Life Updates

I meant to post this on Sunday evening, but we didn't have power!

I realize it has been a while since I have shared news about what has been going on with Jake and I lately. Here it goes:

In June, I posted about how we had an offer on our house in Nebraska...well we officially sold the house and closed on the offer at the end of July. The buyer was a little difficult and tried to take as much out of the deal as possible. We felt like we got walked on, but when it was all said and done we were happy to have sold the house.

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I got a job! I am working at Lehigh University as an Event Coordinator. Last week was my first week and I am really excited about this new opportunity. It seems like it is right up my alley because I will be doing some event planning, college recruiting, marketing, and other fun things. I will never forget my first day of work because we felt the earthquake that started in Virginia! Feeling the building move was the strangest feeling. We all had to evacuate until it was safe to go back in. Lehigh is a gorgeous campus with  old buildings. I can’t wait to bust out my camera when the leaves start changing this fall! The campus is set on a mountain so everything is either up or down hill. I definitely wore the wrong shoes the first day of work...I wasn’t prepared for the hiking!

This is the admissions building...its a gorgeous campus!

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I have really enjoyed berry picking and the local farmers markets this summer. There are so many places to buy produce and eggs from local farms. I picked lots of raspberries and blackberries and canned raspberry jam and made a few blackberry pies. Here is a picture of my most recent farmers market finds:

I had never had eggplant before, but I decided to try it out. I made eggplant parmesan and I absolutely loved it. I have been finding more ways to prepare it and I can't wait to get another one soon! The peppers have been a great addition to my salads for lunch.

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My 23rd birthday was on Friday. I couldn't make up my mind about where I wanted to go for my birthday dinner, but I finally decided on Chick-fil-a. I was originally thinking we would get dressed up and do something fancy, but I really just wanted Chick-fil-a, so that's what we did! It was delicious, as always! After dinner, we went to the Lehigh Valley Velodrome with some friends to watch some bicycle racing. I had never been to a velodrome before (it's a bicycle race track)...and it was SO fun! The race we went to was the season finale of the World Series of Bicycling. It's a pretty amazing sport to watch.

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The effects of Hurricane Irene have been seen in our area. As I am typing (I'm offline), I am sitting by a candle with no electricity. Church was canceled this morning because of the high winds and flooding. We have also had some flooding in the area. My heart goes out to all of the people that were closer to the hurricane and experienced severe weather...hopefully the damage isn't too bad. Since the power is out, I haven't watched the news to hear how bad it has been. Our townhouse has a gas stove, so I was still able to make dinner. Before we lost the sunlight, Jake and I played a competitive game of scrabble...I lost by 3 points!

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Caleb got moved in at Tennessee Tech last weekend! I can't believe he is in college already! I am so happy for him as he starts this exciting chapter of life. 

Jake and I are looking forward to going to Knoxville this weekend! I hope we have good weather so we can enjoy the lake! I am sure there have been other exciting things going on in our lives, but that is all I have for now!

DDR Reunion Weekend

This past weekend I had the joy of hanging out with three of my best friends from Cedarville - Becca (aka Biz), Amy, and Ruthie. In college, the four of us had weekly themed events that we called "DDR", which stands for Double Date Roommate! We were all randomly put together as roommates/next door neighbors freshman year (me and Biz + Amy and Ruthie), and we were roommates and dear friends ever since! These girls have been such a blessing to me in so many ways.

Amy rendezvoused with Ruthie in Pittsburgh, and then I rendezvoused with them in Chambersburg and we drove down to D.C. to spend the weekend with Biz and her husband, Cody. They were amazing hosts!

This year marks the 10 year anniversary of 9-11. We were driving in front of a huge parade of 1800 motorcycles driving to DC and then to NYC. It was so neat to see all the people on the overpasses and on the side of the highway waiting to see. 

Cody cooked an amazinnggg 4 course meal for us on Friday night...and of course I documented all of it! The first course was a delicious flatbread with shrimp and caramelized onions.

We kept eating and Cody kept cooking!

Course 2 - Chicken Alfredo

3rd Course - Flank steak and mashed potatoes with a delicious sauce

Finally, the 4th course was dessert! Cody made some us sort of delicious chocolate volcano and chocolate martinis! 

Some how we stuffed our tummies again for breakfast the next morning. Cody made french toast, chocolate chip pancakes, bacon, eggs, and fruit.

Getting ready to go antiquing!

Saturday night - more food at a Japanese Steakhouse

Needless to say, I am STILL full from our food marathon. I had such a wonderful visit with you girls and I can't wait until next time!!

DIY Wall Art

Since Jake and I have moved into our townhouse, I have been looking for cheap, DIY decorating ideas. We have an open floor plan and a big empty wall that goes through the kitchen and living room.

 I have been trying to find something BIG that can go on that wall behind the kitchen table. I've seen wall art in magazines using embroidery hoops, and I got step-by-step directions from the Shabby Chic blog. I went out and got a few embroidery hoops and a paper mache "K". First I laid out the design on the floor:

Then I collected my fabric. The colors in the kitchen are red, burnt orange and brown.

Then I painted the "K" ivory.

After that, I assembled the fabric on the hoops. First, unscrew the hoop and pull the rings apart. Lay the center ring on the floor underneath the fabric.

Then place the outer ring over top of the fabric and screw it back together.

Cut off the excess fabric along the edge of the ring.

And, the finished product...

I used my negotiating skills to purchase the slightly defective "K" for 50% off at the craft store, so I got it for $5 instead if $10. The damage is on the backside of it, so it didn't even matter. The embroidery hoops were $1.25 each. Overall, a pretty inexpensive project!

Zach and Catherine's Baby Shower

Jake's brother, Zach, and his wife Catherine are expecting a little baby girl in September. Her name will be Mallory Kate. All of the family got together in Indiana on Saturday for a little shower to help prepare Zach and Catherine for their little one. We had a great time visiting.

Watching Zach and Cat open gifts

Aunt Betty, Grandma Kissel, and Lillian

Zach and Cora

Kandy, Kelly, and Alma

Jake and Lillian

Hanging out at Grandma Star's

Star and Don

Catherine and Lillian