30 Years Young!

June 14th marked a special day for me. I turned 30. I'm not sure if I'm just totally oblivious or if I really just don't care that the 20's are behind me. I reflected on all the great things that happened in my 20's and thanked God for all of the blessings. I can only hope that my 30's will be just as wonderful and that God will continue to bless me and my family and friends.

We had a birthday party and boy was it a blast! I have two words for you. Sumo Suits. Yes, you read correctly. Now that I know I've peaked your interest and YOU'RE dying to learn more. Read on, and enjoy the pictures below.

We started the party around 4ish. My family came down from Walker (mom, dad, brother, sister, nieces, nephews, aunt and uncle). In addition, many of our friends joined us as well. We had great food, great yard games and GREAT fun! Around 8pm, a huge rain/wind storms rolled through, but it only lasted about 15 minutes. When it was over, we were left with this beautiful rainbow...which I personally believe was a birthday gift from God.

We were able to have a campfire for a little while before the 2nd round of rain came through. We used the reprieve from the rain to break out the Sumo Suits (we rented) and have some friendly wrestling matches. Let me tell you, I have not laughed that hard in so long. It was absolutely hilarious. I would recommend that everyone Sumo wrestle at least once in their lifetime. For that moment, you feel as though you are invincible (and you should feel that way with the 6+ inches of padding surrounding you!) and are a child all over again. I think 30 is the new 15:)

Thanks to all that came and welcomed me (or pushed me) into the "Thrilling 30's!" I'm ready for the ride, as long as I have my family and friends to ride with me. Thanks for the great gifts and warm wishes. I love you all!

VIVA LAS VEGAS!

Departure Date: June 5th

Destination: Las Vegas, NV

Task at hand: FUN, FUN, FUN!

We took a quick trip to Vegas June 5th-June 8th and we had an awesome time!

We stayed at New York New York Hotel, right on the strip. What a great opportunity to people watch at all hours of the day. Our friends Chris and Shayna went as well, and we shared some great laughs and made some great memories.

Bryan and Chris played a few games of poker, and we also watched two guys from Brainerd play in one of the World Series of Poker Events. It was fun and it brought back fun memories of when Bryan played last year. Shayna and I enjoyed lounging around the pool and shopping. The night life was great too. We saw and Elvis impersonator who was called "big Elvis". He was over 700 lbs and still got up and danced. Let's just say it was an experience that will be hard to replicate.

Carter stayed with Grandma and Grandpa Boege and of course, had a wonderful time. He got sick while he was there and had a bad ear infection upon our return, but he's such a great kid, despite being sick, he was still amazing! He's doing great now and is back to his old self.

What a great way to start the summer. That last day of school was June 6th and I was ready for a break! We are so thankful that we are able to take these little trips occasionally. We always know Carter is in great hands, and for that, we are extremely grateful.

Carter's got a new ride!

Ok...we did it. We broke down and bought Carter a 4-wheeler. It is absolutely the cutest thing and he LOVES it! He could hardly wait while Bryan put it together...then...it had to charge for 12 hours. That just about killed all three of us.
When it was still a bit chilly out, he would ride it around the house but now we keep it out in the garage with our 4-wheelers and he rides it in the yard. He still likes to push it around more than he does ride it. Nonetheless, it was a great $60 purchase.

Mother's Day 2008

We had a great Mother's Day. We went up to Grandpa and Grandma Boege's and spent the day. Carter was a great boy and gave me lots of loving on my special day.
He also enjoyed spending time with Grandma Sue too. I really enjoyed snapping the pictures of Carter and my mom together.

I know...it's been a long time!

Here are some miscellaneous pictures of Carter. I'm sorry there's not really a story to accompany them but I'm sure you'll enjoy looking at them!

Finally some beautiful weather

This weekend proved to be a great one. The weather was wonderfully nice, 50-60 degrees. We had the opportunity to do so many things. Read on to learn about what we did!

Bryan rented a rotortiller and tilled up the spot for my vegetable garden. I planted corn, carrots and radishes today. I still have more corn, cucumbers, squash, pumpkins and snow peas to plant yet. Hopefully the evenings this week will be warm and I can get outside after Carter goes to bed and get those planted. Bryan and I are so excited to have fresh veggies. We want to make small batches of salsa until we find the PERFECT recipe. It could be a long summer of mediocre batches but it will be worth if if we can find a great recipe.

Our friend Ben came over on Saturday and Carter got the chance to sit on his motorcycle. We were going to tell Grandma that he went for a spin, but we didn't want her heart to skip a beat!

Carter also took a few rides with Bryan around the yard on his 4-wheeler. Carter is OBSESSED with the 4-wheeler and cries everytime he has to get off. It's pretty cute.

Bryan and I also took a few hours on sunday afternoon to hit the 4-wheel trails. We found a little mud to play in and had to snap a few photos.

4-Wheeling in the snow!

What a great weekend we had! Carter stayed with Grandma and Grandpa Boege while we headed up north to Eveleth (iron range) on Friday morning for a 4-Wheeling weekend with some people we had never met. Bryan talks with them online on the Arctic Cat chat for um. We met some great people and enjoyed riding in some of the deepest mud we have ever ridden in.

We decided to head home on Saturday afternoon, as the snow was flying and it was getting cold. We bought 4-Wheelers NOT snowmobiles for a reason.

The above picture is what our machines looked like by the time we got to my parents on Saturday night. What a mess, but what an awesome time we had. We cannot wait until next fall's mud-ride!

Sweet Summer Treat

What a wonderful summer treat. Last night we enjoyed strawberries and cool whip for dessert. Carter enjoyed it so much he cried when he finished his last bite! I can't wait for summer to be here for more great treats like this. Summer may be delayed a week or so, as the weatherman is now forecasting 3-4 inches of rain, topped off nicely with snow. Can we Minnesotan's EVER get a break?

Sweet Child O' Mine

Many of you already know of Carter's passion and knack for dancing. He will hear a tune and begin to dance before most even know music is playing. Bryan is convinced that this behavior is of my doing...and he's right. Carter and I dance every day. What an amazing gift to be physically able to dance with my little boy whenever I want to. Just another reason I thank God every day.

A new way of reading

Sometimes there are very simple moments in our life that we must take the time to appreciate and enjoy. These photos sum up one of these moments.
Bryan was reading a newspaper when Carter decided he wanted to read with his dad. Actually, he decided that the only way he could read with his dad was to sit perched upon his chest. I could have taken 20 photos, as this was too priceless. As you can also see, Scout did not want to miss anything good either.

Bon Jovi...ROUND TWO!

How lucky and fortunate am I to have been able to see Bon Jovi in concert TWICE in two months? To some, it may not sound appealing, but to those true fans that can appreciate the amazing music that Bon Jovi makes...I wish you could have been there.

By some strike of luck, Anne and I and Shayna were able to get floor tickets, 22 rows back from center stage. These were the most amazing seats. We were able to see Daughtry's wedding ring, we were that close! We traveled to Fargo, ND for this concert and it was worth every mile and every gallon of OVERPRICED gasoline.

No tattoos this time around, but memories that will surely last just as long!

Score ONE for the weatherman!

For once, the weatherman was right! We got 14 inches of snow on April 10-11th. What an ugly mess. As I write this today (I'm behind in blogging) it's 65 degrees and there is virtually no snow left.

I'm happy to see the snow is gone, but I also am sad to say I found a woodtick on Scout yesterday. I don't understand how those darn things can procreate, hatch and become a nuisance while there is still snow on the ground. I'm sure our Texas friends miss the 'ticks an awful lot. Katie, Jed and girls...I'll be sure to save a few for your visit in July, which I'm so excited for!

Enjoy this wonderful day the Lord has made!

Birthday fun!

What a great night (blizzard and all) to celebrate three very special birthdays. Kelly, Shayna and Jody all had birthdays this week, so we headed out to our favorite Mexican restaurant to enjoy! Kelly is due with her second baby anyday and I think the Mexican food is going to bring on labor...Jody has a few months to go...lets hope NO labor for her:)

(this is a picture of Kelly in her new Tahoe. We whipped a few cookies in the poncho's parking lot, just to make sure the vehicle handled like it should have)

Kelly has been my friend since 3rd grade. Who would have ever imagined we would be celebrating birthdays together still? Jody is also a friend from high school and I sure have enjoyed "reconnecting" with her. Shayna is a great friend as well. She started out working with Bryan at Bisys and we became friends, and the rest is history. Shayna and I are going to try and make it a habit to attend every Bon Jovi concert together (with my sister AnneMarie too, of course) until the day we die (or they do!)

(Here's Jody, enjoying the near "white-out" conditions that we endured when we left Poncho's. (Take a look out the windshield)

( Today was Jody's actual birthday)

I'm so thankful for great friends.

The deer know...

Well...even if the weather man doesn't know how to predict bad weather, the deer know when the snow is coming in. This afternoon they were scouring the ground looking for every last acorn before the "storm of the season" hit.

I enjoyed snapping some pictures of the them. I truly appreciate the beauty of God's creations, and no matter how many deer I've seen in my life, I still think they are a beautiful creature.

Enjoy!

Has spring sprung?

Bryan took Carter on a quick 4-Wheeler ride and then we played outside before the big storm hits. Today it was 47 degrees. Tomorrow we are supposed to get 14 inches of snow.

Mother Nature must be having a bad month. Someone please get her some sort or anti-depressant, please?

Carter absolutely loves the 4-Wheeler and is going to make a great addition to our mommy-daddy riding team.