Halloween 2010

Halloween was pretty laid back for us this year, but we still managed to find ourselves busy for the night.

Our evening started visiting the cutest devil and angel in town . . .

Then we made our way over to Jacksons for the Steeler game. It turns out that the Steelers played an evening game this year, and since we are there every other Sunday during football season, it was obvious what our plans would be this year.

A costume contest was thrown into the mix this year, which made it that much more fun. The rules stated that everyone's costume had to follow the black and/or gold color scheme, but your imagination could take it from there. And let me tell you, people were definately creative!
My mom as a goal post

My Aunt Wendy as a bus

My Grandma and Grandpa

And of course, Joel, Kelsey and I. We decided to go with a 'current event' costume this year, and with it being Steelers themed, what better than the Ben Roethlisberger fiasco?! For those of you who don't have any idea what I'm talking about, you should look it up. It will make a lot more sense. Because of this, we ended up being 'Ben's Bathroom Buddies.'

Joel included. See for yourself . . .

Not too often you see Joel dressed as a girl.

Actually, I've never seen Joel dressed as a girl.

This one will definately be making its way into the wedding slide show ;)

Unfortunately the Steelers lost, but all in all we had a great night.

Happy Halloween!

The Pumpkin Patch

Even though we obviously don't have any kids, going to the pumpkin patch is one of my favorite October activities.

Normally, we go out to the Country Mercantile, who essentially has an entire fall festival each year. It's always filled with activities, as well as the pumpkin patch itself. This year; however, we decided that we really just needed the actual pumpkins, not the corn maze, petting zoo, carnival, etc. that go along with it.

That's where the kids part would come into play, I suppose.

So to save a few dollars this year, we decided to try a new pumpkin patch, at a local nursery.

So a couple weeks ago Terra, Jen and I packed into the car and ventured out to find this new place.

It ended up turning out really well! The patch had plenty of pumpkins, and for a cheap price as well.





Afterwards, we came back and carved the pumpkins. I unfortunately didn't catch any pictures of this, and didn't even manage to catch a picture of my cute pumpkin before it rotted.

We had a great time though!

A Picture A Day . . . Sixteen

Joel showing off Connor's tie . . .

Westin Meets Bailey

Westin seems to be a very outgoing dog. He loves to be around people, and really enjoys getting attention. He's very playful, and will essentially play with anything, including other dogs.

Bailey, my mom's dog, is pretty much the opposite. He definately loves attention as well, but as he's aged, he's become much more stubborn.

Another known fact about Bailey is that he hates other dogs. He was never really around them for majority of his life, so when they come around now, his tail instantly turns down, he freezes, and you can see the "if I don't move, maybe this crazy thing won't see me" look on his face.

So when Bailey was brought to our house yesterday to meet Westin for the first time, the result was exactly what we excpected. Westin was definately interested, while Bailey . . . not so much.

I suppose it will continue to be a work in progress. . .

Happy Birthday Mom!

The dinner . . .

The presents . . .


And even a birthday shot . . .

Happy 50th Birthday Mom!

Our Newest Addition

Meet our newest addition: Westin!

Westin was added to our family on Saturday, when Joel kindly brought him home as a surprise . . .

You see, whether we should get a dog or not has been hot topic of conversation around our house recently. I managed to find myself in Petsmart a week or so ago, and of course on a day that Pet Over Population makes their appearance. It is there that I first saw Westin, and while he clung to me as I held him, I had made up my mind that it's time to get a dog.

Unfortunately, I didn't have much time that day to stick around and see what all was involved in adopting him.

I came home and immediately looked up their website. There I saw Westin, and that he was actually in a foster home in Prosser.

Later that night I told Joel my discovery of the day. He immediately seemed hesitant, saying that we don't need a dog now, we aren't home enough, etc.

Naturally, this frustrated me, and during the week, I will admit that I was constantly pestering him about the topic. He stuck to his guns, and continued to say that we should not get the dog.

To make a long story short, I was sadened about the whole thing, but had started a long stretch back at work, and decided to drop the subject.

So jump to Saturday afternoon . . .

I had worked Friday night, and woke up around 3:30 on Saturday, ready to go about my normal routine to get ready for work. I heard Joel come home, and as I opened the bedroom door to greet him, there he was holding Westin in his arms!

Remember how I said that it's Joel's random acts that make me love him the most?

Now, Westin has already become part of our daily routine.

He is a great dog . . . sure he's already had a couple of accidents, but overall, he's great. He follows you essentially wherever you go, and enjoys spending his time playing, chewing on bones, and sleeping.

And for as much as Joel said he didn't want a dog, he and Westin sure have a strong bond already. See for yourself . . .


Aren't they cute?

The Story of Bugsy

For some reason I am not sure of, Joel seems to have a strange obsession with bugs.

It's a strange relationship . . . he seems to be slightly afraid, but interested at the same time.

So afraid, in fact, that our house has been sprayed I don't know how many times, as well as bug-bombed on a few occasions.

Don't get me wrong . . . I will fully admit that I am definately terrified of bugs myself, so the fact that he is so preventative about it is something I am very greatful for.

There is one thing; however, that I am not so greatful for.

His name is Bugsy.

So here's the story : One evening, Joel came in the house quite excited that he had found this 'bug' he had never seen before.

And after looking at it, I had definately never seen anything like it either.

Joel was extremely fascinated in this bug. He wouldn't leave it alone, and apparently decided that he didn't want this bug to go anywhere but our front porch.

So he made sure to watch it carefully . . .

And when the time was right, decided that he needed to kill it. Afterall, it may just get into our house.

So what is the best way to kill such a bug?

Clearly, it would be to pour some type of liquid on it.

And what type of liquid is most obvious as the best choice for the job?

Why, iced tea of course.

And once the bug was drowned, the door was quickly shut, just to ensure that the iced-tea drenched bug would not be able to get into the hosue.

And since then the bug, now known to us as 'Bugsy,' has been hanging out on our front porch.

I know it's strange, but afterall, it's always been Joel's random acts that make me love him the most.

At least there's never a dull moment around our house.

So there you go, the story of Bugsy . . . the bug.

And if you would like to see this nasty thing, here's a picture for you. I'm really not sure what Bugsy is, to tell you the truth. The majority seems to think he's a scorpion, but to me, he's just a nasty looking thing. So here's a fair warning . . . if you aren't a fan of bugs like myself, I would consider turning away at this point . . .

Bugsy.

A Picture A Day . . . Fifteen

Unfortunately, during this particular trip to Vegas, I took hardly any pictures.

Weird, I know, for someone who took over 1,000 pictures in Florida back in March.

But for some reason on this go-around, every time something was going on, I either didn't think about pulling my camera out, or didn't even have it at all.

Now, I am somewhat regretting it, and will definately be back to bring my camera everywhere I go.

But luckily I do have some, and for today, I will leave you with one of those as the picture for today. . .

Enjoy!

Las Vegas Part Two: The Piano Bar

One of my absolute favorite places ever is the Bar at Times Square in Vegas.

Known to me as the piano bar.

I absolutely love this place.

I would probably book a trip to Vegas just to go there. . .

. . . Ok, I would definately book a trip to Vegas just to go there.

Every time I've been to Vegas I've gone to this bar.

I was even engaged at this bar for goodness sake.

I love the music . . .

I love the dancing . . .

And I love being able to sing along carelessly, knowing that nobody can hear my horrible voice as I belt out a tune.

We always have a great time, and as you can see from these pictures, this trip was no different . . .

Las Vegas Part 1: The Surprise

Let me introduce you to Debbie and Gregg Jones:

You see, when my mom and Debbie were younger (around middle-school to high-school age), they were inseperable.

I'm told they went everywhere together, did everything together, and in all reality, you could never find one without the other.

Truely best friends.

The unfortunate thing is that Debbie and Gregg do not live close. They are actually even almost all the way across the country, in Indianapolis Indiana. Because of this, my mom and Debbie had not seen each other for a couple of years . . .

. . . until last weekend that is.

You see, when I received an email from Debbie (sometimes facebook can be a convience) quite a few months ago, about how she was hoping to get together with my mom soon, I knew this Vegas trip would be the perfect opportunity.

Both friends were turning 50 in the same year, and afterall, you only turn 50 once, right?

So together, Debbie and I had been workin hard to put together the largest surprise I've worked on to date.

Have I mentioned, I absolutely love surprising people?

And let me tell you what a huge success it was!

First, the group of us met up with my mom and friends at a bar: minus Debbie and Gregg. After saying hello for a minute or two, the guests of honor made their appearance.

At first, my mom had no idea who had come up behind her and tapped her on the shoulder . . .

But once she realized who this 'mysterious' person was, the tears started flowing . . . She was absolutely shocked.



The rest of the weekend was filled with catching up, good laughs, and just spending time together.

I'm glad I was able to surprise my mom so much, and I'm glad she enjoyed it!

A Picture A Day . . . Fourteen

A Picture A Day . . . Thirteen

I've recently been thinking I'm missing my longer hair. What do YOU think?

P.S. There are Vegas posts in the near future, I promise . . .

Time for a Vacation!

In just a few short hours, we will be headed here:


I am very much looking forward to this little getaway. It's time for a small break from the fast paced life of reality to just sit and enjoy some time together.

You see, as most of you know, I work night shift. This means going to work at 6pm and coming home anywhere between 6:30 and 7:30 in the morning. Don't get me wrong, I really do love working at night, it definately has its benefits. But, there is one main downfall: when working multiple days in a row, I am pretty much secluded from the world. My room-darkening shades make our bedroom a dark cave (although I absolutely love them), and during daylight hours, you will find me snuggled in the darkness getting some sleep.

Because of this, Joel and I will literally go days without seeing eachother. Aside from me coming home in the morning and getting a quick, sleepy 'hello' on his way to the shower, and maybe even a quick phone-call from me on my drive back to the hospital, we don't see eachother.

So for the weekend, we will be spending some quality time together. We will be meeting my parents and some friends in Las Vegas, and I am really looking forward to it. A few days to kick back and relax. There may even be a suprise in store . . . Stay tuned.

It's Here . . . Almost?

The good news is that fall has definately hit our house hardcore:





The bad news is that the weather doesn't seem to agree. It's been in the 80's up until a few days ago, and even now, it's still sunny and 70 degrees.

For someone who absolutely loves cooler weather, this waiting game is driving me crazy.

Come on cool weather . . . it's October for goodness sake!