Counting my Blessings

Daniel received an e-mail at 4:55 pm yesterday afternoon that Schmidt Builders Supply, Inc. would lock their doors at 5:00 pm "for good". Obviously we knew the housing/building market was down, that the overall economy is awful, and that Schmidt as a company was struggling but we never imagined that the entire operation would come to a halt and that ALL of the company assets would be ceased in a matter of minutes.

Daniel was allowed to take his personal belongings and get out. He was left to face SO MANY customers and vendors asking what in the hell just happened, when Daniel himself didn’t have a whole lot of information or the desire to explain to everyone what a shitty deal it turned out to be all around.

Fortunately our situation is much lighter than others. We have no children to provide for, Daniel’s mortgage payment isn’t outrageous for us to try and cover (with possible help from Jake moving in soon), and we aren’t in any outstanding debt. My car buying process is being put to a complete stand-still but if that is the worst of our situation, I consider us VERY lucky.

We have so much to be thankful for in times like this – our families are so supportive and our friends go out of their way to make phone calls and offer help.

My objective in the next few days/weeks/months is to not only keep a smile on my face for Daniel’s sake, but to make sure I put at least one smile on his every day too! He absolutely is my whole world and I will do everything in my power to make sure he stays happy, healthy, and focused.

Wish us luck!!!

Weekend in pictures

Wonderful weekend spent at home with lots of friends and family.

Started it off with Hilary watching some of our old favs to get ready for the BSB concert in Indy next week...

Had a pool day with some of the girls...

and celebrated Mom and Trevor's birthdays with some amazing BBQ and surprise homemade cakes...

I heart Pandora; The "rolling hills" near Beaumont, KS

What better way to fill an all too silent office than with music?? I am an avid Pandora listener – especially on weeks like this where I am the only secretary in at least a 50 foot radius.  I am the opposite of most people and the more white noise there is, the better I focus.  With no printers printing, faxes coming through, or documents/letters being typed by anyone that I can hear, my brain goes a little stir crazy.

I have a zillion stations on Pandora but in anticipation of my next trip to Indianapolis I created a new station (that honestly I can’t believe I didn’t already have!!).  I typed in “Backstreet Boys” and have had an afternoon full of BSB, NSync, Britney Spears, 98 Degrees, Boys II Men, Mariah Carey, etc.  Needless to say the station is AWESOME.  I find myself tapping my feet and singing all the lyrics to songs I haven’t heard in ages.  I heart Pandora!!

NKOTBSB in Indy countdown: 14 days

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Daniel’s mom calls me right before lunch; I was away from my desk but I heard my phone vibrating, I didn’t make it in time.  No more than 10 second later Daniel calls me so I answer.  His call is completely unrelated but his mom starts to call him.  He answers to see what she needs and tells me that she just heard on the radio that there were a ton of cop cars near Beaumont, the small hometown of my great grandparents, grandparents, and several other family members.

It is odd that a radio station 2 ½ hours away from Beaumont would report such an incident, and even more odd that something like that would really happen there.  So I immediately call my grandma.  No answer on the home phone and no answer on the cell phone.  I’m wondering if someone was in a bad car wreck on the highway, an old building blew up or burned down, or if an airplane crashed nearby but I decide not to worry or panic until I hear back from my grandma.  A few hours go by and Daniel texts asking if I had any news from Beaumont. I finally decide to text my cousin who lives nearby to see if she has any local information on what is going on.  She gets a hold of my grandma who is in town running errands but has no idea why all the cops, or why it was a big enough deal to be reported all the way up here. 

I decide to use my amazing Google navigation skills and came up with an article explaining the need for all the cop cars and their reason for being there... "authorities found a substantial amount pot, including pockets of plants spread over several square miles."  Looks like grandma is okay for now, assuming she had no interest in those "wacky weed" fields as she calls them :)

Creation of my first blog, and 20+ fun facts

I have friends who blog and I really enjoy keeping up with them through a different avenue vs. Facebook or Twitter.  I thought I would give my own blog a try so that my family and friends could get a more detailed and inside look into what's going on in my life.  I am also looking forward to looking back on the events that I write about months and maybe even years from now.

20+ fun facts that you may or may not know about me (in no particular order):

1.  I have a boyfriend of 3 1/2 years – Daniel, whom I love more than anything
2.  I am a Jayhawk fan – forever and ever
3.  I am a Royals fan – also, forever and ever
4.  My absolute favorite color is green
5.  I love border collies; we have two females (Marlee and Tess)
6.  I have one brother - Roger (younger)
7.  I have one sister - Shayla (younger)
8.  I have one brother in law, a nephew and a niece – Jeremy, Trevor and Cora
9.  I am a Legal Assistant
10.  I love to play slow-pitch softball and volleyball
11.  I enjoy cooking and trying new recipes
12.  I love to throw and organize all kinds of parties
13.  I love living in the Midwest
14.  My favorite kind of food is Mexican
15.  I like to be outdoors but I hate bug bites and extreme heat or cold
16.  I enjoy listening to ALL kinds of music
17.  I like to travel – to see new things and to appreciate my home
18.  Daniel and I are on our 3^rd garden – this one seems to be the most promising
19.  I am ALWAYS in the mood to shop
20.  I have the world’s best friends and family – seriously, I do!
21.  Two of my favorite sayings are “I’m not here for a long time, I’m here for a good time,” and “So damn easy to say that life’s so hard, everybody’s got their share of battle scars, as for me I’d like to thank my lucky stars that I’m alive and well.”

For my first blog post - a special picture of my adorable baby niece, Cora!