blogger abandonment

I am so sorry that i have not updated the blog in what seems to be forever. Everything is still going quite well in the Malko's household. Jon and I are both still working away. Jon begins the new semester tomorrow, and i begin Monday, the home improvements are still well on their way, and pictures will come soon. Sorry I have been so negligent.

Something we are looking forward to is the beginning of the Wednesday Night Media ABF (Adult Bible Fellowship). Since Jon is the head of the video production at Highview, he severs all morning on Sunday's, as do all of the volunteers that work with Jon. On Feb. 10th Jon and Brandon ( the who is on staff and runs sound on Sunday am) will begin an ABF for those volunteers who do not get to be a part of one on Sunday mornings. They are going to be doing a Bible study using the book crazy love, and also working on technical skills to help enhance the media ministry! I am excited to serve with Jon in this ministry, and am praying the the Lord will bring a group that can be dedicated to studying the word and serving him through media at Highview Baptist Church! Join us in praying for this new ministry opportunity!

~Brooke

House Renovations

So the renovations are coming along slowly but surely. I'm sorry I haven't uploaded any pictures. i will try to get them up soon. SO far we have all but 1 cabinet installed (we were missing one piece but we have it now and will be finishing this week). WE need to cut and install the counter tops. By the end of the day today we will have all electrical done, and then once the counter tops are installed we will have out appliances installed! Right now they are just sitting in the breakfast nook teasing us since we can't actually use them yet! Once everything is installed we will finish painting!! I can't wait! Pictures coming soon, but thought I would give you a quick update!

~brooke

Christmas Moola

I LOVE Christmas time, and I can feel it quickly approaching! Everything in me wants to begin decorating and shopping for gifts, especially with Jon's birthday coming up here in the next few weeks! I found this Christmas budget planner on this blog of a friends that blogs about "good deals". You should check it out! But for now I will post the budget planner - upload it and let me know if you use it and like it! I'm going to try to use it this year!

http://christmas.organizedhome.com/printable/houseworks-holiday-plan/christmas-budget

contemplation

Today I have been contemplating why becoming an electrician or plumber isn't much more prestigious. It seems to me they get paid an awful lot.

I hope my husband isn't upset with me for posting this.

Twenty-six

I CANNOT believe that I am 26. I know I am still very young, but 26 sounds so much further down the road than I feel. Maybe that is why a married a younger man ;)! But I did have a fantastic birthday! Thanks for all of those who wished me well via facebook, and who helped to make my day special!

First thing yesterday morning Jon had me open my gift from him. It was a beautiful new winter coat, and lucky for me yesterday morning it was cold enough to wear it! Jon and I actually road to church together, which we haven't gotten to do since we moved to Louisville, and he sat with me through the worship service - he is normally in the video booth - and it was so sweet! We also got to make a stop at starbucks on the way to church!

After church we went to my Grandparents house for lunch. There I opened other gifts, I got a little spending money, a few giftcards to Macy's from Jon's mom and his grandparents, and his grandparents also got me an adorable pandora bead shaped like a house in honor of Jon and I's first home!

My parents got me this incredible purse from Banana Republic! It has red interior which is adorable and it look FABULOUS with my new coat!

Once we left my grandparents Jon had a few of my closest friends waiting for us at my parents house as a surprise to me (Thanks Lindsey Poenie for helping Jon out with that one!) Lindsey, Jenna, Sarah Cress, and the Laing's. They had chocolate meringue pie from the homemade ice cream and pie kitchen, and we just hung out all afternoon!

For dinner Jon took me to my FAVORITE restaurant, Jack Frye's. It was such a fantastic Birthday! My mom is actually in Florida this week, so I did miss spending time with her, she always makes things so special, but Jon really went above and beyond! I'm so thankful for a Savior who loves me enough to provide such sweet people in my life to show me His love!

New Kitchen

For those of you who know me, you know the the kitchen is my FAVORITE room in the house. I LOVE to cook, and I just love how people congregate in the kitchen! My love for the kitchen has made the process of putting in a new kitchen so much fun! I adore our appliances and cannot WAIT to use the stove for the first time! Last night we picked out our kitchen cabinets. Once we close on Friday the order will be placed for them and we will have them in around a week. (We wanted to make sure everything goes ok with the closing before we placed the order just to be safe). So... here they are. They are not the EXACT set up that we will have of course - this is just a floor model, but this is the style of cabinets we will be getting. We will not have a Range hood like the one in the picture because we have an over the range microwave, but we will have a tall pantry like the one in the picture... So this is basically just the finish and style, but you will have to wait with us to see our set-up!

Kitchen Appliances

The day of closing is quickly approaching, and our kitchen has NO appliances, so this weekend Jon and I went and purchased our appliances. We have been shopping around for quite a bit, and ended up making our purchase at best buy believe it or not! They definitely had the "Best Buy" - ba-dum-chhh! But in all honesty, when you buy 4 appliances you get 20% off and that was right up our ally! So, with no further ado, here is what we got...


Frigidaire - 26.0 Cu. Ft. Side-by-Side Refrigerator with Thru-the-Door Ice and Water - Stainless-Steel





















Frigidaire - Gallery 30" Self-Cleaning Freestanding Gas Range - Stainless-Steel





















Frigidaire - 1.7 Cu. Ft. Over-the-Range Microwave - Stainless-Steel













Frigidaire - 24" Tall Tub Built-In Dishwasher - Stainless-Steel




















So I pretty much LOVE our appliances and can't wait for our new kitchen! We are going to look at cabinets on Tuesday! The only little glitch is that our appliances won't be delivered until November 14th - which means we will live in our home for 2 weeks with NO appliances - sounds like a lot of dinners at mom and dads!

an Update

Lost is going on in the lives of the Malko's (as always), but here are a few updates...

1. The girl's retreat went fantastically! We didn't have as many girls as I had hoped, but the ones who came were exactly who God has picked to come, and it went so very well! We had a great tim, and learned a lot in a casual laid back atmosphere! The stage set-up was adorable, and everything went as planned! One exciteing thing was, as a direct result of our weekend talking about Priceless Relationships, one High School girl asked a leader to be her mentor! Exciting stuff!

2. Lo's wedding was BEAUTIFUL! Unfortunately it did rain, so we weren't able to do it outside, but the rain plan was LOVELY! We had the ceremony and reception in the same place, and all of her fall decorations with Pumpkins, leaves, and gorgeous flowers, all in one place was stunning. Not to mention Lauren was the most breath taking bride I have ever seen! Lauren and Chad are now Mr. and Mrs. Keeling, and we couldn't be more thrilled for them! Pray for them as they are honeymooning in Cabo!

3. The inspection on our house went very well! They only found minor things that needed repairing! God is so good to us! We submitted a list of repair requests to the owner, and he agreed to ALL of them! Praise the Lord! October the 23rd is quickly approaching and we cannot wait to be home owners!

4. We are now trying to take out homeowners insurance so that we can get in the house BEFORE the 23rd and begin painting, to help the move in process go more smoothly - it will be up to the owner if he will allow us to do this or not - so you can pray about that for us as well!

Please message us and let us know how you are doing - or IF you have a blog we don't know about! Thanks for all of our readers! WE are glad you care about us and want to join us in this walk of life and faith and love!

~Brooke

Inspection Day

Today we will get the new house inspection done at 2:30. Pray Pray Pray that everything goes smoothly and there is nothing major that comes up!

Also, WHY is it so expensive to fly during the Holidays??? Seriously - the airlines should discount this time since they get all their flights booked. Looks like we'll be making the 1000 mile drive once again!

BUT it is soooooo worth it to see everyone we love in Fort Myers! Can't wait for December!

~Brooke

Life is busy

It has been so long since I have posted, but life has been so busy. This weekend I have the High School Girl's Retreat for Highview Fegenbush, and I have been so busy with the details of that. Also, my sister's wedding is next weekend, October 9th! We have had showers, and have been making plans, and are soo excited! Jon is still loving work, though he is as busy for every. He is also doing very well with his first semester back to school and is loving classes! My one class is going well also. SO all around life is good.

Jon's mom will be celebrating her birthday on Thursday, and we are so sad not to be there to celebrate with her! (But her gift is in the mail :) ) But we miss Jon's family so much, as well as all of our friends in FL. We will be going down for a visit in December and can't wait! Though we have so much to do between now and then.

We are loving the fall! It is my first fall in 3 years, and Jon's in much longer. The cool weather is so refreshing. It makes you want to be out all the time - what a reminder of God's grace in our lives as the seasons change. Can't wait to see some colorful leaves, and visit Huber's Orchard to pick some pumpkins!

We also have some BIG news. We have a house under contract! WE have come to an agreement with the owner on price, and now are just waiting for the inspection to clear so we can close! WE are so excited to purchase our first home, and we just love it! It is right off of Eastern Parkway - a great location, and it is cute as a button. All brick, with hardwood floors a separate dining room, a 2 car garage - all the things we were looking for. Also, it has an upstairs that is not yet finished as well as a basement that is finish-able. These are some long term projects that we are excited to take on! Can't wait to have you all over for dinner!

A few changes that we hope to make are to remove the awnings, add shudders, and plant some landscaping - on the outside. WE also have a porch swing we will be painting and hanging on the front porch! We can't wait to move in towards the end of October!

Pray for us as we move into this new season of owning our own home, pray for the neighbors in our new community, that we can build great relationships and be a light on Lydia Street, pray for Lauren and Chad as the are joined together in the Lord through the gift of Marriage, and for the Highview Fegenbush High School Girl's retreat - the the Lord will be brought glory, and that the hearts of the girls will be impacted for His Kingdom!

~Brooke