Hard at work...

Here's another cool picture that was snapped by my friend, Cindy.

Field of Flight

So I finally caught up on some much needed sleep. Here are some more photos from the Field of Flight event. It was a lot of work, but I had a blast. I have never videotaped planes or hot air balloons before so it was definitely a great experience! I am so glad to hear that everyone had a wonderful weekend!!

I want to post some video soon. Once we get all of our footage organized and captured into the computers, I will be able to get the footage that I shot, so you all will be able to watch some of it. I took a couple of short videos with my camera too , so I'll see if I can get those posted soon. For now, I hope you enjoy the pictures :)

At the beginning of the airshow, a sky writer came out and spelled airshow and drew a smily face :)

These are the Thunderbird jets in their famous "diamond" formation. I have some video of this for Brian :P


This is the hot balloon I rode in. It's named, Tickled Pink and is piloted by Mike Nelson. His crew is his family, which I thought was really cool.

Me receiving my champagne toast from Mike after my morning flight.

This is the platform that I spent the weekend on. I should have also posted pictures of my sun burns :P

July 6th, trip to once again....Jackson.

Bar stools at the Milleneum Cowboy Bar in town.

( I don't think this squirrel won the battle.)

Stage coach tours. We didn't go but maybe next time. ($6 per person)

Palisades Lake along the way.

On top of the Palisades Dam.

Brian and I had a fun 4th of july. I had to work until 3pm and then came home to finish fixing some snacks for our little party we hosted for a few people brian works with. We served BBQ sandwiches from the crock pot and other various snacks. Everyone came over in the evening and we sat and drank some, ate, and played some card games until we had to go to the big fireworks show along the Snake River. The fireworks show lasted for about 40 minutes and it was very neat, I must say that they did put on a really nice show. After the show we all came back to our place and played some more games. I had to work the next morning and I was so beat on saturday, I didn't want to do anything. So today we decided to go to Jackson to get out of town while we both have the chance. It was a gorgeous day out and we had a great time walking around town again. Well not much else here, it sounds like everyone else had a great 4th also. Oh, and I made white chocolate cheesecake with strawberry sauce and everyone loved it! So I will post that recipe soon. It was so easy to make and it was a nice fresh tasting cake this time, and not so rich and really sweet.

Candy, water and explosions

We had a very full Fourth of July. In the morning we went to the parade. The boys both got full bags of candy. Cordelia fell asleep right before the parade started. The first thing to come through is always the fire trucks and they beep their horns and run the sirens. She slept through that and the Mandan High band that followed. She actually had a very good nap despite the noise. I guess she's used to it though.

After the parade, we went home and I thought the boys might lay down for a nap. They didn't so we went out to Grandpa and Grandma's. They played with their water toys while I took a very nice nap with Cordelia. The boys got very wet of course. Then we had hot dogs on the campfire. The boys didn't eat much, but they did have room for s'mores. Rion had three and Torii had two.

I wasn't planning on buying fireworks, but Auntie Vicki gave the boys money for fireworks so we picked a few up. The boys really liked the parachutes. The wind was just right that they could follow them and pick them up where they landed. They also liked the snaps and really all of the fireworks. Next year I will have to get a lot more.


Last year we watched the fireworks in Lincoln and I wanted to the same this year. About 10:30 Torii said he was ready to go to bed. The poor kid could barely keep his head up and his eyes open. If we hadn't been laughing at him and he had a minute more he would have fallen asleep right there. He was out before we got to Lincoln. Rion was still up so we pulled into DJ's parking lot in Lincoln and watched fireworks for a good fifteen minutes. He sat in the front seat with me while we watched the fireworks. The fireworks were going off non-stop and when you were outside it was so loud. It was great to watch.
When we got home I had to take each kid in one at a time and not a single one moved in the transition from car to bed. Torii slept in until 9am this morning. Rion got up at the usual time, but at 6:00 tonight he said he was tired and laid down with daddy. He was asleep within five minutes.

Happy Independence day!

Balloon and air show festival so far.
It's a blast.
On thursday I worked from 3am to midnight and then today I had to be at the station at 4am and worked until 10am. We came back Grand Rapids and I finally caught up on sleep. I had to come into the station tonight too to film the downtown fireworks. Tomorrow and sunday I work 4am to midnight again. HAHAHA. It's crazy, I know, but the pay check will be nice.
The festival is a ton of fun. Yesterday was kind of a practice day for our crew and I'm already enjoying it. This morning I rode in a hot air balloon for about an hour and filmed. It's was really cool. I was kind of afraid I would drop the camera out of the basket :P I'm going to try and get some of the footage and post it, but I'm not sure if I can use it or not.
I might also be deaf by the end of the week. Those jets are load!!! haha. Thank god for ear plugs! I don't think I'll be able to go up in a jet... but maybe a smaller plane, still cool though.
Anyways, I better get back to work. I'll try giving everyone a call next week after I catch up on my sleep :P Hope everyone enjoys their forth :)

This is a f-15 jet and a mustang of some sort? flying together.


At night, all the balloonist get together and "light up" their balloons together. Really need. Sometimes they'll do a "wave" or twinkle all of them.


This was my favorite balloon


I took this pic with my cell phone after we landed this morning.

Happy 4th

Anyone doing anything exciting for the 4th? We are going to the parade and mom and dad will probably have a campfire. That's all we are doing.

Yesterday Rion had soccer. He doesn't really pay attention when he plays. One time he walked right over the ball and didn't even know it. It was exciting though, because he scored a goal. He kicked it once and it got by a player from the other team so he had a clear shot to the goal. He dribbled it down and got a goal. It was great. He was so excited. The whole team kind of day dreams, but they're little so it's expected. They all have shown improvements already. Some of the other kids also had some really good plays yesterday so it was fun.

Fred and I went to Get Smart on Tues. It was pretty good. Then we ate at Johnny Carinos. I had some very excellent Chicken Milano.

Today we were at Target and the boys were looking at the toys. Torii spotted something in the Star Wars toys that he said he wants for his birthday. (Which when I thought about it, is next month already). It was the monster from Return of the Jedi that Luke fights when Jabba opens the trap door. The thing is huge too. It's probably the size of a basketball. It is so ugly, but Torii said he wanted it because he likes monsters. It was on clearance, but was still almost thirty dollars. If it gets cheap I might consider getting it for him. He really does love monsters.

Outtakes

I am trying to get new pictures on my Etsy page to make it look a little better. Now that we can go outside and Cordelia can sit up, I can get better pictures. When I do this, I just snap a bunch of pictures until I get a few I can use. Today I got some pictures that weren't good for the Etsy shop, but so darn cute I had to share them. I'm not sure what she's thinking here. It looks like "mom you're so embarrassing," or "I can't believe I forgot..."
No, I did not just give her a lemon.
So big!

Living and breathing

So after a very long week and weekend, I am finally getting settled into my new place. I officially moved in last wednesday. Mom and dad came on Thursday evening, so it was a bit chaotic getting my stuff semi-organized and decent in time for their arrival. I had a great time while they here though. On friday, we had a very successful day of rummage sale shopping and getting random items for my apartment. We found an awesome 1940's green chair for $10 and a really cool folding coffee table for 7. I could not let that chair sit there though. It's so cool. We also found some random shelves and kitchen items. The first thing I found was a wine rack for a buck. I now have a little mini bar in my kitchen :D I also got a free lamp, folding table, and pillow :P There were so many sales, it was insane! I also found a wonderful farmer's market close to my house. Later that night Eric and us moved my bed into my apartment. We were all pretty exhausted from the numerous trips up to my apartment, so we went out for drinks at the Friday's five blocks from where I live. It was a good visit, and dad wasn't too hard on Eric, except for when he called him dumb :P Just kidding dad! But no really, he did. He also told him the "sailor" math problem (Eric is a math major). He came up with a theory, but unsatisfied with the answer, came up with a new one on Sunday *rolls eyes*. On saturday, mom, dad and I went to Lansing to do some antique shopping. The day was turning up little finds until our last stop. I found a loveseat! It was priced right, and in good condition. We managed to fit it into the CRV, but I had to sit in between mom and dad in the front all the way back to Grand Rapids (about an hour). It was pretty funny. In Lansing, I brought mom and dad to a really great burrito place called, Big Ten Burrito where they serve you burritos so big you cannot finish them. They enjoyed it. After moving my loveseat up to the sixth floor we relaxed with some amaretto and coke. Sunday, we went to Get Smart, and I drug Eric along. After the movie, I made supper for everyone, and we relaxed some more. It was a good visit for everyone, and it was really nice to see mom and dad! :) I miss my sisters now!!! Anyways, here are some pictures of the apartment. Enjoy :)

Moving stuff into the kitchen...


Stuff... eric and I cleared a path to the tv cause we wanted to watch a movie and have pizza and beer after moving in all my crap on wednesday


Finished product:


My awesome 10 dollar chair and seven dollar coffee table :D


My loveseat! My bedroom is in the background, but not ready for pictures :P


I like the kitchen floor, and of course the hardwood :D


The bathroom... it extends to the right where the you will find a sink and tile shower.


Southern exposure. Note all the church steeples. It really neat when the bells ring.


Western exposure. The big building closest to the front is the public library.


View from the sixth floor

No pictures!!

I got in trouble for taking this picture of dad in an Urban Outfitters. :P

Fun

Rion had his first soccer game tonight. It was a lot of fun to watch those little kids playing soccer. It seems like he has already gotten better at his soccer skills. During the game he mostly ran around. He didn't get in and try to steal the ball from anyone, but he'll learn. When we got home I had to feed Cordelia first and then planned on putting the boys in the bath and then to bed. Torii couldn't wait that long and he went to bed by himself and fell to sleep really fast. We had a beautiful weekend so we spent a lot of time outside. I got this water toy on clearance last winter so we had to try it out. It is suppose to be like a dunk tank. There are three balls and if you hit one of the red ovals, water sprays on the person standing on the other side. They got so wet, but had so much fun.
And this is just a picture of Cordelia eating carrots. She is such a good eater.

Do you know all 50 states?

http://www.ironicsans.com/state22.html

I missed five. How did you do?

Our neighborhood. Random pics.

Our neighborhood.

I finally got some simple chairs on our porch and some flowers. Brian and I sit outside with the furballs at night and the cats like to play in the grass and chase the lighting bugs. It's funny.

Pretty moon the other night. It was a perfect night for a nice glass of wine or beer, your choice, and just relax. It's been gorgeous weather around here lately and it's suppose to get warmer!

Brian's Birthday 6-14-08

For Brian's birthday we didn't do much. I had to work the morning of his birthday and there was no way for me to get the entire day off of work because we are that short handed. Oh well.

While I was at work, Brian went to an Air show in Rexburg, ID that's about 30 minutes from Idaho falls, then he went to a gun range to fire a few rounds. After I got off of work we drove to Jackson Hole, Wy to meet Mark. I guess mark was spending a week in Jackson Hole to help a resident there fly his own (yes own) plane. This guy must have some money. We met Mark in a local bar to pick him up after their flight and we briefly met the millianare who just bought his own small two engine plane;mark estimated some plane's these people buy are around $600,000+. I can't fathem buying my own personnal plane. Crazy rich people. It sounds like he's having a great time with his job. Mark said, flying over the Teton Mountains was so neat. I can't imagine flying right over the mountain range in Jackson, i'm a little jealous.

We didn't have much time to spend in Jackson but, we had a fun visit. We had a nice walk around town and I hope to get back there soon to shop a little bit. There's not much I could afford there, but I could find a few things I might like. :-) It was such a gorgeous drive there again. We just missed the snow storm they had about a week before, so most of the snow is gone.

Not much new around here. Otherwise the same old. Hope all is well everywhere.

Laurie~Hope your enjoying your new pad. Send some pictures soon! And hope you are having fun showing mom and dad around.

I made this for dessert on Sunday. Ooooooo, so good! German Chocolate Cheesecake.

For the Crust:
2 cups chocolate graham cracker crumbs (about two inner packages of graham crackers). Chocolate cookie crumbs may be substituted. 6 tablespoons butter, melted.

For the Filling:
2 1/2 eight-ounce packages of cream cheese~1 cup granulated sugar~2 tablespoons all-purpose flour~1/4 teaspoon salt~3 large eggs~1 teaspoon vanilla~

2 tablespoons milk.

For the Toppings: (I added coconut also).
1 cup chopped pecans or walnutsFor the chocolate topping, combine four ounces of sweet German chocolate with two tablespoons whipping cream and one tablespoon butter. Melt in a small saucepan and stir until smooth.For the caramel topping, melt 12 caramels with 1/3 cup cream in a small saucepan, stirring until smooth. Or use ice cream topping.

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.
1.) In a nine-inch spring form pan, mix the cracker crumbs and the melted butter. Press the crumb mixture into a crust across the bottom and about one inch up the sides. Bake the crust for eight minutes.

2.) In a large bowl, cream the cream cheese with the sugar. Add the flour and salt. Add the eggs, vanilla, and milk all at once. Mix until just combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl. Pour the filling mix into the crust.

3.) Bake for ten minutes at 450 degrees. Lower the temperature to 200 degrees and bake for an additional 35 to 40 minutes or until the cheesecake filling is set.

4.) After the cheesecake has cooled for ten minutes, with a sharp knife, loosen the edges of the cheesecake from the pan so that the cake will pull away from the pan as it cools. Remove the rim of the pan after it has cooled for about forty-five minutes.

5.) Drizzle the cheesecake with caramel and then with chocolate. Sprinkle nuts on the cake. Refrigerate until completely cool before serving.

Random

Dad brought a new couch over the other day. We put Cordelia in the crib so she would be out of the way. When I looked over at her, she was peeking over the crib rail to see what she was missing.
On Saturday it was finally nice enough to put Cordelia in a little dress. She has so many cute ones, but if it continues to be cold I'm afraid she'll outgrow them before she gets to wear them. Maybe she'll have to wear them around the house, just to get some use out of them.
On Saturday we took a walk to a playground. On the way back Rion found a caterpiller. He was really interested in watching it. I told him to put his finger down and the caterpiller would crawl on it. It took some time, it was a stubborn caterpiller, but finally it crawled up on Rion's finger. Rion liked it, he said it was fuzzy. Torii wouldn't try it.
Torii must have grown some because his legs finally reach the width of the doorway. He has been trying for months to climb the doorway like big brother. Now he won't stop doing it.

And today we had a nice day. I made Fred crab legs for Father's Day. We also had bacon wrapped scallops on the grill, popcorn shrimp and Red Lobster biscuits. For dessert we had Fred's favorite: warm brownies with ice cream and chocolate syrup. Then we went outside and played soccer. Rion was doing really well kicking the ball. Then I would kick it back to him and he was doing good stopping the ball too. I like to play keep away with Torii, but he always dives on the ball. I told him only goalies could do that so we set up a goal and he really liked being the goalie.

More Beach

Yeah, so I have been going to the beach a lot lately. We've been having the perfect weather though! Some friends and I went last Saturday and grilled. It was a great time. :) Got sun burnt and all! :D Saturday was also the first time I've ever swam in the lake. It actually quite nice once you get into it. Cold at first, but that's jut part of swimming. The more I visit the lake, the more I like it. It is seriously an ocean without the salt. Really great!
Today I went on another geology field trip. We went to a coal power plant, which was kind of interesting. I remember going to a coal mine in elementary school, so it was kind of neat to see a plant now.
Not too much else going. still waiting to move into my apartment. Staying with some other friends right now (long story), but I hope to be settled into my place very soon. If not this week, next week for sure ;)