Mike and Sarah

This weekend began with a bang as we celebrated Mike's 28th birthday! We started out day with breakfast at Drake Diner (where Mike had the ultimate birthday breakfast: Chocolate Chip Pancakes), then we caught the an afternoon showing of The Hunger Games which we both really enjoyed. Mike read the trilogy too so it was great timing for the premier of the first movie. Finally, we spent the evening with a bunch of friends pretending we were 21 again, Red Solo cups and all. I do think Mike was definitely feeling 28 on Saturday because he didn't move much until the evening hours;  he'd be the first to say it was worth it though. Today was a "divide and conquer" day in which Mike and I completed various items on our To-Do lists to help us feel somewhat prepared for our return to the working world tomorrow. So here we are... another Spring Break has come and gone... it was a great one for sure . ...

This is our first spring in our home and I have to say, I'm kind of falling in love all over again. I don't know if it's the sunny days we've had making our house look all bright and cheerful or what, but I like it. I guess I hadn't realized just how "shut in" we were throughout the winter months but having the blinds and windows wide open feels wonderful. While the change inside our house is great, my favorite part of this unseasonably warm end-of-winter-early-spring weather has been spending time out here... I can't even begin to tell you how much I love our deck. I spent the entire afternoon out here reading on Sunday (and I acutally did read this time). It was just beautiful and made me all the more excited that this is only the beginning. Of course, as with every room in our house, I couldn't help but think how badly I want to run out to the store and purchase patio furniture so we can actually use the deck. All in due ti...

I know what you might be thinking and, rest assured,   no we aren't buying a new house or selling our house (that would be too crazy for words). Our house, however, was open for business all day today. For a while now, Mike and I have spent a great deal of time discussing projects we'll need/want to complete over the summer. Some projects are small but others are quite large and require the help of professionals. We figured spring break would be the perfect time to schedule visits since we'd both be home and we've been graded with greater than normal weather. While some of the stuff really isn't all that exciting (ex. we had someone come out to look at the drainage in our yard , exciting huh ) I do want to mention a free service we decided was too good to pass up. MidAmerican Energy offers and free home energy audit to anyone using them as their primary energy service. They inspect all areas of your home and explain everything y...

Mike's parents were in town this weekend to celebrate his birthday which is coming up in a mere 5 days. They arrived yesterday afternoon and we enjoyed lunch and a bit of shopping before heading home to enjoy the rest of the day. The boys camped out in the basement to watch sports and the girls headed straight to the deck to enjoy the warm and sunny afternoon. We went out with the intent of reading in the sunshine but after about 10 minutes, our "reading in the sun" turned into "napping in the sun." Oh well, it was a wonderful way to spend the afternoon. Around 6:15 we fired up the grill to be sure our burgers were done and our plates were fixed so we could settle in, in time for the tip off of the Iowa State/Kentucky game. I probably don't need to elaborate on how the rest of the evening went. All I have to say is, let's hope Kentucky goes on to win it all... or maybe that they're beaten to a pulp by someone else in the tournament (no bitterness h...

Normally, sports aren't my thing. I really enjoyed watching my brother play sports when he was younger, but that truly is the extent of my enjoyment for sports. There is, however, one sporting event of the year when I tap into my inner sports fanatic (it's definitely somewhere in my genes because both of my parents go crazy over sports). I am of course talking about the Iowa State vs. Iowa football game. For some reason this game gets to me way deep down and attending the game all four years in college tells me I'm certainly not the only one who gets super into this game in particular. Recently however, the Cyclones Men's Basketball team has proven to me that I can expand my list of "Sporting Events I Actually Enjoy Watching" to include more than just one event. How cool is that?! It's a great feeling to see Iowa State represented in the Madness that is March. Here's hoping they do well in tonights game. One thing I know for sure is,...

I'm proud to report I've stayed true to my goal of not purchasing any books for pleasure during 2012. This was inspired during a dusting session in which I realized the amount of books on our shelves I have yet to read. Therefore, staying away from purchasing new will force me to read the books I currently have, right? So far so good. I decided to start with Shanghai Girls because I had already read about 80 pages (I tossed it aside to read a book for Book Club). This is the second book I have completed by Lisa See (I read Snow Flower and the Secret Fan a few years ago). This book follows the lives of two Chinese woman, Pearl and Joy. They are sisters and in the beginning we learn they come from a well to do family in China. The girls enjoy luxuries in life, though nothing extravagant, causing them to have a somewhat "stuck-up" view of the world. In one evening however, their lives take a drastic turn. Their fathers informs them he has gambled aw...

We have stacks of dishes, both clean and dirty, in our kitchen (plus a dishwasher in need of unloading, hence the piles). We both have piles of clothes from the week and otherwise that need to be put away. I haven't made our bed once this week (this is kind of huge). But none of this matters to either one of us at the moment because Spring Break Twenty-Twelve has officially begun. Source: google.com via Joyce on Pinterest Even though we won't be going anywhere resembling the picture above, it helps set the tone for a relaxing and enjoyable break. No huge plans as of yet but we'll get there... and eventually take care of this messy house of ours. As for now, we're starting our break by cheering on the Cyclones!!! Here's hoping this is only the beginning... go State!

and the weekend isn't even over yet, a new record for me =). We welcomed some very special visitors this weekend. Mike's sister and her husband traveled here to Iowa to catch the Iowa State vs. Baylor basketball game last night. Originally we hoped to see the game in person and were unfortunately not able to get tickets. Lucky for us they still braved the drive and we had a wonderful time catching up, showing them some of the sights, and watching the game on multiple screens at a Legends downtown. Of course the Cyclone win was a nice way to end a great day. One of the "local sights" we wanted to show them was the Raygun shop in the East Village. Here you can find a vast array of vintage-like t-shirts sporting cheeky sayings that make you laugh out loud and yell across the store, "oh man, you gotta read this one!" Below is just a small sampling of what you can find all over their store (click the link above to see more and even order shirts of your own!...