Superbowl Sunday.....

i admit it. i hate football. too many time outs, too much standing around. obviously, i'm in the minority. i can live with that. however, as much as i hate football, i LOVE Superbowl sunday. how ironic is that? it's the party. i love the food, the noise, the people. yesterday was no exception. we had the joy of hosting the party with 26 of our friends. so, with our family, we had a whopping 31 people here!! and loved every min. of it. i was so busy yakking that i only caught a handful of pictures. thanks to the following families....
wubben
wiersma
tenpas
muljat
veenings
byma
denbleyker

we have amazingly fun friends!!!

tidbits you always wanted to know about ryan...written by ME!!

since i KNOW that i will never, in this lifetime, get rye to write 25 things about himself, i thought i'd take a stab at it. after all, i just may know more about him than he does about himself. (he may say the same of me.) so, here i go, attempting to keep the list to 25!....
1...he is loyal.
2...he always smells freshly showered.
3...with just a few sentences, he can have me laughing hysterically.
4...he is random.
5...he is one of the most ethical business men i know.
6...he looks really good in royal blue.
7...he has 2 sisters and one brother. he eats dinner with them almost every Sunday and Wednesday nights.
8...he is good to his mom.
9...his sibling closest in age is 9 years older than him.
10....he loves a clean truck. it hardly ever looks that way.
11...he can be awake, talking and 2 mins. later, he can be in a deep sleep.
12...when he bathes the boys, they always end up smelling better than when i do it. he uses A LOT of Baby Magic on their hair. i love that.
13...his football jersey number in high school was 77. which is now jacks favorite number. he wants to be 'just like dad'. :)
14...he actually owns a Letterman's jacket that hangs in our front hall closet. he has never, to my knowledge, worn it. (think i can sell it on eBay?)
15...i just learned TONIGHT, while we were talking with some other people, that he never graduated from college. very interesting piece of information that we never talked about. guess i just assumed. not like it matters, he has a great job, which he LOVES!
16...he's blind as a bat. won't wear glasses cuz the lenses would be too thick.
17...he is a very helpful husband. he cooks, he cleans, he's wonderful. :)
18...he doesn't hate to iron. i do. hmmm, just got to thinking, maybe he does hate it but realizes if he doesn't do it, he'd be wrinkled all the time.
19...he's a very good kisser.
20...if he knew how good he looks in a baseball hat, he'd wear one more.
21....i love it when he has a 'five o clock' shadow going on. that's HOT!
22...he's a good tipper.
23...he's a great dad....i'm proud to be raising my children with him.
24...he is wonderfully sentimental. not a quality all men have.
25...he is a man of faith. it is reflected in his life.
26...he has seen every episode of M.A.S.H and Seinfeld at least 20 times.
27...he thinks Battlestar Galactica is interesting. (i think it's stupid, but then again, this isn't about ME, is it??? trust me, it's stupid!)
28...i don't think he's read a whole book ALL the way thru since high school. OR EVER!! however, he does read the newspaper.
29...when he is on vacation, he's on vacation. he's good at relaxing.
30...he's great at grilling!
31....he's very affectionate.
32...he weighs the same today as he did in high school.(when he sets his mind to something, he does it.)
33...he talks on his phone about 8 hours a day. i'm not kidding.
34...he very good at balancing his work and home life.
35...he loves 'mindless' computer games.
36...he has a good reign on his tongue.
37...he loves Mike and Ike's, Skittles and Junior mints.
38...cold popcorn and spiders gross him out.
39...he's very particular about how his steak is cooked.
40...he LOVES his mom's chicken souffle and my chicken Parmesan.
41...he prefers his mom's homemade maple syrup instead of any store bought brand.
42...he really likes my parents.
43...he pays all his bills online.
44...he once shoveled a little old mans sidewalk in the middle of a snow storm. he didn't even know the man. our boys still talk about it today. it was an amazing act of kindness, one that i'm so glad our boys got to see.he is teaching them to give to to others by living it out in real life!
45...he loves talk radio.
45...he prefers 80's music to almost any other.
46...when he runs on the treadmill, he listens to sermons instead of music.
47..he's very knowledgeable in the world of politics.
48...he's a Republican!!
49...i love his heart and his humor.
50...he lets me sleep in every Saturday and makes the kids pancakes.
51...he has this thing he does with his mouth when he is really touched by something. one corner goes up. maybe it's something i would only notice but i love it when he does it. i love his sensitive spirit.
52...he has a good memory.
53...he can still make my heart skip a beat when he looks at me a certain way. the same way it did when we first started dating.
54.i know, without a shadow of a doubt, that when he said his wedding vows, he meant them. he shows that to me everyday. when we're old and gray, he'll still be there. i don't ever question that.
55...i love his heart for Jesus. he continues to search to know Him better.
56...i love that he choose me to be his wife. i am honored.

ya, ya, i know i didn't keep this to 25. whatever. there is much to be said about this wonderful man! i could have written 100 more but since it's really late,..it'll have to wait until another day. or MAYBE, just maybe i could get him to add a few....ya, maybe not.

a little self absorbed maybe???

those who know me,know that i love reading tidbits about people. i love all the lists of interesting (sometimes not so interesting) fact about my friends. since i'm a list maker, by nature (thanks dad), i figured i'd make a list about what makes me tick. i'm sure some of you were wondering about that for a long time! :) let's see if i can make the 100 list....

1... i'm a homebody.
2... the smell of coffee mentally calms me.
3... i would leave my fireplace on all year long, if it was free to run.
4... i'm NOT a good cook. i can however, make a mean batch of Special K bars.
5... i like to read cookbooks. go figure.
6... on average, i drink 4 diet cokes a day.
7... i'm very content with 3 kids.
8... thankful that i have 3 BOYS!
9... i'm obsessed with face book and blogging.
10...on paper, in theory, i'm very organized.
11...the inside of my fridge is always messy.
12...i don't love to talk on the phone.
13...i love to make lists. problem is, i'm always losing them.
14...i've been 'in love' a handful of times.
15...i've only REALLY loved only one person.
16...Kenny Chesney can make me cry.
17...my closet is color coordinated. everything is facing the same direction, like colors are together. i'm crazy about an organized closet. sweaters all need to be folded a certain way. t-shirts and jeans hung.
18...i love to mow the lawn. i could spend hours (and i do) on the mower.
19...i hate to run. it doesn't make me feel good.
20... people that make other people feel small, make me angry.
21...i painted my kitchen island black and then took sandpaper to it. i know it must have made my dad cringe. it looks cool though.
22...9 rooms in my house,are painted a different color.
23...i sort of like our cat. don't tell anyone. i still think it's nasty when she licks me.
24...i don't recycle like i should. gasp.
25...i'm loyal.
26...doing laundry makes me happy. putting it away, doesn't.
27...flying terrifies me.
28...i love photography but i can't figure out how to work my point-and-shot camera.
29...my children make me smile and laugh outloud everyday. in the same breath, i must say, they also add a grey hair to my head EVERYDAY.
30...i have enough cereal in my pantry to feed a small country. i'm afraid to admit it but i think my children may starve to death if they recalled cereal.
31...i hate anyone touching my feet.
32...i'm not very affectionate but if i love you, you know it.
33...when my kids do something unexpectedly kind,it can bring me to tears.
34...most sports bore me.
35...you can never have too many candles burning.
36...i was a 'good' teenager.
37...i wish i could do-over most of my early 20's. make better choices.
38...i bite my nails. 2 of my sons have the same nasty habit.
39...thankfully, i have acrylic nails. they don't.
40...i have 14 pairs of jeans in my closet. 3 pairs of dress pants. 8 skirts. i hate skirts...don't know why i even bought one.
41...i have never cheated on a boyfriend.
42...God has been so very gracious to me when i didn't deserve it.
43...i hate horror movies, rap music and smelly armpits.
44...if socks come to me in a ball, they will be put back in your drawer, laundered, but still in a ball.
45...my husband irons. i don't.
46...when i'm angry at someone, i will rarely tell them. my body language says it all. makes my poor husband crazy.
47...i'm not lazy. when i work, i work hard. when i play, i play hard.
48...i hate confrontations.
49...i'm fairly easy to please.
50...i consider myself fun.
51....decorating is my 'thing'. wouldn't want to do it for a career but it's one of my favorite things to do. (see #22)
52...i'm good at keeping secrets.
53...i loved high school. the social part, not the academic.
54...seeing ryan's truck pull in the driveway in the evening is the best part of my day.
55...our t.v. doesn't go on much in the summer. it's on a lot in the winter. i would 'die' without T-vio.
56...i keep a box of Clorox bleach wipes by each toilet for all the little 'misses'. we should buy stock in Clorox!
57...i miss my sister every hour of every day.
58...i vacuum almost everyday.
59...i sucked my thumb until i was in the fifth grade.
60...i have the most amazing siblings. nothing in this world would be worth losing those relationships over.
61. i have been a member of my church since 1985. i still love it as much as the day i joined.
62...i have some road rage issues.
64...i believe you can be a Christian and still drink alcohol.
65...black and red. (not necessarily together) are my favorite colors.
66...most of my friends, up until my mid-20's, were boys. i love boys.
67...i have guilt over guilt.
68....my husband tells me everyday that he loves me. we never hang up the phone without saying it. never.
69...he's taught my boys to tell me they think i'm pretty and special.
70...i love turtleneck sweaters and warm, woolly socks. i'm always cold. always.
71...i think i have funny, funny children and a very witty husband.
72...i have married someone just like my dad. i'm so glad i did. my dad is my hero.
73...mice are the most disgusting animal on the face of the earth.
74...most things that Pottery Barn sells, you can also get at Target. just for half the price.
75...i step over more Lego in a single day than there are people in China.
76...i love clothes that are too small, bibles that are worn and empty Costco boxes because it means we are growing, we are being blessed, we are well fed.
77...i listen to satellite radio everyday. it's tuned to the country station.
78...i can loose my patience quickly and a min. later i can have the patience of Job.
79...some days i wish i had more faith.
80...at least 3 times EVERY morning i tell my kids to brush their teeth, put on shoes and coats. THAT makes me crazy.
81...i always check my email before showering.
82...in the last 5 years i have finally forgiven someone that i should have forgiven 10 years earlier.
83... my childhood was a storybook tale.
84... my parents are happily married.
85... i have an amazing christian heritage.
86... my grandparents, who have gone on to be with Jesus, were 3 of the most important people in my life.
87...my parents are much wiser than i ever gave them credit for. i am blessed.
88... all my clocks are set ahead 10 mins.
89... my sister is my Best friend.
90... every girl needs at least one BEST friend, that isn't blood related. i have kathy. i trust her with my life.
90...my car is usually dirty. inside and out.
91... when i get to heaven, my first comment to Jesus will be "thank You for Your undeserving grace"
92...i think 'Glad Press'N Seal' is the most brilliant invention in years.
93...my Tupperware and children's socks mysteriously disappear.
94...i have gone through things in my life that i thought i would never heal from. i have.
95...i serve a very BIG God. He is faithful. He is good.
96...i need to spend more time talking with my kids and less time, assuming they don't want to talk.
97...Christian education is an extension of our home not a replacement.
98...i think my husband is hot.
99...i have seen Shawshank Redemption, Sleepless in Seattle and Forest Gump more times than i can count.
100...i'm in love my life. i am blessed beyond what i deserve.

OH, HOW I LOVE THIS MAN....