The Summer Adventures of Brit & Mike!

This summer was definitely amazing! Mike and I did so many cool things!! :)



Let's see... where to begin...

Mission Trip:
I went on my 5th mission trip in June. We went to Bethany, Kentucky. It was probably my least favorite of mission trips but we still had a blast! We went and worked and stayed at a small Christian school. We stayed (slept) in the actual school building which only had like 7 rooms, max, so that shows how small this school is. We worked on basic things around 'campus'. Cleaned all the buildings top to bottom, we weeded and mowed the lawn, did some lawn work around the office, put new mulch on the playground. I worked all week in the "museum". It's part of the office building and once finished will have all the old artifacts and pictures from the school through the years. It was fun. We started by finishing the dry wall then sanding down the spakleing (idk how to spell it, but it's the stuff that makes the dry wall smooth between pieces and where the nails are. lol). Then on Tuesday we started to paint. We painted the ceiling white and then the walls were this gray color but looked more of a purple. We finished that up Wednesday, and on Thursday we basically just watched the guys lay down the new laminate flooring. Thursday was our last work day so on Friday we went to the Natural Bridge. It's the bridge made out of rock. We had to hike up to the top which was awful and showed how out of shape we all are. lol. But it was cool. Then Saturday we went to this natural tunnel. There's so many cool rock/cave things in that area. Then we saw the house that we worked on in 2005 on a mission trip. It was sad, it was abandoned and just looked awful, worse than when we got there in 2005. But overall it was a great trip. Pics are on facebook. :)

Creation Fest 2011:
So I got home from the Mission Trip on June 26 (Sunday) and then me and Mike left on Tuesday June 28 for Creation Fest!! :) It was awesome!!! I love Creation. We saw a ton of great bands and heard some great speakers. We got autographs from a great Christian rapper and then this heavy metal band that Mike likes. It was great. And.... we are now the proud sponsors of a child in Africa! :) There is an organization called Compassion and they help children living in poverty in different countries. We discussed that we couldn't afford it but then Mike randomly grabbed a packet just to look at and the birth date of the child was the birthdate of his sister who passed away in 2004, but he was born in 2005, the first birthday that she was gone. Mike took that as a sign and we now sponsor him. :) It makes me happy to think about!! <3 But yeah, that was a great time at Creation!!! <3

We got home from Creation on July 3rd and just relaxed on the 4th. My parents had a cookout but Mike worked so he couldn't go.

British Invasion:
IDK how many know, but my Nan (mom's mom) is from London England. Yeah, I know, super cool! lol Well, she went over last summer and visited her cousin and family. This year, the British came to the US! lol. It was three people, Karen, Graham and Thomas. Karen and Graham are married and Thomas is their 17 yr old son. They have a 20 yr old son also, but he couldn't come for whatever reason. They spent the first week in NYC and Niagara Falls, and then on the 6th of July came down to my Nan's house.  They spent Wednesday night and Thursday there, on Friday we had a BBQ at my parents house that they came to then we went to the Drive In movies since they have never been. lol. Then had a bonfire at my Aunt Chris' on Saturday. On Sunday they headed to my Uncle Danny's house about 3 hrs away. We went down on Monday to Danny's and then that evening drove the 45 minutes to Hershey, PA where my Aunt Kim lives. (Yes, Hershey candy is made there. And the town smells like chocolate. I love it!) On Tuesday we went to Hershey Park, an amusement park. Mike loved it! He hung out with Thomas the whole time and they loved the roller coasters. Then on Wednesday we just hung out at Kim's house and then parted ways. The English Company headed down to Washington D.C. where my Uncle Craig lives and works for the Secret Service and got them an exclusive White House tour! :) They head back to London next week sometime, but we definitely had a great time with them while they were here. <3

Steel City Con:

The last weekend in July, Mike and I went down to Monroeville, outside of Pittsburgh for a comic book convention type thing. It had more toys and collectibles than comic books, which was really cool since I know nothing about comic books. Mike's all about that kinda stuff. lol. He loved it. We went down Friday afternoon and stayed until Sunday afternoon. We loved just hanging in the hotel and relaxing more than anything really. lol. I got a few more My Little Pony figures, I sorta collect them, the older style not the newer ones out now. And Mike got a few Ninja Turtle things. Overall, we had a great weekend!!

Virginia Beach!!:

The second week in August, we went on our family vacation to Virginia Beach! It was my parents, my sister, her bf (also named Mike) and me and my Mike. lol. We have never been there before but loved it. It wasn't as crowded at Myrtle Beach or as tacky as Ocean City can be. lol. There were street performers every night on "Beach Street USA", we went to a cool water park, me and Mike went to an Aquarium! And just had a blast! Once again, pics are on Facebook. 

And that was my summer. I start working in school again with a client I had before and a new one on Monday. I can't wait for my paychecks to get bigger again! lol 10-15 hours a week this summer has killed us practically. lol. I dread going to my one client's house, but I gotta deal with it, and hopefully it won't be for long. Bring it on school year 2011-2012!!!! :) <3

In our new place! :)

Well, we're all moved into our new townhouse! But we still have a ton of unpacking to do. lol. We're slowly getting it done. I will post pics once everything is done. We are currently couchless. haha. We junked the old one. It was falling apart. But we have the cushions still and are using those to sit on. haha. We're cool like that.

Mike had a huge falling out with his parents last week. Well, Saturday the 26th was his birthday. So his parents came over to our old house and took us out for lunch and then we went to the mall and hung out for awhile. Then went back to their house and had some cake and ate dinner there. Then me and Mike went out to a bar with some of his friends. It was a great day. :) So Sunday was the day we were moving. Mike's step-dad said he was going to get us a truck from his work so we wouldn't have to rent a U-Haul for our stuff. Awesome. Saturday we asked him about it and he said yeah, he was still getting it and to call when we got up. So we get up on Sunday around 11, we slept later than we wanted, and Mike tries to call his step-dad. No answer. Tries his mom. No answer. Great. They've done this before. When things change, they just don't answer their phones or anything. So Mike decides to go over there to see whats up. He calls me about 10 minutes later and says that his step-dad said he couldn't get the truck and wouldn't be able to help us move. Mike was furious! We eventually went and got a U-Haul and my parents came to help us (they were going to anyways but came earlier to help) and we got all the big stuff moved with the truck. The rest of the week Mike moved the rest of the stuff with the help of some of his friends. But yeah, Mike's parents haven't tried to call Mike and Mike pretty much told them to F-off so he's not about to call them either. He says they are pretty much dead to him. It's so sad. Especially since Mike's brother passed away recently and Mike's their only child left.

But that's what's going on with us. I just can't wait to be done unpacking and be able to just enjoy our new place. We love it soooo much! :) Mike loves his man-cave in the basement, I love my scrapbook room (2nd bedroom). It's perfect for us. <3

One Month ~ One week

One Month: It's been 1 month since Mike's brother Dave died. It still doesn't seem real. He use to like, disappear for like 2 or 3 weeks, (sometimes longer) or so and basically, no one would hear from him, be able to contact him, whatever. And then he'd just show up like nothing happened. IDK why he'd do that, maybe to get away from baby momma drama or just life in general. But he'd always come back and be just fine. Well, it still kinda seems like that's what's going on now. Our minds just think he'll call one of us someday or will show up at his parents house, or whatever. But it's not gonna happen. We all know that, but subconsciously we want to think he'll be 'back'. sigh. Gosh, we miss him so much. Jillian, his daughter, will often say that her daddy is in heaven, and then will ask if we can go to heaven to see him. Put a lump in my throat when her mom was telling me that. My heart breaks for her. She's only 3! :( On a happier note, Dave had a cat that he loved to death. He never wanted anything to happen to this cat and made us (family) promise to look after the cat if anything would happen to him. Well, since he's been gone, the cat's been missing. And the cat's an indoor cat, never goes outside. He turned up today. :) And he's doing fine, even after being on the streets for a month. That made us all happy.

One week: We will be moving in about a week!!! yay! I started packing today. It sucks! I wish the Army would come and move us again. lol. That was so easy! I'm just exciting to be moving into a nicer place, closer to everything, and next to my BFF!! yay!!!

I hope everyone has a good weekend! :) <3

Signed a lease!

Our current lease is up at the end of March, so me and Mike have been looking for an apartment that's closer to everything. lol. Right now it's about 40 min for me to get to work, and about 30 min to get to WalMart, the mall, and my parents house. We're so far out there. lol. So we wanted to move closer. We signed a lease tonight for a nice townhouse. Right next to my BFF!! :) I'm super excited! It's a 2 bedroom and has a nice finished basement that Mike is going to make into his Man Cave. lol. The lease starts April 1 but we are allowed to move in on March 26th-27th. :) yay!!

Mike turns 26 this month too! On the 26th, actually! lol. We're not sure what we're doing but I do know I'm getting him a cake! haha. He doesn't wanna celebrate since it's too close to 30. lol. But he's just joking and will have a great time. I can't wait to give him his gift! lol

We had a nice weekend this past weekend. :) Me and Mike went to lunch with his parents. (Side Note: Not sure if I mentioned it but Mike's brother died about 3 and a half weeks ago. His sister died in 2004. He's an only child now. So sad. But we're always with his parents now because of that. His mom's a mess. Breaks my heart.) Anyways, We went out to lunch with them, then went back to their house and decided to go to the movies. We went to see "Battle: L.A.". It was pretty good! Mike really liked it. As did I. Then we went to Starbucks and just hung out the rest of the night. Sunday we went to their house and just watched movies on their HUGE TV! lol. It was nice and relaxing. This weekend will consist of packing, packing and more packing! lol Greatttt.

Well, it's bed time for me. lol. Have a great week!! :)

Seven Springs Mountain Resort

I know I haven't updated forever!! lol Things got busy at work, and then two weeks ago, my fiancée's brother died. That's been rough for all of us, especially Mike. Him and Dave were so close. And in 2004, Mike's sister died. He's the only child left now. It's heartbreaking. But that's one reason I haven't posted recently.

Today, Me and Mike went with his parents and Missy (Mike's brothers ex gf and baby momma) and Jillian, Mike's niece (Dave's daughter - she just turned 3) to a local ski resort for breakfast. Mike's parents go there, apparently, almost every weekend. So we all left around 8:15am and got there around 9:30. It was pretty cool. I've never been to a ski resort before. The breakfast buffet was delicious!! No wonder his parents go so often! lol. Then we were just wandering around. We find a game room, that Jillian loved. So we hung out there for a while, then went outside and were watching the skiers and snowboarders. Jillian wanted to do it so bad! lol. Mike's parents went to see about maybe getting her private lessons. She's going to be so spoiled, since she's the only thing left of Dave, pretty much. She's so adorable. But yeah, after being outside for a bit, we went into the lodge and got hot chocolate and coffee and watched the skiers and snowboarders from inside. It was just a nice time. :) Something fun we all needed to do in the aftermath of all the sadness. But it did hurt, not having Dave there with us. We were all suppose to do this the weekend that Dave died. So that reminder was definitely in the backs of everyone's mind.
After we left there, we went back to Mike's parent's house and just watched movies the rest of the afternoon. All of them were Jillian's type of movies. lol. I love her so much. She's so cute!! I guess she's talking a lot more now. I wasn't around her too often, there was drama between Missy and Mike's parents, but since Dave died, Missy and Jillian are over his parents house pretty often. But yeah, everyone said that she's been talking a lot more recently. And its so cute. She gets so excited watching movies or even when "Uncle Micheal" walks into the room. My heart breaks for her though, she'll most likely never remember Dave. And won't be able to ever know him. gah. So sad.
But yeah. That was our fun day. :) I'm glad we all had a great time. Like I said, it was something we needed. <3

New 30 day photo challenge. lol

My 30 day photo challenge was boring. One of my friends' had a better one. So I'll start hers today. :)

Day 1 – Your idea of the perfect first date. 
Day 2 – A photo of something you ate today. 
Day 3 – A photo of yourself and a description of how your day was. 
Day 4 – Your favorite photograph of your best friend. 
Day 5 – A photo of yourself two years ago. 
Day 6 – A photo of an animal you’d love to keep as a pet. 
Day 7 – Your dream wedding. 
Day 8 – A song to match your mood. 
Day 9 – A photo of the item you last purchased. 
Day 10 – A photo of your favorite place to eat. 
Day 11 – What’s in your bag? 
Day 12 – A photograph of the town you live in. 
Day 13 – Your favorite musician and why? 
Day 14 – A TV show you’re currently addicted to. 
Day 15 – Something you don’t leave the house without. 
Day 16 – Your celebrity crush. 
Day 17 – A photo of you and your family. 
Day 18 – Something you crave a lot. 
Day 19 – Another picture of yourself. 
Day 20 – The meaning behind your blog name. 
Day 21 – A photo of something that makes you happy. 
Day 22 – A photo of tw of your favorite animals. 
Day 23 – Fave theme park 
Day 24 – A photo of something that means a lot to you. 
Day 25 – What’s in your purse? 
Day 26 – A photo of somewhere you’ve been to. 
Day 27 – A picture of you last year and now and how have you changed since then? 
Day 28 – Your favorite movie. 
Day 29 – Something you could never get tired of doing. 
Day 30 – A photograph of youself today + three good things that have happened in the past 30 days


Perfect date:

Going to dinner, then going to the movies. :) This was the movie theatre in Texas that we went to all the time. :) It's better than the one we have here in PA. lol

Day 6 and 7 of the Challenge

Sorry I didn't post yesterday. lol As if anyone reads this anyways...

Day 6 - A picture of a person you'd love to trade places with for a day.

hmm.... I can't think of anyone I'd wanna trade places with. lol

Day 7 - A picture of your most treasured item.

I can't find a pic of it for the life of me... lol. But my engagement ring! <3

Day 5 of the Challenge!

Day 5: A picture of your favorite memory.

Moving to Texas!!!!! :) I loved it down there. I hated being away from my family, but it was so much fun. :) I really miss Texas sometimes. I loved going to Dallas, or Austin, or San Antonio. So much fun! <3

Day 4 of the Challenge

Day 4 - A picture of my favorite night

My fiance's 25th birthday!! :) We went out to Plucker's with some of his friends and he did the 25 "Fire in the Hole" Hot Wing Challenge. After he finished, and got his picture placed on the wall of 'flame', I ran out to the car and brought in the cake I bought for him. He had no idea I got him one. He loved it, even if it was a small one. He just had so much fun and that makes me so happy to know that he's happy. <3 I love him so much. 

Oh, and the pic was taken right after someone smashed cake into his face and I licked it off. lol <3 I love us.

Day 3 of the challenge

Day 3 - Post a picture of the cast of your favorite show.

I love Law and Order, especially the SVU ones, and I love CSI, especially the NY ones! :) lol I've been addicted to these shows for years. That's probably why I went into Criminology in college. <3

Day 2 of the 30 day challenge

Day 2 - A picture me and a person I have been closest with the longest.

My BFF Kayla!! <3 We've been best friends since 4th grade. So, 3 weeks into my 4th grade school year, I got "cherry-bumped" off the see-saw (I was at the top, and fell like, 5 ft) and landed funky on my right arm and broke both bones. I almost had to get a plate put in, it was super bad. Well naturally, I was terrified to go back on the see-saws (they were on the playgrounds at school, but were quickly removed before the next school year, because of me, sorry. lol). For some reason, Kayla mentioned that we probably weighed the same so we could balance on the see-saws. So we tried it. And we did. Best Friends since. :) We've taken almost every high school class together, went to the same college, roomed together in college, did everything together. We still hang out a ton, not as much as before since she has a 3 yr old son now, but we're still super close. I love her to death!! :)

Day 1 of the 30 Day Picture Challenge

A picture of myself with 20 facts:

1. This picture was taken on my 21st birthday! I was getting ready to go to my college graduation party.
2. I turned 21, graduated college and moved to Texas all in August of 2009.
3. As much as I love being close to my family here in PA, I really miss living in Texas.
4. I graduated college in 3 years rather than 4 and now have a Bachelor's Degree in Criminology!
5. I would love to work as a Juvenile Probation Officer, but currently I'm a Therapeutic Support Specialist and work with kids that are autistic, have ADHD or other behavioral/emotional issues.
6. I'm engaged to the most amazing man ever! MIKE! <3
7. I'm the proud momma to the cutest little mini dachshund ever! :) His name is Loki, named after the Norse God of Mischief.
8. I'm in the process of applying to grad school and I'm super nervous I won't get it.
9. I'm apart of an amazing sorority! Delta Tau Sigma! I love my Big, Jessica and my Little, Susan! <3
10. I love, love LOVE, to Scrapbook! I take pics of everything and scrapbook them all.
11. I love to read also. I loved the Twilight Saga and the Hunger Games Trilogy. I also like reading books by J.A. Jance, she writes murder mystery type books.
12. I love watching reality tv shows! lol Mike hates that I do. lol
13. Oh, we also have a pet turtle! lol
14. My favorite season is Winter, but only when I'm in PA. lol. I like the snow.
15. My car broke down last week, so I'm car-less. lol
16. I love to laugh. :) In 10th grade, I did a report on how Laughter is the Best Medicine, I then used that paper as my graduation project in 12th grade. It was very interesting and as my title says, "The most wasted of days is one without laughter."
17. I love music! I'll listen to everything except country. :)
18. I love eating at Subway!! And I almost always get the Italian BMT (on Herb and Cheese bread, american cheese, toasted, no veggies just Italian dressing.). :)
19. I don't pronounce my "ing" sayings right. lol I say "in" instead. So like, "eatin", "drivin". lol It bothers my family so much. haha.
20. I'm a huge PITTSBURGH STEELERS fan!!!! I love me some Black & Yellow!!!! <3

The 30 Day Picture Challenge

I'm going to do this 30 day picture challenge so y'all can get to know me. lol. So... here's the list of what I'll be posting.

Day 01 - A picture of yourself with 20 facts.
Day 02 - A picture of you and the person you have been closest with the longest.
Day 03 - A picture of the cast from your favorite show.
Day 04 - A picture of your favorite night.
Day 05 - A picture of your favorite memory.
Day 06 - A picture of a person you'd love to trade places with for a day.
Day 07 - A picture of your most treasured item.
Day 08 - A picture that makes you laugh.
Day 09 - A picture of the person who has gotten you through the most.
Day 10 - A picture of the person you do the most messed up things with.
Day 11 - A picture of something you hate.
Day 12 - A picture of something you love.
Day 13 - A picture of your favorite band or artist.
Day 14 - A picture of someone you could never imagine your life without.
Day 15 - A picture of something you want to do before you die.
Day 16 - A picture of someone who inspires you.
Day 17 - A picture of something that has made a huge impact on your life recently.
Day 18 - A picture of your biggest insecurity.
Day 19 - A picture of and a letter to someone.
Day 20 - A picture of somewhere you'd love to travel.
Day 21 - A picture of something you wish you could forget.
Day 22 - A picture of something you wish you were better at.
Day 23 - A picture of your favorite book.
Day 24 - A picture of something you wish you could change.
Day 25 - A picture of your dream day.
Day 26 - A picture of something that means a lot to you.
Day 27 - A picture of yourself and a family member.
Day 28 - A picture of something you're afraid of.
Day 29 - A picture that can always make you smile.
Day 30 - A picture of someone you miss.