Ten Years Later

This weekend, we hopped in the car and drove on down to central Illinois for Joshua's ten year class reunion. We met up with his high school friends, all four together for the first time since our wedding, I think. We ate Filippo's pizza and then spent some time playing mini golf and in the batting cages (my first time!) I managed two holes in one! Very exciting.

The reunion was as expected. It was at a Lake of the Woods in a fairly nice, somewhat air-conditioned hall. I met lots of people; today I couldn't tell you their names. We ate some food, chatted for two hours, and then went back to Matt's parents' house to play games. Joshua was a bit nostalgic about the event. It is interesting to think about his life has changed over the past ten years and how it will continue to evolve over the next ten. It really was a fun night. Here are couple of picture from the weekend.

Two Weeks Notice

Today I quit my job. What was supposed to be a very conveniently located position 5-10 minutes from home has turned out to be driving for 1-3 hours a day from anywhere from 2-5 facilities.

I hate driving.

I have always hated driving.

The driving is frustrating now and scary in a January snow storm.

I am sorely disappointed and anxious to find something else. Crossing my fingers...

Anybody need a speech-language pathologist with an excellent work ethic?

Surprise!

Friday night we celebrated Mom's 50th birthday with an old-fashioned surprise party. After many plans failed to get her to the church, Shaun finally just had to call and kindly suggest she come up to the church. So, she knew something was up, but I don't think she realized the scope of the event. We had family, friends from work, friends from church, and friends from grade school through high school. I think we had around 65 guests, which seemed like the perfect amount.

Shaun and I have been busy for weeks planning the decorations and food, and I think things turned out quite nicely. Here are a few pictures from the evening.

Wedding Bells Are Ringing

Last Saturday, we celebrated Grandma Norma and Grandpa Joe's 55th wedding anniversary with an open house reception at the new blue barn in Atkinson (St. Anthony's new parish hall). After announcing the event in the local paper, around 200 people came to celebrate. It was a delightful day!

Sorry for the Delay

Last weekend we were in Champaign for Fat Fest, an annual tradition that involves eating a disgusting amount of food at ten different restaurants all in one afternoon. We had a delightful time, as usual, and I'm happy to report that Dunkin Donuts finally made it on the list of stops. I don't think anyone was disappointed. In addition to donuts, other restaurants stops included pizza, Korean, Chinese, frozen yogurt, hot dogs, and bar food. Here are a few picture highlights from the day. In other news, my new job is not my favorite. Here's hoping this coming week is better than the last two have been.

First Day

Tomorrow is my first day at my new job. I'm crossing my fingers that the transition is a smooth one.

Working Out at the Track Meet

Butch, Janet, and the kids were in town on Friday and Saturday. Sarah made state in two track events, so we were all excited to watch her race. It turns out, the spectators got a work out, too. After waiting in a long line of cars for 20 minutes, we finally parked almost two miles away from the sports complex. (I just Google mapped it!) Two GIANT hills and 30 minutes of walking later, we were in our seats, ready to watch for Sarah. Her relay team had their best time ever, so they were quite happy.

I was happy to see the family and to go to Twistee Treat after.