Friday, July 30, 2010

Our New Home :) Well, some of it...

View of our kitchen from the foyer.



I love this photograph.  In case you can't tell, it's raining, and instead of keeping himself dry, the man in the photo holds him umbrella over his cello.  And Josh and I found some really neat wall art to put around it.
Our kitchen table.
Really neat wine rack (Thanks, Jen & Justin) and pretty vases.
Living room and couch.  The flowers are from the church at our wedding... we don't know what else to do with them!
Living room
Pretty decorations... mostly from wedding gifts!
My BELOVED china cabinet.  We got some REALLY beautiful and old china from Josh's grandma for our wedding.

Picture frames were wedding gifts... we decided we liked how pretty the people were in the models, so we will wait to change them!  After our wedding, the Promise Willow Tree gift was waiting for me in our hotel room... Josh is so thoughtful.
Josh's treasured "WVU Room".  a.k.a. Computer Room.  a.k.a Guest Bedroom (with no bed)



We are SOOO excited to have a beautiful home that we love.  And we are thankful for everything that we have.  Please come visit us!!!!!

Thursday, July 29, 2010

Please Read This.

Okay, so I totally stole this from my friend John Thrasher's Blog, but I felt the need to share with the world as well.  He got the original post from here.  It is all about what actually happens to your body after drinking ONE Coke (or any soda for that matter):

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Coke

Have you ever wondered why Coke comes with a smile? Because it gets you high. They removed the cocaine almost 100 years ago. Why? It was redundant.

  • In the first 10 minutes: 10 teaspoons of sugar hit your system. (100% of your recommended daily intake.) You don’t immediately vomit from the overwhelming sweetness because phosphoric acid cuts the flavor, allowing you to keep it down.
  • 20 minutes: Your blood sugar spikes, causing an insulin burst. Your liver responds to this by turning any sugar it can get its hands on into fat. (And there’s plenty of that at this particular moment.)
  • 40 minutes: Caffeine absorption is complete. Your pupils dilate; your blood pressure rises; as a response, your liver dumps more sugar into your bloodstream. The adenosine receptors in your brain are now blocked, preventing drowsiness.
  • 45 minutes: Your body ups your dopamine production, stimulating the pleasure centers of your brain. This is physically the same way heroin works, by the way.
  • > 60 minutes: The phosphoric acid binds calcium, magnesium, and zinc in your lower intestine, providing a further boost in metabolism. This is compounded by high doses of sugar and artificial sweeteners also increasing the urinary excretion of calcium.
  • > 60 minutes: The caffeine’s diuretic properties come into play. (It makes you have to pee.) It is now assured that you’ll evacuate the bonded calcium, magnesium, and zinc that was headed to your bones as well as sodium, electrolytes, and water.
  • > 60 minutes: As the rave inside you dies down, you’ll start to have a sugar crash. You may become irritable and/or sluggish. You’ve also now, literally, pissed away all the water that was in the Coke. But not before infusing it with valuable nutrients your body could have used for things like hydrating your system, or building strong bones and teeth.
This will all be followed by a caffeine crash in the next few hours. (As little as two if you’re a smoker.) Want to know what happens after that? Check out what happens to your body after you drink a coke, every day for a long time.

Coke itself isn’t the enemy here. It’s the dynamic combo of massive sugar doses combined with caffeine and phosphoric acid, which are found in almost all sodas. Moderation, people!

A Good Day For Josh

Today we traveled the 27 miles down to Josh's new school.  He got to see his room, look around, meet with the principals, and hear some great news.  And I got to do it all with him!!!

His principals basically told him that they wanted him to do anything that he wanted with these kids (Grades 4-7).  He can just do drum ensembles, choirs, dancing, ANYTHING.  He is jumping into a music class which was not  structured or set up to involve the kids.  So the administration's goal is: Get the kids involved.  They have even offered Josh an extra two hours after school (paid) to start extra music programs which can be available to all of the underprivileged kids FOR FREE.  They said that last year 86% of the entire school showed up all year.  Not kidding.

So we were excited to see Josh's room.  But... it was a mess.  There is literally few usable items because most of the (cheap) instruments are so old and banged up that they will probably need to be thrown out.  We took some pictures so that we will have 'before' and 'after' pictures later.  Here is what we saw today:

The room!!!!

Yes, it is a mess.

A small view of the closet.  I have no idea why there are so many plants.

This is a mess.

Yes, folks, that is an autoharp.  He has many of them and we are not sure why.


On the VERY bright side, his principal basically told him that they will pay for WHATEVER Josh wants.  They want him to start an African Drum ensemble.  Josh said, "That would be AMAZING, but honestly, it would be incredibly expensive to purchase ALL of the instruments this year for that many students."  Do you know what they said?  "Okay.  How about if we buy all of those and give you a couple thousand dollars extra?"   Uhhhhh.... needless to say, I am so jealous proud of him and excited for his year to start!

Wednesday, July 28, 2010

The Best Honeymoon Story EVER--Part III (Scroll Down for Parts I & II)

Needless to say, she stamped our declarations immediately and we were on our way.  But Josh didn't forget to take the trash bag out of the can and take it with him.  He actually said, "I'm just going to take this with me!"  It was hysterical.

On a side note: Josh has never been out of the country.  He was HONESTLY scared that if an airport person saw him sick, they would immediately assume that he had acquired malaria or yellow fever from a foreign country and hold him in a holding tank in Houston forever... You know? so they could spare the American population.

So when multiple people came up to Josh and asked him if he was okay, he would just wave them off and say, "Airline sickness!  Airline sickness!"

We started on our way to get our luggage with only 15 minutes until our plane left.  Josh was about 20 steps behind me throwing up into a plastic trash bag while I was hauling a$$ through the Houston airport.  I got to the luggage claim things and of course our luggage was not there.  Our flight attendants said Baggage Claim #5, didn't they?  I wait another minute just in case.  Nope.  Then I finally look at the sign and it says Taiwan.  Yep, definitely not us.

I find our luggage eventually.  I grab our 50-lb suitcase, our 27-lb suitcase, my carry-on bag, my purse, and Josh's laptop and start booking it for the Customs baggage check.  (with Josh in tow a few steps behind me).

I throw all of our luggage on the belt and help Josh with his shoes and belt to go through the scanner.  After this, we look at the clock.  6:48.  Our plane leaves at 7:00.  And it is on THE OTHER SIDE of the airport.

I am practically running.  Josh is still a few steps behind me and is stopping every minute off to the side to heave into the trash bag.

We finally get there at about 6:55 or 6:56 and we are the last ones on the flight.  Josh hands off the bag, sits down in the seat, asks for a drink of water, and says he feels a little better after throwing up so much.

This flight is much better because I overdosed him on Dramamine soon after we got on the plane.  (Just kidding... it wasn't that much.)  We landed in Pittsburgh, took a shuttle to our car, and I drove us home to Morgantown.  We arrived at 1:30am.  Josh was still asleep from the meds.  He literally didn't wake up the next morning until about noon.

We later found out that he had strep throat.  Yes, seriously.  He took an old prescription of mine of penicillin and was fine :-)

But, honestly though, a GREAT story to tell the kids someday!

Monday, July 26, 2010

HAPPY HAPPY JOY JOY

Josh got the job!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  We will spend the rest of the evening (and possibly eternity) celebrating!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!     Thank you, God.  We REALLY needed this :-)

Sunday, July 25, 2010

The Best Honeymoon Story EVER--Part II (Scroll Down for Part I)

Once we finally got on the plane, both of our stomachs were hurting.  Neither of us likes to fly.  We find it terribly uncomfortable and awkward.

The flight itself was okay.  Only about 2 hours long.  We landed in Houston for our layover.  The layover was supposed to be almost two hours, but we were a bit late, so we had about 1 1/2 hours to kill.  We walked in to see that the customs line had about 400 people it.  I am not kidding.

We took our place in line.  At this point, Josh was having a hard time standing for so long.  He was getting dizzy and gradually feeling more and more sick.  There was no water in sight.

As a side note, while we were standing in line, I happened to run into one of my students' parents!  I also know them from my church.  So I talked to them a little.  They had just got back from a vacation to Costa Rica (one of my favorite places)!

OVER AN HOUR LATER, when we were about 15 people from the customs desk, Josh looks at me with glazed eyes and says "I don't think I can stand anymore.  I think I am going to pass out."  Just at that instant, a pregnant woman about 4 people in front of us passes out and hits the ground.  Once again, I am not kidding.

People start yelling "Emergency!"  "Help!"  "Emergency!".  Tons of people rush over, but I stay and stand with Josh just in case it happens to him, too!  Everyone rushed over except actual airport workers.  After a few minutes, an old, overweight woman with an airport uniform came strolling over.  She lifted the woman up to her feet and later another man come over with a chair.  They sat the woman in the chair and gave her a Huggie.  Yes, that's right, a huggie.  Remember?


Once they got the line moving again, we were almost to the end and there were only 25 minutes left until our flight was leaving!

I walked up to the customs lady with our passports, declarations, and boarding passes.  Just as I get up there and hand her the forms, I take a good look at Josh.  I immediately knew what was in store.  I say to the customs woman "He is going to throw up! Right now!"  She puts her trash can on the desk and Josh vomits into it and on her desk.  She starts to gag.  I am not kidding...

...to be continued....

Saturday, July 24, 2010

The Best Honeymoon Story EVER--Part I

Our honeymoon was awesome.  We had a great time relaxing, meeting people, eating, drinking, and laying on the beach.  Unfortunately, my most memorable experience was the one you are about to hear:

The day before we left to go home, Josh was complaining of a sore throat.  So, that afternoon, he went to the room, took some Tylenol, and took a nap.   I stayed in the pool drinking mojitos with my 45-year-old Mexican friend and hot-mom, Linda.

He came back a few hours later feeling a bit better.  Later that night, at dinner, he said the throat pain was getting worse and was having trouble swallowing his dinner.  We had plans to go dancing that night with Linda and her husband.  But as soon as we got back to the room, he said his whole body was hurting, kind of like a flu.  So we just went to bed and watched some TV, hoping it would be better in the morning because we had a lot of traveling to do the next day.

Well, I woke up early to get ready and pack and he was out for the count.  He didn't want to talk, move, eat, or even shower.  I packed up all of our stuff, got a shower, went to breakfast alone, and came back.   I had to force him to get in the shower before we left.  We walked all the way to the lobby while I was carrying both suitcases, the carry-ons and my purse.  He was a few steps behind me moping along.  After check-out, we took a taxi to the airport.  And... we were there about 3 hours early.

We just sat there, waiting, and not talking.

You should know something about my wonderful and awesome husband, Josh.  When he is sick, he is a big baby.  He will admit that you himself.  This is an obvious problem for me because it is most definitely annoying to hear a 24 year old complain about a sore throat like a baby.  However, this time, I could honestly tell that it was real.  I knew that this was no sore throat.  He was truly sick.  We weren't sure if it was something he ate, drank, or caught.  But we knew that this was no common cold.

So there we are, just waiting, and waiting, and waiting, and waiting....

Still Moving In!

Josh's mom and brother came to visit for the last two days!  They were our first official visitors and it was super exciting :-)

We took them to Ocean City and played on the beach a bit and walked on the boardwalk.  I also got some Fisher's Popcorn, which was amazing, as usual.

I am currently organizing all of our important papers for our 'new' (slightly used from Craigslist) filing cabinet.  I am listening to Live while doing that and Josh is downstairs setting up all of his speakers.  As soon as we do those two things, our townhouse will be completely finished with the exception of putting up our decorations!  We are so excited.  Pictures will come soon :)

A bunch of my friends are at the Orff-Schulwerk teacher training right now in Rochester, NY.  I am beyond jealous.  I went last summer for Level I and I have to wait to go back because level II isn't offered until 2011.  Sad Face.

Well, Josh's job interview went really well.  They have asked him to come back for a second interview.  They have it narrowed down to two candidates.  They said the only thing that holds them back from hiring Josh is that he doesn't have much experience in diverse environments.  You know, growing up in Central PA and going to college in West Virginia.  So we will see how it goes.  We REALLY need this job... wish him luck!

By the way, if you want to come visit us, please do!  We are getting bored.

Wednesday, July 21, 2010

What's Wrong With My Computer?

For some reason my enter button and comma buttons will not work on my computer.  So there will be no commas or paragraphs in this post.  JOSH HAD A JOB INTERVIEW TODAY.  It went really well.  It was in Pocomoke which is about 25 miles south of Salisbury.  We should know very soon if he got the job.  It is for 4th and 5th grade general music which also includes a guitar class and various after-school ensembles which he would get to choose!!!!  It's actually a middle school that houses grades 4-8.  The other music teacher there is also from WVU.  We remember him but didn't know him too well.  Please be thinking of us because we really need this second income.  It would literally double our income and help us out a lot.  I finally went to the grocery store today and I loved it!  Everything was so different.  Huge produce section.  Most of the produce is locally grown and sold super cheap in the stores.  So I got lots of fruit!  But the beer was much more expensive.  Oh well.  As soon as the new home gets finished I am posting photos!!!

Tuesday, July 20, 2010

We're There! (in Lloyd Christmas voice)

We are moved in!  Too bad our living room looks like a tornado hit it.  I finished the kitchen and the bathroom.  That's it.  Our bedroom is set up.  But there are still boxes in it.  The guest room is a pile of stuff.  The living room is a mess.  But it is all here.  And I think we are going to like it.  Pictures to follow :-)

Sunday, July 18, 2010

Honeymoon!

When we got to our room in Cozumel, we were greeted with a fruit basket and a bottle of tequila  :)

The view from our room, with the ocean in the background.  This was taken the day we got there, as Hurricane Alex was leaving.  The sky looked much better a few days later.

Our adorable deck, fully equipped with hammock and frozen fruity drink.

A photo of some of the other "bungalows" at our resort.

Our bed, made pretty with towels, flower petals, and chocolate!

A beautiful pyramid at the Mayan ruins of Chicen-Itza.

Me, posing in front of the pyramid.

Josh and I tried forever to capture a photo of us with the pyramid in the background.  This is the best we could do.

A swimming hole... used to be a cave until the top collapsed in on itself.

Josh took a photo of me reading from one of my favorite authors, Ayn Rand.  I was SO excited to read that book!

The beach at our resort.  We stayed out and read until the sun went down :)  Josh is so artsy.

Josh and I one evening with our cervezas... Dos Equis.  mmmmmmmmm.

Mr. and Mrs. Mengel

Saturday, July 17, 2010

Our Perfect Day

It was absolutely perfect.  I couldn't have asked for anything better.  And on top of that--it was FUN!  It's hard to believe that we have actually been married for three weeks!

People stayed all night and danced.  We didn't even stop dancing until almost 1am!  Everyone was dancing, not just kids our age, but everyone!

I promised myself that I would let nothing get to me... no matter how wrong it went or how frustrating it was.  And I kept my promise!!!  (Which is particularly difficult for me considering that I have little to no patience and I am a perfectionist)

Here are just a few examples of things that I wish hadn't happened:

1. My Beautiful Rose Pomander.  Yes, this beautiful one that you can see my brother hanging in the reception hall.  And yes, I made it myself (with the help of my mom-in-law).  I literally put every rose on it with my bare hands:

As we were walking into the reception hall the day before the wedding to decorate, Josh was carrying it and the string broke and it hit the ground.  I turned around to see the roses scattered everywhere.  I nearly cried.  But I just looked at it, turned around, and walked into the hall.  GO ME!  Although I will admit that I gave Josh a little evil eye, but I think he knew it was only because I love him :)  Someone must have fixed it, because there it is, looking just as beautiful as ever!  I also made tiny ones and put them on vases with branches and rocks in them for centerpieces (with Josh's mom posing beautifully):


2. The DJ.  For some odd reason, I forgot to hire a DJ until about two months before the wedding.  For goodness sakes, Maria, the centerpieces and decorations were completed in OCTOBER!  So, my brother knew a guy through a class that was a DJ and trying to get his business expanded.  He gave me the business card and my mom called (since she had offered to pay for it).  He offered to do it for half price!  When we met him, he was SOOO nice and it seemed like the perfect match.  Fast Forward--->Day of the wedding.  I am getting my hair done at about 9:30am with my bridesmaids.  So relaxed... having fun.  I get a phone call from my DJ.  I ask my hair dresser to hold on while I take a phone call.
DJ: Hey, Ms. Bride, How is your special day going?
MNM:  It's going great, thanks!  How are you?
DJ: Doing good.  I just wanted to clarify something real quick.
MNM: Sure.
DJ: When you emailed me the time line of the reception about a month ago, it says that the reception will be over around 11pm?
MNM: Yeah, the city ordinance states that the music has to be off by 11.  So I figured that would be a good time to stop.
DJ: Well, when your mom called me a few months back, I kind of remember her saying that it would be over by 10pm.
MNM: Nope, it's 11.
DJ: Oh, okay.  Well, I actually have a previous engagement at a club that I DJ for. And I have to be there by 10-10:15.  I don't have a choice.
MNM: Alright, then I guess it's over at 10.

You see? I didn't go crazy or freak out.  After I hung up, one of my bridesmaids, Lauren, said that her boyfriend, Eli, could probably borrow a friend's DJ equipment and set up after our DJ left.  Well, that's what we did.  And it was AWESOME!  Eli did such a great job and he had some helpers.  We actually danced and played music until about 12:30 or 1am!  Who cares about a city ordinance?

3. The Hall. Long story short:  It sucked.  It was beautiful and looked amazing.  All of my decorations were perfect.  The service was terrible.  The floors hadn't been cleaned when we got there.  Our contract said that they would set up the tables.  They weren't set up when we got there, so we did that.  Our wedding coordinator didn't even show up to the wedding.  We were promised a bunch of coolers that weren't there.  A week before the wedding, I tried to get in touch with our wedding coordinator there to finalize some details.  Well, I called the office, her cell phone, her home phone and left messages.  I emailed.  Nothing.  She didn't get back to me for FIVE DAYS!  It was two days before my wedding and I was really worried!  But needless to say, we took care of everything and it turned out just beautiful:

A photo of the finished, decorated product. I literally made every decoration by hand.  And saved a TON of money.

One particular table.  My mom's dad, grandma's husband, and my pap is in the photo frame.  He passed away about two weeks before the wedding.  Two of my favorite pictures EVER.

A picture of my newly engaged bridesmaid, Lizz, with our candy buffet.  A LOT of work went into this.  And it was beautiful!


See?  Everything turned out just perfect.

Thursday, July 15, 2010

It's Official...

...We are moving to Salisbury, MD!!!

I accepted a job at Pemberton Elementary School about two months ago but was waiting a while for an official announcement... as if I am a celebrity or something ridiculous.

Josh and I spent Monday and Tuesday in Salisbury looking for a place to live and found the most adorable, awesome townhouse.  I just can't wait to move in!

Here's the kicker.  Crime rates in Salisbury are high.  The city used to be beautiful, and now it is pretty ghetto.  Including the neighborhood of our new home.  But if truthfully was the best we could find!  We actually had to submit to criminal background checks to be tenants of this place!

Regardless, I am super excited to move and I can't wait to start a new life in a new place in our adorable new home.  My school is awesome.  My new job is awesome.

Josh has applied for a few jobs in the area and is still looking for something.  He actually has an interview on Wednesday and I am so excited for him!

We are exactly 30 minutes away from Ocean City.  Which is cool.  And there will always be plenty of stuff to keep us occupied... I am particularly excited about the huge organic farmer's market.

Just onnneeee little thing:  We know absolutely NO ONE.  I have a few family members a little north of us, but in our town: nothin'... nada zip.  So if you... yes, you... would like to come visit us, PLEASE DO.  We have a guest bedroom and can't wait for it to be occupied.  I will make you dinner, I promise.

We are moving on Monday!  Soon after I get everything settled in our new home, I will post pictures.  Eek.  Can't wait!

Wednesday, July 7, 2010

WEDDING PICTURES!

Visit our Photographer's Website for our Professional Wedding Photos!

By: Jim Holwager aka Pappy Jim

WEDDING PICTURES!!!!

Tuesday, July 6, 2010

We Are Married!

... and we are back from the honeymoon.  ...and Josh is sick.

We got back at 1:30am and I am exhausted and it's my birthday!  I am going out to dinner with Josh, Bryana, and Stephen soon.

I can't wait to post wedding and honeymoon photos and tell some fun and awesome stories.  But for now, just a glimpse of our PERFECT wedding (click on any photo to enlarge it):


I LOVE this photo.  It captures so many emotions.

Aren't we just so darn pretty?  We should probably get our hair and makeup done EVERY day.

And another favorite.