#6 June date

Squeezing them both in, we completed our June date on the second-to-last day of June.  #6 was getting ice cream at Pittsford Farms Dairy.  We went once and got chocolate milk in a glass bottle, but I have been wanting to go back for their ice cream.  It was down pouring when we went, but the place was still packed!  And so worth the trip, the ice cream was delicious!  Col got dirt, and I got cookie monster.  Yum!

#5 May date {that happened in June}

Date #5 was to play tennis!  We actually completed this date at the end of June, because May and June got away from us.  Col played in high school and enjoys the game while I, on the other hand, have a difficult time being able to actually play pretty much all sports.  We played once years back when we were dating, and Col got a little frustrated with my lack of contact with the ball.  This year however, we were able to keep a good volley going for a little bit!  And I got some pointers from the expert. ;) There may or may not have been some young girls nearby who were making fun of a few of my missed swings.  Regardless, it was fun to be outside and try!

Cali-forn-i-a!

Our trip to L.A. was a blast!  I am so, so, so glad that we finally went because it was definitely worth it!  We had so much fun with my brother and Kristyn, and I'm happy to color in a new state on my map!

We arrived Friday afternoon and headed to baggage claim.  Zack surprised us by walking up while we were waiting; we thought he would have to pick us up real quick, but he had been waiting there for us!  We drove about an hour to Long Beach, where Zack and his girlfriend Kristyn live.  That night we enjoyed catching up, eating delicious BBQ at a place close by, and relaxing.

We stayed with them in Kristyn's cute studio apartment and took up the whole floor space with the air mattress.  We didn't mind being close :) Zack had to blow it up using his car, so this is him walking it down the street back to the apartment for us!

Day #2:
We walked to a well-known local place, Chuck's, for breakfast.  It was refreshing to be able to sit outside, in the perfect 70's-80's degree weather with no humidity.  Not only that, but their apartment is a block from the beach.  So awesome!  The food was great and fueled us for a packed day of sight-seeing that Zack had planned for us.

Zack's work, CBS studios!

Hollywood Walk of Fame

Chinese Theatre

La Brea tar pits

Venice canals

Venice beach

We also walked the boardwalk in Venice where the atmosphere is the complete opposite of the canals.  It was lively and eccentric, busy with a myriad of people and street performers.  We drove down Rodeo Drive, as well as around a few residential streets in Beverly Hills.  The mansions are amazing!

Day #3:

After attending their church, we drove a couple hours out to San Diego.  We spent the whole afternoon in Balboa Park, which is full of museums, cultural events, gardens, and music.

Botanical gardens

Col and I went to the model train museum while Zack and Kristyn enjoyed the photography one.

Japanese garden

We drove back, listening to the World Cup on the way.  That night we had dinner at a delicious local Mexican restaurant.  We had lots of guacamole (gotta have avocados when you're in CA!), and all of our food was very good!

Day #4:

After all of our driving around, we stayed in Long Beach for our last full day.  We spent the day walking a 3.5 mile stretch of beach there and back to a boardwalk area, where we enjoyed lots of laughs in the hat shop, little shops, and ice cream.  I of course got sunburned for the first time on the whole trip (go figure, on our last day).  Kristyn was kind enough to make us a yummy dinner when she got home from work that night, and we relaxed together, wishing our time there wasn't almost over!

Can you imagine living a block from this every day?!

My "little" bro and I

Hubby and I

The Queen Mary

California was great!  I do understand the frustration of all of the traffic, but it was a wonderful place to visit.  Our time with my brother and Kristyn was much needed, and I soaked up every minute, especially since we usually only see each other once a year.  We came back feeling refreshed, and a getaway was just what we needed after our tough year of adoption ups and downs.  Thank you so much Zack and Kristyn for taking a long weekend to show us around and letting us take up all the extra space in your apartment! :)

Redwings Game

It was employee appreciation night for the YMCA, so Col was able to get 4 tickets to the Redwings game along with $10 food vouchers.  We invited my parents to go with us because dad likes baseball games and enjoyed pigging out on food that we would never get if we didn't have free vouchers.  It was a fun night, and the Redwings won!

 

Father's Day 2014

This year for Father's Day we were able to spend time at my parents' house.  We stayed overnight on Saturday since we had all attended a wedding together.  It was nice being able to attend church and hear my dad's sermon that day.  After an entertaining shopping trip with a goofy Col and mom, we went back to the house to gather more stone for under our deck.  Once dad got home, we enjoyed a cookout per his request and had delicious sirloin burgers with pepper jack cheese, hot dogs, chips, and salad.  Dessert was vanilla ice cream with strawberries and peanuts.

We headed out late afternoon and worked more underneath our deck adding the stones we had gathered.  Afterwards I mowed the lawn and Col removed a huge pointless rock from our front yard.  We were tired by the time we finished, but were then able to enjoy ice cream with Col's parents.  Another happy Father's Day!  We love you, dads!

Katelyn and Dave's Wedding

 

 

I love my family :)

Mendon's 2nd birthday!

Mendon's 2nd birthday : 6/12/14

free doggie sundae at Bruster's again, this time with friends

officially got new dog bed [I so wish that I videotaped us giving it to her.  This dog has more personality than some humans and was jumping around all excited for it!]

I love our gentle beast!

Adoption Garage Sale!

About a week ago, I was getting very antsy about some items in our home that I want to get rid of.  I'm sick of them taking up room in our very limited storage space, and I wanted to clean out.  As we were going through a few things, I nonchalantly said to Col that we should have a garage sale as a fundraiser for our adoption.  He immediately got excited, I explained how I knew a few people who had done it, and we decided to see if there would be enough interest for it.  Col posted a status on FB, and the response was a lot more than I thought we would get!

And so, we are embarking on a garage sale fundraiser!  I had a moment of, "What did we get ourselves into?!" knowing that garage sales are a lot of work, but I'm excited to get rid of stuff and see how successful we are. 

We are planning on sale dates of Saturday, July 12th and Sunday, July 13th!

Here's how you can help:

1) Donate items: We will arrange to pick it up, price it out, and do all the work (unless you want to help and give us an idea of prices, because I have no idea how to decide on that!).  It's a great excuse to clean out your closets and easily get rid of stuff!

2) Volunteer: help us one of those days, especially with set up and tear down

3) Lemonade stand: help us keep this going throughout the day

4) Spread the word!

Rachel and Jason's Wedding

6.7.14

I had the privilege of being the matron of honor in Rach's wedding this past weekend.  

It was a beautiful day and such fun to be a part of.  Congrats again, newlyweds!

[perfect details: the reception was held on the grounds of Jason's family dairy farm]