SPRING skirts!

It was amazingly 60 degrees out yesterday afternoon which made me think "Mmmmmm... I really really really can't wait until Spring." Its going to take a while though, folks, until the toes can get painted and a tan starts to form on this body. SO, in preperation (and for some fun) I think I might copy the idea of these skirts and try to make one myself (from Urban Outfitters):

On a walk...

Today the temperature was bearable so the Mr. and I took our doggies ("D-O-Gies", as I pronounce it) on a walk. We did little else this afternoon other than eat our breakfasts--The Michelle and The Mystery Jeff-- at Gaileys. Jeff wanted to bring the camera to take this pic for the Mystery Hour cuz its funny (spoiler alert!)...
...and I decided to take pics of some of my favorite houses on our walk. We are so blessed to live close to Phelps Grove area and we get to walk by some gorgeous homes that I can only dream of owning when I "grow up". So enjoy!

I like the deck on this one Its pink!very uniqueSO cute!

"Meh."

"Meh." is the way I would describe how I feel about everything except coffee right now. Its simply too cold and too dreary outside to feel much more than that.
Meh.1. Indifference; to be used when someone simply does not care. 2.The verbal equivalent of a shrug of the shoulders. 3. A random word when people either don't know what to say, don't care, can't answer a question or are too drunk to form a coherent english phrase (not me, but funny).
meh. whatever. bleh. blah. bah. no. me. eh. mehh. shrug. apathy. lol. yes. indifference. boring. maybe. random feh. bored. mer. noob. don't care. beh. pwned. meeh. wtf. dunno. muh. whatev. meep. alright. what. cool. ugh. indifferent. okay. boredom. mah. nah. hem. gah. lazy. idiot. emo. grr. mediocre. ok.
(From Urban Dictionary)

ETSY art

My twin sis' Winnie went to Iceland a couple of months ago and brought back some beautiful swag to share with me when she returned. One is a postcard with some great art on it that I think I may be hanging up soon in my bathroom. My poor, poor little (tiny) bathroom... its just so small and needs some love! Anyway, I tried to find something cute to go with it to hang in there and came across this awesome print by Joom.
At some point I'll post pics of the arrangement on the wall once I get it finished. :-)

More pics

Cuz everyone likes more pictures!

Winnie and Sammy
My friends Kesha and Mara and I on New Years'
Bosco- Kesha's pup

House pics

I have promised pics of the house several times since I re-did the guest room back in September. We got a new camera for Christmas (our old one broke) so here are the pics, as promised!
Our living room over Christmas break
Joe Ironing in the kitchen (I just made the small shade over the window over break)
Sammy actually being a dog
Our guestroom wall I redid in September

Bearded Guys

Every year after Christmas I get a bit greedy. There are things on my list that I didn't get, and when I do get something for my house as a gift there are things that get moved around so I need something to fill a hole, etc. This year I went a bit crazy in a section of town in Iowa City just north of the ped mall. I ate lunch with my mother in law at a place called Hamburg Inn (where all the presidential candidates stop by just before the caucases) and then headed to a few shops.

One in particular had a bunch of items from some of my favorite sellers-- Henry Road and Boy Girl Party. I happened upon a print of bearded men that I just KNEW i had seen somewhere and I loved, so I bought it. I just figured out I had seen it on Design Sponge , and it is by an excellent artist Ashley Goldburg . I can't wait to show you how it looks on my dresser at home!

Best of 2008

My husband, Jeff, just LOVES podcasts. One tradition we have when we drive to Iowa is to listen to some of our faves: The Moth, Wait Wait Don't Tell me, This American Life, 60 Minutes, Relevant Podcast, and sermons by Rob Bell via Mars Hill Church.

One podcast I found on our little trip last year was All Songs Considered by NPR. At the end of each year they do a rundown of the best of the year-- best new bands, best albums, best songs, etc. Last year I was so inspired (although all they could talk about was Radiohead- hands down the best of last year) I made a Best of 2007 mix. So, this year I did the same after listening to the long-awaited podcast on my way up to Iowa on Christmas night. Some are from their suggestions, some are my own, but here is the playlist:

1) Ra Ra Riot, Can you Tell, The Rhumb Line
2) Okkervil River, Unless it Kicks, The Stage Names
3) Bon Iver, Re: Stacks, To Emma, Forever Ago
4) MGMT, Time to Pretend, Oracular Spectacular
5) Mates of State, The Re-arranger, Re-Arrange Us
6) Noah and the Whale, 2 Atoms and a Molecule, Peaceful the World Lays me Down
7) Foals, Olympic Airways, Antidotes
8) Son Lux, Betray, At War with Walls and Mazes
9) Santogold, LES Artistes, Santogold
10) Death Cab for Cutie, Cath..., Narrow Stairs
11) Fleet Foxes, White Winter Hymnal, Fleet Foxes
12) Blitzen Trapper, Furr, Furr
13) Jenny Lewis, Pretty Bird , Acid Tongue
14) The Helio Sequence, Keep Your Eyes Ahead, Keep Your Eyes Ahead
15) Vampire Weekend, Walcott, Vampire Weekend
16) Beck, Modern Guilt, Modern Guilt
17) The Black Keys, Psychotic Girl, Attack and Release

DIY Christmas Gift Wrap Idea

So its probably too late to be sharing this idea with everyone since Christmas is nearly here (JOY!)... but I went to my parents' house this past weekend and saw the awesome presents my sister had wrapped in magazine pages. She even made little cut-out snowflakes from magazine paper! I have done it before to save on paper as well, but haven't ever thought about ditching Christmas wrap all together in favor of a more green option.

If I had a camera at the moment (the Houghton's is broken) I would have taken a picture and posted it, but I'll settle for some I found online.

This one is an envelope made out of magazine paper from Cut out and Keep

A christmas present!

Everything's not lost

This post might not make a lot of sense to some; to others, it might.

Somehow this Coldplay song is giving me a lot of hope right now. Its odd, but true. I have a huge smile on my face listening to it.

When I counted up my demons
Saw there was one for every day
With the good ones on my shoulders
I drove the other ones away

So if you ever feel neglected
And if you think that all is lost
I'll be counting up my demons, yeah
Hoping everything's not lost

When you thought that it was over
You could feel it all around
And everybody's out to get you
Don't you let it drag you down

'Cos if you ever feel neglected
And if you think that all is lost
I'll be counting up my demons, yeah
Hoping everything's not lost

If you ever feel neglected
If you think that all is lost
I'll be counting up my demons, yeah
Hoping everything's not lost

Singing out
Oh, oh, oh, yeah
Oh, oh, yeah
Oh, oh, yeah
Everything's not lost

The year in review

MERRY CHRISTMAS FROM THE HOUGHTONS

Springfield, MO --The Houghtons have had an interesting year to say the least. It was the year that saw significant money “donated” to the local health care system. It was a year that felt like a lot happened, and yet also felt like not very much happened at all. It was the year of our first Christmas letter.

The Better Half
Michelle went to full time with her pursuit of a Masters Degree in school counseling at Evangel University. She shifted to part time at work at Burrell Behavioral Health, running the program she started four years ago called KLASS, which is a great program teaching kids in a group setting about, well, social skills. Jeff is too old to enroll as a student. On the Masters Degree front, Michelle slowed down to a more reasonable pace after half of the year spent learning about mental health while injuring her own.

The Other Half
Jeff still works at the Community Blood Center of the Ozarks as a field representative. In that role he sets up blood drives with schools, churches, businesses, community organizations and anyone with blood in their veins that is willing. He then works with volunteers to make the blood drive a success. He has a territory so he is on the road a lot each day getting caught up on many podcasts that he enthusiastically recaps to Michelle each night.

Jeff still performs just about every Friday and Saturday night doing improv with The Skinny Improv at the theater downtown. He performs a lot of traveling shows on top of that too. In addition, his project, The Mystery Hour is still going really well in its second and now third season. It’s a late night talk show. Some people even say it’s the best monthly non-televised local talk show that happens to be downtown in all of Springfield. Even one of the Houghton dogs, Sammy, appeared on the show last month. In addition, Jeff writes an article for 417 Magazine spotlighting one of the guests who will appear on his talk show. He has shot a few embarrassing local commercials, one of which finds Jeff in a housecoat. Oh yeah, and he calls Bingo at a local coffee shop as a grizzled old man named Burt Machowski.


Why Michelle is Not Allowed Around Lawn Mowers in 2009
Michelle and Jeff had a great 4th of July weekend in St. Louis watching the Cubs beat up on the lowly Cardinals (Go Cubs Go!) and having fun at Six Flags. The next day Michelle was at her parents transporting their lawn mower because Jeff had broken theirs with his ‘run mowing.’ It was lifting the lawn mower into the car that proved to be the mistake. Unbeknownst to her at the time, she herniated a disc in her back. After literally laying down for 8 weeks she finally had surgery in late August. She tried her best to keep herself occupied while she and the bedroom ceiling became well acquainted. She had a lot of visitors, books read, websites checked, and pain… oh the pain! Almost immediately after surgery she felt better. Jeff drove back from family vacation in Colorado to be there with her. Noble indeed, but what was he doing out their enjoying himself while she was laid up anyway? Since then she has been easing back into exercise. She and a guy who looks strikingly similar to Jeff now take a Pilates class weekly.


“We do”
In February, Jeff and Michelle’s good friends Jeff Jenkins and Leah Hamilton got married. In fact, they met at Jeff and Michelle’s wedding. Jeff was a good, artificially tanned, best man. In April, one of Michelle’s best friends, Kesha Quigg got married and became Kesha Alexander. Michelle was a more appropriately tanned maid of honor. Then in May, Jeff’s sister, Cari married Bob and became Cari Everhart. It was a fun weekend in beautiful Lawrence, Kansas. Everyone was tan. Well, as tan as Houghton’s get naturally.


Jeff Becomes a Man
Jeff celebrated his 30th this year. Yep, seriously. They celebrated with a barbecue and wiffleball game, just like a 30 year old should.


Jeff Becomes a Man (again)
Onto a subject that should have been highlighted in a Christmas letter in the early nineties… About eleven months was spent with Jeff holding ceramic, rubber bands, metal, and previous meals in his mouth with his adult braces. He talked through them and about them all the time. Then, on the fateful day on November 10th, 2008, a day that will live in famy, Jeff got his braces off! All told he wore them for 2 years. They had become a centerpiece of the Mystery Hour. He is currently searching for new jokes, and sugar, lots and lots of sugar. Feel free to ask him to smile. He will gladly oblige.


Highlights
Michelle’s twin sister, Jenn, moved back into town and they hang out a lot, along with their other close friends. Yes, they look alike.

The Houghtons can often be seen around town traveling by bike. Michelle got a new basket and a bell for hers but ended up not being able to use it for most of the summer. There’s always next year.

Jeff got poison ivy while Scott was in town in July, which joined forces with the chiggers he got while camping with Bob and Cari, to form an itchiness that proved to be stronger than modern medicine for a good three months. Or as Jeff says, “like a whole year!”

The Houghtons took in a stray dog for what was anticipated to be a short time. He stayed long enough for his named to be changed from “New Guy” to Morris. He was as cute as he was not at all house trained.

The Houghtons started their first garden this year!

Currently, Jeff is facing impeachment after attempting to sell Barack Obama’s vacant Senate seat.


By the Numbers
5… Number of months the Houghtons cared for New Guy/Morris
43… Number of doo-doos and poop-poops cleaned up after Morris
0… Number of times Morris offered to help
21… Number of times Jeff got knocked over while filming a bit for The Mystery Hour with theSpringfield Roller Girls roller derby team
4125… Times Michelle has said “Good D-O-Gies” to Sammy and Lucy
4… Number of pops Jeff drank in two years while wearing braces
18… Number of pops drank since November 10th

2009…
Next year Michelle will be graduating from grad school and looking for a job. The Houghtons look forward to visiting their friends the Swinks in Washington D.C in March. That trip will come after their annual trip to the True/False documentary film festival that they looooove going to each year in Columbia, MO. Jeff will be wearing a retainer the rest of the year.

Hopefully, we’ll be able to spend more time with people like you who mean so much to us and are such a big part of our lives!

Sincerely,
The Houghtons

Frozen

I'm going to complain for a minute--
Last night at some point the pilot light in our furnace went out so Jeff and I woke up this morning to a FREEZING house. My gosh, it was down in the teens last night and that's when our furnace chooses to do this. My feet are STILL cold and I feel permenatley frozen inside despite being at work now where its warm. BOO!