A Night at the Theatre

A couple of weeks ago, Handsome Hubby and I spent a night at the theatre with his brother and sister-in-law. We went to see The Lion King. It was amazing! The Lion King actually holds a very special place in our hearts (HH and myself), but even besides that, it was an amazing show. I HIGHLY recommend it! I think they did an incredible job adapting the movie to the stage. I must admit, I even cried. It's *that* good. But, the cutest part was listening to the reaction of all the kids in the theatre (yeah, I was surprised too, at $80 a ticket). They were so cute, which definitely added to the experience. I would *love* to go again...

Crazy Camping Fun!

Over July 4th weekend, Handsome Hubby and I went camping to celebrate our third wedding anniversary. I guess this means we're officially not newlyweds anymore? Anyway, *yes* this was actually something we both wanted to do. I know some might not think that going camping is a nice way to celebrate, but for the second year in a row, it did not disappoint one bit. There's just something about really getting away from the ringing phones and incoming emails. It was the first time we've gone for 3 nights, so I was a bit nervous, but other than an adventurous skunk and a daring raccoon stalking us each night, it was great!

HH: "Oh my gosh, look at that raccoon! I think he's got something... Yeah, something with a red plastic bag. It looks like hamburger buns or hotdog rolls or something..."

Me: "Ha ha! Some dopes left their food out! HA HA! They're gonna be pissed when they figure out their food is gone! HA HA HA!"

HH: "Yeah, ha!"

24 hours later...

HH: "Honey, where'd you put the buns?"

Me: "What buns?..."

The 'rents

In June, my parents came to visit us, while RVing it up to northern country. It was a great dose of Mom and Dad love. Meaning… we put them to work! Specifically, with yard work… and no, this was *definitely* not the first time!

Dad and Handsome Hubby spent a day making an amazing window box (or deck box really). It’s about 8 feet long, which spans our entire deck. They installed it directly to our deck, so that thing ain’t goin’ anywhere! We planted some herbs (oregano, sage, basil, and rosemary) along with some pretty blue/purple flowers… what, you expect me to remember the name? Since this pic was taken, all have done very well, surprisingly! The only incident was the swarm of Japanese beetles we came home to after a weekend away. They demolished our basil, but thankfully it has managed to come back (how, I have no idea?!?).

Meanwhile, Mom and I were busy with the front of the house. We planted all kinds of pretty flowers! Zinnias, little jr. sunflowers, and impatients (see, I’m not *that* bad). We also potted some geraniums, and whatever those little yellow ones are. And like the others, all of these have really done quite well, I’m happy to say.

But, the part that was memorable to me happened when I was shopping for all of these with my mom, before the planting began. After thanking my mom for all her help, she replied, “What, are you kidding? I love this stuff, it let’s me be a mom again!” How silly… as if she were ever *not* my mom. If only she knew how much she and my dad most definitely still have a presence in my life, and always will. Not just a presence, but as a mom and dad, in the way that she thinks may have faded. I can’t begin to count how many times I ask myself how they would do something, handle a situation, or make a decision, even on a daily basis. Although, I guess I can’t assume or expect that they’re aware of the influences that are still (and always will be) in my head…

P.S. We didn’t just put them to work during their visit. We did a lot of fun stuff too, like going to a baseball game, playing some golf, and even eating some excellent ice cream. :-9

 

 

Girls, Glorious Girls!

I *still* haven’t posted about my girl-trip to Chicago! I think it wasn’t just because I’ve been so busy, but that I was actually a little bit intimidated. It might not make sense, but I felt such pressure to capture what an amazing time I had that it was just too hard. Every time I thought of writing, I would shrug it off because I thought it would take me forever to figure out how to actually put it into words. And now, finally, I’m realizing that at least *something* is better than nothing!

So, over Memorial Day weekend I took a long weekend with four of my best-est girls from high school. It was an amazing trip. First, I absolutely LOVE Chi-town. And of course, we did the usual sight seeing things: saw a hilarious Second City show, walked the Magnificent Mile, went to Millennium Park with the fun “bean” sculpture, perused the Art Institute, strolled on the Navy Pier, took a skyline tour by boat, and even drank champagne on the 96th floor of the Hancock building while admiring the twinkling lights of Chicago at night… and much more! But really, what meant so much more to me was spending the time with my home-girls. Never before had we taken a vacation together, with *just* us. It’s the little moments that I’ll remember… brushing our teeth, chewing green apple gum, taking the train back to the airport with all our luggage, and maybe just a few that I can’t post about here for fear of my life (drunk prom dates are the best!). And, yes, of course, there were a few big moments too…

Anyway, my point, I guess, is that I just loved it and can’t wait to do it again! It makes me think about how I love getting to the age where I can really look at all the different relationships I have in my life and figure out what it is that I love about all of them… each, individually. I feel so blessed.