Iowa

matty, our great driver. not speeding like i tend to do, watching for deer, and putting up with my singing with a smile on his face.
i loved everywhere we drove that day, but this picture in particular because it's rare living in the city driving through such a magnificent thing as a forest of trees.
the park we stopped in is beautiful and they had these perfect things (i don't even know what they are called) all over the place.
i've been asking mcdonald's for years for a twist cone and a few years ago they said they quit making chocolate... i just recently stopped asking. we found this cute ice cream shop and this crazy road-trip-hair freckle face is happy with a twist cone, finally.

this little guy was parked next to us at the ice cream shop... i like him.

97!

We went up to Iowa for Matts' Grandma's 97th birthday!! We drove the ten hours and saw her and the family for less than three but it was completely worth it.
My soon to be niece, Ainsley!


Ainsley got a chance to blow out the candles too.

transfixed with nature

"i'm becoming transfixed with nature and my part in it, which i believe just signifies i'm finally waking up" -ani difranco

we drove about 600 miles in 28 hours over the weekend. right through the rolling plains, wide open spaces, small towns, and beautiful farms.  it was refreshing and just what i needed.  i felt a shift towards nature and my need to feel connected with it.  i know i am a midwest girl at heart, much more land-loving, space needing, fresh air breathing person than a suburbanite.  not that one is better than the other by any means. but the land, the desire to plant things, have a garden, sit on the porch watching the sun set (feels like i'm writing a country song) feels more natural to me.  and i guess it's a slower paced life... but definitely a simpler way of living.  i know we will live that way sometime and until then i will continue to strive for a rich, meaningful life, keeping a good perspective on what really matters in life, and how i spend my time.  and although we have neighbors right next door we are lucky to have a big fenced in yard.  i can bike to the farmer's market. i can choose not to participate in certain things that i feel take away from my natural sense. (and yes i have been called a hippie before, which i don't think is all that bad). it's the time of year to be outside, breathe fresh air, be active or not, to do what feels right and be grateful for the things you have in your life, and appreciate the people that are close to you.

idio-something

i have a lot of idiosyncrasies (i think i've gotten better over the years) so here is a list having to do with that and some of it just completely random...

* i don't like when people that call wednesday "hump day"

* i think it's weird when people that always sigh out "ahghhh" when you ask how their day is

* i almost always have a song playing in my head.. to the point that it kind of drives me crazy

* i don't like drinking out of cups at restaurants without a straw

* i crack my knuckles a lot, i don't like it and sometimes it hurts.. yet i keep doing it

* i count steps when i am on them

* i hate touching change $

* i can't read in the car

* i love trying to accents or voices from shows or movies and i try to perfect them but i only do it in the privacy of my own home (poor matt has to hear it all)

* if i hear a word i haven't heard in a while (like obtuse) i will spell it in my head three times.

* when someone tells a story and it starts with "well, i called tom at 7:30.... or was it 8:30... bill! did i call tom at 7:30 or 8:30" (when all i am thinking is... who really cares, please move on to the point of the story.

* i would love to stay home all day and do short animations, but i fear at the end of the day almost no one else would find them to be funny

* when someone tells a story about first and last name people that i've never met, they know i've never met them, yet they still continue to tell me how that person just got a new cat

* i really don't like cats. my sister has one that i've grown accustom to, but secretly she still freaks me out

- off to our 2nd to last double header... hope the rain holds off. have a good night!

games

here is hayden playing some game in one room, and the rest of the boys playing another game nearby. matt's brother jason came over with his two sons on saturday night for a game night, pizza party sleep over. it was fun to see them, i tried to play a game with hayden and by the tenth time of him killing me, i quit. and i actually beat matt in our double shot basketball game twice. big accomplishment for me.

roof leak

i opened the cabinet above and to the left of our kitchen sink and found condensation coming down from the ceiling. we assumed the leak from the roof would be major but when matty made his way through the attic entrance above our bedroom closet he found only a few cobwebs and sealed up any leaks quickly. here he is preparing to make his way up to the attic for the first time.

hammock

yo. here's the pic of me training our dogs that it's okay for them to get on our futon downstairs, but not on anything else... it works, most of the time. so matthew and i went to three stores today looking for hammocks. that is all i wanted was a beautifully comfortable hammock. he wanted a flat screen t.v. and thankfully he decided a hammock was a better purchase. we layed on the hammock both reading books, and within ten minutes he was out like a light. i knew he would love the naps on the hammock. it's just the greatest, and todays weather was perfect for hammock napping.