Christmastime again!!

This past weekend Mav and I hosted Christmas for my family. We were all here in Beulah and had a perfect Christmas Eve. We decorated cookies, had a yummy steak dinner, went to Mass, took our Christmas pictures, and opened presents (of course the "kids" went first)!! It felt so good to be surrounded by family and we had a really nice weekend just enjoying each other's company!

Christmas with the kids!!

Mav and I went home to Williston this past weekend to spend an early Christmas with his family. We spent Saturday night with Mav's entire family, including six kids amped up on sugar and the prospect of opening presents. Simply put, this equaled smiling, running, screaming, laughing, CHAOS!! Oh but so much fun for us to watch!! We wanted to let the kids open the presents from us while we were there, so they were promised they could open them AS SOON as they tree was decorated. They all pitched in and hung ornaments and took time out to ham for the camera. It took all of 5 minutes for them to open the gifts but what a joy to see them so happy and excited!!! Their sweet little faces remind us what Christmas is all about and we love them to pieces!!

Our biggest purchase this year!

We found a house! As of today, Mav and I are the proud owners of a new house in Jamestown! (I am for the moment forgetting the fact that I still own a house in Beulah - ahhh!) We are soooo excited and are hoping to close in the middle of January. My mom has said she is already excited to paint and I am going to hold her to that! I have attached a few pics that the sellers had on the internet. It's a split level, 4 bed, 3 bath and on almost 1/2 acre. We can't wait to be settled in our new home!

I'll be home for Christmas

I love real Christmas trees!! And this year, I have two! Mav broke down and let me buy a small 2nd tree to put in the basement (only because we found one for $9.99). I love the way they smell and the way that they look all decorated! I am only posting a pic of the one upstairs as the small tree downstairs looks a little sad this year. I have to collect/buy some more ornaments to cover the tree and buy a worthy tree stand. Short version of this catastrophe: I decorated tree, tree fell down, all but like three ornaments fell off, we screwed tree stand to a piece of plywood, I redecorated, and then vacuumed for a total of FOREVER to get all the needles up. Silver lining: none of my ornaments broke AND because I didn't have many to begin with, it didn't take long to get them all back on.
Even after all that, I still love real Christmas trees!!!

So much to be THANKFUL for

Mav and I are in the midst of some big changes, starting with a new place to call HOME. Mav has accepted a job with OtterTail in Jamestown, so we will be moving/transferring there in January. We are excited about the change and Mav is excited to learn about a completely different side of the company (no power plant there). We are trying to muddle through all the things that come with moving but are also trying not to lose sight of the wonderful Holiday season. We are hoping to make it to Valley City tomorrow to spend Thanksgiving with some of my family and then visit Jessie tomorrow night in Grand Forks. No matter where we end up or how busy/crazy things are going to get, we are so grateful and thankful for our family, friends, and loved ones. You are the ones that we gather strength from and rely on and we want you to know that we appreciate and love you! THANK you for being amazing people and we know how lucky we are to have you in our lives! HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Happy Halloween!!

Here are some pics from this weekend. Judy threw the kids a Halloween party and Mav and I brought early B-day presents for Hails and Cole. The kids definately had a blast at the Halloween party! They docorated cookies, played a bean bag game, ate pizza, and had a bonfire. All this while eating as much candy and sugar as possible! We all tried to get them to sit for a pic so that we could see their costumes but you can just about imagine how that went down. I threw in one pic of my giant spider web hanging in my entry way at home and one of the Frankenstein cheeseball my mom made for her work Halloween party. Yes, I swear it is all edible!!!

A friendly reminder

JUST in case we have forgotten what Winter is all about...

I may be a VIKINGS fan

Last weekend for Mav's "REAL" birthday, Judy took both of us to a Vikings game! It was the first time either one of us had to been to an NFL game. We left Thursday and spent the night in Fargo at Kel and Mal's and then left for the cities on Friday. We had a fantastic weekend shopping, eating, and spending time at Mav's aunt and uncle's house in Eagan. Steve met us there via a work trip (I know, nice work trip to a Vikings game in a suite at the stadium!). It was amazing being in the stadium with all those people - 62,000!!! We had really awesome seats, only 24 rows up from the stadium floor. It was a good game and the Vikings WON!!! Thank you thank you thank you Judy!

Craft time again...

I spent this last week and weekend at Jess's house in Devils Lake. I think we spent most the week doing some craft projects for the upcoming Halloween/Thanksgiving seasons. She sent me this link for a NO SEW runner, which I decided to make for the top of my piano. You basically cut the fabric to size and then iron bias tape (with heat bond) to both sides of the fabric. It was super easy and turned out sooooo cute and professional looking! :) I also tackled a Fall apron, curtesy of a pattern that Jess and I had reverse-engineered the last time I visited. I had an awesome time visiting and enjoyed our girl time together! We need to do that more often as I miss our crafting adventures, diet cokes, and junk food! :)

The end of deck season

As of today, I have officially accepted that it is now Fall. Mav and I did manage to have our family BBQ/deck party/early birthday party this last Saturday and it turned out to be a decent day given the change in season. The sun did make an appearance for Saturday and the temperature reached 55 degrees despite the ice and snow on the ground from the day before. We had a house full of family and had a really great afternoon eating, laughing, and enjoying the sun. Judy and Steve, Kelly and Mal, Jessie and Patrick, and my mom and dad all stayed with us on Saturday night. I loved loved loved having everyone under one roof and we all had fun just keeping each other company, trying to finish off the leftovers, and playing the wii. Here are just a couple of pics from the party. I was basically running around like a maniac trying to make sure everything was going ok (and it was, it was just me trying to be PERFECT) so I didn't get too many snapshots.

THANK YOU to everyone who came and graced us with your presence! We are blessed to have you all in our lives!

FAMILY BBQ

This is for all the family members that may have missed out on the calls, emails, and grapevine!!! :) Mav and I are having a family BBQ on Saturday, September 18 at 1:00 pm MT. We would love to have you there to help us celebrate the completion of our biggest project this summer - the deck - and to also help us celebrate Mav's 30th birthday!! (the real 3-0 is on Oct 16) Celebrating with family will be a great way to spend one of the last weekends of the summer!

MBA

This fall Mav has decided to go back to school. He is going to be attending U of Mary ONLINE to complete his MBA. He actually had his first day yesterday and is already hard at work reading and studying. This accelerated MBA course spans 18 months and requires that he finish each class one at a time, sometimes only spending a couple weeks on a class. I know he will do great and I hope that these next 18 months just fly by!

CONGRATULATIONS Mav!

Mav has been working so hard these last two months training to compete in a triathlon. The triathlon was this Sunday in Mandan on THE hottest day of the year (for real, it was like 95 degrees by 11:30 am). He participated in the Sprint race, which included swimming 500 meters, biking 13 miles, and running 5k. He did AMAZING! Out of 23 individuals who completed the sprint race, he finished 9th!!! I am so proud of all his hard work and dedication and am inspired by his ability to tackle anything he sets his mind to!

6 kids, 4 adults, 2 dogs...All in one house

This past Thursday and Friday, Mav and I had a full house. Judy, Steph, and all our nieces and nephews came for a short visit. The plan WAS to swim at the new pool here but for some reason it was closed (how on earth they decided to close it on the two hottest days of the summer is beyond my comprehension). We improvised and headed out to Beulah Bay Thursday afternoon. We played on the beach and in the cold water. The kids all seemed to have a really fun time and Mav and I even waded in. I forgot my camera but managed to take some pics of Cole, Jas, and Brielle playing in the sandbox at home. YES the sandbox was finally put to use!! We had awesome (hot) weather those two days and spent equal parts playing outside in the water and then soaking up air conditioning. It was a hectic two days but we love when they come to visit!

Deck Finale

OK, so here are some final final final project pictures of our deck. We finished staining it last week and are soooo glad to have that done! I may be a little more ecstatic about this as I have decided that I loathe staining. Moving on - I finished the canvas panels for above the pergola (to provide some additional shade) and we have installed solar lights on the deck steps and on the pergola for some night ambience. We absolutely love it and can't wait to just enjoy our new outdoor space!!! Oh and you know I couldn't resist throwing in a pic of the boys enjoying the new deck.

FAMILY and FRIENDS

My mom, sister, and I went to this beautiful resort in Minnesota this past weekend. We went for two days and were able to totally relax and do whatever we wanted. We had a SPA afternoon on Saturday and all had a hot stone message. It was heavenly!!!! That same night we took a pontoon ride on the lake to a nearby restaurant and had a supurb meal at Sherwood Forest. They had this awesome candy/ice cream shop on the grounds and we visited that quite a few times!!! To make up for the sweets, we all three did Yoga on the beach one morning. It was a weekend I will never forget and it made it so special that my mom and sister and I could spend it together!!!
I also threw in a couple of family pics from the family reunion and a pic from my class reunion. Both were a lot of fun and it was nice to have everyone in the same place for once!!

How to sink a ship

Last weekend was probably one of the busiest this summer SO FAR. Here are the top four reasons why we went home (in no particular order):
1. Jenny's 10 year class reunion
2. Jenny's BJELLA family reunion
3. 4th of July
4. Dad's Battleship blow up
Add to that visiting Mav's family, the kids, friends, and all the travel back and forth between our two houses there and it made for quite the hectic but FABULOUSLY FUN visit!
So here are some pics of the boats that my dad, uncle, and brother made and brought to the war this year (to be fair, Gary's is the rejuvinated-with-duct-tape boat from last year). Other pics of the family reunion and class reunion to come but I ran out of steam just downloading the 250 pics from the boat battle.

The Crazy (Picture) Accident

Last night we were on the edge of a huge lightening/thunder storm. I don't think it directly hit us but the lightening was spectacular! The sky was constantly lit up and every once in a while you would catch these serious lightening bolts. My camera happened to be sitting on the bench next to the door and I decided to try and take some pictures. I thought I probably wouldn't get anything as I don't have a tripod and I didn't want to actually venture outside. I think I set my camera to some crazy settings, all hoping that I could get the fastest shutter speed possible...which still seemed like eternity. I clicked this one and had been holding my camera "steady" for aforementioned eternity and this lightening bolt happened just at the right time. I could not believe that I actually captured it!!! It is far from an award winning picture but I think the subject is so amazing and powerful and rarely do you get the chance to see it in a snapshot! Look at the sizzle!!!!

A Wedding Celebration

I don't know what it is but I can't resist taking pictures of my hubby and oh so cute nieces!!! This last weekend Mav and I were in Buffalo, SD to celebrate his aunt Roxie's wedding. We had an afternoon party with cake and build-your-own ice cream sundae's. I met David for the first time there and he radiated warmth and true kindness. Congratulations to Roxie and David and we are so happy for the two of you!! So back to my two beautiful nieces and my obsession with taking their picture...but how could I resist???? They had THE perfect job of helping out at the ice cream bar and made the most of their station. Hailey actually made an ice cream concoction that she couldn't even finish eating (anybody that knows Hails knows that she could live on sweets.) Lex did a very good job serving everyone and MAY have even served more than she ate! :) It was a fun, quick trip and we cherish the memories we made with our extended family.

Garden Inspiration

While at my mom's this weekend, I was inspired by all the wildflowers and plants growing around her apartment. She has these empty fields surrounding her building that are filled with plants and flowers that are native to North Dakota. I hope to someday garden with these plants and others that I will find along the way. I envision a space that looks not only natural but is made beautiful by these plants/flowers that are a part of the native landscape here. I just love the diversity, colors, and textures that can be found growing wild!

A place to sit and relax

We worked on the seating for the deck yesterday and were able to finish the base of the benches. They are actually pretty comfortable but we decided to add backrests to two of the sections under the pergola. I also plan on buying (maybe making???) some cushions for those two sections. What we have left to finish: backrests, top of pergola (more slats that will increase shade), planters, and brick stairs coming off the north side of the deck. We had our morning coffee outside on the deck today and it felt soooo good to be out there enjoying the beautiful weather!

Mav and I (and dogs) are off to SD tonight. Mav's aunt was recently married and is having a reception tomorrow afternoon. We are very excited to get to see Mav's family and actually go on a mini-vacation together!! Then Friday we are back to Bismarck for the weekend as Mav's softball team is playing in the McQuade's softball tournament. Wish them luck!!!

Laundry Room facelift

Here are the "AFTER" pics of the laundry room. My mom came on Saturday morning and we were done with everything Saturday night - just in time to spend approximately 4.5 hours watching both Twilight movies. We had a really fun time and it was nice to have the company and the extra set of arms. Thank you thank you thank you for all your help! I joked all weekend with her that this will inspire me to do more laundry... Besides a few minor things like making and/or buying a couple more storage bins and hemming my curtain (which btw was put together with hot glue, my new best friend) the laundry room make over is done. I LOVE how it turned out and although it may not produce more clean laundry, it does feel good to walk into a room that I have made my own.

A day in the life of Mav, Jenny, Duncan, and Grover

It's a pretty normal day around here but I feel a little bad for not keeping up on my blog lately. It's a work day for me and Mav's home working on the deck. He's making the frame for the sandbox that will be inset into the deck. I wish it were a nicer day, but at least it is cool. And with the rain, Duncan and Grover are doing their very best to get completely wet and dirty when they go outside. 

AND I am starting a new house project tonight. I am just going to spice up my laundry room a bit...nothing too life changing. It is one of the last rooms in my house that hasn't been touched but since I spend a lot of time there (how is that possible with only the two of us???) I figured it could use a face lift. I think we may be coming to the end of house projects. However, Mav's a die-hard "we can do this ourselves" so I may just be in denial. 

Here are some BEFORE pics for those of you dying to keep up with the Thompson's: