Ciao Bella...

Well I leave tomorrow. Nahro and I will be back on the 14th of June. I will have pictures up of our lovely vacation (Brit term: Holiday) Hope everyone stays safe while I am away. Hugs and kisses until we get back. P.S. I am coming down with a cold too. How lovely is that the day before we leave. Plus, the don't have Zicam here! Sorry Sonja. I did manage to get Vick's early defense which is a little bit like zicam, but I am unsure how well it will work! Talk about luck! Laters!

moving, moving, moving...

So today is the day...well almost. We, excuse Nahro and his best friend Hemin, have moved most of our stuff over to the new house. There is still a few bits here. I insisted the TV and Computer stay as I have to be alone again tomorrow while Nahro works. The rest, except our bedding, will go over tomorrow. I can't believe that it is all here. I planned so much for moving and for our vacation and now we leave in two days! I am over the moon excited! So most likely the next time I talk to you I will have been away to Italy and Istanbul. Nahro and I finally get a honeymoon (nearly two years later)! So if I don't write tomorrow I will as soon as I get home with some pictures from vacation. Have a good fortnight (two weeks!)

My New House!!!

So I realize that I already posted today, but Nahro brought me to our new house and had to put the photos up so here they are...

My front door

This is the "fireplace" in the living room which is the first room when you walk into the house (it is still in a bit of mess cause the floors are going in when we are on vacation)



The dining room which is off the living room is waiting for hardwood floors too.





The kitchen, off the dining room, may be small by American standards but is all new and soooo nice! The washer is not put in its place yet.



The main bedroom, it is finished, but the picture doesn't show much


The hallway from the main bedroom looking towards bedroom two (on the far right trhe immediate right is the stairway) and the bathroom straight in front

The bathroom has some minor fixing up also, but I am excited to take a real bath here in the UK

ITS A CLOSET...IN ENGLAND!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (this is in bedroom 2, which Nahro said it our "dressing room"/his office/guest room)

Superhero Sisters...

Fletcher and Sawyer play dress up as superhero quite regularly, and I am often wrangled into playing as well (If anyone asks my superhero name is Mikaelina ninja turtle Michelangelo's twin sister). Even though Sonja refused to unveil her Kung Fu Panda picture on the world I can not deny it to the people who want to see it (I am glad I am thousands of miles from her right now!) In addition I am posting Ash and I's Kung Fu Panda picture too. I hope you enjoy us Kung Fu Sisters! Here is to Super Heros (little did Fletch and Oyer know that they were related to three of them!)!!!

Don't Hate, You Know We Are COOL!!!!!!!!

All British Things

Today Nahro is gone to work ALL DAY! So I am here keeping busy preparing for our move to the new house this week and catching up on some American TV shows and movies I have missed. However, yesterday Nahro and I made a trip to the IKEA store in Nottingham, home of the legendary Robin Hood as the sign leading into Nottinghamshire reminds those who may not remember the million movies. As we were driving, and getting stuck in traffic, I was able to view the countryside. It is beautiful and there are rolling hills with homes, sheep. and cattle on them. I have also come to the conclusion that I have an affinity for old English women. They are all very cute and I want to have them as a nan, the Brits way of saying grandma. They always are wearing a skirt or dress with either a sweater or jacket and comfy shoes. Nahro made fun of me for this, but I adore them. I wish I could have taken a photo of just how gorgeous the views are here once you are outside of the city. I am truly in love with this country and its beauty/history. That aside I am still a proud America. How does that happen? I ope to have more photos up of our new house and the countryside new week. Hope you all have a great weekend and stay safe!

Things That go BUMP in the Night

Anyone who knows me well enough knows that I am scared of EVERYTHING!!! The house I am living in is just a resting spot until Nahro and I get our own house in a week or so. So for the time being we have two housemates that work nights. Homes in England are entirely different to those in America. Most houses are side by side (imagine apartment buildings) while there are what are called detached homes (what we normally have) and semi-detached (think duplex). I am living in a row of houses. Getting to my point. I have been having no trouble falling asleep here...except last night. I kept hearing my front door open, which is on the lover level, and people moving around. Nahro had fallen asleep in 3.5 seconds and I was laying there freaking out. Eventually I could no longer take it and made my hero get up and go check. I found out it was most likely our neighbours. While Nahro finds nothing here scary I manage to hear everything. This is going to take some getting used to having neighbours this close to me! While after it was all over it is kind of funny cause Nahro pointed out that my house in Marshall is way bigger and scarier than this. I hate when he is right!

A view of our street from my bedroom:

England Update

So the traffic in Chicago was mad crazy and I got bumped to standby cause it was a full flight, they said, but I got on and there were even three open seats near me. Anyway, we started to head out when there was something faulty and had to go back to the hanger. Two hours later we were in the air. I tried to sleep but was unable to for more than an hour. It was nice to be back in the UK. Nahro is the craziest driver...no matter what he says!I slept most of Friday and some of Saturday. On a trip down the stairs I landed on my ankle and have a small sprain. It still hurts but I can walk okay. I hope it gets better soon, cause I leave for Italy June 1st! I don't have any pics yet, I can't find anything in my freaking bags! Oh well we move to our own house soon, expect to next Sunday, and can spread out. England has been warmer then Northern Michigan so far. There was even reports of rain, I know there always is here, from France! I thought, he he we get our rain from Chicago not France! Well I hope that more exciting things are coming up here. I also hope to get some pictures up. Have a good day!

Here Now

Well I have so much to report...but unfortunately I have managed to sprain my ankle! Yay me! So I am supposed to have it up. I just wanted to report that I am here, and extremely tired. I think I have managed to sleep at least 40 hours the last 48! I hope to write more tomorrow. Miss you all!

Cheer on Cheerleader

Today is a day that is both happy and sad. My brother in law's birthday is today so Happy Birthday Roy. The sad thing is that 11 years ago today a friend and fellow cheerleader died of a brain tumor. Cindy was full of life and beautiful inside and out. Not many days go by where I don't think of her. I still remember walking out of my classroom dazed knowing what my friend Sara was about to tell me. She was an excellent example of what people should be like. So cheer on cheerleader you will be forever missed.


And on a happier note I finally have the video of the boys so here it is...

History lesson #1

Okay so I felt I should elaborate on how history is interesting...please don't stop reading! I love American history. The American Revolution and The Civil War are my favorite eras. However don't expect me to tell you all the dates and battles (let alone who were the general. I am a bad historian I know, but I like the times not necessarily the wars). I was thinking about my favorite story. A man is living quietly when suddenly the first shots of the civil war break out on his front lawn. Wanting to get away from it all he moves away, only to have General Robert E. Lee surrender to Ulysses S. Grant in his parlor four years later. See history isn't so bad! Have a good day!

Historian = Nerd? I accept that may be true, and that it applies to me.

Colonial Michilimackinac from the catwalk
Houses at Michilimackinac

I have always been labelled as a nerd, for various reasons. As I have stated I love travel and history. Today my parents and I heading 15 miles north to Colonial Michilimackinac. I have never been there (as least to the best of my knowledge). It was like stepping back into time. I love discovering new place right here at "home". I love foreign travel, but really is there anything better than stepping back to colonial America knowing that it all happened right outside your front door? I think that some history teacher make history dull. There is honestly more to it then having to remembering dates. It is the stories that make it so fun. So if being a historian makes me a nerd then I gladly accept that title.

My Family

The Whole family at Christmas 2007

So in my nine remaining days here in America I am increasingly getting more nostalgic. Today I went bowling with my mom, a side note I played awesome. I used my grandma's ball that was recently given to me. I feel like I can bowl way better, and it has been proven. :) I love the thought of using something that my grandma once did. I am this way about EVERYTHING! Oh my great uncle used it once! Great I will too. That seems to be me. I love my family and am so grateful and thankful to have been born and raised with them. While I may not get to see all the people that I want to, I know that they are there for me. I think that family is the very foundation that makes us who we are. I am blessed to have my sisters and a brother as best friends as well. It is going to be so hard to leave them all, but I have stated this all before. I am sure I am going to get more sappy as the days count down, but that doesn't change that I know that my family totally rocks!!!!!

Birthdays, Blessings, and The Brauhaus

Again we had a busy weekend. This is was my second to last weekend here in America before I move. It was jam packed. Friday we started out from Northern Michigan and stopped in Michigan City, Indiana to pick up Ashley before finally making it to Galesburg, Illinois at about 10pm. We stayed up late watching The Lost Boys (Ashley made me) and were up early Saturday (Thanks Chad!) Saturday was spent celebrating Lexi's birthday and just having fun. Sunday was Chaddy's big day. He was blessed (as was Damion). We had lunch at T.G.I. Friday's on the Mississippi River. Then drove to Chitown to a German restaurant. Today we drove home (after stopping in Kalamazoo to see Sonja and the boys). At 6:15 I managed to spring Joey from the Kennel "jail". He was super excited to see us and finally be free. So basically that was my weekend. Sounds boring here but was so much fun. Hope everyone else had a good weekend too.
Lexi in her birthday party dress
Chad, Ash, and me being silly waiting for the party to start
Chaddy before his blessing (he got new Spongebob Crocs that he absolutely loves)
Mom and Dad at Chicago's Brauhaus

Road Trip!!

We are going to drive 8 hours (or more) to my brother's house. Normal people would think ugh 8 hours in the car, but the fact is I love car rides. I love seeing new places and the sights on the way. Plus it helps that we have a DVD player in our car to help the yucky hours (when they do happen) go by. We are going to be celebrating Lexi birthday as well as Chaddy's blessing. I think this may be the last time I see these guys before I leave. I am looking forward to most of the weekend. I am upset that I have to leave my pampered (I truly mean that word) pup at a kennel that is not furnished with a couch that he can kick back on. I keep telling myself its good for him! Happy weekend!

Miss Alexia Grace

My third (and for the moment final) niece is the queen of hugs. She is a little miss domestic goddess at the young age of four. I have heard her chirp, "I cleaning leave me alone daddy." She is able to ask a million and one questions without getting frustrated at having to answer all of them. She loves makeup and purses (let's face it she is me 22 later) So to my fabulous neice: HAPPY 4th BIRTHDAY LEXI LOO!!!!!!!!

Lexi right after she was born...

Lexi and Nana share a hug...