Sunday Evening

Melanie and I went over to my parents for Sunday dinner tonight. It was nice being able to see everyone. It is not real often that everyone in the family makes it to sunday dinner so it was good being able to see everybody. There are getting to be so many kids running around, it is a little chaotic but I am glad we can all get together once in a while to just spend some time with each other. I think it's good to be able to do this. We all went out into the backyard to get some snapshots of the families so we can give them to my grandma in a digital frame for mother's day. I don't think we have ever had a family photo of the entire family so even if it was low budget, I think it was good to do.

What the????

That's what I said when I looked out the window this morning. Now, I know I am not the most obsessive about yardwork and I pretty much just do the basics, but I never knew that you were supposed to vacuum your lawn. This is my neighbor using a shop vac to vacuum his lawn. He was at it for hours this morning. It's not like he was just vacuuming a small area to clean something up - he vacuumed the whole back yard. It was a little weird.

Exciting times at the Summers' home

Today has been full of exciting things and it is only 10:00am. First, I used my new bread machine that my parents gave me for my birthday. I love waking up to hot bread in the morning. It makes my house smell so good, and it tastes delicious. Bread is one of my favorite things to eat - this is why a low-carb diet would never work for me. Carbs are my friend. I have missed fresh bread, and it is such a welcome change.

Also, when I was backing out of the driveway this morning, I almost ran over some guy. There was a whole crew of framers in my front yard! They delivered the wood yesterday and I was shocked to see them there so quickly. We haven't even signed the paperwork yet, but that should take place today. We spent last night cleaning out the basement and it is a good thing we did. I am excited to have the basement finished and am hoping that it will not take a long time. I am always overly optimistic on these sorts of things, but a girl can dream. Anyway, it has been quite the day and there is still so much more to come.

Melanie's Thirty!!!

I just wanted to make a little note about my snuggle bug turning thirty today. I have only known Melanie for as many months as she is years old yet in that time I have found my other half. Melanie means so much to me that my simple words do not do justice to how I feel about her. Sure her attitude sometimes is a little shocking but at the same time that is one of the many qualities I find so endearing about my wife. I always know where I stand with Melanie, she doesn't hold back on her feelings or emotions. If she is mad at me, I know about it. The funny thing is, Melanie thinks I think she is always wrong and I always have to prove I am right. But the fact of the matter is, that I trust her judgment and her opinions whole heartedly, I have too, she chose me to be her eternal companion, she chose me to be by her side...that means a lot to me, I consider myself lucky to have her count me worthy of her. I love you, Melanie! You are awesome, thanks for being you and allowing me to be a part of your life.

Happy 30th Birthday to Me!

I turned 30 today and many people have been asking me if it bothers me to be so old. It does not. I found the following summation of being 30 that I think fits me perfectly. For those of you who have been somewhat shocked at the things I say or do - this is why, I am too old to care Ü

Turning 30 by Andy Rooney

This is for all you girls 30 years and over....and for those who are turning 30, and for those who are scared of moving into their 30's! This was written by Andy Rooney from CBS 60 Minutes Andy Rooney says:

As I grow in age, I value women who are over 30 most of all. Here are just a few reasons why:

A woman over 30 will never wake you in the middle of the night to ask, "What are you thinking?". She doesn't care what you think.

If a woman over 30 doesn't want to watch the game, she doesn't sit around whining about it. She does something she wants to do. And, it's usually something more interesting.

A woman over 30 knows herself well enough to be assured in who she is, what she is, what she wants and from whom. Few women past the age of 30 give a damn what you might think about her or what she's doing.

Women over 30 are dignified. They seldom have a screaming match with you at the opera or in the middle of an expensive restaurant. Of course, if you deserve it, they won't hesitate to shoot you, if they think they can get away with it.

A woman over 30 has the self-assurance to introduce you to her women friends. A younger woman with a man will often ignore even her best friend because she doesn't trust the guy with other women. Women over 30 couldn't care less if you're attracted to her friends because she knows her friends won't betray her.

Once you get past a wrinkle or two, a woman over 30 is far sexier than her younger counterpart.

Older women are forthright and honest. They'll tell you right off if you are a jerk if you are acting like one! You don't ever have to wonder where you stand with her.

It is so great that I am now in the group of people who are old enough to act how they want and get away with it!

The Blaze Game

Last night Kelly and I had a date night at the Blaze game. Kelly finally had a chance to wear his jersey to a game and he felt right at home with all the other rednecks wearing theirs. We go to these games every year and they are quite fun, however the Blaze are usually pretty good. Last night was a little disappointing as far as either team playing well. They continued their season long losing streak by losing 61-40. The great news is that there is always one thing you can count on when you go to one of these games - yummy treats!

We had a good time, but as you can see by the end of the game there were not many people still there. We had fun and our ice cream was delicious! Plus, when we left our car was still there and had not been vandalized in any way. Even though the Blaze did not win - I figure it was a win for us Ü

Thinking of Melanie, my sweetheart

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Yard Work

Last night for FHE we worked on our yard. We planted a lot of things and I was going to take a picture of the finished product, but it basically looks the same. Most of what we planted were bulbs, so there is nothing to see yet. We planted hostas, cana lillies, daisies, columbines, and lavendar. We also planted 1 of 4 trees. It was super windy, but at least it was warm. Kelly is going to be planting the remaining trees this morning. It was good to see that at least most of the plants we planted in the fall have survived. Now if only we could get rid of whatever it is that keeps digging all the holes. . . . . Oh, and by the way, I made those brownies from the recipe spotlight - very good, especially with mint chocolate chip brownie ice cream on top.

Bermuda!

So, we are back from Bermuda and I am finally getting around to putting up some pictures from our trip. We had a good time and saw some very beautiful things. This is a picture of Kelly gazing in wonder at his ancestor! Sir George Somers (I am sure the different spelling doesn't matter) founded the town of St Georges on the East end of Bermuda. This was a fun little town with some interesting things to see. I liked the church that had been started, but never completed. There was also a beautiful garden (Somers Garden) right in the middle that was like something out of a fairytale.

While in Bermuda, I noticed a very strange thing. There are a lot of chickens - everywhere. It seemed like everytime there was an open area of grass or farmland, there were also chickens. Eggs are one of the few things that they actually provide and don't have to import, so I guess they don't mind the chickens. However, since we had just watched The Birds - I was a little scared!

This is a picture of the "pink" sand from Horseshoe Bay. Bermuda is famous for their pink sand beaches. Yeah, I was a little disappointed in the color. Unless you look very closely, it mostly is just white sand. The beaches are very nice and the ocean is so pretty. There are so many different greens and blues as you look at the water - it is definitely something you should see. The sand did look a lot more pink when it was wet, but overall not that pink.

This is a picture of Horseshoe Bay from up on the road. It looked even better close up!

This is a picture of Kelly and I on our adventure at the museum. We went to the Bermuda Underwater Exploration Institute museum and saw some interesting things. We got to go on a "dive" to the bottom of the ocean and were attacked by a giant squid. Then, after we had abandoned ship we were attacked by a shark!! But don't worry, we were inside a shark cage and we are fine.

The biggest adventure of all was using the public transportation. We had bus/ferry passes and were able to see the whole island. The roads were very narrow, only 1 lane each way and they drive on the wrong side of the road. There are many parts of the road that are surrounded by a rock wall or thick vegetation on both sides. The roads are also very windy and on the turns where there was no extra room it got very tight for a bus to go past another bus or work truck. Most people drive very, very small cars. Basically, no SUVs, no 4-wheel drive, no minivans or vans of any kind.

We had a good time, but I am glad to be home. My time on The Ship of Death was good, for the most part, but I don't miss the vomitting. Oh yeah, I forgot to mention - if any of you are thinking of traveling to Bermuda I will offer a valuable peice of information: Fly. The seas were high and people couldn't walk down the halls without crashing into the walls. There were also numerous people barfing in the bathrooms. Don't get me wrong, I loved our cruise to the Caribbean - I just think the middle of the Atlantic ocean is not a good place for boats. I gained a whole new appreciation for those who packed up their belongings and sailed across that ocean to come to America. I was puking the first day and many of them took months to get here. All in all, not bad for a free vacation.