06.30.10

Callie! The highlight of my visit to Fargo, although she didn't want to smile for me. She is doing really well and is loving being a big sister to little Sadie now. :)

06.29.10

Skiing! The first time out for the season. This is Lauren enjoying the smooth waters. Lauren, Mom and I all skiied on two, and Steph slalomed. :) It was a beautiful, calm day on Long Lake.

06.28.10

What do you do when you don't want to bring the lawn mower down the hill, and the weed whip is not strong enough to take down the long grass? Bust out an old scythe from an auction at some point and use your best golf swing! Haha...fantastic fun.

06.27.10

"Anna -- go stock the beer fridge." Ok :) Done deal. Looks like we are getting ready for some company over the 4th!

06.26.10

The p-rents and I at Steph Boesche Polzin's wedding reception in Isanti, MN. It was very nice of them to come with me and I know that it meant a lot to Steph as well to get to see them there.

06.25.10

Rest in Peace Grandma Olga. We love you.

06.24.10

AMAZING! One of my favorite pics of all time. Jessie might have mentioned a moment earlier that she was getting splashed in the back of the boat...but unfortunately Dad did not hear in time, and the diva got wet! Sorry Nacho!

06.23.10

On the drive home to the cabin, Mom and I stopped by Wadena to look at the tornado damage. This still amazes me -- the entire side of this house was ripped off, but there are still dishes stacked perfectly in the cabinets.

06.22.10

I am not sure that I am all about this -- but if I ever have any visitors who would like to try some mussels from this famous chain, I'd be game.

06.21.10

I'm coming home! :)

06.20.10

So, I used to always go for a run by this thing (not sure what it was), but I have been taking a different route for awhile now. Imagine my surprise when I went by and saw this little version of Wilson from Castaway on top of whatever this is. It is a little ways out in the water and pretty high, so I'm not exactly sure how it got there, but I think it is amazing.

06.19.10

So...I witnessed an accident. I was walking home from working overnight and BAM -- two cars hit each other in an intersection. I hung around for about 20 minutes, and seeing that I had a different viewpoint than another, shall we say, verbal witness...I thought it was important to let the police officer know. (He was also cute: Bonus) :) Two other witnesses agreed with me though, which was nice. It was my first time recording a "statement" for anyone and I was nervous...but it all went well. Thankfully nobody was hurt. This is a bad picture because I took it from a distance, but it is of the accident nonetheless.

06.18.10

2 reasons this picture is amazing.

#1 -- It reminds me of the time that we were at Old Chicago (land of a billion choices of beer) and Mom ordered a Hamm's. :)

#2 -- This is quintessential Baltimore. Tacky. Just tacky. This is all that is in one big storefront window.

06.17.10

Well hello Ryder -- you look so much cuter now that you've had a bath! I like this picture, because mama didn't know that I snuck her in the background as well. :) Both mom and baby seem to be adjusting well.

06.16.10

Tonight I had a lovely belated birthday dinner with Anna M., Ashly and Katie -- thank you ladies! At one point during the dinner conversation we began talking about Chicago and how the people there are like me, i.e. "so damn wholesome". Thank you Anna M. -- I think that just may be one of the best compliments I have ever gotten!

06.15.10

My 26th birthday was spent largely watching this -- baby mama #3 going through an induction. I really enjoy being a birth companion, and bringing another individual into the world seemed like a great way to spend the day. I am posting this a little late -- at 3:58am she did deliver a 6lb 11 oz healthy baby boy named Ryder :)

06.14.10

After being initiated into Chapter EK in Minneapolis and then living in Fargo and not being able to attend any meetings, I decided to try to take on a bigger role within PEO in Baltimore. I transfered into Chapter D and they have been very welcoming. Tonight we had a meeting and it was a very small showing, but still nice nonetheless. I love the intergenerationalness (new word -- embrace it!) of PEO. One of my favorite sisters out here is 75+ years old, and fabulous.

06.13.10

HONFEST! Still not sure on the basis of this event (other than out here people call each other "hon" and that the "mother" in both versions of Hairspray, which is based in Baltimore, was a "hon"). Regardless -- it was a good event -- people dressed up, and all sorts of other crazy, wacky and quirky happenings -- just the way Baltimore likes it.

06.12.10

Baltimore has a lot of different murals throughout the city -- today on my way to the gym I passed an alleyway where a woman was working on this one -- and on the way back she was finished. I think it is so cool.

06.11.10

Good Morning Baltimore! This was the view outside of my front door when I walked in this morning from the birth. It was weird to drive back into city limits with the sky just starting to lighten. Probably one of my favorite times of the day.

06.10.11

Shawanda's IMP Graduation! Congrats Shawanda -- we are all proud of you. :)

06.09.10

So, I found a new way to walk to the bus -- a much more scenic route -- with the exception of this nasty little area that smells JUST LIKE COMPS! Some of you know what I mean, and it is DISGUSTING! Not what I want to smell when I'm enjoying my lovely stroll to or from work.

06.08.10

A few of the almost finished frames that we made to give to the IMP students at their graduation on Thursday. :) Each frame depicts a word that their family chose about them and is decorated with stickers that represent their interests. They will be finished with a picture of the student as well as a "blurb" that defines their word and has a message from their IMP family members.

06.07.10

This one is for Dr. Krista Gossai -- she always wanted to tour this museum, but I'm pretty sure that she didn't get that one accomplised. Maybe by the time I leave B'more I'll take a little tour.

06.06.10

A picture of the Pulaski memorial in Patterson Park -- the Polish festival was taking place below it. Unfortunately Ashly and I decided that it was not worth the $5 admission to actually partake in the festival. However, I figure that Pulaski may well be a Polish name, so thus it became the picture of the day!

06.05.10

When I walked home from work at 7am I took a detour through the Inner Harbor -- it was a beautiful start to the day (or rather end for me).

06.04.10

Yup -- it is what you think it is -- a little restraint for when boys get circumcised. The discoloration is from betadine, not blood. Poor little fellas.

06.03.10

My new FREE friend! :) The orange line goes right by the University of Maryland, and so it is perfect when I work the 7p to 7a shift.

06.02.10

Ok...so I did a little bit of editing on this photo to let you know what I am up against every day when I go to the gym. If you go after 3pm you will smell delicious buttered popcorn coming from the movie theater indicated on the left. Make no mistake though -- you have to walk right past the haagen dazs store on the way both TO and FROM the gym...willpower people, willpower.

06.01.10

Chicken? YES! However, not what you may think -- this is Ashly's creative way of defrosting chicken brats -- and then allowing them to explode everywhere while cooking them. :) I can't complain though because they were delicious and she graciously invited me over to dinner to enjoy them. Thanks Miss Higgins -- you are a great cook!