December 2006 Update

Well, it's Christmas time again, everybody, and once again, time for an update on how the year has progressed. Hopefully this year, you'll have a fun time hearing more about what has happened in my life this year. I've chosen a little different technique than just sending out a mass email.

Generally all I have to say about this time of year is "yes, I made it through another year of school and didn't die of severe exhaustion", but this year has been the first year out of college, and that's really just the skinny of it!

Well, for beginners, last year this time I was just finishing up at Northwestern College. I had moved home to live with my parents again until my frantic search for a job came to an end. With funds running short and nerves up the wazoo, I was happy to receive an email from my advisor at Northwestern which mentioned an opening at a agricultural company in Sioux Falls, SD. He said he thought I might be interested and should give it a shot - so low and behold, 3 weeks later I was starting my first post-college job! I have been at Raven Industries in Sioux Falls since January 17, 2005, and I love it! I do web design and programming here and have really grown since I began!

So I moved to Sioux Falls January 15 and started working. I happened to run into a few fellow Northwestern alumni shortly upon moving. It sure helped me adjust easily! I fit a few trips into this incredibly short year, including my first ever trip out to the Black Hills in western South Dakota and out to Noblesville, Indiana to visit my brother and sister-in-law. However, I'd have to say there were really just five major things that happened to me this year:

1. I moved to Sioux Falls, SD and started my first real job out of college on January 17!
2. I met Mark Johnson at Coconut Joe's on April 9 and we started dating shortly after.
3. I took my very first trip to California with Mark over labor day weekend, September 5, visiting his brother and sister-in-law out in San Diego. Click here to read more about my trip out there!
4. I became an aunt for the very first time - my brother, Dan, and his wife had a little boy on November 22!
5. I said YES! That's right! Mark and I are engaged!! What a wonderful surprise and Christmas present :) Click here to read the full story how he proposed and see the ring!

My Christmas plans, as always, are super busy! I'll be all over the place and meeting lots of new relatives in Mark's family as well as spending some good quality time with my family. I always enjoy this time of year, even when it's nasty outside! I sure do miss the college days where I had 2-3 weeks off for Christmas, but I suppose I'll have to learn to deal :)

I'll have a couple new websites going live the first week in January, so you'll have to check them out!

Also, hopefully some more recent pictures will be up soon. I am waiting to fill up another memory card or two so I can take them in to have a CD made out of them. Once that's done, they'll be up here :)

Anyways, I'd best be on my way! Merry Christmas!

Amy Jo Ropte...soon to be Johnson!

November 2006 Update

Hi All! Well, we've been married almost 2 months now! it sure doesn't feel that long, but when I think about the last 2 months, it seems like we've had plenty to keep us busy! Between finding the right curtains and other decorations for the house, putting them up, and continuing to work full-time, it has been really busy! Mark is glad I'm finally coming to a "decorating lull" and am not going shop-happy anymore :) He has decided that the decorating expenses should be taken out of my own monthly "blow" fund in hopes that he won't end up in the midst of a decorating frenzy again anytime soon!

Mark surprised me for my birthday on October 28! I was so shocked! He had been working super hard in the field with his dad and told me he'd be in the field all that night, but that we could celebrate Sunday afternoon or something. I was kinda bummed, but figured I'd make the best out of it. My friend Nance and I went shopping and then were going to go out to eat together later that night. We picked out some FUN cookie cutters, which we used the next weekend when the boys went hunting :)

Well, when we got back to her apartment, she seemed to be stalling, and even offered me cheese and crackers right before we were going to go out to eat. Anyways, she wanted me to go down stairs to show me something she had in storage, and around the corner, there was Mark, Jamie, Jed, and Heather! He had gotten me a cake and a vase with some roses, and a beautiful watch! Heather had also gotten me some balloons, which are still floating around, almost 3 weeks later. We went out to eat at Ground Round and then bowling! (I have to say, it was very welcome, considering I'm not on the Raven bowling team again this year.) After all that, we went back to Nancy's to watch a movie. It was a great night! :)

Well, things with work are going great now! It had been a stretch the first month or so trying to manage work and home life, but now things are settling down. I am only working 2 days in Sioux Falls now, which is a HUGE blessing! No more nights away from my hubby, and still only 2 days where I have to wake up at unmentionable hours for work! The other 3 days a week, I work from home, which has turned out wonderfully! You never realize how much time you waste in a day in just driving time otherwise. I used to spend about 2 hours a day in the car just getting to and from work and coming home for lunch midday. When I'm home, I make a quick, easy lunch, get to eat with my hubby, and then get either some relaxing or some cleaning done. It's wonderful! I even was able to get my drivers' license the other day over my lunch break! (Only missed 2!!)

In other news, about 3 weeks ago, I ended up in a field on my way to work in Sioux Falls! I lost control of my car last Wednesday morning on my way to Sioux Falls. I'm fine, the car is fine (for the most part - just a dent and a muffler that needs to be hooked back into its little hook thing). It was pretty scary at the time, but I'm fine, which is most important! I had been passing a semi, and was about 2 or 3 car-lengths in front of it when I hit a little slush and started spinning about 4 or 5 times. I spun across the driving lane (was in the passing lane) and into the ditch, backwards at a bit of an angle. I ended up mowing over a fence, but managed to slide underneath the barbed wire (so a few deep scratches on the car as well). I landed in a pasture with tall grass about a mile from the exit to LuVerne, MN. Luckily, the police were there in about 5 minutes and the tow-truck about 10 minutes after that. I think everyone else was much more scared than I was - I know mom was for sure! I'm pretty sure my poor car was scared half to death, so as a present to her, we bought her some new kicks on Tuesday :) It's funny how much better a car drives with new tires!

Mark and I are getting so stinking excited for our 4 day vacation next week! We have just been so ready for a few days off to just kick back at home. We're going to have Thanksgiving dinner in Worthington at Mark's Grandma's house on Thursday and then we'll head down to Humboldt to visit the Ropte farm Friday morning and eat yet another Thanksgiving dinner there on Friday! I just can't stop thinking about turkey right now! I stinkin LOVE it! I've figured out what my process will be for this year, however. I plan to not eat more than a half ounce of turkey during any Thanksgiving dinner. That way, I'll fill up on the stuff that doesn't make turkey sandwiches, and have more turkey left over for the next couple weeks. Yes, I may end up getting sick of cold turkey sandwiches, but that's a chance I'm willing to take!

In yet more news, I am tackling my first bird for a Thanksgiving dinner we're hosting for some friends of ours. I am pretty pumped that! I'm making some homemade stuffing with sage sausage, celery, mushrooms, onion, craisins, (maybe) diced apples, and whatever other yummy stuff I can find to put in there! I started chopping up the onions, mushrooms and celery last night and got SOOOOOOOOOOOOOO excited! I am so ready to eat this stuff!! I'm also excited about mashed potatoes and gravy! THREE Thanksgivings this year - I might gain a good 10 lbs, but I tell ya what - I can work on it after the holidays :)

Well, that's pretty much all for now. I hope all is well for each and every one of you! God bless you and HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!

Voting

I remember my first voting experience was when I lived in Humboldt, IA. I had just turned 18 in October, and the big vote was only 9 days later. So I drove myself to the polling place - in Thor, IA. Keep in mind, I had recently moved to Humboldt, so all this countryside and small-town living was all still pretty new to me.

So I walked into this small community center place in Thor and went to vote. There were about 5 people there who were in charge of the thing, but only one other guy who was there to vote. The part that really cracked me up, though, was how INCREDIBLY serious they were about their jobs! I understand that there has to be a certain level of privacy at the polls, but they were all just freakishly solemn. I'd heard that people in the country were a little wacko sometimes, but it was almost comical! I voted and left and hoped I wouldn't have to vote in Humboldt county again!

Mark and I walked down to the polling place in Windom on Tuesday night. Mark told me it was only about 3 miles there, so that's why we decided to walk. Well, I know how long 3 miles is, and we walked a LOT further than 3 miles to get to the polling place! Anyways, this time I didn't have any issues with voting, and it went pretty quick. Mark sure took a long time to get his two-cents in, though. I think he was there a good 5 minutes after I finished! (There were only about 10 positions to vote for!)

On another note, my soreness has gone away! I'm getting extradinarily tired of staying in Sioux Falls with friends on Monday nights, so to ease the annoyances of it all, I decided to pay my $7.50 and go work out at my old gym. Since I had to pay $7.50, I figured I'd get a nice long workout in, and I did! Unfortunately, I'm incredibly sore from the running, eliptical machines and (of course) the myriads of lunges I decided would be beneficial. I'm glad I'm not as sore, because Mark keeps slapping me on the butt (forgetting that I'm so sore) and it really hurts! He thinks it's funny and that I'm really acting this one up, but it seriously hurts!

Well, it is 7:53 and I have to start work at 8, so I'd better...oh wait...I WORK FROM HOME TODAY! :) I just have to get my cup of coffee and sit right here! Yes, living in Windom does have its perks - too far to drive every day, so I get to stay home 2 days a week...and soon here (starting next week, hopefully) I'll get to stay home 3 days a week!!

But I've gotta go!

October 2006 Update

Well, we're married!! The day went just wonderfully, and we're back from our honeymoon and everything, and now back to our regular lives - working for the weekend again :) Married life is great, although both Mark and I still chuckle when we call each other "husband" and "wife". It'll just take some getting used to, I'm sure!

The wedding day went off without a hitch--the only exception being we couldn't actually get the unity candle to light. Luckily, though, neither Mark nor I are superstitious, so we're pretty sure it doesn't mean anything :) But I didn't trip over my train at all, which I think makes me extraordinarily talented and gifted :)

After the wedding, we went home and thoroughly enjoyed a fruit and cheese tray my aunt and uncle from Florida brought for us while opening cards, and then we packed for our honeymoon.

For our honeymoon, we drove out to Niagara Falls and stayed there for 4 days, and then swung below Lake Erie and stopped at Cedar Point in Sandusky, Ohio for a night before heading back home.

To find out more about our honeymoon, click here!

I'll write more later, but this wifey is ready for bed!

September 2006 Update

Heylow! How goes it, all? I'm doing just great! God sure has blessed me this month with amazing friends and family who have helped me understand the meaning of just slowing down. With my tendencies to jump to the worst conclusions about things, its been a pretty crazy past few weeks, but through it all, I've come out amazingly well!

I guess I left off at the weekend of July 22 the last time I had a little update, huh? Well, the weekend of July 22, we went down to Sioux City for the wedding of a former co-worker. We had a good time, but forgot the camera, so no real evidence, huh? We had a great time, but left a little early to get back home at a decent hour.

The weekend after that, July 29, I played a nice little prank on Mark. His birthday was August 1st, and after the awful job I did on it last year (he bought his own belated bday present, and we went to dinner the day before), I decided to make this year a little more special. I'd received a bachelorette party invite for my bud Kelli earlier that week, and while I initially was going to go, I thought it'd be a great opportunity to surprise him good! So I told him I was going to go, and be gone most of the day and all night on that Saturday. He got pretty grumpy and started getting pretty crabby, but I didn't give him any hints! That day, we went out to see friends of ours out at the lake for a while, and then came back early so I could get ready for the "Bachelorette Party". Instead of going to the bachelorette party, I drove to Worthington and picked up some balloons, an ice cream cake, and Pizza Hut pizza and headed over to one of our friends' houses. I only beat Mark by about 5 minutes. He was pretty surprised. I guess he was pretty down that I was leaving him for a night out with the girls on the weekend before his birthday. Hehe - I'm just so sneaky!

The weekend of August 4-6 was a really strenuous one! Mark and I went up to Camp Shetek in Slayton, MN for the weekend for "Special Forces" Camp. I have to say, I thought I was in decent shape until this weekend! I think we ran almost 10 miles a day (I'm probably exaggerating, but it was a LOT) and it was just go-go-go all day long! We played all kinds of games and had chapel twice a day, plus camp fires at night, and good food during the day! It was definitely a challenge for me. As a programmer/web developer, I get to sit down all day, and moving this much and being on my feet all day left me exhausted at the end of the weekend.

August 12 was Kelli and Roscoe's wedding. Kelli is a friend of mine from NWC. We lived in Vanderhill Cottage with 10 other girls back during our Junior year at NWC. (Gosh - that was already 3 years ago!) The wedding was in Sioux Center, and it was good to see lots of familiar faces! Mark got to meet more and more NWC Alumni, and we had a great time!

This past weekend, I had my first Bridal Shower! Mark's home church, and the church we've been attending (whenever we're in Worthington) threw me a really nice shower, with lots and lots of useful kitchen supplies! I've been told that it's now my duty to make sure Mark gains a good 20 pounds after we get married lol I think he's looking forward to homemade cookies and cakes and the like, but I told him it's all in moderation! My mom and younger sister and brother came up for the day, and then we made the short trek up to Mark's house, which they just saw for the first time! We had lunch and chatted a while and then they left for home, and I started getting things put away.

Next weekend is the big Bachelorette Party, so I'm definitely looking forward to that! It'll be good to see friends and have a girls-only weekend!

Work has been pretty crazy the past month. We had our 2006 Tech Conference August 9-10, so I was busy gearing up for that and visiting with the distributors. The Tech Conference is an annual event we sponsor at Raven for our distributors as a "thank-you" of sorts and also as an introduction to our new products. We had a nice group of distributors, and were busy from 8am to 10pm those two days. I was glad to be done with that as well! Since then, things have settled down, and I've been able to begin cleaning out my inbox and get things accomplished!

I cannot work (stupid remote access)

On a good note, I get to work from home 2 days a week! It's great! No long commute, and I can go to work in my PJs! On a bad note, it'd be nice if I could actually access my remote system...

I think all my co-workers are at the big United Way ralley this morning, so no one can even help out - how frustrating!

On a brighter note, this morning has been great! I got the new pumpkin spice creamer last week and finally had a chance to try it - it's YUMMY! I didn't wake up until 6:45, which is also great!

I'd better get back to work (or at least try to make more of an effort to) I'll post more about wedding/honeymoon later!

July 2006 Update

Hello All! I hope all is going well for you - I know I've been good, although really busy! During the month of June, a lot has happened! Between the Argus Leader RibFest in Sioux Falls, 2 weddings and 2 trips up north to Mark's, I hardly had time for myself this past month, but things are starting to settle down :)

A friend and co-worker wre married the weekend of June 10 here in Sioux Falls. Mark came down for the weekend and went with me - we had a pretty good time! The cake was amazing! The bride is a travel agent for AAA Travel in Sioux Falls, and they incorporated her occupation into the cake - it was a bunch of suitcases with fondant for frosting, which truly added to the cake. Gosh, they looked real!

The next two weekends I was up at Mark's (he had been down to my place the 2 weekends before - for RibFest and then that wedding.) We pretty well just bummed around most of these weekends, although we kept up with our running! (Mark is training for a 10K and me for a 5K). Sometimes it's nice to just have a weekend or two off.

The other wedding we went to was for a friend of mine from Northwestern, which was on the 30th in Sanborn, IA. It was good to see a lot of friends from college and catch up! We didn't get to stay too long, since Mark and I took off for my parents' house for the 4th of July weekend, which was a 2 hour drive. It sure was a long night, but we finally made it shortly after midnight. Here are a few pictures from the event:



For the 4th of July, we were at my parents' in Humboldt. Saturday my mom and I went shopping for the Mother of the Bride dress to no avail, but were able to find it Monday afternoon down in Des Moines. We went down to DSM Sunday afternoon after church to see my brother's house! He just bought it about a month ago, and it getting settled into it :) It was good to spend time with family (although the boys mostly just sat around and played video games the whole time...) On the 4th, we drove back up to Mark's and then spent the day out on the lake with some friends playing on the waverunners and tubing. Later, we went out to eat and then went to the fireworks in Worthington. It turned out to be a pretty fun weekend! I'll add pictures later, but the majority of them are on other peoples' cameras :)

Another big highlight to the month of June was that I went in for my 2nd fitting for my gown, and I got to bring it home with me, along with my veil! I've been trying it on here and there - boy is it ever fun! Hopefully the girls' dresses will be in soon too :)

Like I said before, Mark is trianing for the Turkey Day 10K! I am also on a running schedule to be ready for NWC's 5K. I am now up to 3 miles on a regular basis! Mark is running too, but I can't say how far (don't want to scare the competition into actually trianing!)

Mark has been keeping busy with softball, playing 3 days a week - the majority of those nights being double-headers! He coaches the church team in Worthington for First Baptist and also plays in the Windom city league and on the First Baptist Windom team.

I had my 2nd fitting for my wedding dress June 6 and was actually able to bring it home with me, so I'm pumped about that! I would LOVE to post some pics of my dress, but that's just not going to happen, since Mark would probably be tempted to peek :)

Wedding plans are still going pretty well! I think we're finally all caught up on our lists and are excited to finally be finished assembling invitations! To check up on our progress, be sure to check out the wedding portion of the website!

Well, I'd best get to lunch, so I'll write more later!

Friday!

It's finallly Friday! The week hasn't been too bad, but it'll be nice to have the weekend to unwind. I'm excited to see it will be nice tomorrow! The rain and wind have been a bit much lately. BUT then again...I saw loads of beautiful green grass this morning on my drive to work! Spring is coming and summer will shortly follow!

The boy is coming down to see me tonight - how much fun is that? :) Tonight we'll probably just relax, but tomorrow we've got lots to do! I don't think he knows it yet, but it's going to turn into a wedding planning day tomorrow lol I'll trick him into coming by telling him that I'll take him to BW3s for wings and the game tomorrow night :)

Wedding planning is coming along pretty well, but there are always little things in the back of my mind. But for now, the big things are out of the way :)

June 2006 Update

Hi Everybody! I hope all is going well for each and every one of you! Things here have been good! It seems as though things are always mildly busy - gone are the days of "summer vacations" and "breaks". How nice would it be to just work part-time and enjoy my summer again like I did as a kid. Oh well - I guess that's just how it goes!

I'm getting pretty excited for the summer, however, even without much expendable vacation time. Mark and I have got a few weddings to attend for friends and co-workers and a fun trip out to Holland, Michigan with the family at the end of July.

I joined a co-ed volleyball team through work - the Raven Lunatics - which keeps me busy on Monday nights. We had our first game June 5 and realized we might need to actually practice in order to do much good. (Its been a LONG time since many of us have played!) I have also begun training for a 5K (and possibly the 10K... if I get that far), so that has been challenging. I dropped my membership at the Sioux Valley Wellness Center this month, so I've had to face the realization that running 2-3 miles outside is a LOT harder than running 2-3 miles inside. If all goes well, I will be up to 20 miles a week by the end of the summer!

Mark has been keeping busy kissing the lazy winter behind him and it's now softball season. He coaches the church team in Worthington for First Baptist and also plays in the Windom city league. He also made a bet with his buddy Jamie that he could run the Turkey Day 10K the weekend before our wedding, so we'll just have to see how that goes - I know I wouldn't be up for THAT kind of crazy challenge!

I had my 2nd fitting for my wedding dress June 6 and was actually able to bring it home with me, so I'm pumped about that! I would LOVE to post some pics of my dress, but that's just not going to happen, since Mark would probably be tempted to peek :)


This picture is of Mark and I and some of our friends from Memorial Day weekend. It was a pretty relaxed weekend compared to last year. A year ago, I was out to the Black Hills for the first time with my bud Rach to visit our girl Jae - what a BEAUTIFUL place - and then up to Windom for my first visit there! This year, we grilled out with friends, had a bonfire, washed/waxed my car, Mark mowed the lawn, hung out at the park with some friends, and grilled out with family as well. It was a busy but relaxing weekend.

Wedding plans are still going pretty well! We're behind on a few things, but thinking they will work themselves out. To check up on our progress, be sure to check out the wedding portion of the website!

Well, I'd best get to lunch, so I'll write more later!

May 2006 Update

Hi guys! I finally got a chance to update this baby! Its been a busy past couple of months trying to juggle work, friends, family, the gym, and wedding details. Only 4 and a half months left until the big day, but I know it will just fly by!

Wedding plans are coming along slowly but surely. We went over our budget the other day, and MAN are these things expensive! I got this book shortly after we got engaged called "How to plan a wedding for $5,000" or something along those lines. Somehow, even though I've followed the guidelines from the book, this baby is gonna be WAY more than their $5,000...but I suppose that considering the average wedding in the United States is around $20,000, we're still doing pretty good!

Mark and I have been busy seeing family lately, and trying to make time for ourselves as well. We were down in Humboldt visiting my family over Easter break. My brother and sister-in-law from Indiana were even able to make it out with my little nephew Jacob! It was the first time I got to see him, so I was pretty excited about that! What a GOOD baby! We then came back up north to have dinner on Easter Sunday with some family on his dad's side in Storedon. All in all, a pretty good weekend!

The weekend after that (April 21-23) I was down in Des Moines/Ankeny, Iowa visiting some friends from High School as well as one of my bridesmaids, Steff. I can tell we've all grown up a lot in the past couple years! Instead of going out dancing or being crazy kids, it was more subdued: Friday night was dinner, the coffee shop and looking at cool houses; Saturday was a little shopping, dinner, going for a RUN(???), and hitting the hot tub. Granted, Steff and I DID stay up until the wee hours of the morning talking and watching chick flicks like college days :)

I went up to Worthington to see Mark for the afternoon that Sunday and we had a good time with a "picnic" subway lunch at the park and then we took a walk and a nap at Grandma Vi's. Mark surprised me that weekend and moved his mom to her house across town. She's been living at Mark's house for the past couple years trying to save some money. Its been nice to be able to start cleaning and situating things at my future home now. It was hard to really see how things would look and feel when she was living there.

This past weekend was a pretty good time! Mark was in town - this being my first weekend home in the past month! Saturday night we went out to eat with some friends for Nancy & Curt's birthdays. A few of us went over to this Christian coffee shop called the Firehouse Underground to see Nancy's brother, Tim, who was doing sound for the band there. It was a pretty cool place. Then we went out to Nutty's to hang out for an hour or so, and then to Buck's dancing for a little while.

It seems like I've been just planning away for this wedding, but no matter how much I get accomplished, I can't escape the constant questions that make me feel "ill-prepared" to say the least. Once I figured out catering and the photographer, people feel obligated to ask me about the cake. When I already have the invitations and have had my first dress fitting, I get questions about music or the order of the ceremony. I know deep down that everyone just cares and is interested in what's going on in my life, but I'll tell ya - I'm definitely glad I didn't become a wedding planner! :) But anyway, I've updated the wedding details on the wedding portion of the website, so check it out!

Going to Maui!

I can't help it - I am pumped! I've been so depressed lately about the stinkin weather that I've had to focus my attention elsewhere - Maui! Mark and I are going there on our honeymoon, and we're stoked! I've been checking out hawaii.com lately, and it's just gorgeous! Pretty sure that by this time next year we'll be so ready for it - to get away and just have so much fun while it's snowing and nasty back in Minnesota. :)

On another note, the weekend was fun, but stressful! Seems like our weekends that we have pre-marital counseling we really start having to think harder about our relationship and what we are going to have to do to make it work great!! Good thing is, although it's not always perfect, we're both 100% committed to making it all work! :)

We went bowling with some friends Saturday night after Heather made a whole ham dinner! You would've thought it was Easter or something - delish! I don't think that bowling alley likes me. Granted, I'm a league bowler, so I should be good regardless :) I started off with a 95 and ended with a 105, so my average was 100, which I suppose is alright :)

Snow...again....in March.....

I'm not too sure how I feel about this stinking snow in March! What's wrong with there just being nice weather in the upper 50's through March and into April? Sure would be nice! Oh well...

It was an interesting trip home last night from Windom. I almost went into the ditch! It was so scarry, but I pulled through with my swerving skills and managed to maintain control of my vehicle. Praise the Lord! I'll not try to be a race car driver anymore I think.

Headed to Omaha this weekend to ring in my lil bro's 22nd birthday! I'm sure the girls will have fun while the boys play video games all weekend :) I'm glad Mark gets along so well with my brothers and Michael (my sis's boyfriend). Sure makes things easy :) Should be a pretty exciting weekend!

This Past Weekend

Friday night Mark and I went out to PJ II's for dinner and had a pretty good time eating, shooting a little pool and playing a game of darts. It's a lot of fun to just spend some good quality time with him :)

We decided Friday night to help Mark's mom move some of her stuff up to her new house on Saturday. Turns out, her house ended up having water all over in the basement, so I spent ALL day on Saturday trying to get it all up off the carpet in the basement while Mark and Jamie spent the day moving her fridge and some stuff out of the garage up to her new house in Windom. The basement was a MESS! Hopefully it'll dry up alright. Sure does smell musty down there though! What a junky Saturday! BUT...at least I got a good workout!

Mark took me out for breakfast at McDonald's and then he left for a Timberwolves game for the day. (Free tickets + corporate suite = only an idiot would pass that up!) Unfortunately, only Toro employees could go, so I got to finish up helping at the house. I was home by 4ish and then I got to relax :)

All in all, a LONG weekend, but all is good :)

And All before 9am!

What a junky start to the day! I left nice and early for work - even gave my car a good 5 minutes to warm up, and left to drop off a movie at Lewis we'd rented yesterday. I pull in the parking lot and BAM...car goes junk! I knew it was coming, but I suppose I really felt like getting a tow instead of taking it in earlier, huh? $47.66 later, and my car is at the shop. I guess the lower ball joint came loose or it broke or something like that. What a junky start to a Monday morning. The rest of the day is going better though. Sometimes I complain about having to go to work every day, but ya know what? At least I've got a job, and a good one at that.

I've been having a difficult time lately as well with some of Mark and I's family and friends. I have been struggling lately with saying the right things to the right people. It seems like I just keep getting myself into stupid situations. But oh well. At least I know that if I upset everyone else, at least God will take me back in :) Good thing! I just want to encourage myself (and you too), to really be careful what you say. You might be thinking some awful, hateful things about some people, but once it comes out of your mouth, you can't take it back. Even if it's just in joking, words hurt, and it takes a long time to mend broken relationships and friendships.

I was reading in Colossians last night about how we need to put away all feelings of anger, malice, rage, etc...Good stuff to read right now. It's difficult when you're upset to try to keep it all in perspective, but things will work together for good :) It's been hard for me to not just say exactly what's on my mind to certain people, but knowing that it would just stir up more trouble, I need to constantly remind myself not to get worked up about it, and to take all my frustrations to Christ and let HIM be the one who deals with it.

So there's my thoughts for my Monday morning... :)

March 2006 Update

Well hello, everyone! It seems like the past 2 months have just FLOWN right on by! There has been a lot going on since January, but really not anything too much at all, if that makes any sense. It seems like I'm always busy doing something, but it's never really anything incredibly important. Between my weekends with Mark in town and my weekends up in Windom or Worthington, I've just been busy trying to make it to work during the week, to the gym during weeknights, and spending time with friends here and there.

Work has been going well. I am currently working on our internal FTP site, which is a huge undertaking, but it's coming along well.

Mark and I went to a Jeremy Camp concert a few weeks back - March 2nd. It was a wonderful concert! He is just such a wonderful song artist!

This past weekend we were down in Omaha for my younger brother, Josh's birthday. We had a great time catching up, and Mark had a great time playing football against my sister's boyfriend on the PS2. Mark ended up victorious. I can say that I love him no matter what, but I can't say that he's always a great sport as far as this type of thing is concerned lol He's super competitive, so when he loses, he gets super crabby. However, when he wins, he lets us all know about it :) We ate at Edelweiss, which is a German restaurant close by Josh's place. I can't say I'd go for the Tour of Germany again, but Schnitzels sure were good! All-in-all, such a fun time! We came back early to try to beat the storm down there, and that worked out well.

I've gotten the question quite a bit lately "What will you do when you're married? Will you quit your job? Will you commute?" So here's the plan of attack: Basically, I like my job, and Mark likes his. So neither of us are too keen on moving, and so we'll just live 90 miles apart and see each other on the weekends.

...

No, I'm just kidding :) I'll be moving up there into his house with him, and then I'll commute. Hopefully Raven will allow me to work from home a few days a week, but if not, I will for sure finish out the year there and then if they won't work with me on it, I'll start looking for something else. Perhaps start up my own business, or else find something where I can work from home as a satellite programmer/webmaster type of deal.

On another note, only 6 months left until the wedding!

Get to see my honey!

I'm so excited to see my honey tonight! Its been a whirlwind of a couple weeks, but I'm excited to settle down and do nothing this weekend :) We have this showcase thing tonight to go to for some crystal or what not. Then it's just cuddling up and watching a movie and eating some popcorn. What a weekend :) I think tomorrow we'll go to finish up our registry stuff. I might head to the gym, but that's debatable. I'm taking off at 4 tonight - HALELUJAH! It's about time for a beautiful day like this! I'm gonna go wash my car and make up some sandwiches for me and the boy to eat when he gets here. How much fun is all this gonna be? :)

Last week I was in Fresno, CA from Wednesday thru Friday. What a long week! It was a good trip overall, but my flight back was delayed 4 hours, which just left it on a sour note. I tried frog legs for the first time, and they were surprisingly DELICIOUS! I can't say I'd pay $20 a plate for them again, but I'd go for them for sure if they were only $9 or $10 a plate. The best part about the trip: it was all free! Granted, I did spend a few bucks here and there on random things (flavored olive oil, almonds, fruit, etc) A beautiful escape from the daily drudge that is Sioux Falls in February.

Valentine's Day was nice this year! I actually have a fiance this year! How exciting! Mark came down and took me out to dinner at Hu Hot. He's such a blessing! It sure made things great :) Too bad I left the day after (the 15th) for my trip to Fresno, 'cause he wanted to get me flowers too, but I wouldn't have been home to get them.

Anyways, those are my plans for the weekend and a short update!

January 2006 Update

Happy January, everyone! Only one month into the year and already I'm feeling super overwhelmed. But I know that God is good and I will survive :) Already 2006 has been crazy and frantic trying to get ready for the big wedding day! You never really realize how much work it takes until you're planning it yourself! However, I have to say, even though I've been dreaming of this day since I was a lil squirt, I'm about sick to death of all the plans and preparations entailed! (I've still got 8 months to go!)

On another note, January has been a huge month for me at work! I have been able to finally show the world what I have been working on for the past 6 months. I have been going pretty much nuts trying to redesign a few websites which were released January 4. If you don't really know what I do at work, I am the master of all things web-related at Raven. Check out the fruit of all my labor at www.ravenprecision.com and www.ravencanada.com!

Well, as pathetic as this may sound, I do believe that's all that's new with me. Between work and wedding stuff, that's about all I do anymore! But check back soon for the latest! :)

God Bless!

Amy Jo Ropte...soon to be Johnson!
aka: The Pink Power Ranger