Honky Tonk Women

I am so very lucky to have a great group of girlfriends. Every year we pick a long weekend along with a new destination and we roam the town...girls trip style! This year we agreed to head south to a crazy lil city smack dab in the middle of Texas - Austin! We had all heard stories of the city but never had experienced it for ourselves. The single point of contact (SPOC) was Karly this year. I shall note each year we draw a new SPOC who becomes responsible for planning and coordinating. Karlos planned an action-packed weekend sprinkled with relaxation and most importantly quality time with the gals.

The stars were aligned as they usually do and we were upgraded from a hotel room at the Omni to a 2 bedroom suite with plenty o room! We all met in Austin on Friday where we ventured out for our first taste of 6th Street. This area is referred to as the entertainment district and it is easy to find on any given night. School was not in session at UT but the street was still blocked off for the thousands of bar goers and music seekers. We later learned 6th street has 2 personalities...dirty 6th and west 6th.

The girls and I enjoyed exploring the streets but Karly knew we had to get outta town and see what else there was to do. Lake Travis is a beautiful body of water about 30 miles outside of the city. Karly also knows we love to be on the water so we did it right and rented a boat for the day! We scoped out the lake before idling on over to what one could call the floating 6th street - Devils Cove. I might be out of touch with my party coves but this was like nothing I had ever seen before. Chains of boats throwing anchor together, floating dance parties, water sports, slides, yachts, beverages a plenty, speakers half the size of the boat, scantily clad people of all ages...the list goes on but it truly was "Austinacious!" The boat came with a tube so yes indeed we went tubing along the lake. On the way home we caught a beautiful sunset from this mega-bar/restuarant called Oasis. For dinner that evening? Sushi of course!








The outdoor adventures didn't stop there. The next day we got up and headed for our "surprise activity" planned by our SPOC. We rented bikes to cruise the greenspace of the city! Lunch was at Shade Grove which was the cutest outdoor venue that felt like a picnic in the park. We pedaled on over to Barton Springs which again is like nothing I have ever seen before. It is the nation's largest natural swimming pool in an urban area. One catch - it is a consistent 68 degrees! We carried on to see some of the natural trails and the city lake (which we call a river). After a dunk in the rooftop pool, we headed out for some tapas and a relaxing night. We caught a little live Blues band at Momo's on West 6th to cap off the evening. I think it has to do with my parents but there is something about live Blues music that makes me happy...relaxing yet tells a story and can still get a little funky! Which just so happens to explain this years gals trip to Austin, TX!







OH...and the official girls trip pose!



XO,
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Milestones

What a week we have had here!!

It started off on Tuesday June 8th with celebrating Dad Dan's 60th birthday at one of his favorite restaurants - Vince's. It was a surprise so his face walking in was absolutely priceless! He had friends and family there to greet him and wish him a Happy Birthday. The surprise was fun but one of the best parts were the stories and memories that were shared. Each of his 6 kids got up to tell their favorite "dad" story and thank him for the love and support he has provided each one. His sisters Terry, Carol and Shirley were there to tell some of the stories from their brother Dan as well. It really was pretty special to be a part of. Happy Birthday we thoroughly enjoyed celebrating with you! (I can't make the pic rotate, turn head to the right)




I by no means claim to be a Chicago Blackhawks fan but you couldn't help to root the team on during their most recent Stanley Cup run. The city and surrounding areas went into an absolute Blackhawk frenzy when on Wednesday June 9th the team captured their first Stanley Cup in 49 years! It was pretty cool to witness the team coming home from their OT win against the Flyers to a city that otherwise has it's bouts of PSD (pro-sport depression...not a technical term). The victory parade kicked off Friday just 2 blocks from my office so we wandered down to get a glimpse of the excitement...and the coveted Cup!

Another major milestone was the completion of my first Sprint Triathlon on June 13th! I have always been intrigued by triathlons because there is such variety in the training and well...it just sounded like fun. It was much more than just fun! Michele did one last year so she was on board to do the US Womens Triathlon Series with me. We swam .46 miles, biked 14.2 miles and ran 3.1 miles through Naperville, IL. I enjoyed the training and knowledge I gained along the way. I realized I actually enjoy spinning classes at 5:30am and jumping in the indoor pool before the sun comes up on a chilly March morning. It was an awesome feeling crossing the finish line and I can't wait for the opportunity to do another one! Thank you to Michele for the tips, encouragement and agreeing to participate with me! Thank you to Rick for the support and an occasional nudge to get out of bed and get to the gym!

Here are a couple pics from the race -

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MOH!

We had a girls night out on Friday and caught the latest installation of an old favorite - Sex and The City 2! We went to the Showplace Icon theatre which has a VIP lounge and you can even bring some vino into the theatre to enjoy while you watch. The movie was great but the company was better. The highlight of the evening was Christy asking me to be her Matron of Honor!!!! I am so excited to continue the planning process with her and most importantly stand up beside her the day she marries Todd. Cheers to that!!

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May Days

The weather is warming up which means our calendar is filling up! The words and photos below provide a recap of the month we called May.


My mom came to Illinois for a visit to Chicago/Glen Ellyn and a week in Springfield with Grandpa. I went to Springfield to see Grandpa as well. We watched some westerns, got some tomatoes and geraniums from his greenhouse, cut asparagus, made cookies, saw some cousins and aunts/uncles and just hung on the farm. We got to see each other a couple of different times and the best was having Mom at our home in Glen Ellyn for a Mothers Day barbeque!


May 16th we headed to Milwaukee to see Sandy graduate from University of Wisconsin Milwaukee. The commencement speaker told a story I liked about 3 bricklayers. The first one was working and when asked what he was doing he said "I am building a wall." The second bricklayer said he was building a church. The third worker said "I am building a community." It was just a cool vision and reminder that you have to start somewhere in life. Congratulations Sandy and Ali!! Best wishes as you start the next chapter...we are so proud!

My best friend from high school, Anna and her husband Tim happened to be in the area a few weeks ago so it was an unexpected treat to see them! She just graduated from Anesthesiology school and got married last fall as well. Her and Rick dominated the shuffleboard table on a fun night out!

It has become a Memorial Day tradition to pack up the car and to head to Pelican Lake, Wisconsin. In tradition, we did just that! Stewie says "please don't ever go without me!" He even brought his sunglasses in anticipation of the beautiful warm weather.

We spent the weekend "opening" the lake house up, putting the pier in the unusually low water, planting flowers, eating and drinking, hot tubbin, watching the Blackhawks and maxin and relaxin in the North Woods. We even got to Bootleggers for their famous Long Islands and then Tattle Tales to see Tyler's band. I would like to note that Rick Klima and I won 2 of our 3 shuffleboard matches! The rest of the time was spent playing around in the water. It was a great long weekend getaway!

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With a roof right over our heads

I happen to be listening to reggae right now and I adore Bob Marley's "Is this Love." In this song Marley sings "We'll be together, with a roof right over our head" and I realized 3 years ago today Rick and I bought our first roof! Ok we bought much more than a roof we bought what we have called home for 3 years now. How?! I say that time flies as it always does but I look back at 3 years and realize we have accomplished a lot with our little 3 bedroom ranch.

Some of the mega milestones include: putting up 290 feet of fence, redoing the plumbing and water filtration system, trenching the sump pump to the front of the house, taming the jungle of gardens, adding a bathroom and remodeling the bathrooms (robin egg blue is but a distant memory) oh AND raising the floor, knocking down a wall, moving a door and installing hardwood floors.

The projects continue to roll around but it is amazing to look back and enjoy our hardwork. I remember seeing the house for the first time and I certainly remember the ups and downs that come along with buying a home. I also recall quite vividly the selling realtor sliding the keys and garage door opener across the wood table. The fence quotes, the Sir-Moss-Alot green walls, brushing our teeth in the kitchen sink, the crashing of the brick fireplace, the kitchen moved to the garage and basement...it is all fun to look back on. We feel we have truly made a house a home in 3 short years! Knowing my husband...this is only the beginning :)

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Horsin around

Rick and I had the opportunity to spend last Saturday at Arlington Park, a horse racing track in his hometown of Arlington Heights, IL. I knew I would not be disappointed when our friends Lauren, Shaun and Harry invited us to join them for the day! I grew up with horses around and rarely have the chance to see these majestic creatures anymore.

This day was home to the 12 races taking place at Arlington and then the grand daddy of all horse races - the 136th Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs. I had never watched a live horse race let alone place bets on them. I read an article that $112.7 million was wagered on this year's Derby. That is an insane amount of money for a race that lasts just second over 2 minutes! The betting system even went down at Arlington and Churchill...that didn't go over well with some of the high-rollers.

Our $2 bets were fun to throw in as the day progressed but the few winnings we did have were converted into new bets. We should have learned from Harry and cashed out when we were up! We decided to make our own bets within the group and whoever picked the winning horse had to gallop like a pony to the fence. Shaun won first followed by a victory gallop by Rick and I both!

Assume your positions!

Arlington was a great place to watch horses and people alike. We saw some wild hats and even snuck our way to the elite section of the park (ooops!). Rick tasted his first Mint Julep (Bourbon and Mint do NOT belong together!). Super Saver sloshed his way to a Derby victory. On his back was Calvin Borel who won his 3rd Derby in 4 years. I hope he gave that pony lots of carrots in the winner circle!

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Back to School

Summer is almost here but Rick, Cara, Dan and I decided to go back to school last weekend...Sandy's school that is! Sandy graduates in May so we thought it would be fun to visit her at University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee before she transitions to the real world. The eating highlight of our trip took place at The Comet Cafe just blocks from Sandy and her roomie Ali's apartment. Dan saw Comet Cafe on Diners Drive-Ins and Dives and determined this was a must try for the trip to Milwaukee. This diner certainly did not disappoint! Some of the favorite menu items include: carmelized onion with almond soup, meatloaf with beer gravy and battered balls of turkey and mashed taters! We proceeded to a campus tour and then prepared for a pub-crawl courtesy of Ali's Mortar Board Club. We learned at each bar why this Wisconsin hub earns the name Brew City. Thanks to Sandy and Ali for allowing us to tag along, take over your living space and for showing us that we can still play with the college kids (sorta) !


It just so happened we could continue to act like kids on Sunday. The next day was CDW Coworker Appreciation Day at 6 Flags Great America! The company takes over the amusement park, opens all the rides and feeds us a picnic-style lunch. This is an annual event and definitely a "perk at work." I have waited over 1 hour to ride the Superman and on this day the wait was a mere 15 minutes (if that). Cara, Dan, Christine and Rae joined us this year for a sunny but cool spring day at the park. We realized that even though we can hang with the college kids on Saturday, our bodies might be a little more susceptible to the intensity of the rollercoasters. Rick knows each ride so well and preps us for where you want to be positioned on each coaster. He also got his thrill fill on the King Chaos which looks like it might be illegal for the way it thrashes the riders around! Raging Bull in the back still rules!!

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