Creative Sisters

My sister, Lindy, made this bracelet for me after seeing one and quickly snapping a picture. I failed to get a shot of the back which hooks with a cool button. It doesn't look crocheted, does it?!

My sister-in-law, Susan, is a fantastic writer and recently wrote an article about the Jewish holiday, Sukkot. Here's the link to the article and a picture of the sukkah that she recreated.

And last, but not least, my other sister-in-law, Michelle, is now a board certified physician. What an amazing family!

Happy September

We finally got some rain today and the heat has subsided for the moment. It feels like fall and I can't wait. I'm going to my first Husker game of the season on Saturday and then it will definitely be fall. 

I drove up to Minnesota with my parents last weekend to visit my nephews. They are so full of life, I can barely keep up with them. Martin, who is 5, is growing up and he even had a sleepover at the motel with us. We played in the pool, visited a farm, and watched some football.  The photo above was taken right after Matthew said, "watch, I can do amazing tricks."

A big yawn during our afternoon walk.

I found this recipe on Pinterest. It was delicious and nutritious. Mac-n-cheese with spinach.

Malmo Q125th Celebration

We visited the bustling town of Malmo today (population 120). It was their Q125 Celebration. My mom grew up here, well just outside in the country. 

This is our new Malmo t-shirt being displayed in front of the old Lutheran church that had an exhibit in the basement.

At the display was a picture of my grandpa who was a volunteer firefighter for the Malmo Fire Department. He's the 4th from the left with the buzz cut and farmer's tan.

Here's today's firemen having a water fight.

My favorite part of this picture is the sign for the bar in the background that says "free beer tomorrow".

Fish update

Much to my surprise (I hope you can sense my sarcasm) the fish we won at the Lancaster County Fair have died. Pest passed away first on Thursday and Buda Friday morning. I think Buda may have been stealing all the food from Pest and then died of heartbreak. We'll never know!

Absence

First things first, sorry for my absence. I've been a little busy working full-time and taking 2 classes. I'm in a Chemistry and Sociology class. They are both VERY interesting and although sometimes I want to rip my hair out because I don't have the time or energy to read another chapter or do another problem, I am enjoying it all.
I guess I have a little explaining to do about one of my 2012 goals too. You'll notice that the running total on the top of the screen has not changed in a least a month. The first reason is because I'm really into Reformer Pilates and Nia. The other is that it is too darn hot! We've had temps in the 100s for the past month. My mom told me that we received only 1/100th of an inch of rain for the month of July. That's ridiculous. I've stopped watering the lawn because I feel like it's not worth it. If the farmers crops can't make it why should my grass? I am still watering my plants occasionally because they were a touch pricey.
Back to the Reformer Pilates, if you haven't tried it, don't, because you will be hooked. It's a way of doing pilates on a machine that provides support and takes some of the strain out of the exercise. For me, it's been a godsend on my back. It has also helped strengthen my core. Nia is a new dance-type workout that can be customized to fit any body or level. You really work on freeing up your back and feeling connections. I love both of them and do not miss pounding the pavement. I will try to get back at it once the weather cools down.

Copley is excited to announce that we have two additions to the family. We won them at the Lancaster Co. Fair. Their names are Buda and Pest. Like Budapest. My friend, Susie, was in town and we traveled there in 2009 so we thought the names were appropriate. 

4th of July

I was supposed to be in Minnesota for the 4th of July, but after the many trips of June I realized it was just too much to be gone again. So we stayed in Lincoln (well, kind of) for the 4th. I missed my sister's family a ton, but we made the best of it. Mom and Dad came down for a lunchtime bbq. We made bison burgers and some of us (not Steven!) had asian slaw and marinated cucumbers. Then we had some incredible brownie sundaes. We topped the day off going to the weirdest movie I've seen, Moonrise Kingdom. My mom thought it was hilarious. After the movie I made some unsuspecting teenager take our photo. Everyone was confused why I was doing this, but of course it was for the sake of the blog. 

 

After this stunning photo, Steven and I headed to Seward, Nebraska home of "the 4th of July" to visit with Amy and watch their fireworks show. 

Disney World

We took a belated 1st anniversary trip to Disney World last week. It was so nice to get away, just the two of us. You would think life would have slowed down when we move to Nebraska but we are keeping extremely busy. I'm not complaining, though, I love being busy and I love living in Nebraska. However, this trip was a great recharge.

Steven wanted to get a silhouette done while we were in the Magic Kingdom. This artist was amazing. The picture below is the result.

We saw the Electrical Light Parade our first night at Magic Kingdom. It was been years since I'd seen it.

Magic Kingdom has a new show before the fireworks. It's called Memories and they use the castle as a backdrop. It was a very cool show.

The "wishes" fireworks!

We had a little breakfast with Mickey.

And, of course, ate an anniversary cupcake at 8:30 in the morning.

Steven's "other" girlfriend.

Someone was extremely happy to have his parents home. He also got the cutest haircut while at the kennel. We just love him!