Traverse City

We went to Traverse City last weekend to get away from home and have some fun while Matt had a few days off. Matt has wanted to go cross country skiing forever so we thought it was a perfect time to try it. What else can we do outside in March?



Cross country skis are narrow but the shoes are very comfortable. (I was looking for the positive.)



My understanding of this kind of skiing was that it was flat trails. I am not a fan of skiing of any kind and generally dislike the idea of putting things on my feet that will enable me to fly down a hill. So, as the past shows I fell down a lot this time. I finally found these grooves in the snow that acted like tracks so I really liked them and even went down a hill with the help of them, so that made the ending to the day ok.




Aren't these ice sculptures cool?




This is a bay that leads out to Lake Michigan. It was frozen at the shore and looked like the water had frozen in mid-wave. What a beautiful sight!




Of course Matt wanted to get out on the ice and test out the durability!



I am so very grateful for such a beautiful state that we live in and that we have been able to explore different parts of it.

Febstashuary 2011

It is testing time again and so Matt was all on board to let the facial hair grow. He started a little bit earlier this year and he got a fuller beard. It is funny because his facial hair grows in with a redish cast and it is completely different from his hair color.



Matt shaved the beard off a couple of days ago so I have been living with "Tex".



I think he really likes the mustache, so we will see how long it lasts. Only one more Febstashuary left!

Pistons vs Heat

Friday night Matt got some tickets to go to the Pistons game as they played the Miami Heat, which we thought would be a great game. The seats were in a suite and other residents were there as well so it was fun!




Basically we were sitting as high up as we could possibly get...yes, these are the rafters.




So, the game was not the best and the Pistons were down the entire time...the half time show seemed to get the crowd going more than the game. These girls did this jumprope routine that was pretty impressive and quite entertaining!




A pic before we dashed out to beat the rush of the traffic and out into the FREEZING wind.




Coming soon: We will be showing the fun pictures from this year of Matt's facial hair growth...oh how I love this time of year.:)

Big Snow for Michigan

It is definitely winter here and with it we have very cold days, no sunshine, snow, and lots of ice. We had all of these huge icicles hanging from our roof and the other night Matt got home really late or rather early morning and I guess the sleep deprivation got him or he needed to get out some frustration as all of our icicles ended up laying on our railing in the morning.



Standing in snow drifts up to my knees as we tried to dig Matt's car out so he could get to work.



Making snow angels in our backyard.





The sun came out! Not sure if you can tell but these are our snow angels we made in the yard.

Christmas in Michigan 2010

We got Michael Jackson's Wii game for Christmas from Jader and Kris. It is so much fun and a great workout too. :) Not sure what is with my facial expression here, but we have enjoyed this game several times.




The most entertaining part of this game for me is watching Matt dance...nobody would even imagine the great moves that he has!



We decided that our new Christmas morning tradition is going to be omelets. Matt had so much fun making them and I loved just sitting back and not doing anything!



We had a totally low key and relaxing Christmas and enjoyed having a couple of days together! No fresh snow this Christmas but we have had plenty of it since then.

Utah 2010

Matt went to Utah right before Christmas to visit his friends and family. These are most of his friend's kids. Aren't they cute? Matt has some wonderful friends that really make an effort to get together whenever he is in town.



My brother Nic and his family live in Kaysville so Matt was able to see them while he was there. (This is Nic, Emily, Cooper, and Lily.)



Matt and Nic were able to go skiing/snowboarding and had some great snow.




The newest Steimle is River. Matt was able to spend some time with him and loved meeing our newest nephew.



River and Grandma.



River and his mom, Matt's sister, Angela



Playing around before Matt leaves.

4th Anniversary

On December 16th we will be celebrating our 4th anniversary. It is hard to believe that we have been married that long! Although neither of us would have thought that our family would still just be the two of us, it has brought us closer to have the challenges that we do. Matt is the best friend I always wanted! I found a couple of pictures to commemorate our engagement and wedding day. We look so much younger and a few pounds lighter. :)




When we got engaged Matt didn't have the ring yet so we tied a ribbon around my finger. This is the only picture we have of my first "ring".



Happy 4th to us!