Off To the Races

Last night we headed out to Prairie Meadows to see the camel and ostrich races, which I thought would've been the highlight of the evening. Although those 10 seconds were laughable, it did not beat this:



My winnings from one of the horse races! Needless to say, I was a high roller for the rest of the night.

Gotta Have Faith

While driving this morning, I noticed my patience was already wearing thin because of the smallest things: someone not using their turn signal which resulted in a standstill between the SUV and myself, and a truck turning right in front of me, cutting me off. Why I was so easily agitated remains a mystery, but I quickly was put in check when I witnessed what appeared to be a simple, random act of kindness.

The strong storms last night left some people to clean up what looked like disaster zones in their yards - debris, leaves, tree limbs, etc. As I looked around at all the mess some residents were cleaning, I noticed a woman with a helmet on and her bicycle standing off to the side. She was bent over breaking sticks down and putting them in a trash bag. I couldn't help but smile when I saw this. I can only assume this woman was out for a bike ride, saw this particular area and how bad of shape it was in, and decided to hop off her bike and lend a hand to the neighborhood and its residents. In what sometimes seems to be a world full of destruction and hate, it's nice to be reminded that there are good-hearted, kind, selfless people out there.

You Say Puh-TAY-toe, I Say Puh-TAH-toe

While looking at few photos Naomi had posted on Facebook today, I realized how much fun I have with my friends. Whether it's a Chinese take-out/rat tail kind of night or a faux birthday party for a celebrity - we always manage to have a good time. To some, we are probably considered immature and weird. To that I say, think what you will. We have fun and when I look at pictures such as these, I think how cool my friends are.


Glee Party

You may ask, "Did they really dress up for the
premier of a TV show? Yep, we sure did and
had a blast doing it...and I bet you can
see who we were all trying to portray too!


At Red Robin for J-Simps birthday.

You might think it is ridiculous to take a cut out
of a celebrity to a restaurant in honor of her
birthday. I think it's a fantastic excuse to get
together with friends for a fun evening.



Daily Grind

Is it silly that we're in our mid twenties
and still play as though we're
ten? Perhaps, but we also see it as
having a good time.


Hot Sundae

Acting out the Saved By the Bell video may seem
immature, but once you see it, you'd totally
laugh too :)

I love that I have a close-knit group of friends who I can laugh uncontrollably with, who I can vent to and cry with, and most importantly, who I can be myself around.

Beginner's Luck

I participated in my first bracket (ever) during this year's World Cup. Thanks to Spain's victory this afternoon, I climbed my way back to the top of the leader board, after having taken a tumble down to 4th place. I would love to say it was my impeccable soccer knowledge that got me the top spot, but I'm pretty sure it was just pure luck!

Family Reunion

Another weekend over and another reunion in the books. It was another fun-filled family weekend - full of good food and great entertainment.

While driving home this afternoon, I couldn't help but think...

Family is such a powerful thing. There is just something so special and so rare about being surrounded by people who love you unconditionally and to whom you can always rely on. Your worries seem to melt away when greeted at the door with nothing but hugs and smiles. It's a pretty amazing thing, actually, when you take a step back and realize how happy someone can be to see you. It sort of gives you that, "I'm really that special to these people?" realization, which is a great realization to have. You suddenly feel a sense of comfort and contentment - how incredible that this thing we call love can fill your needs.


My favorite weekend moment: riding in the car with Regan over to the lake. We were counting to 10, singing our ABC's, singing the Wheels on the Bus and Itsy Bitsy Spider, and best of all, I was teaching her a few Spanish words. She now knows hola, adios, and besos (to which we'd start blowing kisses at each other)

Life In a Day

While cruising on the information superhighway tonight, I came across this and it definitely piqued my interest

Newest Buy

Patience is a virtue, so the saying goes. I have practiced both patience and self control over one particular item for the past 6 months or so.

I saw a Northface vest at Scheels several months ago and fell in love. But, like all the fantastic clothing Northface has to offer, this too, despite the clearance sticker, had a hefty price tag. So, I put it down and walked away. Every time I've been at Scheels since, I've paid this vest a "visit", would show it off to whomever I was shopping with, and even tried it on a few times. But I never acted upon my burning desire for this vest...

...that is until 2 weeks ago. While walking through the mall with my parents, I showed off this puffy marshmallow-y delight to my mom. While trying it on, I was telling her how long I've been wanting this and it seems like the fashion gods are telling me I should own this because in the 6 months I've been eyeing it, it hasn't disappeared off the rack. She loved it and thought I should buy it. A little out of character for me, I began to list off the reasons why I should NOT buy it - I just moved and have all these moving expenses, I need new tires before winter, I want to get a new computer soon, etc etc, and so, heavy-heartedly, I took off the vest, hung it back on the rack and walked away. As we were walking to a different store, I 90% jokingly said to her, "I mean, if you wanted to help me pay for the vest, I'd be totally okay with that." And my saint of a mother looked at me and said, "okay". "Really?!" I excitedly exclaimed. "Yes, I'm feeling generous today," she said.

And so here you have it, my first Northface purchase: (although I don't think the picture does it justice)



I am by no means ready for colder weather, but this will definitely make it a little easier to step outside on that first cool day.

Thanks again Mom - you're the best!