Duluth with Adam and Maria!

Each summer since the G-man and I have been married, we've tried to take a trip with Adam and Maria. They're pretty great and we like them. This year we decided on Duluth. What fun!

Our first stop was to the Canal area and lighthouse. When you're there, you can watch the cargo boats go by and take pictures. Good times were had by all.

Here we are heading to the lighthouse. Adam isn't having a seizure. He's just really excited to be on vacation.

I think my favorite thing we did was tour the Glensheen mansion. It was built in the early 1900s by a wealthy guy. I'm a bit nerdy and I really enjoy guided tours, especially of mansions.

Gerrit and I outside the mansion in the rain.

A little quality Maria time. I think we were waiting for the boys to stop skipping rocks.

The men being men.

The women being women.

We took another guided tour of the William A. Irvin cargo boat (ship?). I wasn't totally fascinated by this; however, we had a hilarious guide. Our tour guide, Tom, used to work on a similar vessel. He had a very dry humor which we thoroughly enjoyed.

We couldn't visit Duluth without making a trip to Gooseberry Falls. It's beautiful anytime of year. Ignore my shiny, sweaty face.

Naturally, the boys found a cave. It never fails.
Adam enjoying the great outdoors.
Gerrit was a real stinker at the Falls. He insisted on taking detours from the path and going on "adventures." I kept reminding him to be careful. It was obvious that my "mothering" was irritating him (especially after he told me it was). But I just kept saying, "I won't apologize for loving you!"

To prove that I hadn't totally lost my sense of fun, I ventured out onto some rocks to get closer to the falls. I got stuck and panicked (which was pretty unnecessary, since the water was about 6 inches deep and very calm). I kept thinking about how miserable it would be to be wet for the rest of our time there. All I could say was, "I made a mistake! I made a mistake!" Gerrit came out to rescue me. And we made it across....safe and dry.

Oh, except that after this picture was taken, Gerrit slipped and fell on the rock. And that's why I remind him to be careful!

A Little Catching Up to Do...

Hello Hello! I'm just going to stretch my memory to tell you about my early summer experiences. I know you're all dying to hear!

Near the start of summer, I had the pleasure of seeing my freshman/sophomore college roommate dance in a recital. Tara was a shining star! No, seriously, the costumes were super shiny! The Book Club girls (Katie, Molly, and I) got to see her after the show (and after she changed out of her costume. So fun!

Me, Tara, Katie, Molly

A bit later this summer, I got to give Gerrit a buzz cut. This was my first time doing that and I was really nervous. It turned out just fine! But before the finished product, I couldn't resist giving him a little 1990's "New Kids On The Block" 'do. This hair made me want to sing, "Oh oh oh oh oh. Oh oh oh oh oh. Oh oh oh oh oh. THE RIGHT STUFF!"
Another first for Gerrit was going to Paul Bunyan's Restaurant with my family. We went in the Dells with friends, but this was a first with my family. What a treat!

Aubrey and Sophie waiting for their food.

Here's Jozie celebrating Carey's birthday. Gerrit thinks she's turning into my mini-me. I'll let you decide.

Jozie and Me: Both Age 4

In July, Gerrit had the honor of being Best Man in his friend/college roommate/former bandmate/video-game challenger/brother he never had......Dave's wedding. The weekend wedding extravaganza was in Illinios. Good times were had by all!

Since Gerrit drove down with the boys, I drove down with the men folks other halves. Emily was the wedding photographer/wife of a groomsman. Katie was the hair lady/girlfriend of a groomsman. Naturally, I was a little nervous about driving to Illinois with girls I didn't know. But I was over that in about 2.3 seconds. We bonded. I think Emily and I are pretty much the same person. It was a little creepy.

Really, the cherry on top of a great start to summer, was that I got to see a monkey ride a dog. Yes, you read that correctly. A monkey rode atop a dog! If you don't believe me, see for yourself. My life is forever changed.

That's all for now! More to come!

I'm Still Here!

I've had some trouble logging on to my blog recently, but I'm here! Hopefully I'll be updating soon! Sorry for such a long absence. I know you've been anxiously awaiting my next post. You can exhale now. :)

Chocolate Cheesecake!!!!!

It was my turn to bring snacks to small group (for Renovation Church) this week. I brought Chocolate Cheesecake with blackberries on top. I made mine in muffin cups to make it easier to serve. I had never made it before, so I was a little nervous. But people loved them! I had some left over and brought them to work. Again, people loved them. Not to toot my own horn here, but I was the talk of the school. So, here is the link to the recipe. Knock yourself out!

Weddings, Retching, Strep and Spring Break

As you may have guessed, Gerrit and I attended a wedding! It was for a co-worker of mine who I just love. We get along very well and I was honored to be invited. Her day was BEAUTIFUL and so was she.

Gerrit and I ready for the wedding. I think Gerrit is laughing.

The Bride and I. She's great!

She and I were both para's for Mr. C, who is with us in this picture. We took it for the kids in our class so that they could see the Bride all dressed up. And so that they would know we have a life outside of school...shocking!

These are the shoes I wore. I think I need to burn them because I love them so much.

Warning: If you are sensitive to grossness, don't read this. About the "retching." Gerrit had food poisoning last week due to eating at a beloved restaurant which shall go unnamed. I'll leave most of that to your imagination. But I'm sure whatever you're imagining is true. In all the time we've been together, I had never heard Gerrit throw up before. That was a happier, more innocent time in my life. It was as if the man were puking up his soul and I was helpless to stop it. I prayed my little heart out for him with white knuckled clasped hands (but only when they weren't plugging my ears). He's made a full recovery (it's a miracle!), but we won't be eating there for a while.

Yesterday, the first official day of my Spring Break, doctors confirmed what I already knew: that I have strep throat. Germs love me. I get everything. I laid on the couch for about 2 days. Which may sound wonderful (even to me at times), but it wasn't. With the unusually sore throat and high fever, it had been kicking my butt. But praise God for medicine, because I'm already feeling better. I can actually sit upright for more than a couple minutes now!

How is your week going?

And the Oscar Goes to....

....Adam and Maria's Party! Our dear friends hosted a red-carpet event (seriously, they had a red-carpet!) in honor of the Academy Awards. We got all dolled up and ate fancy snacks! It was a great excuse to wear old prom and bridesmaid dresses. Maria and I also got to wear our wedding tiaras. How many chances do you get to do that? Joan Rivers would have a few things to say, I'm sure.

The hosts: Adam and Maria

Gerrit and I

Matt had tiara envy, so I let him borrow mine for a while. His girlfriend, Emily, approved.

Adam and Maria made some amazing food. My favorite were the little smokies wrapped in bacon. I made a fruit pizza (that I'm pretty proud of) and here's how it turned out:

I enjoyed the show, but it got a bit long for me. All I really wanted to see were Best Actor/Actress and Best Picture. But I feel asleep around 10:15 and missed all of those! Oh well. Did you watch the Oscars?

And A Happy New Year

Better late than never! On New Years Day, Gerrit and I headed to see his family to celebrate Christmas with them. As usual, I had a bad cold and was medicating myself day and night. So, my memory is a bit foggy on all that went on! I know we had fun and got LOTS of presents. Here are some pictures:

Gwen's Masterpiece: The Tree!

Okay, so we attempted several family pictures. This is the least awkward one I could find on my camera. We had to adjust our positions a lot. The camera's were too zoomed or not zoomed enough. Then we had trouble all looking at the same time. I mean, you'd have thought we were trying to get a good shot of 50 people at once. But we made a memory!

In an attempt to kick up the awkward factor, we decided to snap pictures of each other WAYTOOCLOSE. And here's what we came up with:

Gerrit

Cassie
Darcy
Ahna
EdWhether you like it or not, I bet you feel closer to each one of us!