Sleep Psychology

About a month ago, I went to the doctor because I haven't been sleeping well. In fact, there are only 2-3 nights per month that I get 6.5 hours of sleep (if you look at my sleep journal.) I have a cousin who struggles with the same thing, so maybe it's a family trait. Lovely gene to inherit. Anyway, the doctor was so kind, and referred me to a sleep psychologist. The sleep psychologist has me following 6 rules, such as not going to bed until I'm sleepy (not exhausted, "Sleepy"), getting out of bed if I have laid there for more than 20 minutes, getting up at the same time everyday, etc. This is a 2 week study, and I'm curious to see the outcome and what the doctor has to say about it. So far, not good.

It's very frustrating. I feel like I have a newborn ...and that there is no hope of this newborn ever growing up! Supposedly, hopelessness is a common attribute in people who don't sleep. Don't get me wrong, I'm not hopeless about life, just sleep. This is very important as depression has officially been ruled out as "the cause". Anxiety, however, has not been ruled out. That's no surprise for me, and probably for anyone who knows me. I am, unfortunately, always worried about all of you.

I just feel like I cannot completely enjoy anything. Take today for example. I'll be having breakfast with a friend who I haven't seen in one year, and won't see again for another year as she lives in the Philippines. I'm doing a focus group on "Dining out" this afternoon, and then going to see Sex and the City tonight with Karen. All fun things, but I can almost guarantee that I'll have a headache by noon from pushing, pushing, pushing myself through exhaustion every single day. (In case you're wondering, I got 5.25 hours of sleep last night. I'm not allowed to look at the clock, another "rule", but Kevin looks at it for me so that I can write it down in my journal.)

If you're ever up at night, and can't sleep, just think of me, laying in the dark doing what you're doing day in and day out. I realize this sounds bitter. In this moment, I am.

Dinner with Friends

Our good friend Dave has returned from his teaching job in Kuwait. We're happy to have him back! We joined up with him and our friend Lauren at Dave's girlfriend Kim's place for dinner. Good times had by all.

This past Sunday, Kevin's brother Eric, his wife Jill, and their boys Jacob and Ryan spent the day with us. We enjoyed a lovely meal, had batting practice (of course), and walked to our favorite ice cream shop. Thanks for visiting us, you guys! We miss you.

4th of July

We were blessed to have almost all of the Nyquist family over for the 4th of July. David and Amy, we missed you! Sarah and Josh spent 2 nights here, and my parents also spent the night. We met up with the Benson's to watch the parade, it was only about 500 feet away from our house! The whole day was just so much fun! We had a wonderful time. We also found out that day that David and Amy will be having a boy this fall--that's 6 great grandson's for Pa, no great grand daughters! The 4 small pictures are from Snapfish, I couldn't figure out how to get them bigger!

Father's Day

Kevin and I weren't able to spend Father's Day with family, unfortunately. We made the nost of it by enjoying a picnic lunch at Cantigny. Cantigny is a beautiful estate in Wheaton, about 40 minutes away. It was built by the McCormick's, who started the Chicago Tribune. The house is now a museum, and the grounds are for the public to enjoy. We had a great time touring and taking pictures of the house and gardens.

TEXAS!

My parents flew us down to Texas in mid-June. We were visiting along with Sarah, Tyler and Jordan. (Josh was on a mission trip to Jamaica.) We had a great trip. The first time we visited Texas, we explored the rodeo and Dallas. This time around, we just hung around the house and the pool, went to the zoo...and ate at the "Mesquite Pit", of course. Here are some funny pictures of our trip and a video of Kevin playing with Jordan. He is one funny kid!

Making a House a Home

We love our house so much, but we've been working hard, trying to make it our own. Significant advances have been made, but we've got a long way to go! We hear "the list" will never end. Here are a few updated photos of our home.

Our bedroom...we had new carpet put in the bedrooms. Very kooshy!

Freshly painted kitchen, we had to take the baseboards off in order to fit the wood floors .

The dining room, sans base boards and dining room table. Check out Kevin's floors! He had to use the pneumatic nailer, completely foreign to him. But he's a quick learner!

No, I am not soaking my feet in this gorgeous picture. I'm getting ready to paint the window trim!

There are many loooong days and late nights. We are trying to get as ready as possible for the 4th of July, when the Nyquist clan comes over.

Many people ask what our backyard looks like. We actually have a little forest that backs up to our property. It's not an actual preserve, but there are enough trees to produce deer and coyotes.

Olivia Joy

My cousin Lauren and her husband Aaron welcomed their first child, Olivia Joy, on May 8. She is just an absolute precious little one. Doesn't she have awesome hair? :) I finally got the chance to drive to Crown Point, IN and visit them when she was about 4 weeks. Olivia, welcome to the world!!

St. Louis

In mid-May we had the opportunity to visit the Schwendeman clan down in St. Louis. It was very rainy down there! We enjoyed spending time with the family, eating Mom Schwendeman's cooking, and playing with the kids. They are getting big so fast! And they are definitely going to be better baseball players than their uncle and aunt! These kids can hit! As a Cubs fan, I endure many comments from the Cardinal "peanut gallery". What can I say?? My team doesn't have to win in order for me to love them. When you compare the teams' records, that is the best retort I can think of!

On our way back to Chicago, we stopped at the awesome St. Louis zoo to meet up with Sarah, Josh and the boys who were in St. Louis on vacation. It was really fun to see them, if only for half a day. And these kids have energy through the roof!

Happy 30th!!

Kevin turned the big 3-0 this May, and I bought him a grill for his birthday. Kevin is a great chef and we have already enjoyed some amazing dinners! This grill is very convenient as our vintage oven decided to go kaput on us. Yikes!

This is a picture of Mutt. She is our neighbor's dog and she leaves us presents every once in awhile. (Which are promptly cleaned up.) But she is a sweetie and we love her. Mutt likes to roam the neighborhood at her convenience. It makes me nervous when she crosses the street by herself!

Love and a Naked House

Our house looks naked.

We move a week from tomorrow, so hopefully we can get the floors in, the trim sanded, painted, and back where it needs to be, the walls sanded and painted, the mantel repaired, painted and put up around the fireplace, the kitchen floor ripped up and wood floors laid, and the kitchen wallpaper taken down before then.

We are soooo renting a steamer for the rest of the wallpaper. What was supposed to be a 2 day task turned into a 4 day nightmare. Kevin and I worked our rhomboids while we scraped off the dining room wallpaper in 1/4" size pieces. Much of the drywall came off as well in what we like to call "The War of the Birds." (See previous photos of the dining room.)

On a relaxing note, we'll be visiting tonight with Dad Nyquist since he is working at Milwaukee airport for a couple of days. Spending time with my dad reminds me...how thankful we are for our family and friends, loved ones who are near and dear and those who are on the other side of the world. We think of you often, you are God's best gifts. It's not voiced often enough, we love you so much.