Happy Birthday Jesus!

This Christmas we had the joy of spending it together as a family in Ellensburg. The whole family was there, although Ryan found out on a late notice that he had to work Christmas morning, so he was with us on Christmas Eve. Glen also got to spend Christmas with us, which was a huge blessing. Although the Glaser house was extremely busy, we had a wonderful time. Seth and Dylan had so much fun opening presents and we had so much fun watching them. Seth is at the perfect age where when he hears the word "present" he goes crazy... literally! We were blessed to be together as a family and to celebrate the birth of Jesus!

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

We have discovered quickly that we will be one of those families that has all the lights and Christmas decorations up the day after Thanksgiving. :) It feels so wonderful to come home each night to a home that feels like Christmas. Christmas is our favorite holiday, and being new home owners make it all the more fun to decorate.

Thankful at Thanksgiving!

This year I have so much to be thankful for. We are thankful to be home owners and were able to have our wonderful family over for Thanksgiving. We are thankful to have wonderful new teaching jobs and be living in such a gorgeous town. I am thankful to have an amazing husband who is always so willing to help around the house and treat me like a princess. We are thankful to have an incredible Lord to serve, and last we are thankful to both have incredible families who we love so much!! Although it was different not having Aaron's mom around, we are thankful that she is rejoicing with Jesus!

A much needed "girl's weekend"

After a long awaited three months of being in Ellensburg, I headed there this past weekend for a much needed girls weekend. Aaron went to a men's retreat with dad, so I spent the weekend with my mom and our wonderful girlfriends. We spent the weekend eating out, going to a baby shower, getting coffee, going to mom's spelling bee, having a PJ dinner party, and enjoying my mom's company. :) I wish the weekend would have been longer, but I will take whatever I get!!

All the girls (minus Alison and Kelly which were cut off)

The "Empty Nesters" at their spelling bee!

A weekend of sign making and cute nephews!

What a fun and exciting weekend we have had. Ryan, Lainey, and the boys came on Thursday and have been able to spend the whole weekend with us. It feels wonderful knowing that Dylan and Seth are going to be so close to their "Aunt Bonnie and Uncle Aaron". We have had the joy of going out to dinner, spending time playing laser tag and mini golfing, eating donuts, wrestling in the house, and Dylan even got go spend a day in kindergarten with me. Along with the nephews being here, I finished making 5 more of my vinyl signs. I am enjoying my new hobby and loving having new products to sell! :)

Welcome to Washington!

It's official... I have the cutest nephews in the world! After spending most of their life in Las Vegas, the Glaser family is in the process of moving to Spokane! I am so excited and grateful that I will finally be closer to my brother, his wife, and my adorable nephews. Although I haven't seen them yet, this picture gives much evidence that they are having a great time at "Grandma Jo and Pops" house. :)

My New Hobby

Here is a sneak peak at my new hobby! :) I am LOVING it. If I can continue producing lots, I hope to sell them at some point. If not, I will have lots of wonderful gifts to give! :) My husband is impressed how at one minute I am shopping for wood in Home Depot and the next I am using a power sander in the garage! :)

Birthday Weekend!

Last weekend was my birthday weekend and Aaron and I had a great weekend together. We started it out with lattes, donuts, and the farmer's market. From there we went and got our pumpkins for the year, and we ended our evening with dinner on Hayden Lake. It was wonderful! :) We look forward to having Aaron's dad here this weekend!

FOR SALE!

There is nothing like using my blog as another "craigs list", right? If you are interested in either, let me know!

Great table! Four chairs and a bonus drawer for napkins! :)

Vases used for wedding decorations! I have 12 of each size, which means I have 36 all together!

Friday Night = Date Night

There is nothing better than Friday afternoon at 3:15. School is out for the week, the weekend has begun, and it's Friday night date night with Aaron. Now that we are officially Hayden residents, we have made it a tradition of going to our favorite restaurant "The Porch" for dinner on Friday nights. Not only is the food amazing, but the company is better :).

Father/Son Weekend

I was able to capture the moment... Aaron and his dad hard at work at our house all weekend. Glen was able to come to CDA for the weekend to get away and have some time doing "projects". Aaron has been looking forward to this day, and it finally came. Aaron made his list and from the time Glen arrived they were hard at work. They did everything from changing light fixtures, changing up the garden area, adding dead bolts to our doors, adding surround sound in the living room, etc. I am blessed to be married to a "fix it" man, and now I know where he gets it!

Like father like son... literally!

A breath of fresh air!

A week has passed since I started with a new bunch of Kindergarten students, and I am still smiling :). All I can say is... the 2nd year of teaching seems WAY easier than my first. The kids have kept me on my toes, I am spending lots of time at school, and I am exhausted as ever, but my first week has been a total joy! Yeah for a new year!!

My welcome bulletin board!

Rejoicing in Heaven!

After a year long battle with lymphoma, Aaron's mom went to be with Jesus a little over a week ago. We were blessed to be able to spend her last week with her, and were thankful that our school schedule allowed for us to spend two weeks with Aaron's dad. It is still very surreal knowing that we will not see her until we meet her in heaven, but it is such a sense of peace knowing that she is with Jesus. Thank you to everyone for your continued prayers and support through the year.

A Sneak Peak...

Here is a sneak peak of the before and after of our kitchen. There WILL be more to come later....

Before

After (still in progress)

The "move in" process

We had wonderful friends and family to help us move out of our apartment in Spokane and into our new home in Hayden. We couldn't have done it without them. :) A few pictures from our move in day and our days of painting!

He felt pretty manly driving this!

... and we never thought we could fill this thing.

The long painting process of painting over their "bright" colors.

Home Sweet Home

We are officially home owners. Last night we spent our first night in our new home. It was wonderful. We have had a whirl wind of a week with painting and moving, but it feels wonderful to be in our new home. We have been doing all sorts of projects today. As I type, Aaron is currently mounting our T.V on the wall. He says he "feels like a man". :) I will post pictures soon! I have many more blog posts to add that will come soon.

Photo Shoot...

Our wonderful friends from California, Jeremy and Sarah came to Spokane for a 5 day visit. Jeremy is starting up a photography business so he wanted to take some fun "anniversary" photos of us. :) They turned out great! Good job Jeremy!!

Anniversary Pictures...

I am blessed to have been married to him for the past year!

This eagle scout sure did impress me with his camping skills! :)

My gift to Aaron... He was one HAPPY man!

1st Anniversary!

Today we are celebrating our one year anniversary. I am beyond blessed by my wonderful husband who I have been married to for a year. We have had a busy year with many exciting moments, along with some struggles that we have overcome. I couldn't be more excited for the many many more years that I get to spend with Aaron. He makes me laugh every day, he encourages me, he knows when I need a hug, he supports me in all that I do, he shows me love in so many different ways, and he treats me with so much love and respect. I am thankful and blessed!! There will be anniversary pictures to post soon!

July 10 = "Drake Day"

We are excited to announce that Aaron and I just purchased our first home, and we will be moving to Coeur d' Alene in the middle of August. We spent three days looking at houses, and on our third day we put an offer on one of our favorites. My parents took part in our house shopping with us on the last day, and it was a joy to have them there to share in this exciting time with us. To go along with the offer being accepted on July 10th, I also got a teaching job on the same day. I interviewed on the morning of the 10th, and at 2:30 in the afternoon I got the call to offer me the kindergarten teaching job at Fernan Elementary. I accepted! God sure has been amazing this week, and we are excited/nervous/thrilled about these exciting adventures that are happening in our lives. :) YEAH!!!!!

Our first home!

My new school!

4th of July at Hayden!

We spent the 4th of July at our cabin in Hayden. Our friends the Marshalls and the Johnsons spent the weekend with us, which was so much fun! We enjoyed wonderful time on the water, a fabulous fire work show, some great home cooked meals, the warm sun, and great company.

The Drakes and Marshalls

Uncle Sam and the Fam :)

Our California Vacation

Aaron and I got to spend a few weeks in California with his parents. What a fun trip we had! We were able to go on a few dinner outings with the fam, help put on a yard sale, enjoy the 100 + degree weather, and share in some good family bonding. :) We feeling blessed to be teachers and have our summers off so that we were able to spend such a long time with Aaron's parents. Jane was in great spirits and we were able to enjoy many wonderful outings with her. :)
Aaron and his dad in the Fresno airport!

Jane was sewing the hole in Aaron's shorts! :)

Let the summer begin...

Today I officially finished my last day of school.  I am filled with many different emotions.  Shocked that the year is over, sad that I had to say goodbye to some cute 6 year olds, excited for what this summer will bring, exhausted from going non-stop for 180 days, and blessed to have finished my first year of teaching.  I had an incredible year and pray that God will show me where I am suppose to be next year. :)

The Mix/Vancil Wedding

This weekend was a weekend full of wedding!  My best friend Leslie got married to her college sweetheart!  I was blessed to be the Matron of Honor in her wedding.  We started with sky diving on Saturday (not me), bachelorette party Saturday night, rehearsal on Sunday, and Monday was the big event.  The wedding was so "Leslie and Kurt" and such a fun celebration!

Bachelorette party.... whoo hoo!

          The four roommates

           My incredible friend Leslie!

My husband is crazy!!

This weekend, my husband along with three other close friends chose to go sky diving.  My friend Leslie who got married on Monday wanted to do it as a pre-funk for her wedding, and Aaron decided to join.  Although I was quite nervous and refused to do it myself, he loved it and had an incredible time doing it! :)  Way to go babe!

 Thank the Lord he made a safe landing!

               The sky divers!

Jesus Loves Me

Throughout the weekend we sang "Jesus Loves Me" quite a few times.  At one point Dylan said "I can't get this song out of my head".  I guess it's a good song to have stuck in your head, right? :)  Enjoy our little precious Seth singing "Jesus Loves Me".

A Little Nephew Time

This past weekend I had the joy of spending some time with my two adorable nephews and my brother Ryan!!  It's hard living so far away, but such a blessing when I get to spend time with them.  They have grown so much since the last time I saw them.  Seth is saying so many words and is full of energy.  Dylan is becoming such a stellar student and still enjoys snuggling.  It was so fun watching and listening to Seth and all of his big words that he is saying.  He is finally talking and its so fun to listen to what he has to say.   A few cute things he says are "Bon" for Aunt Bonnie, "not nice", "me go airplane too", "me tired", and "banjo" for Grandma Jo.