We all hate the whole state of MICHIGAN

We all hate the whole state of Michigan.  Well, not really!  In fact, for Dustin and I, the cabin in Michigan is one of our favorite places to get away.  I can't help but sing the OSU song though, every time I hear the name of that state!  (I'm not even an OSU fan.  Go figure!)  Hee, hee!

D and I spent a wonderful and relaxing week at the Maibach cabin in Michigan.  After the past 6 months of hectic, it was so nice to get away!  We spent our time

FISHING

FLOATING

Fishing

Floating

FISHING

Did I mention Fishing?!?

All in all, a memorable and enjoyable week with our friends! 



Thanks, Phil and Lisa, for a great trip full of laughs and Maibachs for the cabin on the lake and the memories made there!

Welcome to our humble abode

Some of you have asked to see pictures of our new home.  So, let me indulge you.  :)

We have done a lot of work to it.  It was in really good shape before we moved in, just needed a little updating.  We had a good time making the changes and, in the end, this house feels comfy, cozy, and ours!  (There had been some question as to if we would feel comfortable here....and we certainly do!)

Let me preface the pictures by saying that I am not in any way a photographer!  Many of the rooms are large and its impossible to get the entire room in a snapshot.  But, you will get the idea I hope.

The house from the road.  Notice the fence coming off the side?  Dustin and Dave put that in.  It goes all around the back yard.  I love it!

The house from the center of the U shaped drive.

Part of the family room.  We don't have any of our pictures on the walls yet.



The living room (part of it, anyhow).  This room took 4 coats of paint on the walls AND the trim!  This is wood paneling but you would never know it now!  It looks great! 



Kitchen from one end of the room

I love this glass fronted cabinet in the kitchen.  It used to have gold mesh over the front so you couldn't see in.  I took it out and put my great grandmothers china in it to display.  The china is purple and green, which goes with my green kitchen! 

This cabinet was Joans.  She no longer had use for it, so I took it, painted it black, and now its extra storage, along with a pretty display.  How about that:  I can be pretty handy too!  :)

Master Bath.  This room, and the living room, really show just how much a can of paint, new light fixtures, and new flooring can make a difference!  This room had hanging pendant lights on chains (a la 1972) when we moved in!  I'm so glad I have a handy hubby that did all this work!  The second bath looks just as great but I wont bore you with pics.

Well, thanks for enjoying our pictures.  I hope this blog did not come across as bragging...I did not in any way intend that!  I just wanted to share our hard work with our friends and to show those who live away from us where we are living now (Hi, Grandma!)

The way we came in to our house is a GOD story that I would love to share with any of you who don't know it!  HE is truly good and amazing and I am so thankful for the blessing he has given me in my life!

Don't post my picture on a milk carton yet...

Don't post my picture on a milk carton yet; I'm still here!  I have been incommunicado for quite a while though, haven't I?!

Let me fill you in on the past 2 months (because that is how long it's been since I last posted):

* Sold our house
* Lived with my brother and sis-in-law, Tyler and Janna, for a few weeks
* Lived with good friends, Phil and Lisa, for about 10 days
* Fenced in back yard of new house
* Moved into new house
* Lived in new house sans furniture of any type (except kitchen table) for 3 weeks
* Painted most rooms inside new house (most of which required 4 coats!)
* Put new flooring in most rooms of new house
* Changed out light fixtures in most rooms of new house
* Finally was able to move in furniture and clear out storage unit
* Worked in the garden/berry patch
* Canned/froze many items out of garden/berry patch
* Was pulled over for speeding 3 times (no tickets though!)
* Backed into husbands truck in my own driveway (oops!)
* Hubby and I both worked full time
* Went to Maibach cabin in Michigan for a week (aaahhh!  After the past month of moving, we needed a break!)  Phil and Lisa went with us and a great time was had by all!
* Hubby started new job at Steel Dynamics in Butler, Indiana
* Shut garage door on hubbys boat.  The boat is fine, the garage door is NOT! 
* Ordered new garage door.
* Fished in a buck and doe fishing tourney with hubby and caught my first bass (no pictures though..I wouldn't touch it!)

So....along with all the extras listed above, we've just been living life.  Lots of new changes to get used to in the Donovan household.  Anyhow, now you know why I've been too busy to write :)

Infertility is (Part II)

Fathers day was hard for me this year.  It never has been in the past.  Maybe it is partly due to all the other stress we have going on in our lives (if you consider job hunts, being homeless, and health concerns stressors).  Then again, maybe it's not.  Who knows?!

I really try not to dwell on the fact that I'm childless most days....but this past Sunday, when the pastor started the sermon out with the "FATHER" speech, I only made it about 5 min into the church service before I had to walk out because I was sobbing.  I sat there, next to my husband, thinking about how he wants to be a father and how I have taken that away from him.  I thought about how holidays, in general, are such lonely days for D and I because neither of us have family who include us in their lives 95% of the time.  Usually I am pretty upbeat and can find the positive (or at least the sarcastically funny) side to any situation but Fathers day kicked my butt this year.  I came home from church, laid in my bed, and cried for hours!  It didn't help that my father didn't want to spend the day with me...or that my husbands family did not include us in their plans for the afternoon.  So....he went fishing...and I stayed home and cried.  and cried.  and cried. 

But, I'm done crying now.  I just wanted to share with you that while sometimes it may SEEM like we have moved on (not that many of you have cared enough to ask how we are doing) there ARE some days when we struggle. 

So, I will be adding Fathers Day to my list of days that I do not go to church.  I think, instead, I will choose to do something fun!  Maybe sky diving (though not likely).  Or a couples massage (maybe a little more likely).  MOST likely though will be a day spent on the boat with my hubby, having our own little celebration that we made it another year, even though, sometimes, it feels like that is impossible.  :)

Infertility Is

hj

No Longer Home Owners

We are officially no longer home owners.  And today, when I called the mortgage company to be sure our mortgage was paid off,  I learned I can officially say we are no longer home OWERS!  :)  What a great thing to hear over the phone, "Congratulations on paying off your home loan."  I had to listen to it twice!  Hee, hee!  Giddy here!

We are still living with Ty and Janna for this week and next....then we are officially homeless again.  We are hoping to get into our new house sometime in the next few weeks.  I've got project lists for once we've moved that are a mile long!  For now, we are working on the fencing of the back yard. 

Happy Wednesday, Y'all!

We are moved!

Boy, I really stink at this blogging stuff!  I often think to write, but then never get around to doing so.  So, let me fill you in on our life the past few weeks:

(Deep breath) 

We packed up our entire house (just the two of us), moved our entire house to three different locations (again, just the two of us), worked our jobs full time, cleaned the old house, were homeless, were saved by my brother (Tyler) and his wife (Janna), went camping for three days, were given a closing date, had the closing date rescheduled, installed the first portion of a vinyl fence including manually digging the post holes (again ..... just the two of us!), picked up the pool, went to church, got locked out of the house for 8 hours only to realize the next day D had the key all along, planted/watered/weeded the garden, purchased all new appliances for our new (to us) house, mowed the yard at the old house, mowed the yard at T and J's, mowed the yard of T and J's trashy neighbors (there is one in every neighborhood, isn't there!?!  If you don't think so, you are probably it!  Ha!), payed bills, balanced checkbook, did laundry, helped some friends of ours move, have taught our dogs how to potty on a leash .....

(Inhale again!)

ALL OF THAT IN THE LAST 7 DAYS!

We are REALLY looking forward to being settled into our new house at the end of the month.  It has been nice to spend some time with T and J before they move (we are ALL moving again at the end of June:  them to Indy, us to our new house) but it will be nice to not be living out of a suitcase.

Praying for patience!

So, if I tell you I haven't called or written in a while because I've been swamped, please believe me!  :)

Have a great week, all!