Home for Christmas

Coming back to Spokane after being away for so long was nice, but different. It was weird seeing Spokane, not as home, but where I grew up. Mack and I have gotten so used to the mild Portland weather, that Spokane seems terribly cold! We have been mostly lounging; I worked at my summer job at the school district for one day and got to see all the kidos I taught this summer, which was nice. We have been doing a lot of shopping and seeing families. Mom's birthday is tomorrow and Christmas the next day. Buddy is very excited about Santa coming. We made a gingerbread house tonight, I think Bud had a lot of fun, but it was hard for me to not try to make everything look perfect. Hope everyone is enjoying the Holiday Season! Merry Christmas!

Christmas Break

To get in the Holiday spirit, Mack and I, along with our friends, decided to go up to Zoo Lights. The Oregon Zoo sets up this wild show of Christmas lights in the shapes of animals, and you ride a train through it. Clearly, since this seems perfect for a 5 year old, I was stoked. But, alas, after a beautiful clear day, it starts pouring down rain ten minutes before we were set to leave. The troubles of living in Portland. So instead, we had everyone over to our house to make gingerbread cookies! We had a total blast and made quite a mess.

After a week of finals for both Mack and I, we are finally on winter break. I finished the semester with a 3.75 GPA which should help my chances of getting into a graduate program for next fall. We are getting packed up and ready to leave for Spokane on the 16th. Christian, one of Mack's friends from the dorm will be staying at our house to watch over Cooper while we are at home. Mack and I are both sad about leaving him here, but we feel it's best to not tote him around when he hates the car so much. We will be back in Portland by the 9th when I start winter quarter. We are both very excited to go back to Spokane after so long away. I'm sure we will have lots of fun adventures. Hope everyone is doing well and enjoying the Christmas decorations everywhere! My favorite album as of late has been Michael Buble's Christmas album. Check it out if you haven't heard it.

Thanksgiving dinner

Well, my first Thanksgiving dinner went well. Of course I was very stressed about making everything perfect, but it all turned out well. I got a specific kind of turkey so that it had a pop up timer, but then found out it didn't have a popper! I was so nervous I was going to cook it too long, or not long enough. But it all worked out in the end as things usually do. Once we all sat down to est, we had 9 people: Momma, Papa, Mark (Mack's uncle), Starla (Mack's Aunt), Cuinn (Cousin, Scout (Cousin), Ryan (Mack's friend from school) and Mack and I. Dinner went well and we had my homemade pumpkin cheesecake for dessert. After dinner we relaxed a bit, and then Mack, Cuinn and I headed out to Walmart and Best Buy for a little shopping. Though it was busy and a bit crazy it was worth it after getting a blu-ray player for Mack for $70 less and Cuinn got a new xbox game for half price. We have a few more days of everyone in two and we have a few things planned. I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving!

It's finally Thanksgiving! I am so excited to have Mack's family here to cook for and be with! I thought in honor of the day, I would try to list the ten things I am most thankful for. Here it goes:

1. My family- I have a big family spanning the entire United States and I love them all. Though at times they may drive me a little crazy, they created the foundation for me and greatly shaped who I am today.
2. My friends- Both new and old, and even the friends that didn't turn out to be such good friends. I believe I learned something from all of them. My friends keep me sane, drive me crazy, and most of all, help me have fun.
3. My fiance- Mack is just amazing to me. He helps me with everything from dishes to math. I love him very much and I'm so excited to see what our future together holds.
4. Cooper- Though the little fur-ball irritates me to no end sometimes (mostly when he wants to play 'attack the feet under the sheets' when we are trying to sleep) he makes me happy in a way I don't understand.
5. My brother- The hardest thing about moving to Portland is not being able to see Buddy anytime I want. I have never been this far away from him and gone this long without seeing him. FaceTime (a video conferencing program) has given us the opportunity to talk face-to-face and I love seeing his smile when he sees me on the screen. Buddy is the reason I am who I am. I love him so much and can't wait to see him for Christmas.
6. My mom- She has been with me, and stood by me through everything. She has been my rock and my best friend. She is the strongest woman I know and I'm so happy she understands her phone well enough that we can talk everyday.
7. My Grandma and Grandpappy- Though they live in Iowa and Texas, I feel very close to them from the emails we exchange, the little cards we send each other and even the coupons Grandma cuts out for us. I love them both very much and miss them greatly.
8. My soon to be family- Mack's family is absolutely wonderful! From the first time I met them, they made me feel like part of their family. Scout is constantly reminding me of what it was like to be so young, and Cuinn has been so much fun to watch enter high school and excel at everything he does.
9. Social networking- Yes, I know it sounds stupid and materialistic to be thankful for things like facebook and iphones, but these outlets allow me to stay in contact with family and friends around the world.
10. My Grandpa T- This will be our third Thanksgiving without him and I miss him so much. He taught me how to make our crystal water glasses sing, that before you eat a black olive you put them on your fingers, and to take time to appreciate everything you have in life.

There is so much more that I am thankful for, the list would never end. I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving and doesn't eat too much!
Love

Practice Thanksgiving

This weekend we had a lot going on. Mom and Dad came into town Thursday afternoon and we got to go out to a nice dinner before Mack had a workshop at school. Friday, I didn't have school because of Veteran's day, but Mack did, so Mom, Dad and I did our grocery shopping for my dinner on Saturday.
When Mack was done with school, we picked him and one of our friends up and headed to OMSI (Oregon Museum of Science and Industry) for the Body Worlds exhibit. This is an exhibit that travels all over the world and has real bodies plasticized and parts removed so you can see the muscles and bones. Of course Mom, being a nurse, loved it. She was totally in here element explaining to Jordan and Mack what happens in surgery, what parts of the body are, and what she has seen in different surgeries. Dad and I had fun watching a little old lady following Mom around listening to her stories and nodding along like she was part of the conversation too. I enjoyed the Audiology and Larynx section because I have been learning about them all quarter. After the museum we went to a pub downtown for dinner and then our usual Friday movie night at the dorms.
Saturday was the day everyone had been waiting for. Because Mack's family is coming for Thanksgiving, I dubbed November 12th Practice Thanksgiving and invited all our friends from the dorms to come eat with us. Mom helped me with everything while dad taught Mack his jobs (Green bean casserole and carving the turkey). I went all out with a 14.5 pound turkey, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, stuffing, dressing, green bean casserole, homemade rolls, and a homemade pumpkin pie cheesecake. We had 6 friends over, making 10 of us total. Everything turned out successfully, and I am very excited to make dinner for Mack's family.
As with every time Mom and Dad come, the time went by way too fast and it felt like they had just gotten here when they had to leave again. But with our schedule so crazy for the next couple weeks the time will fly by and then we will be home for Christmas!

Cooper the Model

I was working on homework in the kitchen the other night, when Mack yelled for me to see what Cooper was doing. I ran into our study area and found this...

Care Packages from Home

Today we got a care package from Bobbie, Mack's grandma! It was such a wonderful surprise! She sent Cooper a couple balls, and lots of Halloween stuff. Cute napkins, a tissue paper spider, an orange dish towel with a cat on it, a welcome sign for our door, and an autumn decoration for a table. I decorated the whole house and it is making me really excited for Halloween and Thanksgiving. Thanks Momma!!!

Buddy and Grandma visit Portland

This past weekend, Mom, Buddy and Grandma came to visit. I was very excited for them to come, and especially to see Buddy who I haven't seen since we moved. They got here Friday afternoon, and Buddy was decked out in WSU gear, thinking he was coming to Pullman instead of Portland. He was very happy to be here though and see where Mack and I live. He investigated the whole house before he plopped down on the sofa and played the xbox with Mack. Mom and grandma made us dinner Friday night and we got to eat as a big family around our small table. Mack and I went to our weekly movie night and came home to find Buddy and Mom in our bed because Cooper wouldn't leave them alone out on the couch, so Mack and I slept in the family room.
Saturday morning we got up and had breakfast, then rode the Maxx (Portland's light rail system) downtown to go to the market. Buddy enjoyed seeing all the bands and people downtown, and Grandma liked a pub we brought her to with a yummy warm cheese plate. After that we came home and had a little rest from the sleepless night. After a little break we ventured to Tigard where Mom bought me new rainboots for graduation, and grandma got a few things. We were going to eat at Cheesecake Factory, but it was a 2 hour wait! We were so tired we just went to Red Robin instead.
Sunday we decided to be lazy, and got a late start. We went to Costco to do a bit of bulk shopping, then to a shopping center for more shopping! Buddy and Mack were a bit sick of shopping to say the least. Sunday night we had another nice home cooked meal, and watched a movie.
Monday morning we got up and went out to breakfast before I went to school and the family headed home. It was a great weekend, but too short for me.

Happy Fall!

It's finally fall, my favorite time of the year! Though I don't know if Portland's trees will change colors, which is my favorite part of fall. But nonetheless, I have my autumn candles burning and our home smells like apple cider.
Mack is coming up on his fall break from school, so he has all next week off, and he insists he isn't going to do anything! But I know him better than that, he will take the time to catch up on his classes and get ahead. He has been doing amazing so far this semester, with an A- on his first Organic Chemistry test, and a 100% on his Physics exam! I am so proud of him and all the effort he is putting into his classes this year.
I am having quite a time adjusting to my classes. The majority of people in my program are ladies that have been out of college and in the workforce for 20 years and are now coming back for Speech Language Pathology. So, I suppose I'm not having as hard of a time as them, but changing from English to math and anatomy classes is quite the challenge. Mack has been a big help in teaching me study habits.
We have a busy couple months ahead of us with all the visits we have scheduled. This weekend, my Mom, brother, and grandma are coming to see us. It was my Grandma Fran's 70th birthday in early October so we decided to fly her out for a girls weekend to see Portland. Buddy is also coming along because it has been so long since I have seen him. Mack is going to have to deal with three generations of Gebauer women in one house for a whole weekend. Hope he can survive. Over veteran's day weekend, my Mom and Michael are coming so we can have an early Thanksgiving which will also serve as my practice Thanksgiving. For the real Thanksgiving, Mack's grandparents Bobbie and Frank are coming to stay a week with us. And his Uncle Mark, Aunt Starla, and his two cousins Cuinn and Scout are coming for the weekend. So Thanksgiving will be a lot of fun this year! It will also be the first Thanksgiving I have cooked on my own, so I hope the house stays standing!
Enjoy the fall colors Everyone!

Silly Silly Cooper

I just couldn't resist putting up some funny pictures of Cooper. He has such a personality and I can't believe half the stuff he does. Whenever we turn on the shower, he hops right in and licks at the water. Today he got a little more bold and stayed in the shower while I got in and stayed with me the whole time! You'll see the results below...

I graduated!!

Hooray! I finally got my diploma in the mail! There was a big mess right before everything was due I thought I wasn't going to graduate because one of my classes didn't count. But thankfully it all worked out in the end and I officially have my Diploma! Then I start Monday all over again for my masters... I must be crazy...

Adventure to Ape Caves

This past weekend we went to Mt St Helen's on a hike called Ape Caves. It is one of the longest lava caves in the world. So it was a 2.5 mile hike underground in a cave. With no light except flashlights. For hours. It was the most frightening experiences of my life. I'm so surprised I made it through without a panic attack. There were some spots in the cave that I had to crouch and squeeze through. I'm glad I was able to do it once, but I will never do it again! I have never been so happy to see sunlight in my life!

Wedding Website

I have started us a wedding website to keep everyone updated on the planning and whatnot. I can't promise I will update it regularly because of school and whatnot, but the basics are already on there, and anything else that's important, I will post!
http://KatieAndMacKevin.ourwedding.com

Cooper

Now that we are all settled into our new house, we decided (and by that I mean I begged Mack) to get a kitten. After a while of looking on craigslist, we found a lady in Vancouver-- about 5 miles away-- who had 6 kittens. We went up there and got the smallest boy and named him Cooper. He is absolutely adorable. Because the lady kept them in one room for their first 7 weeks, nearly everything in our house was new to him. When I first brought him home, I sat on the couch with him and turned on the TV which was the wrong thing to do. Being the first time he had ever seen a TV, he looked at it completely terrified for a few seconds then ran behind the couch and refused to come out. It took him a day or so to get used to it, but now we enjoy watching Scrubs together while Mack is at school. Cooper gets into lots of trouble around the house. His favorite toy is my laptop that he climbs on. When walking across the keyboard he makes different things flash up on the screen and even turns music on, which after the initial shock, he loves. He sleeps with us at night, either between us, or on my pillow, and attacks our toes if we even move a little. I can't wait for all the fun little adventures we will have together!