Matt and Kellie

I Haven't Laughed This Hard Since...

2009-11-13T12:24:00.000-08:00

Matt writes...

Creed

Eric Clapton

Santana

Paco De Lucia

Insulation...Just In Time

2009-02-05T12:19:00.000-08:00

Matt writes:

This has been a near record winter with tons of snow and VERY cold. Since our first gas bill $$$ last March we realized we needed to take action. Our house had virtually no insulation. After in-depth research we made a decision.

So, January 8th, USA insulation put foam in our walls, via drilling through the mortar. In the attic, they blew fiberwool (like a non-itch fiberglass). However, I went to the extreme and framed in future room. What a project! It has made a huge difference. Hopefully, it will reflect in our gas bill.

Oh, and did you notice picture #1. We also got a second vehicle in November. A minivan...OK you can poke fun...but it is perfect!

We wanted something that could haul home improvement supplies, comfortably carry people, and prepare us for the future. Get this - while doing the attic project, I was able to put three 4x8 plywood sheets and thirty-seven 10' 2x4s inside without removing the seats. Two days later, we traveled to Memphis with Kellie's parents.

Brrr!

2009-01-16T05:36:00.000-08:00

Tag - I'm it!

2009-01-12T07:17:00.001-08:00

Kellie writes:

Happy New Year! I am starting off with something new to me...a blog tag. To me it is kind of like those "favorites" chain letters of early e-mail days. I've seen them recently, too, but this is the first of the blog variety. My cousin Lee tagged me, so here you go:

Q. five names you go by:
1. Kellie
2. Kell
3. Babe (Matt only)
4. Kell-bell (my sister Rachel)
5. KK

Q. three things you are wearing right now:
1. a warm blue sweater
2. black-framed glasses
3. silver hoop earrings - a daily staple

Q. two things you want very badly at the moment:
1. another weekend
2. for a fairy to come and do my dishes (or a dishwasher)

Q. two things you did last night:
1. sorted the mail
2. ate cookies

Q. two things you ate today:
1. Grape Nuts
2. Orange Juice (no, I did not technically "eat" OJ, but it's early so I've only had breakfast...)

Q. two people you last talked to on the phone:
1. my mom
2. a client's voicemail

Q. two things you are going to do tomorrow:
1. send e-mails
2. have lunch with my mom

Q. two longest car rides:
1. Ohio to New Hampshire - spring break '02, hooray!
2. Ohio to Florida - spring break '00 and '03

Q. two of your favorite beverages:
1. hot tea
2. coffee (preferably with hazelnut creamer)

Q. the people you’d like to respond
Free for all...

Friday Five

2008-11-14T06:46:00.001-08:00

Kellie writes...

Matt's friend Katherine often posts a "Ten on Tuesday" list...I am settling for a "Friday Five" today.

1. Matt's Dad is arriving today from Texas, and will be here for the weekend. He is bringing a chariot (Camry) to replace Dan's departed Mercury Mystique.

2. We are car shopping for a second vehicle. Our transportation planning conversations have started to sound like a metropolitan city re-strategizing the bus lines. We feel good about our 3 1/2 years of sharing one car, but those days are sadly coming to an end.

3. My cousins are coming to visit from Portland and Illiniois this weekend, too! Party at our house. :)

4. I thought it would be a good idea to visit as many clients as possible while I was in the Youngstown area yesterday. I made it to six. I think I may have overdone it.

5. The holidays are kicking our butts...Already. The Chapel's Christmas Concerts start the weekend after Thanksgiving. Normally there are two weeks in between. *gulp*

P.S. Proud wife bragging moment - Matt designed the logo/signs for the concerts, including the image posted above. Doesn't it look GREAT!!!

Our Birthday Month

2008-10-28T19:14:00.000-07:00

Matt writes:

October began the "Holiday Season" for us...with our birthdays (5th and 30th). Along with Stan Hywet's Ohio Mart and a trip to Cedarville, we had a combined party with Kellie's family. This year we went apple picking at a local orchard.

Party Like it's 1978

2008-10-28T18:44:00.000-07:00

Kellie writes...

Aaron, one of Matt's co-workers, just turned 30 and his wife Abi threw him a 70's themed birthday party. We attended and participated with gusto...and wore mustaches with the best of them.

The End of the Summer

2008-10-06T19:11:00.000-07:00

Matt writes:

Wow, time flies. It always does. These pictures give a quick highlight of the end of the summer. (1) Camping with my brother Dan and his fiancee Jen near Geneva on the Lake. (2) The final product of our landscaping. (3) our $5 picnic table...I LOVE eating outside. (4) Labor Day at Springfield Lake: Matthew and Rebekah purchased a small used sailboat. And finally (5) visiting Mike and Kim in Cleveland and meeting baby Madeline.

NOTE: you can pause the pictures, and/or click to see the full size image.

Let the pot simmer

2008-09-19T07:54:00.000-07:00

Kellie writes...

I have resisted the urge to blog about this for a week because I am picky about chronology, and we still need to post some things from Labor Day. Well, I cannot resist anymore, so please forgive the out-of-order posting (and my crazy obsessions for things like that). We will dump the pictures from the camera to post soon...

Katie sent me a link last week to this lady's site who made the New Year's resolution to use her crockpot every day in 2008. Her crazy idea even landed her on the Rachael Ray show! She has been successful so far - but I don't know whether that success is more commendable, or the fact that she has blogged EVERY DAY about what she made - complete with pictures! Check it out at: http://crockpot365.blogspot.com/

I am hoping to try the Hashbrown Casserole and BBQ Chicken & Cornbread in the next few weeks. Yum!

Drive this way, please

2008-08-27T17:33:00.000-07:00

Kellie writes...
When we had our home inspection, it was recommended that the asphalt driveway be re-sealed. It did not top our list of urgent projects...until the neighbors had theirs done and we saw how big of a difference it made. We opted for "sweat equity" and did the work ourselves. People warned us it would be a messy project, but for some reason I thought there was a way to do it "neatly." Ha!

Well, we did a lot of sweating :) and kept working past dark. It was definitely worth it, but I am hoping it will last a couple of years because I can't say that I'm eager to do it again anytime soon.

It's A Baby!...Grand!

2008-08-23T16:24:00.000-07:00

Matt Writes:

We're soooo excited. I always wanted one, but we didn't know when it would happen. The delivery went smoothly...no complications. It's official, we have a new baby...grand piano...from the 1930's that was originally in our house back in the day.

Our next-door-neighbor's parents owned our house. They purchased this piano for their kids to take lessons on. Now that our neighbor's children are grown with grandchildren, nobody had room for the piano. They offered it to us for the fabulous price of FREE! They figured the next-best-thing was to keep the piano with the house, since it couldn't stay in the family. All we had to do was move it.

So, it was literally a door-to-door move. The piano needs a little servicing and cleaning, but nothing major. With ivory keys and dark wood grain finish, I think it looks stunning in our room.

Our 3rd Anniversary (or 4th Honeymoon)

2008-08-01T11:24:00.000-07:00

Matt writes:

Actually...because of the house purchase and the 'ramp-up' time/work to settle in, we decided to celebrate our anniversary pretty low-key at home. However, earlier in the Summer (June 12-15) we took a trip up to the Sandusky Bay/Marblehead area, and we stayed in a bed and breakfast a couple nights. If you look closely in the portraits (click on them) you can see Cedar Point in the background.

Can it Be?

2008-07-22T16:50:00.000-07:00

Kellie writes...

Yep, my mom had one of those "milestone" birthdays yesterday. We celebrated on the weekend with two mystery parties. Not surprise parties...it was a "birthday adventure" to Stan Hywet on Saturday and a party on Sunday with a few special guests. We had a nice time an partied ourselves silly.

Here we are in the English Garden at Stan Hywet

Blow out the candles!

The $50 Bathroom Remodel

2008-07-13T17:16:00.000-07:00

Our house has a handy half-bath off the kitchen, but it needed some decorative touches. We did a fix up on a budget and kept the unique leopard theme from the apartment. :) The cost went into a towel bar, t.p. holder (nope, there wasn't one before) and a new toilet seat. Here are the resutls...

Before:

After:

Maxima Milestone

2008-05-19T06:17:00.000-07:00

Matt writes:

In early 2003, after I totalled a Honda Civic hitting a snow drift on a country highway, I bought a 1997 Nissan Maxima with 119,000. I have loved this car - classy, powerful, and very comfortable. However, she's starting to show her age. My goal: to drive her until 400,000 miles, then sell her back to Nissan. By the way, did you know this is our only car? With Kellie making sales calls now, I don't know how long we can continue with just one. But we're giving it the "old college try."

NOTE: I snapped this picture while on the freeway...and I kept the speed limit!

The No Dishwasher Blues

2008-05-12T17:43:00.001-07:00

Matt Celebrates Earth Day

2008-04-27T16:33:00.000-07:00

Kellie writes...

Last Tuesday was Earth Day and - without realizing it - Matt celebrated in his own special way. People usually PLANT things...but Matt UN-Planted a big bush from beside our house. It took several hours, and me holding the light for him for a very long time after it got dark. He finally wrestled it out of the ground at almost 11pm. Because it was so dark then, I had to wait until the next day to take a picture, but I thought you would like to see his big accomplishment. :)

One "green" thing we are excited about is the $5 reel mower we bought on Craigslist. We have a small city lot, and Matt has been able to mow it in about half an hour with this old fashioned contraption. There's no noisy motor and it's one less thing to put gas in, so we're pretty happy with the purchase.

"The Joys of Homeownership"

2008-03-18T14:29:00.000-07:00

Kellie writes...

So I've decided that buying a house is kind of like being pregnant (or what I've heard about being pregnant) how everyone seems to have a horror story to tell about it. My friend Laura agrees - particularly where cats are involved. Fortunately we have not had any real horrors of our own...yet.

Don't get me wrong, we've had lots of encouragement and "we're excited for you!", too.

We have also been abundantly welcomed to "the joys of homeownership" we seem to hear it a lot these days...when we discovered the ants near the chimney, when we got a major snow storm the first weekend in the house, when ALL of the windows needed curtains, when we can't take 2 consecutive warm showers...

Welcome to the joys of homeownership!

Thanks.

Picture Request

2008-02-22T18:17:00.000-08:00

Email if you'd like to see our 1926 English tudor house. It's been in the same family the whole time, and they've made significant updates. There will certainly be some projects for us, too...like the 1960's pink bathroom - even a pink tub and sink! Overall, it's a gem in move-in condition. We're really excited about it.

What should we name it?

We Bought A House!

2008-02-17T19:16:00.000-08:00

Matt writes:

In Autumn Kellie and I caught hints of "the bug" to buy a house. We figured it'd be in the next couple of years, and perhaps this spring or early summer. Now that my family (Kari too now) resides in Texas, we realized our need to become the out-of-town hotel. Well...actually we're thinking of our future too, and we're getting tired of living in temporary/rental (9+ years).

We love our neighborhood! As we took walks admiring the unique and historic architecture, we considered the weight of this kind of decision. Early November we found this house, and it stood out to us. However, because of our timetable we didn't pursue it. As the holidays approached we put all the plans on hold, but "the fever" became more intense. As a result we became experts with online real estate sites.

In early January we went through many open houses. Gosh, people do some ugly stuff to houses. Anyway, with our realtor, Jill, we revisited (soon to be) ours, and it was crystal clear. We made an offer early February and we close on the 29th. We got the call that the sellers accepted our offer when we were at a concert. It was at a church, and the quietest place we could find was in a pre-school class room. Tiny chairs - Monumental news... Are we old enough to do this?

2008-02-14T12:18:00.000-08:00

And I LOVED the Google logo today...

93 with glee!

2008-02-13T11:18:00.000-08:00

Matt's granny turned 93 a few weeks ago...and she still loves a party! Aunts, uncles and cousins with their kids gathered at the nursing facility where grandma lives, and we ate delicious food and celebrated with her. She wears a pair of amplifying headphones so she can hear us better when we talk to her.

She was all smiles and her blue eyes sparkled as the little ones ran around with balloons. I think there was a lot of "happy" in this birthday.

Happily Ever After...

2008-02-08T13:32:00.000-08:00

Kellie writes...

Well, it's been over a month now, but I thought I should make the official announcement that my "little" brother is a married man! He and Rebekah tied the knot on January 5th. A highlight of the ceremony was when the best man brought out a step-stool for the wedding kiss!

Christmas - Texas Style

2008-01-30T13:20:00.000-08:00

Kellie writes...

For the holidays we went down to Dallas to celebrate with a Southwestern flair. It was so good to be with Matt's family! It seems we never get to see them enough. It was great to see how the kids have grown, and we always have a lot of fun together...crazy, hectic, "overplanned" fun. :)

The first gifts were not for Christmas, but for Matt's parents' housewarming. They had moved into their new house less than 2 weeks before we arrived! The gift was gas fireplace logs, and all the guys provided the installation service...

We visited the ICE display at the Gaylord Texan....brrr! They had specialists from Harbin, China fly in to do all of the wonderful carvings and sculptures.

Then we celebrated Christmas with Grandma. She gave all of the girls aprons she had made, and we all modeled them for the camera - Kari and Marci showing that they work as maternity wear, too.

Then came the group shot of Grandma with all the grandkids and greats of the gang.

Lost Camera = Bad Blog

2008-01-24T09:11:00.000-08:00

Kellie writes...
Way back in August an unfortunate thing happened to our camera. Neither Matt nor I can figure out what that unfortunate thing was, exactly, but it is no longer with us. *moment of silence* As you have noticed, this event has resulted in a very bad blog. I am feeling quite sad about this, so I'm gathering up photos from our phones and family to be able to post our recent events. We're doing well, staying warm, and hope to have some photographic proof posted soon.

Grandma's Brothers and Sisters

2007-09-25T19:26:00.000-07:00

The Happy Couple

2007-09-06T06:39:00.000-07:00

Kellie writes...
My younger brother Matthew called on Friday night and said he and his girlfriend wanted to stop by because they "hadn't seen us in a while." When they showed up at the door they had big, giddy smiles on their faces, which were quickly explained as Rebekah held up her left hand. Now she is no longer his girlfriend, but his fiancée! He proposed by a lake at sunset. Wedding plans have already begun, and we are so excited for them! :)

Labor Day Weekend

2007-09-04T19:04:00.000-07:00

The Lion King in Cleveland, Taste of Hudson with Grandma Z, Labor of Love Run, and a Boettler park picnic with putt-putt with the Kellie's family.

Fairs and Feasts

2007-08-25T12:28:00.000-07:00

Matt writes:

I experienced an important in-law tradition: the Randolph County Fair. While we were there we saw a "Cheese on a stick" stand. There is a hilarious story about Olivia and Christmas 2006 and "Cheese on a stick." Kari has video footage.

We also went to Cleveland to visit Mike and Kim for the Feast of the Assumption. It was wall to wall people.

Visiting Diane

2007-08-15T16:01:00.000-07:00

Kellie writes:

We went to say "farewell" to Diane before she leaves to go back to China. We got the full farm tour: spraying the field, seeing the pigs, and climbing the gigantic silo/grain bin. It was a fantastic visit, and it's always good to get some "country air" into your lungs. :-) We even brought home souvenirs: grain from the field and sausage from the pigs.

Our Third Honeymoon - Presque Isle, PA

2007-08-02T14:59:00.000-07:00

Matt writes:

The shores of Lake Erie look much different outside of Cleveland city limits. Dan and Jen told us about Presque Isle near Erie PA, only two hours northeast. So, we decided to celebrate our third honeymoon (second anniversary) there. Its not an island, but a pennisula - check out our Life Links to the right.

Five days of beach bumming, biking, and R&R made for a perfect trip. For the record, both of us went down the pictured (wedgie) waterslides at Waldamere Park. Enjoy the pics.

The Paper is Done!

2007-07-26T13:59:00.000-07:00

Matt writes:

Yes, it's true. I finished writing and editing over the weekend, and sent it yesterday! Hopefully there won't be any major edits from the prof. I can smell graduation.

The title is "The Relationship Between Liturgical Arts and Ecclesial Life," discussing the role of community and the arts during gathered worship. If you'd like to read the paper, you can download a PDF from the column on the right. I also recorded the audio from my last proof-read. You can download that mp3 too.

Its time to celebrate...our third honeymoon too!

Whirlwind Wonderful Weekend!

2007-07-18T19:13:00.000-07:00

Kellie writes...
We just had one of the best weekends of the summer! Robbie and Lydia (Matt's friends from Moody...and now mine too!) came in for The Police concert in Cleveland Monday night. They arrived on the Megabus early Saturday morning and we had to say 'goodbye' on Tuesday afternoon. But in between we had loads of fun! Here are some highlights:

Tour de Akron (including Swenson's, the Towpath, and Strickland's ice cream)

Swing dancing lessons (that moved to the library parking lot after we got a broomstick to the ceiling from the lady downstairs)

Special music at The Chapel on Sunday morning

The Italian Festival with Dan, Jen & Grandma Z.

Visiting Nate and Erica

Lunch with Mike Cook in Cleveland

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

Of course, The Police concert!

And many hours of fun, laughing, and guitar playing.

Do You Know This Couple?

2007-07-09T15:04:00.000-07:00

You might see them in an upcoming movie...coming to a theatre near you.

Simmer Down

2007-07-09T09:29:00.000-07:00

Matt writes:

And again, another thirty days quickly gone. We need to do a better job updating, thanks for being patient. All of the "May Day, May Day" events have gone well.

Mid-Summer, I love this time of year. I love hot weather. Northeast Ohio is in a drought, while Texas is flooding over...go figure. I've been working on my final paper for the last couple weeks and I am ready to be done with school - forever. Also, Kellie and I have been trying to manage some of the "heirlooms" we aquired from the move. Most of the stuff we're donating, some of it we're able to sell.

We have company staying with us this weekend, and we need a place to inflate an air mattress.

Trinity Class in IL - Missing Kellie

2007-06-01T06:28:00.000-07:00

Moving Day

2007-05-25T12:28:00.000-07:00

May Day! May Day!

2007-05-25T08:57:00.000-07:00

Matt writes...

How quickly 30 days goes by...The moving truck came this morning.

In the middle of February we would have never guessed May would look like this. We both thought, "oh, May...the relaxing summer will begin." So, we both scheduled summer things on the calendar, but Mom and Dad's move changed everything. Here's a list of what's (been) going on:

Brother Dan's Birthday
Kellie's weekend visit Cedarville friends
Grandma G's 80th birthday (surprise)
Mothers Day
Mom and Dad R's Anniversary
Kellie and Diane go to Washington D.C.
Matt: thesis paper topic approval
Dad flies in to pack
Marci and Kari (surprise) fly in for house goodbye/packing
Packing, packing, and more packing
Cousin Kara's wedding
Sister Rachel's 21st birthday
Matt to Chicago for last seminary class

Insanity, I tell you!!! But fun too. Hopefully, we'll be able to post some media of these events soon. Take note that Kellie and I are up to our ears in projects to do.

The House Is Sold!

2007-04-27T08:14:00.000-07:00

I just posted the other blog a couple hours ago...and then I got a call from Mom. Their house sold. They had on the market for three weeks.

Big Changes Ahead

2007-04-27T07:09:00.000-07:00

Matt writes:
Kellie and I are staying in NE Ohio, but we will be the 'out-of'-towners' soon. Sure, Dan will stay until graduation from Akron U in a couple years, but he is itching to go to Texas. Yup, the Lone Star State will be home for the Kandel's probably. Marci and Mike are already there, and soon Mom, Dad, and Grandma will join. We will certainly miss them.

It is very emotional to see a Cutler Real Estate sign in front of our bright yellow house. Very fun and fond memories are within. We're excited about the adventure that lies ahead for them. If you're interested in buying a great house, check out our web 'Life Links.'

Paid In Full

2007-04-07T09:08:00.000-07:00

Matt writes...
Just recently we paid off one of Kellie's student loans...yay! As a reward we got a 32" LCD HDTV in hopes of building a media center computer rig. Its so clear and widescreen makes a huge difference. We replaced a hand-me-down 20" that had a blown speaker.

Below, is The Chapel's Tenebrae (Latin for "shadows") concert. Kellie sang in the choir, and I helped with planning, orchestration, and tech. It was a deeply meaningful time of reflection of Christ's passion from the Last Supper to the Tomb. Twelve cross-shaped banners represent significant events. As the events progress, a candle is extinguished, the banner is removed, and the lights gradually become dimmer and darker until the room is black. Self guided communion followed in silence.

God has redeemed us...it cost him His Son. Our sin debt is paid in full.

Welcome Spring!

2007-03-22T16:12:00.000-07:00

Kellie writes...
There was a party at work yesterday to celebrate the first day of spring. Really, it was probably just an excuse to eat a lot. So, what would I bring to the "Spring Smorgasbord", as it was named? I settled on Fruit Pizza (recipe found at www.allrecipes.com, a site I highly recommend!), though Matt thinks it really shouldn't be called pizza. "Fruit something else, maybe" he said. "I've just never had a pizza where all the toppings are lined up like that." So, my "Fruit Something Else" turned out pretty well. I'm proudly posting a picture of the results.

Matt is proudly posting lots of links about Akron, as you can tell if you check out our links area. :) It's a great place to live - we sure love it!

Staying Closer to Home

2007-03-17T09:42:00.000-07:00

Kellie writes....
As you can tell from our previous posts, we've been doing a lot of traveling far and wide for the past few years (China, Bahamas, California, Texas, Chicago). In the past month we've still done a bit of traveling, but kept it closer to home. Here's a log of the last few weeks:

Two weekends ago we went to visit my friend Diane (China team leader) in western Ohio. We had a fantastic visit! She spoiled us with lots of yummy food, and we got to see a little bit of her dad's farm. We'll probably tour the farm a little more in-depth once it's not freezing outside.

Last weekend we headed to Millersburg to visit Aaron and Bekah (Matt met them while at Church of the Saviour). We saw a lot of Holmes county, the heart of Amish country. It was great to see them again!

This weekend we did something we have wanted to do for a long time - 2 years overdue, in fact! We had Jim (Matt's supervisor at The Chapel) & Brenda (his fabulous wife) over for dinner! We gobbled up an organic dinner of orange roughy, rice and broccoli. Brenda and her high-powered blender whipped up some banana ice cream for dessert. We finished off the evening with a game of hearts that I lost to an embarrassing extent.

Chicago on the Megabus

2007-02-07T18:42:00.000-08:00

It was my five year reunion from Moody, so Kellie and I went to Chicago. Because our travel time was during the Super Bowl Sunday, we attempted to tune in on the bus using an HDTV USB tuner. People probably thought we were spies. We also got to see my sister Kari and Jim's house and Robbie and Lydia's house. Great to see many familiar faces - Lisa, Beth, Drew, Gauger, ETS, and many more.

If you want to travel the Midwest VERY inexpensivly check out www.megabus.com .

Dallas TX - The Birth Control Trip

2007-01-30T18:34:00.000-08:00

Seeing Marci and Mike's new house, and lots of kids. We titled this "The Birth Control Trip," because we saw the Ondreyka cousins and their kids too. We also saw Tracy and Joshua (with Jaden and the twins), Beth, and Shannon.

Grant Family Christmas

2006-12-25T17:52:00.000-08:00

Kellie's Family

2006-10-15T16:54:00.000-07:00

Matt's Family (at Table Rock Lake MO.)

2006-07-22T18:09:00.000-07:00

Zugaro Family Reunion at Table Rock Lake MO.

2006-07-22T17:41:00.000-07:00

Our One-Year Anniversary California Pacific Coast Highway Hippy Movie Star Adventure

2006-06-30T17:12:00.000-07:00

We flew to San Francisco and drove down the P.C.H. (number 1) in a red convertible for 8 days all the way to San Diego. We saw The Golden Gate Bridge, Alcatraz, Fisherman's Wharf, Megan (friend from Kellie's China team), 17 mile drive in Monterey, Giant Redwoods, Hurst Castle, Hollywood, The Price Is Right, Universal City, Uncle Andy, The San Diego Zoo, Balboa Park, In-N-Out Burger, and Coronado Island. This was an extremely memorable trip, and I would advise everyone to do it once.

Ernie Z's Memorial

2006-03-02T11:19:00.000-08:00

Sandals Honeymoon in the Bahamas

2005-07-31T18:06:00.000-07:00

Wedding Bells

2005-07-30T18:17:00.000-07:00

What an awesome day!

Engagement on the Great Wall of China

2004-10-28T18:01:00.000-07:00

I can't believe we got to do this...wow! I guess suffering through two years of dating across the globe pays for storybook moments like this.