My adventure as a mechanic

Today was "learn to be a mechanic day" for me. We rebuilt part of the body of the trunk of my car in order to be able to put in new shocks and struts. 

Here is Kent trying to make a hole in the steel piece to attach the struts to. After ruining two drill bits and one of his fancy hole-cutters, he decided to use the blow-torch. It was (finally) effective. 

This is the cool hat I got to wear while we were welding. I really liked it a lot and wanted to wear it the whole time. 

Finally Dan showed up just to help us put the last set of shocks on. 

Look at my shiny new shocks! Pretty blue to replace the rusty, broken, red ones!

Snowman day at AWANA

The Fruit of my Labor

I finally got my house clean!

(Sorry about the picture quality. Our house is really dark and my phone doesn't have flash)

Proof that there actually was a kitchen table underneath all that junk

The two green chairs have been unavailable since Christmas... It's nice to finally have a place for both of us to sit at the same time!

The new desk we brought over and put in place of the recliner. Looks a little cluttered but actually just needs a few final touches - including the desktop computer my boss is giving us.

The fruits of my labor - 7 boxes and 2 bags ready to go to Goodwill

Cleaning the bathroom mostly involved a little bleach, but I did pull out this cabinet and hang it all by myself! It's nice to get all my makeup and junk off the sink.

This is the new sitting area I made in the bedroom, with all our favorite books and pictures within arm's reach.

Since the bed is in the corner there is a lot more space and the room feels a lot bigger! Also, it's nice to have some more light in the bedroom.

The State of Things

My house is a disaster. This is not, I may point out, because I haven't had time to clean it. I find that the more time I have, the less useful my time becomes. Today, for example, I woke up late in the afternoon when my sister-in-law called to see if I wanted to hang out with my oh-so-adorable niece. I don't pass up a chance to hang out with cute 4-year-olds, so, of course, I said yes. Therefore, another day has gone by with my resolution to get our house totally organized put off once again. Yesterday I worked for about 4 hours and barely got the kitchen table cleaned off, so clearly, things are bad! 

Piles of boxes ready to go to Goodwill

My goal is to get everything put in its proper place and all of the 16 boxes we inherited from Aaron's parents gone through by the time I have to go back to school. This involves sorting through ancient baseball cards and Aaron's old trophies and yearbooks. Things that may not have intrinsic value, but might or might not have sentimental value to my husband. Of course, once he does find something he wants to keep, whenever I ask him where he wants to put it or what he wants to do with it, he responds "Just put it in a box and send it back to storage."

Well, this tugs at one of my basic convictions: a complete disregard for the idea of "STORAGE". In my opinion, if you don't use it, don't keep it! I would like to believe I live a simple life, but my overly cluttered house tells a different story. The truth is, I like for my life, and my house, to be full, but not trashed with stuff you don't need and never use. I've told Aaron multiple times, there is no reason we should ever rent a storage space. If we don't have immediate use for something (unless of course we're saving it for posterity) we should just get rid of it. The only things that belong in storage are seasonal clothing and Christmas decorations. Period.

Our culture is obsessed with junk, and by that I mean buying more and more stuff to fill up all the space we have. I am a victim of this ideology. I like for space to be full. However, I also really like small spaces. Today I told Kent and Diana that our next house should be smaller than the one I have, and they couldn't understand why on earth I would think so. Two bedrooms is too much for me. If I'm not living in one of the bedrooms, it just becomes a space for junk to pile up, and that's both annoying, dirty, and a big job to clean out. Also, I no longer see the need for a kitchen table. Just like we got rid of our coffee table because junk was piling up on it, we also need to get rid of the kitchen table. We NEVER eat there. In fact, on the rare occasion we do eat a meal together, at home, we generally watch one of our tv shows or the stack of movies I bring home from the library.

 Exhibit A for why I want to get rid of our kitchen table

So this is my declaration for what my dream house would have:

- a tiny kitchen just big enough for just me - with a small refrigerator and small stove, but definitely a dishwasher to get all those plates out of sight and out of mind.
- no dining room and no breakfast nook - as much as I would love to entertain, I don't think it's ever going to happen, we enjoy going out and socializing with friends over a meal at Applebee's or Olive Garden
- a small bedroom with a nice bed and blackout curtains, but a huge, organized walk-in closet with a wall of mirrors
- a beautiful, well-lit living room with wall-to-wall bookshelves, two or three extremely comfortable chairs and no big couch
- a small, relaxing bathroom with a whirlpool tub
- a separate laundry room to keep all the mess away from the rest of the house

I don't think anyone makes a house like that, lol. But that's the state of things. Maybe tomorrow I will be motivated to clean my house and get it closer to my ideal dream home.

Proof that I need a dishwasher - see how cluttered my house is!

Updates

Finally, here are some quick photo updates of last semester, for your perusing pleasure!

My 21st Birthday - September 17

My very first cocktail! At Court Ave Brewery with Maffy and Ben, who came to visit me for the weekend! Best present ever!

Mommy's visit - October 2 - 5

Visiting with her, taking her to my work and to see Aaron at McDonalds, shopping and cooking together for old time's sake! Loved having her here and visiting together. 

Mr. and Mrs. Robinson! 10/10/10 at 10:10am

It was so special to be present for Aaron's sister Maggie's wedding to Robbie! The kids LOVE their new step-dad! 

Iowa vs. Northwestern - November 13

A cold, sad, but exciting game. Wishing Iowa would have won, but glad we got to go! 

Weekend in Wheaton

After the game at Northwestern, Aaron left me in Wheaton to hang out with Lauren and Matthew. I had a great time and was so glad to be able to see dear friends and catch up with everyone! Also, got to visit with Dr. Kepner and get more direction about my plans for next year. So glad to have her godly council!

Mary Poppins - November 28

My first broadway show ever! Aaron got me tickets for my birthday, and although I wasn't too excited about it at first, we both had a great time at the actual showing! Aaron had never seen Mary Poppins, but he really liked the show. He says he can see how that and other movies like the Sound of Music and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang have influenced my life and my outlook a lot. Of course, we weren't allowed to take pictures at the show, but this is what it looked like. 

Busy husband and back to work tomorrow

Aaron is such a hard worker! Yesterday he left the house at 8:30 AM and didn't return until 10:30 PM. While I am grateful to have such a hard-working husband, it is somewhat lonely to be home all day by myself. The great thing about yesterday was, I have a new car! It's such a blessing to be able to leave the house even when Aaron is away at work all day. For the past few months, I've had to kiss Aaron goodbye in the morning and then just sit at home until my husband gets home from work. I've been feeling a little like a suppressed 50's housewife. Anyways, I'm just so thankful for the life I get to lead here in our cozy little house... and even more so now that I am no longer imprisoned in it whenever Aaron is gone.

In other news, faculty meetings start tomorrow, which means it will be back to work for me! I'm so excited for school to start up again! Excited to get to meet my new batch of students, excited to do more research and class-planning this semester, and excited to hopefully reconnect with some friends I made last semester during our Spanish conversation time. Winter break, you've been great, but I'm ready for you to be gone!

Also, I'm in need of some great ideas for spring events. Part of my job is planning Hispanic-related events and I need some ideas for those. Last semester we had a 16 de Septiembre "Grito" party, an outreach event at the Day of the Dead celebration, and a Christmas party with a "Posadas" theme. My current ideas for this semester include: Dia del Amor y la Amistad party, something for Semana Santa, and, of course, a 5 de Mayo event. Let me know please any ideas you have for these or any other events, I need some inspiration! :)

Iowa City Visit Photos

On Monday Aaron gave me a tour of Iowa City. 

Here's us in the car. 

This is the only stop on the tour. 

You can see what our priorities are.

Another angle.

For Aaron and I, this sign holds a lot of meaning. Since we first started traveling I-80 two weeks after we started dating (back in 2008), every time we pass this sign one or the other of us says: "Would you rather name your child Belle Plaine or What Cheer?" The "Would you rather name your child..." tradition began in Illinois the first time we passed the Rochelle and Mendota exit. Since then, we've compared countless city names as possible monikers for the future little Woodards. Our all time favorite, though, is Belle Plaine and What Cheer in none other than middle of nowhere Iowa. 

My New Car

This is our new car, a '95 Chevy Corsica! It's a zippy little thing, with a nice interior. The only problems are that the driver's seat moves back and forth while you're driving... it's a little like being on a roller coaster. Other than that and a little rust, it was a great deal! It drives great and for the price ($650) it will be a great little car for me to get to work in. I love it already!

Happy First Anniversary to us!

Well, we've survived one year as the Woodards! I find it amazing how after celebrating that milestone last night, I feel even more in-love with my Aaron than I did on our wedding day! Even though we weren't planning on doing anything big, we ended up coming to Iowa City for the night. We got a really good deal on a fancy room at the Best Western Cantebury Inn & Suites here and so we came to celebrate our first year together.

It was a really nice relaxing time, and even more special because we got to see our dear friend, Paul Nelson, from Wheaton. I worked with Paul on several political campaigns and committees at Wheaton and Aaron and Paul were on the same floor Aaron's junior year. Paul is an inspiration to me and a really special part of our lives. One day we will be so proud that he's a Wheatie and an Iowan when he is a really important person in D.C.

We also had a lovely dinner at Olive Garden and enjoyed the fancy whirlpool in our hotel room. Our hotel has a castle theme and our room is the coolest because it's the only one with a fancy shield on the door. We also listened to the recording of our wedding and looked at pictures. All in all, it was the perfect way to spend the day.

In Bed Today. Not Leaving Soon.

Two days ago it was almost 60 degrees outside. Today it is only 11. The nice thing about Iowa weather is that it's always changing, so these frigid temperatures are only temporary. With that said, today is a perfect day for me feel sick. 

We got our heat bill yesterday. Which means that as a reactionary move our house is about 40 degrees right now. While I haven't resorted to wearing gloves, every other part of me is covered with at least two layers and I have three blankets over my legs. I'm in the warmest room of our little trailer (the bedroom) which is DARK because of the four blankets I put over the curtains. 

I made myself a bottle of tea which is also functioning as a hot water bottle. That has lessened the soreness of my throat, but my inability to breathe properly through a stuffy nose and my constant sneezing means that I probably won't be leaving the house anytime soon. I have to mend, though, because tomorrow is our first anniversary and a little mini-vacation we're taking to Iowa City. :) I hope it's warmer there.