Joel's Birthday - A Poll

Being the undecisive individual he is, Joel is requesting help from our "faithful readers" (or anyone who just happens upon this blog) for suggestions for his birthday dinner. His birthday is August 13 and he is turning 29. He is open to any kind of restaurant, though he does tend to lean towards sea food and ethnic foods (indian, japanese, etc). He would also like to officially rule out Mexican Village and Paradiso - sorry to all of the chips & salsa lovers out there.

PLEASE post a comment with your choice. The choice that gets the most votes by August 12th will win! Let the race begin!

Gus In A Tree (second update today!)

Here's Gus in a Tree. He's quite the little climber.

Here's Gus and his 'little' buddy Jasper (Meeks' pup).

Just thought everyone could use a little more Gus in their lives...

Breezy Point

The past couple of weeks have been busy. Meeks and I threw Robbi a "Mommy" shower last weekend. For those of you who don't know what a Mommy shower is, here you go: A Mommy shower is a shower that is thrown for the expectant mother, instead of the baby. With all the excitement that always surrounds a pregnancy, it is easy to forget that "mommy" is still a woman herself. So we decided to pamper Robbi a little bit. Here are a few pics.

Joel and I just got back from spending four days on vacation with his family in Breezy Point. It was wonderfully relaxing - perfect weather, beautiful sandy lake, lots of food and good company. This vacation also gave me the chance to finish the newest Harry Potter book!! I won't ruin anything for you, but I HIGHLY recommend reading it (and the rest of the books) if you haven't yet. I went to the midnight opening of the book at Barnes & Noble along with Shyla, Chelsea, Meeks, Friedo and Joel (though he only came for the coffee and magazines). Special thanks to Shyla for getting there so early to get us a spot in the cafe!

I will leave you with these fun pics from vacation and a tip to check out Shyla's blog (www.dandeelionsoup.blogspot.com) for some fun video footage of the dance party the family had in our cabin.

Here is the cabin we stayed in - it had a small private beach, dock, and a jacuzzi inside!

Chelsea and Shyla canoeing back from the beach.

Raleigh with his Uncle Joel - look at those giraffe legs!

Jamie deflating the giant beach ball the easy way.

Joel and I on the back porch of the cabin.

My Birthday, etc...

Sorry for the long wait! The past couple of weeks have been very hectic here. The fourth of July was fun. Joel and I got to spend the day together, which was has been a rare experience this summer. We had a pseudo-picnic with Robbi and Friedo and played some frisbee. By pseudo-picnic, I mean that we weren't actually outside, nor did we use a real grill, but we did eat picnic-ey foods. We ended the night by watching the city fireworks. We tried to bring Gus along, but he wasn't having any of the loud noises, so we ended up taking him back home. Maybe next year...

Last week was an orientation week for me again, so it was very busy. Thursday was also my birthday, which was lots of fun. The day started out a little shaky when I fell down some steps during orientation check-in in front of about 50 people, but the only thing hurt was my pride. :) Here are some pictures from my birthday and from this Saturday, when Joel and I went out to the zoo.

My birthday present from Joel - an AEROGarden!!! These are absolutely amazing. If you have not heard of them, check out the website at www.aerogrow.com. We'll have fresh herbs in our kitchen in December. Mojitos, anyone?

Gus enjoyed the wrapping paper. He was very helpful when I was unwrapping my present.

I had a Raspberry Almond Cake from Nichole's Fine Pastry. This cake is amazing! I did share...

Here's Uncle Joel giving our nephew Raleigh his very first drum lesson that night. The kid is a natural!

An awful picture of Joel and I at the zoo. We took it ourselves.

Feeding the goats. Very demanding!

This cow was hilarious! It would stick its tongue out for food if you were walking by.

I also saw the fifth Harry Potter movie on Saturday with Robbi and Tanya. I thought it was very good, though it was missing a few details that I thought were pretty important. All in all, it has been a great past few days! I hope the lovely weather is finding you all in good health and spirits!

Awwww...

The last week was very, very busy, with orientation sessions running Tuesday-Friday at the university I work for. They are long days, but it always feels good to see all of the students who are coming in the fall, answer their questions, and help them get excited about school. Another week of sessions is coming up in July, and by the end of the summer about 2,000 students will have attended orientation (as well as about 3,000 parents). I am very proud of my alma mater (if you can't tell), so this is very exciting!

After the long week of orientation, I traveled home with Robbi and Friedo on Saturday for Robbi's baby shower. Lots of fun! So many little onesies, booties, baby lotions, and lots and lots of "awwww"s. I always enjoy going home with Robbi. I even spent a summer living out there with Robbi and her parents, Glen & Cathy - who are some of the most wonderful people I have ever known. They always make me feel right at home. Here are a couple pictures from the baby shower:


Beautiful Robbi and the gifts for her little guy.

Robbi and I.