NY

we just returned from buffalo, ny! we got to do some fun things things!

larry, monique, tim and craig at bar bills - best wings of the trip

raeanne, me, katie, and emma

vidler's - kind of like a ben franklin's

aunt sandy, buttons, and monique :)

the sisters - aimee, katie and leanne

us...at a backyard dance party

dance it out ladies...and chris

america falls

katie and bret at the falls

that's my man...oh yes he kept it on the whole trip

three's company
on the maid of the mist
smile tim

at the hardrock cafe - cool beans
they're the best of friends
rain delay photo op
we were really looking forward to the game....dang the rain
yummy
cute...they match. yup, they planned it.
this was our last night in buffalo, let's just say aimee had enough fun.

checking things off my list

the list below is the same one i made at the start of summer break. now more than half way through, i'd like to update my list....

things that i want to do/see:

1. paint my kitchen (not yet...it's the first thing i'll do when i get back from ny)
still haven't painted...help! why in the world haven't i started painting...

2. visit canton/spend $ (too dang hot in the summer, what was i thinking?) looking forward to it in november
3. spend time at the lake w/ tim (no pics...sorry) * twice in mn!
4. see the following movies:
-the house bunny not out yet saw it, loved it
-get smart *saw it with tim
-mama mia not out yet saw it will becca...if you don't like musicals, don't see it fools!
-sisterhood of the traveling pants 2 not out yet so good!
5. pool, pool, pool, and more pool *yes!
6. go to the zoo (ft. worth) had pthe opportunity, but didn't take it.
7. celebrate my mom's wedding on july 4th!
8. 4th of july fun (cabin w/ mom and bob) i have firework pics to prove it :)
9. try all non-dairy smoothies from smoothie factory very, very close
10. go to at least one twins game (at the dome) not just one, but 3! go twins!
11. visit the 35 bridge (mn) didn't see it up close it's up, will be looking forward to see it next week
12. eat at zen sushi not at zen, but i did go to tom toms
13. walk around lake calhoun (mn) not enough time in mpls
14. make the trip to sprinkles cupcakes hopefully becca will go with me before we start school
15. eat at zelo (mn) *yup...for our 2 year anniversary
16. play with hadly, noah, and breanna *love them
17. fish with my dad dad didn't want to go under my stipulations...sun!
18. read the 4th book of sisterhood of the traveling pants *done and done
19. bike to the library at least once a week what was i thinking?
20. visit niagara falls in just a few short days! went and loved it. you have to do the maid of the mist boat tour, it rocks!
21. eat wings and drink beer with the white's in buffalo, ny in just a few short days! wings, wings, and more wings. my husband loves wings. every opportunity we got, we had them :)
22. take the girls to kung fu panda haven't seen it yet. didn't go with the girls, but i got to go with tim

back in the big d

we're back from our trip to mn. we had a great time with family and friends. plus i got to cross a lot of things of my summer "to-do" list.

tim surprised me for our 2nd anniversary with diner and roses at zelos in nicollet ave

i was very surprised...hence the army shorts

then we went to a twins game! go twins!

cute...

brother ross and karly

~family~
brady - darci and robert's son
at the cabin

the vows....
stevie and cody - in town for the big day
happy 4th of july

summer lovin'

i love summer. i think i love summer even more since i am a teacher. my dad always jokes that teachers never work. we do have a lot of days off, but during the time that we do work, we work really hard. so summer is like a giant present! we work really hard all year (10 months at least) and we get 2 restful months off.

i have accomplished a few things on my list: movies and pool time :)

a few that i am hoping to check off this week are in MN. i am leaving on tuesday for MN to visit with family! i can't wait to go. MN will be a lot colder..they are predicting temps in the 80s (maybe). but, in TX we've had steamy temps. i talked to my mom today and she said to pack sweatshirts. that is not a good sign.

a bonus that wasn't on my list is that i get to see carrie and annika while i'm in MN. they will be in from CA visiting family. lucky me will be there at the same time! i am super excited.

while in MN i will try to keep you posted with pictures.

cupcakes

my mom is getting remarried this summer and is looking for some tasty cupcake recipes. if you have some, please let me know!

spiders, scorpions and snakes oh my!

it's true. during the summer is the only time i question why we live here. every other season i can deal with. but summer is the time when all the critters come out. so far this year we have not had any scorpions in our house. our next door neighbors have not been so lucky. they have had 2 this year! spiders are a given no matter where you live. today, however, i had one crawling down my face while i was at the pool. GROSS! i did not freak out, but i was not cool with the situation. adding snakes to the group is just of last night. in the three years here i have only seen one snake, it was at school and far from our house. last night this all changed. i was driving home from tim's softball game in our neighborhood when i drove over a snake. yup, i drove over it. not just once, but twice. you see i wanted to make sure it was dead. YUCK! it was about 2.5 - 3 feet long, an about 1.5 inches in diameter. it was not your typical garden snake. i do not have a phobia of this sort of slithering creature, but i don't long to see them either. i appreciate a snake and it's ability to eat the mice. i do not want one to take up residence close to my house.
if anyone has any ideas to keep the snakes away, please let me know.

it's summer

our summer has officially started. what? jealous? sorry, the life of a teacher is a tough one.

living in tx has tons of perks. our pool has been open for a couple of weeks, we have been enjoying toasty temps, and i can gladly say i have already enjoyed 3 snow cones. pool, sun, and snow cones what's not to love?

since school is out, i am putting a list of things that i want to do/see this summer. our summer is only 2 months, so i will be trying to pack a ton of things into a little amount of time. i am also looking for fun summer suggestions. i will keep you posted (w/pics) of our summer fun!

things that i want to do/see:
1. paint my kitchen
2. visit canton/spend $
3. spend time at the lake w/ tim (no pics...sorry)
4. see the following movies:
-the house bunny
-get smart
-mama mia
-sisterhood of the traveling pants 2
5. pool, pool, pool, and more pool
6. go to the zoo (ft. worth)
7. celebrate my mom's wedding
8. 4th of july fun (cabin w/ mom and bob)
9. try all non-dairy smoothies from smoothie factory
10. go to at least one twins game (at the dome)
11. visit the 35 bridge (mn)
12. eat at zen sushi
13. walk around lake calhoun (mn)
14. make the trip to sprinkles cupcakes
15. eat at zelo (mn)
16. play with hadly, noah, and breanna
17. fish with my dad
18. read the 4th book of sisterhood of the traveling pants
19. bike to the library at least once a week
20. visit niagara falls
21. eat wings and drink beer with the white's in buffalo, ny
22. take the girls to kung fu panda

this is my list so far. let me know if you have any ideas that i could add to my list. it's going to be a fun summer. :)