al bawadia

one thing i love about chicago is all of the cool people we meet.  the second thing i love is how all those cool people we meet introduce us to delicious, delicious food.  dr. m (from abh) introduced us to some amazing indian food.  yummy! look at the huge ginormous feast he ordered.  i don't even know what half of it was, but the lamb dish makes me salivate just thinking about it! 

Nurses take on Six Flags

adventist healthcare (one of my employers) rented out all of six flags for an entire day and let all of it's employees run loose and take over the park...hospital style! ahah! just kidding--we were still somewhat professional, but it was a blast.  we hung out with bernadette, one of my favorite nurses ever, and her hubby, marcin, and went on some rides together.  it was super fun day! thanks abh!

beauty stars

all pooped out! thanks for coming rich and hanging with me and my cool colleagues! :)

hostage negotiator tips

when i run, i listen to the radio.  sometimes i hear random words i like.  today i heard a hostage negotiator give four tips for active listening.  enjoy.  :)

1.  listen to what the other person is saying.  really listen.  don't interrupt, disagree or evaluate.   hear them out and listen all the way. 
2. show signs you are listening.  nod your head or make a brief acknowledging comment like saying right or yes.
3.  repeat back what they say from their frame of reference (without being awkward)
4.  inquire.  ask questions that show you have been paying attention and that move the discussion forward.

minnesota summer lovin'

winters in minnesota are a definite avoidance...summers in minnesota are a definite do not miss! rich and i both had a break from work and school that coincided, so we went to the land of 10,000 lakes for a little small and big town fun. :)  some of my favorite adventures include:

• taking walks at sunset with my honey and puppy to the river, lake and golf course ;)
• getting our water and sun on every day at the st. olaf lake! we (amy, rich and i) even swam across the whole lake! ahah! we almost got killed, but it was totally worth it.  thanks for the dare, richard...
• getting our ballgame on at a twins game.  it was a gorgeous day and pop's even came! woohoo!
• getting our weirdy fun on at the minnesota state fair!  mom, laura and kissy performed with their clogging team, so it was a blast watching them.  they have gotten so freakin' great!
• getting our adrian peterson on at the metrodome and watching the vikes preseason game.  SKOL VIKINGS!
• having a delicious breakfast of everything you could ever want at tom and jessica's cute home   

please enjoy my photographic documentation attempts.  :)

they are my cute little all american boys! :)

some all american men! ;)

jesse, brayden and zack (it took many camera attempts to get one normal shot)

"daddy...i want cotton candy" baby sister! xoxo

hey all you good lookin's!

laura is the only one with the appropriate attire! i couldn't find my twin's shirt....ugh!

"you'll be my american boy, american boy"

the metrodome.  they are building a new stadium.  it will hopefully have a better roof.  ahah!

mikey and breia came with us to see the vikings! i freakin' love these two! so much fun it is ridiculous.  the best part was tearing up the handouts and throwing paper in the air...ahah!

the wild rose cloggers! they kick butt.

go girls go!

it was about 95 degrees....but they made it look like a breeze.

yes.  yes.  yes.  that is my husband. wearing a big sunfish paper hat.  singing along in a giant karoake.  best thing ever!

i definitely had to join that!

yummy breakfast!

amy and i got lucky ;) aren't they cute together?

my mom/the gardening diva and puma!

taking a last sunset walk with richy

home sweet home

hey soul sisters

ashes and kissy came to visit!  i absolutely loved having them here so much.  i wish they didn't live so dang far away.  the first day they were here, we all woke up early and went running together.  we may or may not have taken a couple hours on that run, but it is hard to run when you are laughing...i wish i could run with those two foxy ladies everyday.  after our run, we got dolled up and went downtown.  while on the subway, i definitely enjoyed watching my country sisters get hit on by city boys.  LOL!  we saw all of the sights (by foot) and ate and shopped--definitely an unforgettable day.  the next day, we went running again (i love having running buddies), then we hung out in naperville.  rich met up with us for some delicious lou malnatis' pizza and we went to see the new wolverine movie.  the last day they were here, we stayed in our pajamas pretty much all day and had an all day slumber party and watched ps:i love you and many other great girl movies that rich just doesn't appreciate as much as my sisters do.  i still love him though.  we did leave for a short pajama party break and forced kristy to try sushi.  she did not like it, but i know she will come around...  the sad part of this story is that they left.  puma and i were so sad to see them drive away, especially because ashley is going to texas for her mission soon.  however, we all agreed that we are going to start having more sister weekends when she gets back...a lot more!

my beautiful babes!

friendship bracelets!

cloudgate/the bean and my cray cray clan

lovin' that blonde hair! but we also hate her for it.

way too much fun...

studmuffin man and me at lou malnatis

party in naperville

dick tracy and ashley

dick tracy and kissy

oh yes...ashley got a fabulous hair cut! she is so pretty!

glamour shots

glamour girl part two

glamour girl part three.  the end!

HaPPy BirthDay PuMa

puma possin, our best little buddy ever, turned two! i sure love having this furry little crazy thing around me all the time.  happy birthday poopa!

ahhhhh she is is the best puppy ever!

Train Concert

She doesn't own a dress
Her hair is always a mess
You catch her stealin' she won't confess
She's beautiful

Smokes a pack a day, but wait, that's me, but anyway
She doesn't care a thing, about that hair
She thinks I'm beautiful
Meet Virginia

She never compromises, loves babies and surprises
Wears high heels when she exercises
Ain't that beautiful
Meet Virginia

Well she wants to be the queen
Then she thinks about her scene
Pulls her hair back as she screams
"I don't really wanna be queen"

Her daddy wrestles alligators
Mama works on carburetors
Her brother is a fine mediator
For the president

And here she is again on the phone
Just like me hates to be alone
We just like to sit at home
And rip on the president
Meet Virginia

Well she wants to live her life
Then she thinks about her life
Pulls her hair back, as she screams
"I don't really wanna live this life", no, no, no

She only drinks coffee at midnight
But the moment is not right
And the time is quite, unusual

You see her confidence is tragic
But her intuition magic
And the shape of her body, unusual

Meet Virgina, I can't wait to
Meet Virginia, yeah, yeah, hey, hey

Well, she wants to be the queen
Then she thinks about her scene
Well, she wants to live her life
Then she thinks about her life

Pulls her hair back as she screams
I don't really wanna be the queen, ah, ah
I don't really wanna be the queen, ah, ah
I don't really wanna be the queen, ah, ah
I don't really wanna live here

yessss it is true...we got to hear train sing that song live at tinley park! he was amazing and sounded so great!  some of the songs he covered were hey, soul sister, 50 ways to say goodbye, bruises, drops of jupiter, drive by and one i hadn't heard before but now LOVE called mermaid.  i freakin' love live music.  happy summer days!

for the mermaid song, train had all these chicsters from the audience up on the stage dressed up as mermaids.