Friday, December 14, 2007

Socially Conscious Christmas Gifts

If anyone is interested, there are some really great bath and body products that are hand made by residents at Magdalene (a 2 year residential community for women with criminal histories of prostitution and drug abuse) located just outside of Nashville, TN. The women create natural and organic handmade products from lavender fields in which they help tend and maintain. 100% of the sales proceeds go to support the residents.

Erik and I had the privilege of hearing Becca Stevens, an Episcopal Priest and founder of Magdalene, speak a few years ago. We also got to meet and hear stories from some of the women who's lives have been changed as a result of the support at Magdalene. It really is a phenomenal ministry that is making a real difference in the lives of women.

Here's the link:
www.thistlefarms.org

Wednesday, December 05, 2007

Skiing on the grass!


So, usually when we ski in Maggie Valley there is considerably less GRASS. This past Saturday, Erik and I went skiing (well, of course Erik snowboarded) with my friend Regina. It was totally spur of the moment on Friday night, we were like "we're going at 6:30 tomorrow morning!" That's how we roll...

It was just funny to me to see all of that grass under the lifts. The runs were nice though, a little icy at first, but it turned out to be a great day for the first ski of the season! Maggie Valley, N.C. is only about an hour and 1/2 from us. That's Regina in the white pants!

Beautiful views from the lifts!

Wednesday, November 28, 2007

Fall in the Smokies

There is nothing like fresh mountain air, and a weekend with friends! We were in North Carolina a couple of weeks ago soaking up the last of the beautiful fall colors and spending time with old friends. It was this same weekend a year ago that we all got together in the same place. Maybe this is starting to become a tradition?




Erik, Will, and Gaines all braved the trampolines at the Asheville Mall. What a strange concept, to PAY be strapped into a harness and jump up and down for 5 minutes. Weird. But pretty funny.



Shawna and Will are amazing parents! Gaines is so smart and respectful, I've never met a 2 1/2 year old like him. They're expecting a new addition to their family very soon. I can't wait to meet her!

Wednesday, November 07, 2007

4 friends, 4 babies, for 3 days!


A few weeks ago, I headed to Dallas to meet up with my girls from nursing school. Usually, 6 of us get together for a weekend of catching up, re-connecting, and laughing until our sides hurt. Sadly, Maurine and Wendi couldn't make it this year (we missed you!) so it ended up being the 4 of us pictured below (Alisha, me, Suz, Jessicca). Suz just had QUADS, so we spent 3 days together loving on her precious babies; Andrew, Benjamin, Savannah, and Ethan. SO sweet.


Suz and her husband Joe have the babes on an awesome every 4-hour feeding schedule. We all jumped right in and helped with feedings, diapers, laundry, bottles, and burping :) It was definitely a reality check into the world of parenting. Granted, most parents aren't juggling 4 newborns! But, I must say, Joe and Suz are doing an amazing job.


In a moment of insanity, Jessicca and I volunteered to do one of the middle-of-the-night feedings by ourselves! It was absolutely hilarious. Imagine us waking up all 4 babies at once, changing diapers, most of them started screaming, and Savannah decided to vomit the most I've ever seen come out of a baby, right on Jessicca's chest! We ended up doing just fine, but it was just one of those times I wished we would have caught on tape. Good times...

Monday, October 15, 2007

Corn Maze


Yet another thing to add to our list of "firsts" this year...a Corn Maze. What a crazy thing. You run around a corn field, in which a maze has been cut out, trying to locate all of the stations to get a punch for your card. We opted NOT to do the haunted maze. For one, Chris and Ashley had their precious little girl with them, and secondly, Erik was scared (HA!) Our small group went together this past Friday night. We split up into groups (boys vs. girls) to see who could finish first. I'll just let you guess as to who won!

Ok, seriously? This is probably the worst thing I've ever heard of (or close). FRIED TWINKIES?!! And 3 dollars no less! I just couldn't believe it, so I had to take a picture. I couldn't find anyone eating one, so I have no idea what they look like. Are they breaded? On a stick? How does one fry a twinkie?


We got lost, big surprise, so I hopped up on Amber's shoulders to try to get a look at where we were. It totally didn't help. Below is Ashley and her little girl, Elena. She was so good all night, we carried her all over the maze and she never made a peep! What a sweet girl...


We had a good time, for sure.

Friday, October 12, 2007

Smoke Free in Tennessee

As of October 1, all restaurants in Tennessee are smokefree indoors unless they limit access to people 21+ at all times. SO interesting... I never thought I would see the day this would happen here.

Saturday, September 22, 2007

Mackinac Island

As you know, Erik and I grew up in Michigan. The weird thing is, during all of those years living there, I had NEVER been to Mackinac Island! (It's a small island between the mittin and the UP on Lake Huron). Erik had been only once before, when he was a wee one, so he barely remembered it. It was just the little getaway we needed! We've had a super busy summer, so were excited to go away, just the two of us :) There are no cars allowed on the island, so we brought our bikes and peddled our way around for the few days we were there. It was absolutely beautiful. Everywhere you looked, there was water. And horse poop. That's right, the second most popular mode of transportation was horseback or carriage rides. Either way, horse patties littered the streets and we did our best to dodge them as we road around. The day it rained, we got back to our room (at the AMAZING historic Inn we stayed in) and our coats and pants were covered with mud...at least we hoped it was mud!
Here's the loveboat, all loaded up and ready to catch the ferry in St. Ignace. We spent some time at Erik's parents house before heading to Mackinac.



The Grand Hotel (above) was so much bigger than I expected it to be. We didn't stay there, for one, because it was WAY out of our price range, and after 6pm all men HAD to be dressed in suit and tie while the women were not allowed to wear pants. That is SO not our style, so we settled for marveling at its beauty from the sidewalk. The hotel has a rich history, opening back in 1887!


This is where we stayed, the Inn at Stonecliffe. Uh-mazing.





It was around 40 degrees the first morning we set out exploring. I didn't bring gloves, so I used my fleece! I think Erik was embarrassed by me!








In case you didn't get enough (I went a little picture crazy), click here to see the whole album.

Friday, September 14, 2007

Linda's 60th


Erik's Mom turned 60! Last weekend we loaded up the "loveboat" and headed up north to celebrate with her. It was a huge bash with 30-40 of her dearest and oldest friends. A few of her oldest friends were college buddy's (The Nurds, as they call themselves) who have stayed in touch all of these years and still get together every year. We partied all evening at this amazing Bed & Breakfast in Bellaire, MI (on Torch Lake). It was such a beautiful event to celebrate the life of such a lovely woman!






Gotta love the two-seater!



Shuffleboard is actually a very violent sport.

Monday, August 27, 2007

Raccoon Mountain 10K


What a beautiful day for a race! This past Saturday, we headed to Chattanooga with my sister and her husband to run the Raccoon Mtn "Round the Rim" 10K. Actually, Kevin and I ran the 10K while Erik and Amber ran the 5K. We left Knoxville at 4:45am to get there in time to register and everything. Yeah, so, by the time the race started I had already been awake for about 4 hours! My coffee buzz was wearing off and I had become lethargic from the drive down. Even so, it was the most fun! Only 180 runners, really laid back and informal. Just the way I like it :) We ran around the "rim" of this huge reservoir, it was really pretty. There was a nice cool breeze at the start, believe it or not. This was surprising to me b/c it's been about 100 degrees here every day.


Here's a view of the reservoir.


Ah, and now we have the post-race shots. We're awake! That little banner in the background was the finish line


I don't think Erik and Kevin planned to be twins. And, Amber and I didn't plan on looking like weirdos (below). It just happened.


These were the worst race shirts EVER! Tank tops? Come ON!


We spent a lovely afternoon in DT Chattanooga, in the historic art district. These pics were taken in a very interesting sculpture garden.

Divers. It made me want to go swimming.