Change of Plans

We were supposed to go to the state fair.  My friend and I had loaded up her car and headed toward Indy.  The girls were chattering excitedly about rides and food and animals in the backseat.  And then it happened.  About two miles outside of town, the skies opened up and we were in the middle of a torrential downpour.  I pulled into the truck stop and she pulled out her phone to check the radar.  A swath of angry red and yellow stretched across the better part of the state.

 

Time to adjust the plans.

 

We told the girls that the fair was out of the question.

~Insert disappointed wails from the back seat...in stereo!~ 

A little bit of brainstorming found the vehicle headed North instead of East, on our way to Chuck E Cheese.  Marley and I have never been there.  What a fun place!

 

 

 

Especially if you're a lover of merry-go-rounds of ANY size!

 

 

There weren't many people there at all, so the girls pretty much had free reign of the place.

 

 

 

And because I'm a sucker for these kinds of things...

 

 

 

 

And the pizza wasn't too bad either!

Thank goodness for indoor rainy-fairday alternatives!

A trip to Michigan

Earlier this year, we visited our Michigan friends. 

My, do we miss them!  It was so good to catch up with

Grandma Lynne

and Papa. 
They have such a loving relationship with Marley and me and spoil us rotten!  Even now, over a year after we moved away from Michigan, they regularly send Marley cards and packages.  They are often in our conversations, and are daily in our hearts.

 

We also met up with some of our friends at our Michigan house to take advantage of the unseasonably warm weather to work on the flower beds and freshen them up a bit in the hopes that it would spruce up the curb appeal of the house and maybe help it sell.  It didnt.

Marley and L enjoyed spending some time playing and helping out too!

 They don't quite fit into the sandbox as well as they used to!

Fifteen bags of mulch  and yards upon yards of landscape fabric later, the finished product looked pretty good, I think!

 I got cracked up when the little ones decided that they should pile up the rocks they found around the yard and flower beds into two lovely piles.

And this would be the lilac tree that I transplanted from Mom and Dad's.  I lived in that house five years, and it never bloomed.  Guess what? The spring after Jim passed away (and Marley and I had moved to Indiana), that bugger BLOOMED.  *sigh*

During the evenings we were able to visit with Jill and Ashley and their families.  This included a game of "Pretty, Pretty Princess"...

Sorry, Xav. If you don't come over to supervise, we WILL let your son put on jewelry and a crown!

I really miss Ashley's ready laugh and kind servant's heart!  During my last semester of work, Jim was very ill.  Ashley taught in the classroom next to me.  Her way of helping was to do my lesson plans for me, do the prep work, and meet with me every Friday, making it so that I could show up, do my job, and leave school shortly after the bell and spend every precious minute possible with Jim and Marley.  As you can see, she loves to smile.  We affectionately call her Miss Happy Pants.

 

These two have known each other since they were babes.  It's so great when they get to spend time together!

Silly faces and all!

Poor Nate was the only man in the house.  I guess that since all of his children are daughters, he's used to it.  Marley loves climbing up in his lap to chat.  He has a kind gently way about him that draws her to him.

This is Jill. 

She is a cancer survivor, and was one of my coworkers who fiercely supported me throughout Jim's battle.  She knew firsthand the stress and fears that I was facing every day.  She can read me like a book, no words needed.  Nearly every morning would find her stopping by my classroom before we went to get our kiddos on the playground.  She took it upon herself to see how I was doing and either give me a big hug and let me cry on her shoulder or to tell me to "Suck it up and do my job". 

I miss that.

 

These are just a few of the people that we love from Michigan.  Looking back at these pictures is making me feel a bit homesick to see them all. 

I think I feel a visit coming soon!

Zoo

Why is she smiling?

Because it's zoo day!

Marley had been anxiously counting the days, and it was finally time to skip school and head to the Indianapolis Zoo.

This is Kate. 

We were best friends back in college...waaaaay back in college.

Since then she's moved to another state, as have I.  Along the way, we've made a point of getting together from time to time.  Usually we do it by ourselves- meeting at a restaurant and spending the afternoon eating and catching up and enjoying one another's company. 

But it's summertime! 

And that means her packing up her seven kids and meeting Marley and I at a predetermined place to enjoy the day together with our kids. 

This year, it was the zoo.

Here they all are, minus the baby, who preferred

to be strapped to his mama for the day.

We had a great time looking at all the animals

...and Marley was very interested in knowing where we were going at all times.

We got to see the dolphin show, which the kids loved.

But they also loved the tigers.

I gotta admit, I was a little freaked out by the fact that one particular tiger took so much interest in what was on the other side of what I'm sure is

perfectly tiger-proof glass...

Yes, that would be my DAUGHTER that the tiger was nose-to-nose with.

After the fun of seeing all the animals, of course

we had to make a stop at the splash park!

And a snack is also a neccessity.

This little guy was an absolute angel the entire day!

Isn't he precious??

In fact, I think her seven kids were better behaved than my one. 

Gotta love having a three year old!

Gack.

Overall it was a great day! 

I love this friend of mine.  Even if we haven't spoken more than the occassional text for several months, we can pick right back up where we left off last time.

My family size stays the same, but hers just keeps growing, and I love watching her interact with her kids like the super-mom that she is. 

In fact, I think it's about time for us to meet with just the two of us again soon.

I've got things to tell her.

;-)

Girls' Weekend- Chicago

Last year my college girlfriends and I started a new tradition... girls weekend away.  We all graduated from college together in 1998.  Since then, we've stayed in contact and gotten together in various combinations- homecoming football games, weddings, baby and wedding showers, visiting each others' homes, taking road trips.  But we never made a point out of taking one weekend a year and getting together just to catch up on each others' lives, eat, drink, and leave our daily responsibilities behind to spend some fun time together.  Last year, the girls treated Marley and me to a weekend in Indianapolis.  This year, we decided to go to Chicago.  We all found someone to take care of our kiddos (thanks, Beth and Doug!) and headed to the Windy City for our weekend getaway.

Since we were going to be downtown, some of us came by plane, some by train, and some carpooled or drove alone.  On my way up 65 to meet Melissa to hitch a ride into town, I passed a windmill farm that I didn't know was there...

These things are amazing!  I never really knew or appreciated how huge they are.  There's a certain grace and organization to a windmill farm that appeals to the symmetrical geek in me.

After a few wrong turns, Melissa and I finally made it to the

where the other girls were waiting in the pub.  After some appetizers and a few drinks, we headed up to our rooms to unpack and relax together. 

We missed "E", who is part of our group but wasn't able to come this year, and for good reason...she's pregnant! 

Woo hoo!

The next morning, we had a great brunch and headed out to spoil ourseleves with mani/pedis...

Here's the finished product...

Then we headed out to do some shopping!

And more eating, of course.

To finish off the day, we went back to our room for drinks and goofing off.

Not sure what was so funny...

...but I love this picture!

On the morning of our last day, we headed out to beautiful

and did the "tourist" thing.

At this point I should admit we got a little lost.

Ok, we got a LOT lost.

All in a four-block radius.

All too soon, it was time to gather for one last photo before we headed our separate ways.

It was so nice to catch up with these girls that I used to spend each and every day with all those years ago when we were in college.  Our lives have changed so much since then...husbands, babies, life's ups and downs...but our bond remains strong and we can always just pick up where we left off.

I love these girls!

Can't wait till next year!