Weeks 49 and 50 - the short version

Sunset on Hollow Street

Hi, everyone! Sorry for missing last week! Right now we are in crunch time and there is just a lot going on, so please forgive our lack of communication! There is a light at the end of the tunnel, we just have to get there!

Recently our lives have looked like work and study (for Alli) and work and traveling (for Jonathan). We have been eating quick, easy meals to maximize the time we have needed to spend doing these things. There have been a few trips to the KDB, we have been able to see a few of my family members from either side of the family who were in town, Jonathan got to go surprise a friend from college for his birthday and we have gone out to eat a bit more than usual, but we are hanging in there! We have also spent some nice time relaxing outside for a few of the nice days. 

Know that we are not ignoring everyone, simply buckling down and focusing so we can be more intentional sooner rather than later. Speaking of being intentional, we did get to have some really sweet time together this week goal setting, dreaming and getting on the same track with what we want our family to be about - which was just very unifying and refreshing! 

Thank you for all of your love and support from afar - we are managing okay, just trying to keep things manageable at the moment. Please continue to pray for NAPLEX and MPJE tests and for passing grades. These are just hurdles I have to jump through, but they are definitely making me sweat for it! Pray for Jonathan as he tries to deal with me - there are many tears and the poor guy is handling it like a champ! We need some good, solid rest to help with sanity and to help us keep from getting sick. More coming soon (hopefully) and better blogs to come! For now - here are a few pictures from the last few weeks.

We love sitting and watching the sun set!

We got together to see my grandpa's cousin from Arizona and got a quick photo taken while we were there!

Most importantly: we got to meet baby Kelsey at the party last week, she is absolutely precious and we love her so so much already!

Thanks for keeping up with us, we will continue to improve at this as time goes on!

Love you all,

Alli and Jonathan

Week 48: An Average Week

Honestly, I considered not even writing this week because of multiple things: 1. It has been quite a slow week, 2. This week is already off to a crazy start! However, here I am! Writing to you about our boring week, so that's where we're at!

Monday I worked 9-9 in Copley. It was a super fun day, to be honest with you. The staff was really kind and they were a ton of fun. I enjoyed working with the floater who was there and it was just all around a good experience! Jonathan had an interesting day here, the internet went out, so that threw a wrench in the whole day. This sounds like an extremely millennial issue, however, it truly is key to him working from home. With this being the case, it is imperative he be able to get on the cloud and work on his projects. So anyway, he ended up working at the library for a few hours and made up the rest of his time throughout the week. Once he was finally done working he just came home, played some guitar and relaxed until I came home. And, in case you were wondering, the internet was back on once he came home. 

Tuesday was a day off for me, which is always a joy. I ran, studied and read while Jonathan worked, then after we had our dinner of chicken and rice he went to play basketball while I stayed home and made ham braid for the next day, showered, read and relaxed here on my own. This is actually a pretty huge step for me, as I do not do well staying home alone in the evenings, so I was pretty proud of myself for being able to function well with this arrangement! Jonathan got a little frustrated with basketball, but overall enjoyed getting to play a little bit.

Wednesday, I worked 10-5:30, which was an odd shift, but super short and enjoyable! Jonathan worked and then started in on the yard until I got home. Before we moved in, a pine tree fell in our front yard, so there is a lot of space that was underneath the tree. It was all weedy and needed some fixing, so he was working on tearing it all up. Once I got home we had philly cheesesteak sandwiches with dip, green beans, chips and salsa. Not gourmet, but pretty delicious. After we finished, Jonathan went back out to work in the yard, I cleaned up the kitchen and finished my book. I started a book on Monday that had 3 different short stories in it and finished it Wednesday...needless to say - I am not allowed to read any more books until my boards are finished. Apparently fiction is more appealing to read than pharmacy boards information - who knew?

Thursday I went up to Medina for orientation with my fellow grad interns. It was a really neat day, we got to meet a bunch of the higher up people, they fed us breakfast and lunch, we got to get to know each other, met some of the founder's kids, learned more about the company and what is expected of us - it was actually a really great day! Jonathan worked, then he got dinner ready for us. Ham braid and juicy noodles, which was delicious.

Friday was odd, I got to sleep in, but worked 2:30-10, so it was a little flip-flopped from usual! I studied some and went on a run, then headed to work. Jonathan worked, then he went and got stuff to put some grass in the yard then he came in and watched a movie called "The Longest Day". I believe it was about D-Day, so he loved it, if it's history, Jonathan is in. 

Saturday was an interesting day! In the morning, I studied, cleaned up the kitchen and made pie crust while Jonathan went to pick strawberries for us because he is absolutely amazing. When he got home, I was having issues with the washer not doing, well, anything, really. It had filled up with water and washed for the most part, but it wasn't doing anything else, so I was totally baffled. He was too at first, so I went up and worked on making the strawberry pie and washing up all the other berries while he looked into the washer. Thankfully he is amazing and fixed it! It was something with the lid and a circuit and a spring...honestly, he will have to explain it to you, but it is all fixed and we have clean clothes, so all good! After he was finished with that we got ready and headed out to grocery shop, then we went to the local Christian bookstore because it was closing, they didn't have a lot of merchandise left, but Jonathan bought a computer monitor, so it was definitely worth the trip! Afterwards we went across the road to Marc's to finish our grocery shopping, then went to Duluth to look around and then went to Longhorn to put our name on the waiting list. Mom and Dad met us there for supper because both of us had giftcards there! We had never been there and the food was absolutely delicious! We thoroughly enjoyed dinner with them, then came home and watched "Murder Mystery".

Yesterday was super full, we went to Grace Chapel in the morning for church, stopped at DDM on our way home to get lunch meat for the week. From there, we dropped stuff off at home, packed up the car and headed to the Landis' for lunch with Jonathan's family and his grandparents. From there we went straight to the Haas farm for dinner with my family and grandparents. After we were done, Mom and Dad brought Grandpa over to see the place since he hadn't seen it yet, then Mom helped me get the kitchen cleaned up while I got some food ready for the week and Jonathan taught Dad how to use the library app on his phone! Now we are all more prepared for the week. Once they left we just kind of prepped for the week.

This week is already looking pretty full. Lots of working and traveling and craziness, so prayers for safe travels would be much appreciated as well as continued prayers for good test results! Passing grades and minimal stress is what we are going for! The studying keeps getting more difficult, but I am trudging through! Thank you for your continued prayers as we go through this process! Love you all, have a great week!

Love,

Alli and Jonathan

Week 47: Strawberries!

Sunset from Monday, June 3, 2019

It has been such a good week for the Lil Landis Fam! We have been a little bit busier than we prefer, but it has all been enjoyable and we are planning on a pretty slow week this week.

Jonathan, Philip, Shem and Kyle, ready to play boccie!

Monday was a day off for me, so that was nice. I made granola and cereal, ran to Drugmart (DDM), went on a run, did laundry and swept the basement. Jonathan worked, went on a run and then we headed to game night at the Haas farm! We had a good time hanging out with all the game night people since we haven't seen them in awhile. It was the Prussias, Kyle, Philip and Grandpa Haas in addition to the rest of us in the Haas fam. We played Wits and Wagers, then the boys went out to play boccie ball while the rest of us played sevens. When we got home the sun was setting and it was absolutely gorgeous. Our setting allows for some pretty wonderful views in the evening and we took the chance to to appreciate them!

My parents got an old camera at an auction recently,
so we took it to see if Grandpa Landis could help us
understand it, he and Jonathan really enjoyed checking
it out!

Tuesday I was off work again, so we were both in the office most of the day since I was studying and Jonathan was working. I was super motivated and got a lot of studying done, so that was really nice and refreshing! It felt really good to get some work done. Once we were both done we went over to the Landis' house for dinner and to see Luke and Mackenzie since they were in town from India! It was so nice to see them and enjoy some family time.

Wednesday I worked 9-10 and Jonathan headed out to Celina for a few days working in the office. He spent the evening at Dillon's and I spent the night at my parents' house. Thursday I was home alone for the longest amount of time since we have been married! I did a lot of studying, finished reading The Help (which is a great book), then I went back to my parents' house because I forgot to get some containers for strawberry jam. While I was there, Kyle rode in with his bike, so after we all sat and talked, I brought him and his bike back, then I made dinner for Jonathan and I. We had country skillet dinner, made some ice cream out of bananas and I also made a new muffin recipe. It's always good to be back together after he is gone for so long!

Sunset from Friday, from the side yard.

Sunset as Jonathan watched it from the front yard!

Friday I had to work 9-10 in Canton, so Jonathan worked, mowed, cleaned, watched the sunset, listened to the Indians game and read some Lord of the Rings. I had a good day at work, but was very ready for the weekend to start! Saturday morning we went and picked 16 courts of strawberries and cleaned them up. Then we had a wedding, Gibson, one of Jonathan's friends form high school, got married and we had a great time catching up with some of his friends from home. It was probably one of the most fun weddings we have been to since our own! 

Today has been a great day so far! We went to Grace Chapel for church, which was wonderful, then we went grocery shopping afterwards. When we got home, Jonathan started up the grill and we had pork tenderloin and potatoes, both of which were delicious. This afternoon I made 4 batches of jam and got 16 containers worth, which should be really good for us this year. Afterwards, I made a pie, froze some berries and we cleaned up the kitchen. It has been so fun preparing all of this food and having so much room to store it! This evening we are heading over to my parents' for dinner with the fam and Grandma and Grandpa, so we are excited to see everyone.

The upcoming week is pretty uneventful as of yet, not much going on, just working, hanging out, enjoying our time. Continued prayers for my upcoming exams! They are both scheduled, just waiting to get them over with. My motivation is not super strong at the moment, so I could really use some prayers for focus, motivation and energy to study as well as passing grades on the upcoming exams. We hope you all have a great week! Love ya bunches!

Love,

Alli and Jonathan

Week 46: Short Week

View out our bedroom window 6/2/19 - not even half as beautiful as it was in real life!

Okay, so now we are excessively late! I am writing this after 10 on Monday, so it won't be posted until Tuesday after Jonathan has approved it. As I think about it, I don't think I have ever clarified it, but these are Alli written and Jonathan approved, so now you know how it works! This week has been a fun one! Memorial Day made it a short week, so it has seemed super fast, but we have really enjoyed it!

So, Monday we had meat and potato quiche for breakfast, did some cleaning and laundry, then went over to the Haas farm for a day with the fam! We went to Lisbon to go biking and I think we have both decided it's our favorite trail! We biked most of it, so probably about 15 total miles. Both of us were sore Tuesday morning! Once we got back, Grandpa came over, we had burgers and fries, then the guys played some Euchre while Mom and I chatted on the porch. The Euchre teams for the guys is always Dad and Jonathan vs. Grandpa and Shem - Grandpa and Shem just crush the competition every single time it seems! It's a little bit funny...just a little though. After they were done with their game, we played some Kings in the Corner and called it a night.

Tuesday Jonathan worked and I did some school stuff, the Tuesday night was another party, we had Jonathan's sisters and Dustin over for dinner and games! They were the last to see the new place, so it was good to get to show them where we live. We had steaks, potatoes and salads for supper then we played some Pig Pile and Vegas Dice Game. (Emily won Pig Pile and I won Vegas.) These are two of our more "different" games that we have, so it was fun to teach them to the crew. 

Wednesday was back to reality for me, I worked 12-10 in Canton, which was a new shift for me. Jonathan went to an auction with the Haas fam. He got a workbench for the garage, a mini safe, some games and two end-tables for our living room! These are very exciting for us because we do eat and watch TV every once in awhile and it will be nice to have tables to use instead of just using our laps! They are really nice, pretty ones too! The best part - he only spent six dollars. Such a win for the Lil Landis fam.

Raspberry pie wizzard, small
twist with krunch

On Thursday we had a home day. These are so life-giving for our little family. We truly enjoy spending time together, so it is a pretty high priority for us and we like to protect our family time. After Jonathan was done with work and I was finished studying for the day we grilled ham and cheesy potatoes, then we watched a Numb3rs. For dessert we went on a spontaneous ice cream trip to the Kensington Dairy Bar (KDB from now on). There is just something special about the KDB. It was my first official job and I absolutely loved working there, so it totally has my heart and the ice cream is just so good there. I love the toppings and the wizzards (i.e. blizzards) and I love sharing it with Jonathan. Going there was his idea and it was SUCH a good one. Spontaneous ice cream trips are potentially the most wonderful ideas.

Friday was (hopefully) my last day in Avon Lake! I don't mind being there, but the 4 hours on the road get long after awhile, that's for sure! Jonathan worked, mowed and landscaped while I was gone. When I got home and had some dinner, we went on a walk, then went to bed so I would be ready for the rest of the weekend.

Jonathan washed the bedding and I was so excited
about it that I had to share it! Also, his grandma
quilted this quilt by hand - it is super neat!

This was a working weekend for me, so I was at Drugmart 9-6 both days, but Jonathan had a good time! Saturday he got up and made us omelettes, then went to the Landis' house to see his family before Sara left. Then he came home and finished getting our dinner ready. We had Fiesta Chicken, which goes over rice, and he is the master rice maker at our house, so when I got home it was all ready to eat and we could enjoy our evening! Sunday he went to church at Grace Chapel, then he did a bunch of stuff! He washed the car, cleaned the house, did some more landscaping, organized our finances and then got ready for our evening! Date night is something we try to prioritize, but it's difficult when one of us is working every single day of the week! So Sunday evening we went to Texas Roadhouse, then we went and did our grocery shopping! It was a good way to spend quality time together doing things we needed to get done anyway, and we both had a really good time! 

Thank you for being patient with us this week, I meant to get this done earlier but it has been crazy! We so appreciate all of your prayers and are totally feeling it. Even though there is a lot going on, we have maintained a sense of calm and it has been such a blessing. Continued prayers for passing boards would be so appreciated. I've been studying a lot, but it is getting so difficult to stay focused. There are approximately one million other things I would rather be doing, but I know it is so important and I cannot wait to be finished with them! Safe travels are also a big thing since we are both traveling a bit this week. We love you all so much, thank you for your love and support. Have an awesome week! Can't wait to tell you about it!

Love,

Alli and Jonathan