Arkansas or Antarctica?

While we're having fun living down South, Kyle and I have confirmed the fact that we appreciate our 4 seasons up North. This summer has proved to be a torturous one ... high 90's and humid for the vast majority of the time. The past few weeks have been in the triple digits! It has been so hot that Kyle hasn't gone fishing since the beginning of June - now THAT is hot!

Needless to say, you'd never guess the weather was sweltering outside if you saw me hanging out at the house. As my mother-in-law can attest to, Kyle takes after his father and keeps the house just north of frigid.

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Here I am, relaxing with a book on a hot August day in Antarctica ... I mean, Arkansas ...

Cancer's #%$ Has Been Kicked

I've had fun blogging over the past year and a half, and I hope you've all had fun reading it. I try to focus the entries on exciting experiences or joyous moments we've had in our lives. While the stories often make us all smile, they do tend to seem a bit trivial at times. I've decided to take a break from the light-hearted fun, and focus on a more meaningful event.

I'd like to dedicate this blog to our good friend, Mark Thurbush.

His wife, Claire, is one of my best friends and was a bridesmaid in our wedding. Mark and Kyle have become BFF's (and Fantasy Football Junkies) over the past several years. This past March, Mark was diagnosed with Follicular Lymphoma. His father had just been diagnosed with cancer about 6 months earlier, and he and Claire were just settling into their new roles as parents to adorable little Reid. The news was like a swift kick to the gut ... we simply couldn't believe it.

The past 6 months, Mark and Claire have spent countless hours at hospitals and doctors appointments, enduring chemo, radiation and a myriad of other tests. During the long, exhausing, life-changing experience, they blogged about Mark's progress to keep family and friends informed. Kyle and I (and hundreds of others) have been glued to that website day in and day out ... not only for status updates, but for inspiration

For those of you who don't know Mark, he has always been the type of guy that makes friends wherever he goes. Always a smile on his face, a glow in his eye, and a laugh never far away. The "C Word" didn't change any of that for Mark. He kept flashing that smile, always joking around with his hardworking doctors and chose theme songs like "I'm a Survivor," "Don't Stop Believin," and "We're Not Gonna Take It" as the new soundtrack to his life.

Mark's attitude not only helped to get him through this tough time, but he helped the rest of us get through this tough time as well. With the shock of the diagnosis and for many, being so far away from the Thurbush family, it was easy to feel down. But, Mark wouldn't let us. He kept on smiling, joking around and so relentlessly fighting the disease that the rest of us couldn't help but feel inspired. "Why am I complaining? What's so difficult about my life? Look at Mark ... smiling and making jokes while he battles cancer." While we supported Mark during his battle with cancer, he unknowingly supported all of us through our life challenges.

Last week, Mark got his test results back after 6 rounds of chemo ... IN REMISSION!!!

What a wonderful gift! It's like Christmas in August! I join everyone when I say thank you to all the doctors, to God, to Mark's family and friends, to Claire ... but I'd also like to say thank you to Mark. For inspiring the rest of us. Showing us what a positive attitude can do. Showing us how to keep living your life even when you've been dealt a poor hand. We're so excited to share more great memories with the Thurbush family when we move back north.

I'm not telling this story to bring anyone down ... I want everyone to use this story as a reason to stop and smell the roses. Slow down a bit and enjoy the little things. Find the silver lining and stay positive. Life is too delicate to be taken for granted. So, I guess my blogging isn't trivial at all ... I'll continue celebrating life's little moments and hope you join me!

**For those whose lives have been affected by cancer and want to support the fight, feel free to donate to our good friend, Mark Thurbush - a true friend and inspiration. He'll be participating in the Lymphoma Walk in Minneapolis this September and has a goal of raising $5000 for cancer research.

http://pages.lightthenight.org/mn/TwinCiti10/ImaSurvivor

Hummingbird Hostel - Part Two

About this time last year, my dear husband broke down and published his first post on OUR blog. The topic he chose for his masterpiece was my insane love for hummingbirds -- poking a little fun at my obsession. Ha-ha.

Fast forward one year ... and Kyle is just as crazy about these little birds! Seriously! He's too manly to admit it, but that's why it's my turn to "out" him ... blog-style. One word - karma, my dear.

I spotted our first hummingbird of the season the last week in July. Literally, 5 minutes after I commented that their season should be starting soon. Well, they brought more friends this year, and we have probably 20+ hummingbirds whipping through the trees in the backyard and fighting over the feeders!

This time, it was Kyle that suggested we get an additional feeder! You heard right. He ran out to Lowe's to buy a third feeder and perched himself on the deck with our good camera on the tripod to capture some of the show. He even made the comment, "Wouldn't it be cool if we could put a mini-camera on a hummingbird's head to see what he does all day?" I can't make this stuff up, people!

Thought you guys (or y'all, as they say down here) might enjoy a little glimpse of the world out our back door over the past several weeks.

I'm no longer teased for my obsession ... it was apparently contagious, and Kyle has caught it! I love you, honey!

S-H! --- O-E!

My new creation ...

I'll be running at Buckeye speed in no time. O-H!---I-O!

Thanks, NikeID.com!

Our Rock Garden

So, I'm not a big fan of landscaping. I mean, I love how it looks, I just don't love creating it. Probably because I haven't taken the time to learn the craft - See our Halloween post last October to learn more about my "half-ass" approach to things to help explain my perspective. :)

As most of our visitors can attest to, our mini-plot of landscaping by the front door leaves a little to be desired. All I can guess is that our contractor threw in whatever plants/bushes/trees he had left to fill it in. There is no pattern and the chosen plants just don't make a whole lot of sense.

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(and this was after hours of weeding...)

If we were calling this our home for an extended period of time (or had tended to this chore when we first moved in) we probably would have dug everything up and started over. But, we're not (and we didn't) so we just needed to make it look presentable.

Despite the 95 degree and super muggy weather, Kyle and I spent one of our first wide open weekends in Arkansas (together) doing landscaping. The cursing that ensued made us question our decision, but the final result was pretty rewarding.

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Here's Kyle installing a rack for the hose. I'm sure there's a more technical name for it, but the person that might know doesn't do much of the blogging. Ahem ...

Here we are putting down the weed cloth to act as a barrier for those pesky weeds. Oh, the life of a homeowner ...

...and laying down "decorative" rock ... after our 4th and final visit to Lowe's for the day. I would have gone with mulch (cheaper and easier) but my go-big-or-go-home-husband wins again.

Let me just tell you ... the picture of the finished product does not do this justice ... Had I documented the flower bed WITH the weeds, I think it would have helped. For your everyone's sake, tell us how much you love it next time you're over. :)

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