Art Museum

This is a little delayed, but I thought I'd post some photos from this weekend's visit to the Cincinnati Art Museum. The museum was within a really nice park, and also had a view of the city (sort of). We had a really nice time, and I loved seeing the Impressionist work, especially Degas' ballet statues!



We also saw the preparation of a wedding there, which looked like it was going to be beautiful. They were going to have the museum to themselves when it closed.



Here's also a photo of Sidney from this weekend.



Hope you're all doing well!

Cute Photo of the Day

From MSNBC: "Goslings try to chase away a swallowtail after it tried several times to land on the young Canada geese May 16th at Occoquan Regional Park in Lorton, Va."

Also, thought I'd share the site I found out about called Freecycle (www.freecycle.org). It's a place to share stuff you don't want/need anymore, if you're willing to give the item away for free.

My 20th Birthday... I mean 26th. :)

I had a great birthday! It was nice to be able to take the day off and spend time with BJ. We had lunch at the Cheesecake Factory (and I discovered a new favorite dish!), and went shopping at Kenwood Towne Center. There are some really cool stores in there, like Pottery Barn (my "if I had a million dollars" store), West Elm, and Williams Sonoma.

I was SHOCKED at some of the prices in that mall, like a very simple dress (I believe it was from DKNY, or the Gap, or something like that) for $125 (I have a very similar dress, and I paid $19 for it). Maybe in New York that's not a lot of money, but even if I was a billionaire, I would have trouble spending that much money on clothes. That's like how much a prom dress should be, not a simple cotton dress.

I wish I had thought to bring my camera with me for our lunch, but I didn't... BJ did take a few pictures when we got home later and had some birthday blueberry muffins (with decorative food coloring dots)! :)





I got some great gifts from BJ... including a beautiful lamp I had asked for, a Georgia O'Keefe print, and high-quality scanner. I also got some money from my Mom and Dad to go clothes shopping! :)

It was also nice to hear from my family and friends, I feel so loved!

- Jessie

Fixing Flash

Okay, I realize this is a real techie thing to say, but I've found the answer to embedding Flash and ActiveX objects! This has been a big problem ever since Microsoft lost the lawsuit against EOLAS.

If you're interested, the solution I found to actually work (and work easily), can be found here.

Lost Preview

Looks like one crazy episode is coming up next! (Click the PLAY button.)



Also, I thought I'd share BJ and I's favorite video (the best is the last one):

Jasmine's 6th Birthday

Had a fun time last night with Jon Lawrence, his daughter Jasmine, and Jasmine's sister Kayle. It was Jasmine's birthday, so we had cookie cake, and then we played a mix of beauty shop / doctor / school / watching the Red's game. BJ was the bad kid in school -- he kept coping off of Jasmine (and Jasmine was quick to let me [the teacher] know all about it).

Here's Kayle eating her cake.

And here's Jasmine later in the "waiting room" of the doctor's office:

Your Future Self

You know how sometimes you think back to when you were young, and dream about all the things you would tell your young self?

Things like hair styles NEVER to go with, clothes never to wear, friends to spend more time with, places to put your keys so you wouldn't lose them (where ARE they?!), or (greedily) companies to invest in (Microsoft, Google)?

Do you ever wonder what your future self wishes he or she could tell you right now?

Deep... I know. :)

Stuck at Home

So this morning I was in the car about to leave for work when I realized that I didn't have my car keys with me. I went back in the house and started looking... and looking... and looking... and either 1) they're not here 2) the cats hid them in some very tight space, or 3) I'm just going crazy.

So this is why I'm stuck for the day at home (I really hope they're in BJ's car because if not I really have no idea). I'm just thankful I have my hard drive with me so I can get work done from home. I would normally enjoy being able to work from home, but today I just feel frustrated. There's one big file I need and its at Xavier!

In other news, BJ and I should be getting our land contract in the mail soon - we're excited to be able to get the ball rolling. :)

- Jessie

(Almost) Land Owners!

Well, this weekend BJ and I made an offer on a piece of land, and our offer was accepted!

About a month ago, BJ and I went to talk to a builder (Richard Schmidt) in our continuing search of home. We weren't sure at that point if we wanted to build or buy. We just knew that we wanted to find something with some breathing room (i.e. some decent sized land). We told the builder about this, and he let us know about some unadvertised lots in New Alsace (Indiana). His own extended family had bought up quite a few, and the others were going fast.

We went out that day to see the neighborhood with Richard, and it was soooo nice and peaceful. Each lot in the neighborhood has five or more acres, so everyone is really spaced out. BJ and I decided to focus on a lot near the back of the neighborhood. The highlight of the lot was its ring of full-grow pines, and the opportunity to redevelop the pond that once was in the center of them. One other thing we really liked is that the neighborhood will be made up of mostly young families, so hopefully once we have kids there will be plenty of friends around. :)

Here's a drawing of the neighborhood, with our lot highlighted:


After much consideration and visits to New Alsace, BJ and I decided that this was where we really wanted to be. We went out to the land this weekend with our builder and the developer, and we made a deal - part of the deal is that the developer is going to complete the pond for us!

The neighborhood is not ready for homes yet (the roads will go in within the next two months), so we have a while before we start to build. This is kind of nice, because it gives us time to make decisions about the home itself and save.

Here are some photos from this weekend. we spent about an hour out there after the builder and developer had gone.



Our house will probably be built between here and the trees:


Here's a shot of our lot from the back of it (the bottom shows about where our property lines will be):


It's so nice to finally have some home decisions made! Plus, we really like and trust our builder, so we feel really good about the whole thing. :)

Orchids Wilting... is this Normal?

Help! A few of the buds on my orchid are beginning to wilt. Maybe this is just the natural progression of things.... or maybe I just really do not have a green thumb. Most of the buds are doing fine:





Here are the ones not doing so well...





Chrissy - Is this normal, or am I a bad orchid parent???

Softball was really fun to watch this week. BJ's team came back and won it in overtime! Also, during the game I helped take a player's adorable daughter to the bathroom. She asked me "what kind of car do you drive?" and I was wondering... what kind of answer is she looking for? She's four. She probably doesn't know what a CRV or a Prism is. I said, "We have a Honda". She returned with "Oh... We have a green car". Aahh yes. Ok. So I told her, "We have a red one." :) The kind of car we drive is a red one. :)

Also, on our way back we passed a stay 2-year old child. She looked at him, and then looked at me and said, "Is that your baby?". Um, no.

(PS - I finally downloaded some of the photos from last week off of my camere, here's a funny one of Cory.)

Nothing to Say...

Okay, again nothing new to report... just thought I'd write so you all know we're still alive. :) BJ got a bad migraine so he's home from work sick today... poor guy. Hopefully he'll start feeling better so he can still play softball tonight.

Anyway, really, that's all. Work and more work.

- Jessie

Photos from BJ's Birthday

This is a little delayed, but thought I'd post some photos from BJ's birthday. He got his new suglasses in, which he's proudly displaying here like buddy jesus. :)

Besides a few t-shirts and Bronson Arroyo's CD, he also got a new slot car track (which he's been hinting at for months...) :) This one has four lanes and runs 25 feet long (50 feet with 2 lanes).

Happy Birthday BJ!

Today is BJ's 25th birthday! For the next month, we will both be the same age!!! BJ - I love you very much! Happy Birthday!

To commemorate, here's a drawing of BJ's from when he was little. It's a very *boy* illustration. My favorite part is the guy throwing the airplane from the balcony and the guy on the bike doing a wheelie. :) It's too bad about the people in that car though...

BJ's 25th Birthday

BJ's 25th birthday is this week (the 19th), and we'll be celebrating at our house this Saturday night at 7:00pm! If the weather is nice we'll be grilling out, having a fire, and playing games outside. If its raining we'll hang out inside, play games and ping-pong, etc.

This is an open invitation so (if you know us) feel free to stop by! If you need any more info, let us know!

- Jessie

Lazy Day at Home...

Well, so far on my day off (yea for Easter), I've painted my nails (yes, this is Jessie writing), cleaned some of the house, got the Internet finally working (thank you Suscom), and had fun watching the cats watch the rest of the world. With the back door open they can hear, feel, and most importantly smell the outside world, and it has them hooked. Their noses twitch like crazy, and every little thing has them in a trance.



Thankfully, they are too scared to actually GO outside, so we're saved from having them run out when we open the doors, etc. Our goal is to keep them indoor cats, because indoor cats have fewer health risks.

I was glad to snap this photo because it documents a ritual that occurs daily. Sidney, after awaking from a nap (notice the large yawn), will walk over to Annie, lay right in front of her, and Annie dutifully starts cleaning as commanded. This adorable display of affection occurs until one or both of them gets bored and decides to pick a fight. We can almost count the seconds between the first lick and the first bite. (Man, Annie's tongue looks freaky in this photo.) :)

Bright Site Completed.... Almost

I've finished Bright's site (with just a few minor changes and content completions to go)!

Here's the previous version:


And the new:


Check it out online at http://www.brightchristian.org.

- Jessie

Congratulations Kate & Matt!

I'm so happy for Matt and Kate! Their little one, Lilly Blessing, has finally arrived (she was born yesterday)! I can't wait to meet her! I can't believe that Kate has a baby!!



Love you Kate!

- Jessie

Opening Day

Despite a depressing loss (Dunn, we still love you) and bitterly cold weather, BJ and I had a great time at Opening Day. It was neat to be able to see George W (from about a mile away at our vantage point... but that's what binoculars are for). BJ and I enjoyed playing "try and spot secret service". There's one of them in this photo... can YOU spot him?






We got to the game around 10:30 and watched batting practice, which was really cool (it also meant that we got to avoid what turned out to be 2 hour lines to get in, due to increased security). It was strange being so close to the players that we could talk to them. Here's BJ while we watched batting practice:



Here's my favorite photo from our day (BJ took it):



The helicopters flew overhead during the national anthem. Being sky-high was pretty cool in this case. :) We had a great view of their underbellies.

Happy Birthday Mom!

Hope you have a wonderful birthday Mom! I love you!!! - Jessie

Another Reds Game Photo

Here's another Red's game photo -- this one is of BJ and I when we first started dating (this would have probably been like our second or third date) (awwwww). :)



My hair was so short!

Baseball Season

Hi everyone,

Not much to report with all of the same old stuff going on (work, etc.). BJ and I are still on the hunt for that perfect house / lot of land. :)

Also, we're looking forward to baseball season starting up again on Opening Day -- one week from today! George W. Bush will be throwing out the first pitch. Here's a few photos from seasons past. :)

BJ at a Red's game in 2002:



Jeremy at a game last year (and I
think that's Blake behind BJ's fingers):


Happy early birthday Mom!

- Jessie

PS - The orchid -- it's still alive (5 days and counting)! :)

Sidney the Masseuse

This is an old video of Sindey helping Maria relax... I thought I'd share this as a test as I'm learning how to post videos. :) (Click the Play button.)

The audio is dumb, but the kitty's real cute.

Our New Challenge

BJ was so sweet to bring me home an orchid last night from Jungle Jims. Now we just have to work to not kill it. I've been inspired by Chrissy and Chris that it just might be possible to keep it alive. :) We just have to keep Annie's greedy paws off it (she was already eyeing it like "What's thaaaaat?" with an evil grin) and not be overzealous with the watering.

And here he is!

Here are some photos we've received of little Aidan! He's adorable!

We're proud to announce....

BJ and I are now an Aunt and Uncle!! My sister Kristen had her baby, Aidan John, yesterday (Saint Patrick's Day - how neat)!!! :) We're so happy and proud!!! Pictures of our new nephew will be posted soon!

Kate and Katie are next!

- Jessie

Drawings of Us

We got another letter in the mail from our sponsored child yesterday -- I wasn't able to scan it in, so I'm just posting the drawing from her first letter because its just so cute. On the left are BJ and I (notice BJ's awesome hairdo), and on the right is Juevyllee's family (actually, there are four kids in all). :) Juevyllee can't write yet (except she does write her name and a few other words), so she draws us pictures and her mom writes us letters (in very good English, I might add).

Awww... :)



- Jessie

More Mock Before/Afters

Here's some more. Photoshop is so great.

Video Back Online

By popular demand...

I've fixed the video link, so you can all see my family busta move. Keep the volume up. :)

(I also posted a few more photos from our cruise in our "Snorkeling Photos" flickr page).

Enjoy!

Baby Shower and More :)

Hi everyone!

BJ and I had a great weekend (doing our separate things). BJ spent some time in Dayton with his Dad -- they went to Wright-Pat and also visited with Jon Lawrence. :)

I took off for South Bend for Kate's baby shower (one month to go!). I stopped first in Indy and had a great visit with Kristi and Chrissy. I've missed them so much! Seeing my family (happy early birthday Eric!) and Kate was also so nice! Kate's shower was adorable. Her mom and Ann decorated with Ann and Kate's baby dresses, including the dress that Kate came home from the hospital in. :) Kate will hopefully find out for sure the sex of her baby this week (so far they're 90% sure its a girl -- but with all the baby girl clothes Kate and Matt have, they're especially hoping that it is in fact a girl). :)

Kate and Matt's Baby (Lilly) (from a while ago):














My sister Kristen is due anytime! I'm rooting for tomorrow, so that Aiden (our family's new addition) and Eric will have the same birth date. :) Whenever he's born, we just hope he gets here soon! We can't wait to meet him.

I also got the chance to see Chris and Chrissy's new home in Noblesville, which is adorable! Chrissy is so talented at decorating, and Chris did an amazing job with the floors and everything else. You can see how all of their hard work is paying off.

- Jessie

Snorkeling Photos

Hi everyone!

We got our underwater photos back, and there are some really cool ones in there. I've posted a few on Flicker - so you can check those out if you want to. :)

This one is BJ touching a sting ray - this was so awesome! We'd definately do it again.