Don't go to the Re-ver :(

This past weekend, the boys made their annual camping trip up the Susquehanna river. The wives were only invited once and after a near-drowning, were weren't invited back. I was packed and ready to go this year, but being the only woman going, I backed out and decided to let it be a "boys weekend." They never really get to do this kind of stuff and I thought by next year, there will hopefully be kids in the picture for a coupld of the boys. From what I heard, it rained Saturday night, bonfire was good, steaks I marinated went over well, and there was tons of food left over. Besides John's cut up leg, I'm so glad they had a wonderful time. No one drowned, no one lost a limb, and they had another great bonding experience.



A look up the Susquehanna River; mightly low water...


Bob and Joe loaded down with tarps, water, drinks, sleeping bags, and of course, homemade brownies :) YUM!


John manned with fire wood to last a year, food, tents, and a one-man paddle. I just love the life vest laying in front of him; thought it was used for more. Oh well.

Loxley's with the Ladies

It was about time that the group from nursing school got together. We had gone from seeing each other 24/7 (or so it felt like), to having busy lives where everyone was running different directions. Now that we all seemed to be established in our jobs, we planned for one night together. It was certainly not what we were use to. There were no more talks about tests, teachers, or clinicals. Instead, we found out we actually had other lives we were leading. It was neat to "re-get to know everyone."
We ended up going to a new restaurant, Loxleys. It is basically a 3 story tree house build off the side of a hotel. It was pretty awesome. Unfortunatly, by the time we were ready to eat, it started raining. So inside we went. Oh well....

1 year anniversary

I can not believe how fast a year has gone! I feel like we've accomplished so much since last year...
-graduating school
-starting a family
-John's business purchasing a new office
-buying our lot; and all JP's toys to go with it:)

I can't wait to see what the future holds for us as many more years go by. Hopefully not as fast as this first one though.


For our anniversary, John and I went to Fells Point for a long weekend. My aunt and uncle had purchased a night at The Inn At Hendersens Wharf as our wedding gift. We had been waiting to use it when the season was just right. We wanted to go sight-seeing, explore the town, etc. This was the perfect occassion.




We toured the Royal Australian Navy Ship that happened to be anchored in Baltimore. The ship was amazing! I think John's favorite part was going into the control room and seeing all the technology, maps, and the captain's chair. I would be safe to say this was the best part of his trip. We had an awesome time.

Here he is next to his favorite thing... the gun stationed on the bow of the ship.


The weather was too nice during the day and evenings to hail a taxi. We went by water, a water taxi to be exact. $6/day would get you anywhere. We loved it.

Heathsville, Md: July 8-12

Two weeks ago, John and I had the opportunity to go to his sister's home on the bay in Maryland. This was only my 2-3rd time down, but it's so peaceful everytime we go.
John had to work on Wednesday about 1 1/2 hours away, so I had the privledge of riding along with him. Being that it was a long day with nothing for me to do, I ventured towards Gettysburg and decided to tour some of the area.

I can only remember being in Gettysburg during elementary school, but not remembering much of the history or surroundings. I took the auto-tour path and stopped many times along the way to view the scenery. I also got to visit the new visitors center which is gorgeous! I wish I had had more time, but with the 45 minute drive back to John, I needed to call it a day after 4 hours. (plus, I was dying to fit in a manicure and pedicure)

Pennsylvania Monument


Little Round Top overlooking Devil's Den (left) and the Valley of Death





John got off work around 2:30 and we made the long trip to the Northern Neck of Virginia. The drive was uneventful, and I managed to stay awake for most of it. We met the Hogan's almost 1/2 way and stopped for dinner right on the bay. It was such good food and sitting on the deck, overlooking the water was just perfect.


We spent the rest of the week riding jet skis, taking boat rides, and sitting on the deck enjoying the weather. We had the perfect weather! I got plenty of sun, took naps almost everyday, and just enjoyed the relaxation.

On Friday, Carol Jean and her kids arrived (John and Jacquie's cousin). We had a blast with them! We haven't actually seen them since the wedding, it's been that long, so it was good to catch up on everything.

Friday and Saturday, we steamed crabs... John's favorite. PJ bought a huge box of live crabs and steamed them himself. John seemed to really enjoy them.





Needless to say, before the cooking process, we each picked a crab and had crab races on the dock. Mine lost. It didn't help that my poor guy was limbless, double time! He could barely save himself :(


Here are just a few other pictures of everyone having a good time. Thanks Jacquie and PJ for the fun, much needed week of relaxation!



John and I took a cruise to who knows where. It was so nice and the water was so calm. These things can go up to 80mph!





Kate and Jack

Jacquie, John, and Carol Jean

Tired, and not ready for the long drive back to Pennsylvania

July 4th

We celebrated Gabrielle's birthday at the Barnstormers Game. John had box tickets for the game, although towards the end, we ended up sitting with friends. Here are some pictures of the night.



My first love... haha:)


My true love


Abigail and her friend


Gabrielle and her friend



You never realize how much money you can spend at a baseball game. Almost $50 for 4 platters of chicken fingers and fries and $4 for ice cream. It was nuts, but overall, we had a fun night.

1st appointment

8 weeks, no bump, + heart beat. I love that sound :)

Perfection

I have finally learned to work the grill! After almost 1 year, I think I can do it on my own! YAH for that :)

I have been grilling just about anything. My latest was Salmon with a dill sauce... awesome! I have been reading up on how to grill certain foods and from what I am reading, the best way to grill is through "foil packets." This may be a cheaters way, but for me, it's the fastest, fool-proof way to grilling.


This has been my latest creation. A grilled chicken breast sandwich with avocados. It is so yummy! The difficult thing with making dinner in my house is that John doesn't seem to eat anything. No vegetables, little fruits, nothing "crazy" as he would say. This sandwich is just too "crazy" for him as he picks off most of the toppings.

Cycling

So I recently joined a new gym the beginning of this month. Thinking I would be in attendence more due to it being closer to my job. I love everything this gym has to offer, from classes round the clock, a swimming pool, sauna, "ladies only" areas, etc. I have taken a few classes, which I love! It makes the workout go much quicker. This past Monday, I decided to take a cycling class for the FIRST time ever! The blurb about this class said, "Maximum fat burning, high energy class. It is an indoor stationary cycling program where the instructor takes you through a virtual outdoor road race complete with hills and valleys." I can do that! Sounds like fun!

There were only about 12 people in the entire class and the instructor was right on top of the "newbies," AKA: ME. She taught us how to use the bike, and what her different cues meant. Well, 15 minutes into the hour class, my butt started to hurt incredibly bad. The seats were not padded and I didn't think to go out and purchase padded shorts for 1 class. We were standing up, sitting down, doing push-ups off the bikes, etc.

Towards the end of the class, we did sprints for the last 5 mintues sitting on the bike. I opted to stand up because I was in that much pain. After the class, the instructor commented what a great job I did. "You kept up beautifully; standing up there and everything! Great job!" Such praise!; but if she only knew the true reason I was standing....

I am still black and blue to some degree. The first couple of days were painful to just sit in the car. I've learned and now I'm prepared for the next class with my padded gel covered seat (thanks to mom :) )

Sleepover

Sleepover with Zac... 1st ever! What a tropper!

Ok, a sleep-less sleepover is more like it.
Here are the 2 boys in bed enjoying their popcorn.

Cute

Super quick....

As Mindy and I were walking to our pump-it class Tuesday night, we saw 3 young kids playing in their front yard. We went walking by and as we did, one little girl came running over saying something. We thought she wanted to show us her earrings, or so that's how it sounded with her little lisp. (cute :) ) As we approached her and she ran to the edge of the road, she asked me to bend down, so I did. All she wanted to do was touch my earrings. She noticed my tiny hoops from the middle of her yard and she wanted to touch them. Precious. She touched them 3 times, maybe more if I would have let her, before we said we needed to keep walking. She was adorable; checking out my wallet, my license, keys, anything she could get ahold of. That probably made her day, but to us, it's now the running joke. I love little kids!

Love It!

This photo is hanging up on my floor of the hospital. It's something that makes me laugh every morning, so I thought I would share...


"Critics view on 'how not to get the swine flu.'"

Gardening

Ever wonder why God created weeds? Or did Satan create weeds to destroy God's creations? These are the questions John was hit with as we were working outside Saturday. Hopefully I didn't get too carried away?.....

Before

After

John decided to rent a rotatiller that rips up the yard in order to pull out all the old grass. After you use the machine, you have to rake the yard of all the dead grass. Well, John decided that our yard needed to be done TWICE! Why, I still have no idea. At this point, I left for a manicure as we had a friend's confirmation at church later that afternoon. When I came home, there were 10 of these lining our driveway....

Painting and new furniture!

I have been wanting new bedroom furniture for quite some time now. John has always commented that what we have suits just fine. Well, after the furniture store next to his office put out Closing signs, we decided to go looking. We ended up getting an amazing deal on a 6 piece bedroom suite which we both LOVE!

It's a sleigh bed and all!

When it arrived I felt like a princess. The furniture is huge and so classic looking. We both love what we chose. I order to prepare for the new bedroom, I again decided to take on another project. This time, the project was painting. Not painting just the bedroom, but 3 bathrooms, and the kitchen as well. (wait, the kitchen was all John's idea.... I love the old color)

Old color and new color (Indiana Crimson... yes, it's the football team color paint)


It was a LLOONNGG weekend of painting and we were happy to get everything done before the new bedroom furniture came. My mom was a big help in the process too. Way to go paint edger! I love the colors! Check them out....