21 Leslie Ave

Nate and I are continuing to work at the new house in Conklin. Little by little we keep finding more to do, but we've definitely made some progress! We're typically over at the house three days a week - sometimes together, sometimes on our own or with other friends, sometimes just to eat dinner together. It's a very active neighborhood with people on bikes, taking walks, and walking dogs. Nate and I have gone running and rollerblading around the streets, and I appreciate the flat roads - and many are newly paved!

The major cleaning started in the kitchen - see above for before and after! Now that the mold in the main house is under control, we're focusing on the apartment - cleaning, painting, and hoping to have it move-in ready for this fall. While I have focused on the cleaning, Nate has tackled the plumbing and the more major projects around the house. We make a good team!

 Speaking of major projects..Nate used an excavator the other day to dig by the foundation on the side of the house. Some of the blocks needed to be repaired, and he dug a nice hole to access the problem blocks. While he was at it he ripped out some bushes, a cement pad, and an ugly awning in front of the house - I think he was having a little too much fun with this toy!

 I actually got my turn on the excavator too! Before Nate ripped down the awning, I convinced him to wait a minute so I could save the plants that were in front of it! I dug five holes with this machine and replanted the hostas from the awning area to the front of the house. I think every gardener should dig their holes with one of these!

We've had some friends over helping at the house too! Our friend, Ryan, from church is over quite a bit to give advice, and Nate's cousin, Chad, has been helping with plumbing, Nate's dad has been over painting, and my parents have helped clean and do yard work. Scoty and Katie, two of my friends from college, were over cleaning the apartment recently. And my sisters helped out when they were in town. Kristen and I snapped a picture together after bleaching the apartment bathroom, and if you ever come to help at the house, you can plan on a trip to Nirchi's for pizza or Pop's Sugar Shack for ice cream - one of Sara's favorites - she was a big help painting the apartment kitchen!

We have appreciated so much help from family and friends!

Nate has put his masoney skills to work, and I've tackled mowing the lawn!

 We've definitely been learning a lot as we work on this house together! We are excited to continue making it our own, and look forward to moving in after our wedding in March!

Wedding Plans!

 It was great to have both of my sisters home for a week in August! Between family meals, games, and watching home videos, we did a bit of wedding planning! They were a big help in brainstorming ideas and listening to my thoughts.

Mom, my sisters, and I went to a bridal show together. We had fun getting ideas from the different vendors. We didn't win any prizes that day, but I was later emailed saying I did win a pampering packing that I'll use closer to the wedding!

So fun to Amy and Julie in town!!

 My mom is very organized and enjoys projects. She's a big help with all this wedding stuff! This picture is from the bridal show. It was at Pumpelly Estate in Owego - a place we had considered for our reception, but we have too many friends, so it wasn't big enough!

Later in the week, we all went out to lunch and tea - such a fun afternoon! After teatime we went wedding dress shopping. It was my first time trying on dresses, and while slightly overwhelming, it was nice to have my mom and sisters there for their opinions, help, and picture taking skills.

Wedding plans are coming together. We're in the process of signing a contract for the ceremony and reception locations. There is a caterer that works closely with the event location, and he has some good ideas for our reception. My mom and I are looking into some photographers, and I just may have found THE dress earlier this week!

It will be nice to have these more major decisions taken care of - I think I'll enjoy the creative details we still have to work on!

3.1 Miles for LIFE

I've been running on and off since Jr High and ran my first official race two summers ago! I enjoy running, and when I started working at Life Choices Center, I was excited to help organize the Run/Walk for Life they are involved in. This past weekend was my second year running in the 5K with Life Choices Center, and it's a great opportunity for family and friends to learn more about the work I do at the Center.

I raced along with 153 others running or walking with Life Choices Center - we had a huge turnout this year, and for some, this was their very first 5K! Above is Kim, Kayla, Amanda, and myself before the race - it's a fun race to do with family and friends. Nate ran again this year, and my mom and sister, Julie, walked.

While other family members of mine participated last year, they supported me from far away this year. Many family and friends sponsored me as I ran for Life Choices Center. We use this as a fundraiser to continue offering our services to those facing an unplanned pregnancy. Raising over $11,000 this year, we passed our fundraising goal and were thrilled to see so many people eager to be involved in this 5K and join us for those 3.1 Miles for LIFE!

Bye-Bye July!

Well, July has come and gone with hardly any updates! It's been a whirlwind of activities since Nate and I got engaged at the end of June, and I wanted to take some time to remember back to what we've been up to!

The weekend after we got engaged, Nate and I took a trip down to Washington DC. Nate had never been before, so I acted as our tour guide as we explored the American History Museum, Air and Space Museum, and some monuments along the National Mall. Like many of my previous DC experiences, we took the metro into the city and then did a lot of walking as we explored!

We stayed with my friend, Heather's, family and experienced the hottest days of summer that weekend! We stayed cool at the pool and the National Firearms Museum - the guys loved that one! Heather also introduced us to Sweet Frog, and now Nate is a big fan of serve-yourself frozen yogurt! On our way home, Nate and I stopped in Maryland for lunch with my grandma and some extended family. It was fun to spend some time catching up and eating crab cakes. Nate continues to be my favorite travel buddy!

The week after our DC trip, Nate closed on a house! That opened a whole new door of projects and activities to do together! It's a bit of a fixer-upper, but we're looking forward to working on it together. Our families have been over to help clean, repair, and offer some TLC to our future home, and little by little it's looking better!

The house is in Conklin (just outside Binghamton and about 20 minutes from my parent's house) and has an apartment we can eventually rent out. We went running in the neighborhood tonight, and we believe it will be a pleasant place to live once we're married. You'll have to stay posted for some before and after pictures!

Between wedding planning and working on this new house, I did spend a weekend away with Nate's cousin, Julie. She is working on conquering all 46 high peaks in the Adirondacks and invited me to join her for a hiking trip! We headed up on a Friday night and spent the night in her car and heading out hiking in the morning. We actually knocked two peaks off her list since we made it to the tops of both Colvin and Blake that day! We hiked 16 miles and were out just before dark.

This ADK hiking was definitely a new experience for me! We're talking hiking sticks, climbing boulders, tricky footing, restrooms up close and personal with nature, achy knees, and spectacular views! It was quite an accomplishment, and I was only sore until the middle of the next week...

It was fun to spend time with Julie and get to know her a bit more. I've enjoyed being part of Nate's extended family and look forward to more opportunities to get together in the future!

I flipped my calendar to August yesterday and realized that most of the summer is behind us. It has been full of adventure so far, and this new month is looking pretty great too!