Our Anniversary :-)

I can't beleive it! Our 1st anniversary is already here! We spent our weekend in Chicago. We left friday afternoon and went to the play "Wicked," at chicago's ford theater. The play was everything we excpected it to be and more. The music, lighting, dance, and everything else was so wonderful! I want to go again. It's worth it. I think if someone here's the Wizard of Oz,they think of Judy Garland or Dorthy; and it was pretty neat that we were at the Ford Theater watching Wicked and this is the same theater that Judy Garland used to perform at.
We also went to Milleneum Park the next day and walked around there and everywhere else. The weather was sooo wonderful! Perfect day. We did a little treasure hunt map that brian found for the Park, and it directs you to all the art and sculptures around it and tells you about each piece. It was neat to see it all. We found a Park Grill that was outside and we decided to stop there and have a nice burger while we enjoy the view of the city. To top the day off in Chicago, we went to The Cheesecake Factory and had a slice of cheesecake. Yummmm. And then drove back home.
Today, we went to The Olbrich Gardens in Madison and they were so nice. The weather was once again beautiful. The gardens has everything from a tropical rain forest to a garden area from Thailand. Later this evening we may go to a movie also. We already went to The Olive Garden to have lunch.
Well, that's a short version of our trip for our special day. Thank you to all who made our wedding day so special and memorable. Love, Kelly and Brian

Happy Anniversary

Sorry, this was the only picture I had on my computer of the two of you together. Hope you have a really good and special 1st anniversary!

Weekend

It's been cloudy and rainy here the past few days. We haven't done too much, but I do really like the cooler weather.

On Saturday our neighborhood had a block party. Everybody brought really good food. People that used to live on the street were also invited. A lot of the people that live on the block now had their grandkids there so there were a lot of kids around. The boys had a lot of fun. Fred Rion made me look real good. He took a break from playing and had a snack. Over everything else there he grabbed some brocolli and ate it. Then he went for seconds. Nobody could believe it. Torii had everyone laughing because they asked him about his Jeff Gordon jacket and he went on and on about it. About 9:00 Fred Rion said he was tired and ready to go home. Which was good because there was drinking going on and some people were getting a little annoying. But it was a good time. We got to know some of the neighbors a little better.

Last week we went to a Meddy Bear concert at Sleepy Hollow. Fred Rion had no interest in the concert and we soon ended up way in the back where other kids were playing. This was basically the section for parents who had boys. We sat on a little hill and the kids were rolling down it. Then Fred Rion went off with some kids and wandered too far for me so I had to get after him. They had a good time and it was cool that night so it wasn't so bad.

Yesterday we went to mom and dad's because the boys wanted to see them. Sounded like they had a really good time on vacation. We gave dad his birthday gift (don't forget to call him today!)

Haven't been up to much else. Just taking it easy.

vacation pics

I had a fun past couple of days. On monday the parents and I went to Lansing for some antiquing and to visit the capital. Michigan has a very beautiful and unique capital building. The first picture is of the dome. Second picture is of the glass floor, and the third picture is of mom and dad. It's kind of dark, but it was hard to snap a good picture. Antiquing was fun. Both mom and dad found some things, and I found a few items for myself :) Tuesday we went antiquing along the lake shore cities. It was fun. At the end of the day we stuffed ourselves with Red Robin burgers. They were delicious.
I can't wait to come home again to see everyone! Miss you all!!
love, laurie

Crazy kids

I'm Batman!

They are running out of places to climb.

Chokecherry pickers

A couple of weekends ago we went to mom and dad's and picked chokecherries. Their trees were loaded. Fred Rion quit early and left to play. Torii was funny, because he would put one chokecherry in his bucket and then empty it into the big pail.

I got some prints made of the pictures from Kelly's cd she sent. I did it on Walmart.com and picked them up later. It worked pretty slick. I had to do a couple more pages in Torii's scrapbook and my vacation pictures weren't as good as Kelly's.

We didn't do too much this weekend. Yesterday was so nice. It almost felt like fall. The kids had fun feeding Maggie this weekend. They played with their airplanes Grandpa bought every time we went out there. I got some major cleaning done this weekend. I think I might be going through my nesting period now. (That's when you're pregnant and you start to clean like crazy because of the new baby on the way). I had to force myself to sit down and take a break because I just wanted to keep cleaning. I took this afternoon off and I'm going to continue on the kids' room. I have to make some room for the crib. I also got some cucumbers from one of the neighbors so if I feel like it today I might try to make some refrigerator pickles.

Wanna Polka?

Here are some pics of us at The Essen Haus having a great time. Dad and I danced some polka and I tried the waltz. On Saturday morning we went to Baraboo which is about 40 minutes north of Madison and we did some Antique shopping and just spent a relaxing day walking around. It was nice to get out of town also. For lunch we went to Paul Bunyan's cook shanty and had a nice all you can eat BBQ ribs. On the way back to madison, I showed mom and dad the garden. Later that evening, we went to the Essen Haus and had some nice munchies and some beers. Sunday morning, we all slept in and had a nice brunch at the hotel which included some items like, prime rib, shrimp, salmon, fruit, desserts, sausage's, bacon, french toast and casserols. So, I think it's safe to say that mom and dad will be set for a few hours on the road to michigan. :-) Brian is also on his way home today. He should be here around 5pm. I think we are going out to eat tonight. Haaaah, more restaurant foods. My stomach is going to burst. Ha ha. I think we are going to Macaroni Grill tonight. And I have tommorow off from work, so I don't know what the plan is. Well, that's basically all right now. I am sure I will be getting more photos soon. Take care all! Love, Kelly

Long week

Last week was just a long week. I had car problems. It wouldn't start on two days while I was at work. I think we got that problem fixed now. On Monday I was also suppose to get a PowerPoint together, but our computers were down. So while I was trying to figure out how to my vehicle starting again, I was trying to fix the computers. It turned out a construction crew cut a wire, which would have been nice if the help desk could have made that call right away. Instead I was stressed out for most of the day. So on Tuesday I only had the morning to work on the PowerPoint, which I actually got done. It didn't look great, but it was done. Wednesday my vehicle quit at work again. Thursday and Friday were busy at work as usual, but by then it already seemed like it should be the weekend.

I didn't do too much this weekend. The mornings were nice and cool so I did get outside with the boys. Last night they stayed overnight at Grandpa and Grandma's. So then I got my Wal-mart shopping out of the way and watched The Prestige last night. It was ok, I figured out the ending before it happened. Now I'm at work again. I don't know what they are going to do in the coming weeks. I'm sure they are counting on me to be at the entrance on Monday mornings, but I just don't think I can do it. I can't be on my feet that long without feeling really uncomfortable. They sent me into town this morning which I didn't want to do because it was a long list of errands. I was going to work as long as I could, but now I'm thinking I should just work to the end of Sept at the very lastest. That would at least give me some time to relax, clean house, and spend some time with the boys before all hell breaks loose. Actually, I think I just talked myself into it.

I guess I did a little venting today, but I guess I needed to. I've felt a little stressed.

Oh yah, the kids like Scooby Doo now. They keep making new movies for Cartoon Network. Anyway, they had a marathon on Saturday, but it was the old Scooby Doo. We watched a couple of episodes. I had forgotten about the laugh track. I wish they would put those on DVD, they were great.

The kids have been really funny lately, but here's one of the funnier things from recently. The kids were getting out of the bathtub and Torii kept screaming and it was really high pitched. Finally I said, "Torii you need to stop screaming or I will spank that bare butt of yours." I turned around and then I could hear Fred Rion whispering to him, "Scream Torii, scream."

A Grand Rapids Photo...

Took this picture awhile back. It was taken on my camera phone because I didn't have my digital at the time. I was getting off of work and snapped it while I was walking to my car. I park on this bridge sometimes. It overlooks the Grand River.

Crockpot beans

We are having a potluck for work on Tues and I decided to make Crockpot beans. If you don't have this recipe it's a must have. Worse yet, if you don't have a crockpot you must invest in one. It makes a really big batch so it's really good for get togethers.

1/2-1lb ground beef
3/4 lb bacon cut in small pieces
1cup chopped onion
2 cans (1lb, 15ounce size) pork and beans
1 can (1lb) kidney beans drained
1 can (1lb) butter limas drained
1 cup ketchup
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 TB liquid smoke
3TB white vinegar
1tsp salt
dash of pepper

Brown ground beef in skillet, drain off fat and put beef in crockpot. Brown bacon and onion, drain off fat. Add bacon, onions, and remaining ingredients to crockpot. Stir together well. Cover and cook on low for 4-9 hours.

Spanish Rice

Hey, if you are looking for a good side to your mexican dish try making some homemade spanish rice. We made enchiladas for supper tonight. We wanted some spanish rice for our side, so I decided to look up some recipes. I made one, and it turned out really good. It was really easy. It worked perfect for me too because we had everything in our kitchen except the parsley. I modified the recipe a bit because it had some weird directions, but here it is:

INGREDIENTS:
1 1/2 cups rice (I used instant wheat rice)
2 1/2 cups chicken broth
1 cup plain tomato sauce (I used canned diced tomatoes with green chilies)
3 cloves finely chopped garlic (I used pre-minced garlic that you can get in the jar)
1/4 of a medium onion
2 tablespoons oil
4 heaping tablespoons of finely chopped parsley (optional)
I also added a bit of black pepper

PREPARATION:
In a medium sauce pan, heat oil over medium heat. Add in the fresh garlic and onion. Saute for 1-2 minutes until softened. Add in dry rice. Stir for about 5 minutes until rice becomes a golden brown color.

When rice is golden, pour into a pot and add in broth and tomato sauce (Slowly into rice, not directly onto hot pot!) Add in the parsley if you're using it. Stir it up and bring to a boil. Once it starts boiling, turn the heat to low and cover. Let it simmer for 20 minutes and fluff with a fork.

*If you don't have fresh garlic or onions on hand you can use the equivalent in powder form. Do not saute the powder(I thought the sauteing the "powder" part was funny so I left it in there), just skip that step and add the garlic powder and/or onion powder when you add the liquids. If you don't have tomato sauce you can use unseasoned stewed tomatoes, or canned diced tomatoes with their liquid.

Finished at last

Well, I ignored my family all last weekend plus a couple more days so I could read the last Harry Potter book. I thought it was good, but a little slow in the beginning. I liked the final battle between Harry and Voldemort. Not the best book in the series, but still worth the read. On a somewhat related note, I'm going to make Torii a t-shirt. All it's going to say is Slytherin. Maybe I'll make a Gryffindor one for Fred Rion.

We had a family move in to the duplex on our block this week. It was kind of funny because it happened to be a family that was camping at Ft. Lincoln until they could move in. I had talked to the mom one day when their 4 year old fell off the monkey bars in the campground and broke his arm. Then the boys showed up at our door one day and wanted to play with Fred Rion and Torii. They are a rowdy bunch though. I'm so glad Torii fell asleep just a little bit ago so I had an excuse to not let the boys play with them tonight. They are over here all the time. One nice thing about that group is that when my kids play with them, I really see that my kids are pretty good kids.

I had a doctors appointment today. Everything went good. I had another ultrasound today to check out one thing, but it looked like everything was ok. I told them to double check the sex of the baby. It is for sure a girl. Then I had to take the worst test of them all today. They check for gestational diabates. You have to drink this 10 ounce solution that is really really sweet and then sit for an hour. Then they take blood. I have no problem with them taking blood but that solution you have to drink is awful. The other times I felt naseaus from it, but not this time. I did start to feel a little light headed by the time I got home, but felt better after I ate.

I can't believe tomorrow is already Friday. Thank goodness though. I'm ready for this baby to be here just so I don't have to work anymore. Work outside the home that is.

The C.D's are coming with pics

So, here's are some more pics for everyone. The roses are from my garden and I picked them about two days ago. They smell so nice. I wish I had more though, hint hint, brian. Ha ha!

Sorry I haven't been able to get to the post office to send out the pics to everyone. Work has been crazy. I have been working 7am until about 5pm or a little after that. My boss is out for the whole week for a family vacation so now i'm doing her job and mine. It's been so busy too. At least this week will and has been going fast, so that means one less week for brian to be home!!! Yaaaay.

Brian has been talking about Idaho Falls lately, as in a place to live next year. When he graduates in December he would like to work part time with his boss he is currently working with and maybe be doing part time for a master's degree. Either way he would like to work out there it sounds like. So, we may be moving in January or sometime in the next summer. We are not sure yet if we will move or not but it could be a possibility. I would be excited to move as a new adventure but I am going to miss my job the most and my friend Megan. I am starting to make some nice friends at work and I enjoy everyone I work with.

Well, not much else going on. I will get those pics sent out this week for sure. I will also keep everyone updated on Idaho Falls.

Love,

Kelly

I had a great time coming home this last weekend. What a fun time surprising everyone! Stacy, & Laurie, I have put C.D's together finally and I have put all pictures and video from the Dells and from when we came home. The c.d's seem to work this time and I hope they work for you. I will get them sent out by Monday at the latest. Lots of picures! :-)

Thank you Fred Rion and Torii for helping aunt kelly and uncle brian wash their car. We had so much with the water fight. Uncle Brian had fun racing down the hill also.

Take care everyone, and I can't wait to see everyone again soon!

I've always been a fan of graphic design...

I have always enjoyed looking at how companies choose to advertise their products, and I think I just found some of the coolest ads I have ever seen.
Check them out...

First fish

I know you already saw these pictures, but I'm going to post them anyway. They are so cute. Fred Rion got a certificate from Game & Fish with a spot on it to put his first fish photo. Then I'm going to get a frame for it.

The second picture with the boys wearing sunglasses is going to work with me. I have to keep updating my pictures there. I think it's time to take the snow picture out of the frame.

It was good to see everyone this weekend. We had a lot of fun. Fred Rion sure had a lot of fun with Uncle Brian. Hope everyone had a good trip back.

7-11

I forget whether or not there are 7-11s in Bismarck still, but if there are be sure to go get your free slurpee. July 11th is 7/11's birthday, and to celebrate, they are handing out free slurpees!! :) I'm drinking mine right now! hehe. Maybe the boys would want one!

To continue..

I didn't get done with my blog entry yesterday as kids were climbing all over me and I was also trying to talk to Kelly.

So anyway.. On Saturday it was really hot. We did some errands in the morning and stayed in the rest of the day. We spent most of the day downstairs. I started a project in the room the boys and I share. They have a play room and it's also my craft room. I ripped down the wallpaper and most of the styrofoam they had on the wall and ripped out the carpet. Now I'm going to put some stuff on the wall that will hopefully keep water out. Then I just want to redo the room how I want. Dad said he would help put up walls since I don't really know how to do that. Hopefully I can get this done before the baby gets here. We'll see.

Sunday was really nice so we walked to GG's house. The kids played outside and then ate chocolate like they always do there. No wonder I couldn't get Torii to take a nap when we got home. Then they picked and ate raspberries.

A big mess

On Friday I came home to the biggest mess ever. There was 3 boxes worth of cereal spread out all over the kitchen floor. Later when I went into the bathroom I also discovered Fruit Loops in the toilet. I was so mad. I guess the kids got up from their nap and daddy didn't. So while he continued to sleep the boys made a mess. I'm not that mad at the boys anymore, but I'm still a little peeved at Fred.

That night we went to a dance for Matt and Amber because they renewed their vows. Fred Rion was excited to go to a dance and he said he wanted to dance with Daisy. Torii said he wanted to dance with Dave. Poor Fred Rion kept asking Daisy to dance, but she kept rejecting him. Then Torii kept rejecting me. He danced with Andi and Amber, but wouldn't dance with me.

4th of July

Yesterday we went to the parade. We had a good time. The boys got a sack load of candy. Torii was sticking out his tongue because it was blue from a popsicle. After the parade we went home and tried to get naps in. Only Fred and I took naps. Then we went out to mom and dad's and brought some brats out to grill. We were going to watch the Capitol fireworks, but they started earlier than I thought they would. We parked on a hill and watched some of them. Then we went back out to Lincoln and sat in a parking lot and watched the fireworks there. It was really awesome. Everyone had big fireworks and they were going off nonstop. I think everyone went crazy this year since we couldn't shoot off fireworks last year because it was too dry. Watching the fireworks was a lot better than buying a bunch and having to light them all. Hope everyone else had a good 4th as well.