Changes

We have made some changes in the Klassen house. When we first saw our house during our house search, we immediately fell in love with it. What we love most is that it has 3 full bathrooms! It also has 2 master bedrooms, because when the previous owners finished the basement, they added a second master with a larger bathroom including a jet tub, which is perfect for soaking and relaxing! Ever since we moved in 3 years ago, we have been using the upstairs master bedroom as our room. Kevin has been wanting to move into the master bedroom downstairs for awhile, so I finally gave in and told him we could do it. We were holding off because of the temperature drop from upstairs to downstairs. We have finally figured out how to regulate the temperature so there isn't such a drastic change anymore. This means we have finally made the bedroom move. We also think we will be using a lot more of our house now. Before, we would rarely spend time downstairs because it was always so cold, but with our bedroom moved, I think we will make more use of the space we have. Yesterday, we made the move and did some major rearranging in our house. We are rearranging our basement tonight and hopefully it will finally feel more homey. If you haven't seen our basement, it is a long and narrow room with odd wall shapes. Our stairs curve as you walk down them so the wall on the other side of the stairs in the basement sticks out with weird angles. It's so hard to find an arrangement we like, but we are determined to make this new arrangement work. When we are done, I will post pictures to see what you think. And please DO tell us what you think.


So, we turned our former master bedroom upstairs into an assortment of things. It is our office space, first and foremost, and we love that we have everything we need upstairs. Now we don't have to use our kitchen counter or table to pay bills! We had our office downstairs but rarely went downstairs to use it. It was kind of an inconvenience for us. We will definitely be using it more now! This room also doubles as my craft room. I think I will be more likely to do my scrapbooking and other crafts more often than when all of these things were downstairs. This room is also a guest bedroom. We bought a new mattress a couple of weeks ago and put our old mattress on the floor. Even though, it's just a mattress on the floor, it's great to have an extra queen "bed" for guests. We covered it with stuffed animals and pillows for our niece and nephew when they are here. This room will also be their toy room. I'm hoping we won't be stepping on toys spread around the living room when they're here now. Here are some pictures so you can get a visual. 

 I love that the painting goes nicely with our wall color. This painting courtesy of Kevin's brother Phil, and our sister-in-law, Cassie. 

This desk fits nicely in this corner. This desk courtesy of Laura's brother, Chad and our sister-in-law, Ali.

Our new master bedrooms is looking nice. We just need to hang some pictures on the wall to make it complete. This room is a little bit bigger and the carpet is so plush. The walk-in closet is bigger than our old closet too. Here are some pictures.

 The wall behind our bed is so bare. I have a picture waiting to be hung!

The Michigan Flag on the floor is going to be hung up outside. Kevin just found it last night and laid it on the floor so he wouldn't forget to hang it.

Well, after some begging from Kevin for quite some time, I finally gave in and we made the move. It's been one day but I am enjoying it so far. Basement family room pictures will be posted tonight. 

11-11-11

Today is 11-11-11 ... how cool! :)  It is also Veteran's Day, so thank someone who has served or is serving! I know some people who have served and are currently serving. My cousin, Jonathan Parker is currently serving and I am so proud of him. My friends Keith VanKlompenberg and Patrick Kozal have served and I am thankful for their service. 


Snow
Yesterday marked the first day of snow this season ... YUCK! Who needs snow anyway? Today it is sunny but very cold! Even though I do not like snow AT ALL, I am thankful that I live in Michigan where we have ALL the seasons.

This is the snow falling (DUH!) in my front yard. I do have to admit, it is pretty but I just don't like it especially this early on in the year. It hasn't even been Thanksgiving yet!

Enjoy your day and don't forget to thank a veteran or someone who is currently serving. :)

A Bit of Catch-Up!

I have changed the look of our family blog including the background and pictures. I hope you enjoy the changes. Also, please check the blogs I follow that I have linked. Our friend, Debbie, is currently traveling in India and she has been keeping a blog. I think you would find her journey interesting and fun. Go here and "travel" with her.


 I really ought to post on this blog a lot more than I do. There are some things that I wanted to share with you that I haven't so here you go.


Softball
First of all, Kevin played on a softball team this past fall with our neighbor, Ben, and he really enjoyed it. Their team won the Championship game!! Kevin was excited he was able to play ball all summer (church league) and fall. 

Here is a picture of their team! Buffalo Wild Wings sponsored the team so after this winning game, the guys went to BWW and were able to get some free wings. They also gave the trophy to BWW as a thank you for their sponsorship. 

A Trip to the Zoo

Kevin and I are fortunate enough to spend a lot of time with our youngest niece and nephew. This past summer, we took them to the John Ball Zoo in Grand Rapids. We went right when the zoo opened so we were able to see the animals roaming around more than they would in the afternoon when it gets hot. My favorite part of the day was seeing the lions up close and personal. In fact, while we were watching them, one of the lions got irritated by us and jumped at the glass right at us! Thank goodness for thick glass!

This is the lion that pounced at us! So cute yet so ferocious!

Although we didn't stay at the zoo for too long. We had a great time! Here are some more pictures from our visit.

 I took my nephew in to pet the sting rays but he didn't want to touch them.

Our niece and nephew. My nephew said he wanted to be a cowboy!

I hope to be more proactive with this blog and update it more often than I do. I enjoy reading other blogs and I know some of you enjoy reading this one so it's only fair that you have an up-to-date blog to read.

And for all you ladies out there, in case you haven't come across Pinterest yet, you should check it out. I have found a wonderful blog on there that I have been following. It's called The Small Things Blog. Please go there and check it out. She has great hair styling tips.

Enjoy!

Another Michigan Saturday

It's another typical Saturday in our household....it's Michigan game day and it's their homecoming. Kevin went to the game today with his dad. They chose a good game to go to since Michigan won but it was raining but the sun was shining! :)


My day consisted of watching the Michigan game, cutting the grass, doing laundry, and scrapbooking (which I have yet to get to...) I was going to make Pumpkin cookies but those might have to wait until tomorrow since I am missing one important ingredient for the frosting...oops!


I have found a favorite blog and I don't tend to read blogs that much but I found it on Pinterest and fell in love. It's called, "The Small Things." Click here to check it out. I generally read this blog for hair styling tips and ideas. I do my hair the same way every single day and I'm ready for a bit of a change and when I came across this blog, I found so many great ideas. You will love it! 


It is beautiful here today ... enjoy!

Glogster

I took a graduate class this summer for my work toward my Master's Degree in education and I did some more playing around with Glogster for one of my many projects for the class. If you don't know what Glogster is, it's simply an online poster. I know a few teachers who use this in their classrooms. You can post pictures, websites, links, videos, music, and more on this online poster. Here is mine from my class: http://klassenl.glogster.com/lauras-glog/. It includes pictures, music, links, and a book trailer video I made for a book I read for the class. All of the books listed on this poster are children's books ranging from lower elementary to middle school-aged students. Glogster is a fun way to do projects and would be a fun technology tool to use with your students. Enjoy!

Fall

Today is the first day of fall and the weather sure shows that. It is beautiful out though with all the leaves changing colors! This weather puts me in the mood to bake and I've been busy looking up different recipes. 


It's the third week of school and I've only had 2 subbing jobs. I will start my long-term in October and still have yet to meet the students. I know most of them but haven't seen them in a couple of years so I'm excited to see them. I will have 31 kids in the class .... 31!!! That is a lot. I hope that they are a good group of kids and we have a good 2 1/2 - 3 months while I am there! :)


Kevin has been busy teaching is Dunes Alternative students and his one hour of freshman Algebra. I think he likes his schedule. He is just getting over his first cold of the year. Crazy how he caught one this early on in the school year. I am going to try my hardest to not get sick this year. New rule for me: Do not pick up random pencils off of the floor! I used to do this all the time because it drives me nuts when pencils and papers and garbage are all over the floor but this year, I am not touching anything that lands on the floor!


Happy Fall! :)

It's back to school time!!

It's Labor Day so that means school starts tomorrow for us! I am very excited! Kevin will be going back to West Ottawa High School for his 4th year of teaching. This year he will be working in the new Alternative School called The Dunes. He will be doing this for most of the day and will also teach 1 class of Freshman Algebra. He has 2 classrooms this year. Laura hasn't found a teaching job for this year but she was able to have an interview at Mona Shores Middle School for a year long 8th grade English position. Unfortunately, she did not receive an offer for that position. She will be doing her third long-term at Oakridge Upper Elementary in 4th grade starting in October for a teacher who will be on maternity leave. Last year, she taught 4th grade during this same time of year, so she will be teaching the same curriculum as before. :) 


We have been very busy around the house and have had a busy and enjoyable summer. To wrap up our summer, we helped Kevin's little brother, Phil and his wife, Cassie move from Royal Oak back to Muskegon. It will be nice having them much closer to us. 


To back track a little, in the spring (May), we got to meet a handsome little guy named Nolan. Shane and Karen welcomed him into the world on May 5. We are the god parents and he is one handsome little dude! :)


We look forward to the school year ahead and the adventures it will bring! 


Happy School Year! :)