The end is near....

Well.... Another month has flown by! I can't believe that tomorrow is December 1st! I'm in the final stretch of the fall semester. I have just 2 weeks left! But included in that is: 3 tests, 3 final papers due the last week, 2 papers due next week, 2 presentations, and lots of studying!!! Besides what I have to do, what did I do this past month? Joel went hunting with his dad in Port Huron area. He got an 11 point buck with his crossbow and then a 5 point buck on opening day of rifle season. I went to Joel's parents' for a visit at the beginning of the month and for Thanksgiving weekend. Thanksgiving morning I went to Nantucket Baking Company for our traditional bread and muffins. Then we packed and went for a 14 mile bike ride. It was chilly! After rushing to get cleaned up and the car packed, we went to Muskegon to visit my dad's side of the family. It was so great to see my grandma, aunts, uncles, and cousins. We didn't get to stay as long as I would have liked, because we had to get on the road so we wouldn't be late to Thanksgiving dinner with Joel's family. We had a lot of delicious food and I'm proud to say that I didn't gain weight this year from it! I only ate a plate of food at each location- no second helpings for this girl. I'm finding it very hard not to put weight on now that I don't have time to exercise. I'm already looking forward to spring and the chance to ride my bike at least once a week again! I feel like I should have done more stuff this month, but I honestly can't think of what else I did. Here's to a great (and busy) December!

We're getting it mounted...

Hitting a Rough Patch

Lately I've been in a slum. I'm so busy with work and school and life in general, but that's not the problem. I'm beginning to be very unhappy at work. I've put in three years with my employer (been there longer than anyone else, apart from the owner.) and it's the same old crap over and over and over again. It's really bringing me down. I hate that I am not happy, but I have to keep at it. Today I came home in a terrible mood. As soon as I walked in the door, Joel was there and I couldn't hold back the tears. We talked about our days a little bit and Joel asked what he could do to make it better. I said "Just hold me." and he did. Then we walked towards the living room and he had a present and card sitting on my spot. So I started crying again - happy tears this time. I didn't deserve a gift, but I was grateful that my wonderful husband was thinking of me. I read the card- and more tears. Then I unwrapped my gift and there was a brand new Pink laptop for me! I have never had my own computer before! And this was PINK!!! I can't believe how lucky I am to have Joel in my life! He noticed how frustrated I had been getting with the old laptop (his from when he first got home from his mission) and needed a good one for school. He even got me a new cute mouse and a laptop bag. It's an early birthday present and it just brightened my weekend! He's so thoughtful!

June FLEW by!!!

I can't believe that it's already July 1st!!! June went by way too quickly! We were sooooo busy. Here's a recap in a nutshell:

1st week- Joel's youngest sister graduated from high school- we went to the east side to watch her ceremony! I also made cupcakes for a wedding (See earlier blog for pictures)

2nd week- Joel's mom graduated with her Associates from Baker College- we went to the east side to support her!

3rd week- I had a barbie birthday cake for my old neighbor due and then we went to the east side to celebrate Father's Day with Joel's dad. 

4th week- Our family came up with the idea to have cupcakes instead of a cake for Jessica's graduation party, but we wanted an edible image of her. So we decided to make edible images that fit on the top of cupcakes. This turned out to be quite the project. In 13+ hours, we made a cupcake collage of 182 cupcakes for the party. It turned out great!

5th week- I had a baby shower cake due for my best friend from high school. The shower was construction themed. The cake turned out pretty well.

I thought that I would have tons of free time once school was out for summer. That has not been the case. I am just as busy! I can't believe how much work my new business has had. It's great! I'm not sure what I will do in the fall once I'm back in school. I'll be taking 3 classes and still working full time. It'll be a lot to handle. Lucky for me, I've always been good at time management and making time to get everything done. Joel has been such a great support to me! He's the best!

 Jessica Genaw- June 3rd, 2012

 The Graduate!

 Family!

 Kathy Genaw- June 8th, 2012 

 

Mom & Dad!

 Barbie Cake!

Cupcake Collage!

 Close up- See the little pictures? There were 120 different pictures!

Construction cake!

St. Louis

Joel is in St. Louis! We found out that his trip was going to be shorter than we originally thought; he left this morning and comes home tomorrow night. He's getting spoiled down there! Here is a picture he took from the bed in his hotel room. What a view! The rental car is a 2011 or 2012 silver Mustang. They went to lunch at a place that served "the best ribs in St. Louis". He went to dinner at a restaurant on top of the Hilton hotel, that had all glass windows, and had a view of the city, including the Busch Stadium. Can't wait to have him home, of course, but I'm glad he's having a good time!

Another Trip

Joel will be taking another trip for work. He'll be going to St. Louis to visit the Research and Development Center at Purina (dog food). He leaves right after Easter and will be gone for a week. I must say that I am starting to feel like a part-time wife. I'm just glad that he loves his job! That helps me feel better with all of this traveling. Some possible big trips are in the making, we'll see how those pan out.

Patiently Waiting

Monday morning I had to drive Joel to the airport to catch his 6:20 flight to Mexico. He had a brief, 30 minute lay over in Houston, Texas- That was the last time I heard his voice this week. International calling is expensive, so we've been saying our "Good Mornings" and "Good Nights" via messenger on the computer. I'm patiently waiting for Joel to get on so I can see how his day went and then head to bed. I'm so glad that around this time tomorrow I'll be going to the airport to pick him up! I miss him tons- Mexico is very far away!