Whirlwind Weekend

The weekend consists of 63 precious hours, from 5pm on Friday to 8am on Monday. This weekend I used every single one of those hours. I had two options regarding my weekend plans and although I wanted to do both options, I am very happy with how my weekend turned out.

It was family time vs. friend time.
 It was less driving vs. lots of driving.
And it was Dr. Albert Mohler vs. Dr. Doug Bookman. [Both of whom have been two of the most influential Bible teachers in my life.]

    Friday night sunset

I ended up seeing family and friends, seeing/hearing Dr. Bookman, and spending lots of quality time in my car. To simplify, this was my weekend:

17 hours of driving
8 hours in Kansas City
27 hours with friends
1 hour at Longview Lake
10 hours at home

    Saturday morning sunrise


The normal weekend cleaning still needs to be done and the fridge and cupboards are bare, but it was a refreshing time with people so dear to me and I'm so glad I did it.

    A spotted fawn and its mother. I also saw an armadillo and turkeys. 

Sometimes traveling back to visit can be awkward and sad, but not so. God has been so good to bless me with great friends who love Him and encourage me to do so. I had a relaxing time enjoying their friendship, just hanging out, and celebrating the new and coming babies.

    Sunday night sunset

 Of course, I missed my boys back at home. I got a picture text from them on Sunday...

    "Good morning, Mom. I miss you. See you tonight. Dad is the best."


No matter how much I would love to be sharing my day-to-day with these girls, I would much rather be with Hubs and the Pups. I'm back home and I'm ready to continue building relationships here and looking forward to more great relationships.

Treadmill Trouble

Caesar Milan (aka The Dog Whisperer) says that a treadmill is a good way to exercise an energetic and active dog. I've always wanted to try it. I've not only read about it in his books, but I've watched him put it into action on TV.

This weekend, I found Hubs attempting to do just this. (Man, I wish I would have thought to take pictures.) I happened upon him standing on the treadmill with his feet spread apart so that he was on the panels that don't move. He held Ransom by the collar, between his legs. Ransom was a trooper. It started off slow and Hubs would make it faster every little while. Soon Ransom was up to a 8:30 mile-pace and still just trotting along.

Our goal: 1 mile before we left for dinner.

At one-half mile, something went wrong. It happened too quickly at the time to understand fully, but after a couple attempts of trying to veer off the treadmill, Ransom had stopped running completely. Hubs stopped the treadmill, and then realization hit us.

(Side note: Ransom's poop schedule is very consistent. He poops on our morning walks. He poops immediately when he gets to the dog part in the northeast corner. He circles 2.5 times before squatting. He cannot run for very long if he hasn't pooped.)

After the treadmill stopped, we discovered that there was a reason Ransom was trying to get off the treadmill. He had to poop. And since his owners were forcing him to continue running, he had no option but to squat right there. Unfortunately, when he squatted he also starting riding backwards on the belt, so then he had to squat/run for the next 5 seconds until the treadmill stopped. By that time, the damage was done. The poop had ridden the treadmill and flown off the back onto the floor. Soon, the smell was enough to send us all out of the room.

Verdict: The treadmill works. Ransom seemed to enjoy it.
Lessons Learned: Take Ransom outside BEFORE the workout.

Home away from home

For three nights, this was our bedroom:

Not too shabby for a 7x7 area. We had an air mattress and a 2-foot wide entry area for our bags and Ransom, of course.

The first night, Hubs and I laid down on our brand new bed (purchased not even a week earlier). We were drifting off to sleep when we heard a loud noise and I felt a punch to my face from the bed. I sat up and we heard a hiss. The mattress had popped! The next morning, after sleeping on the hard ground, Hubs drove back to town to exchange the broken mattress for a new one. The next two nights were much more comfortable.

This was our kitchen:

And our dining room was screened in once we moved the table in:

This was our living room:

And our back yard:

But most importantly, for three days, this was our family:

The Mission, should I choose to accept it...

The mission of today is: clean and organize my mess of a desk. To get me going, I may have to go get a chai tea from Metro Coffee because, in case you didn't know, they have the best chai tea, hands down.

And if that didn't look messy enough, here's another view.

The reward to getting this done, as well as the deadline, is a wedding and fun with friends at 3pm. And oh how I love deadlines and rewards!

I shouldn't have to worry about our dog getting bored. He has become quite the lazy bum, or you could call him and lover of comfort.

Yesterday, our furnace had some trouble keeping the house warm due to the freezing cold temperatures. It was 59 degrees inside; toasty compared to the outside temps and wind chills. So we bought some firewood and have been enjoying the warmth, and the smells, of a wood fire. Since Hubs had the day off, Ransom and he cozied up next to the fire to enjoy some reading.

Thoughts on Tent Camping

As a kid, we went camping and I loved it. The atmosphere, the campground, the food, and the fire. Never did I mind sleeping in a tent, on the ground.

This is where we stayed last weekend:

We didn't have the smallest tent; but neither did we have the largest. It proved to be rain-proof, always a good thing, and had no lingering smells from the last time it was used.

It is a 7' x 7' tent that fits a Hubs and a Feather and a 60-pound dog very cozily. It is tall enough that I can almost stand up and turned out to be a great tent. My main concern was that Ransom would be up at every noise, and there were plenty of noises. From crickets chirping to some party-campers, to the coyotes howling - there was plenty to keep us awake.

However, the noises were the least of my troubles. We realized we didn't have sleeping bags when it was too late. So I packed up 4 blankets: 2 for cushioning and 1 for each of us to keep us warm. We kept warm - no problem. However, the other 2 blankets did little for cushioning.

In my old age (I am almost 26 you know), I realize I can no longer, and will no longer, sleep on the solid ground. Numerous times (I stopped counting after 10) I woke up stiff in the position I was sleeping and slowly creaked my back to a new position. Days later, my body is still stiff.

The tent next door to us had cots and egg crates. They slept well.

I still love camping. It is still fun, although a lot more work now that I am putting all the stuff together, and it is very relaxing. I still don't mind tent camping. It doesn't bother me to sleep outside protected by only a tent with a zipper door.

But before I camp again, I will most definitely have an air mattress of some sort.

Family trip

This past weekend, we all loaded into the truck and went to Nebraska. By "we all," I mean Hubs, Ransom, me, a cooler of ice cream, a ginormous dog crate, a bag of our nutrition and work out materials, a suitcase/bag for each of us, and golf clubs. It was a full load.

Our mission: a Gaither Vocal Band concert with both mine and Richard's family. You may be thinking, Gaithers? Really Feather? Yup, my favorite singer happens to be singing with the Gaither Vocal Band these days and I don't think anyone has made me laugh as much as Mark Lowry did that night.

As Hubs and I were walking into the concert, however, we began to have a few doubts. We were the only people without gray hair (exaggeration, but we were the minority). When my little bro showed up, we knew we weren't the youngest people in the building.

Ruth and I attend all these concerts together. I wouldn't know what to do otherwise. Our row was a bunch of duds, though - including the family members. They wouldn't stand up during the good parts, but Ruth and I were up and cheering the entire time.

During intermission, we went out to see if we could catch some of the singers. Whalah - we did.

When it was my turn to get my picture with David Phelps, I realized I didn't even have anything for him to sign. So, in my littlest voice ever, I said, "Um, can I just get a picture with you."

Hubs joined me in the picture with Mark Lowry, who is a really, really nice and personable guy. I didn't feel as awkward with him.

So, laugh if you want, but the concert was a lot of fun and the music was great.

Thrill Ride

Hubs and I took a weekend trip again. We went to Kansas City to 1) house sit, 2) have a weekend away, and 3) go to Worlds of Fun with some of our new friends.

I hadn't ridden a roller coaster, or thrill ride for that matter, in over 5 years. It didn't feel like that long ago, but as I walked into the theme park I started to get nervous. I have never really been a dare-devil with it comes to rides; I only went on my 1st upside-down ride 5 years ago. Imagine my shock when Hubs suggested we ride the Patriot first: dangling feet, upside down, and corkscrew turns.

I made up lots of excuses: my head bangs against the shoulder harness (true); I have a headache (true). But, I ended up on the ride. And, I ended up having fun (with my eyes closed).

Actually, it felt really good to conquer that fear. Every ride after that became easier and easier. Hubs even got me in the 2nd to front car on their newest roller coaster. By the time we had to leave, I was ready to keep riding! It was also good to spend some time getting to know some new friends.

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Ransom took a little thrill ride of his own. As Hubs and I were inside Saturday morning, I noticed something strange outside.

Hubs, I think Ransom is in the neighbor's yard.

No. He can't be. He would have had to jump the fence.

I went to investigate. Sure enough; Ransom was chilling out in the neighbor's yard. Correction: Ransom was trying to climb the neighbor's tree and get the squirrel that was dropping nuts into the yard.

I called Ransom back, thinking oh great, he is not going to know how to get back over and I am going to have to crawl over and lift him. To our astonishment, Ransom leaped over the fence without a hint of hesitation or difficulty and came over to me excited as can be over his new trick.

Not only was he excited, but he wanted to do it over and over again. And those squirrels kept taunting him the entire trip.

Note to self: We have a new requirement for a future home - at least a 6-foot fence.

Togetherness

This weekend was one consumed with family togetherness, and it was a blast. We've come to the stage where, at the end of this month, each sibling will live in a different state. From there, who knows where we will all end up. So, we all came to town on the same weekend to have some fun. My grandparents from Texas came, too, which was a real treat.

The newly engaged couple, and dad. The wedding is in May!

The two Bobs. I've told you about Pop-pop - he can fix anything. Oh yeah, the first thing Ransom did when we came was put a hole in that screen door.

Dad and his dog.

Me and mine. They aren't best friends, but they can coexist. - more on that later.

Notice I am wearing a hoodie! We spent Saturday evening at the campground and it got chilly. I loved it.

We ate so many s'mores. And cheesecake. And pie. And krispy creme donuts. And ice cream.

And just when we thought we couldn't get more "together," we added some more family and squeezed ourselves onto the deck for lunch.

Spontaneity

Friday night, 7pm.

Hubs says: What do you want to do tonight?
Me: Go to Kansas City.
Hubs: Are you serious?
Me. Well, yes.
Hubs: Okay, let's get packed then.

Ten minutes later, we were on to Kansas City. I needed a visit to see my fam and to hug my the dog. With the busyness of moving, I knew it would be a while until we would be able to go again.

In 20 hours, we drove for 6 hours, played and cuddled with my the dog, hung out with family, slept, looked at Israel pictures, went out to breakfast, and witnessed the murder of many toads.

In a time where so many decisions loom over our heads, this one seemed so simple and easy.

April Fools

This morning I turned on the wii fit and my balance board (on the screen) was wearing a funny hat. Odd. THen it told me, "Balance...board...not...responding...no...signal..." Hm.

Seconds later, it popped up and said, "Just kidding. April fools!"

It scares me how smart that thing is sometimes.

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Hubs and I are headed out of town, again. Which means no access to a computer and therefore no blog posts for 4 days. Gasp.

Wait, it's okay. I have good news!

For those two of you who will miss reading the Feather Files, I am still going to post. But, instead of it being all about Hubs and Feath, you will get little health and nutrition tidbits that I picked up at the dental conference.

I hope you enjoy them, but if you don't, I'll be back on Monday.

Did you know?

That Starbucks ice cream now makes little individual size containers of Java Chip? A great way to treat yourself after carrying 6 bags of groceries, plus 2 giant boxes of Pampered Chef items up the 3 flights of stairs to your apartment. You would have taken the elevator, but it moves at a whopping speed of .02 mph and you are just too impatient for that.

That when left alone in the apartment for an undetermined amount of time, I can read through 2 entire books and still have too time to spare?

That as a soon-to-be dentist's wife, it is completely acceptable to buy 2 liters of mouthwash in one trip to the store? It is also totally normal to have a shelf in the bathroom dedicated to random samples of toothpaste, whitening gel, and other oral care products.

Phase 3

I love playing games. I love playing games when I win, or at least am somewhere near winning.

I was excited for our game night on Saturday. We were playing a competitive game of Phase 10 with our flock. We set up 2 games, 6 people at each table. Each person had their own scorecard to keep track of their points, and their phase. After each hand, the two people with the lowest score from that round, switched tables - to make it more interesting.

I didn't really want to win. I bought the prize gift certificate so it would seem a bit tacky if I won. I did not, however, want to be the loser.

But, we don't always get what we want.

The theme of this scorecard is not Phase 10. You'll notice this scorecard got nowhere near phase 10. Instead, phase 3 was the game I played most of the evening.

The first 5 tries, I had a good laugh about it. The 6 & 7 times were depressing and I started receiving sympathy from the rest of the table. I became irritable by the 9th try, and I just wanted to go home after the 10 try. When I finally passed phase 3 (on the 11th time), I believe the rest of the players were at least to phase 7 and I had no chance to catch up. So, I sucked it up and had fun in spite of my pathetic situation.

Hubs, on the other hand, fared much better.

He brought home the winning scorecard by 10 points in what turned out to be a very close contest.

Answers

You all are way too smart.

A. I don't weigh 117 pounds.

B. Ironically, my parents used to force me to make my bed. In my mind, there were many more important things than making beds and picking up clothes. I'm sure my parents feared for my future husband's sanity and invisioned my future home being a disaster. Today, I must have the bed made before getting into it at night. No matter if that means making it at 7:30am or 9:55pm...it has to be made before I go to bed.

C. I am not pregnant, but I like to mess with your minds. Although, I guess it really didn't work. You're right...I probably would tell most of you in person first, and then announce it to the blogging world.

D. We really did watch 8 episodes of 24 this weekend. Time that should have been spent cleaning, doing laundry, and other profitable tasks in order to keep my life less stressful during the week was spent lounging with Hubs on the couch and after each episode saying....let's just watch one more. I think that line is straight from "How to determine if you're addicted 101."

E. Probably due to letter "D," the garbage disposal reeks. Bad. I spent some quality time this morning attempting to fix this very problem.

F. I didn't lose my cell phone, but I thought I lost it for a good 4 hours on Saturday. It was on the counter. Right, smack-dab in front of my face.

And the saga continues

We were at the gas station Saturday evening. Fillin' up the truck. Hubs starts putting gas in the tank, but instead of going into the gas tank, it just spills right onto the ground. Odd. Hubs tells me and I immediately get mad at Dakota (the truck). I mean, every 3 weeks something new comes up and he needs fixed again. What's the deal? We give him plenty of attention and drive time. This is ridiculous.

Hubs pays for the gas that we pumped on the ground, and takes a look under the truck. It wasn't Dakota's fault. Somebody had cut out a 8-10" piece of the gas line and, most likely, siphoned gas directly from the tank!

What kind of a person does something like that? It's not good enough to suck someone's gas out that they paid for, but you have to actually cause the person to pay over $100 to fix the mess you made.

After talking with the police officer, Hubs found out that we weren't the first victims of this type of vandalism at our apartment complex. Two days earlier, someone else reported the exact same instance. I guess that made us feel a little better.

The porcelain tooth...I mean, bowl.

This weekend, I found that dentistry will not only be a great profession for Hubs, but it also helps in household chores.

Our toilets have always had this water line that outlines where the water sits and pours into the bowl.


No matter how hard we scrub, the line is still there. Much to my surprise, I found Hubs scrubbing the toilet bowl with sandpaper in an effort to remove the icky stain (he had emptied as much water out as possible). I was skeptical, but the result was amazing!


When I asked him where he got the idea to do something like that he replied, Well, I just thought of it as a porcelain tooth and we use abrasives on porcelain teeth. I figured the same principles applied.


Hubs cleaning up after the "procedure."

Snow Storm In Nebraska

Let me tell you about snow storms in Nebraska.

Yesterday, the grocery stores, gas stations, and department stores were completely packed as locals stocked up on necessities in case we would be stuck in our homes for days.

This morning, before even a flake of snow fell, local schools cancelled classes in anticipation of the forecasted snow.

And 3 days ago, when we first heard that snow was iminent, the road crews sprayed solution over the major streets in hopes that they would not have to get out to start plowing as soon as snow started falling. They prefer to wait until the snow has stopped and 200 people have had accidents, to actually try and remove the snow.

No doubt, the busiest businesses tonight will be those restaurants that deliver or have take-out.

And you can't blame us for wanting to stay in, cozied up in a blanket next to a warm fire with some hot chocolate and popcorn. But, just as we mocked those down south who experienced ice and snow a few weeks ago and couldn't function, I am sure states like Minnesota, North Dakota, Alaska, and the entire country of Canada laugh at our "hunker-down until it's over" approach. I mean, people do have to live, work, commute, and function with winter weather.

We are supposed to get 4-6 inches of snow today. I'm excited. We may actually have enough snow to cover all the ugly grass!

There is a really good advantage to this snow storm. We have plans to go out to eat tonight at a popular restaurant in town. I was worried about wait, but I don't think we'll have any problems tonight!

I did it again and a Friday Funny.

To continue my winning streak, I entered myself in an office drawing today and won these:


Two tickets to the Texas vs. Nebraska basketball game tomorrow.

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And this video is absolutely hilarious. Hubs showed it to me yesterday and I laughed so hard...


Stoned Little Kid After Dentist Visit - Watch more Funny Videos

PS - you guys haven't been much help in suggesting vacations spots...

MIB - Missing In Blogging

It's been five days since my last post...that seems like a lifetime in Blogland. Life has become relatively calm and that will force me to get creative with my posts. For now, I'll give you a quick update.

After a fantastic, relaxing weekend with family, I came rejuvenated and ready to get back to normal life. I had been having frequent freak-out sessions which produced headaches and fatigue, but really accomplished nothing. It just does not work for me to live without a schedule, a purpose, and a goal. I had not purchased a planner yet for 2009 and everything in my head was weighing down on me. I would walk into walls, forget to turn off appliances, and just feel completely lost at all times. Of course, this all resulted in needless tears.

Now, my planner is with me at all times, I have a schedule and I make goals for myself each day. I'm still catching up from my weeks of chaos, but soon I should be back in a routine of working out, reading my Bible and preparing for Bible studies, and keeping our house in order. I am amazed at how much energy I already have after just a few days of being focused. It's also amazing at how much more fun I am - ask Hubs.

This isn't to say that we don't have spontaneity and that we aren't flexible. We are both of those things, but my overall, day-to-day life needs structure. My mom raised me that way, and it works.

Speaking of my mom, she is recovering and doing well. I say that now, though tomorrow will may be a different story after she tries moving it for the first time.

And, I went to purchase some of my favorite mugs from Starbucks today. I had a coupon for 10% off the entire order, but the cashier only took 10% off one item (my drink). It irks me because the coupon was the only reason I went to buy more mugs. I should have gotten about $1.90 off my purchase...I only got $.35. I want to march right back down there and get my rightful savings.

So, would you go back and ask them to re-run your transaction or just forget about the $1.55?

It is time.

The decision was really made in October. I wanted to wait until 2009 to tell - when if would feel more real. 2009 came. It felt more real, but still not enough. I wanted to wait until after the visit. The visit is over, and I am completely ready to tell you our news.



Moving is not a new thing to me. I've lived in 6 states and moved many times. It is exciting - an adventure. And this time, it will be Hubs and me together, starting a new chapter in our life and I couldn't be more excited and ready than I am now.

I knew I would be ready for the move at some point, but it took me a while to get here. I told myself I would never ever move back to Kansas. I wanted to move East - to the big trees, lakes, and hills. It is completely God who has changed my heart and mind. Never, ever did I think I would be excited to move to the middle of Kansas - wimpy trees, a few lakes, absolutely no hills, and a landscape that is more yellow than green.

But, I am completely at peace with this move and I am very ready to do this. As we drove back to Nebraska, we saw the most gorgeous sunset on the horizon due to the flat, tree-less prairie.

Hubs has the best opportunity to work for a God-fearing dentist and with a great team. I know he is going to love it and makes my heart happy to see him so excited. He will learn a ton about dentistry, running a dental practice, all while glorifying God with his profession. We know that God has led us to this place - no doubts.

There are times it seems a little scary; and at times there is too much to think about. There are times that I will be sad to go; times that I will be strong for Hubs and times he will be strong for his Feath.

And, I will get to pursue one of my dreams of finishing my degree. I am looking forward to seeing what else God will do in my life when we get there.

Today is a great day.

The little things can sometimes make the day great. Things like:

Waking up without a headache for the first time in who knows how long.

Waking up feeling rested.

Seeing that Hubs not only read, but left comments(!) on my blog.

Getting off of work at 11:30am.

Going on a road trip with Hubs.

Looking forward to an ice cream shake from Bogey's tonight.