How I spent my day off in pictures

Happy Monday!  And to those of you fortunate enough to have this day off, lucky you!  This is the first time in about 3 years that I have actually gotten MLK Jr. Day off, so I intended to make it a productive day and not just sit around in my pjs watching Downton Abbey (don't worry, I did plenty of that too).

Prepare yourself for an overload of excitement.  (I promise, one day I will have more exciting things to blog about... I hope)

My little girls were very happy that their mama was home for another day, even if dad had to go to work.

Lucy spent the morning snuggled in her bed (the one that she hasn't torn a hole in) while I worked out.

Maddie chose to play ball. For the entire 75 minutes that I worked out.  (I've become very good at kicking a tennis ball while doing lunges or throwing it while doing crunches)

 I spent some quality time with my trusty workout/running buddy.  Although I haven't been logging runs in lately, I did do 75 minutes of NTC today!  And I was burnt out by the last 15 minute ab workout.  If you have not downloaded this app, you must.

 Then it was finally time for b-fast.  Oat Revolution apples and cinnamon.  Andrew used all of my apples to make his German apple pancake yesterday, so I had to do without apple slices.

 And of course, I watched some Downton Abbey. 

 The girls and I decided to brave the cold for a little walk.  We had to get all bundled up first.  And let me tell you, it is COLD here.

 I made some "cookie dough" bites.  I know, they don't look too awesome here, but I assure you, they are quite tasty.  I added peanut butter which made them even better!

 And I may or may not have done some baking.  Andrew went out of town for the day, so he doesn't have to know.  I promise, Andrew, no more baking.  This is the last time.
Neiman-Marcus cookies

I also did Andrew's laundry, but that did not merit a picture.  I swear, sometimes it's like living with my brother.  Why did I refurnish that dresser again?

Well, there ya have it, and it's only 2pm.  For now, it's back to lesson planning and shopping on TeachersPayTeachers.  Tomorrow is a super busy day filled with doctor's appointment in the morning before school and homework club after school.

The big reveal

Well, the new room has actually been completed for a few weeks now.  Better late than never, right?  I have been LAZY when it comes to blogging, so I apologize.  I find it much more enjoyable to read other people's blogs right now than right my own since our lives aren't too exciting (no big walk to prepare for, no cross country move, no recipes to blog, no pregnancies to document).  And to top it off, you know that camera that I thought was at school?  No idea where it is!  It could very well be at school buried under art projects, math games, and letter blocks, but who knows.  I'm sure I'll find it as soon as I break down and buy a new camera.  So, I apologize, you are stuck with grainy cell phone pictures.

We decided to paint the ceiling white instead of that awful reddish stain.  It has opened up the space so much and doesn't feel like a cave anymore.  It took 3 coats of paint and we still have some touching up to do.

 Looking into the kitchen.  We were originally going to put in french doors, but they would have stayed open all the time anyway.  We like this much better.

 Our decorating is slowly coming along :)  Here is a nighttime viewing:

IKEA table, duh, (and chairs)

hanging owls: Christmas gift from in-laws (I'm obsessed with owls)

Red cabinet: Target find (LOVE)

Owl blanket, courtesy of MIL

Chair: steal at Meijer, but can also be found here

 And daytime:

 Maddie loves her new windows in her new room.  She can now survey her land without having to stand on her back legs. We have already had to clean them a few times.  They are the perfect height for wet doggie noses :)

 This was before we moved in almost two years ago. 

What a difference, right?

2012 Recap

2012 has certainly been an eventful year for all.  We had some ups and downs, but are excited to see what 2013 will bring for us. For now, we'll take a look back at 2012 for the Loefflers :)

In January, we learned that Andrew's mom, Beth, had been diagnosed with breast cancer again.  Shortly after learning of her diagnosis, Andrew and I decided to do the Susan G. Komen 3 Day Breast Cancer Walk.  We also began our 24 week training to get ready to walk 60 miles in 3 days.

Our 3 mile route around the neighborhood that we walked many times over the 6 months training.

Our good friends, Dan and Brittany, got married in June in Disney World!  I couldn't have my own Disney wedding, but it was so much fun going to theirs.  Of course, my camera died before the wedding festivities started.

We turned the Disney wedding into a mini vacation for us, but decided not to do the Disney route this time.  We spent our time at Seaworld and Kennedy Space Center, and even had time to stop at Cocoa Beach before it started raining, again.

Touching the sting rays at SeaWorld

gators

Flamingo Crossing

Outside of the Shamu show that we HAD to see.

Kennedy Space Center

Cocoa Beach before the storm rolled in.

We celebrated our first wedding anniversary in July with a trip to Minnesota to see my mom's family in the beginning of July (and left just before getting to see my grandpa jump out of plane for his 84th birthday!) and celebrated at the end of the month during Restaurant Week in Madison.
You can read about our wedding here.

August brought the big walk!  It was the most amazing experience and I hope that I get to do it again. You can read all about our journey here.  For a quick summary: we had beautiful weather; met wonderful people; suffered from minor blisters, pulled muscles, and shin splits; and walked all 60 miles.

During the summer, I left the Verona school district to start a new job in Madison and I'm so happy to have made the change.  I have a wonderful little class of 8 fabulous kids and really enjoy my job.  Not so much the longer drive, but you can't complain when you only have 8 kids :)

In November, we began to remodel our screen porch.  While I was hoping it would be done by Christmas, it will be our first accomplishment of 2013.
porch remodel

There were so many things that we had hoped to do in 2012 that I hope will come true in 2013 and we will be able to share them with you.  Here's to a happy and healthy 2013 :)