Coming this fall . . .

And everyone's =) !!!

. . .

~ Mrs. Arcfide

Some new milestones . . .

over the holidays . . . in no particular order.

• Aaron's MacbookPro died a corrosive death when a flying cable knocked over his cup of water. That happened in the middle of the night, so who knows how long his laptop was immersed?
• He bought, for its replacement, an un-cool looking Lenovo machine.
• To top things off, I got converted to Mac. . . after a long, drawn-out 3 years resistance. What's worse? I'm secretly lovin' it. :)
• I received my EAD, which led me to apply for an SSN so I could get my Learners Permit.

I believe I'm fully absorbed into The System.

But hey, what's the fuss? It's 2009, and Obama's in the White House.

I Can Drive. I Can Do-it! I Can Change! YES, I CAN!!! Rawr.

~ Mrs. Arcfide

SNOW DAY!

Tiny balls of hail were gently falling around us as we went out for groceries the evening before last. Imagine our surprise as we left Krogers a mere 30 minutes later. The entire parking lot was covered in a blanket of white. Strangers beside us swore under their breaths.

The less prepared shoppers among us scraped their buried cars with gloves and plastic bags. We thankfully reached for our ice-picker to do the same.

White flakes pelted down all day, and all night. For forty days and forty nights, It Snowed. And snowed. and snowed. We got snow!

Aaron and I woke up yesterday, feeling like Christmas. But since it wasn't, we enjoyed the next best thing: Snow Day! And school, of course, was closed.

Here, Aaron opens the door in search of his morning paper. There was none. But he just had to stick his hand out to test how deep the snow was. ;-) Hey, after all . . . snow doesn't usually accumulate that much under this roof-covered walkway.

I told Aaron I wanted to see how deep the snow was out there. Then, I did The Stupid by sprinting out (as much as one can sprint and flounder) without any warm clothes. :-P

Oh, I'll say it was about boot-high.

There's Aaron.

. . . and there's his "Snow Angel". Which, I thought would have been more aptly called his "Caution Radiation Sign".

Last but not least, that's the more-sensibly-dressed yours truly,

~ Mrs. Arcfide

Normal Weight

Ever since I was 16, I have been self-consciously aware about my low BMI and the fact that I was "Very Very Underweight". As in... whenever I went for a checkup, the doctor would take my measurements, refer to his chart and give me that glance as if to say, "Look - your weight is unrecorded here and less than what's in the 'Very Underweight' category."

The inevitable questions about whether or not I was anorexic would follow.

At the Walkers', I eagerly stepped on the scales that I spotted in the Girls' bathroom. A grand total of 112.4 lbs flashed back at us. Wiser from that moment, I decided to compute my BMI today. It's a healthy 19.9! O_O

This, my friendlies, is a solemnly significant milestone of my life. For the first time ever, I've attained the "Normal Weight" threshold I'd always thought was beyond my getting.

Congratulate me, please. :-)

*Cheers for weight gain*

~ Mrs. Arcfide

A Thankful Heart

This year, I celebrated my second Thanksgiving. What can you say... it is a uniquely American holiday. :)

While I certainly had a blast making these Pecan Pie Bars, the highlight of our evening was visiting with family and singing Christmas carols around the piano. Combining the traditions of two separate holidays was wonderful!

• Sing unto the LORD, O ye saints of his, and give thanks at the remembrance of his holiness. Ps 30:4
• To the end that my glory may sing praise to thee, and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give thanks unto thee for ever. Ps 30:12
• Unto thee, O God, do we give thanks, unto thee do we give thanks: for that thy name is near thy wondrous works declare. Ps 75:1
• IT IS A GOOD THING TO GIVE THANKS UNTO THE LORD, AND TO SING PRAISES UNTO THY NAME, O MOST HIGH: Ps 92:1
• Praise ye the LORD. O give thanks unto the LORD; for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever. Ps 106:1
• Surely the righteous shall give thanks unto thy name: the upright shall dwell in thy presence. Ps 140:13

Verse Art

One morning after my husband had a very serious conversation with me, I began working on a Word Art that I hope to someday transfer to one of our bedroom walls. It will serve as a constant reminder to me of that late-night discussion. :)

However... I am quite clueless as to how I should proceed on this project. Would cut-out cardstock stuck on the wall appear tacky?

~ Mrs. Arcfide

From my bookshelf

Lethargy has been the rule of the day for the past couple of weeks as Aaron and I took turns coming down with different bouts of fever and colds. I suppose that in marriage, everything wonderful is shared... including the magical, and not-so-magical parts of life! ;)

This past week, if I weren't doing some work around our home, I was animatedly talking for hours on the phone with my girlfriends, miserably pegging away at thousands of product codes listed on a spreadsheet, or curled up reading a good book.

Reading. Ah, it is my new recently-revived, long-neglected hobby.

Books on relationships have always interested me. After reading Gretchen's review on Dr. Laura's The Proper Care and Feeding of Husbands, I decided to purchase the book for my own perusal. I loved it, and have had no regrets reading it!

I present you my list of other must-reads for all married couples.

1. His Needs, Her Needs by William F. Harley Jr.
2. Love and Respect by Emerson Eggerichs
3. Romancing Your Husband and Romancing Your Wife by Debra and Daniel Smith
4. The Five Love Languages for Couples by Gary Chapman

Election Blues

Obama/Biden 2008

~ Mrs. Arcfide