Scenes of our backyard...

Flowers are blooming...

This one is gorgeous.  It's the only red one that has bloomed so far.  The picture does it no justice!

Our tree is blooming too! :)

I can't wait till all of these little buds open up! 

The rhubarb is looking fabulous!  Jason and his brother Andy are going to try and make Rhubarb Wine this summer!  We will FOR SURE have enough rhubarb!

This, right here, is Jason's pride and joy!  His asparagus!  He goes out there every single day to check on it!  We were blessed to have a large area of this already going strong in the backyard when we moved into this house.

My tulips that I planted when we moved in...tulips are SO easy, just plant the bulb and every year after that, they come up and are simply gorgeous!  These are about to bloom any day now!  I want to fill my backyard with them!!  But I have a feeling Jason won't be so crazy about that...maybe just a corner? ;)

The daffodils are also coming in stong!  The weather has sure been harsh on them though!  Notice they are all kind of leaning over, it got a little windy the day I was taking pictures.  But nevertheless, they prevail, through wind, rain, snow, and continue to bloom!

I would totally pick some and put them on my kitchen table, but my cats would eat them!  Yep, my cats are cool like that! :)

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We went to the Fireman's Dance last night after going out to eat with some friends in Cedar Falls.  Have you ever been to Sakura?  Great place to eat and have entertainment too! :)  They have a big grill you sit around and they make your rice, noodles, veggies, and meat right their in front of you!  The chefs, grill masters, whatever you call them, make it really interesting with their spatualas and do all kinds of tricks with the food!  It's a little more expensive, but totally worth it! 

I also wanted to let all my readers know that my friend is now an salesperson for Miche!  I had never heard of this brand before, but it is a bag that you can buy different shells for!  If you want to match your purse to your outfit, just change the outer shell!  And the bags are so so CUTE!  She gave me a brochure and I really want all of them!  She hosts parties too, so let me know if anyone is interested and I will tell you how to get in touch with her!

Now I just have to convince my husband that I "need" to get one! :) 

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We are off to Jason's brother Adam's college graduation ceremony from Waldorf College this afternoon! Stay tuned for some pictures of the proud grad and all the happenings!

Enjoy your weekend!

Easter 2011 & Winny Mae's Baptism

Grandma Esser with her Great-Grand Kids! :)

A big game of Hearts going on right here!

Life is never complete at the Dick and Kathy Herrick house unless thier are some gymnastics going on...see above picture.  This is Adam doing a straddle hand stand.  Good form Adam!

Baby Winny's baptism!  Jason and I were honored to be her godparents!

Happy Girl!

After attending the Easter Sunday mass and Baptism, we had a meal at Holly's parents' home. 

Jason and I then headed to New Hampton to catch some relatives up there while they were home. Sorry I don't have any pictures from their!  It was great to see all of them too!

Ironically, their are no pictures of colorful eggs, sweet candy, jelly beans, or Easter baskets. 

Nope. Not this year.

We just have memories.

Of good times with those who are close to our heart.

I like nice people.

Nice people seriously make me smile.

Take today for instance...

I had a tanning appointment today and after I left and got into my car, I realized I still was holding the towel that I was supposed to leave in the laundry basket. 

So I hop out and run back in to throw the towel in the basket....I get out to my car, and it's locked.  My keys are visible in my purse...I.Am.SO.Annoyed. I NEVER lock my keys in my car...ever.  This is the second time I have done this in 5 years.  My bug is tempermental.  It loves me some days...other days I think it is out to get me.  Today was the second one. 

So I saunter back into the shop, and explain my situation to the lovely lady working.  She quickly offers to let me use her shop phone, and even tells me the number for the local body shop.  I was very grateful. 

I waited and chatted with her for awhile...she was SO nice and offered to give me a ride if I had to go anywhere...TWICE!  She was so sweet! 

After waiting for a little while, the body shop guy pulls up and has his car-getting-unlocked-stuff ready.  He unlocks my car within minutes, and without missing a beat I ask what I owe and I will write him a check. 

And you know what he says...

Don't worry about it. 

I said, 'No no no I WILL pay you'!  And all he says was 'have a great day'! He jumps in his truck and off he goes.

Sometimes when things go wrong, they have a way of lifting your mood.  Not always, but sometimes.  And these two little acts of kindness today made me appreciate kind, nice, and sweet people even more!

So thanks to the both of you...you know who you are!  You made my day! 

Do me a favor....

and vote for my future sister-in-law, Danna!!!  She entered into the "Face of FITNESS" magazine challenge!  She needs your votes, and might have a chance to win a trip to Hawaii!!

Click on the BLUE link below and you will be taken to her page, press vote, then a box will appear with some words in it, type the words in the blank spot and hit enter!  And come back again the next day....KEEP VOTING! :)

Fitness...is what you make it.: "Vote for your favorite everyday for the Face of FITNESS!

Thanks!

Seeing past the snow...

Here is what I woke up to on Saturday morning...

and more of it showed up on Tuesday!

And here is what I saw out of our South living room window...

that pretty robin is building a nest on our neighbors' utility box.

It kind of made my day! :-)

Do the little things you see in your life bring you joy? 

For me they do.

Some examples:

When I hit every green light on my way to somehwere...

When I get a new email...seems small...but I love it!

When I have a good hair day!

When Jason brings me home a rootbeer...just because.

When I see a great picture.

Life is what you make of it...this is true.

Be observant and you will see all the great things you may have overlooked...all of the small items in your life that you have rushed past, try it and see what you have been missing.

One.Tired.Monday

Good afternoon! 

How did you all like that snow we got on Saturday!?  I took pictures of it, but do not have my camera on me at the moment...at least it melted right away! 

Whew...we had a very busy weekend!  Jason and I, along with his parents and brother traveled down to the SouthWestern area of Iowa to see his grandma!  It takes about 4 hours to get there and I have found that by watching a movie on a laptop or portable DVD player makes the time fly by!  I DO NOT do good with long car rides...I have ZERO patience...don't you ever wish you could just snap your fingers and be there?? But, that's the way it goes!

Movies I watched this trip:

Great. Movie.

Nearly had me crying in some places from sadness and hilariousness! <--Not sure if that's a word?

I really liked it a lot.

Next up....

Two words....RENT NOW! 

I seriously was cracking up in the backseat on the way home while watching this one!!  Anything with Steve Carell, in my book, will probably make me laugh. 

The normal 4 hour drive was actually 5 hours back since we went a little farther on Sunday to Omaha to see a relative who was in the hospital there.  Then we also made a pit stop at my future sis-in-law's parents' home to pick up a few bridesmaid dresses for Bridget's wedding that they had picked up for us in DSM.  Shout out to the Kelly's! :)

  Long long looooong drive home...we rolled into our driveway at midnight-Jason had to be up at 5:30am.  Yep...sucks to be him!!

My last night for Religion Classes for the year is Wednesday this week.  It was a fun teaching this year, but being head coach for cheerleding next year is going to take a lot more energy, so I probably won't be teaching next year. 

Have a fantastic Monday everyone! :)

Our makeshift deck...

This past weekend we not only did all the landscaping in front, but Jason also made us a picnic table...or our makeshift deck!  He has been wanting a deck on the back of the house, but if we are going to add on, which we plan on doing within the next few years, it would have to get ripped out.  So, I suggested a picnic table.

My parents and Greta stopped by to pick me up to attend Grand March for Prom, and Jacob decided to stay at our house to help Jason put it together.  He is taking woodworking classes in school and has made lots of different things for his room, a dresser, an endtable, and now he is working on all of the trim in his room...regular carpenter right there!

Doing a little sanding and routering.

We like it!

Slapped a little sealer on the top and benches, and we have our makeshift deck!  We had a meal on it already and it was wonderful!

On another note, look what I found blooming in my backyard...

Spring has Sprung!



Outside updates!



This weekend Jason and I did some updating to our front yard...It might not look like a lot, but it made a big difference to us and updated our home a lot. 

Before...

We dug up all this old lawn edging and replaced it with new.

Here is the spot right in front of the rock wall that we just used regular lawn edging and mulch.

Jason punding the edging in...

After!  Notice the fancy edging!

We also updated our solar lights so they are a little brighter! 

It was a good job done and we are very pleased with how it turned out!



PROM 2011

Well, Jason didn't make it to the PROM this year!  Hah!  You might think that is weird, but my lovely husband has been to PROM 6 years.  His most recent year was in 2006 with...ME!  We always joke that he was the oldest guy at the PROM that year...or ever!  hahahah!!  But seriously...he is always ready to go, he bought his own black suit after the 2nd or 3rd time he went!

Sorry Jason, I couldn't resist!

Well, the person who I was meaning to talk about in this post is my younger brother, Andy, who attended his first PROM.

Here are some shots of him and his date Ashley.  She's one of my cheerleaders!

Ashley and Andy

Another cheerleader, Micah!

Family...

Kind of a bad quality photo, but here they are at Grand March, the theme was Mardi Gras!

DIY Baby Shower Gift

I am attending a baby shower for my cousin, Lydia and her husband, Berto on Sunday!  They had a little girl in March and named her Amelia Kay Uribe!  Isn't that just the prettiest name?  I think so!

I, as you know, do not have any children.  So when I got to the baby aisles, I was beside myself...their was SO much stuff to choose from, and I had no idea what to choose!  I wandered, picked up random things, and then walked past a rack of wooden letters.  They caught my eye and I instantly knew what I was going to do..and here is what I did!

Supplies:

-Mod Podge-about 2 ounces-

-a foam brush-

unicorns and glitter....or just glitter! I used a multi colored one, but if you are making this for a boy, you could do just blue glitter or blue/silver...

and your letters...it doesn't matter what color they come as, you will be coating all of the surface area, so no color will show, only glitter.

The process:

Mix up your glitter and Mod Podge.  As stated above, I used around 2 oz. of Mod Podge and then a lot of glitter...not so much that it became hard to work with, but a lot. 

Apply your first coat using the foam brush.  I don't have a picture of this part, but just be prepared for your first coat to not look fabulous.  You will be building up the layers of the glitter and Mod Podge, so it will look good at the end, the first coat just spreads kind of thin. 

I applied 3 coats to my letters, and I thought that was an ample amount.

Here is my finished product, I apologize for the picture quality. 

All done!

I think they turned out really good!  I plan on glittering more things in the future!

Stay tuned for...

A crafty DIY project for Sunday afternoon!


An outdoor makeover in the coming week (weather permitting)


and my little brother's first PROM! (which is tonight!)


Lot's going on this weekend!

Recipe Wednesday

Recipe Wednesday

I got this recipe from my sister-in-law Holly!  It's a meal that will last all week in your lunch box if you take your lunch to work like I do.  It was fantastic and I can't wait to make it again! :-)

After it is done in the oven...camera flashes and tinfoil do not mix!

Best. Sandwich. EVER! 

Stuffed Deli Sandwich

1 loaf french bread

1/2 lb. thin sliced deli ham (honey ham)

1/2 lb. thin sliced turkey (peppered s best)

1/2 lb. thin sliced roast beef

Deli swiss cheese to cover the length of bread

1-2 cans of drained mushrooms

Topping

1 stick of butter

2 tsp. minced onion

1/2 tsp. lemon juice

1 tsp. dry mustard

ground rosemary

Cut bread lengthwise.  Stack meat, mushrooms, and cheese on the bottom half of the loaf.  Top with other bread 1/2.  Put in tin foil pouch or make your own pouch...make sure that you have it sealed up tight on the bottom if you make your own.  Melt butter and add rest of topping ingredients and blend well.  Pour butter mixture over bread in foil.  Wrap up well and bake @ 350 degrees for 35-40 min. 

*Next time I make it, I will probably just do a spread or something different with the topping...not sure yet!