"" how do i. simplify.... ""

doing: taking a much deserved break from editing/retouching/creating craze that has become life here at DI.
listening to: Breaking Benjamin (my love) on jango radio!
feeling: sore.

so i haven't been here for awhile. a lot has happened but at the same time not so much. since Seattle we have been a busy family. summer seems to open up all sorts of new and exciting things! Ethan has been going to many many I-Cubs games with his grandparents and cousins. every Thursday to be exact. he's been in heaven. he loves hanging out with his cousins!

Matt has been a little slower at work, and so gives him more time to take off and mess around with power tools in the garage. he recently made a birdhouse that he's very proud of!

as for me. i wish our lives would go on hold for awhile and we could go back to Seattle! that was the best vacation i've had in a very long time! and i'd love for Ethan to be there with us next time! it was so relaxing, nothing to do, nothing planned, nowhere to be! SO NICE!

but back to reality we came.

our Senior season is in full swing! we are booking appointments daily -which is awesome! and Jeff, as of last week, has 2 appointments most every day from now until forever...or August.
i just finished up our Kids Contest. So i had about 2 solid weeks of photographing sweet little kiddos! it was awesome!! now i'm back behind the computer for awhile working on editing Seniors and weddings and all that other computer stuff i do!

Matt gave me some good news last week. we have been working for about 3 years + now to get out of our short term debt (credit cards and loans). and he said he figured it all up and we are right about a year away from having most all of it wiped away!! that was right on track to what we'd been told originally, so its good to know we've been budgeting tight for 3 years for a good thing!
i'm so excited to be out of debt! it will be so much easier to live month to month when $400 of our money isn't going to stupid credit cards.... that i can't even use anymore!! haha!
it'll be nice to actually have money to use for the house, or a new car, or to save!!
yeah yeah, everyone has told us "that how we lived for a long time" but really-did anyone ever think that YOU would have to live like that?! because when your parents say something most of the time you don't believe them!!

so that's a good thing. good to finally see the light at the end of this stupid debt tunnel.

other than that we've been enjoying the weather and our family and friends. we took Ethan to see Cars 2 last week as our "family date night". we all had a great time too! next weekend we will be going to Kansas City with my rents. they bought a stay at a water park hotel so we'll go do that and then stay a night with my aunt and uncle that live there! and in September we promised Ethan we would save up and take him to the Omaha Zoo! so we still have a lot to get done this summer which is exciting!

now THIS is Iowa weather!!

i had a GREAT day!!

first off, the weather is un-beatable!! i'm in heaven... no wait-its Iowa!! ;)

second--HAWKS WON!!!!! it was close, and we did lots of yelling,... Hyatt actually did lots of pacing. (FYI, don't watch Hawks football with Mike Hyatt. he paces...) but they pulled it off in 2 very awesome field kick BLOCKS right at the end! they'd better step it UP soon, but we're happy with the win for now!

third--well its really just been a nice day! my parents took ethan this afternoon. i knew he wouldn't sleep at Jakes house(where we watched the game) so my mom and dad said theyd watch him for us. he had fun and took a nap and was awesome for the rest of the night! LOVE schedules! some random things happened today, like when we got home Matts car was gone... stolen if you will. we searched for it and ended up calling his dad. well his dad had it... in Newton. guess thats what we get for leaving the keys in the car!

backtrack to last night. Matt had finally given me some cash to go clothes shopping so i had been trying to find a night to run to Target($80 goes further at Target!!) finally i settled on friday and since Jess didn't have her kiddos she tagged along! we had a great time! we talk all day, but we never really hang out anymore, and it was nice! we did some shopping, got her phone battery fixed!, went to Village Inn for dinner. yeah i know that sounds fancy but she had $5off coupons AND we got some awesome pancakes! pumpkin pancakes and apple w/carmel syrup ones. our total bills were $2.30. can't beat that!!
we got back to town and stopped at Mandy's casa to sit around the fire for a bit! that was fun because i like fires! and there were plenty of people there for good conversations!
OH-and i got 2 shirts and a pair of pants, a tank top and a crock pot at Target. the crock pot is now Matt's special Football Cheese Dip crockpot! we used it today, it works quite nicely!!

tonight i got to hang out with BOTH my little brothers! we had some pizza, sat around and played some rock band!

all in all today was great!! and there are still 2 more days in the weekend to go!! sweet! if they are all as good as this it will be the most perfect weekend ever!!

oh yeah... and this is what i did tonight. i looked so white trash--and i dont even care!

silence is beautiful

day: wednesday... this week is going slow...
feeling: super tired!
doing: this, i just got to work and i'm thinking about doing some cleaning/organizing., but haven't totally decided yet.
listening to: nothing. i haven't felt like music the last couple days. silence seems more relaxing.


the summer has been moving right along. as far as summers go this ones been the best/easiest i can remember in a while. its been super hot, but then perfect a 75degrees for a week, then back to hot. just how Iowa should be! we haven't been super crazed just yet. and we've been able to relax and enjoy the weather-friends-family time.

last week we headed to Panama for their 125th Celebration! it was wild! we got in late, otherwise i would have gotten some better pictures of the happenings. there were SO MANY PEOPLE! in case you don't know, Panama is a small town-comparable to Bussy-but a bit bigger. maybe Melcher-but a bit smaller... either way, its a town where everyone knows you, knows of you, or oddly recognizes you from when you were 5 becuase they know your Grandparents! its a great place all around! anyhow. we got there right at dark-about 9:30ish, and we thankfully got a spot to park right by my Grandma's house! there was a band playing in the block that the Catholic school is on, which happens to be a stones thow away from my Grandma's driveway. the band played until 2am.... that was fine because we ended up being UP until that time anyways! there were carnival games, food stands, a beer garden! hells yah! the best part of the beer garden was that it was located in the street between the Catholic church and the Catholic school!

its how we Catholics partAAy!!

after that weekend we've been pretty lazy. we don't have any weddings on the schedule for July-which is odd-but also kinda okay! we like having a break! especially when the next 3 months are pretty full! our seniors are filling up too. not as much as we think they should be.. but they are still calling so that's a good thing!

i've been trying to get out more and take some pictures for myself. i love shooting in general, but i love shooting more when its a shot i have in my head and it turns out just right!! i've been brainstorming some more shots that i'd like to do-i just have to find the time and the model(s) to do it!

i should pry get to doing some work. i have to design a thank you card-hopefully my brain is in a "designing" kinda place today......


happy 4th!!