I’m tired of seeing the Twins lose. There, I said it. Now…hopefully I’ll get to see them WIN sometime soon! Last week Chris and I got to go to the game for free again thanks to my brother. Josh & Robyn were moving into their new place that day so he gave all 6 tickets to us. We invited Steve, Andy and Chuck and unfortunately we didn’t see a great game. I tried to score the game but was not paying close enough attention. Andy and Chuck tried to win Twingo but they didn’t have lucky cards. Boo. The Twins gave up 7 runs in the 6th and it was pretty much over after that. It’s surprising to me that one error (that happened after only one run had been scored) can change a game so much.

Anyway, we still had a good time. Our seats were in section 321 which is basically straight up from the Twins bullpen. The only unfortunate point of our seats was that we were looking through a stair railing…but like I said, there wasn’t a lot to watch. I did get my picture taken with Chris and with Steve so that was fun.

My 2008 season record: 3-4

Last Friday Chris & I piled into his car with Tia & Nate and drove down to Omaha, NE. Why? Well, his cousin was getting married! It was a long drive down but Chris was nice enough to sit in the driver’s seat the whole way. We got in to Omaha around 11pm and considered going out but made the wise decision to go to sleep instead. Saturday was a long day but it was nice.

Saturday began with breakfast at the hotel. The four of us along with Chris’s parents and some aunts, uncles, and cousins. After breakfast we all headed out to the reception hall to help get it set up. Once that was done we went to find a cold beverage. It was a funny experience because the first bar we went into was about to close down or something. They had a choice of about 5 beers and no food (despite the fact that it said “Bar & Grill” outside)! Add to that the fact that Tia and Peg ordered mixed drinks that were probably 7/8 alcohol and it was a riot! We needed food so we found another bar & grill which actually had a grill!

The wedding was at 4 with a reception immediately afterwards. They had a sand ceremony which I hadn’t seen before. The parents of the bride & groom along with the couple took 6 separate vials of sand and mixed them all together into one large container which represented the fact that as a couple they were a combination of many different pieces that cannot be picked out and identified one by one. The reception was at a pavilion where the wedding party sat inside and the rest of us ate outside. We were lucky enough to get a table with a breeze because it was quite warm that day. After dinner we mostly sat around chatting with Chris’s family, although we did get a couple dances in too. The night wrapped up with an after-party in Chris’s parents room and then sleep (but not enough.)

Sunday morning we were invited to the 1st birthday party for Chris’s cousin’s daughter, Vivian. She was super cute in her party dress but was way too clean when it came time for the cake. They had purchased a mini cake for Vivian and it took her a while to get good & messy. After opening gifts all of the kids got into their swimsuits and jumped in the pool. That was our cue to hit the road. Chris drove the first 2/3 of the drive and I took over for him after that. We were back home before dinner time but the weekend was still exhausting!

Not long ago I changed the theme for my blog. I’m not a designer so I just go through the free themes offered by talented people and pick one. I really like this one…simple, plain, nice to look at.

The other day I was browsing other blogs and saw that someone had moved their blog roll to a separate page and since I was having issues with how my links appeared in this theme I decided to give it a try. This weekend I created a page for Links and a page for my Photo Gallery. Both of these were previously on the left navigation but by moving them off to separate pages I am able to shorten up that left bar. I am far from a person who knows HTML, but thanks to w3schools I can usually get something to work right.

Hope you enjoy!

When my sister & I returned from Miami I decided I would make her a scrapbook of the trip because I knew she wouldn’t make one herself. Well, I’m going to be honest. As I was working on it I started thinking “Wow, this is turning out really good…maybe I should just keep it!” Since I hadn’t told her I was doing it, I could have gotten away with it, but deep down I knew that it was supposed to be for her. I’m not sure if I’ll make myself a copy of the book, but I did scan all of the pages so I could if I wanted. Instead I found a slideshow tool (Sprout) that I can use in my blog & that is what you see here. Super fun! I hope you enjoy what you see…a lot of hard work goes into these books but it is always worth it because I love looking back through them.

P.S. I love my new Cricut which was used to cut all the letters!

Josh was able to get some free tickets through his work with PPL and United Way and he was nice enough to invite Chris & I to go with! Yay! Twins game, free tickets, how can you say no?! Top that off with the fact that our seats were in the same section as my 2007 season tickets and I was pumped!

Unfortunately, that’s where the excitement ends. The game seemed to move very, very slowly for me. I thought Kevin Slowey was generally pitching a good game (3 strikeouts in the 1st inning!) but apparently it wasn’t good enough.


Highlights:
* Gomez hit a home run in the 1st
* Nachos in the 5th
* Kubel hit a home run in the 8th
* Cuddy catching the ball off of his hat…oh wait, that was Monday

Lowlight: Gomez throwing a soaring ball way over Everett’s head (and many other basic mistakes that were just highlighted during the game tonight)

Chris & I have now seen 2 losses in a row. I say he’s bad luck (but I hope he’s not!). Twins lost 5-3. (Yes Uncle Jon…your team won)

My 2008 season record: 3-3

We have all heard about the China Earthquake lately (MPR even got a story from someone living in China) and since my family was there in December 2006 I decided to map it to see how close we were. Here’s what I found (thanks to Google Maps):


The green arrow is a city that was 40 miles from the center. I believe the center was north of there but I’m not 100% positive. The cities that are circled in red are places we visited. We saw the Terra Cotta Army in Xi’an, visited SIAS University in Zhengzhou (where my sister & brother in law taught), walked along the Bund in Shanghai, and visited the Temple of Heaven in Beijing. It was an amazing trip. I hope no one we met was hurt in the earthquake!

While at Twins Fest, Chris & I decided to purchase some “good” seats for a Saturday night game because those are our favorites. We selected the Twins vs Red Sox game that was this Saturday and even though the Twins didn’t win, we had a good time. There weren’t any lower reserved seats available that we were interested in so instead we selected upper deck behind home plate. I don’t think I’ve ever sat there…we had a different perspective on the game for sure. We got to see Glen Perkins major league debut as a starting pitcher and he didn’t pitch too badly - except for those 3 home runs he gave up. Doh! Final score: Red Sox 5, Twins 2.

Since the game was at 6:10 we didn’t eat anything after brunch (at Caps) and instead had some peanuts, beer, and hot dogs for dinner. Of course I had a malt cup for dessert. This one was very (VERY) melty, but we actually enjoyed it more than the super hard ones.

After the game we walked in the rain up to Kierans for a couple drinks and some food. Last season we always got a grilled chicken sandwich with peppers and onions and melted cheese, so we were looking forward to that this time. Unfortunately, they no longer had that sandwich on the menu. Fortunately, we found a bbq chicken sandwich that ended up being tasty too. We had big plans to go out dancing after the game, but after being out until 2am Saturday we were tired. It’s sad but true…we’re getting old!

My 2008 season record: 3-2

I had planned on staying in Friday night, getting the basement ready for the new washer & dryer. However, that morning Chris mentioned that he had finished up what he needed to get done before the delivery guys arrived and that maybe we could go out. Wouldn’t you know - Josh emailed early in the morning that he was going to a show that he thought we would like. He was right! We ended up hanging out at home (watching Heroes…our latest addiction) and enjoying a couple beers before Josh came over. We headed down to the light rail around 9 and got to the 400 Bar just as the first opening band started.

We were able to find a table near the back of the room so we could chat through the first 2 acts. Once Dr. Dog came on stage we made our way to the front and I’m glad we did! The music was very upbeat and fun! Click here to read Josh’s review & see a video he found of the band.

Saturday morning (bright & early) we had a new washer & dryer delivered! The old ones were leaving marks on some clothes so Chris finally agreed that it was time to upgrade. After doing some research and reading Consumer Reports we decided on a nice Fridgidaire set and Chris has been giving them a run all day today with great results (so far!).

Once the delivery guys were gone we got Josh to get out of bed (yes…before 11am) and we went to breakfast at Caps. As always, it was cold inside the restaurant but the food was delicious. I decided to try an omelet this time and it wasn’t bad. It was gigantic and completely full of veggies! I really enjoy the french toast at Caps so I ordered one piece on the side and honestly, that was my favorite part. I guess when there’s something you know you like…just order that. Anyway, Josh & Chris finished off their plates so I’m assuming they enjoyed what they ordered too. After breakfast Josh headed home, I took a nap and Chris immediately went to work hooking up the appliances.

I joined meetup.com earlier this year after my friend Todd introduced Chris & I to a volunteer organization that we’ve become very involved in (more about them in another post coming soon). The group is called the Good Deeds Society and there are tons of opportunities to volunteer in the community.

One of those opportunities was putting together gift bags for 6-10 yr old children on May 6th. The organization is Cheerful Givers and the idea is that everyone brings a predetermined number of $1 toys and then the children get 10+ items in their birthday bag. The bags are then distributed to local children. Everyone brings gifts for children at Christmas time but I never really think about missing Birthdays. What a great idea! Chris & I both attended the event and we brought beach balls and play-doh for each child. Some other ideas people brought included crayons, sidewalk chalk, games, and mini-sports balls. There were 10-12 of us so each kid is getting a fun filled bag!

Unfortunately I didn’t take any photos, but it was a nice event where we had a chance to socialize with other volunteers.

Last Sunday my parents came down to the house along with Josh & Robyn and the 6 of us walked down to Minnehaha Falls. We lucked out with the weather…sunny, slight breeze, 60’s…it was perfect!

For lunch Chris & I ate with my parents at Sea Salt Eatery. Josh & Robyn ate at Embers because seafood didn’t sound good to them. Based on the food we ordered (I had crab cakes, Chris had a poboy, my mom had fish tacos and dad had the fish basket) I would definitely go back. Plus…they serve Surly on tap! We walked further up the falls before heading home (with a quick stop at DQ on the way!).