5 Years of Wedded Bliss

Last Friday Jesse and I celebrated our 5 year anniversary.  We have been married 5 years, but we have been together for over 10 years!!!  WOW!!  We started dating January of my senior year of high school.  Despite the fact that just the summer before as I was watching the seniors in the class ahead of us go off to college I had sworn to my best friend that I would NOT have a boyfriend when I went to college!  Think of all the "people" to meet there!!  Ha!  Turns out God had another plan for me.  I wish I had a scanner (which we might, but I have NEVER used it) to scan in a pic from then and now.  Although as I was looking at the scant amount of pics we have from our weekend we don't have a SINGLE pic of the 2 of us together!!!  Not even a "self-portrait"!  Sad.  We have pics of each of us seperately and pics of the scenery.  Oh, well.  It was still a fun and relaxing weekend.

For those that don't know, Jesse and I celebrated our anniversary by going to Breezy Point last weekend.  Not really any specific plans in mind other than to go and spend some quality time together and relax.  It was nice to sleep in and just hang out.  We played mini golf on Sat.  Which I almost beat Jesse!  I was pretty pumped considering HE golfs and I do not!!  YEAH!  We ran into one of my good friends and former roommates from college there.  It was funny b/c we were just saying to each other that we were surprised we hadn't seen anyone we know!  Next time we decided it would be fun to take the pontoon and go with friends.  They have some ncie cabins that would be fun and easy to share with a sweet outdoor hot tub.  The weather was GORGEOUS, so it sure would have been nice to have an outdoor hot tub. 

Anyway, I can't believe tomorrow is Sept. 1!!  Yikes!  Where did summer go?? 

Fun at the Fair!

Allie got to go to the Renville County Fair 2x this year!  We were going to take her to Kandiyohi Co. Fair but the weather was really crappy and we just never did.  Anyway, Grandma Nancy wanted to take her last Wed. (I got to go too) and Jesse and I took her on Friday.  It is so fun to take her now.  She LOVES seeing the animals (although Wed. she was kind of scared of them up close and not interested in petting them, Friday she did better).  She mostly enjoyed the rides, especially the pony rides, even though she looked super serious while they were happening.  I think her favorite ride was the slide...go figure! 

Laura, Laura!!Pony ride with Grandma Nancy, she wanted to be by Grandma the whole time!  Sat by Grandma on her 1st Ferris Wheel ride!  What a brave little girl!

I can't believe the fair is over, summer is almost over!  I am SOOOO not ready for fall!

Work Shmerk

Ugh, I am looking at a FULL week.  12 hour days Mon. through Thurs.  It's really not the work that I am dreading so much as it is the fact that I will hardly see Allison those days!  Then on Friday Jesse and I have the home inspection on the house we are buying (yup, countdown is on!!  More on that to come!) and after that we are leaving for Breezy Point for the weekend.  A trip for our 5 year anniversary.  We planned it JUST before we sold our house, now kinda wishing we had the weekend to pack!  Oh, well, we need the vacation too.  I already  miss Allison though!

Pics to come from the County Fair from last week.  We had a great weekend.  Sat. Allie and I went to the lake and spent the day with Grandma and Grandpa B, my brother, Emma, and Kerri Ann and her kids.  Lots of fun!  Today we had a baby shower for my dear friend, Jodi!!  Yeah, we are so excited for the Triplett's!  Then I got to go to Eat, Pray, Love with another dear Friend, Holli!!  Thanks hon, love ya!!  When do we get to take a year vacation??

On a bummer of a note, got a call this morning that my credit card had fraudulent charges, I confirmed that, yes, indeed they were fraudulent!  SCARY!  You feel so vulnerable when that happens!  I just hope nothing else bad happens!!! I am thankful the CC company caught them and called me!  Anyway, have a good week everyone!

Day at the Pool

Today I took Allie to the pool.  Jesse won us 2 free passes from Q102, so we will get to go one more time this year yet since I am the only one who has to pay (2 and under are free).  We have a lot going on right now, with selling our house and trying to secure everything with the one we are buying.  It has been VERY hectic!  But I decided to take the afternoon for us.  She went with me all morning while we ran errands and has been (mostly) patient with me while I am on the phone with the bank or realtor.  Anyway, she ABSOLUTELY loves the water.  I had to wake her from her nap so we could get there, and usually she is a bear when I have to wake her (which I try to never do!) but I told her we were going to the pool.  She was so excited, "suit ON!". 

This is what she does when I ask her to smile for me now.  Kinda cute that she understands me now.  What a goof ball!

Going down the "Froggy" slide.  She went down that thing 100x.  She loves it.  She was upset when I told her we had to leave.  "Froggy 'lide, one more TIIIMMEE".  She says that over and over!

I LOVE Target Field (and Joe Mauer)

Saturday we went to our first Twins game at Target Field.  It was awesome.  Target Field is an amazing ball field, 100x better than the Metrodome.  Although I almost got off at the Metrodome!  We took the light rail to the game, was better than driving and paying for parking, but was VERY crowded and had to wait to get on it after the game.  Anyway, I am getting off track.  They have a lot of yummy - but ridiculously expensive - food, I had to go with a Target Dog.  Later in the game I had ice-cream and then a pretzel (please don't start calculating the calories!).  The game got over JUST before it started raining, but rain and all it was still better then the Dome.  There really isn't a bad seat in the house, but we had really good seats, 7th row, along 1st base line.  Was totally kicking myself that we didn't bring a baseball or something for players to sign.  Jim Thome and a couple others (I am not sure who they were, Jesse said, but I don't remember) came over and signed autographs.  Hoping to get to go to another game this year.

And of course, there is Joe.  I heart him.  He didn't come over and sign autographs, or I would have found SOMETHING for him to sign (maybe my bra???  sorry honey!).  But he came strutting across the field (ok, maybe he wasn't "strutting") with the pitcher (who pitched a complete game!) and pitching coach.  You could see his smile.  I am pretty sure he winked at me.  You can just tell he is a home-town boy, who loves the game and truly seems very nice.  Very Minnesotan!  Allie says "Go Joe" every time the Twins are on and has a Joe Mauer shirt.  Here is a pic of us before we left (we didn't bring her with us, she is just too young to enjoy it and we went with a GREAT group of friends).  It was overall a GREAT night!  (Minus one little incident on the way down that cost me $212...YIKES!)

10 Year Pics

Here we are, all dressed up and ready to go!  We stopped at Jamie's brother's for a pre-reunion pit stop.  Reminisced a bit, and traveled on to Max's in Olivia.

Here we are, all 18 of us.  I was a bit disappointed in the turnout.  Hoping for better at 20 yrs!  It would be really fun to have a then and now shot!  Oh, speaking of shots...

I think this is the reason I was not feeling to great Sunday!  Shots...I knew it was coming when Jennie was with!  (I am soooo glad she was, but we just always do shots if Jennie is around!)

Cheers!  To 4 wonderful girls!  Love you ladies!  I had so much fun!  Especially thankful to Jamie's mom, who came and picked us up at the OP after having 1 or 2 more of these and a few cocktails, none of us were in any condition to drive.  Ahhh, just like the old days.  However the way I felt Sunday, I defiinitely knew I was 10 years older!

Tis the Season...

For Sweetcorn!  Not really much more to be said here!  Allison enjoying a piece of sweetcorn from Grandma and Grandpa Mages' garden!  It was YUMMY!  We are so lucky!

This-n-That

Well, here it is Tuesday night...and I remembered, I need to blog!  No big deal, but I am sitting with my feet up, watching a little TV, and don't really want to move!  So, I have no pics, so I am going to wait on a post from my 10 yr. reunion and I have a fun summer post of Allison.  I will try to do them tomorrow.  If I don't get to it, this might by why...

Our house might be sold.  We are about 1 step away.  We signed some papers on our final offer, which the only thing we had to change was to include a few of our furnishings (this guys tried to get EVERYTHING he could out of us, I look at it like it is stuff we didn't want anymore so now we don't have to move them!).  We still have to get through the inspection, but I am not too worried.  What I AM worried about is that we don't have anywhere to move into yet!  We finally found a house we are going to make an offer on, we just need to find time in both of our work schedules to meet with the bank and write the offer.  So that is what I am doing tomorrow.  But the guy wants to close on ours Sept. 15 already!!!  That is so close!!  We'll have to see, might have to try to negotiate that.

On to my FAVORITE subject...Miss Allison.  She is awesome.  So much fun.  Her latest things are jumping and going up and down the steps, standing up (not sitting on her butt, OR holding my hand!).  She loves being around other kids.  She has actually not wanted to come home with Jesse from daycare the last 2 days and LOVES going to the Y child watch when we work out.  Which is such a relief.  She talks and sings non-stop.  Sept. 1 we are going to get rid of the pacifier (hopefully).  She doesn't use it at daycare at all, so we know she will be just fine without it.  We might have a couple of rough nights, but I think it will go better than we think.  Plus the longer she has it, the more attached she gets.  She is learning her letters and knows most of them.  She just amazes me!

I am so pumped for this weekend.  We are going to the TWINS game!  Yeah!  I can't wait.  But the forcast is a chance of rain, you never had to worry about a game getting rained out before!  Hopefully that doesn't happen. 

Work is good.  We have been very busy, so that good.  We knew August was going to be busy.  Anyway, I need to go to bed, so hopefully some more interesting posts with pics to come this week!

Class of 2000

Yup, I have been out of highschool for 10 years now!  Sometimes it seems like it was yesterday, but really most of the time it seems like it was FOREVER ago!  I mean so much has happened in the last 10 years, and when I look at the people graduating high school now, I think, wow, those kids are SOOO young!  It is hard to believe I was one of them just 10 years ago.  In the past 10 years...
I graduated from college - BSN - from MSU, Mankato (I can't believe that was 5 years ago already!)...
I got married (also 5 years at the end of the month)...
Bought our first house
Got my first "real" job (which I am still at - Rice Hospital)...
Had a baby (Miss Allison Kay, of course :)...

And while this list seems really short, these are all major life events (or stressors per the conference I was at for work last Spring).  I can't imagine that we will be doing all of that in the NEXT 10 years!!

I am looking forward to seeing all the people at the reunion, and will miss those that aren't there.  Especially those that we have lost, Justin, Mitch and Aaron.  RIP guys!!  You are thought about often, especially as the reunion has approched!  Anyway, batteries are charging for the camera, bottle of Boones is ready to go...all I have to do is get ready!  Pics to come!!!

My Thought On the Bachelorette Finale

First of all, most of you who know me (or are my FB friend) know that I kind of have a Monday Night Obsession...The Bachelorette.  I don't know why, but I particularly liked this season, I watched Jake's season but otherwise previously had not watched it much since my college roommate and friend, Sara, got me hooked.  Anyway, during Jake's season (which was SUPER DUPER disappointing) someone tuned me into "Reality Steve".  I did not read his "blog" during that season because I thought it would spoil it, but for some reason decided to this season.  Well, during the season of Ali's Bachelorette, I found him to be RIGHT ON on pretty much everything and it was kind of fun having the inside track!!  However, he blogged that Ali did not pick anyone...

WRONG-O

As you can see, Ali chose Roberto.  While he is smokin' hot, I kind of had my heart set on her picking Chris (I was still hoping that she picked someone and that Reality Steve would be wrong, even though he had proven to be right about everything else).  Chris Lambton...

He was so sweet, and such a down to earth guy.  And a family guy.  Plus the whole story of his mom dying, well, that kind of just reeled me right in.  Anyway, I hope he finds someone great!  I mean even in the "After the Final Rose" he was so supportive of Ali and sweet to her.  After she dumped him on National TV!  But he seems like a genuine guy.  Anyway, I am sure he can pretty much have his pick of any woman now, but I hope he finds a nice one.  There is talk of him being the next Bachelor...while I wouldn't mind watching that, I hope he doesn't do it.  Seeing him kiss a bunch of girls would kind of ruin him for me. 

Well, on to the Bachelor Pad!!  I know, just a set up for a bunch of people to hook up, but oh, well. 

When I grow up...

I want to be Famous?!  Or a nurse??  Maybe a famous nurse!  Ok, well maybe famous is going too far!  (Probably a lot too far!)  A few weeks ago they asked me if they could take my picture to use in an ad for the Birth Suites at Rice.  It ran for the first time on Thursday.  This is the only way I could figure out to put it on here.  (I don't have a scanner).  Click here to see the ad.  Scroll down to the bottom, I am in the upper left corner.