that Dan is are the things I wish I could be. He's patient, giving, carefree, honest, respectful, funny and so much more! Anyway, that is my romantic blog for today. Now if in a week I'm mad a Dan, I'm going to take a look at this blog and remind myself of all the things I love about him. I encourage anyone reading this, whether you've been married one year or 30 years like both of our parents, sit back, relax, and let yourself be ridiculously in love with your spouse.

Family time

Oh my, this weekend was so much fun! In fact, it was so fun that I was ridiculously sad when Terry and Debi left on Sunday. I just hate being so far away from both of our families, but I guess it could be further. Two years ago I wanted to live in New Jersey, which Dan likes to remind me about and laugh every once in a while. I never would have made it being so many states away.

Anyway, Terry and Debi came to P-burg on Friday night and we watched the three basketball games. That really does a number on your back and butt! I've never felt so old. And the JV and varsity lost, so that was a bummer. Then Saturday, we went to Norton to eat chinese food and then took a road trip to Kirwin Lake to at least say we've been there. I'm going to make Dan take me there when it warms up so we can go hiking on the cute little trails they have. Then we watched the K-State game and played Dominoes(I won!). The best part of it was that they brought our new chairs to us and we got to play Dominoes at the kitchen table, all four of us!

Overall, the weekend was fabulous. Coda even finally relaxed enough to enjoy time with her grandma! If you know Coda, she's not the nicest cat, but she loves playing with her grandparents!

Slowing down

Well, things have been very slow around here, which is actually very nice. Dan has been coaching like crazy and teaching, of course. He's had tournaments the last couple of weeks, which seems crazy to me, but he doesn't seem to mind it. I have been doing lots of fun stuff with Big Brothers Big Sisters and of course, still working at the flower shop for the time being. I'm not much of a florist, but it's going pretty well anyway. This coming weekend, Dan's parents are coming to visit and we are getting very excited about that. The downside: it's inevitable that I will have clean the spare bedroom along with the rest of the house at some point this week. Oh well, they're worth it. So that's about it for now. I'll post some pics after Terry and Debi have visited. We always have good pictures when they're here. Bye bye for now!

A New Year

Ok, I have so many cute pictures from Christmas that I'm going to keep the words to a minimum and upload as many pictures as my patience can stand. But first, here's a quick overview of our holiday season. Dan and I spent quite a few days in Topeka with his family for his birthday as well as Christmas Eve and Christmas morning. We had a blast getting to spend so much time with his parents, with Matt and Sarah, and of course, Camdyn!

Camdyn is finally saying Aunt Kieko, which is what my sister's daughter has called me since she was little, so they decided to have her call me that as well. It is, of course, the cutest thing ever when she says it. It comes out more like "Kucko", which I love! I also love that she smiles at me whenever she sees me. It makes me feel so special! She also loves her Uncle Danno. She wouldn't say Dan, but she would say Danno, which made me laugh!

Anyway, we went to my sister's on Christmas day, which is a new thing, but was so much fun! She was a great hostess. We had fun just hanging out, playing a game, eating cookies, etc. Who knows, this might be a new tradition. From there, we stayed with my parents for a couple of days, just relaxing after the Christmas craziness. And then we picked up my niece Jordan to have her stay with us for a few days. My niece Jordan is one of the loves of my life. She is almost eight, crazier than ever, and still steals my heart every moment I spend with her. She is so sweet and it helps that she loves her Aunt Kieko. We had fun playing in the snow, making pancakes, doing each other's hair, and she even got to go to work with me.

That is the last week and half of our lives in a tiny nutshell. We have had a fabulous Christmas season and had a wonderful New Year's Eve. I am excited about the upcoming year, but am already missing 2007. I guess we'll just have to do some really exciting things in 2008 to top the last year! Dan and I are wishing everyone a happy new year filled with God's many blessings! This is me with little Camdyn! Camdyn with her Papa! Debi getting her monogrammed Bible from Terry. So cute! Camdyn unwrapping her presents with her mom. She loved it! Dan and I sitting on our new kitchen chairs from his parents. Matt looks really creepy behind us! Dad unwrapping his instant marinator that Dan and I got him. Hope he likes it! Mom unwrapping the monogrammed coasters we got her. I know she likes those!Jordan making a snow angel in our front yard. She was telling me to hurry up because her butt was freezing. I was laughing so hard! Me and my precious Jordan playing in the snow!

Quick update

A couple of quick interesting things that have happened or are happening...
Dan and I have been pretty busy lately with getting ready for Christmas and ending his first semester of teaching.
We went to Kearney last weekend to see some friends and finish our shopping. It was so relaxing and so much fun.
I started my new job at the flower shop and am getting ready to start my job with Big Brothers Big Sisters any day now.
And this week is Dan's birthday week! He gave me a birthday week, so I'm giving him one. I guess maybe this will be our new tradition. Anyway, we started it off by me giving him his birthday present early. He loved his new wet/dry razor! Now he can shave in the shower! And then yesterday he got a birthday balloon and some jellybeans. And today I'm going to make his birthday cake. We're going to be out of town for his actual birthday, so I figured I better make his cake early so we can actually enjoy it. Plus, it's all part of his birthday week! I love this idea.
So that's all there is to say for now. I don't have any really good pictures right now. I took a couple of us the other day, but I don't feel like putting them on here, so there. I'll update with pictures after Christmas. Dan and I both hope that our families, friends, and all the special people in our lives have a wonderful Christmas season celebrating the birth of Christ.