Well it has been a week that is FOR SURE!!! I mean seriously emotions have been all over the place for me! I guess I will start from the beginning. For starters I went to Tyler on Wednesday night and stayed with Mark's parents because I was taking my specialization exam (to say I can teach reading in grades 4-8) in Tyler at 7:30. I got up, made it there, and took my test, which I found to either be A) much easier than the other two, B) I had finally gotten used to the way the test were written or C) I just didn't care that much anymore. Anyways, I finished that in about a little over and hour, and then proceeded on the drive home. The good things about these tests is that they give you the day before and the day of to study and take the tests. So once I was done I came home, spent lunch with mark and then decided I would go on a nice and relaxing picnic, hence the previous post.
The next thing for this week was to go to the Texas Longhorns play this past Saturday. We went with my brother and Mark's oldest brother Wade, which ended up being a lot of fun, but I wish I had a girl there to discuss the cheerleaders with. It was the final home game, senior day, so it was a great one to go to. Of course our Horns won! Yea for that!!! Well about halfway into the second quarter I get wind of some really hard news. . . we had left the dogs in the back fence that morning and my mom went by to check on them, but couldn't find my little Ellie! She looked EVERYWHERE! Well she ended up telling Adam and Mark, but not me because she didn't want to ruin my night. When I finally did learn about it, I was crushed! Nevertheless, I made it through the game, but not before posting notices all over facebook asking people to look for my lost puppy. Mom said our neighbors saw her because she chased their car (which she likes to do) but nothing after that. Her and dad went and looked for her at halftime and then mom went again at 11. I found out how many people really liked my dog, especially my mom :-). She is so good to me. We left the game with no news, and headed back to Dallas to spend the night, only to get up and head back home in the morning.
We started for home, dropped everyone off, then went home, keeping our eyes peeled down 154 for our puppy! I can not tell you how heart wrenching this was, to not know where she was, if she was ok, to not know ANYTHING! We keep driving without seeing her at all, drive slowly around our neighborhood with nothing in sight still, and arrive at our house. We go and let our other puppy Sadie out of the fence and are petting her and looking around for Ellie when all of the sudden I look down and see a little nose frantically trying to get out from under the house. All I could do was shout "Oh Ellie!!" as I was crying! We finally get her out and begin to access the damage. We got her in the shower, watched the water turn BROWN from all the dirt she had on her. We got her all cleaned up and saw she had quite a few scrapes on her back legs and lower belly, and that she was holding up her back right leg when she walked, not to mention she yelped when we picked her up. We decided to give her a day or so to rest and see how she was doing, even just with a couple of hours. Well all night she was moping and limping around, and again this morning, so I called and set up an appointment at Jefferson Animal Hospital for Tuesday at 10:30. Well I got home and couldn't stand it anymore and called and got her in for the last appointment of the day. Mark and I were really debating on whether or not to take her because we didn't want a huge vet bill if all they were going to say was "make her rest".
Needless to say we ended up taking her in, and they were sssooo nice. Anytime we take Ellie to any animal thing everyone says "Oh she she is so cute. She is so good" etc. She was super good, especially since I left in such a hurry that I forgot her leash! She sat there with me and didn't move really (partly because she couldn't lol) until we asked her to go back. We went back and the vet came in and had a look at her. I told her what happened and after some moving around she found the spot that was giving our Ellie some trouble. The good news is her hip wasn't out of place or anything, the bad news was we believe her pelvis is fractured. I know poor Ellie! Thankfully we didn't need to take x-rays because the vet determined since she can still put some pressure on that foot that it isn't a "weight bearing" fracture. We got some medicine and if she isn't better by the Wednesday morning then we have to go in and do x-rays. They kept saying "she got rolled" and when I asked what that meant they said she probably was nicked by a car and then rolled. Good grief! God was really looking out for us, because the bill could have been very high and thankfully wasn't. So now, with just a little TLC she will be better.
In other news, I checked the website and I PASSED MY TEST!!!!! I am so excited! So now all that is left is fingerprints, which is what I am doing tomorrow, and then GRADUATION!!!! I am sssoo excited! This is such a huge relief, I cannot even begin to tell you! To know they there is nothing else that I have to study for, and there is nothing left to do but walk across a stage, wow!!!
So yeah, the horns won, Ellie's hurt, and all test are passed, all in all a crazy week in the life of Mark and Kristen!
Monday, November 23, 2009
Thursday, November 19, 2009
A Test, A Picnic, and A Nap. . . GREAT DAY!
Well today has been pretty amazing. . . I do have to say I LOVE LOVE LOVE November!! I have had the past 2 days off because I had another certification test to study for and take. It has been wonderful to just get a few days to rest and study. I took my test this morning and I think I did ok. . . Either it was easier than the other two, I am getting used to taking these dumb things, or I just don't care that much anymore. Either way, I think I passed and that is the important thing.
After I got home I quickly cooked some taco soup for a supper I will have by myself while Mark is at training tonight. After that and some lunch I decided that I needed to go on a picnic, just me myself and I with my bible and journal, book, camera, and a pillow. It was wonderful!! I loved, loved, loved it! I actually didn't read at all, just took pictures and fell asleep! Some of the pictures I took were of my car so I could post them on here. Here they are!
Isn't it pretty?!?!
Monday, November 16, 2009
Vroom, Vroom!!
Well the new news around the Clifton household is right outside in the driveway. . . That's right you guessed it, a new car!!!!! Well ok, not NEW new, but new to us! We bought a 2005 Pontiac Vibe!! This car is such a blessing to us in so many ways! I cannot begin to tell you how excited we are about it all! We have been on the car hunt for quite some time, but are limited in serarches because we want to pay cash for our car and not have to worry about car payments. I knew the kind of car I liked in a way in that I wanted something that was right between an SUV and a car. I didn't want something huge that I felt like I was driving a truck in and I didn't want something that would be considered a grandma car, like a big and bulky sedan. . . needless to say there are few options that have 4 doors when you really look at it.
So to begin a long story, there is this burnt orange car at a small dealership on the way to Longview. Mark and I were going on a date Tuesday night and called the guy on a whim to see if we could look at the car. This car is also a 2005 Pontiac Vibe, but you can definitely tell it has been used! There are scratches from where it has been egged, and cigarette burns, and so on, but it has only 54,000 miles on it and so we debate it, and decide to go home and scout out to see if we are getting the best deal. As it happens, it is there that I find out I really LOVE the style and feel of the Vibe and I decide it is the car I want. We begin our search on Craigslist and see 2 cars for sale that are potential deals. One is in our price range and is a 2006 with 48,000 miles but only has power windows and no cruise control (big bummer for me). We are thinking this one is the one we are going to be getting because # 2 is $1000 over our budget, however it only has 16000 miles and also comes with power windows, locks, cruise control, oh and a SUNROOF!! This definitely made me very excited so I take it upon myself to call the owner and inquire a little bit more than what was just on the add.
Ring ring goes the telephone, and I am nervous because I have never done this before in my life! Luckily this wonderful woman answers the phone and we begin not only talking about the car, but about life in general. We have this great conversation and end with deciding we are going to go and see the car the next day. I go down and tell Mark about the exciting news, of which he is excited too, but reminds me about the price. He says there is not point in us traveling all the way to McKinney if they are unwilling to negotiate on the price. So I wait until after church and nervously call the woman back to ask her if there is anyway the price can be negotiated, AKA dropped $1000. . . She ends up telling me she is an honest person and she can't stand not beating around the bush and they had discussed selling the car and the lowest they would go was our price!!!! I got off the phone and ran sssooo fast from our house to the church to exclaim to Mark "They said they will take it, they said they will take our price!!" He was equally as excited!! The next day we wake up, go to the bank, and go to look at these two cars.
We finally find the residence and pull up to see this immaculately kept vehicle. It is what I would call an "old lady car" in the respect of it was one of those cars that was driven to the beauty shop, grocery store, and back and that was about it! For it being 5 years old, and to only have 16000 miles that has to be the case! The inside is SUPER clean and even still smells like a new car! The outside is red and just awesome! Needless to say I am ssssoo in love! We got in the car to test drive it and the first words that came out of my mouth were "Oh Mark, can we have it?!?!" to which he responded "Yes, yes you can!" It has been such an amazing find and I couldn't be happier. I have never had a nice car with all the bells and whistles, and so I am feeling kinda spoiled, and have to pinch myself to remember it really is mine! I enjoy driving ten times more and now fight Mark to drive it (something that never happened before). I will take some pictures and post them very soon because I just want to share haha!
So to begin a long story, there is this burnt orange car at a small dealership on the way to Longview. Mark and I were going on a date Tuesday night and called the guy on a whim to see if we could look at the car. This car is also a 2005 Pontiac Vibe, but you can definitely tell it has been used! There are scratches from where it has been egged, and cigarette burns, and so on, but it has only 54,000 miles on it and so we debate it, and decide to go home and scout out to see if we are getting the best deal. As it happens, it is there that I find out I really LOVE the style and feel of the Vibe and I decide it is the car I want. We begin our search on Craigslist and see 2 cars for sale that are potential deals. One is in our price range and is a 2006 with 48,000 miles but only has power windows and no cruise control (big bummer for me). We are thinking this one is the one we are going to be getting because # 2 is $1000 over our budget, however it only has 16000 miles and also comes with power windows, locks, cruise control, oh and a SUNROOF!! This definitely made me very excited so I take it upon myself to call the owner and inquire a little bit more than what was just on the add.
Ring ring goes the telephone, and I am nervous because I have never done this before in my life! Luckily this wonderful woman answers the phone and we begin not only talking about the car, but about life in general. We have this great conversation and end with deciding we are going to go and see the car the next day. I go down and tell Mark about the exciting news, of which he is excited too, but reminds me about the price. He says there is not point in us traveling all the way to McKinney if they are unwilling to negotiate on the price. So I wait until after church and nervously call the woman back to ask her if there is anyway the price can be negotiated, AKA dropped $1000. . . She ends up telling me she is an honest person and she can't stand not beating around the bush and they had discussed selling the car and the lowest they would go was our price!!!! I got off the phone and ran sssooo fast from our house to the church to exclaim to Mark "They said they will take it, they said they will take our price!!" He was equally as excited!! The next day we wake up, go to the bank, and go to look at these two cars.
We finally find the residence and pull up to see this immaculately kept vehicle. It is what I would call an "old lady car" in the respect of it was one of those cars that was driven to the beauty shop, grocery store, and back and that was about it! For it being 5 years old, and to only have 16000 miles that has to be the case! The inside is SUPER clean and even still smells like a new car! The outside is red and just awesome! Needless to say I am ssssoo in love! We got in the car to test drive it and the first words that came out of my mouth were "Oh Mark, can we have it?!?!" to which he responded "Yes, yes you can!" It has been such an amazing find and I couldn't be happier. I have never had a nice car with all the bells and whistles, and so I am feeling kinda spoiled, and have to pinch myself to remember it really is mine! I enjoy driving ten times more and now fight Mark to drive it (something that never happened before). I will take some pictures and post them very soon because I just want to share haha!
Sunday, November 1, 2009
I Really Really Really Like Weekends
Ohh weekends! I cannot tell you how much I really like the weekends. They are something I look forward to each week,and am so thankful for when Friday finally rolls around. We have had a good time this weekend, just really doing our own things until Sunday, which we spent all day together then.
On Friday we had a home football game which also means we had the last 5th quarter as well. We ended up losing the game, the 5th quarter went well, but because of all of that we ended up not getting to bed until about 1 or so. However, I was able to sleep in pretty late on Saturday moning, and boy was it nice. Mark had to be in Shreveport early early for something, so he was not near as lucky. I then was able to start some laundry before I started getting ready for one of my really good friend's baby shower which was from 2-4. I went to that and had a blast!! Although it sorta made me really want to have a baby, all of those little outfits, shoes, and toys are just so cute!!! Sadly, this is not the main reason you have a baby, so I guess the whole starting a family thing will just have to wait until later (Mark is in definite agreement with this lol).
After I got home from this Mark and I started getting ready for a Halloween Costume Party that was at a friends house. We had planned in the middle of the week to go as Lucy and Shroder (from the Peanuts comics, the girl that always pulls the football out from under Charlie Brown, and the guy who plays the little piano) but at about 6:20 Mark looks at me and says "I don't really want to be Shroder. . ." Um, the party starts at 8, and I was really wanting to be there early to help her set up and stuff. Needless to say I start flipping out just a little because I had been in walmart not 30 minutes earlier and could have picked us up one!!! Luckily, some friends came to our rescue with a superman breastplate thing, and so he went as Clark Kent and I went as Louis Lane. We had a great time and got to see a lot of people we hadn't seen in a while.
Today was our church's homecoming. Harleton Baptist Church has been around 116 years today and it was a great service. We got hear a youth minister bring the message, some testimonies from various people in the church, and then eat some really, really, really, good food!! After church we just enjoyed a nice November day before leaving to spend the evening with some sunday school friends. All in all, what a wonderful weekend!!
On Friday we had a home football game which also means we had the last 5th quarter as well. We ended up losing the game, the 5th quarter went well, but because of all of that we ended up not getting to bed until about 1 or so. However, I was able to sleep in pretty late on Saturday moning, and boy was it nice. Mark had to be in Shreveport early early for something, so he was not near as lucky. I then was able to start some laundry before I started getting ready for one of my really good friend's baby shower which was from 2-4. I went to that and had a blast!! Although it sorta made me really want to have a baby, all of those little outfits, shoes, and toys are just so cute!!! Sadly, this is not the main reason you have a baby, so I guess the whole starting a family thing will just have to wait until later (Mark is in definite agreement with this lol).
After I got home from this Mark and I started getting ready for a Halloween Costume Party that was at a friends house. We had planned in the middle of the week to go as Lucy and Shroder (from the Peanuts comics, the girl that always pulls the football out from under Charlie Brown, and the guy who plays the little piano) but at about 6:20 Mark looks at me and says "I don't really want to be Shroder. . ." Um, the party starts at 8, and I was really wanting to be there early to help her set up and stuff. Needless to say I start flipping out just a little because I had been in walmart not 30 minutes earlier and could have picked us up one!!! Luckily, some friends came to our rescue with a superman breastplate thing, and so he went as Clark Kent and I went as Louis Lane. We had a great time and got to see a lot of people we hadn't seen in a while.
Today was our church's homecoming. Harleton Baptist Church has been around 116 years today and it was a great service. We got hear a youth minister bring the message, some testimonies from various people in the church, and then eat some really, really, really, good food!! After church we just enjoyed a nice November day before leaving to spend the evening with some sunday school friends. All in all, what a wonderful weekend!!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)