28 and Lookin' Great

KISS THE BIRTHDAY GIRL!

Brandlyn, my tiny big sister, turned 28 years old today, and I am devoting this blog and the glorious title of 'Person of the Week' to her. She is a very hardworking mother of three, a wonderful wife, and one of my best friends. We are very much alike, but also very different. We've always had a close relationship, and you never ever have to "wonder what we're thinking". We'll tell ya! You could say we bond through our sass.

From helping me choose my own outfits to teaching me how to shave my legs and apply makeup, she has taught me so many things over the past 25 years of  my life. I have so many stories about her. But then again she has so many about me, so I better keep it G-rated.

She is a great older sister to me, Brittany, and Ryan. I hate this picture, but somehow we've managed to go a year and a half without taking a sibling photo. No worries, I'll be there in October with camera in hand!

She loves her family and would do anything to make sure they are safe and happy. She also goes out of her way to make us feel special. Like for example, somehow she always knows when I am having a rough day. She is a very busy woman, but she has some sort of sixth sense when it comes to knowing when I need her. I love her for that.

She is a great mom to these three adorable children (Aspen, Hunter, and Elli).

She is a loving wife to the love of her life, Chris. I love this picture of the two lovebirds in Hawaii.

She is FUN! (keeping it G-rated)

...and so tiny. Seriously, how did she have three kids?

Most of all she works hard to be great in every role of her life: mom, wife, sister, daughter, friend, back stage dance mom, cook, nurse, maid, chauffeur, office manager everything...I get tired just thinking about it! But she is the best big tiny sister anyone could ask for, and I thank God for her each day.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BRANDY!

Damsel in Distress

"Chirp. Chirp." said the garage.
"Wait a minute, a garage doesn't chirp," I thought to myself.
"Creeeeeeek." I opened the door to the garage and the chirping subsided. I also realized that we need to put some WD-40 on the door hinges so I jotted it down on the "Honey Do List".
I shut the door.

"Chirp. Chirp." said something inside the garage.
I opened the door and this ferocious beady-eyed beast appeared.

I had a bird in my garage. Yes, a bird. I left the garage door open for an hour and it just stayed there. Until, like a rabbid beast, it flew to the opposite end and perched itself above Sam's lawn tools.

I was a prisoner in my own home, and clearly The Beast wasn't the least bit concerned about the errands I needed to run.

So I called Sam to tell him all about it. No sympathy there. He said "just get a broom or a rake and try to get it down."

HA! Right.

And then I reminded him who he married. And I don't mean that in a snobby I'm better than that kind-of way. I mean that I reminded him of how terrified I am of the wildlife up here in the north. Remember the Canadian Goose that wouldn't let me get in my car?! No more birds for me, thanks.

So I called my mother-in-law, who very sweetly tracked down my father-in-law to come resue me from The Beast. And I documented my rescuer in action.

"THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!"

Come to find out, "The Beast" was actually a baby Cardinal. It flew right to his parents as soon as he got out of the garage.

Happy One Year!

Wow, I cannot believe we have been married for one year. My how time flies! One year ago on August 15th, Sam and I were enjoying every moment of the most important day of our lives: our wedding day. To celebrate this momentous anniversary, we decided to take a trip back to where it all began: Chicago. Chicago was the first place Sam told me that he loved me and it was also the place where Sam asked me to marry him. We couldn't think of anywhere we would rather celebrate our first anniversary.

 The river was right outside our hotel. Beautiful view!

 And this should look familiar. This is where Sam proposed to me on New Year's Eve (Dec. '08). We had never seen it in the summer, and this time the fountain was not frozen.

 I love the stained glass windows and green ivy.

 We got all dressed up and had dinner at Hugo's Frog Bar & Fish House. They have the most amazing food, wine, and specialty cocktail selection. After our night out on the town, we headed back to the Hyatt for champagne and wedding cake.

But first...who's up for a little mirrored elevator photo montage?!

And finally we turned the flash off...

Now let's get to that champagne, shall we?

So the cake tasted...lemony. We did not have lemon cake at our wedding. Perplexing, isn't it?

On day two of our anniversary trip, we decided to go to Shedd's Aquarium. We love aquariums and this was one was the best of the best! We got to see animals from the Caribbean Reef, the Amazon, the Pacific Northwest coast, and the Indo-Pacific Reef. I took about 100 pictures at this place and here are a few of my favorites.

The sea otters were our favorite! They just play around all day long without a care in the world.

I found Nemo!

The sand snakes were very cool too!

We found out that I could not live in the Amazon. I'm sure you are shocked. The sign says that after only three weeks, the waters rise above 5 feet!

Happy Birthday, Hubby!

Sam is 34 years old today, and it's his first birthday as my husband! You saw here that I already gave him his birthday present, but I have a few more surprises up my sleeve this year. I love birthdays and I think every person should feel special on his/her big day. So, no surprise here, Sam is my person of the week.
He is a wonderful husband...

my best friend...

and life partner...

Everyday I thank God for blessing my life with such a wonderful, Christian husband. Sam is compassionate, loving, a child at heart, and can make me laugh and smile more than anyone ever has. Those qualities are the things I love most about him. Happy Birthday, Sam! I love you!