The first day of school

My principal was not overly excited when I told her that our baby should be born on the first day of school. I guess the first six weeks are not my choice to miss either, but for a little one it will be worth it.

Yes, you all read that correctly. Jed and I are going to be parents. Watch out world, here we come. The little Maschke should arrive on or around September 7th. My family is pushing for the 8th since it was Grandpa Hohl's birthday, but since we all know how little choice you actually get in a due date, we will be happy whenever he or she decides to join the world.

We will keep you all updated on the progress, and I am sure you will get to see some pictures of me and my big belly!

Roses and Sprouting Beans

Jed and I had the awesome chance to go help decorate the Lutheran Hour Float for the Rose Parade this year. Our friend Jen is in charge of it, and our friend Cari came along also.

For those of you unaware, this is a huge task. Every square inch of the float must be covered in natural materials. No colors can be altered. Every little flower, leaf, and bean is glued on using either industrial strength rubber cement, which is very sticky, or white glue. Jen let us climb things, which was fun. We glued on lots of white mums (especially on the ribbon), and I stuck in all the pink roses that you can see.

The rain caused a few problems to our float. All the beans sprouted, and a few flowers fell off. But it still looked beautiful.

After seven hours of work, we were exhausted, but already planning to come and help again next year. If anyone else would like to help, we can hook you up!

Wisconsin, Kansas, and California, Oh My!

This Christmas Break was a very busy one! We started our adventuresome trek in the great state of California, when our wonderful friend Greg took us to LAX at 4:30 in the morning. We now know that we can get to LAX in 40 minutes...during the dead of the night when there is no traffic. We boarded the plane and headed to Wisconsin: The Land of Snow! Snow is a great thing when you never see any. We had no problems on our flight and arrived safely in this great, snowy, state.

In Wisconsin, we saw lots friends and family. I even got to throw a snowball at Jed! The big event was Uncle Jon's wedding to Pam on the 23rd (Congrats to them!) but we also got to see friends David Stevens and Craig and Leah Toerpe (surprising Leah for her birthday!). After a wonderful wedding, we hopped on the plane for another early flight to Kansas.

Kansas was not snowy, but still fun. We spent lots of time playing with Tannim and Jonas, watching movies, and spending time with my family. Special vistors included Granny, Uncle John and Aunt Patty, and Angie, who made a special trip from St. Louis to see us. Jed likes to point out that while he and Aunt Anna brought many special gifts for the boys, Uncle Jed left with the special gifts of a sore throat and a 101 degree fever. He and Anna were very thankful for their other presents too.

Finally, we came home, to the cold, wintry 60 degree California. I know, it's tough. It was a whirlwind trip, but very fun. We are so glad we saw all of our family...and look forward to hosting many when they come to see us. Let us know when the Maschke B and B is needed by you! Jed will even grill for you, on his new Christmas grill (or barbeque, as the native Californians say)!