August Already?

I can't believe that August is already half over! Where did the time go?! I know where... blogging, reading, doing research, playing with our wii (wii Fit mostly), watching "Friends" dvd's, watching the Olympics, doing laundry, and other random ritualistic mundane activities like vacuuming, running errands and dusting - THAT is where the time went! When I think of all of the things I wanted to get done this summer, I just shake my head and because I only have two weeks left to do them!

Here is my checklist:
Clean and organize the 2nd bedroom - Done
Clean and organize the garage - Done
Lose weight - Done
Sing more - Done
Go swimming - couldn't because of my eczema
Take my car to get fixed - Done
Learn how to cook Danielle's pizza (mouth watering)
Scrap a photo album for Isabelle - Done
Go to Goodwill - Done
Make a stack of cards and "small gifts" - Done
Get things ready for school - Done
Go to the 'Fair' - Done

Wish me luck!

Why is Teresa always on the left?

I am usually on the left side of the picture because Brian is usually taking the picture with his hand! We're standing that way so the picture turns out. We've switched it up a few times, and neither one of us really likes the picture, and we end up going back to me on the left. It's funny really!

The Heritage Flight

When we went to the Duluth Air Show we saw a Heritage Flight. It was performed/flown by a P-38 Lightning and an A-10 Thunderbolt 2. We don't have a video camera so I taped the flight with my digital camera. The video is in 3 separate parts because I am having a hard time streaming together. They are a bit shaky at times, but I got the planes when they were in front of me! My camera has a WONDERFUL mic on it, and it picked up the announcer really well! I hope this works...

This is the first pass of the Heritage Flight.



This is the second pass and the "It is the soldier" speech. This one ALWAYS chokes Brian up... it's really sweet! This one is shaky at the beginning!



This is the third pass in which they fly directly over my head. It's shaky in the middle... sorry!


That speech does choke me up every time I hear it or read it, not just because I have a huge amount of respect for our military and the sacrifices they make for us. It also makes me angry because it IS the soldier's who provide all of those things that the press, citizens, and protesters all take for granted. If we didn't fight for our freedoms and other gifts that we have been given, we wouldn't have them!!! We would be like many other countries out there, like Iraq was under Saddam, where the people couldn't speak out for fear of their lives or their loved ones lives.

I know many people may not agree with some of the things we do as a country or get involved in but I believe its because we want everyone to have the same freedoms and comforts as we do in our country. No, we are not perfect, there are MANY things we can do better, but I'm very proud of this country that I live in and I fully support everyone who defends those rights.

I will never have the ability to defend or fight for my country, so the best thing that I can do is stand up strong for the individuals that do and show them my thanks and appreciation.

Duluth Air Show

We went up north (about 3 hours north) for the Duluth Air Show this last weekend. We went a couple of years ago and were excited to learn they (the city of Duluth) were having another (show). We were especially excited (didn't you already say that) because the Blue Angels were going to perform and neither one of us had ever seen them in person. The Air Show a couple of years ago featured the Thunderbirds - fyi.

We were also excited because there was going to be an A-10 demonstration team there! That is exciting to us (especially me - no me) because Danielle and Mike (my sister and brother-in-law) both fly the A-10. So we were going to see one in person, and see what it can do for the first time! The A-10 is in the picture to the left.

On to the show:
We get to Duluth on Friday night and it was BEAUTIFUL!!! The sun was out and it was warm (about 75) with a light breeze - talk about perfect! We listened to the weather reports and they all said the rain that was coming in was going to hold off until later in the evening on Saturday. We woke up and it was on the chilly side (thank you Lake Superior) and it was overcast. We got to the Air Show and were appropriately dressed with lawn chairs over our shoulders, sunblock on our skin, and sunglasses on our heads. The gates opened around 8:30am and we began to walk around. We forgot our ear plugs in the garage (right where they belong - with our shooting safety glasses) so we made our way to a souvenir stand and purchased some disposable plugs. Then as we were looking at all of the planes we noticed the seating area was filling up faster than it had a couple of years ago (I think it had something to do with the BLUE ANGELS - but I could be wrong) so we decided to reserve our seats (a.k.a. put our lawn chairs up and continue to look around). The picture above and to the right is of us in our seats.

At 10:30am we decided to take our seats and we waited for the fun to begin! Around 11:00am the show started! We were all smiles (accompanied with squinty eyes as the sun is so bright behind those clouds). We watched in awe as a couple of F-16s from the Duluth base took off. Then we gazed at three stunt planes as they took off and dazzled us with their rolls, turns, loops, and spins. Then we lazily watched two Cirrus planes glide in front of us as the announcer talked about all of their accompaniments. In the picture to the left you can see the P-38 taxiing past us (we had great seats).

But what really choked us up was the P-38 in flight, the A-10 in flight, the P-38 and A-10 Heritage Flight, and of course the Blue Angels (and their C-130 which is in the picture to the right - the C-130 is my favorite - I love the way it sounds) in flight. They choked us up for different reasons - the P-38 because of its history, the A-10 because of Danielle and Mike, the Heritage Flight because it linked the past and present, and the Blue Angels because they are INCREDIBLE!!!

Unfortunately, the show was cut short (at about 3:30pm) due to inclement weather so the Blue Angels didn't get to finish their set (part of which you can see in the picture to the left)! We were very disappointed (and wet - and cold), but we were still thrilled to have been able to see them at all!! Learning about the planes, seeing them up close, and talking with the men and women in our armed forces was an amazing opportunity. The planes took our breath away and learning what they were for/how they were used was so interesting!

I have more pictures that I will be adding to a photo album, and I have videos I am trying to string together as I took them on my digital camera not a video recorder, so check back in a day or two for those!

The only downfall to the whole day was (I hate to say it) the way the A-10 demonstration team (minus the pilot-he was in the air) acted during their introduction and "thank you" clap from the audience. They were right in front of us (their cars were blocking some of the runway in fact) and it was sad to see them not taking the "thank you" claps from the audience seriously. In fact, they were making fun of us clapping for them. I mean, I am not brave/strong/disciplined/courageous enough to be a member of our armed forces but I am very proud of/thankful for/honored by/supportive of those who are and I feel they didn't take it seriously. Don't get me wrong - they took excellent care of the planes before and after flight, but there were people at the show of all ages giving support to those men (I say that because there were no women on the team), and they just made funny faces, messed around on their cell phone, and joked about the audience thanking them. It really made me upset (she still is upset - can you tell)! I am thinking of writing a letter to the team to express my frustration, but I am not sure about that yet...

Family Fun Shoot - Warning! Firearms/Bows will be shown!

Bruce (my father-in-law and my dad) has organized a Family Fun Shoot at the Dakota County Gun Club on the 1st and 3rd Saturdays in June, July, and August. It is sponsored by the Dakota County Gun Club and the Minnesota DNR. Those who help out are MN DNR certified instructors and there is usually 1 adult to every 2 children. During these events, children who are no older than 16 in 2008 and attend with an adult can safely learn to use a .22 rifle and/or a bow and arrow.

These days are really fun and we are excited to be involved with them. We encourage everyone to come out to the Dakota County Gun Club for one (or all) of the remaining days (August 2nd and 16th).

The Dakota County Gun Club is also sponsoring a Ladies Day where ladies 16 and up can come in to learn how to safely and properly use a pistol, rifle, shotgun, muzzleloader, and buffalo gun. There is one-on-one instruction and everything is provided. If you would like more information on either of these events, visit the Dakota County Gun Club Website!

Bruce (especially) and the other members have made each of these events fun and educational and we encourage you to attend (again).

Dress Shopping With Angie

So Angie, my older sister, is getting married on September 12, 2009. She is more organized and anal than I am! She loves to cross t's and dot i's and check things off of lists. It's really exciting!

Anyway, she made an appointment at Mestads in Rochester for June 29th. She had an idea of the kind of dress she was looking for and wanted to try that one on right away. She ended up taking 5 or 6 into the room to try on all of similar styles and the one she wanted was included. However, the sales lady kept coming back with different styles and Angie was gracious enough to try them on (you can see 3 of those dresses in this post). After about 30/45 minutes of trying on dresses Angie tried on the one she came for and fell in love.

It was so awesome! You could see her eyes light up and she just started to glow. I am so happy that she found the dress that she will be wearing at her wedding. She looks incredible in it and I know she will look even more amazing when everything fits and she is all done up.

One Teeny Bunny

The other day we were on our way to my Mom and Dad's house. We were meeting my little sister there and were going to take the puppies to the dog park. While we were driving on Edgecumbe (in St. Paul), next to the Highland Pool, when I thought I saw a big rock in the road. When I got closer to it, it hopped away! Brian had no idea where it went or even what it was, so I turned around. When I pulled over, I saw it in the gutter. I got out of the car and walked toward it to realize it was a baby bunny!! We have NEVER seen a bunny so small in our lives! Well it was so small and so cute that we had to bring Maria back (as long as she kept the puppies - a.k.a. Bunny Butchers - in the car). When we got back with Maria, she took out gloves, rubbed them in the grass, then picked up the bunny and brought it from the golf course to the wooded area. We thought it would be safer in the brush rather than on the fairway.


After bringing the bunny to the brush, we went to the dog park by HWYs 62 and 77. My Dad has dubbed it "The Kelly Sundsmo Dog Park" because my friend (you guessed it) Kelly Sundsmo and her now fiance Derek told us about it. My Dad is goofy but I love him for it! Anyway, while we were there, we saw the puppies jump over a log. It was great because Zoey had to leap frog over it and Zack didn't even want to be bothered by the prospect of jumping. One thing we noticed was that there were no trash cans - anywhere - at the park! You'd think that with all of that poo around SOMEONE would want to put a trash can on the premisis. Maybe someday...

Walking, Yes Indeed We're Walking

I don't know the rest of that song, but I like to sing that little bit... especially when we start to go on a walk. I have wanted to start walking every night for a while, but we just picked up the routine. Last night when we went on out walk, it was Puppy Town! I kid you not; we saw 6 puppies! The first few were so cute but Brian would call them "footballs" because if we had a puppy that small he would unknowingly kick it across the room. BUT THEY WERE SO CUTE!! The one that was least cute was the golden lab (?) 12 week old. Oh well...

We are on our way out of the door right now, I hope we see more puppies! I'm bringing my camera!


Yay - Have a great night!