Easter 2013

We celebrated Easter in Dville with my mom's side of the family, although my mom and dad weren't there - they were in MKY watching my oldest niece and nephew get baptized!  We *hated* to miss it, but just couldn't make the trip down there, so we enjoyed time with Granny & Grandpa and the rest of the bunch in Dville.

Cousin Katie and her boyfriend, Bryan (I stole all these pics from her facebook page - thanks Katie!!)

The traditional Easter egg hunt - Granny helping T (my cousin's son) count his bounty.

Sweet little K, another cousin's daughter

The big boys (my younger cousins) chose to play basketball instead of hunt eggs.  I can remember when it was their turn!

2009 European Adventure Recap - Inside Notre Dame

Still trying to blog my way through the trip to Europe that Shannon and I took in 2009.  Probably will do a lot of switching back and forth between posting these and more current stuff.  Feel free to just skip past if you're not interested.  I'm just bound and determined to finish this at some point!!  Plus, I really like going back and seeing all our pics!  :)

Last we left, it was morning and we had a pastry breakfast.

Monday October 26, 2009

Paris, France

 After breakfast, we headed straight for Notre Dame de Paris, which means "Our Lady of Paris."  We had heard that getting there early was better to avoid crowds, especially if you wanted to climb to the bell tower.  Notre Dame sits on a small island where the Seine River splits and meanders around it.

We toured the inside first.  It was absolutely gorgeous!!  The cornerstone for the building was laid in 1163 and all contruction was finally finished in 1345. I am continually amazed at the architecture and construction from those time periods.  We feel so much more progressed these days, but think of how long ago this was and how much they achieved when you look at this building.

The ceilings were *so* tall.

Look at the man in the bottom of the photo (right-center) for a scale reference to how tall the ceiling is.

Here's a video I took of the inside, just trying to capture the magnitude of the building.

Just breathtaking.....

An enclosed, spiral staircase:

It was hard not to take picture after picture of the same thing from different views.  It was so hard to capture it all, but I sure wanted to try.

There were stained glass windows everywhere.

The Choir (area between the nave and the sanctuary)

This was a modernized confessional booth, we think.  Although, I have to admit it made me chuckle....reminded me of Get Smart's "Cone-of-Silence" in some way.....anybody remember that?

Scale model of the building

And you could even walk away with a flattened, Notre Dame-embossed penny, should you choose.  Weird huh?

Nautical Baby Shower

March 24, 2013

Our good friends, Mark & Anne, were expecting a baby boy, so I threw Anne a baby shower.  She was decorating the baby's room in a nautical theme, so I did the shower in a nautical theme as well.

Here's the invitation (I blurred out some info I didn't want shared):

And the parents-to-be:

 (Anne's lapel-tag is in the shape of a sailboat and says "Baby on Board")

The banner over the food table says "Ahoy It's a Boy"

I scoured Pinterest for nautical ideas.

The napkins were rolled with rope and Life Savers.....

.....and all the food had nautical names.

"Captain's Cheeseball"

"Boat Oars"

"Catch of the Day" (Goldfish Crackers)

"Seagull Snacks"

"First Mate Fruit Salad"

"Sailor Sandwiches"

The baby shower was held at a nearby neighborhood clubhouse (since our little duplex wouldn't hold everybody).

Several of Mark & Anne's friends and family were there.

Kroger even took a special request for a Sailboat Cupcake Cake.  I thought it turned out great - even if it did stain all our teeth!

I also made some "Chips Ahoy Cookies"

After a bite to eat, it was time for some shower games.  Brandon was such a good sport.  He had come dressed in his vest and tie to serve beverages at the shower and complied when I asked him to participate in one of the games.  It was a spin on the Price is Right and I called him a "Barker's Beauty".  :)  He was a hit!

After a few games came presents!

Anne's mom made the baby a quilt.

The baby received so many nice things and we all had a fun time.

One last thing for the guests to do before they left was to leave a "Message in a Bottle" - advice for the parents to be.

This was my first Pinterest-inspired event and I really had a fun time planning it and sticking with the theme.  But what was even more fun was seeing how blessed Mark and Anne were by the shower and everything they received Baby T.

Luck of the Irish?

On March 17, we stopped by an Open House at a home for sale.  We had been looking for a couple months for a new home and although I had previously said the words "I will never buy a split-level home" (just wasn't fond of that layout) and didn't think I'd like this house, I ate my words when after going through the Open House (and loving it), we made an offer on it that evening!

Here's a few pics of the place we now call ours:

Front:

Living Room:

Bathroom:

Kitchen:

Bedroom:

Man Cave:

So, needless to say, with moving recently and doing some new house projects (painting, etc...). my poor blog has suffered!  But, all for good reason. 

Here's Brandon signing the paper work for our loan:

YAY!!!  We're officially home-owners!! 

My First {Running} 5K!

Friday & Saturday - March 8-9, 2013

Just like last year, Dad and Brandon attended the Kentucky High School Basketball Tournament.

Dad got to meet Joe B. Hall this year!

Even though Dad's a UofL fan first and foremost, he'll still root for the Cats and meeting Joe B. was fun for him just the same.

The next day, we participated in a 5K race in the Ville.It was a family affair - from left to right:
My Mom, Brandon's Mom, My Dad, Me and Brandon

Mom and I walked the 5K together last year, but I set a goal to run it instead this year.  The training was hard at times, but I did it!!  And I finished the race in just under 38 minutes.

Dad and Brandon ran together too and our moms walked together.

After the race, we had a celebratory lunch at Cracker Barrel.

After eating, the women went flea market shopping.....

.....while Brandon and my Dad watched basketball with their eyes closed.

While at this point (middle of June now), I've lost most of my training and couldn't run a mile very easily, I'm really proud of myself for doing the training necessary and completing the race!  Hoping to do another one some time.