visit with the G & J's!

Over the weekend we were able to hang out with the some good friends! We headed to Lawrence Kansas where we all met up at the Goertzen’s. We arrived Sunday afternoon, and us girls left & went shopping while the boys watched some b-ball. Later that night we played cards, laughed and played balloon volleyball! (This got really competitive!) :-) it was a good day!

something riley wrote

(he's alot bigger than this picture now , but "the sisters"(aka me, carly & haley)- as riley calls us--but in "the sisters" minds he's still this size!)

my little brother is on a basketball team called iowa attack. in december they had to write something that has been hard over the past year. this is what he wrote...

What has been the most difficult for me the last two months is that my middle sister, Carly, has been gone. She has been gone for more then a year now and she won’t be back until December of this year (2008), which will be almost two years before I see her again. I especially missed her last month during Christmas as I didn’t have anybody to play with (during school break) and she always had music on in her bedroom. I still have to wait for another year till I get to see her. The only good thing is that I do not have to listen to music all the time, but yet I still miss her a lot. On top of this, my youngest sister, Haley, will be studying abroad where Carly is and no one will be home except my mom and dad. I miss my sister a lot for her personality, and the way she lifted everybody’s spirits and she never stopped doing that. I got some shirts for Christmas from her that made me wish she was here and that made me even sadder.

Plus, on New Year’s Eve, she would spend the whole night with me doing what I wanted to do and she wasn’t here to do that either.

I am trusting in God to get me through the next year. I know He is always with me even when I think I’m by myself, so during the holidays was the most difficult part for me during the past two months.

valentine's day 2008

its kinda funny, the longer you've been together the less important Valentine's day becomes. (at least thats what we've found) Showing love now is taking out the trash, cooking dinner, or doing the dishes. We did have a good evening together though. Since we had just tiled our floor our stove wasn't hooked back up yet, so i used the crockpot and made dinner, and watched a "chick flick." overall a good Valentine's.

its official!

this pictures was when ryan found out he PASSED the State of Iowa Appraising Boards (a 2.5 year process along with three separate tests and evaluations!) I am sooooooo proud of him!!

i stole this idea from rachel! :-)

I give you money and send you into the grocery store to pick up 5 items.
You can only pick one thing from the following departments. What is it?

1. Produce: apples
2. Bakery: rolls
3. Meat: chicken
4. Frozen: birthday cake ice cream
5. Dry goods: Popcorn

Let's say we're heading out for a weekend getaway. You're only allowed to bring 3 articles of CLOTHING with you. So, what's in your bag?

1. sweatshirt
2. jeans
3. Ryan's Socks

One task you wish you were better at doing?

1. serving others


If I were to listen in on one of your conversations throughout the day, what 5 phrases or words would I be most likely to hear?

1. "White, wheat of onion bun?"
2. "Ryan, I've got a great idea!"
3. "Hi sweetiepop"
4. "count your blessings!"
5. "i hate that boone phone!"

What 3 things do you find yourself doing every single day, and if you didn't get to do, you probably wouldn't be in the best mood?

1. kissing ryan
2. check my e-mail
3. quiet time

What 5 places do you visit roughly every week?

1. lowes
2. Church
3. the farm
4. hickory park
5. bank

I
You just scored tickets to the taping of any show that comes on t.v. of your choice. You can pick between 4, so what are you deciding between?

1. Dr. Phil
2. Oprah
3. Brothers & Sisters
4. anything on HDTV


Somebody stole your purse… in order to get it back, you have to name 5 things you know are inside to claim it. So, what's in there?

1. cell phone
2. chapstick
3. wallet
4. a little red cross holder my grandma made me
5. asprin

I

a "small project"

this week we started to put ceramic tile in our hallway, kitchen & breakfast nook. Boppa came by & helped us, we couldn't of done it without him!

the two loves of my life!

Over the Top Server

By Ryan

i would just like to brag on my sweetiepop. She was choosen by Hickory Park as an over the top server. thats why every time i go there i ask for her specifically.

three down, one more to go!

A awesome praise, we rented out out place for the 08-09 school year in one week -PRAISE the LORD!

something to ponder

1. What’s one thing you could do this year to increase your enjoyment of God?

2. What’s the most humanly impossible thing you will ask God to do this year?

3. What’s the single most important thing you could do to improve the quality of your family life this year?

4. In which spiritual discipline do you most want to make progress this year, and what will you do about it?

5. What is the single biggest time-waster in your life, and what will you do about it this year?

6. What is the most helpful new way you could strengthen your church?

7. For whose salvation will you pray most fervently this year?

8. What’s the most important way you will, by God’s grace, try to make this year different from last year?

9. What one thing could you do to improve your prayer life this year?

10. What single thing that you plan to do this year will matter most in ten years? In eternity?

© 2003 by Donald S. Whitney

haley

haley & I looking at Carly's new pictures on facebook! haley leaves in two weeks to stay with Carly til JUNE!

workin'

visiting ryan while he's workin'

carly

WE miss you carly, ALLOOTTTT!!!!

rileyism

a couple of weeks ago we watched my little brother for 13 days while my parents were overseas visiting my sister. although he is a little older since this picture was taken he had two "famous" quotes.

1st: my boppa, grandma, riley, me, & ryan were sitting around the dinner table after being trapped on the farm due to our first ice storm of the winter. boppa had just said, "its real nasty out there, the ice is real bad" there was a slight pause and riley said (like he was 75 years old) "i've seen worse" when he's only 12!

2nd: as some of you know ryan took his state of iowa exam while we were watching riley as well. ryan was especially nervous for the test, as was i. it lasted 4 hours. sometime during the test i looked at riley and ask "do you think ryan will pass?" riley looked at me serious as could be and said "no, he's not. he wasn't comprehending what he was reading. " i kinda sat there stunned, and one second later he looked at me (before i had a chance to say anything) "and yes, i am serious." i couldn't help but getting a good laugh out of it, and so did the rest of the family! but yes, ryan did pass the VERY first time, and ryan hasn't let him forget it! :-)

venting our childlike anger

a few weeks ago ryan had to get some colored copies made. Going into copyworks he had in his head it'd probably cost around $30 dollars. It was 5:00 am so he didn't really have any other options. He needed 3 appraisals copied, which are multiple pages themselves. he had them copied and was told the bill was $290.00! he must of looked like he was going to faint because the store clerk immediately could tell he wasn't thinking it'd be that much. since only a few of the copies were colored she was able to knock it down to $130.00. since then ryan has boycotted copyworks. he has taken the $1.25 colored copy personal in a way only Ryan can :) ... in the meantime we found this youtube video of this little kid getting VERY mad he can't make it down this slip 'n slide. he goes this fist like motion toward the slip 'n slide ( click below to see the clip then continue with the story) SOOOOOOO...going back to the story a few days after the copyworks episode we were driving by it and ryan did the "fist" ever since then if we get mad or frustrated we pull the "fist" enjoy!

(its the last kid on this little segment with the slip 'n slide!)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zMqLVmCQLi8&feature=related

Christmas Letter 2007!

• Merry Christmas!
  
  

  Jeremiah 29:11 "For I know the plans I have for you," says the Lord. "They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.
  

  
  The verse listed above was our motto verse of the year. For us, 2007 was a year of working hard, making sacrifices, building a foundation for our entrepreneur future, and completely relying on God’s strength. Even then, to be completely honest, we sometimes wondered if we bit off more than we could chew. However, we serve a Great God and no prayer was left unanswered.
  

• Ryan: (written by Ashley) In February Ryan turned 26, and celebrated his second year with Heartland Appraisals. He is still in training (under Keith) until the end of December. He passed the State of Iowa Board exam just a few weeks ago! (his first time, yahoo!) In June he took on a part-time job for Real Estate Service Group managing 70+ apartment units in Boone. When he’s not out appraising or remodeling houses, you can find him playing 6 a.m b-ball with his father-in-law & friends.
  
  Ashley: (written by Ryan) Ashley probably learned more than she ever wanted to on remodeling houses, putting in long hours and being my little encourager. I couldn’t have done any of it without her optimistic, loving, and “go get it done” spirit. When I stayed busy with my various jobs she was busy mowing lawns & shoveling snow for our duplex’s, not to mention painting, tearing out carpet, and learning how to “do the books.” One of her newest hobbies is online karaoke. You can easily find her singing her little heart out!
  
  Random things we learned this year: (in no particular order)
  Make sure the paint can lid is on tight before you move it
  At 3:00 a.m. its best to use a flashlight when you use a table saw outside(so your neighbors can’t see where the noise is coming from! :-))
  We have amazing friends & family who we couldn’t have finished the remodeling projects without!
  Ashley is a walking advertisement for “grease lightening” cleaning product which gets ANYTHING OUT
  Ryan can sing every word of the lion king Broadway soundtrack
  Financial Peace University is changing our lives (daveramsey.com)
  God is faithful
  We went to Lowe’s more than the grocery store in 2007
  If you have a trampoline in your yard you’re a hero to everyone 10 years and younger!
  While Haley lived with us for three months we couldn’t believe how many sandwiches she could pack down!
  
  
  
  Our remodeling Secret Weapon:
  Ceramic tile $0.08, Air gun nailer $40.00, fire place $90.00, having a mom who works at Lowe’s …priceless! :-)
  
  We would love to hear from all of you, and the blessings you’ve had throughout the year! May God’s grace and love, through His Son Jesus Christ, be with you this holiday season and throughout the New Year.Much Love,
  
  Ryan & Ashley Houck
  311 South Walnut
  Ames, Iowa 50010
  
  ryanhouck@hotmail.com
  ashleyjhouck@yahoo.com
  
  515-291-7926 Ryan Cell
  515-291-4944 Ashley Cell
  515-233-2748 (Home)