Driving back from Granger

On Friday, when we left home it was 62 degrees... the next day in Granger it was -4 (-26 with the wind chill). Moisturize, moisturize, moisturize! On our way back the roads were windy but beautiful. It's hard to tell in these photos, but every branch of every tree was iced!

A Very Vance Christmas!

This weekend BJ and I headed up to Granger to visit my family for Christmas. We had a great time spending time together, eating lots of yummy food, playing games and going to see "The Christmas Story" play (which was awesome and so funny)! Thanks Mom and Dad for a wonderful weekend!

Andrew Peterson & Friends - Behold the Lamb Tour

Thanks to J... we found out about the Behold the Lamb Tour with Andrew Peterson, Jill Phillips, Andy Gullahorn, Bebo Norman and more... and it just so happened we were heading through Kokomo, Indiana at the right time to catch it. Kate and Matt made the trek down to see it with us and it was ah-mazing. We HIGHLY recommend it!

Mosaic Christmas Party

Last night BJ and I had our high school small group over (we call ourselves Mosaic) for a Christmas party and as always, we had a lot of fun! I always say this... but we love them... and when they graduate (they're juniors already!) we will cry!

If we could afford to fly...

...back up to Kenai, Alaska this week we SO would! Our great friends Karlene and Adam are starring in the play 'Insaine with Power'... Doesn't this look like the funnest thing ever?

We miss you guys! Break a leg! :)

[Read more from Adam's Blog]

Does anyone but us...

...still lay under the Christmas tree and look up at all the lights?

Please leave me alone...

...you just woke me up from the awesomest flying dream.

We Love Miss Lilly

Kate just sent this in an email to me... we love this girl!

"Mommy, I am going to BJ & Jessie's wedding today. They live in Cincinnati. And then I will play at their house in Cincinnati and it will be fun! They have froggies and octopuses and babies and strollers! They have lots of games and I will play with BJ & Jessie. You wanna come?"

This all took place in the 2 minutes immediately after she woke up and I got her out of her room. I'm thinking you two were the subject of her dreams. What a silly girl!

And I didn't know you had octopuses.

Or that Lilly knew that word. - Kate

If I were famous...

...I wouldn't post this because I'd probably have a hundred comments about my being evil... but sometimes you just gotta do what you gotta do. We were having trouble with Layla tracking mud inside... so I tried something new.
It proved to be too much of a pain (but it DID work) so she's now doing her business in the less muddy front yard.

Pet Pilates

Sidney and Layla swear by it.

Black Tie Moose Cake

...the most difficult recipe of our lives - it took us five hours to make! We tried making this Olive Garden recipe (four seperate layers each requring seperate treatment (in the fridge for an hour on one layer, in the freezer for another, etc.))... it was very tasty... but the whole top layer melted down the sides! Let's just say we won't me making this one again. :)

More from Wright Pat

A few picts from Wright Patterson Air Force Base - from the day before Thanksgiving. BJ and I drove up to Dayton for the day to visit the museum with BJ's dad. This place was absolutely huge.

In between hangers we tried to land a plane on an air craft carrier... and then a shot of BJ and his dad inside one of the old Air Force One planes.





Very presidential. :)

Just call me 'Maverick' (or I'll also consider 'Iceman').

iBlog

Now that BJ has a new iPhone (and he actually has a way to view our blog during the day and see what I write about our lives) - he's requesting that I update this more often. Because I've been a very bad blogger.

Photos to come!!! :)

Wright Patterson Air Force Base

I have our own photos to post from our trip to Wright-Pat this week... but for me, by far, this was the coolest experience - standing on the Air Force One in the exact place where Johnson was sworn in. Amazing.

This is me...

coughing.
headache-ing.
sneezing.
tired.
and going home.

Independant Woman

So we forgot to mention (okay, we just forgot)... Layla celebrated 1 year of life a couple of weeks ago! We just love that crazy dog. One year of puppyness down, one year to go.

With this milestone, Layla has suddenly developed a bit of independence... twice now she's bolted off to meet our neighbor's dogs (who live quite a ways away), leaving BJ and I frantically searching after her. She of course loves the adventure but for us it's a bit too scary. And this last time she came home with this little battle scar.

Photobooth Monday

Normal...
Not so normal...

BJ and Tim spent a good hour on Tim's mac this weekend making crazy photobooth photos. :) I just thought I'd go a little Andy Warhol before I head out of the office. :)

In other random news... P-Diddy, Sean Combs, and Mary J Blige are here on campus today (a 'rock the vote' sort of thing).... so traffic is going to be nuts!

Hanging with Mr. Cooper

It's hard to believe Mr. Cooper is already 3 months! He's so cute you just want to squeeze him! :)

Here's some photos of our weekend with the Chandlers! :) We love them!

Leading the Charge

I try to stay out of political discussions because I hate the division it brings. I guess that's also why I liked this article from Cameron Strang so much (also, we're hooked on the Relevant Podcast that he leads).

First Word: Leading the Charge
Reprinted from the Sept./Oct. issue of RELEVANT
September 16, 2008

Here's a quote:

Many Christians traditionally have voted Republican because of their justifiable conviction to protect the lives of the unborn. Now, many younger Christians are voting Democrat because of their justifiable desire to see our nation, the most prosperous in the world, address issues of poverty, global aid and the environment.

The problem is, many Christians vote these convictions, but that’s largely where their personal involvement in the issues stops. Are the government leaders we vote for meant to do our job for us? [More]

Mom and Dad Visit! Andrea & Andy Get Married!

This weekend was a ton of fun with the Trunk and Treat last night, my parents stopping by on their way back from North Carolina, and Andrea and Andy's wedding! :) Hopefully my mom will post some photos on her blog from the weekend because I forgot to take any! Arg!

Here's BJ and I on our way to the wedding.
How cute is this envelope!
The gorgeous bride and groom!