I Live With A Weirdo

I don't even know what to say about this.  He is so weird, but so awesome.

Thanksgiving at the Park

Thanksgiving day, what a beautiful day it was.  Grabbed my camera and followed my nieces and nephew to the park.  What a fun time we had.  Here, let me prove it to you.

See...fun!

Thanksgiving test Blog

This is not my official Thanksgiving blog, more so just a test of blogging from the iPad. This was our first Thanksgiving without the parents, so my brother's and sister's families and I got together for our own Thanksgiving. Here is the result:

Apology to Hobbes

Dear Hobbes, I'm sorry you lost your manhood today, but I still think you're cute.

 

Happy Birthday To Me

I turned the big 2-7 this week.  I actually got to celebrate my birthday this year instead of attending weddings.  So I made up for the past 2 years.  I started with a birthday dinner last Tuesday with Mom, Dad, and my nephew Ben.  We enjoyed one of these.

Then on Friday, I enjoyed a 2nd birthday dinner with my sister Kelli, and my nephew Ben.  We enjoyed one of these.

Tip: go to Granite City and take an empty Birthday bag or two with you and tell them its your birthday, they don't ask for proof.  The above dessert, suuuuper delicious and free :)


On Saturday I celebrated my birthday with a bunch of girlfriends.  We all met for dinner at Champps, and then proceeded to Throwbacks for some drinks and a live band, maybe a little dancing, and a few more drinks.

Kim, Breck, Anne, Me, Paula
Megan, Katie, Kristie

5 shots, 4 girls...you do the math

Finally, Monday rolled around and it was actually my birthday, but I think I was all celebrated out because by the time I got home from work I hit the couch with a massive headache.  But my friend/coworker, Bobby took me out for lunch so I did get a mini celebration in.  Thanks to everyone who helped me celebrate my birthday this year, it was a great one!

Jen and Jer

Last night my cousin Jen got married.  Strangely enough, I don't actually have any pictures of the bride and groom to share, but I do have one of my date and I.  He's super cute if I don't say so myself.

There was also a photo booth last night, which I thought was a really cool idea.  There was a lot of fun to be had in there.  Here are a few examples.

Then there were a few un-photographed highlights of the evening, like when I got the bartender's phone number, or when I caught the bouquet, not for me but for my niece Ella.  Also, spending time with family, but most importantly when my nephew Ben and I were called out by the bride to kiss, he didn't leave me hanging.  That's a stand up guy!  Congrats to Jen and Jer!! Thanks for a great night!

SYTYCD Tour

Last Thursday, my friend Paula and I went to the So You Think You Can Dance Performance Tour.  It was really good.  We had great seats (thanks Paula) along the side of the stage and it was amazing to see the dancers in real life as opposed to watching it on TV.  They are all super talented!  I hope we get the chance to go again next year. Below are a few pictures Paula took during the show.

          

          

Apple Orchard

Today I tagged along on the Gochenaur family outing to the apple orchard in Stillwater.  I went along as the personal photographer, my fee, a free hayride :)  Here are a few pics of Ben.

The Art of Goallkeeping Being Passed On

Found a new game to play with Hobbes today.  I'd call it a combination of wall ball and dodge ball...for him :) I found out he has pretty decent goalkeeping skills.  I think I tired him out, he is already sleeping and we just finished playing 10 minutes ago.  Anyways, here are a few pictures from our game.

 

Water Droplets

One day I reeeeeeeeeeeeally didn't want to workout, so I came up with something else to do.  Here is the result:

My Cat Plays Fetch

I'm officially convinced he thinks he's a dog.  He chews on everything, I've heard him bark, he waits by the door hoping to be let out, he eats through his treat bags, and then proceeds to eat half the bag, and now he plays fetch.  

Wooten's Alligator Farm

Back in January of 2010 while visiting my parents in Florida, Dad and I made a visit to Wooten's Alligator farm while Mom was playing in a golf tournament.  We took an air boat ride through the Everglades, and then finished up with walking through their 'zoo'.  They had tigers, so I was satisfied with what I saw.

When our boat broke down we drifted right passed this guy

Yup, our air boat went through there

Surprisingly smooth

These tigers were huge.  When standing the top of his head came up to my chin.
Absolutely huge.

Layers upon layers of gators